Saturday, March 31, 2012

Giveaway - $5 Amazon gift card

Target Audience

I have come to the conclusion about who is in my target audience.



Women and men between the ages of 30-100, younger if you think older folks are a real hoot. Mature to a point but not mature in situations where they need to be like going to church or meeting someone real important. Extremely bad in situations when you have to chat with your boss. Slightly damaged or extremely damaged. Heartbroken or completely disillusioned about life in general. Yes, I'm right there with ya peeps.


People that have a quirky or odd sense of humor. 



People who think constantly about how much better about their life would be if only they had a gun and a plan. Kidding. LOL. 


People that love to watch crime TV shows including true crime



People interested in humanity as a whole. People that have children or know people that do. People that hate children, but love dogs or cats. People that hate all animals. People that have a job they love. People that have a job they hate. People that have no job. People that have a disability. Depressed. Happy. Young. Old. Young at heart. Writers. Readers. Haters. Critics. 




All ethnic backgrounds. All sexual orientations. People that love the government. People that hate the government. People that want to form their own government. People that love any and all genres. Open minded people. Close minded people.


And lastly people that would love it if Madison Johns would shut the hell up!

Monday, March 26, 2012

Grandma Betty is a dirty girl



Okay, so Grandma Betty is currently reading erotica, and no way am I entering the room to see what she's up to.

Editing is a game made up of two members, one the editor. We'll call him supreme being as he turns everything into gold.

Writer: has a rough manuscript that needs help for a multiple of reasons. 

Together they turn the mundane into a great piece of work. I won't call it a manuscript, I'll call it publishable. 

Armed and Outrageous is a work of fiction that I will call cozy mystery. No, it doesn't have murder in the title. How many of those could you invent? These 'person's of a certain age' will shock and awe you. If you like laugh aloud humor you need look no further. I should know, I have been laughing out loud the whole way.


Hiring an editor is the greatest experience of my life. I encourage everyone to hire an editor and go through the process. I'm blown away with how much I've learned. 

Friday, March 16, 2012

New Website

If you ask any independent author how they spend their day, and you'll get one hell of an answer.






Here's basically how it went today.

I spent like four or more hours working on the new website I set up. Yes, madisonjohns.com is now a reality. I changed themes like ten times trying to find one that looked good. Plus, had all the widgets in the places I wanted them to be. I needed it to be black or real dark as I'm trying to instill the mystery writer theme. 


What I really wanted was to be able to change the header picture. 


One theme allowed me to do that, but it kept the post concealed in a tiny box that you had to click to open. I had to email my web hosting site, again, to fix my site as I completely screwed up messing with the code.


I realized much later it had more to do with the theme I chose. Okay, so some of them had junk on the top that I can't even edit. How dumb is that?


So the knife is the only thing I could find for the moment that fits. 


What should you expect from my website? Who the hay knows, but I guess we can find out together.


One thing I want to do is feature different interesting pictures from my hometown of Saginaw, MI. Historical if I can. Why you ask? Because for the most part Saginaw has been hit pretty bad in this thing the politicians don't call a "recession." And I want to show people that there is something great about this city of Saginaw. It has history that even I wasn't totally aware of.


Oops, so off the subject again.


Have a great weekend everyone!

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Guest post: Author Mal Olson Shadow of Deceit Blog Tour

I'm honored to have Mal Olson make a stop on her blog tour.

Mal is giving away 5 ebook copies of Shadow of Deceit and a $15 Amazon GF tour wide!

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

#Wow Wednesday Blog Hop featuring R.A. Evans

While searching for another book to feature, I came across an author from my home state of Michigan. After starting this book, I'm glad he lives on the opposite side of the state, lol. This time out, horror!


Let me introduce you to Asylum Lake (Parting The Veil), a fitting name considering an abandoned asylum was just across the lake. In normal #Wow Wednesday blog hop fashion, I'll get right to the teaseeer.


Asylum (Parting The Veil)


Brady pulled his attention from the darkened hospital to Tammy as she added,"Yeah, the hospital. You know what happened there, right? Why it closed and everything?" She finished the marshmallow and wiped her sticky fingers on her shorts as she, too stood. Brady shrugged in ignorance. "He really doesn't know," she said, turning to Jeff as he returned with a trash bag.


Asylum Lake eBook $2.99


What happened at the hospital? I want to know, don't you?? 


On the heel of his wife's sudden death, Brady Tanner, moves to a small town in northern Michigan. As he arrives at his parents retirement house, where he spent many summers as a youth, his parents now gone, painful memories break to the surface. 


As a resident of Michigan, I can chuckle along with some of the references like about Barry Sanders, former running back for the Lions.


FUN FACTS


There is actually a real Lake Asylum.






          And there was a real, Michigan Asylum for the Insane.


       Are you scared yet? Because I'm shaking in my shoes!


R.A. Evans did his research and created a story all his own, unlike any before. One waiting for you to discover. As he weaves an intricate pattern of mystery and discovery, you'll be hard pressed to put this book down.


R.A. Evans is a rising star in the horror genre!


Coming soon Grave Undertakings the sequel to Lake Asylum.


If interested, check out his links.
R.A Evans website
Amazon Ebook link

Monday, March 5, 2012

Answering Tough Questions

The moment you mention you're a writer to anybody, they immediately ask you if you have been published. It's those awkward moments that make you feel like you want to crawl under a rock. I mean the general public doesn't get that you can publish your own ebook or understand much about it save what they see at Barnes and Noble. 


I'm proud to be an Indie writer, and I just wish people looked at it differently. While most understand, others still don't consider you a "real writer" unless you have been accepted by a publisher. I was accepted by a whole bunch of readers, even sold ebooks in the UK. I think that's pretty cool!


I read something interesting on Facebook today. It was a sign that said, "The only writer you should compare yourself to is the one you were yesterday."


Remember those words my writer friends, it's the only one that really counts!



Saturday, March 3, 2012

Armed and Ready

As I go through the editing phase, I started a book page dedicated to all things Armed and Outrageous. To make it interesting, I found pictures that I thought best reflect the book. 


Main character, Agnes Barton, drives a red hot Mustang. What kind of seventy-two  year old does that? She also happens to shop at Victoria's Secret if you need to know. 


Robinson's  Manor, was where an entire family was murdered in1968, now a bed and breakfast. 



Fuzzy's is the ice cream parlor in Tadium, MI, where Agnes, and her partner in crime, Eleanor Mason, hang out on occasion.


Tadium, MI, on the Shores of Lake Huron, where the story takes place.
East Tawas is also in the book, now you know where it's at. Yes, it's a real place.

Yup, this pretty much sums up most of the residents of Tadium, MI. You think you know, but you have no idea. Within the pages of Armed and Outrageous, you shall find out just how I came up with the crazy title.


The Pink Lady .38 from Smith and Wesson. Now doesn't this seem like a gun your grandmother would carry?


Be prepared to pee your pants!