UNCONTROLLABLE BLOG TOUR AND GIVEAWAY

Hi Everyone! Today I'm so excited to participate in Shelli Wells-Johannes' (also known as S.R. Johannes) blog tour for her new book UNCONTROLLABLE, the second book in The Nature of Grace series. UNTRACEABLE, a mystery thriller set in the Smokey Mountains, is a Amazon bestseller and 2012 Kindle YA Semi-Finalist. Shelli is also a 2012 Georgia Author of the Year YA nominee. 

I loved the setting of this series. Having been to the Smokey Mountains, I really felt transported back there reading Shelli's book UNTRACEABLE. And she does a fantastic job weaving in Cherokee traditions and setting up a fast paced mystery. Grace is a great character, who is vulnerable but very independent and determined.

Here's a blurb of UNCONTROLLABLE from Goodreads:

As Grace recovers from tragedy, her science class is chosen by Agent Sweeney at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to help with research on the new "Red Wolf Reintroduction Program".

While she’s excited about helping with the conservation of the endangered wolves, Grace knows this means being outdoors in the worst winter recorded, in a place she no longer feels comfortable. It also means working closely with Wyn (her ex) and his annoying girlfriend (Skyler), a girl whose idea of getting close to nature is picking silk plants and growing fake plants.

After a couple of wolves show up dead, Grace almost quits. However, when a fellow project team member goes missing, Grace continues the assignment under a renewed suspicion that someone might be sabotaging the conservation program. She quietly begins to hunt for clues.

Little does she know, she is being hunted too. 

Shelli is an expert in marketing and she's sharing some of her advice today. So here's Shelli.

I’ve spent a lot of time talking book marketing over the last several years.

What I think has helped me the most is relationships.

It is not about how many ads you place or how many followers you have. It’s about connecting with people authentically.

Do I think I have a good book? Yes.

But I think the word of mouth has helped me because I have spent years meeting people, helping people, and connecting with people. Not for any purpose but because I love people.

I also reached out to bloggers first. I think bloggers make this book community and I admire what they do for books just because of their passion for books.

5 steps to starting a platform

1)   Join networks you are excited about

2)   Create a place where you hang out – tumblr, blog, web site (ect)

3)   Start visiting blogs and commenting to make connections

4)   Find ways to help others

5)   Make things personal – minimize spam or group emails

5 ways to use Twitter

1)   Help other people before yourself. RT their news.

2)   Don’t always tweet about yourself. It gets old. Random twitter giveaways to get followers or for followers are always nice.

3)   Tweet with a purpose – don’t over tweet too many things all at once.

4)   Take part in conversations. Make it 2-way.

5)   Don’t focus on your follower numbers.

You can find out more tips in Marketing Your Words book.

Thanks Shelli for your great advice. I've been wondering a lot lately about what to do with Twitter. You can find Shelli at her blog.

And the book Shelli is referring to is her new book about marketing, MARKET YOUR WORDS -A Writer's Guide to Best Selling Book Promotion. It sounds like a great resource when you get ready to market your book.

 Shelli has generously donated an e-book of UNCONTROLLABLE for a giveaway. Don't have a e-reader? Not a problem. I didn't have one until my aunt just gave me her old Nook. I've been reading e-books on my computer with no problem

 

To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment by midnight on September 29th. I’ll announce the winner on October 1st. If your e-mail is not on Blogger, please list it in your comment. International entries are welcome.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. 

You can find the whole blog tour with lots more giveaways here.

Here's what's coming up next.

Tomorrow I'll be sharing a cover reveal for Elana Johnson's new book ABANDON.

Monday I'll be sharing THE CROWN OF EMBERS, by Rae Carson. It's the sequel to THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS. I can't believe I got it. I'm giving away my ARC. It's a fantastic fantasy series and I'm so excited to have an ARC to share with you.

Next Wednesday Lisa Nowak will be sharing a guest post on publishing options and sharing about her new book DRIVEN, a contemporary romance about a girl who loves to work on cars. And there will be a giveaway.

The following Monday I'm so excited to help debut author Shannon Messenger (she's the founder of the Marvelous Middle Grade Monday posts and one of the founders of WriteOnCon) celebrate the release of her book, KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES. I'll be interviewing her and giving away a copy of her book.

And don't forget our Tuesday Tips and Casey's Thursday agent spotlights.

Hope to see you on Monday!