#RomancingSeptember Days 10 and 11

September 11, 2015 / Marcia Meara / Leave a comment

Still going crazy around here, this time with Createspace issues, but trying my best to catch up. I certainly don’t want to forget about Rosie Amber & Stephanie Hurt, and their lovely September event. Day 10’s featured author is Lizzie Lamb, and Day 11’s is Adrienne Vaughan. (Don’t forget to check both blogs, as the questions are different.) And please remember to pay it forward! Thanks!

Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 10 with Lizzie Lamb
Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Day 10 with Lizzie Lamb

Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 11 with Adrienne Vaughan
Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Day 11 with Adrienne Vaughan

Still Looking for Help: Jennybeanses??

September 11, 2015 / Marcia Meara / 11 Comments

Well, I wish I could say your suggestion worked, Jenny, but there isn’t anything on the right side of my page (which might explain why I never noticed it before, so I can quit blaming it on senility. :laugh: ) As you can see above, I don’t have the option you mention. (You might have to click on the image to read it.) Any other thoughts?

Question About Amazon/Kindle

September 10, 2015 / Marcia Meara / 11 Comments

Okay, this is for authors and readers, both. Anyone who uses a Kindle or Kindle app. Why is it whenever I edit one of my own Kindle books, I can’t get the new version on any of my devices? I delete the OLD version from the device, and I delete it (supposedly) permanently from the Cloud. Then I BUY a brand new version, download it, and it is the same version I had to start with. Every single time. After two years, I still can’t get the edited version of Wake-Robin Ridge on my Kindle.

What am I doing wrong? (Forget that part about checking the box to allow updated versions of books to automatically be sent to my Kindle. It has never worked on ANYONE’s book that I’m aware of.) After uploading Finding Hunter a couple days ago, I discovered some wonky formatting going on that had NOT shown up on the Previewer. I fixed it, uploaded it, but have no way to tell how it looks on my own Kindle Voyage, because they merely sent me back my original purchase. ?????

Anyone else have this problem? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

#RomancingSeptember Days 7, 8, and 9

September 9, 2015 / Marcia Meara / Leave a comment

In all the sturm und drang of the weekend, sorting out the mistake I made on Amazon, I didn’t have a chance to post links to these latest three #RomancingSeptember author interviews–for which I apologize profusely. Here they are for those checking out this entertaining group of writers. Day 7: Pamela Beckford, Day 8: E. L. Lindley, and Day 9: F. J. Thomas. Hope you’ll share their interviews in all the usual ways. Thanks! Remember, when it’s your turn, we’ll do the same for you. 🙂

Rosie Amber – Pamela Beckford: #RomancingSeptember Day 7
Stephanie Hurt – Pamela Beckford: #RomancingSeptember Day 7

Rosie Amber – E. L. Lindley: #RomancingSeptember Day 8
Stephanie Hurt – E. L. Lindley: #RomancingSeptember Day 8

Rosie Amber – F. J. Thomas: #RomancingSeptember Day 9
Stephanie Hurt – F. J. Thomas: #RomancingSeptember Day 9

Happy Ending Almost In Sight!

September 7, 2015September 7, 2015 / Marcia Meara / 5 Comments

Even as I type, the correct version of Swamp Ghosts is being restored to its rightful place between the alligator infested covers of same! Woohooo. And the Usurper, Finding Hunter, has been sent back to his OWN book, with firm instructions never to stray from within those covers again! Ever!!

Like many of Life’s Learning Experiences, this one wasn’t fun. But it did teach me to be very, very careful in the future, and not let anything cause me to rush, or to work when I’m too tired to think straight. But, when everything’s said and done, all’s well that ends well. (I made that up. No, really. I did. Okay, I didn’t. Not a bit of it. So sue me. *grin* )

By tonight or tomorrow, this whole thing will be nothing but a memory, and me? I’m movin’ on! I have stories to tell, books to write, and self-marketing to . . . to . . . to try and palm off on somebody else! 😀

Have a great week, you guys! I think next week, we’re due to have an event around this place. Maybe an Excerpt Week. Haven’t had one of those in ages, and I’m sure you all have books you’d like to promote. Stay tuned!

Finding Hunter, Swamp Ghosts, and Amazon Headaches!

September 7, 2015 / Marcia Meara / 2 Comments

Let’s see…good news first:

The CORRECT version of Finding Hunter is ready to download from Kindle, and seems to be working fine. I haven’t officially “Launched” this one yet, but if you are wanting to read Book 2 of my Riverbend series, it’s ready.

The semi-good news is that the INCORRECT version of Swamp Ghosts is now LIVE in my store, which means I can start the correction upload shortly.

The BAD news is, while it’s up on the Amazon Book page, it is NOT live on my Amazon Author Bookshelf, and therefore, I can’t access it to start making the swap back to the correct content. I guess I’m stuck checking every five minutes until I can do that, and then, I’ll cross my fingers that it goes through without a hitch, and this horrible nightmare will be resolved by tomorrow. Hopefully no one will have downloaded a bad version during that window between versions.

Let this be a lesson to all of us. Check, recheck, and double check before you click ANY upload button on Amazon, because once you do, you’re pretty much at their mercy. If I sound a bit disgruntled, it’s because I am. I think there should be a failsafe button somewhere that says “STOP this action IMMEDIATELY.” But alas. It is what it is, as a wise man once said, and we just have to muddle through the occasional calamity as best we can.

In the meantime, if you’ve already read (and enjoyed) Swamp Ghosts, why not take a look at Finding Hunter? It’s a very different kind of story, but one I hope most readers will enjoy. Thanks!

Ever Have One of THOSE Days?

September 6, 2015September 6, 2015 / Marcia Meara / 19 Comments

Actually, I’ve been having one of those days since Friday. Ever since I sat down to format Finding Hunter for CreateSpace, and Word refused to cooperate. Slowly, I’ve become a snarling, ill-tempered wreck, biting my nails, tearing my hair, and cursing everything and everyone in my sight. NOT a pretty picture.

But I thought I had finally gotten everything wrapped up pretty well this morning. Then I decided to make a small change to the back material in Finding Hunter for Kindle. I made the change, uploaded the new file, and checked out my Bookshelf…ONLY to see that I had uploaded the newly revised Finding Hunter manuscript to the Swamp Ghosts file!!!! (If you heard a hideous scream coming from every direction at once an hour or so ago, it was probably me. No matter where you live.)

Once I could breathe again, I called Amazon customer service, and got a very nice man immediately. Only problem was, he couldn’t cancel the upload. Only Kindle Select folks can do that. And they’re gone. For the weekend. But they’ll email me when they get back. 24 to 48 hours from now. Meanwhile, the changes will go live in 12.

The good news is, I can fix them at that time, but then along will come Kindle Select personnel in 24 hours, and stop what I just fixed. For the life of me, I can’t see how this plays out in less than a week of messing around, during which time anyone who buys Swamp Ghosts is going to find the wrong book inside the covers.

Now, you’d think they could go back and download the RIGHT one, once it’s all fixed. But I’m still without a current version of Wake-Robin Ridge, after paying for it three times. It still sends me the original version, errors and all.

I’m not a happy camper. I’m not sure I’m ever going to be a happy camper again. And right now, I’m in the ridiculous position of praying no one downloads a Kindle version of Swamp Ghosts for the next week or so. You’ve been warned. If you were considering reading it, please wait until I give the go-ahead, to be sure you aren’t stuck with Finding Hunter in a Swamp Ghosts cover. I’d say a week should do it, but I’ll post here if it gets sorted sooner.

Now, I’m going to go lock myself in my room and have a good cry. So there.

#RomancingSeptember Days 5 and 6

September 6, 2015September 6, 2015 / Marcia Meara / Leave a comment

So sorry I didn’t get to this yesterday. Spent the whole day trying to get Finding Hunter ready for CreateSpace, with a few formatting glitches that Word just wouldn’t let me correct! Grrrrr.

BUT. Never fear, here are the links to Saturday’s featured author, Georgina Troy, and today’s, V. Steele. Check them out, and please remember to share. Thanks!

Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 5, Georgina Troy
Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 6, V. Steele

Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Day 5, Georgina Troy
Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Day 6, V. Steele

#RomancingSeptember Day 4 with #MichelleBetham

September 4, 2015 / Marcia Meara / Leave a comment

September is turning out to be a very romantic month, and I’m loving it. Hope you guys are enjoying these posts, too. Today’s featured author is Michelle Betham, and you can find her interviews (different) here:

Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 4, Shirley Valentine Goes to Vegas

Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Across the World Day 4

Happy reading, and be sure to share everywhere you can. These authors will love you for it!

#RomancingSeptember Day 3

September 3, 2015September 3, 2015 / Marcia Meara / Leave a comment

Hope you guys are enjoying meeting these authors as much as I am. Today’s #RomancingSeptember guest is #LindaLeeWilliams, and you can read her two interviews here:

Rosie Amber: #RomancingSeptember Day 3 – Old Town Nights

Stephanie Hurt: #RomancingSeptember Across the World – Day 3

Happy Reading, and don’t forget to share!