A New Series, a New Book, & a New Opportunity (to read and review)!

It’s been too long since I wrote on this blog. Let me give you a short summary of what’s been happening in my little corner of the world since last year.

I’ve been learning how to be an indie author!

A lot goes into being an indie author. You don’t just write the story and then upload it to Amazon (although some do with disastrous results). You write the story, revise it ad nauseum, hire a cover designer, hire a professional editor, make the edits, hire a formatter, and then learn — about marketing, about Amazon and Kindle Direct Publishing, about advertising, as well as numerous other facets of publishing.

In the last year, I’ve received an education (even on things I didn’t know I needed to know–lol!). On April 29th, I’ll be releasing the beginning of a new series called the Stardust Hearts series. The stories are futuristic fantasy fairytale retellings (reminiscent of the Lunar Chronicles). Book one, a novella, is titled All the Wild Hearts: A Red Riding Hood Retelling.

I’m so excited to get this story out into the world, but first, I’m looking for eARC readers (eARC: ebook Advance Reader Copy). If you’re not familiar with what this is, an eARC reader reads an early copy of the ebook and agrees to review it on Amazon, Goodreads, or B&N on release day. They can also talk about it on any social media channel they like, share about it on their blog, or share it in the newsletter.

The market is saturated with books; in the United States last year, there were 500,00 self-published books released. This doesn’t even take into account the books released by the bigger publishing houses or books released in other countries. It’s hard to get noticed with that many books available. Reviews on Amazon are one of the small ways a book can get noticed, so eARC readers/reviewers are a big help.

Anyway, I digress. If being an eARC reader/reviewer sounds like something you’d like to be involved in, here’s a beautiful view of the cover, a little bit about the book, and a link you can click on to sign up.

Who’s afraid of the big bad businessman? Everyone.

On the snowy planet of Amaris, Avarill Engle makes deliveries for her grandmother and the residents of Skift, while avoiding unwanted advances from the gray tycoon Wolfgang Vujic. When the crooked CEO buys the mortgage to her grandmother’s neo-res, the only way to keep their home is to go to work—for him.

With every passing day, Avarill feels more desperate and afraid. Blaiz Weylin, her new friend and expert codestitcher, creates a plan to destroy Vujic, and Avarill eagerly joins the sting operation. But Blaiz’s past entwines with Vujic in ways he can’t confess, even as his feelings for Avarill deepen. When his secret comes to light, Avarill must make a choice: trust in the man who could break her heart or fight to free herself from Vujic’s iron grasp. With one wrong move, her freedom will become a distant memory. Time is running out, and the wolf is closing in.

For fans of The Lunar Chronicles, this futuristic retelling of Little Red Riding Hood blends swoony romance, creative technology, and high stakes adventure into an engaging tale of hope and redemption.

Sign up here to be put on the eARC reader/reviewer list!

I’m only leaving this link available for five more days–on March 15th, it’s coming down. But if you sign up, you’ll get bookish swag/goodies below and my eternal gratitude for your help!

I hope we can celebrate this release together!

Drop a comment to let me know what you think about this new series!

 

What Anheuser-Busch Got Wrong

I find news stories about Harry and Meghan’s exit from royal life, unusual weather, and the Anheuser-Busch controversy interesting.

If you’re not familiar with this latter story, let me give you a short recap. In April, Bud Light’s (now ex-) marketing VP wanted to update Bud Light’s “fratty” and “out of date humor” image. Anheuser-Busch contacted transgender activist/social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney. In short order, a TikTok video surfaced of Dylan popping open a can of Bud-Light to celebrate 365 days of Girlhood. The result was not what AB expected. Kid Rock used cases of Bud Light for target practice, other celebrities spoke out against the campaign, and current customers expressed dissatisfaction. Bar owners pulled the beer from their shelves and refused to sell it. While a few celebrities offered support for Bud Light’s new campaign, the boycott against Bud Light was gaining steam.

At this point, Anheuser-Busch released a statement: “We are in the business of bringing people together over beer.” (Since I’m not a beer drinker, I can’t comment on the validity of this statement. I live near a Big Ten college, and usually when people are “brought together over beer,” it’s an opportunity for dumb decisions to be made.) So, what’s the thing Anheuser-Busch didn’t do? Issue a statement supporting their new campaign. Instead, they claimed the specialty cans decorated with Dylan’s face weren’t available for sale. (Um…so what?)

There was so much serious backlash and hate, Dylan left the country because it “didn’t feel safe” at home. Bud Light’s stock plummeted. They received the dreaded star at Costco (indicating it would be discontinued), and now they’re facing massive lay-offs.

Despite Anheuser-Busch’s expansive reach, they were unaware of their consumer demographic. According to The Wise Sage, otherwise known as Google, most beer drinkers are male and between the ages of 21-34 who enjoy sports, socializing, and humor. (Obviously, there also are plenty of conservatives drinking beer, proven by the boycott.)

So what happened here? A few interesting things.  1. Anheuser-Busch didn’t (to quote Shania Twain) “dance with one who brought you.” When the campaign turned into a five-alarm dumpster fire, they withdrew. Can you imagine those emergency marketing meetings?  2. Anheuser-Busch showed they don’t know their customers (or they aren’t aware of the current woke/anti-woke divide). Rather than pick a popular comedian or a young actor, they picked a social media influencer/activist.  3. In an effort to broaden their reach and make more money, they messed up by trying to fix something that wasn’t broken.

My heart goes out to Dylan. Sexual diversity/identity is a hot button issue. But nobody, regardless of how they identify themselves, should feel the need to leave their home because they feel unsafe.

I don’t know where Anheuser-Busch will go from here. They ignored the LGBTQAI+ community’s request for support. They also didn’t apologize to their current “fratty” customers, and instead fired two marketing employees in charge of the campaign. They’re spinning their wheels, afraid to make a stand and state where their support lies.

How would you have handled the situation, either the marketer’s request for Bud Light’s new image or the resulting dumpster fire? Leave your ideas in the comments below. (And if you want more articles like this, as well as book reviews and other news, sign up for my monthly newsletter! I’d love to stay in touch.)