Where You Left Me – Danielle Bannister, Author

New Release, New Contract!

February 14, 2023 Danielle Bannister

A new contract in February was NOT on my 2023 writing BINGO card, but I’m here for it!

I just signed another contract with City Owl Press for a new project, making this my 4th contract with them. The first project I signed with them was their acquisition of Enigma which was retitled/recovered/re-edited to become Girl On Fire. They later acquired film/TV rights negotiation rights for my book The First 100 Kisses, followed by a contract late last year to sell A Single Step to the Yonder App. That title is aligning for an April 3 release, but stay tuned as that gets closer.

This new project that I just signed for was something I was going to pitch to them for their 2024-2025 lineup. Mostly because I knew their release schedule was pretty tight and I still hadn’t written the book at that time. They had wanted me to write another dark romance/suspense/thriller to jump off the success of Girl on Fire. Sure. Easy. No problem. *panics

Fast-forward to December 2022. I had a rough draft of the manuscript but I knew it was flawed. There were some problematic situations and I was dealing with a subject matter I wasn’t sure would be ‘fit-to-print’ given the taboo nature of what my crazy brain thought up as a story. (Seriously, WHERE did this idea come from????) I presented this conundrum to City Owl Press and they suggested assigning me a content editor of theirs to see if, together, we might figure out what things needed fixing to get it to a project I’d want to pitch to them. I took them up on the offer and was quickly assigned such an editor. They asked the content editor to have it finished by April so they could determine if it would be a good fit for their 2024-2025 lineup.

I’ve never worked with a content editor before so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but we had until April to figure out the issues, so I sent her the draft of what I had and went about my normal writing schedule, putting that project on the way back burner. It was in someone else’s care now. I had months to focus on other stuff while that draft was ripped to shreds. I gave them the draft on December 28, 2022.

Seven days later, the manuscript came back to me. The content editor devoured it. And had some great suggestions for where to improve the story, but overall, loved what she saw. Twisted as it was. Places I thought they’d ask me to tone down or remove, they said to leave in. She helped me see the places I’d been struggling, and offered up ways to smooth over the rough edges. We bounced back ideas and messages.

Suddenly, that backburner project was bubbling over and needed tending. Not wanting my current writing plans to go off the rails, I did my revisions on this project at night and on the weekends until I addressed all of the issues the content editor had. I sent my final revisions back to her and she, in turn, let City Owl Press know they needed to sign this book right now. An offer came the next day to publish it for August of THIS year.

*gulp

Now what? Now, I come to terms with the fact that this book is going to see the light of day. *double gasp. I can count on one hand the number of people who have read this story. It is NOT a sweet romance. It is NOT a steamy romance. But there is romance. Just not where you might expect it. This one is dark. I’d say it’s darker than Girl on Fire… I honestly don’t know what genre to even call it. Is it dark romance? Is it a thriller? Horror? I’ll let the publisher decide. That will be their headache when they try to market this one. ha.

But… but… WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

I’m not quite ready to say yet. I know that’s a lame answer but this one is going to take some time to carefully explain/promote/discuss. As of now, I only have a draft of a blurb, no cover, and no marketing materials. Just a finished content edit of the book and a signed contract for an August release. I’m not even ready to say the title as it might not end up being that and if it does end up with that title, it will give a big clue as to what the book is about so…

In the meantime, I have to write the second book for it. Currently, this story arc is outlined as a duet. And I’d like to have the second book ready to go shortly after the first book is live because I hate waiting for sequels to come out just as much as you do.

So how does this shift the 2023 release plan? Not much, actually. Vol. 4 of Where You Left Me came out last week and Vol. 5 is still on track for its May release. The Yonder project in April, which is done except for promotion, then, this new project in August (which is done save for copy edits), and then MAYBE something in November. The bulk of my writing for 2023 is done. I’m working on projects for 2024 because, despite my constant releases, I am a pretty slow writer. It only seems fast because I write my books well in advance of my release dates.

For now, I’m busy promoting Vol. 4 and trying my luck with Facebook ads (it’s so confusing. ha.) *shameless self-promotion to follow:

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1 (0.99 Cents)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 4 (NOW LIVE)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 5 (Pre-Order)

Until then, I have some writing to do. 🙂 See ya next week!

Danielle/Dani Bannister, author and signer of contracts

writing

In One Week: Release Time-Again!

January 31, 2023 Danielle Bannister

It feels like only yesterday I was talking about the release day of Waiting in the Wings. And now here I am again talking about a different release! Insanity.

Gulp. In one week (02.07.2023) Vol. 4 of the Where You Left Me series comes out. Vol. 5 is shortly thereafter with a May release. My first series… Nuts!

The tricky thing with a series is trying to promote the books after book 1 until the series is done. If readers haven’t read the first book they aren’t going to care about your subsequent releases. They might perk up once the series is finished but until then, you are basically putting out books a lot of people aren’t reading. It’s a long game and one that can be hard for authors to handle financially. There are still cover and editing costs not to mention marketing expenses, for each release. If readers aren’t picking up those middle books, a lot of authors won’t be able to afford to finish the series.

But there again, that’s the long game for you. Once the series is finished, I will do a bigger market push. For now, I’m just working as fast as I can to get the series done. And your support of these middle ‘Jan’ books is so appreciated. (A million points if you got the Jan reference.)

Haven’t started the series, but want to, and not sure where to begin?

There are TWO places you could start the series. The FREE start is by checking out the prequel chapter that I wrote from the guy’s POV as to how he ends up at the wedding in the first place. It’s not vital to the series, but it is a fun short read that gives you some insight into the character you might not get from the series…

Or you can start with Vol.1 which is only .99 cents. I’m going to be running some promotions on Vol. 1 to try to help get eyes on later volumes. If you see a promo, let me know! I’m curious if these new-to-me sites will be helpful!

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1 (.99 Cents)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 4 (02.07.23)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 5 (Pre-Order)

Well, that’s all from me for this week. I’ll be back next week with release news. Eeep! Until then, I need to get Vol. 5 polished so I can send that one to the editor. In the meantime, thanks for being awesome and supporting indie authors!

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and release of all the books

writing

Vol. 4 Edits Due Back Today!

January 24, 2023 Danielle Bannister

Getting your manuscript back from your editor is both exciting and terrifying. On the one hand, you’re a step closer to release day, HUZZAH! On the other, the editor’s very job is to tear your book apart and highlight, in red, all of your mistakes. Which you then have to accept. Literally. I have to push a button to accept each and every correction. And there are always a lot. Like hundreds. Despite having read the manuscript backward and forwards. Despite having other sets of eyes on it to check for issues. The editor always finds an obscene amount of errors. Some, as you know, will even pass her careful eyes because…

Some authors will choose to hit the ‘accept all’ button in Word which will take all of the corrections and fix them at once. Not me. I’m a glutton for punishment. I want to know what I messed up. what word did I spell wrong this time, how badly did I screw up my commas this time? Will my editor pointing out my crutch words stop me from peppering every subsequent manuscript with them that she has to cut again? Probably not. Will I ever learn how to use a semicolon properly? Doubtful. Will I ever remember what traumatic past I gave my heroine? Unlikely. But the hope that I will retain the knowledge my poor editor is trying to convey is there. And so I look at each mistake one at a time.

Once those errors are all fixed, I’ll do the final format check for the ebook (I do the paperback upload on release day for marketing reasons) then I’ll upload it to all the platforms so it will be ready for its release day on Feb. 7, 2023. (Ack, that’s two weeks from now!)

Because I now have a pre-order link up for the last volume, I’m trying my hand at some paid promotions. Cause let’s face it, I’m not the world’s best marketing guru. And the competition for visibility in the contemporary romance market is no joke. Even with over twenty titles out, I am a drop of water in the ocean of romance books, so I’ll need all the help I can get!

In the meantime, if you haven’t picked up Vol. 1 and wanted to, it’s on sale for. 99 cents now. Or you can always read the prequel chapter for free right on my blog. It’s only 15 pages but it gives you some insight into what happens immediately before the series starts and gives you a sense of my writing voice.

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1 (.99 Cents)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 4 (02.07.23)
WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 5 (Pre-Order)

Now that Vol. 4 is basically finished, I will be starting my third draft of Vol. 5 in February to get that ready for its May release.

What am I working on until then? That’s a secret… for now. Hope to have some news to share on that soon. That’s all for now!

Danielle/Dani Bannister, author and maker of typos

writing

Paperbacks are IN: Order yours today

August 30, 2022 Danielle Bannister

The road to publishing a book on your own is long and winding. There are covers to have designed, editors, to tear apart your work, formatting for ebook/print (because of course they are different( and marketing plans to create (and implement *cough.)

Typically, I like to have paperbacks on or as close to release day as humanly possible, but trying to time out how fast your distributor will get them to you is a crap shoot. Such was the case for Where You Left Me, Vol. 3.

It may have taken a hot second to get them but they are finally here!

I do have a few back titles on hand of this series and others in my backlist if you want to get a jump start on holiday shopping. *wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

order paperbacks

Until next time, friends!

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and paperback pusher

Uncategorized

The reviews are starting to show!

August 11, 2022 Danielle Bannister

If you missed it, Where You Left Me, Vol. 3 was released on Tuesday. Reviews are starting to trickle in as later books are known to take longer to get reviews for, but I wanted to highlight those that have come in so far.

Up first, was my very first review from one of my ARC readers which she posted over at GoodReads.

Can you tell I use a blue light blocker? Ha.

Then, on release day, a few more came in, including a 5-star rating only over on Goodreads.

Getting reviews for the middle of an unfinished series is HARD, people. Readers tend to not want to start a series until it’s entirely done. Which can put a considerable financial strain on the author/publishing house to support the series in those writing months/years. In a world of binge content consumers, getting anyone to give their time to review an unfinished series is rare indeed. So, while there may only be a few up currently, I feel so grateful to have those!

WHERE YOU MET ME (Free prequel chapter)

https://daniellebannister.wordpress.com/free-story/

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1

https://books2read.com/WYLMV1

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2

https://books2read.com/WYLMV2

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3 (NOW LIVE!)

https://books2read.com/WYLMVl3

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 4 (Pre-order)

https://books2read.com/u/b6Rd6M

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 5 (Coming Soon)

Now, these reviews could shift the other way tomorrow. I’m aware of that. This is a fickle industry. But for now, I’ll use these reviews to fuel the writing needed to complete my first ever series!

Dani/Danielle Bannister author and collector of reviews

Uncategorized

It’s RELEASE DAY for Vol. 3!

August 9, 2022 Danielle Bannister

It’s hard to believe that this series started off as an experiment to try out Kindle Vella and has now turned into a 5 novella series. Funny how life works. Today is the release day for Where You Left Me, Vol. 3. Jasmine and Shawn are back from The Bahamas and back to reality. Their wedding was fake, but the connection was real. Wasn’t it?

Blurb

The honeymoon’s over. What’s next?

First, she was left at the altar. Then, she fake married a volunteer. What could have been torture with a perfect stranger was anything but. The honeymoon cruise with him was off the charts hot, but now the escape from reality is over. The fake relationship has to come to an end, right?

Jasmine doesn’t want to go back to her life where nothing but humiliation, personal tragedy, and financial ruin await her. She wants to stay in paradise with her fake husband. But she can’t. She confessed her feelings and he bolted.

Emotionally numb, she knows that once she gets home, her heartbreak will continue. On top of it all, her ex-fiancé comes sniffing around, wanting to take her back. But does she want to go backward? Knowing what she had with Shawn was possible?

And what will happen if Shawn ever finds out she might be having his kid? The honeymoon might be over, but the real fireworks are about to begin.

Find out the details today in this red-hot lust-to-lovers series in Where You Left Me, Vol. 3.

Not sure if this series is for you? Why not check out the FREE Prequel Chapter that tells Shawn’s point of view in the moments leading up to where Vol. 1 begins. It’s short, spicy, and should give you a sense of the tone/voice of the series without spending a dime!

You can snag that story right from this website: Where You Met Me.

If you happen to read Vol. 3 (or any in this series) dropping a quick review helps small indies like me out in massive ways. It lets reluctant buyers know if this new author is worth the money. Any love you can send this series way, I would be most grateful.

I hope to share some of those reviews on this blog once they start to populate! Until next time, happy reading!

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and releaser of Where You Left Me, Vol. 3

writing

In one week Vol. 3 drops!

August 2, 2022 Danielle Bannister

If you’ve not been reading the Where You Left Me series then this post probably won’t mean much to you. But if you have, you only have ONE WEEK left to wait for Vol. 3!

This is part three of a five-part series, of which Vol. 4 is already up for pre-order! If you like steamy (lights on bedroom scenes) that have heart and humor, than this series is for you.

In Vol. 1, Jasmine gets left at the altar. So, she decides to marry a stranger in the church instead. A hot stranger.
In Vol. 2, she takes her new fake husband on a 5-day cruise to The Bahamas. Sharing one small bed. Whatever will they do with all that time stuck together?
In Vol. 3, they are back from the honeymoon. They aren’t technically married, but there was a connection. Right?

BLURB

The honeymoon’s over. What’s next?

And what will happen if Shawn ever finds out she might be having his kid? The honeymoon might be over, but the real fireworks are about to begin.

Find out the details today in this red-hot lust-to-lovers series in Where You Left Me, Vol. 3.

WHERE YOU MET ME (Free prequel chapter)

https://daniellebannister.wordpress.com/free-story/

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1

https://books2read.com/WYLMV1

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2

https://books2read.com/WYLMV2

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3 (8-9-22)

https://books2read.com/WYLMVl3

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 4 (Pre-order)

https://books2read.com/u/b6Rd6M

Until next time,

Dani/Danielle Bannister, counter downer of release days

writing

It’s ARC time… Again.

June 28, 2022June 29, 2022 Danielle Bannister

Seriously, though, didn’t you JUST have Advanced Review Copy sign-ups? It sure feels like it! It was back in April when I sent my last one out, but when you do a rapid-release, you need to do everything rapidly.

Now, I realize, of course, that my last post was called Why Bother? A Constant Writer Battle (about the struggles of this very series) However, that doesn’t change the fact that the book still needs eyeballs on it in advance of release day: Aug. 9, 2022.

What exactly does an ARC reader do? Excellent question, glad you asked. ARC readers are given a digital copy of my soon-to-be-released book to read in advance of anyone else, in exchange for their honest feedback/review of said book. It’s a gamble for the reader and a gamble for the writer. However, in this current market, reviews are a good way to get algorithms to take notice of a new title. Hence, why authors rely so heavily on them. They are a necessary evil.

My ARC copies have been to the editor, but, as we all know, typos happen. So, I do lean on my ARC readers to give me a heads up if they notice something is off or the formatting is janky. They are the last set of eyes on the manuscript before it goes out into the wild.

If you have happened to already read Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 and are itching to either get your hands on an early copy or are willing to help an indie author out, then you can sign up to be on the team here.

Read these? Need more? Then sign up to read Vol. 3 before anyone else can buy it!

ARC SIGN UP

Also, this is the last week to sign up to win the two paperbacks above in this giveaway!

That’s all for now! I have a paperback to format. Who knew a writer’s life was so glamourous?

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and giver-away-er of books!

writing

Why Bother? A Constant Writer Battle

June 24, 2022 Danielle Bannister

I’ve been at this indie/small press author gig since 2011. In that time, I’ve written 18 titles. Some of them actually made a profit. Most have not. Why? Well, let’s break down the cost a minute.

It takes about $500 (roughly) for me to produce a novel (novella’s slightly less) to produce. While there is no cost to upload your books on distribution sites (Amazon, Apple, Barns & Noble, etc.) there is a cost to produce them. Unless you are with a press, then these costs are absorbed by them, but publishers come with a lower royalty rate for you as the author. For the purpose of this blog, we’ll assume this is an indie project.

Editing: It costs me about .0065 cents per word. The longer the book, the bigger the cost. So my Where You Left Me novella series is approximately 32,000 words, or about $208 bucks. A typical novel for me is approximately 65,000 words or $425 bucks. in an ideal world, I’d also prefer to hire a second proof-editor to do one final pass-through. They typically charge a little less, like maybe, .004 cents a word, but that’s an additional hundred or two. Often, I can’t afford that final proof. Which is frustrating. I don’t want typos in my books any more than you want to see them. Trust me.

Cover Design: This varies wildly by designer, but most will have a pre-made selection for less, where you can pick from certain designs but with the ONLY change being the title/name/back blurb. If you want images swapped out or other alterations, you’re now looking at a custom design, and your designer needs to be compensated for that. For the Where You Left Me series, I found a pre-made. For $69 bucks (*snicker) But that’s $69 for each cover in that series because she’s making some slight tweaks to each pre-made.

Marketing: You could drop some serious money here. Either with ads, NL promo swaps, and swag, it all adds up to your final budget before a book goes live.

Once it’s out there in the world, there is about a 90-day window in which to make your return on investment. Sure, your book will still sell after that day, but, on average, your book will sell the most in that 90-day window. After 90 days have passed you add up your profit and subtract your expenses.

In the red, then you need to look at where you’re spending money and where you can cut back. For me, that means marketing has to be gutted. Which is ironic because without marketing, how does your book get seen? Excellent question and if you know the answer, let me know. One of the horrific catch-22s. Some, choose to cut back on editing and only pay for a proof round, which will leave their manuscript with more issues than they would probably like. Or, they’ll take a chance and try to design a cover of their own. Another gamble.

It’s a personal choice every author has to take when looking at their ROI (return on investment.) For me though, cover and edits have to stay. I know my limitations and graphic design and grammar ain’t my strongest attributes. (Yes, I used ‘ain’t’ on purpose.)

Even with those cutbacks, my last book, Where You Left Me, Vol. 2 has not earned me back an ROI, as of yet, as you can see below. It still has 2 months to earn back but usually, sales drop off after the first month so it will be an interesting one to watch.

To add insult to injury, as of this writing, there are only 4 reviews for Vol. 2 on Amazon. Thems the breaks, kid. So, Danielle, why bother writing this series if isn’t earning back your ROI? An author’s dilemma.

I’m continuing to write the series no one is currently reading, not just because of author ego (because there is absolutely some of that) but mostly because I assumed this lack of sales from the start. I’m writing under a new pen name and writing my first ever series in a world that wants to binge content. Readers don’t typically enjoy starting a series that isn’t finished. So, right at the start, series are a hard sell until they are complete.

I’m writing this series with the full knowledge that I likely won’t see an ROI until all five books are out. In fact, I’m not even really marketing these hard anywhere until all five books have at least a pre-order link up. I’m not running ads, I’m not doing NL swaps, and I’m not even buying/making swag (gasp!) right now. That will come once there is a clear funnel for all five books. Until then, I’m writing the content that I’m hoping readers will want to binge read once the series is complete. I’m playing the long game. If I write it they will come. (double entendre intended. It is a spicy romance after all.)

If you haven’t jumped aboard this ride, and want to before all five books are out, I won’t object. You can even start the story for free.

WHERE YOU MET ME (Bonus free prequel chapter)
https://daniellebannister.wordpress.com/free-story/

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1
https://books2read.com/WYLMV1

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2
https://books2read.com/WYLMV2

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3 (Pre-order)
https://books2read.com/WYLMVl3

Until next time, I’m going to keep on writing.

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and long game player.

writing

Vol. 3 is heading to the Editor

June 10, 2022 Danielle Bannister

Hard to believe, but Vol. 3 of my Where You Left Me series is going to the editor on Monday! I’ve gone through four drafts of this volume. Most stories I write get at least four drafts, sometimes more, but rarely less. I thought it might be fun to explain what I do in each draft.

First draft=Word vomit. The story comes out as mostly dialogue. Inconsistencies and typos are galore. But the bones of the story get laid out.

Second draft=Cleaning up the major plot/character issues of the first draft. Lots of revision/cutting/and general shoveling of shit off the page. Oh, and lots of my head banging on the desk at the crap I’ve written.

Third draft=Adding in sensory details. Fine-tuning phrases. Killing repetitive words and crutch words.

Fourth draft=Listening to it read aloud by Word. Listening for missing words, wonky sentences/flow.

Editor=The editor does her thing. Catches so many errors it makes you question your sanity.

Personal Revisions=I look at the editor’s suggestions, and either take them or leave them (I almost always take them unless I’ve decided on something for a reason. But I go through each and every one of her suggestions and either accept or reject them.)

Format=Once the edits are in play, I’ll format the manuscript for e-book and paperback and create EPUB/MOBI files for the next stage.

ARC Readers=Advanced Review/Reader Copies. A small selection of trusted readers get the first look at the edited, but an unpublished manuscript in advance of the release. These readers act as the final eyeballs before it goes live. Only small things like typos or formatting issues can be caught her. If your plot sucks… it’s too late to change it now! These readers also have the option to leave a review on release day so this can be a make-or-break situation. ARC copies going out are wildly terrifying for an author because if you hated it, there isn’t time to change anything.

Then, it’s live to the world, for better or worse.

Currently, Vol. 4 is in the First Draft phase. I’m up to Chapter 16 and should be done with that draft in a few weeks. Then, I’ll give it a week or so to get out of my immediate headspace so I can come back to it with a fresh set of eyes for that dreaded draft two revision. Vol. 5 will start its first draft at the end of the year.

Wanna get in on the ride? It’s a steamy contemporary romance about being left at the altar and just how great that turns out to be.

WHERE YOU MET ME (Free prequel chapter)
https://daniellebannister.wordpress.com/free-story/

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 1
https://books2read.com/WYLMV1

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 2
https://books2read.com/WYLMV2

WHERE YOU LEFT ME, Vol. 3 (Pre-order)
https://books2read.com/WYLMVl3

Vol. 4 and 5 coming soon!

Until next time, friends!

Dani/Danielle Bannister, author and editor turner-in-er