The Cosy Knave Baton Relay

Crime writer and fellow blogger Dorte Hummelshøj Jakobsen’s novel THE COSY KNAVE has just been released and she has embarked on a most unusual and fun tour.

Here’s the synopsis of THE COSY KNAVE: The vicious attacks begin when the prodigal son of Knavesborough returns to the sleepy village after forty years in Argentina with fame and fortune. No wonder that spiteful Rose Walnut-Whip is killed, but when the violence escalates, Constable Penrose knows he needs help from his fiancée, librarian Rhapsody Gershwin.
 
It’s now available at Smashwords, Amazon and Diesel E-Books.  It’s listed at $3.99, but if you buy at Smashwords and use this coupon code: PN22N, you get a 25% discount. Not that you need that excuse to get it. THE COSY KNAVE is a terrific novel and I’m proud and honored to be a part of the book’s launch. 

Instead of doing the traditional blog tour, Dorte decided to do something new - a launch relay race or baton relay. As we celebrate the launch of THE COSY KNAVE, several of us in the blogosphere are joining together to help you get to know Dorte and her writing a little better. I'm thrilled to be a part of this group.

In this baton relay, instead of batons, we’re passing questions and answers. The relay started with Dorte’s own fabulous blog and moved to Margot Kinberg's Confessions of a Mystery Novelist, then to Judith's Leeswammes' Blog, from there to Clarissa Draper’s Listening to the voices blog, then to Helen's blog How Mysterious!, and then went to Kerrie’s blog Mysteries in Paradise, next was Bill’s blog Mysteries and More from Saskatchewan, then back home to Dorte’s own fabulous blog, from there to Col Reads, then back to Clarissa Draper’s blog, and now here.

For my part….
Here’s the answer to Question # 10 (What are the best things about being a self-published writer?) posted on Clarissa's blog yesterday. 

No beating around the bush; if I had had a choice before the first of August, I would probably have jumped at any offer from an agent or publisher. But while turning fifty may send some women, and perhaps even more men, into a jittery panic, I am quite determined to live my life while I am here. No posthumous fame for me; I´d rather be a total disaster today. (Okay, go ahead and think this is my midlife crisis - as long as you don´t tell me face to face).

First of all, I enjoy the freedom to decide when and where to publish. I can write my stories, polish them at leisure, and when I think they are ready for publication, I can just push a button - and poof, they are out there! It´s also up to me to decide what is a reasonable price for an e-book, and if I want to offer a story for free, have a sale or whatever, I can just go ahead and do it. (With Amazon, it is not quite as simple as that, but then there is always flexible Smashwords.)

And now that I have tried it a couple of times, I also begin to enjoy creating my own covers (assisted by generous bloggers who allow me to use their pictures). I am far from professional, and there is a thing or two I would have liked to do differently, but on the whole the final cover of "The Cosy Knave" expresses what I want it to - and it seems that my readers love it.

So all in all, I wonder if I am just too old and stubborn to bother about agents and all that. Because even if it still seems to be a daunting project in some ways, I´m also having so much fun being my own boss. 

And…
Question #11 - What are the worst things about being a self-published writer? 

Be sure to check out Joanne's blog, A CERTAIN BOOK tomorrow at for the answer and the next question.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you’re enjoying this relay tour as much as I am.