Follow Your Calling: Red Phoenix

Brie - art by Nicole Delfs

Observation:

If you know in your heart what you were meant to do, don't let anyone convince you otherwise. I was told by plenty of editors that (although I have a good "voice") I wasn't publishable. After enough rejections, I believed them.

But I could not stop writing...

So I found a way to self-publish (Smashwords) in order not to invest any of my family's income to realize my dream. Even then, I received HARSH reviews - enough to break one's spirit - except that I needed to get these stories out even if people hated them. :)

So I kept at it, writing what poured out of my heart. * The fact there are actually readers who appreciate my work has been delicious icing on the cake.

What I Have Learned:

Believe in yourself. You are here on this beautiful planet for a reason, with a purpose/s only you can achieve. Others may do something similar, but only you can do it in a way that is uniquely and wonderfully you.

And I don't care what your calling is, be it: teacher, mechanic, garbage collector, cashier, nurse, barista, waiter, mother, cook, writer, accountant, CEO, volunteer, etc. All are important, all are needed! No calling is more worthy than another, they are just different paths to the same end - contentment & satisfaction. You deserve both. <3

 

~~~~

Red Phoenix is the author of:

Novels-
* Brie Learns the Art of Submission
* Blissfully Undone
* Sensual Erotica: The Erotic Love Story of Amy and Troy

Novellas -
* His Scottish Pet: Dom of the Ages
* Varick: The Reckoning

Novelettes -
* Play With Me at Noon
* In 9 Days/ 9 Days and Counting
* The Keeper of the Wolf Clan
* And Then He Saved Me

Current series of Brie Novelettes (After Graduation - Started Jan 2013) -
* Brie Pleases her New Master #1
* Brie Submits to her Master #2
* Brie's Russian Fantasy #3

Tidbits about Red Phoenix

Yes, I wear a mask and I wear it for a reason. As a writer of erotica, I might shock my friends and family if they knew the naughty things that go on in my head.

I am a woman, which is why I write women's erotica. However, I like to write stories from both points of view. I've known men all my life (wink) and always wondered what it would be like to be one. How would it feel to slam your rod into a moist pussy instead of having that rod slam into you? Truthfully, I think it might be quite delicious.

My stories come from past experiences and fantasies I hold dear. Have I done everything I've written about? No. However, what I haven't tried I have researched to find out why women like the particular act and what it feels like to them.  

I am married and have children. Luckily, I partnered up with my soulmate. I am as in love with him now as I was when we first met. He makes me melt when he looks at me a certain way and he never forgets to tell me he loves me. I think all women deserve that.

I have had an... interesting past. People who know me now would not suspect where I have come from. Good or bad, all my experiences have helped me to grow and I am who I am because of the successes and failures. Life is truly a journey and a gift.

Which leads me to my last little tidbit: I have experienced significant loss. It is the reason for the sadness in some of my stories. I know pain, but I also know you can survive it. Mourn yes, but keep moving forward. Don't waste the amazing gift that is you.

~Red Phoenix

Brie Lives Her Fantasy... The Fourth in the Series by Red Phoenix

The fourth book of the series is now on Smashwords and Amazon! Brie is about to find out how a Russian Dom can make her Indian Warrior fantasy a delicious reality. But that is not all that happens in this sexy novelette. One of the girls has made a willful mistake and will pay dearly for it. 

Brie Lives Her Fantasy

Brie’s fourth day of Submissive Training is upon her – Auction Day! Brie finds herself in the hands of a new Dom, one who has quite the reputation. The sexy Russian fulfills her fantasy in creative ways she never expected. It is a day filled with anticipation and hot steamy sex. But not all the girls are as lucky as Brie...

This delicious novelette continues Brie’s fourth day of sexual adventures as a student at the Submissive Training Center.

Brie has eagerly anticipated Auction Day, curious how her Dom will be able to fulfill her favorite fantasy. The man who wins her turns out to be a highly respected Dom from Russia (which only means good things for Brie). Sadly, one of the girls fails to disclose an important part of her past and suffers greatly for it. It is a lesson none of the girls will forget. To end the day, Brie has a brief moment alone with Sir - the first time since the huge fallout.

* Adult Reading Material (18+) This book is for mature audiences only and contains sexually explicit content.

A big shout out to Tameika Ortiz who agreed to edit the piece and did it tirelessly so I could get the book out today. Thanks a ton, missy!

April Numbers for Red Phoenix on Amazon

#6 Top Free Erotica

This has been a fun month as an indie author. I've seen one of my freebies, Deeper Baby!, make it to number 6 on the free erotica list (several others are in the Top 100). I also received a number of good reviews on Amazon this month, which is helping all of my books. 

For the Month of April 2012:

878 books purchased         

29,879 freebies downloaded

Best Sellers In the Month of April: (still asking you not to laugh at my numbers)

Paid -Boy Toys 104 with a tie for Amy's Choice 97 and Blissfully in Love 97
Freebies - Deeper Baby! 11,551, Thrilling Her 7301, Blissfully Snowbound 3131

During the month of April I added 3 new novelettes and 4 more of my books went FREE on Amazon (of the 22 titles I have on Amazon, 10 are free).

Quickly Moving Up

Quick Recap of Past Months:

March:
693 books purchased
27,571 freebies downloaded 

February:

298 books purchased         

12,386 freebies downloaded

What I am Learning:

• Keep the books coming. I have seen the numbers of my older books steadily go down. However, I believe the new ones are getting more notice because people recognize the name. (Brie Learns to Obey was recently published on Amazon and is quickly jumping up the ranks of paid novels.)
• You never know what will appeal to people. Books I thought would be a big hit fell flat, while others surprised me by their popularity.
• Listen to the readers and hone your work based on how they purchase and what they say in their reviews. HOWEVER, be true to yourself. The beauty as an indie eBook author is that you can write and publish what you want, even if it doesn't make big bucks. Someone out there will appreciate the uniqueness of your story and sometimes that is all the success you need.

* Note: Amazon allows for returns of eBooks. They are the only online bookstore I know of that does this. I noticed a big difference this month. Boy Toys which has done well previous months had 13 returns versus 4 in March. (Same book and I even had more sells last month). I will never know why they were returned - no one left reviews, but it was a significant jump. In total, 58 paid books were returned in April as opposed to 12 in March.  

I will update you next month to see how May pans out. I will say this, if your heart is to have your work published this is the perfect time for Indie Authors. It's a ton of fun!

Why do Indie Erotica Authors Publish Unedited Work?

The Secret Behind the Problem

Nothing is worse than getting into a hot and heavy scene and then stopping cold because of a misspelled word or a confusing phrase. 


I am an indie author who goes under an alias to write my erotica. Why? People who know me may not appreciate my craft. :) But it leaves me in a pickle. I can't ask friends to edit my work and being a new indie author I am not making enough money yet to pay for a professional.

Why Are There Errors?

I am not an editor at heart. I desperately want my books to be free of errors, but I have reread them so many times that I can't see the mistakes. My mind knows what I meant write and automatically replaces my mistakes. They look clean to me when I publish.

I use Microsoft Word to go through and check for errors, but we all know that it still misses obvious mistakes and sometimes the "fixes" are completely wrong.

It is my full intention to pay for an editor to go through all my work once I make enough money. It is extremely important to me.

The Reason My Indie Books Are Cheap

I price my books for free or 99 cents in the hope that my readers will overlook the mistakes and enjoy the content. I want to share my stories and trust that my readers will understand.

March Numbers on Amazon for Red Phoenix

Most Downloaded

March Totals on Amazon

Since I publish directly to Amazon, I am given constant updates about numbers concerning my books. This can be a good & bad thing (see post Indie Author Addicted to Checking Unit Sales/Downloads). But when you want to get an idea about how many people have been reading your work for the month, it can be a lot of fun. :)

For the Month of March 2012:

693 books purchased
27,571 freebies downloaded

As an indie author, I can't tell you how exciting that is. :) People are reading work by Red Phoenix - Whoo Hoo!

Best Sellers In the Month of March: (don't laugh at my numbers!)

• Boy Toys was the biggest seller of my paid books at a total of 135, followed by Amy's Choice at 81
• Thrilling Her is the largest download (made top 15 of erotica for a brief amount of time) at 7756

Biggest Seller

Quick recap from the last month:

298 books purchased         

12,386 freebies downloaded

* I added 2 new novelettes in the month of March, for a total of 15 purchased and 2200 in downloads. Also, 2 more books from the Sensual Erotica series became freebies during the month at a total of 13,500 in downloads. When you factor those things in, sales increased over 50%, but downloads decreased slightly.

I'm curious to see what April brings. Will sales continue to increase or will it start to dwindle as new books flood the market?

I'll keep you posted, just in case you're thinking of jumping into the self-publishing arena. :)