DAUGHTER OF THE DRUNK AT THE BAR by Michelle O'Neill

When Michelle O' Neill first contacted me about whether or not her memoir would be suitable for Celerytree.com, I immediately resolved to buy myself a copy as one of my Celery Tree membership-required purchases. When Michelle sent us a print copy instead of an e-file, I read it in print, my favorite way to enjoy a book. I felt kind of bad getting a book for free that I had intended on buying.

Maybe someone reading this post who loves a good memoir will buy a copy, and I won't feel so bad. Because let me tell you, it is absolutely one of the best memoirs I have ever read. Seriously, if Michelle had sent this manuscript to WiDo Publishing, we would have snapped it up. I hope it's a screaming success. It certainly deserves to be.

Daughter of the Drunk at the Bar, the author's story of coming of age under the shadow of her father's alcoholism, can be found here.

I reviewed it briefly on Celery Tree, but a fuller review of this book can be found on Goodreads, here.

Celery Tree!

C is of course for Celery Tree, the online bookstore that everybody's talking about. Well, actually 4 people are talking about it, according to the Celery Tree Facebook page hehe.

Want to know more? Check out the website, Celerytree.com.

Follow the Celery Tree blog.

Like us on Facebook.

Especially if you are an author with a book to sell, you will want to check out Celery Tree!

Tomorrow, D is for the book Daughter of the Drunk at the Bar by Michelle O'Neill, a book for sale on Celerytree.com that is absolutely fabulous.

And then we arrive to E for Editing. That thing that every book must have.

Books and Bookstores

Lately I've been reading on the Kindle. Sometimes I'll get into the story and think about it when I'm not reading. That's like a real book. Sometimes the Kindle book bores me and I never finish, again like a real book. I tend to get bored much easier with e-books than I do with print books.

I miss browsing the bookstore. Browsing the Kindle store doesn't feel the same. Borders, my favorite sort-of local bookstore, was a favorite destination. There's just something about holding a print book in my hand, I love it! I love the smell, the feel, the anticipation!

I miss the loss of bookstores in my area. But I'm glad there are still options for buying print books online. Besides my personal favorite (Celerytree.com of course) there are many other places to find great deals on print books. Amazon is awesome, because you can find literally any book that's ever been published, often at a cut-rate price. Shopping Amazon for used books is one fun trip.

I'm not of the school who believes that print books are dead or dying. And given the choice, I'll choose the print book over the ebook reading experience any day.

B is for (print) Books!

Evaluating social media time

Pretty sure I'm being Officer Obvious when I say it's a struggle to get one's mind around social media efforts, to create the ideal balance between online activities and the actual writing of books.

Where do I hang out online and how effective is it really? I'll share my list and would love to get feedback about yours, too.

Twitter: It used to be fun but no more. It's become a mass of non-stop promotion and links. As a result, I'm spending much less time there and enjoying it even less. With nearly 2100 followers, I certainly don't want to abandon my Twitter account, but still....What's the point of it? I ask myself.  Twitter time: Less.

Blogs: Coming Down the Mountain is where I connect with writers and readers. It's an important social outlet for me, kind of a combination book club, writer's group, and chat room (including the blogs I visit, not just hanging out here expecting everyone to come to me). My other blog, the Celery Tree blog, is for information and promotion of Celery Tree. Anyone interested can follow it for up to date info about Celerytree.com.  
Blog time: About the same-- posting once a week or as needed on the Celery Tree blog and posting 2 or 3 times a week here, as the mood strikes.

Facebook: FB friends include writers, neighbors, family members, slight acquaintances, people I knew decades ago-- you know how it is on Facebook. Lately, FB has made changes that annoy  me and make the site messy, cluttered and sometimes awkward to navigate.  
Facebook time: About the same-- check it a couple times a week. It's not an important part of my life.

Website: I set it up last year as the place to find out about my books and me as an author. My url is karenjonesgowen.com, yay!.  
Website time: I love it but don't hang out. It's for company only.

Google +: I do very little over there as it has nothing new to offer.  
Google Plus time: Next to nothing.

Goodreads: I don't accept friend requests from people with hundreds of friends and no books listed. The purpose is to list books read and reviewed, not to amass friends to email and harass to buy your book. I tried joining some groups but couldn't see the point. Like the Kindle Forums and Twitter, it becomes desperate authors hawking their own work. I post reviews, keep track of books read and those I want to read.

And btw, does anyone know why my Goodreads icon has all but disappeared? Has this happened to anyone else? I'm about ready to kick its sorry butt to the curb if it doesn't show up and do its job on my sidebar.
Goodreads: Post reviews, ignore direct messages and group spam. Delete Goodreads book review icon if it doesn't show up soon for work.

Celerytree.com: Brand new and as it grows, I want to do more with the Forum and especially with reviewing member books.  
Celerytree.com: Hoping for growth so I can hang out there more.

That's my list. What's yours?

Just in Case you Might Want to Plan a Book Tour

I know this is the era of ebooks, social media marketing and forget- about- the -book- tour- unless- you're- a- celebrity, but some newly published authors might still want to plan a tax-exempt vacation
a working, fun vacation
a trip to someplace interesting
er-- a book tour.

If that sounds like you, I'm currently doing a series over at the Celery Tree blog on marketing and promotion. This first series will be focusing on planning a book tour *does anyone even do that anymore?* Well, my mum and I did and I want to share what we did and what we learned.

The first part of the series was on Identifying and Finding your Demographic. The second on Planning and Communication. Third will be on the Media, Getting Reviews and Articles. Fourth will be Playing to Your Strengths. And Fifth on Failures (because we learn more from our failures than from our successes).

So check it out yo. Come hang out with me and Liesel under the Celery Tree!