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BookBuzzr author Sharon Bayliss’ book – Destruction: The December People, Book One recently hit the #1 spot on the Amazon. We reached out to Sharon to learn more about her story.

The screenshot below was taken on June 20, 2014.

 

Hi Sharon, thank you for taking the time to do this interview.

1. How did you begin writing? Did you intend to become an author, or do you have a specific reason or reasons for writing each book?

 I have been writing fiction since I was fifteen. I clearly remember when my English teacher pulled me aside and told me I was talented. That gave me the motivation to keep writing and getting better. It has always been my dream to be an author.

 

2. How did you come up with the title of your book or series? Tell us a little bit about your book series.

Destruction is book 1 in The December People Series. The December People Series revolves around the Vandergraff family, a family of dark wizards living in Houston, Texas. There will be four books in the series, in honor of the four seasons. The series is called “December People” because wizards are classified by seasons, with winter being the darkest. “Destruction” refers to the destructive quality of dark magic.

 

3. Do you have a special time to write or how is your day structured?

Every time I’m asked that question, I chuckle a bit. My life is chaotic. I have a full time job and also have two small children. I don’t have dedicated time to write and just squeeze in it whenever I can.

 

4. Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?

I wrote a blog post on this topic called, Why I Read My Book’s Reviews. So, yes, I do read them! I often thank people for their reviews, but I never argue or make comments other than “thank you.” As for dealing with bad, I recommend looking at the big picture. It’s amazing how much one scathing review can hurt, even if you have 50 others that are glowing. Do you best to look at the overall star rating and remind yourself that ALL successful authors get bad reviews!

 

5. Is there any marketing technique you used that had an immediate impact on your sales figures?

99 cent sales always work for me, especially if well-promoted. On the day I reached the #1 spot above, my publisher had put Destruction on Book Bub. It was certainly the one single marketing tool that had the most dramatic effect. If you can make it in, and can afford it, I highly recommend it.

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Vikram Narayan is the founder of BookBuzzr Book Marketing Technologies. Vikram is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University. Prior to starting BookBuzzr, Vikram founded another software company that has been successfully serving clients from all over the world since 2001. When he is not dreaming up ways to help authors accelerate their earnings and book sales, Vikram spends his time playing the guitar, practicing Aikido and spending time with his family._________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Okay so, Thursday night I was interviewed on BLOG TALK RADIO by the fantastic, Yolanda Renee. I just gotta say, the show was amazing! You guys who might have missed it, feel free to grab some coffee or whatever floats your biscuit and kick on back. You can listen to the show here.

I talked about the unbelievable response to and launch of TREI Literary Magazine, which you can check out by hopping on over to http://www.treimagazine.com. I can't believe how many people have written to me about the magazine. OMG! YAY! I'm so excited! I'm like a drunken sailor turning down the sobbering gift of coffee. I just do not want to wake up from this euphoric feeling.

I also want to thank everyone who's signed the guest book there. OMG! I'm so humbled by everything you guys have written there, here and across the web. It's just....it's just so....

*blushing*

Well, I'm honored to say, this is only the beginning, my dear and cherished friends. Oh my, my, my,.....what I have instore for you guys and your books is going to BLOW YOU AWAY! It's going to pull the world aside, shake them off their rocker, and make them listen while YOU shout that YOU are coming, YOU are here, and YOU are going to ROCK THIS JOINT!

Dnow, don't forget....October is our HORROR issue, and I want YOU all to scare the hell out of me and every reader out there. I have been bombarded by submissions, but, in the words of a certain little vampire...I WANT SOME MORE. I want the scariest short stories imaginable and dark poetry. I'm looking to feature illustrators of dark art. As for those of you who've written to ask me about being a guest columnist for TREI. Well, what I'd like to do is a multi-author interview. Sort of a How-to-Write horror article from the view points of 3-4 authors of horror. I think it's a great way to get into the minds of a variety of horror authors. So tell everyone you know who writes or is into horror. THIS IS REALLY GOING TO SET THE BAR!

Now, back to the show.....

I also spoke about DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs, my edgy tween fantasy about a boy's deperate fight to save the life of the first friend he has ever had....a man charged with murder.

And then I was asked about my book cover, done by the amazing Doron Ben-Ami (www.doronbenami.com).

October 1, 2008, DAVID THORNE will be unleashed...YAY!

I'm still floored and absolutely humbled by the response the book and the book cover have gotten. Thank you all so much. You've no idea how much it means to me....how much YOU all mean to me. Your friendship and your steadfast support from day one takes my breath away. I just so honored to call you guys my friends. Truly:)

Lastly, I spoke very lightly about the new book I'm working on......you know...*hehe*

So there you go.....the show was awesome! Renee was amazing! I hope you guys enjoy it at least half as much as I did.



Feel free to leave your thoughts in your wake:)
GINORMOUS HUGS and Humble thanks to all and to those who follow:)
Cindy

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Okay so, today I got to flipping the channels since that "ultra-special and oober reliable" cable company of mine (Comcast..*gag*) informed me by way of an annoying error message, that my "On-Demand" was out....AGAIN!

See, I've been so busy (like that ever changes), going through the tedious ritual all writers face when they're on the brink of being published.....EDITING. Yup, it's a necessary evil, my dear and cherished friends. So I push on. And on. And on.

And when I need a break, I flip through the TV channels in the hopes that some great big surprise awaits me in the form of something to ACTUALLY WATCH. And this is what I did today when the editing proved to call for break-time. I was so happy to find that one of my favorite all-time movies was playing.

"GREASE."

The instant I saw it was on, I stopped surfing the cable waves and sat back...smile on my face, warmth in my heart, memories rushing at me like a tidal wave. You see, this movie holds such a place in my soul. I remember like it was yesterday.

Wait, wasn't it just yesterday?

I'll never forget it, as long as I live. I was six when that movie came out. My parents bought the soundtrack (the record album...2 LPs).....HEY, I'm NOT that old, okay! Anywho, I don't remember the first time I saw the movie, but what I do remember, is listening to that album over and over. I remember dancing to it with my friends, lip syncing to the songs for my family (me standing on a chair...them, watching...).

BTW, that doesn't leave this blog! I'd hate to have to hunt you down and assault you with waffles...the overly toasted variety that riddled with hard little nipits like...oh, I don't know...something sharp and sticky…..you get the point.....or you will if you tell anyone I danced on chairs when I was six, while singing and/or lip syncing to the GREASE soundtrack!

The point is, that movie has always held such a deep and cozy place in my heart. I mean, even today, every time I see it or I hear the music from it (yeah, I have the CD and have it on my computer), I still sing to it (no, not on chairs anymore....I've grown a bit and realized heights are not my friend).

And then there was me at ten years old. Hm! The same age as David Thorne....cool! Anywho, I went to Puerto Rico alone for a month to visit my grandparents. I swear, every time I went there, I was just terrified of their living room. It was nestled deep within the house...the walls a deep Spanish tan, the sofas and chairs blood red suede. And with the candle sconces and the feel of centuries-old stories hidden behind the facade of modern day living, it just felt creepy and haunted, and so not a place I ever wanted to be in.

Needless to say, every time I visited them, I walked right past the living room. Now that I think back though, it was pretty cool! Anywho, when I was ten, I remember there was this neighbor lady who lived across the street. She always liked me and when she saw me get out of the car the day I arrived, she ran over and gave me a big hug. Somehow, she found out I liked the movie GREASE, and told me that she had it on tape. Said, that anytime I wanted to come over and watch it, I could.

And so I did....everyday I was there that month...over and over and over again. I would just sit in her room by myself and watch the movie. I still remember what it felt like to sit on the edge of the bed, eyes glued to the screen. I was just mesmerized by the music, the dancing, the STORY! God, if only I had known back then that writing was so much a part of me. It's funny you know, how we can go through life wondering who we are, what makes us "US", what makes us tick and what makes us love what we love. Until one day we wake up and look back upon our lives and "JUST KNOW". Like someone just turned on a light.

So today, as I watched the movie, I actually got tears in my eyes, remembering how it felt to be ten years old…no worries, no stress…just having fun watching this amazing movie with its great music and great dancing, and just wanting to BE like them. It's a feeling I get all over again every time I see or think of that movie...even today.

I guess it's not so bad growing up, is it? I mean, yeah growing up does come with its pitfalls...but truly, in the end, aren't we better for realizing who are, regardless the age we are when we do see that light come on?

So I say to those days when I was ten, and to that little girl, that dreamer who knew in her heart and still knows today what it means to feel passion for something, "Thanks for the memories, Kid. And for making me who I am today."

GINORMOUS HUGS to the little ones inside all of us:)
Cindy

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The Snevil Author, The Winner in the City, and The Show that Broke the Seal (blog I posted on my page on July 2, 2008)
Okay so.......

cue magical music that lingers in the air with mysterious bravado.....

On June 30th (sorry it's taken me so long to post a blog about this. What can I say? It was a taxing day:) So on June 30th, I appeared on Blog Talk Radio with LESA, to finally reveal the title of my upcoming debut Tween fantasy.

OMG! It feels so AMAZING to FINALLY be able to talk about the book without having to worry if those feet of mine are going to dance their way into my mouth! Yeah, I know. I have that problem, and it almost surfaced a few times on the air the other night. Even Vern Firestone, President and CEO of TRIAD Publishing Group, my publisher and dear friend, caught my near-flub.

That was a good and hearty laugh we all shared, let me tell you:)

So, the show was really amazing. Tons and tons of dear friends were there to support me and to finally find out the secret behind the puzzles that many were haunted by for the last month. No, I'm serious. I had friends contacting me constantly, telling me they were being followed around by the image of the puzzles. Some were dreaming about them, and one person even spent the entire past weekend obsessing over the puzzles and the title that was so snevily masked by the clues....hehe

Right out of the gate, the calls began pouring in from some of my dear friends (thank you all for your support...I love you!), and some other dear friends lingered with an endearingly voyeuristic ear:)

The first call in was Vern, who sat back and waited patiently for me to prance my way into THE BIG REVEAL:) And then....one by one, my friends called in.
and everyone else who called in (I can't remember who else called in, but I promise to update this list when I do

The big surprise of the night for me was when, fresh from the grave, my good and dear friend, Joni Shanburn, Vice President of TRIAD, called in. I wasn't expecting her because she was having some computer issues:) And shortly after she called in, so did another dear friend, the snevil sinister sister of Joni, Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc came strolling in with her shovel, fresh from digging Joni up:)

And so I spoke about the contest and the world the series is set in....sorry, you have to go listen to the show to get THAT out of me...hehe


I answered questions from callers, laughed a lot, YAYed and OMGded my way through the show...shocker, I know. And then.....

drumroll please.....

Vern proceeded to talk about how there were about a hundred entries in the Crack the Code contest, and how there were eleven people who had conquered the puzzles. After asking me to select a number from one to eleven, I chose 8 (my hubby's favorite number), and BOOM!
THE WINNER OF THE WORLD'S FIRST COPY OF MY BOOK was.......more music please......SHERRI SCHWEDOCK of Write in the City



It's a replica of the dragon statue that sits in the center of ElderSquare, which is the heart of Elder City, the oldest city in the magical world I set my series in. For those of you who never got the chance to read the first three chapters of DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs, Elder City is a towering metropolis built entirely by magic.

Yup, being the city girl I am, I couldn't think of a more "ME" choice to base this series in, can you?

And finally, as promised, the instant I FINALLY ANNOUNCED the title, DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs (god that feels so freeing), Vern Firestone OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED THE PRE ORDERS.

Yes, my dear and cherished friends, because of the OVERWHELMING response to the date of the opening of pre orders, Vern decided to open them up during the show, instead of waiting til midnight. And so, the chatroom began filling up with people announcing
"I just placed my order!"
"GO! CINDY! I just ordered the book!"
"Got my copy!"

OMG! YAY!

I can't believe my little book, the one I've put everything I have into, is finally AVAILABLE FOR PRE ORDER! And, people are ordering it in droves! That's right, by midnight, the pre orders were already in the dozens. OMG! OMG! OMG!

Some people even left comments on my page here about how they had already ordered the book and couldn't wait to read it! A lot of you emailed me about it.

OMG! OMG! OMG! Is THIS really happening?

And the last time I checked, the PRE ORDERS were STILL POURING IN.



Now, remember, PRE ORDERS will be open until September 1. AND....everyone who pre orders DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs, will be able to have it autographed by me personally. Not to mention, those who do pre order it, will also save nearly ten dollars off the price it will be once it hits the open market on October 1.

So take a jaunty little stroll over to TRIAD Publishing Group's website and click on the black banner on the right side of the homepage. You'll know it when you see it. It's got four orbs (two blue, one red, one green), and then click on the "BUY THIS" on the next screen.

ENJOY it, my dear and cherished friends. As I said, I've put everything I have into this book, and nothing would make me happier than to know that DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs is a book you WILL NEVER FORGET:)

And so, there it is:) The show was amazing! YOU are all AMAZING! And if I dare confess, everyone who HAS read the book so far has admitted not being able to put it down. So get your copy now and save yourself nearly ten dollars off the price the book will be once it hits the open market:)

Here is the show, for those who missed it. So grab your favorite comfy beverage and kick back. Enjoy, and feel free to leave your thoughts in your wake:) Like you, they are always welcome:)

GINORMOUS HUGS and SECRETS REVEALED:)
Cindy
author of:
DAVID THORNE: The Golithian Orbs
(Still feels so great to be able to say it publicly...YAY!)

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Reviewed by Hazel Booth

Title: 006 and a Half
Written by: Kes Gray
Illustrated by: Nick Sharrett
Hardback: 24 pages
Ages: 4 to 7
Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 13:978-0-8109-1719-4
Publication: April 2007

“Daisy made up her mind. She wasn’t going to be a girl anymore. She was going to be a spy.”

Daisy gave herself a black felt-marker moustache and put on dark glasses. She collected special spy gadgets from her Mom’s bedroom. She moved stealthily around her house, speaking in code. As 006 and a Half, she attracted only odd looks from friends, family, and the neighbor’s cat. Miserable with being misunderstood, Daisy “trudged into the living room and slumped onto the sofa…’Being a spy is stupid,’ she grumbled.” But a knock on the door restored her hope, with the appearance of a mysterious stranger who spoke in code and brought a message just for her.

Simple, yet expressive pictures resonate with kids, making this a fun, frequent re-read for children ages 4 to 7.

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Hazel Booth is a freelance writer and a student of the Institute for Children’s Literature. She reviews picture books for the National Writing for Children Center and is currently working on nonfiction articles for kids.

006 and a half, Kes Gray, Nick Sharrett, picture book review

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