#‎TreasureHuntTuesdays‬ ‪#‎TeaserTuesday2‬

Copyright © 2015 Krista Pakseresht. All rights reserved.

Destiny

The grogginess pulls me out of my slumber, and I look around with my bloodshot eyes. Where am I? My eyes travel down to the white sheets covering my body. I reach my arm out and flick the sheet off of my body. What the hell am I wearing?

I look down at my body, and realize that I have been changed into a form fitting dress, heels, and I can tell my hair has been styled. Even my nails have been painted. So this is really happening. I’ve always known being in this life that there would be consequences and sticky situations I might find myself in…but so far, I’ve always been able to find my way out of them. I’m not so positive this time.

“Where are we?” I ask Junior when my eyes aren’t glazed over any more.

He spins around, smiling. “You’re awake. Good, because they’re going to be here soon.”

“Who’s going to be here?” I ask. The words fall out of my mouth before I can stop them. I know deep down inside the kind of men that will be here…I just don’t know if they are men I know.

Junior shakes his head and then motions for me to get up. “You better get ready, you need to look your best.”

I click my jaw back and forth in frustration. I can’t hold back what I’m about to say…and since I know he can’t kill me, I go for the kill. “Just how much money are you getting for me?”

He laughs, amused by my question. “You think I’m going to tell you?”

I smirk. “I want to know how much you think my life is worth. I’m curious to know my worth in numbers and figures to you.”

Junior rubs his hands together. “Five hundred.”

“Five hundred thousand?” I ask, nearly choking on the words.

Junior nods. “That pays off a little more than a fourth of the money Jose owed us. You’re getting off easy.”

I swallow. I have no idea who they made the agreement with. I have no idea how they arranged it all…on the black market or in plain sight. I know the gist of what I am being sold for, but living through it is going to be another experience of its own. I know I’m tough, but I don’t know if I’m strong enough.

A Date with the Devil is coming...

I release A Date with the Devil in 8 days. I can't believe it is really happening. I remember the day I got the idea for the opening scene of the book. I was so excited. It was something different, something dangerous.

I struggled with word count and meeting certain standards, but with my beta readers help it became a goal I could reach. Then the reviews began pouring in. 

"I bow before you woman! This is your best book ever! I loved Into the Darkness, I adored Emerging from Darkness, but this? THIS IS JUST PERFECT!" - Ewelina R.

"Kira Adam's newest standalone novel is a fast-paced novel that is expertly crafted and beautifully written. Bryce's journey is heartbreaking, and Kira Adams pulls no punches when telling us what Bryce suffered at the hands of her abusive ex-boyfriend, Robbie." - Sara M.

"I laughed with her, cried, screamed and cheered her on. A Date with the Devil is so beautifully written that when I started it I couldn't put it down. I finished it in 2 hours." - Angie C.

"This story seriously broke my damn heart. It hit so close to home, that in some parts I was crying, not only for Bryce, but myself as well." - Lucii G. 

"I don't know how best to say this, but this is so realistic and brutally honest in its depiction of abuse, it was difficult to read. I finished it last night and still find I'm gritting my teeth fighting back the emotions of it all." - Tammy H.

That is just 5 of the reviews. It has 34 rankings on Goodreads currently, 27 of them being 5-star reviews!

People are saying it's my best novel to date. That makes me so nervous, for a few different reasons. Whatever I write after this has to top it. What if the release is lackluster and I spent all the money on promotion for no reason?

There is a lot riding on this release for me since EFD was such a flop. I really thought offering ITD for free at the same time EFD was out would give me decent release day numbers...but not that many people have purchased EFD which is depressing for me.  

We're doing a release day party, a book blitz through YA bound tours, 2 Fiverr promotions, 2 eReader Owl promotions, a Thunderclap, and probably some advertising through Facebook. I am hoping I see a good return on investment. 

Check out this awesome promotional photo one of my street team members made me. 

Pretty cool, huh? And then a teaser I made for the big countdown! I can't wait to share some Tyson teasers with ya all. Until then, tata!

It's almost been a year since I first began publishing...

You heard that right.

I published my first book, My Forever on May 18th, 2014.

Since then I have racked up handfuls of reviews and published a total of 8 books, along with joined an anthology, and released a box set of my Infinite Love series.

When people first decide to self-publish, it's so confusing what to expect. I wasn't sure if my books would immediately be picked up or if it would take a while for me to build that platform. You never know what is the regular amount of sales to expect per day, per week, or per month.

I've wanted to be transparent for awhile about my experiences with my sales. So here goes.

Originally, when I first began publishing, I had my books listed on every platform imaginable. And then, they were only selling through Amazon, so I pulled them all and listed them under KDP Select.

Below, I will list how many books I sold per month and how much money I made.

May '14
Books sold: 9
Money made: $3.06

June '14
Books sold: 14
Money made: $17.74

July '14
Books sold: 17
Money made: $21.34

August '14
Books sold: 51
Money made: $46.90

September '14
Books sold: 103
Money made: $111.45

October '14
Books sold: 149
Money made: $152.33

November '14
Books sold: 150
Money made: $123.73

December '14
Books sold: 79
Money made: $75.79

January '15
Books sold: 348
Money made: $369.65

February '15
Books sold: 510
Money made: $302.14

March '15
Books sold: 673
Money made: $755.00

April '15
Books sold: 344
Money made: $355.00

Total amount of books sold so far: 2447
Total amount of money made: $2334.13

As you can see, I've been generally trending upwards, but the months are not always consistent. We are halfway through May as it is, and this month I'm barely over $100 so far on my sales, if that. The months that I gave away more free books was when I made the most. 

Ideally, I would like to make enough money off my books that I wouldn't have to have another job to supplement my income, or I could have a part time job. This is what I am working towards. I hope some day, I will be able to say all of my hard work has paid off.

As it stands, the most books I've sold in one day was right around 40+. Most days I range anywhere from 4-12 sales. Some days I am below that and some I exceed it. Like I said, inconsistent. However, I am building a platform, and more people have heard of me than ever before. My goal is that by the time I turn 30, which is a year from now, that I will be able to call myself a full-time writer.

I've never had a ranking lower than 6,000 and that was for an anthology I'm in. My individual lowest ranking was in the 8,000's. My goal is that in the next year, I will hit within the 5000's. I hope I can I do it.

I have tried many different things to boost my sales, giveaways, book blitzes, book tours, cover reveals, reviews, etc. And until I find the magical combination, I will continue to try different things. It'll be interesting to see where I might be sales-wise in a year; whether I will still be trending upwards. I really hope so.

Hope this helps some of you out with what to expect. I should also mention that I spent every single day doing some form of promotion, marketing, editing, writing, revising, formatting, etc. So, I've basically been a robot. I published 8 books my first year of publishing. I'm interested to see how many it will be this year. 

A Big Long Ramble, You Know, What I'm Good At.

Things are finally beginning to fall into place and I'm having trouble believing that any of it is real. I mean, don't get me wrong...I know how hard I've been working toward this. I guess I just never really believed it could happen to me. 

First of all, I am consistently selling books now. In the last two weeks, there hasn't been a day that I've sold less than 12 books. *Knock on wood* I remember the day I used to wish that I could sell one of each of my books every single day. Obviously there are some of my books that I am not selling on a consistent basis, but my Infinite Love series and Learning to Live are my most consistent sellers currently. I have a feeling that will change with the release of the second book in my Darkness Falls series, Emerging from Darkness. When I released Into the Darkness back in November, it consistently sold well for nearly two months before finally settling down. 

In the last two weeks there have been days I've sold between 30-40 books in one day. I've literally been in awe. I know all of this has a ton to do with my street team and all the hard work they've been putting in to get my name and my books out there. I am so lucky to have them. 

Recently, I ran a free promotion for my Infinite Love series on it's release day. It was free for 5 days and was picked up over 8000 times. 8000 people have my stories in their Kindle libraries! It is such a trip. I wasn't sure what to expect when I decided to bundle my four stories together and re-release them as a box set. I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in even picking it up because they've already read the stories separately...but I am gaining a ton of new readers, and I couldn't be more excited!

I begin my job on Sunday and I'm not sure exactly how I'm feeling. On one hand, I'm happy that I will be getting that financial stability again along with insurance. On the other hand, I am not going to have all the free time in the world like I've recently had. That part is what I'm not looking forward to. However, I had a full-time job before and I was able to write my books...I just hate losing the freedom. I told my mother the other day that my ultimate goal would be able to be a full-time writer by the time I am 30. That gives me exactly 1 year and 7 weeks. I'm not sure if I can do it, but I am going to work like hell to reach that goal. I've seen what I could accomplish within 10 months of first publishing...now that I've tasted it, I'm not going to give up!

My dream is to be able to go to a signing and meet some of the most amazing people who have believed in me all this time! My street team members, my PA, my beta readers, my editor, etc. Someday I will be sitting at a table and signing my books in front of people. The idea is so foreign to me, but also so freaking exciting! I know it will eventually happen, and I need to be patient, but I'm a Taurus...patience is definitely not my strongest suit. 

I just finished Emerging from Darkness, and it is being combed through by my beta readers one last time before it gets sent to my editor. I have began writing the third book in my Foundation series and have already finished six full chapters. I have written over 11k words on What Doesn't Kill You. And I have the roughest rough draft of Reality Squared. This is the majority of what I'd like to finish for the year. Along with Topher's novella. I can't tell you how many messages I receive on a weekly basis begging me for his HEA. It's coming! I promise. In an ideal world, I'd release EFD at the end of March, Foundation series book #3 in May, What Doesn't Kill You in July, Topher's novella in September, and Reality Squared in December. That's really aggressive, especially with a job. But given the fact that three of these are partials, I am hoping that I can get it done for everyone.

Alright, I figured I've rambled on long enough. In May, it will be a year since I began this publishing journey. I am going to do a sales post to show exactly where I came from to exactly where I am. Just so people can see what to expect. :)

I Love Talking to Myself!

It's been awhile since my last blog post. I apologize for that. I have an issue with letting life get in the way. I always say I'll get better at it, but let's face it, I never do. So I will just apologize and move on. 

A lot of things have been happening. Good, bad, ugly, etc. I don't even know where to start. I apologize if this is a jumble of thoughts. I've been meaning to update this for awhile now. 

First off, the release for Learning to Live went better than I could have ever expected. My readers are saying it is my best novel yet. It has touched so many people and made so many people cry, I am shocked. I never thought I could honestly write an ugly cry novel...and then I did it, and I did it well. I can't wait to see it live up to it's full potential. On the bright side, it did hit nearly 8000 in ranking on Amazon which is the lowest ranking I've ever had for any of my solo novels. 

The release for Love Notes went well, but it's kind of died down. A handful of people have picked it up as a regular purchase, but I'd love to see more Kindle Unlimited borrows as those pay much better. Nearly 4x better. We did rank in at almost 6000 on Amazon, so that was extra exciting. I really like the authors I am in the box set with, and I am very happy it's working out so well. I wasn't sure what to expect when I approached the lot of them. 

I have finally sold over 1000 books. Keep in mind, I've been publishing since the end of May, but still. 1000 books is 1000 books. That's so freaking cool. Last month I sold over 300 books. This month, I am nearing 200. I am starting to gain traction. I can only hope it continues to go up from here. 

I made the decision to release my entire Infinite Love series as a box set. Emmy from Cover Me Book Designs created me a gorgeous cover and I am really stoked about it! 

The set is releasing on March 1st and it is going to be $2.99, a $4 discount from buying all 4 of the books separately. I have a blog tour corresponding with the release from March 1st-March 5th, and I will also be offering the box set for free for those 5 days. I am hoping I can get at least 2000 downloads...but I am secretly hoping I get a lot more. The more free books that go out, the better the sales bump afterward. 

I got a new PA, Sara, and we've been getting used to one another. While it's been a transition, I'm excited about what we have been doing and working on. She is such a sweetheart, and I am honestly so lucky to find someone like her after my last PA. We are working on re-branding me and I am really excited about the potential of what's to come. 

I was let go (along with everyone else) from my job and had to scramble to find something else that could pay the bills. A week later I went in for an interview at a call center, and walked out with a job offer. It's been a rocky road, but I am excited that it will finally be settling down. It is going to be so different not being able to work from home or be on my own schedule, but for the time being, this is what will be paying the bills. (Or at least the majority of them). I'm nervous I won't be able to be on the same kind of aggressive writing/release schedule...but I am going to do my best to continue to put out books every couple of months. I have to stay relevant. I can't wait for the day I will be able to make my own schedule and simply write.

I am 2/3 of the way through Emerging from Darkness. All of my street team girls are dying to get their hands on the final copy. It is exciting to see how jazzed they are about it. I never thought my Darkness Falls series was going to be as big as it is becoming. It is really exciting. I love zombies, so I am totally cool with it. I also love writing action. I am working diligently to finish Emerging from Darkness before I start my new job on the 9th of March. I am also hoping to be able to get halfway through my other WIP, What Doesn't Kill You. I'm right around 10k words in right now, so that shouldn't be terribly difficult. 

I forgot to mention that I found an amazing editor, Joanne, who has worked her way through every single one of my books. I have no idea how I've been so lucky, but I am definitely not taking it for granted. It is the most incredible feeling in the world to find people who believe in me and my writing. 

I know a lot of people visit my blog, I can see the stats...no one ever comments, so half the time I feel like I am talking to myself. If you are dropping in and you take the time to read this, can you just pop me a hello or something in the comments section so I know who's interested in what I have to say? Also, I'd love to write a post on my sales-numbers. I know how important transparency is, especially with newbie authors and I don't have anything to hide. I want to know how many people would be interested in reading about my journey sales-wise since the beginning?

By the way, I have a new section on here where you can sign up to receive signed paperbacks directly through me! Check it out if you have any interest. 

Alright, I think I've talked your ear off long enough. 

Don't forget--if you're not doing something you love, you're not really living.

- Krista

Learning to Live is LIVE!

 

You heard me right. Today was the "official" release for Learning to Live and it's sitting at 22 reviews already and has already been downloaded over 1000 times today. I'm curious if it can beat the all-time high I had for Into the Darkness downloads which was over 1250 in a day.

Learning to Live has been exceeding every expectation I had for it and blowing them out of the water. People are loving Ciera and Topher and I am so happy I took on such a challenging, controversial topic. I don't like seeing people cry, but if it's because they could feel so invested in my characters, that's another story altogether. That is inspiring. 

My street team, The Kira Believers is finally hitting it's stride and it's so amazing to see how invested they are in me and my future. I love every single person on my street team and I am so excited to be getting to know new people and finding the perfect PA in the process. 

I am still in shock that I have released 7 books in almost 8 months. That's nearly a book a month. I am really proud of myself. People have been approaching me lately because they see potential inside of me and they have been offering their services for little to no cost. I am so humbled and excited about this. I can't wait until the day I have extra money to pay them what they deserve. I am so grateful to everyone who has helped me in one way or another. 

There are a few things I want to mention. Revenge of the Feels reviewed My Forever. They gave it 4 solid stars. Check out the awesome review here. 

Itching for Books shared the Blitz schedule for Love Notes. It kicks off on January 19th with Pieces of Me. Follow this link to see the entire schedule. And snag a copy of Love Notes while it's only .99 cents! Four full-length musical romance novels for the price of one? Steal!

Romance Between the Sheets and Paperback Junkie both shared the press release for Learning to Live and it's release. Check them both out here and here.  

I also received two amazing 5-star reviews for the story. One from Relaxed Reads. Check it out for yourself here. The second one was from Leila Reads. Follow this link.

I am about 6000 words into Emerging from Darkness and on track for a March release. I'm hoping things only continue to improve from here. I am so excited for what the future holds!

Love Notes releases on February 2nd!

So far it is looking as if I will release Emerging from Darkness, Foundation #3, What Doesn't Kill You, Boxset of entire Infinite Love series, and possibly Reality Squared this year. :) Bring it on!

Don't forget, if you're not doing something you love--you're not really living.

Kira Adams

Black Orchid Novella Award - K.G. McAbee

Hey guys,

I just wanted to share some exciting news with you regarding a fellow Indie Fall Fest author, K.G. McAbee. 

K.G. McAbee won the Black Orchid Novella Award, sponsored by The Wolfe Pack and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, for her cotton-mill village mystery set in the 1920's, Dyed to Death. She attended the Black Orchid Banquet in NYC on Dec 6th to receive her award from Linda Landrigan, editor of AHMM. Dyed to Death will be published early next year in AHMM.

CONGRATULATIONS K.G.!!

My 2015 Publishing Schedule (Estimated)

In 2014 I published 5 books. Here is what it looked like:

2014-in-review

May
My Forever (Infinite Love Series, Book Two)

June
Beautifully Broken (Infinite Love Series, Book Three)
 
Aug
Pieces of Me (The Foundation Series, Book One)
 
Oct
The Fighter (The Foundation Series, Book Two)
 
Nov
Into the Darkness (Darkness Falls Series, Book One)

In 2015, I plan to publish 7 books. That may seem aggressive, but I think I can do it if I stay on track. Here's what it will potentially look like:

2015-in-review

Jan
Against All Odds (Infinite Love Series, Book Four)
Untitled (Infinite Love Series, Book One)
 
Feb
Love Notes (Four Contemporary Romance Musical Novels)

Mar
Emerging from Darkness (Darkness Falls Series, Book Two)

May
Untitled (The Foundation Series, Book Three)

July
Untitled (Standalone Novel)

Sept
???

Nov
???

I think I am going to try to return to Reality Squared sometime in 2015. It's a lot of work, but I think by the end of the year, I will be ready to tackle it. I'm excited for what 2015 will bring. Bring it on!

Celebrating the Small Successes

I started my publishing journey about 6 months ago. I guess I was disillusioned that success would come much quicker than it has. 6 months really isn't a long time and I guess I had unrealistic expectations. I am my biggest critic. Everyday I wonder what I could do better. The thing is, I don't celebrate my successes often, so I want to take a moment to do so. A lot of things have happened since I've began publishing that have made me smile. 

• I have published 5 books in 6 months. 
• I am approached by readers who love the books I write on a consistent basis.
• I have been told on more than one occasion that I am someone's favorite author.
• I compiled my most passionate readers and created a Street Team which currently has 15 members. It's still in it's infancy, but that is 15 readers who believe in me and my journey. 
• Found an awesome PA. Apart from being a great friend and blogger, she is someone I trust, so it's been a great experience so far. 
• All of my novels out currently have 20 reviews or more. 
• Pieces of Me is nearing 50 reviews, 23 of those, 5-star. 
• I've sold just about 500 e-books. Between all of my 5 books, it's really not a lot...but it is better than nothing. 
• I met the most amazing cover designer who is also an author and has become an amazing friend. 
• I have met incredible indie authors, PA's, and bloggers. 
• My reach is growing. People are taking note of me and paying more attention than ever before.
• My blog is finally being viewed after years of no one seeing it. Now on average, it is visited at least 25x a day. Which is a huge increase from nothing. 
• More people offer to beta read/review for me than ever before. 
• I joined 3 other authors in a box set of musical contemporary romance novels. 
• I have over 1800 likes on my Facebook author page. Getting close to the 2000 mark!
• My family is finally beginning to come around and take interest in my writing. 

Although some days I wish I had more instant success, I know how hard I have worked for everything on this list and I do appreciate the small successes.

The 12 Indies of Christmas: Blog Hop & Giveaway

The Year I Realized Santa Was Mom

Christmas amongst my siblings throughout my childhood was definitely a favorite Holiday for all of us. I remember always being so anxious the night before it would make it difficult to sleep. My younger brother would always wake up around 5am, whereas my older one could sleep until 10am some years. Normally, we would all meet in the middle somewhere to open presents. 

One year, I was having trouble sleeping as usual and I remember hearing some whispering in the hallway. A few moments later I heard some commotion on the stairs. I could hear my mother and my older brother whispering. I remember sneaking a peek out of my door and seeing my mother sprawled out at the bottom of the stairwell and my brother hovering over her. Apparently as she had been sneaking downstairs to plant the presents from "Santa" she had taken a nasty spill. 

Of course i had heard the rumors that Santa wasn't real, but this was the first year that I made a promise to myself that I would find out once and for all. A few years before, my mother had hired someone to wear a Santa suit and come late at night just in case we woke up. So I had been convinced that these rumors were just that...rumors. Unfortunately, I was let down. After hearing my mother's spill at the bottom of the stairwell it helped me realize that even though Santa wasn't real, my parents were willing to go to whatever lengths necessary to keep the magic alive. In a way, I feel like this made the transition a smooth one.

How did you find out that Santa wasn't real?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

December 12th - Zane Sachs

December 13th - Kira Adams

December 14th - Chess Desalls

December 15th - Kai Strand

December 16th - Zoe Dawson

December 17th - A.G. Porter

December 18th - Joy Penny

December 19th - Mary Waibel

December 20th - Cynthia Witherspoon

December 21st - K.K. Allen

December 22nd - Ann Everett

December 23rd - Erin Rhew & Deek Rhew

Best of 2014 Giveaway Hop

Welcome to my stop on the Best of 2014 Giveaway Hop!

I'm giving away an ebook of choice from my list to two different winners up to $2.99!

This giveaway is open internationally! Good luck!

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Keep hopping!