Tag Archives: jennifer eaton

Aren’t stats just the coolest thing? People really do stop here. It blows me away.

Posted on July 7, 2013 | 34 comments

I just love Statistics.  Well, I love statistics that can be handed to me on a silver platter.  I leave the figuring out the statistics and other “mathy” things to Middle Dude.  His mom is mathematically challenged.

Anyway, A year ago I started counting unique visitors to my site.  I know a lot of you are here a few times a week or more (Thanks!) but I was wondering how many NEW people come.

The statistics actually blew me away.

I started calculating in mid June, 2012, and a year later, here are my stats.

free counters

This counter says that in the past year, over 12,000 UNIQUE people from the USA have stopped by my site.  That’s INDIVIDUAL people, not repeats.  How stinking cool is that?

In second place are my buddies in Canada, over 2,000 strong.  Hello up north!

And a big howdy over the pond to the 1,700+ people visiting in the UK.

All in all, people from 151 countries have visited this site.  Part of me knows that some may land here by accident, but when they hop around to find out about me, I can’t help but grin.

When you really look into your stats, and what people clicked on to bring them here, and what they looked at once they landed — well, the internet is a pretty amazing thing.  How the heck can I have a conversation with someone in Saudi Arabia?  (I’m going to bed, she’s having her morning coffee) Weird, isn’t it?

It’s incredible to me how technology can make the world such a smaller place, isn’t it?

I don’t recommend getting too obsessed with your stats, though.  I was for a while, giving myself an aneurism every time the stats dropped a bit.  They can drive you crazy, and I’d much rather spend my time writing.

What do you think? Do you love your stats or hate them?

Click to Tweet:

Do you love your stats or hate them? Looking into your numbers can drive you crazy 

Aren’t blog statistics the coolest thing? 

How many individual people visit your website? It’s great fun finding out!

JenniFer_EatonF

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Posted in Senseless Ranting

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Learning to Draw Manga #6 – My first inked drawing

Posted on July 6, 2013 | 6 comments

Okay, I have succumbed to peer pressure!

This week I moved on to the older character lesson.  When I looked at all the “odd” lines that I’d have to add, I was sure I’d mess this up.  When I was done, it didn’t look much like the sample drawing, but I was still pretty pleased with it.

I decided to “take the plunge” and go for the inking.

Before I did ANY erasing of my guide lines and sketch marks, I inked over them with the artist pens I picked up for Dude a few weeks ago. Then, when it was all “permanent”, I erased the pencil marks.

What jumped out at me was the eyes.  I wish now that I’d taken a picture before the inking and after, because looking at it now, I don’t even believe that I drew this.

MANGA 6 granny

It blows me away the “finished” look that the ink gives the drawing.

It almost makes me want to try color.  I said almost.  Someday.

Jennifer___Eaton

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Posted in Artwork

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When to say “Enough is enough” – Coming to the end of your query rope

Posted on June 23, 2013 | 21 comments

As many of you know, I have been in what I’ve called “Query Hell” for over a month now.   One month and eleven days, to be exact.

It hit me a few days ago.  I finished the first draft of Fire in the Woods in 40 writing days. It was 40,000 words at the time. (After three months of editing and beta reading, it is nearly 68,000 words)

That means that it took me the same amount of time to write 40,000 words as it took me to write this 249-word query (mainly, the 155-word blurb inside it)

How crazy is that?

A few days ago, I said. “Enough”.

This is my problem — I know I am not good at queries, so I had requested a lot of help.  Seriously – I think people were cringing. (With smiles on their faces, I hoped)

But the problem was… I was getting SO MUCH feedback, with contradicting opinions, that I was getting NOWHERE.

A few weeks ago, I complained about this process on Facebook, and an acquisitions editor at a small publishing house commented “Just write the back cover copy of the book.  That’s all we want to see”

Well, yeah, I know that.  That’s what I was trying to write… but people kept saying I needed more.  A little more voice here, a little more danger there.  It was getting TOO LONG.

A few days ago I sat down, cleared my head… thought about all the suggestions people have made… and I just wrote the dern thing.

Funny, the best parts of all their suggestions just flew out of my fingers… and I sat there and stared at it.

Wow.

I mean, I think Wow… but I’d thought Wow before… so I (being the glutton for punishment that I am) send it to three people (leaving out the person who always found flaws)

I got two enthusiastic thumbs up, and a slight modification.

I made the modification (which fixed something I was uncomfortable with anyway) and asked for one last check – including the most critical person this time. (Who I love by the way-if you are reading this)

Triple thumbs up.  And all around “I’d ask for this in a heartbeat”

**Whew**

You can’t believe the sigh of relief.  Part of me feels like I have wasted a month and a half.  I could be nearly done my new novel, but part of me realizes I have made an important first step to getting where I want to go.

The truth is, Fire in the Woods is too important to me to be flippant with the query.  I’m going to be reaching higher than I have before.  I need to take my bumps and bruises just like anyone else.

So… if you are writing your query, or your synopsis… and feeling the pain… I sympathize.  But believe that you can get to the finish line.  Believe me, if I can write a decent query, anyone can.

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Posted in General Writing Tips, Senseless Ranting

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Do you have a minute to click for me? Purty Please?

Posted on January 23, 2013 | 32 comments

Yeah Yeah, you know this already… Jack and Jill Volume One released yesterday.  Thanks so much for everyone who picked up a copy!

Jack & Jill, Volume One CoverI now have official links, so if you guys could do me a favor and hit “like” on Amazon for the Paperback Version and the Kindle Version (No, I don’t know why it’s separate either.

Well, I do, but that’s a story for another day.

Also, if you could be a dear and add it to your Goodreads list, that would be just sumptuous.

Alien PKO_0003410

And yes, this lovely blue cover has the seal of approval from the Little Blue Lady from Mars.  🙂

Thanks Guys!

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Posted in Marketing Madness

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The Proper (and easy!) way to Market your Novel #4 – The dreaded Public Appearance

Posted on October 26, 2012 | 15 comments

Alright, we’ve talked about not marketing your novel… instead, marketing yourself.  How do you do that?  By being nice.

(Check out the last few Friday posts if you’re just jumping in.)

Okay, so it’s all well and good doing this over the internet… but what about those public appearances?

We can all be nice, that’s not too hard.  Getting out there in front of people… that is hard.  But when you do, just remember that you don’t need to shove your novel in people’s faces.

Just smile pretty.  Answer questions.  Be yourself.

If you are a scared, timid writer, invent a new character who is outgoing and friendly… and be that person for a little while. (It’s called acting).

In the end, the connections you make will sell your work.  The connections you make will lead to “word of mouth”.  And you never know when you will be nice to someone, and they will help you out.

Remember Ed Griffis?  After my post on his novel, dozens of my followers re-tweeted it.  It’s the Twitter snowball effect.   His Kindle rating jumped.  Pretty cool, huh?  I’m not saying that is all because of my post.  Maybe it was just a coincidence. (There is a lot that goes into your Amazon rating.  It not only has to do with your sales, but everyone else’s too.)  But if you guys did all run out and buy his book, that’s great… and you found out about it because the author was “nice” to me for a little while.

Easy self-promotion, right?
Market yourself.  Not your novel.

Smile pretty at everyone.

You never know who you might meet.

By the way… thanks for stopping by.

It’s great to meet you!  🙂

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