And.....the survey says..........

It's time to FINALLY share my survey results with you guys!!! So many surprising results!!!

To recap, a while back, I put together a survey for readers. I wanted only readers to fill it out...those who did not also write. I truly think non writers have very different reading and purchasing habits than those of us who read as well as write. I know some writers did fill out the survey too...but still...the results are pretty shocking, if you ask me!

So lets not waste any more time.

Survey was filled out by 112 people...but only 100 completed the entire survey. (YAY! I got my 100!!)

Some genre questions:

• When asked their favorite genre to read (only one answer allowed), the #1 choice with 39% of the votes was ROMANCE!!!!!!! Second was mystery with 16% and then women's fiction with 13%. the only choice to receive zero votes was biography. 

• 77% like to read different genres.

• 60% said friend recommendations are what encourage them to try a new genre.  Second most popular answer was reviews that accounted for 20% of the votes.

And when it comes to the physical book:

• 81% preferred softcover.

• Treebook edged out ebook by only a smidge....51% versus the 49% who prefer digital. 

And their reading habits:

• The two most popular times to read is in the evening and before bed, both with 27% each, but many people answered "other" and said "all of the above".

• The most popular place to read is at home with 50%, followed by work with 20%. There were a bunch of "other" answers for this too- car being one that appeared a few times. 

• When asked how many books they read per month, the most popular answer was 1-3 with 44%. The second most popular answer was more than 10 with 24%. 

• Only 53% said they borrow from the library, but 62% said they borrowed from friends.

• 70% of readers read ebooks and 71% own a digital reading device. When asked which device, Kindle was the top answer. 73% said they do not read books on their smartphone.

• 36% said they read for more than 10 hours a week. Second was 4-6 hours a week with 23%.

• When asked how they choose what books to read, (and asked to check all that apply) 28% said friend recommendations. 23% chose reviews and 20% said browsing the bookstore/library. The "other" answers included book clubs and bloggers.

• 86% said they do seek out new authors to read. 

Now let's talk money and purchasing habits:

• Surprisingly, 35% said they buy more than 24 books a year! 25% said they buy 3-6 books a year. 21% said they purchased 100% of the books they read, as opposed to borrowing.

• The number one place to buy books is online (Amazon and B&N) with 27%, and 23% buying from brick and mortar bookstores. Used bookstores accounted for 16% and yard sales 8%.

• When asked who/what influences their purchases, (and they could select all that applied) the number one answer was friends with 32%. Reviews counted for 23%. Newspapers, online forums, bookstore displays, and bestseller lists ranged between 9% and 12% of the votes. "Other" answers were blogs, covers, book clubs, favorite authors.

• 83% said their friend's opinions on books matter to them.

• 68% said online reviews (Amazon, B&N, etc..) influenced their purchases.

• 82% said Facebook ads do not catch their attention.

Lastly, I asked about reader's social activity:

• Only 22% said they frequent Yahoo groups and other forums dedicated to readers. 

•  But 69% said they visit author blogs, websites, Twitter, etc..

• Only 20% belonged to a book club.

• 51% said they belonged to Goodreads or other online reading site. 

• 40% do write reviews of the books they read. And when asked why the other 60% did not, some of the answers were:  too busy, no time, never thought to do it. 

• Lastly, 53% said they have sent an author fan mail, including Fb and twitter messages. 

So.......it seems as if friends and reviews play a big role in what people read and buy. I think a Street Team is the right way to go! So glad I got that going!! :) And when it comes to advertising and deciding where to spend my time online, it seems as if readers don't really look at ads or spend their time in reader forums.  But the blog, website, FB, Twitter seem important. And one result that surprised me...paper versus digital was pretty neck and neck. If I'd asked this question a year or two ago...I think the results would have been way different. And who knows what the same question will get me a year from now!

Here is the link for the entire survey so you can see the results for yourself!

HUGE thanks to all those who participated!!

Spoooooooooooktacular Giveaway!!!!

It's almost Halloween!!!! I personally love Halloween....who doesn't love candy??? But I really adore coming up with creative costumes and donning them! I've been Like a Virgin Madonna, a package of Smarties, Monopoly, a Dancing with the Stars Champion, Mother Nature, The Leg lamp...just to name a few! :) Hubby's been Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Fartman, Ralphie........it's been really fun! We jump at any chance to wear a costume, actually! We've donned many 80's outfits and most recently went disco for a party!

Now for my giveaway!! First of all, I am giving away a tshirt! It's got my book cover for A Bitch Named Karma and my tagline! Very cool!!!! (It's a size Large.)

Plus, a digital copy of any one of my books! Winner's choice!! Please make sure to read my Prize Rules!

(T-shirt will only be shipped to US address :( Sorry! But the book is good internationally!)

Entering is simple! First, you must be a follower! Second, just leave a comment with your favorite costume of all time! Please leave me your email address so I can contact you...if not it could be real hard to try and track you down! You can get extra entries by Tweeting or FBing my post! (Both of which can be done with the linky box at the bottom of my post!) Let me know if you've Tweeted or Fb'd with a separate comment for each! :)

Please stop by I am a Reader, Not a Writer for a list of all the participants...they're ALL giving away prizes!!!!!! And there are over 400 participants!!!!!!

When I grow up...

Adults always ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. I wonder how many actually do become what they'd wanted to be when they were 4 or 5 years old? I think there'd be a surplus firemen and ballerinas. :)

As far as I can remember, the first thing I ever wanted to be was a teacher, probably 6-7 years old. And that is COMPLETELY hysterical to me now. I am not good at teaching anyone anything. There have been times I've been asked to teach and explain..like in dance class, or crafting and scrapbooking, even in writing, and I just do not possess the ability to explain how I do things. I just do them. My daughter is only in 3rd grade and already I am having a real hard time trying to teach her and help her with homework. And I have very little patience. I could never ever home school. I think I would go completely insane. IMHO, teachers go through a lot of schooling...in NY state all teachers need a masters degree...and I just can't see how I would ever be able to do as good a job as the professionals. But huge kudos to those that do home school, though!

Anyway....

I remember later on, like 11-12, when I was just starting to play with makeup and stuff. I'd wanted to be a cosmetologist. I'd wanted to do everything: hair, nails, makeup, the works. Years later, after I was in high school, I found out there was a high school in my city with a cosmetology vocational program. I'd wished I'd known about it before choosing my high school. But knowing what I know now about myself, I'm not sure I would have been happy doing that either. I have no patience for my own hair now. But I do enjoy putting on makeup.

When I was in 8th grade, I had to choose which high school to go to. In my city, each area has it's district school...the one you went to if you didn't get into one of the good schools. But no one really wanted to go to them. You had to apply to the better schools and hope you got in. I knew which school I wanted to go to....but it was a vocational school and I had to pick what vocation to apply to. I remember going to Open House and touring the greenhouses. It seemed like fun. So I applied for Horticulture. And got in. I really did enjoy it, but it wasn't until my junior year that I decided I did want a career in horticulture. I wanted to be a floral designer.

But then my senior year came and I became the reporter for our FFA chapter. (I lived in a city, so there wasn't any actual farming going on, but we did many of the other FFA things like floriculture and such.) I wrote articles for local newspapers and I liked seeing my name and words in print. I applied to two colleges, one for Floriculture Merchandising (a program designed for those who wanted to own and operate a flower shop) and Journalism.  I got into both programs. I chose floriculture, probably because it was more familiar. I worked in the floral industry for almost 14 years before leaving it to pursue my dreams of publication in novel-length fiction.

Funny what you used to want and where you actually turn out and the different paths you take to get there.

Anyone got a Street Team?? I do!!

I am so super excited about this!!!!!!

I heard about a Street Team a while back and thought it sounded like something cool to do. Something new....a different way to reach readers. So I gave it some thought, and through the wonderful Facebook, I knew I had an easy way to contact friends who lived all over the country. So I set to work contacting them! And I put together a small group of friends- 6 women- representing CA, MA, FL, TX, MO, and OK. So excited to get started!!

I ordered a bunch of promotional materials- postcards, rack cards, magnets, stickers- all inexpensive or free (LOVE Vistaprint!). Waiting for those to arrive and then I will send them off to my friends to distribute to their friends and family, hand out to coworkers, tack up on community boards and at the library. I put together a press release too, so they'll be getting those to take into book stores.

And in exchange for their help, each will get a signed copy of my book and in the future, if they would like to continue helping me out, will receive advance copies of my books and other fun stuff.

Has anyone else done a Street Team?? What are you doing? Any advice???

And before you click away....DEFINITELY go check out Shannon Messenger's AWESOME giveaway to celebrate her book deal!!

Pretty please with sugar on top!

Hello!! I told you all a while back that I had put together this reader survey...all kinds of great questions about reading and purchasing habits. I've gotten great response so far, but haven't quite gotten the number of volunteers as I'd hoped. I was hoping for 100 and I'm at 79.

The results are so so interesting and I really can't wait to share them with you!

But if you could, please email the link to friends and family that may be interested in participating. It's short, only 30 multiple choice questions..takes maybe 2 minutes to complete. I'm hoping for purely reader opinions, not writers. I think we as writers have far different reading and purchasing habits than those who do not also write.

Thanks so much!! Here is the link!

Sunday Six!!!!! Paradise Cove!

This is from Paradise Cove!

“I think you need to go.”

The wide-eyed expression showed his shock and hurt. Gabriel’s lips started to form words, abandoning them in favor of narrowed eyes and a jaw clenched tight. “Maybe I was right all along,” he snarled as he walked toward the sliding glass door, then stared directly into her eyes. “You will run this place into the ground.” He stepped into the rain, still completely naked, without a look back.

I wanna read it, but I also don't.....

I'm about 75 pages into a book right now...but I haven't picked it up in over a week....maybe even two weeks. I started this book with such high hopes...it's one of my favorite authors and the most recent in a series. I won't mention it cause I really do not want to give anything away. The opening was great...she sucked me right back into the lives of the characters I have loved for years.

And then she went and did something that made me so incredibly sad. I laid in bed reading and bawling my eyes out, wondering how she could do this to me.

I haven't picked it up since. I know there's more sadness to come and I'm just not ready to deal with it. That night she had me so upset I couldn't sleep.

This experience just proves how deeply we as readers can care about the characters we read about. Especially something like this. I've read about these characters for years...4 other books. They are a part of my life...a part of me...even a part of my writing.

Has anything ever affected you like this????

Six Sentence Sunday- Karma Kameleon!

Here are the opening 6 lines to Karma Kameleon, the sequel to A Bitch Named Karma!

“Rich, I’m pregnant.”

The last time I’d said those exact words to him, it had led to our breakup and my entrance
to a dark and dreary pit of misery. This time, instead of a dumbfounded, confused expression, a
huge grin formed on Rich’s face and he kissed me. We laughed and he told me how happy he
was and how much he loved me.

“This is perfect.” He lay next to me on our bed and combed his hand through my hair.