Exciting Times... Never Give Up!

Finally it is all coming together...

Have you ever felt like that dung beetle pushing against the giant self-made dung ball. Well that has been me over the last twelve years. I have been plodding up the most metaphorically difficult mountain emulating the action of a dung beetle. It is amazing how constant perseverance and persistence pays off so one can be victorious. Well the good news is I am finally at the top of the mountain. I am intending to ride the dung ball down the hill.

When it comes to writing, I have to say there have been times when I just wanted to give up yet I was compelled to carry on. Why would anyone carry on when no one had heard of them? People kept telling me why it was so difficult to succeed as an author. You know what? I could listen to others because they simply mirror one's self-doubt. The thing is sometimes you have to transform the doubt and simply put your head down and do it anyway! And  you know what? There have been times when I can quite honestly say I have had full on tantrums, especially when I received over a hundred rejection letters. Unfortunately I rid myself of most of them through not being a person who can hold onto rejection.

I now look at my twelve years of consistent writing as exercise and learning. Now finally it is all paying off. In the last year I have released 2 novels and 1 creative writing book to add to the other 6 books I released over the last 5 years. 8 of my 9 books will enter onto the audio market place by the end of the year. I finally feel like it is working and that my life's work has been birthed into the world. Admittedly I have another ten books drafted and intend to work on those over the coming years. However, my big lesson in life is: if one door does not open then find other ways. Approach the market place like an entrepreneur. Look at what is new and has potential. There are always new ways and original ways. The desire and drive will be there when you forge your own path and stay authentic and aligned with your passion. You know that something is a passion when you do it for no reward. That is where I felt tested - I accepted that whether or not my books sold or not, well I simply had to write them. So here we are... yesterday Money Farm arrived in paperback. Tomorrow the Office Zoo will be available in paperback too - just in time for Secret Santa gifts for Christmas and the classic office leaving present. What's more, the reviews have been honest and amazing. The first few I cringed before I even read them. I was astounded by what amazing things people write who don't know you about the work you created. I know they won't all be good; however, I have had a phenomenal start so thank you reviewers!!!

The audio books have absolutely astounded me. The talent of the producers quite simply blows me away. How they shift between characters and accents is just astounding and bring life to the characters that once lurked in my head. I also have advice for those who are aspiring in any field. Focus, use your passion and life force to bring something brilliant and unique to you into the world!

 

Final note:  I wrote this blog to advise everyone who reads my posts that to celebrate the new releases I will post five chapters of each book... I hope you will enjoy them:)

 

 

Ruby Allure Books created to inspire you:)

 

LINKS TO AMAZON.COM:

 

New in Paperback:  http://amzn.com/151230526X

 

 

 

 

LABYRINTHINE AMAZON.COM LINK: Link: http://amzn.com/B012FAYI5U

 

 

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AUDIBLE LINK FOR A SHORT COURSE IN CREATIVE WRITING: http://amzn.com/B01390THLK

 

21/08/15

 

"An Unexpected Gem"

***I was provided a copy of this audio book for the purpose of a review ***

With the required disclaimer out of the way, let me be brutally honest, I had not expected this little gem. In fact, I had expected my listening would be a bit rough and was fortified by it being less than 2 hours.

The synopsis says the author wrote the book as a takeaway from her evening classes on creative writing. My mental context was ... Community Ed evening classes ...and expected a well intended but kind of amateur product. However, I am interested in adult education, and batter my own nerd head against a giant personal creativity brick wall.

So you have an idea of my mind set... low expectations along with high interest.

Amateur hour it was NOT.

I don't know where the author teaches her class, but Sign Me Up! And bring the narrator. Wow. Two hours of unadulterated, straight up, right on, good learning material delivered by a close friend just sharing the material. The narrator's voice was warm, sincere without any artifact or pompous patronising, and well modulated throughout. The material was mind opening for me, with the right mix of the mechanics of writing exercises, sufficient context that using prompts now makes sense to me, and a sprinkling of the inner heart work of creativity through written material.

This was just what I didn't dare hope for in a how to creative writing listen.

Truly an unexpected gem and a learning and growing experience for me.

A keeper and one I will return to many times as I deconstruct my own wall, one block at a time.

Thank You, Ruby and Thank You, Erin.

 

TO BUY MONEY FARM ON AMAZON.com http://amzn.com/B010F04W9O

· Frode

06/08/15

5 STAR

"M.O.N.E.Y. is bad? This book is not!"

So Money Farm by Ruby Allure was a surprise! When I REALLY did not read things about this book I review for Audiobook Blast, I sometimes get books I don't know something about. BTW: I read 99% about the books I want to review, but this book I can't remember I did that for. Anyways: This was a nice surprise, and I think it is one of those books that is better the second time you read it. No joke! I listen to this twice before I made this! Money Farm makes you thin, and who does not like to hear a book that makes you think? It is an awesome book, that I will recommend to all that likes audiobooks, and really to people that does not!

Helen Lloyd English accent its the topic like a glow and a hand! Her "lady like" voice is so cold, and clear I feel that the author made this book thinking that Helen Lloyd would read it out loud! That is how I feel those two fits together! The 2 times 14 hrs and 6 mins I spend with her never feels boring or uninteresting! I would love to spend it again, and I will because this book I will hear again, and again, even when it is 14 hrs and 6 mins long! That is saying something!

I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com

Link: http://amzn.com/151230526X

MONEY FARM

· "Incredibly thought provoking..."

What did you like most about Money Farm?

It was an eye opener.

 

What did you like best about this story?

I like the way it made you think about the way normal everyday life is here and now, and the future...

 

Have you listened to any of Helen Lloyd’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Helen Lloyd narrated this fairly long audiobook brilliantly. Although the story content was very intense and thought provoking, her lovely smooth voice was very easy to listen to and I thought it was just perfect, a fascinating book wonderfully narrated.

 

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes it was, although it is too long to do so.

An update on an Indie book world

Fifteen years of writing consistently has finally started to pay off. In my previous blog, I talked about the WHY in why people write. There are times when you are writing and writing and nothing is happening. That is just how it is. Then one day it is as if everything starts to come together. It is as if the universe smiles on you and says let's give this person who is not going to give up a bit of a chance.

This only really started in the last two years. I was the proverbial blue bottle that kept flying into the window and banging its head. I would fall onto the proverbial window-sill, lay slightly stunned for a while and then get up and do it again.

During that time I taught creative writing, worked full time as a business analyst, competed at rowing and wrote in between. You might notice I like being busy and managed all that by creating structures that enabled me to be consistent. What makes it easier for me is I like the feeling of progress. Even if I write for ten minutes then I am progressing. The point was - nothing was happening. So one day I had to re-evaluate my WHY. My great dream of international fame, fortune and flying  helicopters probably was not going to manifest in reality. Instead I realised I had been chasing illusions and actually the reason why I wrote was down to the fact I loved writing. I simply loved creating stories and it did not matter whether other people liked them or whether people bought them. Instead it was spending time in creative inner landscapes imagining. As soon as I realised that it was not about how much money I made and whether there was any interest.  I was going to write anyway because it was my passion and my hobby- that is when something shifted. The struggle stopped and I had more energy to write what I wanted, how I wanted. My books went on promotion and the sales started. I know it is sad but when you have twenty downloads in a week you feel as though you have been 'found'. That sense of liberation seemed to send a signal up to the universe and people arrived in my life who desired to make my books into audible books. That is where I am now. I am working with a fantastic producer who is turning Labyrinthine into and audible book. It seems to take it to the next level and I am loving it. After that, who knows, I am completing a couple of film scripts of The Ocean Callings and Labyrinthine because the producer I should have those ready 'just in case'. So let's see what the next step is... All I can say to all you Indie authors is persevere and find ways for you to make things happen. All the while, love what you write and enjoy it. That is the greatest reward you can have - enjoy every moment of your creation. The way I see it is if I can do it then so can other people. I can have a break through then surely sharing it with others will help them to keep going against all the odds. There will always be doubters and people who tell you why you won't succeed. It is your choice to listen to them. My advice is keep going, enjoy what you create and put the work out there because there is more than enough audience for all of us.

http://amzn.com/B008Y600X4

 

http://amzn.com/B008Y65FWU

 

 

Passion, persistence and perserverance.

Passion, persistence and perseverance.

If at first you don’t succeed then try again. This is all very well, however, the word ‘trying’ implies forced effort and repeating the same type of effort. The image of a blue bottle colliding repetitiously with a window comes to mind. If I have learned anything, then doing the same thing over and over again never enables a different outcome. So if at first you don’t succeed, find another way to do what you love or an alternative route to the success you desire.

So what is the success you desire? Why are you doing what you are doing? Is it because you desire a certain outcome? Is that specific outcome realistic? If that outcome does not happen then would you still do what you do for the enjoyment of it? If the answer is yes then you can stop trying and simply enjoy your creation as you enjoy the journey to your intended outcome. If the answer is no, then do you carry the belief that without pain there is no gain? Do you really have to put yourself through pain to achieve your goal? Really? If there is pain aren’t you likely to stop? Isn’t that when the mistakes happen? Obviously the old cliché of learning from your ‘mistakes’ is always apt for progress. Yet mistakes don’t always have to be painful. Instead they can be regarded as diversions - where you come to a road-block and are enabled to experience something new or an alternative way of doing things. Another thing to consider is what you consider a mistake. Personally I don’t generally consider any part of working on what is essentially a passion a mistake unless I don’t enjoy it. So what if what you are creating is not internationally successful over night? Isn’t it about the joy of creation?

So with regards to passion and perseverance, this is also how we perceive what we want to achieve. In the last years I have come to the conclusion that the time I spend writing is more about having the opportunity to step into my creative landscape. At one time I would have felt as though I was pulling a jumbo jet up a mountain using a rope because of the unrealistic expectations I had on myself. That has since transformed and nothing about creation is a chore, instead it is a joy. That was the pain that I was causing myself by have huge expectations of sales and general concepts of success. When I shifted those expectations I realised I simply loved writing stories and putting them out in the world. Writing became easy because there was no pressure. Of course, that is when the shift began and books began to sell. I realised I was creating works that were an absolute enjoyment to create without pressure. That changed the quality of my creation and meant that I could persevere without feeling as though it was a struggle. I hope that will help you. These are a few of the questions I asked myself:

What so you enjoy?

Where is your creative passion?

Ask why you are putting pressure on yourself.

Are there more fun ways to achieve your success?

Ask yourself why you do what you do.

Find out what motivates you.

Create a habit of what you are doing regularly.

Link: http://amzn.com/B00ATF8QF2

 

http://www.amazon.com/Ruby-Allure/e/B00M9Y4GAA/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1