On the weekend I attended the Readers and Writers Down Under Convention’s book signing, which was held on Saturday 28th March on the Gold Coast. It was definitely a nice place to have a convention, although I didn’t have time to visit the beach. 🙁 I’ve been to a few different book signings over past couple of years since I became a published author, so there were many things about this event that were familiar. When I arrived I was told where my spot was and so began to set up my books and t-shirts on the narrow table I […]

One of the most frustrating things about many novels, especially in the YA genre, is that they are one of a series. I work for a publisher, which means that, occasionally, free books are given to me (one of the perks of the job!). And not just our own books, either. This means that recently I have read some books that I enjoyed. One was Dissonance by Erica O’Rourke and the other Unwanted by Amanda Holohan. I found both of them entertaining and found their worlds fascinating. However, when I reached the final page of each one, it became clear […]

Names are important things. Names allow us to identify ourselves, other people and things. They are so important. And they are equally important in a book. Especially in the name, or title, of the book itself. But naming a book can be damned hard! Especially when it comes to finding something unique. When I named my debut novel The Heir, my publisher frowned. ‘That’s not a good title,’ she said. ‘It’s too generic.’ She was right, so we made the three books all part of the Verindon trilogy to give it a unique angle. (By the way, you can still […]

As an author, I always do my best to communicate my characters in as clear a way as possible. This can be a difficult thing, especially with complex characters. Sometimes I wonder if I’m successful or not. This week The Heir received a review that suggested it came across as sexist. That comment took me by surprise, if only because in the past nearly two years since it’s been released it’s never been called that before, but also because that was definitely not something I intended. I had to think back to what I had written about Sarah in The […]

The bad news is that the .99c sale of The Heir on Kindle is over. 🙁 The good news is that the price of The Heir on Kindle will now remain at $2.99! It’s fantastic to think that its price is going to be so reasonable, giving a great incentive to those who think they might like to try the Verindon trilogy. Did you buy your copy? Remember, if you review it on Amazon by 15th March you could win autographed copies of all three books in the trilogy. See last week’s blog here for more details. From the time […]