Month: August 2024

The Generosity Mindset

The generosity mindset

A lot of new faces this month on JPC Allen Writes, and today YA Christian author Stephanie Daniels is here to talk about the generosity mindset and a spiritual approach to marketing books. Welcome, Stephanie!

It’s never too soon for writers to develop a marketing strategy. What’s the best way to get eyeballs on your Magnum Opus? Amazon, Bookbub, Meta ads. Blog tours, book clubs, reader groups. Each of these things may have measurable success with experts teaching classes that can help you navigate them. Here though, consider some spiritual principles which might give you a new perspective.

I’m always impressed with the passages in Scripture about God exalting us, esteeming others better than ourselves, and putting the last first. God’s emphasis is always on others. Giving His own Son to purchase our salvation was the ultimate example of selflessness. We know this, but we seem to get anxious about whether our message is getting out there.

God is the One who put the idea/plot/character on our heart, so can’t He also get that book to the right readers? Without our help? We trust Him to supply finances, healing, and wisdom, but not those meant to read our book?  Does that mean we shouldn’t ever tell anyone about the works of our heart? No, but we can become too focused on salesmanship, instead of allowing Him to show us how able He is. Some authors spend money on advertising only to be frustrated and discouraged by dismal results. God wants to show us His greatness, but too often we don’t let Him. 

Does that mean we shouldn’t have a strategy? After all, if you don’t have a goal, you’ll hit it every time. Not at all. Learn the things, if you’re able. Take the ad classes. Join the reader groups. Post on your socials. But consider adding something I’m calling The Generosity Mindset to your marketing toolbox. 

First, pray for the results. When I was close to publishing, I told my husband that I didn’t want to use our regular household budget for my writing endeavors. We’ve mostly been able to stick to that. It’s something with which I wanted to trust God. Two years later, and God still gives me a certain number of sales on my first and thus far only published book. Is it because I’m a big name? I’m an indie published author writing in a teeny tiny Christian genre for teens, so no, it’s not because people know me. Is it because I’m such a talented writer? If I am, to God be the glory, but doubtful. The feedback is mostly good, but unlike most YA authors, I’ve not even reached fifty reviews. What I have done is asked God for a certain amount each month–granted, a very small amount–and He has been faithful to give that to me. He’s also given me opportunities. Opportunities I never sought. Those aren’t things I specifically prayed for, but I believe trusting Him with the rest of it has opened other doors. 

Second, put others before yourself. Read books by other authors in your genre so you can give good suggestions. I’d advise even reading books outside your genre. Besides the obvious benefits of improving your craft and helping you stay current in the market, readers love recommendations. And guess what? They notice when authors are generous by mentioning other people’s books. It might even make them curious about yours. Don’t do this to expect something in return. Being generous means no expectations. 

I’m sure this advice seems contrary to everything you’ve heard. It certainly wouldn’t make a good workshop of tried-and-true guaranteed results. We serve a big God though and He’s more than able to sell our books for us. Try Him and see.

Read guest blogs by YA authors Melissa Knight and V. Romas Burton.

*****

What price will she pay for following her heart?

Chicago, 1871. Sixteen-year-old Whimsy Greathart would rather fight against Chicago’s child labor practices than attend her privileged family’s high society events. And a very public social blunder only strengthens her resolve to use her influence for good.

On the night of the Great Chicago Fire, her tenderhearted choice leads her into danger and results in life-changing consequences.

With her world turned to ash, she must rely on the mercy of poor relations to rebuild her future and is forced into the very labor system she wished to fight against. As Whimsy staggers under the weight of street gang violence and hazardous working conditions, a chance at deliverance persuades her to make a promise. One she intends to keep. But now she must determine whether it’s God’s heart she’s following or her own.

A Top Faved Christian story on Amazon’s Kindle Vella. Now available in paperback and e-book.

*****

Author Bio: Stephanie Daniels writes Christian historical fiction for young adults and the young at heart. She lives in southwest Missouri with her husband and three sons. She is also the treasurer and active member in her MozArks ACFW chapter and helps administrate the Teen/YA Christian Fiction Bookshelf Facebook Group. Her debut novel in her Uncertain Riches series (The Uncertainty of Fire) first published on Amazon’s Kindle Vellaas an episodic story in 2021. A year later she released it in paperback and e-book. Currently she is releasing the second book in the series, An Unconfirmed Report on Kindle Vella with plans to publish it in traditional formats in late fall 2024. You can sign up for her monthly Pastports newsletter for reading recommendations and writing updates.

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Choose a Plot for These YA Characters

Choose a plot for these YA characters

Last week, voters found photo #5, the small town, most inspiring, with number #3, the run down house, as runner up. So the primary settings for our YA story are a small town and the poor side of that town. Now you need to choose a plot for these YA characters.

By plot, I mean the engine of the story. What drives the main character? In his book 20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them, Roland B. Tobias describes twenty major plots. I’ll choose six.

  • Romance
  • Riddle (Mystery)
  • Quest (Does not mean fantasy. It can be any story in which the main character is searching for something.)
  • Romance
  • Coming of age
  • Revenge

Of course you can combine plots. Like amateur sleuths fall in love while searching for a missing will, but I’d like you to vote for the main plot. Which do you choose?

2

Not Everyone Will Like Your Stories. It’s Okay!

Not everyone will like your stories. It's okay.

Here’a another new author for you to get to know on JPC AllenWrites. V. Romas Burton is the award-winning author of The Heartmaker Trilogy and The Legacy Chapters and writes teen fantasy and has learned that not everyone will like your stories. It’s okay!

It happens to all of us. A new story is born from our minds. We spend hours writing it down, figuring out all the details and then fine-tuning every sentence until we believe it is perfect. After hours, days, months, and even years of work, our beautiful creation is complete. With excitement and anticipation, we send this beloved idea, this depiction of our heart and soul on the page, into the world. Everyone will love it, won’t they? Reviews start to roll in and though many are positive, our minds zero in and focus on the negative: 

            The beginning is too slow.

            Prologues are so cliché.

            The main character is whiny. 

With each negative comment, our confidence deflates until we wonder if we should even continue writing at all. If you’ve experienced this series of events as a new author, or even a seasoned author, I am here to tell you that you are not alone! 

As we dive into the world of books and writing, there are so many wonderful things to discover: writing friends, like-minded people, those who love the same books as you, to name a few. But we also learn that there are highly critical writing groups, ARC readers who like to point out every typo in your finalized manuscript, and the worst one: readers who just don’t like your story. 

After having spent so many hours creating a jumble of ideas into a beautiful work of art, you can’t fathom that someone would dislike this amazing thing you created. But, unfortunately, not everyone will like your story and that’s okay. 

When my first book was published, I couldn’t wait to get it out into the world. I wanted to share this incredible story with others. They needed it! Yet not everyone felt the same way. The negative comments listed above were just a few of the not-so-kind words I received. Though there were plenty of words of praise and 4–5-star reviews, as a perfectionist, I could not get over the negative comments. They affected me so much I began to alter my writing to fit what these negative reviews said. I wasn’t writing the story God placed on my heart, I was first trying to make my audience happy.

But I’ll let you in on a secret: reading is subjective! You will never be able to make everyone happy because everyone enjoys something different. Writing to trends is okay, if that trend is what you truly desire to write. However, trends are fleeting, and the market is fickle. Things can and will change on a dime.  

I want to encourage you to stick to the story God has placed on your heart. Even if it’s strange or other people don’t understand it, keep going. Your book will find its group of readers, one way or another, and once it does, you will be so glad you stayed the course. Keep writing, my friends!

*****

Devora’s perfect future shatters. Instead of attending Vlacklear Academy, she is sent to the Fortress-a prison holding murderers and thieves that make up the soldiers in His Majesty’s Army. She fears it is the end of her.

Suppressing her forbidden Seeing abilities, Devora is thrust into the role of soldier, and must learn to defend herself while avoiding Warden Hazor and his ruthless right-hand man, Captain Blake.

When Devora’s Seeing abilities are exposed, she’s thrown into a tournament to win her right to live. She must turn to Captain Blake for help or be slaughtered like all the other Seers before her.

BUY AT AMAZON

*****

V. Romas Burton grew up bouncing up and down the East Coast where she wrote her first story about magical ponies at age seven. Years later, V. Romas Burton realized something even bigger was calling out to her—stories that contained great adventures and encouraging messages. You can find future updates and news on her website: www.vromasburton.com and on Facebook and Instagram.

2

Choose Settings for These YA Characters

Choose settings for these YA characters

Now that we have our protagonist, or main character, and an antagonist, the character who opposes the main character’s goal in the story, we can look at settings. Please choose settings for these YA characters to operate in, and I do mean choose more than one. Maybe they both work at a resort, and our MC lives in a small house on the poor side of town. Maybe they go to the same high school or college and end up working at the same restaurant. You should also decide if the story is mainly rural, urban, or suburban. Such as the college and restaurant are in a small college town. Or the resort is on the outskirts of a large city.

Please vote in the comments below. And for more inspiration for YA fiction, click here.

3

Book Review of Lion Warrior by James R. Hannibal

Book review of Lion Warrior by James R. Hannibal

I found another reader for this book review of Lion Warrior by James R. Hannibal: my oldest. He loves the series it belongs to, Lightraider Academy, which is aimed at teens. Who better to review YA fiction than a YA?

Lion Warrior, Third and Last Book in Lightraider Academy

The dragon war has breached the barrier.

The forces of the Liberated Land are near to breaking. Without a heavy and rapid shift in the Assembly’s strategy, a dragon invasion will be unstoppable.

Connor and Kara have kept the full knowledge of the Red Dagger’s location secret for almost a year. A chance to destroy Heleyor and end the war is within the Lightraider Order’s grasp. They must now reveal what they know and call for action.

With time running out, Connor, Teegan, and Aaron attempt to recover the dagger, and Kara helps the Airguard train a new corps of soldiers—windfighters—in their own bid to change the war’s tide. Meanwhile, Lee and Zel search for Heleyor’s army of tortured Aladoth. This force, thousands strong, has vanished. They’re heading for a hidden portal, and may emerge at the heart of Keledev at any moment.

Every path that lies before the cadets seems a great risk. The slightest misstep may cost them their lives, their loved ones, and their homeland. But to do nothing means certain failure. To succeed, they must charge ahead into dark uncertainty and trust the Rescuer.

My Son’s Review

“I like the characters in Lion Warrior because they aren’t annoying or mushy, although there’s a romantic subplot. I also like how it wraps up The Lightraider Trilogy but leaves the possibility of more books. Action scenes are the author’s strong suit, gripping you throughout the whole scene. All of the characters, whether they are good guys or bad guys, act logically and not stupidly. I don’t like slap-you over-the-head-with-religion books, but the fantasy setting makes the faith element work.”

For more reviews of YA books, check out Smoking Flax and The Outsiders.

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