ebooks – Author/Journalist Jessica Samuels

Onward and Upward!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on October 26, 2017October 26, 2017.

2017 was an interesting year for me to say the least, but I’m actually looking forward to 2018. My birthday was yesterday, and I turned 27. I don’t feel it or look it, but I know I’ll be at a better place soon mentally. I graduate in December which means my time at VCU is almost up. I finally got someone to narrate my book Tales From Behind the Counter, and I’ll post when it’s done. I’m trying to finish AngelWitch at least, and all I need to do is write her last two weeks then the rough draft is done. It’s been a wild ride since this semester at VCU we are working with CBS 6, and come the elections I’ll be working in the newsroom. I’ve also given more thought of what I want to do. I’ve been working retail during the weekends, and going to school. It’s left me in a rut in a way. After school I’ll need to start looking for a new job in the field I want. I’ve been getting tired of retail too, and it’s the same old, same old thing. People complain over the stupidest stuff, and are rude too. It’s all been there, done that, and I’m ready for a change. Also been doing a ton of book buying and game playing too. It’s just been a finish school and get my degree then come up with the next steps. Also, save up money for editing my books and cover art. That is all I need to afford anyway since I have Vellum to format my books. Best money I’ve ever spent. In the meantime I’m working on books and writing stories as a journalist in the IPad Journal project at VCU.

Link to one of the articles: http://wtvr.com/2017/10/20/northam-supporters-pack-convention-center-to-see-obama/

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

My Experience With Createspace

A story by jessicasamuels25 on August 24, 2015.

Recently, I have discovered some readers will only buy books if it is in paperback form. Several of my novels only come in ebook form, and I have decided to publish on in paperback for the first time. I used the novella #BeingaVampireinRetailSucks since it’s longer then the rest, and it’s part of a series too. There are still people who prefer paperback over ebooks so that’s a good reason, and I can give copies to people who are doing giveaways too. The next question I will probably get is when are the rest of the books coming out, and I have book 1 done, halfway written book 2, and I know how to write book three since I’ve outlined the shit of out everything. It’s only a matter of time, and when they are popular enough then someone might pick them up to narrate the audio version. Maybe.
The paperback version is way different then the ebook since it has more to it like a spine, and actual cover. I had issues uploading the docx and pdf file since the words are bigger then the size I wanted it. I used 5 x 8 for it, and it’s glossy instead of matte since I’ve heard better results with the glossy version. It was a pain in the ass, but at the same time fun. I first went to creatspace.com and filled out my information. Then comes the tax information to get paid, and you have to create an account so you can keep track of everything. Then comes the book like putting in the title, and then you have to have an ISBN I went with the free Createspace one since I don’t have the money for the custom one. It was $99 for a Bowker one. Not for me yet.
But it’s a learning experience because I have had issues with the formatting mainly, and it sucked ass getting it to work but I still loved the results. In the end since the lettering kept getting cut off in the first one I had to change it again and again. In the end I changed it to 6×9 instead and moved the lettering underneath the name tag. I set it at $9.99. I centered the chapter headings and underlined them, and added page numbers. I should have deleted some of the front like the Smashwords edition stuff, and the ebook information. I left it though since I could spend days just getting it perfect, and in the end I left it as it is. It’s my first paperback after all. Now it’s available through Amazon and Createspace. The whole process was not bad at all, and it was pretty easy. I loved the results in the end. I even stayed with the glossy cover.
Here are the links since it’s live:

Amazon.com link: http://amzn.to/1NDTet4

Createspace link:https://www.createspace.com/5664142

I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing this. If you are an author thinking about going with Createspace I highly recommend it since it’s the best option out there and you won’t regret it.

Here are the version pictures:

Version 1

Version 2

Until next time,
Wolfdreamer25

Story Updates…

A story by jessicasamuels25 on June 24, 2015.

I finally finished The Killer Contract Agency rewrites, and now all I’m waiting for is to have en editor look at it, get the cover, and republish. It’s been a long journey with this book, and with it done I can finally work on other projects. I am typing up the first Scarlet book in the meantime, and I’ve written the second half and I’ll finish it so I can edit them both together and work on the third after the first and second are published. I know I’ve been promising those books for years. Life has gotten in the way more then once, and I find it hard to concentrate on writing with VCU and working part time at the same time. I need to take it more seriously. I want to quit retail part time so I can write full time instead I’ll need to be more on the ball with it. I can’t sit there, and not write and publish the stories I want people to read. Hence why I have enough stories to write full time, and make my dream of it come true. I’m hopeful about it because it’s something I really want to do for the rest of my life. I’ll write a blog post about the story when it comes out, and put the links there too.
Until next time,
Wolfdreamer25

My Youtube Channel

A story by jessicasamuels25 on April 9, 2015.

I have had a Youtube channel for a while, but I just didn’t really do anything with it except put up animal videos or the occasional author one. I recently learned about Booktube which is a community on Youtube about reading books. I’ve been watching videos for a while now, and I want to make my channel all about my ebooks, writing, and reviewing fiction and non-fiction ebooks and books. I’ll even throw in a series that’ll let me rant about retail too while I’m at it. My last exam is May 6^th. After that besides writing I’ll have time to focus on the things I want to do. It’ll help me get over my fear of putting myself out there, and I’ll be more comfortable in front of a camera. I can film a video about my writing process and the fiction and non fiction books I can read over and over again. I can film videos talking about my ebooks and even reading them out loud so they can get a taste of my work. I can talk about how they are created too. I can make a series making fun of retail, how stupid it can be at times, and the things I hate that customers do. It’s not all bad but I feel like a lot of people can relate to it. I will be blogging more during the summer even doing story updates. I even have the option to film a typical writing day. There are tons of possibilities with my channel and I can’t wait to begin filming more videos to make this channel as successful as I can. I’m still waiting on a reader, but at this point I might have to go ahead and rewrite The Killer Contract Agency again. I’ve even made a back story for Carter who is the head of it after he defeats Adam. All I have is four more scenes to write then I’ll have a rough draft done of Being an Empathic Witch in Retail Spells Trouble.

Here is the link to my Youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn2LUoqPcFHmkV3pQFVFFDQ

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

How to Procrastinate instead of writing a novel!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on January 8, 2015.

Novel writing is not easy by any means, and with self-publishing just about anyone can become a writer. Works can be published without any effort which isn’t good for people who actually can write a novel. It’s hard to write since it mainly requires butt to chair action, and sometimes more brain power then you have the energy for especially if you go to school, or work a day job. Good work takes time and even other people to look over it. That is another story though, and I will write a post about the entire process and how I write them. In the meantime here is how not to write a novel. Or maybe it should read doing everything but writing a novel!

Check email: You never know if a very important email from an editor or beta reader has come in. Just check every 5 seconds and keep hitting the refresh key constantly.
Check Twitter and updates status to: Writing a novel but in the mean time researching shirtless models for the next cover.
Eat after all you’re brain cannot work without something powering it.
Yell at your smartphone since a wrong number has called for the 1,000 time for someone who has a claim on them. It’s a recording too bad they cannot hear you…
Watch time tick by every minute while you’re waiting for calls from family or friends.
Check blogs after all how the hell do other writers write novels when you can’t even sit for an hour….
Get another cup of coffee, wine, whisky, liquor, vodka, or energy drink to get the blood flowing or to relax you need it after trying to focus on a sentence for an hour.
Hit head against the wall to loosen the ideas from your brain.
Shower maybe it will help you figure out this next sentence…
Check Facebook yet again to see what fun things your friends are up to, and things to use in stories…
Stare at the computer screen until inspiration strikes…
Smoke a cigarette if you do as a way of taking a break.
Walk the dog maybe the neighborhood can give you more ideas…
While walking the dog you spot a house, and spend the rest of the time wondering if they keep bodies in the basement.
Get one of the emails you’ve been waiting for and dance around when it says not bad just needs work. Yay! You’re not a failure.
Delete old files off your phone, PC, and tablet since it is a new semester and year after all.
Watch Youtube lets plays because video games are awesome, and who knows another story idea might pop up at any minute…

Okay, there are a lot of ways to procrastinate and not work on writing your novel. In the end the writers who stop procrastinating, and are determined to finish the novel of their dreams will learn how rewarding it is to finish something despite all the distractions stopping them.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Updates….

A story by jessicasamuels25 on February 5, 2014.

It has been a month since I wrote a blog post. I have been busy since school started back up, and it is more work than last semester. No big deal since I am used to the work load by now. As for the novella news I am getting the last of my edits in, and then I will be ready in a few weeks to publish again. This time I can tell it will turn out better since I have a good team with me, and I hope you all enjoy it. I do have the outline for the next two Scarlet books. They will take place in college instead of high school. I am happy to say I only have two more stories to edit before I can publish a paperback! Yay! I will have more time to work on everything during the summer, so I am definitely looking forward to it.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Bye 2013 Hello 2014 Goals:

A story by jessicasamuels25 on December 29, 2013.

As the year 2013 comes to a close I find myself excited, and sad at the same time. Excited because I finished John Tyler in May 2013, and transferred to VCU in fall 2013. It was a challenge going from a community college to a university. I can handle it more now than when I started since I did not know what to expect. It made me sad since I did not get my paperback out liked I had hoped. And I am free of the negative influences in my life, and I have found people to get to know that I consider good friends. This year I also went to my first anime convention, and I should have enjoyed it more than I did. It was also the year I got engaged to my boyfriend of four years, and that is an accomplishment. I did so much it is not even funny, and I am looking forward to the future since one of my goals is to do better in VCU to get all A’s and B’s. I also had my second ebook published too, and that is a good accomplishment too.

I plan on making 2014 a better writing year. I plan on getting The Killer Contract Agency republished. Revenge against the Ex rewritten and published. I plan on writing Retribution is mine, and Redemption is mine this year. I plan on making them both into paperbacks as well as Tales of the Luxor and Crystal Crest realm out. Two paperbacks, and five ebooks will make this year rock. I plan on writing posts for my blogs Reviews for Writers, and Survey of Pop Culture to do more reviews on writing books, movies, and television shows. Also I have finished the novella Being a Vampire in Retail Sucks, and I am waiting for the okay from my proofreader, cover artist, and beta readers. As soon as I get the cover I am hitting publish it will be $2.99 because of how long it is, and the effort I put into it.

2014 is going to be an awesome year since I am going to become a more prolific writer, and I cannot wait. Bring it on 2014!

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Writers Imagination, and more blog post topics:

A story by jessicasamuels25 on July 16, 2013.

I took two weeks off of writing on my #RevengeSucks novel to get the retail one done, and when I don’t write the novel my nights become sleepless. One of the things writers never tell the general public is when you’re working on a novel it can consume you to the point where you dream about your character. Their thoughts become yours, and sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between your thoughts and theirs. I have found that writing a few pages a day on it helps me keep the thoughts at bay.

It really helps you get into the zone when going on a roll writing and it does help you keep up with a routine. Something I need since I write sporadically when I have time. I do have days off my job and I am off of school till the end of August I do hope to have the paperback done by then.

Another thing I am going to write about on this blog is self-publishing because I have been researching it while I am getting ready to publish my second ebook. It has been a few years since I have published anything. One of the things I have learned recently is how to make a table of contents for an ebook. It took me a few hours to learn to bookmark the title in the story like this:

Chapter 1(Book mark this by going to word, and click on the insert tab.)

After that go to the table of contents first page highlight chapter 1 then click hyperlink, inside document, and press add.

It was a pain, but I finally got it done!

This is more of a learning process for me, and I am going to document it on the way.

Until Next Time,

Wolfdreamer25

So it begins…

A story by jessicasamuels25 on May 19, 2013.

I graduated school Monday, and I loved it! I had fun that day, and I even got a shirt. Since school is over until the end of August I will be working five days a week, and working on the ebooks too.

I also had an idea to have an awesome indie post featuring books by independent authors. I love reading from them too, and since I am an indie author myself it works out. I chose to become one for the higher royalties, control over everything, and I really don’t want to change my story because of a publisher. I love being able to do things my way, and reaching out to people to help along the way. I have been meaning to read more, but I am enjoying the absence of stress thanks to school. School was stressful for me, and now that I don’t have it things are different. Now I can work on my writing career, and my blogs.

I am going to get the feedback for the retail story today, and work on making changes all day tomorrow. Then giving it to the editor, and working on the second ebook changes. Then giving Revenge Against the Ex to the proofreader afterward, and after I get back the changes from the editor making the changes, get the cover and publish. Then do it all over again for the second. It is a long…long…process, and when the second ebook is finally done I will combine both ebooks into a paperback for readers who prefer that format.

That is all I am going to say for now…

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

School is over!!!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on May 10, 2013.

I took my last exam Tuesday, and I passed all my classes which means my GPA is a 3.0. I am really happy to say I will be graduating with an Associates May 11^th! I am finally happy community college is done! It really makes me happy to finally be done with school until August which means I have the whole summer off. I will be working full time, but it also means I have more time to write posts for my blogs! I plan on going ahead and releasing two ebooks this summer, and a paperback on top of that since I have all this free time in between school. As always I will be working on the second killer novel little by little too. I have the second ebook title nailed down which is called Revenge Against the Ex which is fitting since it deals with getting even against them. I really am looking forward to being done with math too since that is a subject I struggle with so no fun there. I will be getting a minor in writing too, and that will be pretty neat too.

I have new student orientation for VCU on the 21^st, and then I will know my schedule too. I hope to have time to write in between the classes I am taking, so that is all I have for now.

Until Next Time,

Wolfdreamer25