An Author’s Choice

 

Every writer sometimes chooses to steer their work in a new direction. Sure, many authors draw from their own life experiences, adding a twist for a bit of fun. I'm definitely one of them. 

For anyone interested, I have drawn on my past relationships with men in my recent books, written under CG Heandez. Additionally, I am married and have been for 33 years. 

Let's move past my personal life; I prefer to keep that private. Overall, it's up to the author to explore different genres, and if you appreciate their writing style, the genre shouldn't be a concern, whether it’s young adult stories or more mature adult content. 

Feel free to swing by my profile link and take a look at my books.

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Summer Fling Stories

Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart Chapter 1 Excerpt

 

Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart Chapter 1 Excerpt

Life doesn’t present stones to bruise your soul,

But challenges to leap, to make you whole.

Embrace each dawn with eyes anew,

With a heart wide open, and goals to pursue.

May tomorrow's light guide you on your way,

Bringing you nearer to your goals each day.

Chapter 1: Serena

If you’re reading this, it means I’ve passed on. I’m Serena Raye Sanchez, and I penned this diary back when I was in my late 30s, a time when my hair was starting to grey, and my body was beginning to show signs of aging. In my youth, I was considered quite attractive, sporting light brown or sometimes burgundy hair, depending on the dye I chose at the time. Honestly, I can’t even recall what my natural hair color is anymore, but I can confidently say I was never a blonde.  I’ve always had a slim figure and striking hazel eyes, a trait I got from my mother. 

My mom, Maria, had a rich heritage, being both Irish and Mexican, while my dad, Scott, was of Caucasian descent. I also have a younger sister, Caroline, who is happily married and has two kids of her own.  As I pen down these thoughts in my diary, I can't help but reflect on the fact that both my parents have passed away, may they rest in peace. I have three daughters: Sarah, Salem, and Shari. It’s funny how all their names start with an S, just like mine.  Before diving in, I should mention that this diary covers all the crushes and romances I've had over the years. Think of it as a bit of a confession, though I’m pretty sure some people wouldn’t forgive me if they stumbled upon it. I may be dead, and it doesn’t bother me, but it will hurt my family. Despite everything, I am and always will remain the person people knew and loved regardless of my flaws. No one’s perfect and not everyone walks the righteous path so I do have Haters that will always judge but that doesn’t matter, not anymore.  There was a time when I believed everyone had a soulmate, a spiritual twin somewhere out there. Finding him or her may take a person a Lifetime but people do find each other, some do that is. When I was younger and single, I was totally into soap operas and really enjoyed them. I often found myself daydreaming about meeting my Knight, my Angel, or my Soulmate. But before diving into that, I should mention my first crush, which might not excuse my later choices but definitely gives a glimpse into who I used to be. So, let’s rewind to high school, where I encountered my first major crush on a guy named Alex Romero. He had a bit of a following, with dark brown hair, light hazel eyes, and clear skin, he stood around five foot five back then, but I’m sure he grew taller as time went on. I used to think he was flawless, but looking back, I realized I was wrong. As for myself, I had my own struggles. I was a bit on the heavier side, especially in the rear department, what I affectionately called, "junk in the trunk." Combine that with my low self-esteem and a hefty dose of shyness, and you’ve got a recipe for some seriously awkward times during those years.

I wasn't really the kind of girl Alex would notice or date; I was pretty average in looks. Still, I had a huge crush on him. And no, we never had sex, and I didn't even think about it. Why? Because I was brought up in a strict conservative Mexican family. Yes, there are conservative Mexican families out there, contrary to what some may believe. I didn't look like the girls he was into, and I wasn't eager to lose my virginity, so I held myself back. I believed that when I met the person, the right one, I’d know it. The first time I laid eyes on Alex: It was like a refreshing gust of wind ruffling my hair, that one instant when a new thread was added to the intricate fabric of my life, a moment that would forever hold significance for me. Alex and I were in the same English class, and there I was, caught without any paper to jot down my essay.  So, I turned to him and asked if he could spare me a sheet. He said, “Hi,” and handed me a few sheets of paper. Our eyes met and something happened, at least for me it did. “Who is this guy talking to me? He is so cute,” I thought to myself. My mouth dropped, my heart skipped a beat, I got that feeling in my stomach, butterflies. I've definitely had my share of crushes on guys before. Back in middle school, I liked two boys, Chuck and Simon, but they always went for the thinner, cuter girls. I thought Alex was different, or at least I hoped so. If I had looked like those other girls, he liked maybe we could have been a couple and gotten closer, but my low self-esteem always held me back.

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Traditional or Self-publishing: What is Best?

 

"The landscape of self-publishing has changed significantly over the last decade. Once considered inferior to traditional presses, self-publishing is gaining more attention and earning credibility as a viable way to access unique, and in some cases quality, content. What’s more, the increase in self-publishing has garnered a significant amount of attention from marketing companies looking to capitalize on this burgeoning industry. Major publishers are even jumping on the bandwagon as well, offering independent authors a variety of ancillary services to help market their books. Libraries have begun using self-publishing to reconnect with communities by offering workshops and resources geared towards independent authors.  It is not uncommon for writers to choose the route of self-publishing because the traditional publishing route is difficult, if not impossible, for some writers to enter."

Anonymous 

That statement is true! Many self-published authors hit a brick wall when presenting their work to the traditional publishers. Most of the time, traditional publishers don’t look at every manuscript they receive. If their workload is heavy, they will return the manuscript and thus depressing the author, who then decides to forget about becoming a serious author.

NOTE: an author is someone who has published more than one book. It doesn’t matter whether they are an Indie/self-published authors or not, they are still authors. Indie/Self-publishing is probably the only opportunity available to the beginners.

 What’s the percentage of certain groups of people from obtaining authorship through traditional publishing routes?

 The number of books published by people of color speaks volumes about the barriers that prevent certain groups from obtaining authorship through traditional publishing routes. In 2017, out of 3,500 books received by the center, approximately 3% were written by African American and Latino authors, 7% were written by Asian Pacific American authors, and less than 1% were written by Native American authors. Therefore, self-publishing is a route that allows writers to share their stories. It also creates an opportunity to be recognized as an author.

Here is someone’s point of view regarding self-publishing.

 I Understand that “indie publishing” is all the rage, but despite royalty rates of 70%, I think self-publishing is a terrible idea for serious novelists by which I mean, novelists who take writing seriously. Here’s why. If you self-publish your book, you are not going to be writing for a living. You are going to be marketing for a living. Self-published authors should expect to spend only 10% of their time writing and 90% of their time marketing. if your passion is creating worlds and characters, telling great stories, and/or reveling in language, you might want to aim for traditional publication. I mute authors whose tweet streams are 90% adverts in the same way I wouldn’t watch the shopping channel. Most indie authors have tweet streams that are 90% adverts, perhaps a reflection of the fact that they must spend 90% of their time marketing. It certainly doesn’t make self-publishing look like the path to El Dorado. Why would I want to join this gang?

What I say about what that person said:  He’s right about marketing however, he’s wrong about self-published authors not taking their writing seriously! All authors take their writing seriously! If they didn’t, they would not care when someone gives them a not so good review! 

There are people out there that just despise Indie/self-published authors. Why? The author did what others wish they can do, it's that simple. The self-published author doesn’t just talk about writing a book and publishing it, they go out and do it! They have courage and hope in a sea of vexing haters.

Do most self-published authors consider their writing a career?

The majority do but some are more realistic in the outcome so most have part-time jobs or even full-time jobs.  Overall, self-publishing may be all the rage, but the writer has a choice. If he or she wants to publish traditionally, that's up to them, however more and more traditional companies are going in the way of self-publishing. Giving their audience a chance to read a diverse stream of books written by unknown authors. Some of those books can hide a hidden jewel. Just saying.

 

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Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart: Making it as a Paperback

I recently uploaded my book Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart as a paperback book. It usually takes 72 hrs for KDP to review the book and publish it however, my intuition tells me it might take a little longer this time. So I visited the KDP community forum to ask why my book is taking a little longer than usual. One person said that it might have something to do with a shortage of staff since they lost some people to COVID. Whether I believe it or not is irrelevant. But as usual there is that 1% who will post their satire like comment only because they assume that Indie author books are low rated. Well, Chandra's Quest has done quite well as far as I'm concerned. It now has a global rate of 6. 

Why is that relevant? Well it means that even though they didn't leave a review they still gave it a 4 or 5 star rating. That matters a lot to me as an Indie author.

(And no, not all reviews or ratings come from someone the author knows, that's just ridiculous.)

What the Hell are Fake Books?

I have no idea what are 'Fake Books' but someone on that thread said this:

"With KDP staffing being what it is and the tsunami of titles growing ever larger, it could be a long wait, but probably less than five business days, going by the experiences of others. However, if you're one of the thousands uploading fake books, the wait could be even longer, weeks or months. In either case, patience is required."

Well, I said that I don't make "Fake Books" which I'm assuming are FanFic books. I truly have no idea.

This person also said:

"Keep an eye on your Bookshelf. It is not unusual for print editions to be bounced back to Draft for one reason or another, especially now...the new staff hired to replace the sick or dead seem to have a higher rate of rejects."

I don't believe that! There is no reason for them not to be doing their job, regardless of who is working. I don't believe my book should be bounced back to draft & it shouldn't be rejected either!! If I find out that it is rejected, I will call support as instructed by another user. 

I personally do not like going into KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) forum to get answers because, there is always that 1% as I stated before. I seriously doubt that my book would have issues, period. 

When Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart is published as a paperback, I will share the link to the book on Facebook, Twitter, and on my website.

In the meantime, I am working on completing Omega: Chandra's Quest Book 4, and I will upload it as an eBook first and a few months after, I will publish it as a paperback, thus completing the Chandra's Quest trilogy, finally. Next year I will start on another novel but I am going to take a short break from writing. I have some personal projects to that I want to complete. Yes, I do plan on writing some FanFiction but under a pseudonym and on a different blog.

For inquiring minds: 

 All my books that have been published as an eBook or paperback, have been copyrighted. 

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(eBook) Secret Diary of a Gypsy Heart