Category: The Latest Twist

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

Starting Over

JAB

The fragrant, beautiful gardenias in the front of our house have bloomed every May since we bought the house in 2018, and we know they were there when the previous owners bought the house  in 2013, so they had survived the high and low temperatures that fluctuated from year to year for more than ten years.

When the hard freeze that lasted four days hit in February 2023, we were saddened by the loss of so many of our pine trees that we had planted over the past three years but were completely shocked that our three sturdy gardenia bushes didn’t survive.  So, we started over.

In November 2022, in a series of unfortunate events, our faithful camping trailer that we bought new in 2015 bit the dust in a most unlikely incident. Out of respect for her faithful service, we won’t go into the details, but no humans, dogs, or chickens (even though they weren’t there) were injured. We had a choice: give up camping or get a new camping trailer. I’m certain you aren’t surprised that we bought a new camping trailer. We’re starting over by taking short trips to get used to our new trailer.

As an author with a publishing business, I’ve been closely tracking the dwindling benefits of exclusivity with a single online book distributor. I started over in January 2023, and now all 30+ of my books are being sold by over a dozen book distributors.

In February, I investigated several options of selling my books directly to readers online. By the beginning of March, my online Barrett Book Shop was live and in business!

 

I’ve been excited to learn that other authors are doing the same!  Take a peek at a very delightful author, Maria E. Schneider, at Bear Mountain Books. 

I’ve found my toe-tapping, head-bobbing theme song for 2023 on You Tube:  Chris Stapleton

You keep reading; I’ll keep writing!

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

Grand Opening! Barrett Book Shop

JAB

Do you try to buy from your favorite local store or vendor? It’s not always that convenient, is it?

Announcing a new way to purchase Judith A. Barrett books – the ONLINE Barrett Book Shop!

All the thriller, post-apocalyptic science fiction, and mystery books  are conveniently at your fingertips; it’s just like going to an in-person event to buy a book from your favorite author, Judith A. Barrett, amiright? without spending money for transportation or even having to  put on your shoes or change out of your comfy pants.

Barrett Book Shop has the same deals and specials as any of the Big Gorilla Book Sellers in addition to exclusive discounts and deals!  Match THAT, Big Gorilla! <- I say that lovingly, BG, in the extremely unlikely event you’re reading this blog.  

Tap the link Barrett Book Shop and browse, drop a book or two into your cart then check out for a special Welcome Discount!

REMEMBER to mark Barrett Book Shop as a favorite in your browser, and let me know what you think!

Meanwhile, You keep reading; I’ll keep writing! 

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

Celebrate the Small Stuff

JAB

Have you heard the old saying, “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff”? Not all that easy, is it? It hasn’t been for me!

Here’s an idea, before we hustle from one small stuff thing to another, let’s CELEBRATE the Small Stuff we’ve accomplished! Our timeless sage, Oprah Winfrey, said, “The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.”

Here’s my first celebration for 2023:

I haven’t been celebrating the glorious, but small accomplishment of  THE END when I publish any of my books, and I have no idea why not. FarmerMan has been so faithfully supportive since my first book was published in 2016, my second book was published in 2018, and all the books after that. I was on a roll, or maybe it was a roar because I never took time to celebrate THE END before I charged forward with the next book.

How did we celebrate? We went to a new-to-us restaurant and enjoyed a nice dinner. I don’t have any photos to commemorate the grand celebration because our phones were OFF while we talked and laughed.

What have you celebrated lately? What should you celebrate this month?

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

Best Way to Get Lost: Books

JAB

library

The absolutely best place to get lost in books is at your local library, particularly if your appetite for reading far exceeds your budget for buying books or paying for a subscription to borrow “free” or reduced price books.

The goal of public libraries is to provide books for you to read. No charge, no catch, unless of course you rack up late fees, but that’s on you. Read and return: that’s all they ask.

Has it been a while since you’ve been to the library because your vision of the library is a stuffy, shushing place with old books that are out of date?

Let’s update that thinking with a peek at a current library.

New Libraries

Libraries have gone digital. You can borrow an ebook, an audiobook, or if you love a paperback, that’s fine too. There’s no judgment in the library; librarians want you to read or listen to books.

But what if you want to read one of your favorite author’s books, but that budget thing is a huge block, and you haven’t seen her books on the shelves?

Let’s pick an author at random, for an example: Judith A. Barrett. I suspect there is not a shelf in the fiction section or on the table at the front door of your library where all her books are prominently displayed. No problem for us. We’ve got a link to her books, which is practically the same!

Here’s the link to a page with all of the Judith A. Barrett books listed with the identifiers, ISBN, that your local librarian can use to order the book for you to read then return, so someone else can read it.

Judith A. Barrett Books at Your Library

You’ll also find the link on the Judith A. Barrett website under the Books menu item as a pulldown tab. It’s called Judith A. Barrett Books at Your Library. Pretty catchy, isn’t it?  https://judithabarrett.com

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

A Mountain of Goodness

JAB

Our beautiful Buff Orpington and Appenzeller Spitzhauben chickens were two days old when we brought them to their forever home coop from the feed store last August.

This morning, they had their first experience of two mountains of newly-mowed grass and weed clippings from the front field. Initially, they were very suspicious of the two new monstrous creatures in their run, but eventually two of the Buffs ventured close and discovered seeds, fresh green grass, and bugs. Game on!

The chickens have spent the entire day scratching and snacking at the two large piles; the mountain in the back that is much smaller than it was this morning, probably because it had the most green grass blades on top, but they are discovering more tasty grass, seeds, and bugs in the closer mountain.

I understood exactly how they felt when they first saw the two large, foreboding creatures. I tackled my first 2023 mountain when I expanded selling my books through new retailers: Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google, Apple, and a myriad of other international booksellers in addition to Amazon. As I scratched and searched through the mountain of goodness, I’ve discovered a few yummy royalties and am sharing the bounty with my newsletter readers.

The second mountain, with which I’m more wrestling than tackling, is the daunting monster of developing an online book shop, so I can sell my ebooks and paperbacks directly to readers. I’m taking small steps because it’s an entirely new world with all kinds of strange creatures to wrangle. I’m hoping Barrett Book Shop will be live by the end of February.

Have I ever told you learning is fun? It still is!

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

Taking off the Chill

JAB

Fire Jan 2023 smaller

When the winter sun sets in Georgia, the blue sky blends with the orange strip of light on the horizon. As the temperature plummets and the wind howls from the northwest, it’s time for me to layer, grab a lap blanket, and stay close to the small fireplace. Drink of choice? Hot tea, hot apple cider, or hot chocolate are high on the list.

FarmerMan wanted a wood burning fireplace when we moved to Georgia five years ago. I wanted a house with two and a half bathrooms, so our visiting families wouldn’t have to knock on the guest bathroom door and ask repeatedly to use the toilet while someone took a long shower. Are you done yet? Hurry up! 

FarmerMan and I compromised with a gas burning fireplace and three bathrooms. (You caught the irony there, didn’t you?) FarmerMan has adjusted to not having to cut and stack wood, keep the wood dry, bring in firewood, and clean out the fireplace after an enjoyable fire in the evening; not to mention his wintertime aching back, which I just did. I’ve adjusted to the warmth near my writing corner that takes off the chill as I write.

What about you? Are you susceptible to the cold too, or are you one of those hardy souls who is outdoors in shorts and a short-sleeved T-shirt while I’m wrapped up in three layers and shivering?

QuickJAB, The Latest Twist

2023 Goals

JAB

goals 2023 

My plan for 2023 is to crush my goals!

My Writing Journey is a marathon, but I’m walking not running because I don’t want to miss any of the fun along the way.

My overall goal has always been to write books that people enjoy, so my motto is no surprise: You keep reading; I’ll keep writing! 

I’m a natural-born storyteller, but the skill of coaxing a story onto a page for a reader to enjoy was a craft that required extra work for me. I’m still learning, so I can write better books faster. For you wonderful readers that finish a book then tell me you’re ready for the next one: I’m working on it!

My next big hurdle after finding my writing style was how to get the stories in front of the right reader who will not only read the story, but love it, and want another and another. I’m still learning that elusive skill called marketing, which will put my books into the hands of the right readers. I’m stumbling along, but it’s fun to learn, and I’m encouraged when I hear how much you enjoy my books!

Summary of Previous Years

2018 (Year 1)  Goals: Publish 1 book   Results: Published 2 books!

2019 (Year 2)  Goals: Publish 4 books; cut the year’s expenses in half   Results: Published 4 books; expenses cut by more than half of Year 1 expenses!

2020 (Year 3)  Goals: Publish 4 books; end the year with a positive net income   Results: Published 6 books; first year to end the year with a positive net income!

2021 (Year 4)  Goals: Publish 6 books; end the year with a positive net income Results: Published 6 books and wrote a short story for an anthology; second year in a row to end the year with a positive net income!

2022 (Year 5) Goals: Publish 6 books; end the year with a new high for positive net income  Results: Published 8 books, a boxset, a novelette, and 2 short stories; ended the year with the highest net income since my first book was published!

2023 (Year 6) Goals

  • Publish 6 books
  • Publish 3 audiobooks 
  • Wild goal: Double net income from 2022 

You keep reading; I’ll keep writing! 

Signature cropped

Ko-fi logo

Want to help fund Judith’s writing? Tap on the cup of coffee.