Announcing PayHip

Hello readers!

Let me begin with some good news: the Kickstarter got funded! If you were one of the backers, you should already have received your survey. The eBooks will be delivered soon. The paperbacks will take a little more time: I am waiting on my publisher to get the spine and back cover ready.

Now, onto the next piece of news: I have put the Necromancer and Fallen Love up on PayHip, a financial technology provider. This includes not just the eBooks, but also signed paperbacks of Fallen Love. You can’t buy those on Amazon! (Although, if you just want a paperback, Amazon is still a cheaper way to get it.) The paperbacks cost €25 + shipping and they will go out in batches every couple of weeks. Link here

I have kept the Amazon sales links as well, but if you can, please buy my book from the PayHip link—that way, I will earn more, and you won’t be giving another cent to Mr Bezos. The links are on the landing pages at the top of the website, for Fallen Love and the Necromancer respectively.

I appreciate any advice on the new landing pages. Would you, for example, prefer to read a preview of the book on Amazon, or are you happy with reading a PDF?

Finally, I am getting ready to reprint the Necromancer! It will be available to buy on Amazon and directly through PayHip soon. Tell me if you would be interested in getting a copy. You can comment below or contact me on social media.

Kickstarter Update

Hello readers,

We are drawing on the final few days of the Fallen Desire Kickstarter. We are 80% funded, but until we hit the finish line, nothing is guaranteed! So if you have been waiting for payday, or haven’t had the time to check it out, please do it now.

Some really cool rewards are still available, including the Arch Demon special—which offers you the chance to feature in one of my future books as a character! Both ebooks and paperbacks are available, including signed copies. There’s something for every budget. Oh, and don’t forget to check out the video below.

If you want to discuss the story, I am doing a Q&A on Goodreads.

Thanks for reading. Wish me luck!

Who are the Archdemon Backers?

Hello readers!

As promised, today I am writing about how I came to write Fallen Desire—the second book in the Fallen series. I will talk about how I came up with Roshika and Archdemon Tim—two characters based on my Kickstarter backers! I will also talk about my editing experience and how I changed some of the scenes.

Roshika and Tim: Two very different people

Roshika is a witch: a very old, very wise witch. She’s been around since the year 2000, and since the book is set in 2520, that makes her five hundred years old. She is originally from India, but has lived in Europe and the US. Roshika’s motivations are simple: protect the world from Lucifer and his progeny.

Roshika’s character is based on Jeanne Smith, Great Demon backer extraordinaire. Of course, what exactly the two have in common may not be immediately obvious—Jeanne is certainly eccentric, but she’s not exactly a five hundred year old witch. (Or is she?)

One of the main characteristics they share is their love for animals. Roshika has a pet cat, a raven friend, and two snakes. Jeanne also owns cats, a couple of snakes, and a dog. She does not own an intelligent raven (who kinda of talks!) but you can’t have everything in life can you?

Tim, on the other hand, is a more exact match with his namesake. They share the same name, obviously. Moreover, Archdemon Tim somewhat resembles a younger version of my superfan: he’s very gay, naturally, and loves having fun. He has a nihilistic and ironic approach to life—you only live once, so you better make the best of it. When it comes to his enemies, he is merciless.

It’s strange how my fictional characters are so much more ruthless than their real-life counterparts. We should appreciate the fact that civilisation allows us to be nice to each other.

What’s it like working with an editor?

Robert, my editor at Terran Empire publishing, is actually not the first editor I have ever worked with. I have worked with two editors before him: Matrice, who read the Ark, the precursor story to the Fallen series; and Annie Nybo, who worked with me on Fallen Love, but only for the first few chapters. (Editors are expensive!)

Robert is the first editor I have worked with who was along for the “full ride” if you will. He’s read the series; he knows the story and the characters well. He gets it.

Robert’s responsibilities boil down to the following:

• Tell me what works and doesn’t work in the story. His feedback led me to add two great new scenes to the story—a scene where Mark visits a museum, in which Lucifer has decided to showcase all the people he turned to stone. (Yes, it’s dark!) In another scene, Mark has an in-depth conversation with Lucifer about who he is, where he came from, and what he wants. This part of the story replaced a very weak and redundant scene.
• Find typographic errors: mispellings, grammar mistakes, and missing/wrong words.
• He knows my audience and what they will appreciate (or not appreciate).

If there’s one thing I wished Robert did more of, it’s be more critical. Editors are not there to be nice, or to pamper you (excessively): they are there to make your story better.

Want to know more?

Head over to my Patreon page where I will be sharing more detailed accounts of how I write my stories, as I write them. You will also get to see snippets of new books as they are written, long before the rest of the world even knows they exist.

The Kickstarter is Live! Get your copy of Fallen Desire

Hello faithful readers,

After an extended delay on their end, our Kickstarter is now finally live! Following months of writing, editing, planning, and design, the book is ready to see the light of day. Support the Kickstarter.

If you like urban fantasy stories in the vein of Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters, Lauren Kate’s Fallen, or Alexandra Adornetto’s Halo, you will love Fallen Desire. It’s got black magic, scifiesque cityscapes, and a healthy dose of spy thriller. And it’s about two boys who are in love. Yup—all that and LGBT representation to boot. Still not convinced? Why not read the blurb:

The Devil is many things: beautiful, cruel, and sometimes mischievous. But above all he is cunning. Thrust into Hell against his will, Mark must learn to navigate this fantastical world – a world where demons rule over mortals, and curious little imps can be found spying in hidden nooks and crannies.

Mark needs allies, but when betrayal lurks in every corner, who can you trust?

I will be releasing another post detailing the journey of how I came to write this book: I will tell you all about what it was like to write my fans in the story; what had to be cut; what’s it like working with an editor; and how some of the scenes got written. Stay tuned!

Fallen Desire is coming along nicely

Hello readers!

I want to share with you all a brief update regarding Book II, my future plans for the series, and some of my upcoming life events.

I’ve written 60,000 words and have finished Part One of the story, which is wonderful! A great many events that I’ve been planning, foreshadowing, or teasing the reader about are now coming to fruition. The entirety of Part Two is plot, action, resolution—all the good stuff. While worldbuilding and characterisation occupied much of Fallen Love and some of Fallen Desire, this is where it all comes together.

Do I know when I will finish? No. Despite my good progress, I have a Master’s degree incoming, plus this book is no paperweight. I anticipated it would be around 90,000 words, and right now it looks like it could easily be 100,000. Is there a Book 3 in the works? Well, there might be a prequel novella. (Maybe.) But the buck ends here.

Speaking of master’s degrees, I have decided to study Business and Data Science at the University of Twente in the Netherlands. You could think of it as an MBA with an MSc; it’s two years long, 9 months of which is made up by internships. While business is a straightforward subject for yours truly (I’m an economist remember?) the data science component will require me to brush up on my Python and statistics. Not to mention the dreaded linear algebra and calculus.

At the moment, however, I’m busy trying to find housing. This is, of course, a pain in the behind.

Anyway, I have one more piece of good news: I have a new fan! Her name is JR Vaineo, and she’s a fantasy writer too, so check out her books. I’ll probably republish the review here on the Magical Realm. Stay put!

Big News: Fallen Desire is coming out with Terran Empire Publishing!

Hello faithful readers!

I am announcing my new publishing contract with Terran Empire Publishing, a small press based in California (though my relationship with them started well before the publication of this book). I have recently signed a publishing contract with them for the rights to Fallen Desire, Book 2 in the Fallen series. I already announced this on my mailing list and social media, so I might as well do it on the Magical Realm. I will use this as an opportunity to briefly delve into some additional detail.

What does publishing a book actually mean?

In legal terms, a publishing contract is an agreement whereby the Author sells the rights for a written work to the publisher, in exchange for royalties and possibly an advance. (That’s a test good contracts must meet: there should be a quid pro quo.) But what does that actually entail? Why would I do this instead of just publishing it on my own like I did the Necromancer and Fallen Love?

Well, it boils down to a few different important advantages and one major disadvantage. The disadvantage is that my royalties per book are about half what they would be if I self-published. The advantages are numerous:

1. I get free editing! Which is great, because editing—particularly developmental or story editing—costs a lot of money otherwise. It’s probably the single biggest added value service in addition to a cover.
2. I get a book cover! And I don’t have to pay for it out of my own pocket.
3. The publisher has a physical presence in California, which is important for selling to bookshops. They also make my book known at local conventions that, for obvious reasons, are very difficult for me to attend (I live halfway across the world).
4. Translation into Spanish is a possibility.
5. And finally, I get someone to market for me! This is such a pain in the ass to do on my own.

Why Terran?

Why not any other publisher? We were already working together as I was doing some data analysis work for them. They pitched me an offer for the 2nd book; I decided it looked good. They were also open to negotiation; that meant I got a very solid contract with clear expectations, and no nasty loopholes.

So how is Book II coming along?

Pretty well, for the most part. I have written more than 50,000 words, and I’ve almost finished the first round of edits. I do my first round of editing once I reach the halfway point (more or less) in order to fix problems as they crop up: I mop up everything from typos and worldbuilding inconsistencies, to characterisation issues and plot holes.

I could in principle wait until I finish writing the story and have my publisher do all this, but I prefer to resolve issues as they come up, because that makes writing the end much easier for me. As it is, I probably will send the manuscript to the publisher in a few weeks.

I am cautiously optimistic that the book will be ready in a couple of months; I expect it will be around 90,000–100,000 words. It will definitely be bigger than Book 1, but I’m just not sure how much bigger.

Any other news?

I’m preparing for my MSc in Data Science and Business, which is going to be a lot of work. Arranging housing is next on the list.

I was supposed to get my driving licence this year, but will I? I’m not sure. The whole coronavirus pandemic has delayed an already slow, bureaucratic process. Since my MSc is non-negotiable, I have to leave in August.

But hey, I’m staying positive! I’ve been working out for the past 2 months. (What else was I supposed to do? Go crazy in quarantine?) I am now the proud owner of a six-pack, which feels pretty statuesque—a feat I attribute to low body fat and smart exercise. Now I’m working on my biceps, triceps, deltoids, and pectoralis major. Plus my transverse abdominis—a tricky muscle to work.

(Alex, as you might have noticed, is obsessive. When he strives to complete a task, he does it, and he does it well. Even if it means metamorphosing from a book nerd into a fitness freak.)

Finally, one more piece of good news: my hair is growing back! In particular, my forehead and temple hair is thickening—hair that I lost in the past two years due to AGA, aka male pattern baldness. How long will I maintain a full head of hair? That I do not know, so I’m going to relish my hair while it lasts.

Now I must return to my writing. Until next time!

Announcing My New Patreon

Hello readers,

I’m pleased to announce my new Patreon page! I’ve been thinking about starting a Patreon account for a while now; I’ve been busy researching how it works, setting my prices and rewards, and waiting for the Royal Mail to deliver the paperbacks. (COVID-19 is such a pain in the arse, don’t you know?)

“But what exactly is Patreon, Alex?” you ask. It’s a good question: I had no idea it existed until quite recently, and not many writers use it, at least based on my experience so far. (This may change.) In short, Patreon is a way of supporting me financially, in exchange for all sorts of cool perks—like getting to read Fallen Desire early, along with cool short stories and poems. Think of it as a long-term relationship with long-term benefits and obligations.

Become my Patron!

Poems 2020

Speaking of poems, I’m going to be writing a new series of poems this year, titled (you guessed it) Poems 2020. They are unique and available only to my Patreon supporters during the first year; in 2021 I will be making them freely available here on the Magical Realm.

I’ll be writing about characters from the Fallen series, and one poem, the Sceptre of Fire, will actually be about a new fantasy series I have planned for the future. (Yes, that’s a hint!)

Make the best of quarantine

Like many people in the world right now, I am stuck at home and only allowed outside to buy food and medicine. I figured I might as well do something useful. There’s nothing more fun than passing time indoors with a good book, right? Or talking about a good book, if not reading it.

A Quick Update

Hello readers!

It has been awhile since my last post, and I would like to update you all on what’s been going on. To begin with, I have been busy with my driving lessons: I am slowly getting the hang of steering, clutching (a very complicated process), brakes, acceleration, and intersections. Oh, and parking. Alas, thanks to this pandemic, driving tests have been postponed for over a month.

The other important thing has, of course, been master’s degrees. I will be sending another application soon, and I am expecting scholarship results quite imminently. Then there is Kickstarter—I sent all the remaining signed paperbacks on Monday, and I’m hoping everyone will get their copy soon.

In my personal life, I’ve started exercising more: I’m doing some basic resistance exercises (pushups, squats, planks) with medium-intensity cardio. I figured I might as well do something useful while I wait for my medicines to work—it’s going to take months to fix the remaining skin and hair problems I suffer from. Incidentally, if you suffer from dry hair (which I hate) I recommend biotin supplements; they really do work.

I have some really cool plans for my writing in the future. The second book in the Fallen series has been picked up by a California-based publisher (yay) and I am excited to work with them. On top of that, I’m interviewing my Great Demon and Arch Demon backers; I’ve already started writing the first character based on my backers’ personality. It’s turned out very interesting so far.

That’s not the only new writing! To take one example: I’m hoping to write a piece of flash-fiction that will be published in a Queer Science Fiction anthology. Obviously, there’s the sequel. And there’s more I’m keeping under wraps (secret alert!)

Lastly, I’ve been following the Democratic primary election—or, well, not following. I can really sympathise with the people who voted for Bernie Sanders: the DNC has pretty much turned this into a Biden coronation, and I don’t blame Bernie supporters if they decide not to cast their vote for Biden in the election. Heck, I wouldn’t blame them if they abandoned the Democratic party altogether.

Biden may or may not win against Trump; it will depend on how this pandemic evolves. At this point, though, I don’t really care. It’s business-as-usual in America, and that means crazy-as-usual.

If you haven’t done so already, you can keep following me by signing up to the subscribe form on the right. This way, you’ll be the first to know when I release something new, be it a new book, short story, or exclusive.

I’m finally getting published

Hello readers!

I have been busy these past few weeks, which is why I have not posted any updates here on the Magical Realm. Partly, it’s been because of the new book, Fallen Love. I’ve been advertising on Facebook, fulfilling backer rewards for Kickstarter (lots of paperbacks to send out!) and I’m negotiating the rights to the sequel with a small press.

Yes, you read that right: a small fantasy publisher wants to publish the next book! The talks are only at the beginning stage so far, and there is much to think about. Editing, design and marketing are the big ticket items; there are a million other things that go into a publishing contract.

There is a trade-off involved, naturally: the royalties aren’t as good as in self-publishing, which means I have to sell more books to earn the same. In exchange, I get editing, which is seriously expensive business (think $2000+ for a full-length novel). The publisher has a physical presence in California, which offers many opportunities—conventions, bookstores, Kickstarter rewards—that wouldn’t be open to me otherwise. Finally, I want someone to do the work for me. Self-publishing is too complicated and too exhausting.

The Curse of the Automobile

I’ve started taking driving lessons. Getting my licence will prove a time-consuming and tedious process, mostly because of bureaucracy. I can’t say I’m massively excited about it, because it’s not like I can afford a car at this stage in my life. Moreover, car transport is the cause of many negative externalities—pollution, climate change, congestion, and obesity among them.

Sadly, the reality is that we are hopelessly dependent on cars. You need to drive a car in order to be an independent adult. Even employers require it as a condition for getting a job—or the market forces you to drive a car because living in the city is too expensive.

Plans for the future

But enough about that! I have exciting plans for my writing. Getting a publisher for Fallen Desire is just the beginning; there are other promising opportunities I’m exploring. You’ll hear more about it in the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned!

Fallen Love is finally here!

Hello intrepid reader!

I am delighted to announce that Fallen Love is now on sale! Head over to the Fallen Love page up top, or click the button below.

You can get Fallen Love as both an eBook and a paperback. What’s more, the eBook has Amazon X-Ray enabled, which lets you see useful information about characters and terms.

Thanks to my Kickstarter backers, I have raised enough money to promote Fallen Love and cover my expenses. So thanks a lot guys! This story has been a long time coming. After two publication date delays (first December, then January, finally February) it feels like a relief to finally have it out there. Read my story on Kickstarter

Next Steps

If you’re just reading this, why not head over to my Facebook page or my Twitter and stay up-to-date with everything going on. If you want to know when book #2 is out—and get a free copy of my short story, the Vampire Eirik—please sign up to the mailing list.

What I’ll be doing

I will be busy over the coming days and weeks with promotion, including guest blogging organised by the gals over at LesCourt & Vibrant Promotions. Aside from that, I will be busy with social media and advertising. The ads will start once the book has its reviews.

Wish me luck! It’s finally coming together.

The Final 48 hours

Hello readers!

I am happy to announce we’ve raised nearly £1000 for the Kickstarter! This has been more than I expected and, to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure how to respond. As a first time Kickstarter creator, I had no idea what to expect—and nor did I know anything about Kickstarter etiquette. Thanks to the help of Dyrk Ashton (an author you should check out!) and some newly-gained personal experience, I now have a plan in place for the remaining days until February 1st.

Stretch Goals

I am announcing two stretch goals in addition to my original goal of £500. Here’s an explanation for what all the goals mean:

1. The original goal: basic promotion. For £500, this covers the cost of the marketing professionals I’ve hired, as well as advertising on Amazon, Bookbub and Facebook.
2. Stretch goal #1: £1000. This pays for a BookBub promotion called Featured New Releases, and makes it easier for me to sell the book to bookstores.
3. Stretch goal #2: £1250. This pays for another blog tour & ARC reviews, and it makes the sequel, Fallen Desire, more financially viable.

Rewards

I’ve released two new rewards since the Kickstarter began. The first—the Special Edition eBook—gives backers never-before-seen artwork, and comes packaged with an excerpt from the Ark, plus secret editor feedback.

The second reward, named the Great Demon special, has two very special features: it lets you base a character in the sequel on yourself; and I dedicate the book to you! Yes, you heard that right.

Interested?

Then follow the link.

Guest Post with Julia Goldhirsh

Introduction

Hello everyone! Today I’m co-authoring a blog post with Julia Goldhirsh, a YA fantasy & fairytale writer. We met on Twitter and decided to combine our collective efforts for a bit. Enjoy! Oh, and make sure to check out our respective blogs: Julia Goldhirsh and Alex Stargazer.

How to pitch your book as the right genre

1. See what types of people are interested in your book. Who wants to review the book, how old are they etc?
2. Make a list of the types of tropes you have in your book.
3. Search on Amazon to see what other books have those tropes
4. Ask your readers how they would define the book. See what readers say about it during beta reading.
5. Use the template below to help get started
6. Look for novels that seem similar to yours and that have similar tropes. How do those writers classify their books?

Age of characters: 12-18 (Typically YA or MG) Time Period: Modern (Urban), Past (Possibly historical) Genre: Science focused, magic and sorcery focused, end of the world focused, love focused, etc.

You can see a further breakdown of genres here.

To craft your pitch

Grab them with the first line- A dark fairy tale with a twist. Introduce an enticing trope- At the turn of the 20th century, a Rapunzel in a greenhouse battles an evil nymph Leave them with something that makes them want to know more- with help from a messenger with a mysterious past.

Here is another hook that I’ve used- An enchanted Rose spellbound to a greenhouse prison.

How to sell books to bookstores

Some of the main things bookstores want when looking for books are retail discounts, ISBNs, and a price on the barcode. This makes selling your book easier for them and will make your book an easier sell in the long run. Here’s what I’d recommend so you can have those things for the bookstores.

1. Ingram Sparks- Get on Ingram sparks. No seriously. Do it. It will make you a lot more palatable when you approach bookstores.
2. Bowker- Purchase a barcode from Bowker and have your cover artist put the barcode on there for you. You can get your ISBN there too.

Alright, so now that you have that out of the way, here’s what you can do to reach out to bookstores. Note that this is not a one size fits all approach, but this worked for me.

1. Library- Submit to your local library.
2. Bookmarks and business cards-Have some bookmarks made and ask your local bookstores if you can give them bookmarks
3. Barnes and Noble- Fill out the forms they provide on their website. They even offer the option to get your book reviewed through their website.
4. Books a Million- Fill out the forms on their website. (They do not accept Print on Demand titles).

One thing I did was that I had some bookmarks designed and printed through Vistaprint. I contacted some local bookstores and cafes to see if they’d be interested in taking the bookmarks. Often when I went in a customer or two would ask about the book, I’d give them a short pitch and the customer would express some interest. This resulted often times in the buyer purchasing the book off Ingram.

If you’d like to see more of my content, you can sign up for my mailing list here.

Below are some pictures of my book in the library and on the bookstore shelves.

Alex’s Suggestions for Getting into Bookstores

To begin with, I second Julia’s suggestion regarding bookmarks, and this is something I will be doing myself. Bookmarks give you physical presence, author branding, and credibility. But let’s not forget the most important element: pitching your physical book to the manager. This is exactly what I did at WHSmiths, and it immediately grabbed the attention of the manager. At Waterstones, I was unable to meet the manager in person—and when I pitched him via email, it didn’t work.

Another suggestion, which won’t work for everyone, is Kickstarter. I have been able to successfully meet my funding goal thanks to the awesome folks at Kickstarter. What does this have to do with bookstores, you wonder? Again: credibility. It’s easier to convince a manager to buy your book if you can prove that you raised $1000 (say) for your crowdfunding campaign.

Your author branding should work to support your message—I intend to display the Kickstarter logo along with Fallen Love imagery in my bookmarks, for example.

Regarding which company you use to print your books (Amazon, Lulu or Ingram) this is a tricky question and one which I haven’t figured out yet. Julia thinks you should use Ingram, which is the traditional choice for getting into bookstores. But combining Bowker + Ingram has an entry cost in the hundreds of dollars, and that’s money that can certainly be better spent. Amazon has the best prices—but branding might be an issue. Lulu’s prices are too high, for paperbacks at least, to be realistic. Personally, I’ll plump for Amazon.

How About Genre?

This is easy if you’re publishing something in an already well-defined genre—epic fantasy, for example; thriller; or cozy mystery. Things get harder if you’re writing something a bit more unconventional like what me and Julia are writing. The general advice—shelve your book in the sub-genre of the main genre, so on Amazon that might be fantasy and then “LGBT Fantasy”—works if you know what your main genre is. It may be that you need to categorise your book in more than one genre. This is a case of experiment-and-see-what-works.

I learned this the hard way for Fallen Love. I always knew that, at heart, the story is urban fantasy: the young adult characters, the worldbuilding, the tropes—it’s the stuff of Cassandra Clare or Lauren Kate or (heck!) even Twilight. Yet I hoped it would also appeal to LGBT and Sci Fi readers. The jury is still out on the SciFi part (I don’t have a large enough sample of Sci Fi readers yet) but my experience with LGBT readers is that it’s more often miss than hit. As much as I love the relationship between Mark and Conall, the book has too much complex worldbuilding to appeal to M/M romance readers. For a reader who diets on contemporary gay romance, demons, witches and 26th century Europe are just too much.

You can guess I’ll be heavily promoting Fallen Love as an urban fantasy book before anything else.

Conclusion

So how does the intrepid author go about getting their book into a bookstore, and hopefully selling a bunch of copies? Both me and Julia agree on the business fundamentals: you need a good price and discount for your book; a well-chosen target market; and you should a physical product that communicates your brand. The author’s personal presence is often important as well.

If you have raised money in a crowdfunding campaign, or have already sold a decent number of books online, this is something to emphasise.

Julia Goldhirsh is the author of Spellbound, a fairytale spin on the classic young adult fantasy story. You should follow her on Twitter and Facebook or her mailing list to get the latest on her new books, special offers, and cover reveals.

Alex is an author of some excellent LGBT Urban fantasy books with hints of romance. His second novel is called Fallen Love and he has a scheduled publication date of February 1st 2020. You can check him out on www.alexstargazer.com and follow him on Twitter or Facebook to be the first to get updates on cover reveals, new books, and promotions.

Please upvote Fallen Love on Reedsy!

Hello readers!

In a short break from my Kickstarter coverage (which is going quite well so far!) I would like to ask for your help on something different today. I have submitted Fallen Love to Reedsy Discovery, a website that specialises in promoting self-published books.

To feature on their newsletter, I need you to go and upvote my book. Just follow this link: https://reedsy.com/discovery/book/fallen-love-alex-stargazer

Given that their newsletter readership is fairly significant, this could really help! I have already received upvotes from the website founders, so let’s follow their example.

Thank you.

A Thank You to my Kickstarter backers!

I would like to thank all of the people who have backed my Kickstarter so far! Thanks to one particularly generous Kickstarter backer who pledged £100, we have now raised over £250! But remember: I need £500 to get funded—it’s all or nothing. So to all my readers, please make a pledge. And if you can’t, please share the link with your followers, friends, or family. The shortened link is: http://kck.st/2rRkPpq

An Important Announcement

Hello readers!

I have good news and bad news for you today. I’ll begin with the good news: My Kickstarter for Fallen Love has just gone live. I have a target of £500, and I need all the help I can get! If you can spare a bit of money and pledge for one of the rewards, I will be immensely grateful.

Follow the link here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/alex-stargazer/fallen-love-a-ya-lgbt-fantasy-novel

If you can’t pledge, you can still do me a massive favour by sharing the link. It can be on your Facebook page; on Twitter; on your personal blog; or even in more unconventional places like LinkedIn and in-person. Whatever works!

What’s the Bad News, Alex?

I am delaying the publication of Fallen Love to February 1st. This is also the same date that the Kickstarter ends, so no pressure! The simple reason for this is that I do not really have the resources to promote both the book and the Kickstarter at the same time, so the Kickstarter went first.

It’s also influenced by another important reason, which David Gaughran explained in his mini-book, Amazon Decoded: for a book to be successful on Amazon, it has to do one thing, and that’s rank well in a category. (Sub-categories are extremely important: it is much easier to rank highly in LGBT Fantasy or Urban Fantasy than Fantasy, never mind the Bestseller list.)

To do that, it needs to sell an increasing number of books over a 4 day period (or thereabouts). Having more time to get book blogs to promote the book is one way of doing this; and having more money also helps to pay for ads. This decision gives me more of both.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, dear readers

I can say with certainty that 2019 has been a difficult year for me personally, as well as for Alex Stargazer Books. Since I decided to self-publish Fallen Love on that fateful mid-summer day, I have been kept continuously busy—I’ve been working with my designer to create the covers for both Fallen Love and the Vampire Eirik; with my consultant, I’ve been mastering MailChimp and my mailing list; and I’ve been writing too.

I published the Vampire Eirik in December, and Fallen Love is coming January 7th (I was forced to delay for various annoying reasons). Moreover, starting with the first day of the year, tomorrow, I will have my work cut out for me promoting the book.

So to all my readers: I wish you a peaceful 2020. May you live in comfort and peace.

Fallen Love Landing Page

Hello everyone!

I am now back in Romania and celebrating Christmas with the family. I am also writing, promoting, and perfecting my platform in preparation for launch. As part of this, I’ve created a beautiful new landing page for Fallen Love, which I’ve linked to the respective tab above.

Landing pages are a curious thing, and you, fellow readers, may not know what exactly they are (I sure didn’t!) A landing page is a special kind of web page that doesn’t contain navigation links; there are no tabs, no home button, or any of the other accoutrements you see here on the Magical Realm, like search functions and columns.

The purpose of the landing page is to get you to buy the book. In this case, it’s getting the reader to subscribe to the mailing list (as Fallen Love has not been released yet). In marketing speak, this is known as the “conversion rate”—the ratio of site visitors that turn into subscribers. It turns out that landing pages have a much higher conversion rate than blogs and normal websites.

This won’t be the only landing page I make; I plan on making one for the Free Stuff and one for the Necromancer. The Magical Realm will retain its blogging and general update functionalities, and it will continue to act as Stargazer HQ.

That’s it for now! I’ll reveal my Kickstarter campaign soon, so keep following.

The Vampire Eirik is free on Smashwords!

Hello readers,

I am pleased to announce that the Vampire Eirik is free on Smashwords (and only Smashwords) from December 25th to January 1st (2019–2020). You can of course still get a free copy if you sign up to the mailing list here: Sign up now!

If you’ve signed up already, or if you want to do just do me a quick favour, follow the link to my book’s Smashwords page here: Buy on Smashwords Remember! If you buy my book (even for free) it will increase the ranking and help me find new readers.

In other news, I am currently in Vienna and going back to my home town in Romania. I am also busy setting up a Kickstarter campaign to raise more money for Fallen Love; I will tell you guys more in a future update. Hang on in there for a few more days.

Oh, and before I forget: Merry Christmas!

Fallen Love Publication Delayed to January 7

Hello readers!

I am announcing today that I am delaying the publication of Fallen Love to January the 7th, 2020 (which is one month from now). This was not an easy decision to make—I deliberated for some time—but I feel it is the right decision. I’m going to explain why. It boils down to two things: personal and business.

The Business Reasons

I’ve read a very helpful book called Amazon Decoded, and the author, David Gaughran, explained how successful book launches are supposed to work. Essentially, it’s about selling as many books as possible in a relatively short amount of time—a sustained period of five days where sales increase day-on-day.

There are a number of ways to accomplish this—including advertising—but the best way is Bookbub, mailing list promotions, and lots of exposure. At the moment, I don’t think I have enough in place to do that on December 10th. And there are a variety of other good reasons why launching it in January is a better idea.

Reedsy Discovery. This platform—which is run by Reedsy, the company I work with to hire designers and editors and marketers—can help me in two different ways. Firstly, they pay me $50 for every reviewer I refer, and thanks to you guys, I have people who can do this and earn me a bunch of money. Secondly, I have paid them for a launch and have over 250 followers there. But: the earliest launch date available was January 7th. No co-incidences here!

YOU CAN HELP: Sign up to the mailing list on the right-hand side and I’ll send you a reviewer referral link.

WHSmith and Waterstones. I have been in touch with the managers in my local (Glasgow-based) WHSmith’s and Waterstone’s, and I have high hopes I can get Fallen Love on the shelves of at least one of these stores. The potential for exposure is huge. Once again, the earliest available opportunity is in January.

Other funding opportunities. I am looking into the possibility of doing a crowdfunding campaign.

Reviews. I don’t have a huge number of reviews yet, and I am expecting more to come in.

The Personal Reasons

My personal life has been chaos these past three months. I’ll spare you all the gory details, but there are two immmediate things that make a December 10 launch extremely difficult: I will be travelling to Romania (by car) on December 15th. Moreover, I am currently exploring the possibility of going to study for a Master’s in the Netherlands on February 1st.

The uncertainty in my life is very difficult—extremely difficult—but I can’t dither and delay forever. January 7th was the best compromise based on the available knowledge.

To receive automatic updates on Fallen Love, the sequel, promotions and free books, sign up to my mailing list.

The Necromancer is on Kindle Countdown!

Hello readers!

As part of my upcoming promotional blitz, I am putting the Necromancer on a Kindle Countdown promotion from Saturday, November 23rd to November 30th. It will start at midnight GMT (which is in the early morning for you Americans) and finish at midnight for both GMT and PST timezones.

The price on Amazon.co.uk will drop to 99p, then £2, then back to £2.50. On Amazon.com, the price will be 99c, which will go up to $2 and then $3 again.

Buy it now on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk

The wind of the North whispers a name, and all who hear it are frozen in fear. It is the name of the Necromancer. And it means death...

In the South, Linaera dreams of becoming a healer. A novice at the Academy of Magic, she skips most of her battle magic classes (because who needs battle magic anyway?) When her mentor, Terrin, decides to send her on a quest to the icy North, Linaera will have to learn far more than a simple fire spell to survive the ravenous undead.

Even so, Linaera will have to face greater dangers if she is to prevail. There is a dark secret hiding in the depths of the North; a secret that will make her stronger—or destroy her.

Magic and adventure beckon in the world of Arachadia. There’s dark humour for the cynics, and a sweet love story for the romantics. If you like stories about mages, bad-tempered ghosts, dragons, elves and thief guilds—you’ve come to the right place.

What readers are saying:

★★★★★ “It truly made me feel like I was seeing everything the characters were seeing; the detail is immaculate.” —Ashley Tomlinson

★★★★★ “Between the intricate plot, unique and fascinating characters, and a story line that held me riveted to the very end... this was one incredible ride.” —Teresa

★★★★★ “The Necromancer is an adventure through an old school fantasy world, and I enjoyed it immensely.” —Jayde Kemsley