About Books

The sequel to Karma Girl is coming out in November next year. My agent, editor, and I are trying to come up with a title. Bigtime 2, as I’m calling it right now, is about Fiera, a member of my superhero team, the Fearless Five. She has superstrength and fire-based powers.

Fiera is a great character. Fun and sassy and very take-charge. She knows what she wants and she goes after it — fireballs and all. I want a title that reflects her character.

Besides the cover, a title is probably the next most important part of the whole book package. A great title is one that sticks in the mind or tells you in an instant what the book’s about. I want a great title.

So far, the top three contenders are Hot Mama and Burn, Baby, Burn and Afterburn.

What do you guys think of these? Would one of these titles make you want to pick up the book? Why or why not? Inquiring minds want to know …

And , if there are any title suggestions out there in cyberspace, they’d be appreciated, too. 🙂

I have a confession to make — I love used bookstores.

I know, I know. Used bookstores are the devil. They’re downright evil, according to some published authors. You see, authors don’t get any royalties on sales at used bookstores. Even if a certain book is bought and sold 10 times at the same store, the author will never see a dime of that money. Not a penny.

Authors would much rather you buy their book brand-spanking new at Barnes & Noble so they can get their $1 in royalties and have the sale register with their publishers. I’ll probably feel the same way when my books come out next year. Gotta keep those sales numbers up and make the bean counters happy. 😉

If I ever see someone selling (gasp!) one of my beloved books or see it on the shelf in a used bookstore, I’ll probably sit down in the middle of the floor, have a good cry, beat my breasts, and wail why didn’t they like me???

But for now, I’m totally digging used bookstores. In fact, I went to one of my favorite ones today — Mr. K’s — and picked up some stuff to read. I got five books for $15 — a steal at twice the price.

But it’s not just the cheap prices I like at used bookstores — it’s the atmosphere. The slightly musty odor in the air, the tinkle of the bell over the front door, the low murmur of conversation, finding a hidden treasure among the towering stacks.

It’s a perfect way to spend an afternoon.

What about you? Which do you prefer — new or used? Inquiring minds want to know …

So, my agent called me today and said that we had gotten another awesome blurb from a fellow writer. Huzzah! Everything seems to be coming along nicely for Karma Girl. 😉

I’ll be posting the blurbs just as soon as I know which ones we’re officially going to go with. More to come soon …

I have seen the promised land! Well, not exactly, but I did get my first glimpse of the cover art for Karma Girl this week.

And it rocks! 🙂

The final version isn’t quite done yet, but it features a skyline, a big spotlight, and a character in a little black dress. I’ll be posting it just as soon as I get the final version from my editor at Berkley. 😉

Cover art is one thing that a lot of authors fret about. If you’ve been to the bookstore recently, you’ve probably seen lots of good covers … and plenty of bad ones too. I personally hate covers that feature a man or woman’s face. I’d much rather picture the characters in my mind than have a real-life representation of them on the cover.

What about you? What do you like on covers? Bright colors? Sexy guys? Inquiring minds want to know …