Glorie Townson and It’s Like the Full Moon

Hi there, Toi here. Today, I’m happy to share a bit of my alter ego, Glorie Townson, with you.

But first…

Amazon

Rebecca has just turned thirty. She’s happy living a perfectly comfortable and predictable life. She’s even ready to marry her long-time boyfriend whenever he finally gets around to asking her. But all that changes when her best friend whisks her away to Italy for a much-needed vacation.

In the midst of site seeing and finally letting loose, Rebecca manages to catch the eye of a young English tourist but doesn’t let it go to her head. By the time she’s back in the States and back in the arms of her long-time beau, Rebecca has already forgotten about Peter, Paten, Paul…whatever his name was, that is until he shows up at her brother’s cabin in the woods.

A life of normalcy, routine, and stability gets turned upside down as Rebecca decides whether or not she’s truly ready to get married. And if so, who is the one she’s really meant to be with?

Add on Goodreads 

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So, Glorie Townson is a name I came up with to represent all the aspects of my personality that lean more towards tales of romance. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with publishing multiple genres under the same name, but when you are known as a geek girl and have most writing credits in the speculative genres, finding a better way to reach a new audience isn’t a bad idea. The few people who’ve reached out to me to tell me that they’ve enjoyed my debut romcom, have all found it a bit surprising that my real name is Toi and that I am not known for writing romance.

For me, this means two things. 1) I had good instincts when I thought Glorie sounded more like someone who writes romance than does Toi. 2) I may have dug myself a little hole. My entire web presence is built on my platform of being a book-loving geek girl who likes comic books and movies. I never really put much out there to support Glorie. I honestly never thought anyone would read It’s Like the Full Moon.

Oh well, lesson learned. Someone did read the book and I’m glad they did. The planned sequel has been in the works for a while and I hope it entertains as much as the first one when it’s ready for release.

Until then, why not check out the chapter by chapter playlist I created to accompany the book. It’s quite a ride.

A-SIDE

B-SIDE

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On a completely separate note, Happy Juneteenth (June 19th) to my US brothers and sisters!

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Find out more about me, my work, and my inspiration at the following links:

Amazon | Goodreads | The ToiBox of Words | YouTube | See a list of my other posts here.

Multi-Author Colaborations

Multi-Author Box Sets and Anthologies are the worth the effort?

Anthologies are awesome in theory. You get samples of the writing styles of various authors usually for a pittance.  For the contributors, we get a little publicity with the possibility of increasing our fan base.  Avid fans of an author will often buy anthologies they are part of and, theoretically, they will read the books and see what the rest of us do!

How exciting, and it seems to be one of the easier methods of promotion.  One short piece and you have permanent exposure. Or so we believe.

Well, theory and reality don't always meet in the middle.  I remember being so excited when my poems "Balloon" and "Mausoleum" were accepted to be part of Cogs In Time.  I was over the moon!  They were my first attempts to write Steampunk, so I did not really think I had actually met the criteria. To be included with all the talent that was in that collection gave my ego a big boost. I continued to offer poems for any anthology.  

The Cogs In Time anthologies were just done for their promotional value. I actually was included in Cogs II but declined being in Cogs III.  At the time I could not guarantee that I would be able to promote as much as I should.

Others I was part of offered their royalties for good causes:  Read For Animals and  Authors Against Bullying were for social issues.

While Klarissa's Dream, Un-Turn This Stone, and Not Enough To Quit are to help raise money for cures.

One, Touched by Shadow, Caressed by Light,  I just participated in for the sake of seeing if I could write erotic poetry, lol.

For all of them, I enjoyed being part of the process.  There was camaraderie and mutual respect shared among all the participants.

Except for the ones raising money for cures, they are no longer even available, except as resales of paperbacks. Once the hype of the release events were over, there was no more interest. The books got very few reviews and they were mainly from the authors who had taken part. There was no increase in fan bases, no new readers, just another book that got lost in the internet.

Multi-Author box sets I believe are suffering the same fate.  Although they get some sales, "15 books for 99cents" is a great deal. I do not believe many people actually read them.  They may read the one their "fave author" included but I think that is the end of it.


I am guilty of this attitude myself.  I will help out my fave authors, if they are in an anthology/box set I will buy it. If it is for a good cause, that is just a plus.  However, I would bet I will never open the first book.  I was made aware of this trait recently when Eva Pasco released her novella, Mr. Wizardo.  I have Once Upon A Fabulous Time, the anthology that it originally was published in...bought it the day it went on sale.  It is somewhere on my kindle.  I bought her book as a stand alone, and actually read it.  My only disappointment was realizing I had this entertaining work gathering cyberdust instead of being enjoyed.

I think these types of collections could do all they are supposed to.  I will continue to offer my support for any good cause, be it by participating or by purchasing the creations.  But in all honesty I will have to admit I won't read them.

I just believe that there are too many free and underpriced books out there filling up peoples electronic bookshelves that no one could ever read them all. Big time authors will be read, and us Indie Authors have to keep our fingers crossed hoping someone will take a chance.  I do not see how flooding the few true readers will ever be beneficial. 

What do you think?  Do you read all the collections you buy?

Ain’t Nobody Got Time for Book Reviews in the Spotlight

Hi there, Toi here. I’m back to share another new release with you today. This is one for the teen and adult book lovers of the world. It’s an opinion piece I’ve written to shed some light on book reviewing culture.

Amazon.com

Have you ever wondered why it seems authors are often whining about book reviews? What's the big deal anyway? How much of a difference could your one book review really make? In this opinion piece, ten-time self-published author and blogger, Toi Thomas, discusses candidly why book reviewing culture isn't what it should be.

This is not a book about how to write book reviews and it is not a how-to book for authors to gain book reviews. This is a book about reevaluating your thought-process and opinions about book reviewing culture.

Toi Thomas clearly understands that "Ain't nobody got time for book reviews" when there are so many more important things for a book lover to do. Right? Plus, you can read this book from cover to cover in less than two hours. 100% of proceeds go to support Lit Carnivale, a book fair in the making.

Check out these two, variant mock-up covers that didn’t make the cut as you enjoy this excerpt.

 

“I have this theory that if people treated book reviews like food reviews, we’d have more of them. Of course, I do understand that while everyone eats, not everyone reads. I also recognize that eating is a basic human need, and that reading is a form of entertainment, a tool of education and development, and a method of rehashing or discovering history. However, for those who love to read, books are usually a high priority. My question is, why not write book reviews?

When someone walks into a restaurant, they do so with the intention of spending money. In fact, I’d say it’s more than an intention. People go to restaurants to pay for a meal, just as people go to theaters to pay to watch movies. After paying for their meal, people often feel compelled to let other people know that the food was good or bad, that the service was good or bad, and that the price and ambiance were balanced or unbalanced.

This is not the case with books. For people who actually buy books, not just the people who only download free ebooks (This book probably isn’t for them anyway, but I’ll touch on this later.), but the people who pay money for ebooks, print books, and dare I say it, audiobooks- there is no guarantee that these paid for items will ever get read; a library patron will pretty much always read the books they obtain. Still, if by some chance a book is read, a small act of God or, whatever you believe in, may have to occur before the average reader will share their experience. They’ll keep it to themselves whether the plot was good, the characters were likable, and the setting was believable or realistic. No, no, no, a book lover will not go out of their way to write a review for a book they liked and will only write a review for a book they don’t like if they feel a need to warn people against it….”

Ain’t Nobody Got Time for Book Reviews © 2018 Toinette J Thomas, published as Toi Thomas.

If you liked this, please consider giving this book a look and check out my Lit Carnivale dream. 

Find out more about me, my work, and my inspiration at the following links:

Amazon | Goodreads | The ToiBox of Words | YouTube | See a list of my other posts here.

Click here to read more posts at our Blog Post Gallery

COMMENTS

Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Toi Thomas presents a thoughtful book on why we don't make time to review books, and ways to overcome your hesitation in writing reviews. #OurAuthorGang

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Joe Bonadonna

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Great article, Toi, and one that hits close to home for all of us.

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Joe Bonadonna via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Today on #OurAuthorGang, author Toinette Thomas talks about book reviews and the non-fiction book, "Ain't Nobody Got Time For Book Reviews."

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Ruth de Jauregui

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Oh my, so, so true! I only write reviews for books I like, and I feel like I'm always behind on them, LOL!

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

I get caught up some times, but I'm usually behind. For me, at least, getting caught up is important.

Toi Thomas via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Today, I put Ain’t Nobody Got Time for Book Reviews in the Spotlight at #OurAuthorGang

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Cindy Smith

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

This is probably an accurate assessment of book reviews.

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Cindy Smith shared this via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

Thanks for sharing.

Chris Weigand

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Interesting article.

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

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This is just a small snippet, there's more to it.

Chris Weigand shared this via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

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Eva Pasco

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

An Indie author who  understands the importance of book reviews--I write one for every book I read.

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

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That's awesome! Yay book reviewers!

Tricia Drammeh

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

This post reminded me I need to leave a review for your book! Ain't Nobody Got Time for Book Reviews is a thoughtful, well-reasoned book about book reviews and book review culture. I think you touch on some points in your book that would surprise the "average" reader. I definitely recommend this book to both authors and readers!

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

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Thanks so much for saying that. I put a lot of thought in it and think it will appeal to people who do actually enjoy reading.

Eva Pasco via Google+

2 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Eva Pasco originally shared this

An Indie author who  understands the importance of book reviews--I write one for every book I read.

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Toi Thomas

2 months ago

 

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