My thanks to Cynthia Kahn for asking me back to do a second guest blog. I had no idea when I submitted the first one that it would gain so much attention. Hardly a day goes by, even now, without Cynthia thanking people for including my post in their papers, and I know she’s made a great contribution to spreading the word about my writing. This blog will be totally different from the first. Yes, I’ve added another book to my series (details below) and finished my online book, garnering a staggering readership with over 3,000 new readers each month adding to the figures. However, with the centenary of the 1st World War this year, I have to share with you a trip my family took me on, to France, two years ago. I remember it often; much more these last few weeks, leading up to Armistice Day, apart from the months that followed my initial visit. My family took me to Oradour-sur-Glane, a commune in the Haute-Vienne department of the Limousin region in west-central France. The original population was destroyed on 10–June-1944, when 642 of its inhabitants, including women and children, were massacred by a German Waffen-SS company. A new village was built after the war on a nearby site, but on the orders of the then French president, Charles de Gaulle, the original has been maintained as a permanent memorial and museum. The paragraph above is grim reading. I was warned by members of my family about the atmosphere of the whole place. That being said, I really wasn’t prepared for how tangible the emotion was, walking around the commune. Every building and the burned out cars were left exactly how they were found, after the massacre, as a memorial to all...

I can’t believe we are celebrating the first birthday of The Amused Now Blog and YouTube channel. I have met many talented artists and shared many interesting stories and helpful advice. Indie artists are the bravest and truest artists in the world. This past year has been more rewarding than anything I could have imagined.  Yes, Amused Now is becoming known as one of the premiere sites to promote indie artists; but what really excites me is the community and partnerships that we are building as we grow. I love how we support each other and share each other’s successes and introduce each other to those who can help advance our careers. How many sites can say that? I want to celebrate the successes of our five most popular posts this year. I am often asked how artists can increase their reach and attract new fans. Well, I’ll let these real life examples answer that question: #1 Smiz the Moneykid ~ Office Boys NY These guys are promotion machines! Smiz the Moneykid and Villa Dom have multiple Twitter accounts, one for each of their projects. I just looked up their post and, since their post was published in February, they have over 1700 tweets. They heavily promote on Facebook and Google+ too. Lesson learned: The lifetime value of your post depends on you. As a promoter, when I publish your post, I give it my undivided attention for 1-3 days. As long as the information in your post is relevant, you can link to it from your website and social media accounts for long after the publish date. Take advantage of all your internet real estate and pump up the volume! #2 Chris Browne ~ Busker Rhyme I love Chris Browne’s positivity. I asked...

The story in my trilogy had turned out to be strange, fascinating and shocking; born from an incident that happened to me a decade before. I knew then that writing fantasy was for me. My sister’s comment, saying my next books should have more guts to them; meaning gritty, set me on the road for my series of books. I’m a panster. All I have is a glimmer of an idea and find a title to keep people guessing as to why I’ve chosen it. The characters definitely choose me. It’s the only way to describe it and they tell the story. All their quirks are laid bare for the reader, and me, as I have no idea where each book is going from the off. It’s exciting. I cannot describe how much I love this new world I’ve stumbled into. Eighteen hour days are the norm for me and have been all my working life, but the diversity of jobs we have to master in the writing world, being an Indie author, is immense. Keeping all those plates spinning could get me a job in a circus, if I had the time. As each book is published, a bit more marketing encroaches on the time I’d like to be writing. The only way around it is to become more adept at all the other jobs attached to the craft, freeing precious time. When I’ve finished scheduling the promo for my books, I look at my clock and know that I have a good twelve hours to write. Deep into the small hours is my usual finishing time. From midnight, Twitter, where I promote my books and where I keep up with my readers, slows down. It’s the best time of day for me....