The Times, They Are A'Changin'

Bob Dylan didn't have the publishing industry in mind when he wrote that song in 1964, but he could have. In the past five years, the publishing industry has been set on its ear. The entire manner in

which one can publish has evolved in a giant leap and we authors have an abundance of opportunity available. No longer does the Big Six rule from their lofty, impenetrable glass towers. But all this flexibility comes at a price. Authors are now responsible, more than ever, for their own promotion, including blog sites such as this one.

Over the past few years, I have visited more blog sites than I ever knew were out there, causing a serious learning curve about what I wanted my blog to be about. I have given thought to my brand, and what I want people to expect when they come to my site for a visit. At a recent talk on blogging, my message was very simple: be consistent, both with content and with the scheduling of your new posts. People who have read my books will hopefully know that I have a healthy respect for history, that I love sassy contemporaries, and that I try to tie all my plot lines together with a dash of humor. I want my blog to continue to convey that branding message.

I feel the message has been getting muddied of late, so I've instituted some changes. While I still want to feature my fellow authors, I need to limit the amount of time they get and who they are. So, I'm cutting back to only one or two very special guests each month. The rest of the time will be just me, sitting down for a chat with just you. I'm setting up my own blog tours, and my appearances for each book will now appear in a block on the right hand side of this blog. I'll try to provide links to the various sites where I'll have a post, but I usually don't get that information until the day of the post.

Since I was reminded yesterday that I blog a lot about Mary, my puppy-mill rescue dog, I want to share her latest doings. I took her to my sister's on Friday to spend the night and the next day, since I wasn't going to be home much on Saturday. She loves her cousin Harry and, according to my sister, the two of them acted like teenagers at a slumber party. They had pizza delivered at 930, they took every toy out of the toy basket and threw them all over the house, they ran up and down the hallway, barking and growling at each other until 330 in the morning, when they finally fell asleep. And didn't wake up until 11am!

And finally, I'm pleased to announce that, for the entire month of February, all Crimson books published in 2012 and 2013 will be available for $1.99 each. Crimson's Valentine gift to their fans. Go snag some copies. Visit Crimson's site at www.crimsonromance.com to view all the titles available, and head over to my Amazon page at http://www.amazon.com/Becky-Lower/e/B008DTC15C/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_ to load up on any of my books that you've missed. Happy reading in 2014!