"DAISUKI." Blog Tour Day 6: Coming to a Close At Home

For the final day of the blog tour (is it that time already??) I really wanted to present you with a V-log. You know, something a little more personal than just my written words on the screen. (Like, my face and voice? Gasp!) But, come to find out, my webcam doesn't seem to understand HOW DO SOUNDS WORK anymore, so not V-log for now. Oh well! Nobody wants to see what happens to my face after I gain 30 pounds anyway. (Guess where it goes first!)

So in lieu of that, y'all will just have to settle for a super boring text post.

When I moved home from Japan late last April, I really had no idea what more I was going to do with my life. I had no other job, not even a nibble of a lead, and I live way out here in Oregon wilderness with nobody to talk to besides my immediate family and my cat. I've gained thirty pounds (wait, did I mention that already?) thanks to the wonderful American diet, and I pay about 1,000 dollars a month in student loans. Why am I going on and on about this? Because one thing I DID know I was going to do to keep myself going was publish a novel by the end of the year. Originally I wanted to publish my fantasy story CROSS//Rebirth, but it quickly went into editing hell until I figure out what to do with its massive length. Halfway through June Camp I got really sick and tired of the tone of the novel I was writing then, and decided to switch gears to something nicer, maybe sweeter. It had been what felt years since I got to stretch my romance muscles, let alone the lesbian ones! Thus I took a small story idea I'd had for a year and turned it into "DAISUKI.", a short story that quickly turned into a novel. I enjoyed writing it so much that I decided I would publish it if I felt it was up for it.

That idea turned into an entire series, what I now call the "REN'AI RENSAI" series. I managed to, in three months, write a novella, edit it to death (with the best betas and editors out there, of course!), get great cover art, and even brainstorm an entire series I hope will launch me out there and help cover my bills.

I would never have been able to do this without the great help and support of you all. (And the fact that I'm unemployed and thus can dedicate 12 hours of my day to nothing but writing/editing.) I was rather surprised to see how many people from my past contacted me after I announced the upcoming release of "DAISUKI.", showing their support and admiration. I was even more touched by the amount of people who have thus far bought the novella (although it would be nice if Amazon would give me complete, non-glitchy reports!) and told me how much they love it, that it was just what they were looking for, and how strongly they connected to my characters. Of course, I've gotten great constructive feedback too, and am excited to implement everything into future Ren'Ai Rensai installments.

If you had told me even six months ago that I would be publishing two lesbian romance novels and one short by the end of the year, I would have been surprised, but certainly excited! While I haven't made quite enough funds yet to start paying off the loans, or to pay for a trip to Japan next year, or to, gasp, move out of my parents' house, I know I will get there. Maybe even by this time next year I'll be making that author living. And as somebody who has dreamed of nothing more than that her entire life, it's amazing to have it in my reach.

I wouldn't be able to have this opportunity if it weren't for the DIY atmosphere on vendors these days, my parents putting a roof over my head and feeding my enlarging American ass, and of course, all you great Internet people who have been cheering me on. Onward!

PS. Since I couldn't bring you the V-log of me and my cat saying all of the above, have a pic of me and my cat from a few months back! Also, you can see why my webcam sucks. Woo!

She's so happy to help me~

 

DAISUKI BLOG TOUR DAY 5: Review Over at Vanilla Hearts

Day 6 takes us over to Crystal's blog at Vanilla Hearts where she's left "DAISUKI." a very nice four star review. I've been getting a lot of great feedback this past week, and I appreciate every single comment!

Come back on Monday for the final day of the Daisuki Blog Tour! Tomorrow will be a regular blog post, full of the usual grumbling and AAAAAAHHH that I usually spout.

DAISUKI BLOG TOUR DAY 4: Interview at Pipsqueakery

For today's super totally awesome blog tour stop,I'm over at bff, editor, and cover designer Lindsay York's blog, where she gave me an interview to write home about. In the interview we talk about the representation of gender, writing about Japan, and the fact that I'm apparently not drunk enough. WOO. PARTY.

Here's an excerpt question!


Your characters are older—actually adults. Do you find it at all difficult to write about older folks?

I’ve been writing about people older than me since I was a kid! I’ve always been fascinated about adulthood. I once wrote a huge blog post about why I’m not interested in children’s and YA fiction, but tl;dr is that I think adults get a bad rap. Everyone seems to focus on “first time” feelings, like first time falling in love, becoming an adult, and all that stuff. I mean, it has its place, but even I can’t connect to it half the time. My life has not mirrored most of the YA stuff out there in any way. People tell me I’m an “old soul” and I totally believe them. Give me bitter middle-aged women over whiny, wide-eyed teens any day.
Plus, you know, life doesn’t end once you become an adult. People may become more settled in who they are and their morals, but they’re still growing, and still having crazy experiences that will further shape their identities. And what can I say, I relate to being jaded and angry that life is different than how you imagined it would be.

That said, you should totally check out Lindsay's blog. She really loves literature and writing, and she knows her stuff! Especially go if you like poetry, as she has a poetry feature every Thursday. Also, I hear she'll be offering editing and cover design services for the small budget author soon!

"DAISUKI." BLOG TOUR Day 3: 日本語を話せます～ (Or, Guest Post at Meradeth's!)

Day 3 takes me over to Meradeth Houston's blog again, this time talking about the use of foreign languages in writing. Watch me wax on and on and ON about how I tackled writing about Japanese speaking characters in English. And come tell me how YOU (would) deal with it!

DAISUKI BLOG TOUR DAY 2 - Guest Post About Fashion at Pretty Fierce

DAY 2 of the blog tour takes us over to Leah's blog at Pretty Fierce, where I contributed a guest "interview" between myself and the two main characters of "Daisuki", Aiko and Reina. I attempted to get them to talk about fashion in Japan (since Leah runs a fashion oriented blog) but they were a bit...stubborn. ;) Step on over, say hi, and hope you enjoy it! (If nothing else, go for the great Japanese movie linked up there!)

DAISUKI BLOG TOUR DAY 1: Interview by Author Morgan Bauman

It's day one of the "DAISUKI." blog tour! Today I'm over at Morgan's tumblr doing a super short and sweet interview. Also, if you're on tumblr and would like to be Super Friends, you can still find me here!

'Til tomorrow for more touring goodness!

Weekly Writing Check-In: Countdown to Published

This is my last Check-In post before I become a ~real life~ published author. Tomorrow I go to the bank to open a separate account, and by the end of the day I'll be uploading THE FINAL, I SWEAR THE FINAL mobi and epub files to Amazon, B&N, Kobo, and Smashwords, in that prioritized order. Been having to take a lot of deep breaths to remind myself that this is what I've wanted a majority of my life, and just because that "OMG IT'S SHIT DON'T DO IT YOU'RE GONNA GET EATEN ALIVE" bug is gnawing away at my brain, doesn't mean I still shouldn't do it! So what if it's in my real name and my super conservative relatives are bound to find Hildred's stash of f/f romance online? Oh well. It's not like I hide this stuff from them.

In other news, the first draft for the next book in the REN'AI RENSAI series is complete! Came out to be about 91k. Started editing yesterday and it's already down to the 80k range. Figured, why not, I want this published by Christmas, and I'm in the editing mood! And because I'm just like that, I wrote the first page of Book 3 before going to sleep last night. I just had to after coming up with the perfect title for it, finally. (The perfect title always comes!)

So besides the uploading anxiety I'll have tomorrow, I'm finally able to relax a little. This means I'll get to writing the posts for the upcoming blog tour in October, and, if you're signed up, I'll have the posts out to you by the end of the week. On that note, there's still time to sign up for the DAISUKI blog tour for dates starting in the second week! And then, maybe, I'll finally start blogging about OTHER THINGS than just me me me again. I mean, my time has been so consumed with this editing stuff, that I haven't even been able to READ other books. Crazy, right? My brain is all sorts of muddled right now. Which means I'll be spending most of book launch day curled up watching TV and/or sleeping. Pfft. What career?

Next time I check in here, I'll be a published author. And my parents are already telling me I should be selling my 40k novella for 10 bucks. Oh joy, this is gonna be a fun ride.

plug plug plug.

"DAISUKI." Cover Reveal!

Woo! It's September, which means promotions for "DAISUKI." (out September 28th!) begin in earnest! First up? THE COVER REVEAL~!

Click to make it big!

Ain't it just gorgeous? The cover was a combined effort between myself and bff / editor / apparent graphic designer Lindsay York, whose recoloring skills were able to make this cover possible. (Seriously, the woman recolors manga for a hobby.) And in case you're wondering (such as if you don't read Japanese), the kanji in the cover reads "Ren'Ai Rensai", the series's official title.

Along with the cover comes my re-spiel about the DAISUKI Blog Tour in October, for which I am still taking sign ups through the rest of the month! Of course, now that I've revealed the cover, it's time to reveal the blog badge as well!

Nothing special, really, but I like it. ;)

That's all for today! Expect so much more throughout September, beginning with a site overhaul this weekend! That's...gonna be a lot of fun. (She said, sarcastically.)

"DAISUKI." Promotion Schedule + Official Blog Tour!

Yesterday I announced the release of my first novel, "DAISUKI.", set to drop September 28th! Also in that post I mentioned that today I would reveal the plans for my first promotion and blog tour! So...here it is?

NUMERO UNO: September Promotions

The following are the TENTATIVE blog post promotions I have planned leading up to the release of "DAISUKI.":

Aug 25: Official blurb revealed.

Sept 1: Book Cover Reveal!

Sept 3: New Layouts (Blog / Facebook)

Sept 5: Character Profile #1

Sept 8: Preview!

Sept 12: Character Profile #2

Sept 15: SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT (May or may not be a blog fest!)

Sept 19: Character Profile #3

Sept 22: Another Preview!

Sept 26: Character Profile #4

Sept 28: RELEASE DAY!

Oct 1: Blog tour begins!

Excited? I know I am! Especially for that book cover! It's going to be fantastic! (No pressure to my bff and designer, of course. Well, maybe a little. OKAY A LOT. DO IT RIGHT GURL.  orz)

Also? That SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT on the 15th? Going to be, as the kids back in uni said, ~epic~. It's going to be more a promotional tour for the next book coming out in November (hopefully!) but is still completely relevant to these current promotions as well. If you like writing romance (or want the practice!) it's going to be right up your alley! Hooyeah!

NUMERO THE DOS:  October Blog Tour!

I'll be going on an Internet wide (well, as far as I can go!) blog tour to promote "DAISUKI.", and I'm looking for anybody willing to participate! 

Of course, starting from today I'm only taking...er, takers, of blog owners who wouldn't mind hosting me and (preferably) my book cover etc. for a day! I've set up a Link List for those interested right away to sign up  so I can get in contact with you. Now, a few things about "DAISUKI." that you may want to consider based on the readership of your blog:

1) It's a romance with some "graphic" (I find this highly subjective, but yes, there's sex) scenes between women. I debated whether or not to also promote it as erotica, and have decided not to. It's a romance story first and foremost, but yes, there's sex. 

2) The cover is suggestive, but not dirty. I would say "it's no worse than you see in the romance section in Amazon", but let's be real, some of those should be taken down per Amazon's guidelines! Woah! But my designer and I are making sure that the cover complies to Amazon's guidelines, which means there's no nudity. There isn't even kissing. (But an almost kiss!)

3) The entire series (and myself) is very pro-LGBT, as it's sort of the crux of the story. 

Overall, I would give "DAISUKI." a healthy R rating. I share this because I know some of you who may wish to host me on the blog tour may need to consider their readership and whether or not it would cause a problem on their blogs. If you'd still like to do something with me, let me know, and we'll come up with something!

As for blog tour posts, I'm planning to do posts about Japanese culture and language, F/F relationships (both here in the USA and in Japan), character interviews, general interviews, samples, writing romance,  basically, whatever jives with you and your blog!

Phew! That was a lot of text! I appreciate it if you took the time to read it all! I'm very excited about this tour and this novel! I hope to have the blog tour badges and all that jazz ready around the time the cover is revealed. The reason why I'm taking names this soon is so I can get a jump on things before I'm swamped! If you'd rather wait to sign up until after I reveal the blurb and cover, that's fine too. I'm sure I'll be posting this link list a few times...

Now excuse me, I have like a million things to do tonight! (I am running purely on adrenaline right now. Woohoo!)