Book Club Contest

Book clubs are fantastic. They get people reading. Sometimes they give people a night away from kids and responsibilities. Maybe they're a way to socialize and connect with your community.

Why do you love your book club? Send me a tweet @katieorourke78 (or post a comment here) and whoever has the best answer (ie: my favorite) will win free copies of my new book, A Long Thaw, for every member of their book club. (I'm thinking between 5 to 10 members, but I'm flexible.)

Here's a bit about the book:  

A Long Thaw is contemporary women’s fiction, perfect book club fiction. Cousins Abby and Juliet were born into one big, close family. But when Juliet’s parents divorce, it tears the family apart and sends the girls in very different directions. It’s a story about the power of secrets and the unbreakable bonds of family.

Praise for A Long Thaw: “A big-hearted and deep-thinking novel about two young women navigating the peaks and valleys of love while relying on their friendship and family bond to keep them balanced along the way.”  -Mary Vensel White, The Qualities of Wood

Book clubs are a writer's best friend. Let me be a friend to your book club!

Self-publishing A Long Thaw

A few years ago, I had two books traditionally published and the results were mixed. The sales for my debut were great, which is why I was confused when my publisher did nothing to promote my second book. Writers tend not to discuss their experience once they get published, which can make it even more mysterious to those who are trying to make it. It's hard to pass along what you've learned if you're worried about pissing off those in power.

I'll do my best to walk the line.

I did things backwards- finding a publisher before I had an agent. I paid an agent to look over my contract, but going forward I didn't have an advocate to make sure the contract was enforced. In the future, I will not work with a publisher unagented. It isn't that the publisher is evil, but it isn't their job to look out for your best interests.

Getting that agent to help negotiate the contract may have been the best $100 I ever spent. Instead of allowing my publisher to hold the rights for my book for ten years, I get them back in two. This means I can rerelease A Long Thaw, the book my publisher didn't promote, and see if I can do a better job.

The book has already been professionally edited and the interior Kindle files were already formatted, so putting it up on Amazon has been a cinch. Tomorrow, I'll share more about the process of getting a new cover. And I'll have a link to the book!