Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you.
―Carlos Ruiz Zafón, The Shadow of the Wind
Still in Shock
It has officially been 12 days since Belladonna Moon's debut, and I still can't believe it. As evidenced by the below picture, I will never get over the feeling of holding a book I wrote. Thank you for all of your support. This book is very different than The Witch's March, and that fact made me nervous. It was my first time writing cozy, witchy mystery, but I was able to do it thanks to friends, family, and my supporters like you. If you still haven't purchased it, you can do that now on Amazon for just $2.99 here. And if you've already purchased it, I can't stress how grateful I'd be if you wrote a review on Amazon and Goodreads!
Have You Left a Review?
The power of a review is insane. And I'm proud to say that I'm up to 9 on Amazon and 16 on Goodreads! To be considered for bulk purchases, featured is newsletters, considered for promotions, or just one reader deciding if they want to give it a try, they consider the ⭐ Rating, Engagement, and Review Count.
If you're curious, here's the various benchmarks Review Count:
- 25-50 Reviews = "Okay cool, people are reading this. Maybe I'll give it a try"
- 75-100 Reviews = Author begins to see traction
- 100+ Reviews = The book officially has community momentum!
For the sake of my sanity, it's important to keep my goals realistic, so for Belladonna Moon, my goal is to hit the first benchmark. If you haven't left a review yet, here's the links to make the process as easy as possible:
ARC Library
So, while we're on the subject of "reviews are life or death for indie authors", I would highly recommend becoming an ARC Reader. For those of you who don't know, it stands for "Advanced Reader Copy". Basically, you get a free copy of a book in exchange for an honest review. They help indie authors with the bonus of helping your budget. There are websites like Booksprout that are dedicated to this, or you can simply look up something like "ARC Reviewers Wanted" on Instagram.
If you decide this sounds like your kind of jam, I would also recommend using The ARC Library to keep track of it all so you don't overbook yourself or forget about a review. It also has more ARCs you can search through! The creator, Romi, started reading ARCs and, most of the time, lost track of where she requested what and then overbooked, so she created the library. There's an app for Android out now, with the Apple app pending, but the above has the link to the website!
No Spice Reads
Spicy romantasy is getting more and more popular. Personally, I don't think there's a problem with that. To each their own, you know? With that said, if you want spice-free romantasy but don't know where to find it, good news! You can find 30+ books that fit the bill here.
New Release Fantasy
Good news! Belladonna Moon isn't the only romantasy that's had its debut recently! If you want to find some hidden gems before anyone else, you can shop for your next obsession here.
Historical Romance
One of the first genres that women were allowed to write was romance. I don't like that they weren't allowed to push for more - until writers like Mary Shelley literally created new genres - but I'm all for the romance. I don't even care that it's stereotypical; I don't believe in "guilty" pleasures. I love history, and I love romance... I think you know where I'm going with this. If historical romance is up your alley, you can find almost 80 options here.
More Romance
If you do like romance, but you want more of that fantastical element, no worries! You can browse here for romance with some paranormal, fantasy, or sci-fi elements.
Book Recommendations?
As always, I would love to hear what books you’ve enjoyed reading lately. Send any recommendations to me over either Instagram, X, or Facebook by clicking on the icons below!
