Welcome to Day 2 of #NJ12DaysOfAuthors (May) Series! @ChuckWesJ #Amilcar @RRBC_Org #RRBC

GIVEAWAY:

At the end of this series, 1 lucky visitor will win a (12) Kindle e-book pack which will include a copy of each book featured in this series + a $10 Amazon gift card!  Simply leave a comment below to be entered into the drawing!

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On the second day of the May “12 Days of Authors” Series… Nonnie’s gift to you…

AUTHOR, CHARLES JONES!

Author bio:

I grew up in a small town of five hundred people in Wyoming that everyone always pronounces wrong or spells incorrectly, Shoshoni (show show knee); I swear it’s a real place. My first novel, Dreamwalker: The Second Plain, is LGBTQ+ horror as are HOME, Daughter of Illusion, and Master of Illusion. Oh, yeah, I currently live with my husband of 20+ years in Colorado with our three cats, eight crested geckos, and one saltwater fish tank.

NJ:  Is your author name a pen name or your birth name?

Charles:  I started using a pen name recently for the new Kindle Vella platform. So, look for C. Winthrop Grimm in the near future. I use my birth name for my main projects.

NJ:  What made you decide to write under a pen name?

Charles:  I want to keep the serialized work in Vella separate from my other work and create a persona to tell the stories for me.

NJ:  I have been in this business long enough to know that quite a few readers have a purchase price point and will only spend so much on an e-book. How do you price your books and what is your logic behind the pricing? 

Charles:  I like to keep my prices competitive, but I also base it on the size. Books around 50k words are $2.99, over 60K is $2.99, and then I have the one that I’ll keep at $.99. I’ve also set my new release at $.99 for the time being. I like making money, but that’s not all there is to it for me. I want as many people walking in the worlds I’ve created.

AMILCAR:  THE BLYTHE FAMILY CHRONICLES

NJ:  I got on Twitter many years ago because my social media manager at the time, told me that I needed to be on Twitter. He did not give me an actual reason as to why (I had to learn my “why” on my own), just that I needed to be there.  What was your main reason for getting on Twitter?  For support? For fun?

Charles:  Originally it was for marketing, but I figured out quickly that it’s not as easy as I thought. So mainly now it’s for supporting other authors and getting support in return.

NJ:  What other social media platforms do you use to market your book(s), and have you found them to be beneficial?

Charles:  I’m on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, but even with running ads, I haven’t seen much gain.

NJ:  Supporting others is a huge part of my identity. I believe that when you invest your time and support in others, you find that your circle grows by leaps and bounds of others giving the same to you. When I first got involved heavily on Twitter, I was pushing others more than I was pushing myself – I continue to do so. Do you support others on social media?  If so, how?

Charles:  I use Triberr to support on Twitter by finding groups that are within the same genre as well as ones that are not and share their posts with my followers. I try to do individual posts for people too, but when life and work get crazy it’s hard to keep up.

NJ:  You do a pretty good job, as I always see your hand raised when we are requesting blog tour hosts, so kudos to you! Do you actually take the time to read tweets from others before you retweet them, or do you just hit “retweet” without ever engaging in the tweet?

Charles:  I read before I hit the retweet. I’ve made the mistake of retweeting something that I didn’t support because it came from someone I knew and didn’t read it, so I’m very careful now.

NJ:  Good.  Never RT unless you know what you are RTing.  That could put a blip in your reputation.  Now, if you could map out the perfect way that you would want others to support you on social media, how would you ask your followers to support you? Just imagine that everyone who reads this interview will run out and follow you.  How could they best support you?  What would you have them do?

Charles:  Mention me from time to time, shoutout a book, or just say Hi.

NJ:  We all learn something new almost every day while on social media and I like sharing what I have learned with other authors, in hopes that it will benefit them in some way. Have you come across any writing resources that might benefit other authors?  I

Charles:  There are a few groups on FB that I joined and most people on them are helpful.

NJ:  Authors are always seeking good formatting services. Who do you use to format your books, and would you recommend them?

Charles:  I do my own formatting. I recently learned how to do it in HTML code. I’ve used the Kindle Create app too and it’s OK if you want all your books to look the same.

NJ:  Can you share with our audience 2 or 3 of the top methods you use to market your books?

Charles:  (RRBC) RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB and Amazon Ads

NJ:  Hahaha!  I love it!  RRBC seems to be a recurring theme here!  Especially in the comments section of yesterday’s stop.  What is the one bit of writing advice you would give to any author, experienced or newbie?

Charles:  Be true to yourself and write what you like; I hear people say to only write what you know, but how can you grow and learn if you do that. Don’t take negative reviews personally, everyone has their opinion.

NJ:  Is your reputation as a writer important to you, OR might we look up one day and find that you are in a Twitter brawl with someone?

Charles:  My reputation is extremely important. I don’t want to get involved in Twitter wars or FB wars. The thing that always amazes me is that some people don’t let others have an opinion.

NJ:  Well, I love opinions!  In your opinion, what is the biggest difference between the writers you see today around social media, versus the writers of old? 

Charles:  With social media there’s so many people talking at once trying to get heard. At times, I envy how things worked in the past, but at the same time it was harder for them to get the word out about their books. A famous author from the past, who I’m related to, bought enough copies of one of his books to hit the NY Times Best Sellers List.

NJ:  That was clever of him, Charles, but you know, I only want to be named to the NY Times Best Sellers list because I’ve written an amazing book that the entire world loved.  Now, do you value professionalism in the literary arena and worry that the lack thereof makes it harder for those of us who wish to be taken seriously in this business? Or, does the unprofessional behavior of some around social media not bother you at all?

Charles:  Everyone adults differently. That said, I personally find it annoying when people try to start rumbles on social media with me, and I’ve been noticing it more frequently. I have the right to my opinion, if you don’t want to hear it, don’t post on social media. I will back what I have to say with as many facts as I can and/or examples of my experiences. When people become combative because they don’t agree, that’s their problem, not mine. I own what I do and say, and I wish everyone did.

NJ:  Amen!  So do I!  I stand behind everything I say and do.  If only everyone else would follow suit.  If you have ever received any, how do you handle not-so-flattering reviews of your book(s)?

Charles:  It depends on the content of the review. If it’s honest and not just a troll, I will consider what they are saying. I have a review on one of my books saying that they got lost because I jumped from historical events to how they related to the protagonists in the present, then they finished the review with “I read several books at the same time, so sue me.” They also criticized me for seemly forcing them to know anything about American history. I just shook my head and walked away. In others, I’ve received feedback that I had some typos or minor grammar issues, those I go find and fix.

NJ:  Do you appreciate honesty regarding your writing because you know that only honest feedback allows you to grow as a writer, or are you one of those who would prefer that others lie to you and tell you only what they know you want to hear?

Charles:  Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies. Sorry, I had to sing that old Fleetwood Mac song.

I prefer honest feedback. I tell enough stories to know when a review isn’t honest (those are the ones I paid for).

NJ:  So true.  But, we must always remember that there are those who love to be lied to.  They can’t handle the truth and get upset at your audacity to stand in your truth regarding their work.  But, that’s another topic altogether so let’s move on.  Don’t worry about the singing.  I know Fleetwood personally so I invited them over to sing it with you!  Charles, do you blog about any specific topics or are you a random-topic-blogger?

Charles:  I love horror and Sci-Fi movies, so I do write ups (basically reviews) for the ones that I’ve seen a thousand times and the ones I’ve only seen once. I post my book reviews, too. I like to share what I’ve seen and read whether I like it or not because my trash is another’s treasure and vice versa.

OTHER QUICK FACTS ABOUT CHARLES…

• Has been writing officially for 10 years
• Writes under Horror and Dystopian genres
• Writing is a second full time job for him
• Indie all the way!
• 14 published books to date / Amilcar: The Blythe Valley Chronicles is the favorite thus far / $.99 on Amazon

FOLLOW CHARLES ON…

Twitter:  @ChuckWesJ

Facebook:  ChuckWesJ

Instagram:  ChuckWesJ

LinkedIn

Website:  Charles W. Jones, Author

Guests, thank you so much for dropping by to support Charles on Day 2 of the May “12 DAYS OF AUTHORS” Series!  It would be awesome if you would pick up a copy of his book above, and after reading, share your review to Amazon.  Ensure that you leave him a comment below, and also LIKE his feature before you leave, for your chance to win the grand prize package listed above!  We’d both appreciate it if you would share his feature to Twitter and Facebook, as well. 

To follow along with the rest of the features in this series, visit the “12 DAYS OF AUTHORS” home page!  There will be a new feature tomorrow!  I’d also love it if you would #follow my site, as well as following me on Twitter @NonnieJules, as my truest joy is in service to others.  I’d love to support you, too!

HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE FEATURED IN MY #NJ12DaysOfAuthors Series?  Click HERE to sign up!

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DISCLAIMER:  Any guest material appearing at WATCH NONNIE WRITE! is not edited, proofed or changed in any manner by the the owner of this blog. Material is posted as it is written and submitted.  It is not my place to make changes to someone else’s writing, as what I view as needing correcting, just might be the way the author intended the material to read.

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