Welcome to my blog Patricia. I hope you have a good time today.
Tell us about yourself
You might not want to know. But here goes. I love chocolate. I get ill if I don’t have chocolate. I never miss The Walking Dead. Team Daryl Rules! I’ve always been interested in history. I’m an old soul. Love taking pictures and doing anything creative. Especially writing.
Was your road to publication a delightful stroll in the park or a tiring jog over hot coals?
Let me change the word, tiring, to painful and I’ll go with that. Or maybe that should be infuriating jog…or even laborious jog…how about nerve-wracking…I could go on all day.
Where is your favorite place to write?
In my writing cave. It is the only place where I am surrounded by all my stuff. Research books, music, plot boards, corkboard with notes pinned all over it. And, a magnolia coaster for my glass of iced tea.
Do you have a day job?
Unfortunately. The most boring place on earth. But I hope to get out of there soon or find a straightjacket on sale.
What is your favorite part of writing?
Getting lost in the story world with the characters.
What music are you listening to lately?
I listen to a lot of soundtracks. It depends on the story I’m writing. It is mostly always instrumental.
If you could switch places with one of your characters, would you?
Yeah. I’d switch places with the heroine in the book I just finished. Why? Because Elise is living in the French Quarters and she has a rugged army captain infatuated with her. Of course, living in 1814 would have its drawbacks like no shampoo, no deodorant, no penicillin.
How has your experience with self-publishing been?
Wonderful! The first story I published was The Yard Sale. I had no expectations. I just wanted to see what it would be like. It turned out to provide me with one of my best writing moments ever. The first day of its release, it made the top ten in comedy and for a while, it was in the number 1 spot on Amazon’s Best Seller list in Comedy. I almost passed out!
What was the deciding factor in self-publishing your work?
I was beyond needing validation as a writer. I had already sold work and seen it print. So, I looked at it as a way to write the stories I want to write and make them available to readers. There was no publisher out there for The Yard Sale. No where to submit it. I think that is what is so great about the e-market. Stories that would have never seen the light of day have a chance to reach readers.
What advice do you have for new writers?
Work at the craft. Never stop learning or trying new things. Write what you love. This is a new era. It is the best time ever to be a writer.
What’s next?
I am in the process of having a historical romance edited and the cover designed. I hope to have it up on Amazon in January. It is one of those books with no market. It is not set in England, but rather the city of my heart, New Orleans and the title is To Save A Lady. It is Book One of the Ladies of Louisiana series.
Where can readers find you?
I have a webpage that has links to my blog and social media accounts. Go to http://www.patriciapreston.blogspot.com/. I’d love to have you follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/pat_preston and stop by my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Patricia-Preston-Author-Page/127261867330755
BIO
Patricia Preston is a Southern author who writes historical and contemporary romance as well as humorous Southern fiction. Her publishers include New Love Stories, True Romance, Affaire de Coeur, Cloverdale Press, The Blue and Gray Magazine, Sea Oats Review, and Carina Press. She won William Faulkner Award for Short Fiction, the Lone Star Writing Competition for Historical Romance, and Harlequin’s World’s Best Romances Short Story Competition. Her short stories have been best sellers on Amazon and listed on Amazon’s Top 100 in comedy. She is currently working on a historical romance series.
Thanks for having me, Cindy! I hope everyone has a terrific Thanksgiving holiday!
BLURB for YARD SALE
Looking for a quick, fun read?
Then, come on down to Clayburn, Mississippi, where Jennifer Riley is having a yard sale. She needs cash fast. She’s lost her job, her house, and her husband has run off with another woman. From Early Birds to Prince Charming, Jennifer meets a host of quirky customers, and by the close of her sale, her life has been changed forever.
Jennifer’s tips for having an extraordinary yard sale:
* Early Birds do arrive at dawn, so be ready.
* Stand up to Tightwads. How can someone ask you if you’ll take less than a quarter? Seriously.
* Show some love for Packrats because they’ll buy anything.
* Try not to make a fool of yourself when Prince Charming arrives.
* Most importantly, realize some things have a value greater than money.
Buy link for The Yard Sale: http://amzn.com/B007W7QHAQ
Actually, we’ve had some “Garage Sale Scouts” show up at 10 pm the NIGHT BEFORE with toddlers-in-tow to garner sympathy (saying they worked next day). Shooing them away or else face an “all-nighter” was the only option as we saw others in cars waiting nearby. On other sales, we’ve had them show up well before the first rays of the Sun even started turning the sky purple…still pitch Black. I always told them the ladies are the only ones who know their prices and they had to set up the sale last night after a long, hard day at work and I won’t wake them until 6:30 am and it will then be 30 minutes before we open the sale. (-;
What a fun post, Patricia! I love your sense of humor.
I am so drawn to self-publishing. With The Yard Sale, did you do anything special that (you think) contributed to your #1 spot? Besides writing an obviously great story. And releasing on a day when the stars aligned.
What a fun interview. The more I hear about self-publishing, the more it interests me. Your Louisiana historical romance series sound as if they’d be a hit. Good luck with them. BTW, your links to your web page and to buy The Yard Sale don’t work.
Guy: Thanks for stopping by! Yard sales can be a lot of work! I had one this past summer and actually enjoyed it a lot. Many of the characters in “The Yard Sale” are based on my past experiences with yard sales. 🙂
Ana: Thanks for coming by! Actually, I didn’t do anything special. I have never done ads for either short story. I did do ads for the Western that Carina Press published. The only promotion I did for the short stories were tweets, Facebook posts and blog posts. I did take a screen capture of the list that day. LOL. Ratings on Amazon change all the time. You should definitely consider becoming an Indie author if traditional publishing isn’t your thing or doesn’t provide a market for what you write.
Karalee: Thanks for stopping by. I don’t know why those links don’t work. My webpage is http://www.patricia-preston.com. You can go there for more information and links to books and social media. If you have questions about self-publishing, I’m no expert but I’ll be happy to tell you what I know. My email is patricia@patricia-preston.com. There are several good books written by Indie authors which I found helpful. I am hoping the Louisiana historical will find an audience. I do love writing them.
One of the cutest books I’ve ever read. I will make a note about keeping you chocolate.
I loved The Yard Sale and look forward to reading your historical, Pat.
Anecia: You always remember the chocolate! Especially in the form of Reece’s Cups. 🙂 Thank you for commenting and for being my dear dear friend and a fellow fangirl of the Walking Dead & Dracula.
Debbie: Thank you!!! So glad you enjoyed the story. And I am enjoying your new book. Love the mermaid mythology. To anyone reading this, Debbie has a new Harlequin Nocturne out called Siren’s Secret. It’s about mermaids but they are not like Ariel! 🙂 Darker characters….
I adored The Yard Sale — the characters were wonderful, and real, and humorous. I can’t wait to read more of them. I’m looking forward to this new historical too!
Donna: So glad you enjoyed the Yard Sale! Thanks for stopping by! I am hoping to get the historical out there soon.