Interview with Claudia Burgoa

Can you give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?

Getting By is the first book of the Knight’s Tales series. They tell the story of three handsome successful brothers that rather get a root canal than getting serious with a girl.

GB introduces us to Jake, Mitch and Liam; while telling us the story between Jake and Emma; two people that like to have a light relationship but are afraid of something more.

Do you have a favorite character?

Yes, Mitch.

What factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?

As I worked on my first manuscript, I also researched my publishing options. For now, I think self-publishing is the way to go for me. I am able to create my own team and be involved through the entire process. Perhaps in the future that will change though.

What is your writing process? Do you listen to music or do you like silence?

For the first draft, I let the juices flow from my mind to the keyboard while listening to music—generally Indie, alt rock and everything that has an upbeat rhythm and angsty lyrics.

Do you outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?

I let the muse guide me, I’m Claudia and I’m a Pantser.

Besides Amazon, are there any other sites where your books are for sale?

Barnes & Noble, Kobo and iTunes.

Do you find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and writing your next book?

It is tricky to try both of them but like everything in life, you have to juggle all the balls and hope not to drop any during the act. *crosses fingers*

What advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing arena?

Though writing is a one person show, publishing isn’t such. You need to find a support team to help you achieve your goal. Editor, cover artist, beta readers and find the marketing tools to get your work to be known. Furthermost, never forget it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Some fun facts about you, which do you prefer – dogs or cats? Chocolate or vanilla? Coffee or Tea? Talk or Text? Day or Night?

Dogs, chocolate, tea, text, night.

What’s next for you?

Next to You, the sequel to Where Life Takes You; my first novel. It should be published on June. And Standing By, the second book of the Knight’s Tale series. This has Mitch’s story and I’m planning on publishing it by the end of summer.

Book & Author details:

Getting by ~ A Knight’s Tale I by Claudia Y. Burgoa 

Publication date: February 18th 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult

Synopsis:

When Emma Anderson arrived at San Francisco International Airport, she regretted accepting the distinction of being the maid of honor to Gaby’s—her childhood friend—wedding. It had been years since the last time she set foot in Menlo Park, where her parents had been killed. The rug where she had been shoving her feelings since that day looked bumpier than a camel’s hump. Who could blame her; if she hadn’t been selfish they’d still be around. Ever since that fateful day, Emma has been perfecting the knack of Getting By.

Cade’s wedding in Menlo Park—a city close to San Francisco—might be the perfect place for Jake Knight to shake the memories of his ex, Emma Anderson for good. Single, available women galore for an entire week was the perfect medication, one he intended to take three times a day for an entire week to return to his player days. It was a plan the former spy thought flawless until he came face to face with the maid of honor. Jake’s perfect retreat turns into a flight, fight or hide week of celebrations.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19305020-getting-by-a-knight-s-tale-i

Purchase:

--Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Knights-Tale-Claudia-Burgoa-ebook/dp/B00II6IKLO/ref=twoen-20

--B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/getting-by-claudia-y-burgoa/1118637452

AUTHOR BIO:

Claudia lives in Colorado with her family and three dogs. Two beagles who believe they are human, and a bichon who thinks she’s a beagle. While managing life, she works as a CFO at a small IT Company. She’s a dreamer who enjoys music, laughter and a good story.

Author Links:

Website: http://www.claudiayburgoa.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7202946.Claudia_Y_Burgoa

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaYBurgoa

Twitter: https://twitter.com/yuribeans

Tour wide giveaway

--A Kindle HD (US/CAN only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

New Release - The Red Cross of Gold XIX: How Men Do It by Brendan Carroll

Today I’d like to welcome one of my fellow author friends, Brendan Carroll.  Brendan has just released his latest addition to the Assassin Chronicle series, The Red Cross of Gold XIX: How Men Do It.

Brendan, the floor is yours!

Thanks Deb for letting me talk about my book.  In a few weeks, I hope to have it up and running in paperback form which will also be available at Amazon.com. 

In this latest installment, the adventures of the semi-Immortal Templar ruling council continue.  The Knight of Death, Chevalier Mark Ramsay is facing old enemies on several fronts.  Two of his most formidable foes have been very busy in the Abyss, laying waste to the Seventh Gate of the Ancient Watchers.  Mark is the only one strong enough to brave the depths of the halls of dust and ashes and repair a breach in the wall before the ancient terrors that lie beyond hell make a mad dash for freedom.  He is beset by many loose ends leftover from the elven wars, not the least of which is a new Elven King who wishes to learn about the ways of mankind in order to further the evolution of his people.

The Assassin Chronicles has also evolved over the last few decades as one of the driving forces in my life.  I started the series back in the nineties as a sort of hobby, which at the time, I had no hope of ever publishing.  Over the past few years, the publishing industry has undergone massive changes with more changes in the offing, which can only be even better news for the Independent Authors otherwise known as Indie Authors.  The same phenomenal growth as recently experienced in the Indie Film Producers and Indie Musical Artists fields can be expected to continue for Indie Publishers as more author hopefuls and formerly mainstream, traditionally published authors join the ranks of Indie Authors, self-publishing their own works in order to take advantage of higher royalty percentages and greater contractual freedom that virtually eliminates the need for agents, publicists and publishing houses.

The current availability of Amazon’s publishing site for Independent Authors wishing to publish works for use in the Amazon Kindle and other eBook readers requires no upfront expenditures and leaves the author in full possession of rights to publication with only a few restrictions.  The 70% royalty rate for published works selling between $2.99-$9.99 is unprecedented in the publishing industry.  The current and growing success rate for Independent Authors is, to say the least, unexpected and borderline fantastic.

Though no one can claim that the sun is setting on the Traditional Publishing Houses, they are now being forced to recognize the growth and evolution of the eBook as a viable alternative for a number of talented authors who might have otherwise never been picked up for publication, and they must also recognize that the eBook market is making huge advances in comparison to traditional published paperback and hardbacks.

The recent fall of Blockbuster Videos into bankruptcy can be directly attributed to the rise of such online services as Netflix and conveniently placed automated sources for video rentals such as Redbox.  While I do not hope for or predict that the same fate awaits the traditional publishing houses, there is evidence that recent trends may point to eBooks giving the trade publishers the so-called ‘run for the money’.

Personally, I am an Independent Author and I will continue to be an Independent Author in light of the relatively small advances, comparatively complex contracts and virtual impossibility of access for authors seeking Traditional Publication. I have had numerous persons ask me how hard it is to write a book.  The answer to that question in my honest opinion is that it is not hard to write a book.  Anyone with even elementary skills in typing, spelling and grammar can write a book.  The hard work comes from the seemingly never-ending editing/proofreading necessary to make the work as perfect as possible before publication.  Even harder than perfection of details is the Art of Promotion.  Trying to decide where to promote, how to promote and when to promote in my case was a strictly trial and error process, much of which was and still is quite painful. 

Writing is fun, interesting and entertaining as a hobby, but it is getting harder and harder for an author, especially a new author , to find a strategy that works and sells books while avoiding those inevitable traps and snares set by every Tom, Dick and Harry outfit out there who wants to prey upon the hopes and dreams of aspiring writers, offering them so-called wonderful opportunities, no-fail marketing techniques and dubious professional services such as editing, reviewing and promoting for a small investment.   My best advice to anyone just starting out in the fine art of self-publishing and promoting is to avoid anyone offering to do something that you can do for yourself and charging money for it.  Check out the numerous forums for writers on the web and read everything with a grain of salt.

In the meantime, I would like to thank my fans and supporters for making my Independent Authorship a success and wish all of you a wonderful experience whether it be as an eBook reader or an eBook writer!!

My books can be found at:

 http://www.amazon.com/Red-Cross-Gold-Knight-Templar/dp/1442116390

Paperback: The Red Cross of Gold

http://www.amazon.com/Red-Cross-Gold-Knight-ebook/dp/B001J6ORUI

Kindle eBook: The Red Cross of Gold I:. The Knight of Death

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0042AMEQW

Kindle eBook: The Red Cross of Gold XIX:. How Men Do It

My Blog is at: http://redcrossofgold.blogspot.com

I can also be found hanging out at http://www.Kindleboards.com , http://www.wordpress.com, http://www.Goodreads.com and http://www/Librarything.com and 

Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/The-Red-Cross-of-Gold-Assassin-Chronicles/116868838327249

Renaissance Festival

Had a great time at the MN Renaissance Festival with Josh and Julie. Here's Josh and I in pic#1. There was your resident lords, ladies, knights and a turtle. Turtle? Yes, a turtle.

Here's our knight and of course, he won. We know how to pick the right side to sit on!

It was good to visit, but it's great to be home.