Marketing Strategy for 2016: There I go, Pivoting Again

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Apropos of one of my 2016 resolutions—to stay nimble when it comes to marketing—I have once again changed my primary marketing strategy for the first part of 2016. In 2014, my main strategy rested on having my series of Victorian San Francisco mysteries in KDP Select and doing monthly 99 cent promotions of each book through the Kindle Countdown tool provided for books in KDP Select. With no new book out that year, this strategy did a great job at keeping the three books in my series visible and selling. Then, in the summer of 2014, when Amazon introduced the subscription service Kindle Unlimited, I found this strategy no longer served my books as well as it had. That was when I decided to switch strategies for 2015. See Time for a Pivot: Kindle Unlimited and Marketing in 2015 for Read more…


Looking forward to 2016

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2016 Resolutions: Spend a greater percentage of my time writing: This seems to be a common theme among fiction writers this year. For me, this means putting the writing first, being more efficient with the time I spend marketing, and continuing to use the strategy I developed last year to increase my productivity. This strategy (which consists of alternating between my historical fiction and my new science fiction series so I am writing on one series during the times when I am researching, plotting, and publishing work in the other series­) enabled me to actually double the number of words I wrote last year. Write more but shorter blog posts: I have neglected my blog this year. On one hand, I felt increasingly like I had nothing new to say in the rapidly evolving self-publishing/ebook environment. On the other hand, Read more…


A Gift for the Holidays: A Victorian San Francisco Novella

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I am delighted that I was able to finish the next installment in the Victorian San Francisco Mystery series in time to give it away for the holidays. Violet Vanquishes a Villain (which started out as a short story and grew into a 28,000 word novella) picks up where the fourth book in the series, Deadly Proof, left off. And it is now available as a FREE electronic download for anyone who has subscribed or wishes to subscribe to my newsletter. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE In addition, for those who would rather buy it directly, it will be only 99 cents through December 20, 2015 on Kindle, Kobo, Nook, and eventually Apple. Here’s the description: In this novella, Annie and Nate Dawson, the amateur sleuths from M. Louisa Locke’s cozy Victorian San Francisco Mystery series, are visiting Nate’s family at Read more…


Historical Fiction Story Bundle Goes on Sale Today!

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I am excited and proud to have 2 of my books as part of a Historical Fiction StoryBundle that is available, November 4-26. In case you don’t know, StoryBundles offer readers a chance to discover quality books by independent authors in a particular theme. These bundles are put together and are available for a limited time. The reader can look at the basic bundle and decide how much they would like to pay, whether they would like to also obtain the bonus books, and whether they would like to donate some of the money raised to charity. The Historical Fiction StoryBundle comprises a total of ten terrific titles by top-notch authors, together representing a breadth and variety of experience. These stories blend real-world historical settings with romance, adventure, fantasy and mystery to bring you whole worlds of fun! You’ll visit Read more…


A Halloween Repeat Treat

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“The feast of All Saints, which was ushered in Friday evening by the old-fashioned games of ‘All Hallows’ E’en, was yesterday celebrated in the Catholic and Episcopal Churches.” San Francisco Chronicle, 1879 “It’s barmbrack cake. Beatrice has baked a ring in it, and tradition has it that the girl who gets the slice with the ring will marry within the year.” Annie Fuller, Uneasy Spirits. The first quote above is from a real person, who was reporting for the San Francisco Chronicle about real events. The second quote is by Annie Fuller, a fictional person and my protagonist, from the second book in my Victorian San Francisco Mystery series, Uneasy Spirits, which is set in 1879 San Francisco. As we approach Halloween, I thought it would be fitting to discuss how I used factual data from the past to provide historical context for a work of fiction. Read more…