Summer Reading: Novels, Autographed and Ready to Send

Need a book to read this summer?

In an era where print novels are not as readily available as e-book versions, I have three of my novels ready to sign and send to you. That's right, paperbacks, the kind where you can turn and smell the pages. Each price includes shipping to anywhere in the USA. The novels retail for $13.99 and $14.99, but you get to save here.

Rain Song -- My first novel, a Christy-Award Finalist, set in the pickle capital of the world, Mount Olive, North Carolina! Middle-school teacher, Nicole, has a lot of questions about her past in Japan, and a mysterious man enters her life to help her solve them.

How Sweet It Is -- Also, a Chirsty-Award finalist, this one is set in the mountains of North Carolina, where cake decorater Deena, finds herself teaching cooking to some wayward teens per her deceased granddad's request.

A Wedding Invitation -- Samantha gets invited to a wedding where she knows no one. But her mistake leads her to a man from her past who broke her heart, and a Vietnamese girl she taught in a refugee camp.

To order an autographed print novel, select from the Buy Now menu below. Prices include shipping to anywhere in the USA. Or if you'd rather send a check for $15.00 per novel, make it out to Alice Wisler and mail to:

201 Monticello Avenue

Durham, NC 27707

Select Novel

Rain Song $15.00 USD How Sweet It Is $15.00 USD A Wedding Invitation $15.00 USD

Show your favorite authors some love!

Once again my publishers placed my first novel Rain Song as a free download on Kindle. The rankings on Amazon were great. For two months, Rain Song was on the top-sellers listings on Amazon. There were days it was at #34 and then at #53. It was even #1 in Christian romance and contemporary. Free, of course. So in reality, my novel wasn't "selling" at all because how do you sell something if it is already being given away for free?

As of September 1, Rain Song is no longer free. I was certain that it would no longer be on the top charts of Amazon either.

Because it's true, people love free. People will take free over paid.

So I wrote the following yesterday:

Some readers are only willing to "purchase" a book if it is free. I think the logic behind the marketing department of a publishing house is that a customer will get the free book, read it, like it and then want to read other works by the author. In theory that sounds great. Many wrote to tell me how much they enjoyed Rain Song, people I didn't know before. As a result I have lots of new Facebook friends. Some said that they would be reading my other novels, now lumped together on Amazon as the Heart of Carolina Series.

Reviews went up, too. There were only 184 reviews two months ago and after my novel's two months of freedom, there are now 291 reviews. I imagine some are good in order to keep it at a four-star rating, and I know some are poor. (I have given up reading reviews because my reactions to the bad ones made my husband crazy.) I have found that many times when a book is free, readers don't treat it as an investment (because it's not) and might lightly scan it, not bother to get into it, but feel free enough to add a "not so favorable" review based on the one or two pages read.

I like seeing my books on any top chart, free or not. I thrive on hearing from readers. I like meeting new people.

But when folks ask what is next for me and when my next book is coming out, I want to say, "You know, you can't keep writing just cuz you want to. An author has to make money with her writing in order to continue to be picked up by publishers."

If you like an author's work, why not help an author by actually spending money on a book? If you like her writing style and story lines, why not promote her so that others can also be introduced to her work?

Rain Song is no longer a free Kindle read on Amazon. Free is over and with it, all the hype it generated. Now it goes back to being a book that you need cash to purchase. Even so, it's only $2.60.

The way I see it, if a reader really wanted to show me some love, she or he could skip the second cup of morning coffee at Starbucks or at the Circle K and buy Rain Song. Or any one of my other four novels--How Sweet It Is, Hatteras Girl, A Wedding Invitation and Still Life in Shadows.

And I just might be able to continue to write and make my publishers (Bethany House and River North/Moody) happy.

Update, update!
Today I checked my babies (i.e. books) rankings on Amazon and lo and behold! Yes, lo and behold. What did I find? Rain Song is being bought! By Amazon readers! It is now on the top-sellers for Kindle Paid Books. #8 in Christian contemporary fiction. How Sweet It Is is at #13 in the same category.

Did somebody get the word out that writers need to make a living? If that was you, thank you!

I hope the great rankings continue, but I'm not holding my breath. For right now, I am surprised, grateful, pleased, and ready for another cup of Earl Grey tea.

Rain Song on Amazon.

Selling Books Like A Client Advisor

Selling Books Like a Client Advisor

By Alice J. Wisler


My husband Carl makes a tasty beef stroganoff, cleans the kitchen after cooking, is an attentive listener, and when asked, will give his opinion. He also sells used cars. Of course, you would expect that the company where he's employed - BMW - would come up with a classy name for its used car salesmen. They are known as client advisors. And the cars aren't called used; they are pre-owned. During his first weeks at BMW, Carl still had a lot to learn about each feature of the cars in stock, but even so, he was praised. His ability to engage with customers was appealing to the management. He'd also sold a number of cars, and one of his clients invited both of us to his annual Christmas party.

As authors with books, we can learn from client advisors. True, what each of us really wants is to sell is a 328i or a romance novel. But the manner in which we do our selling is key to staying credible and authentic in a society that is filled with irritating sales folk. Plenty of authors push their paperbacks as though they are better than immortality. This can be exhausting for the customer. The real question to ponder is, do you care about your readership? Does it show?

The other day I read a post on a business blog, promoting a particular author. This blogger was impressed with the author for the way in which he responded to email messages. "He is quick to write back, unlike typical authors." I read between the lines: Unlike most authors, who either don't respond, or take forever to do so, this author cares. Write to him. You won't be wasting your time.

I know one thing: I don't want to be that author who neglects her audience. I want to be like the salesman at Lowe's, who claims, "In the fourteen years that I've been a salesman, I've always made it a point to meet my customers' needs first. It's not about selling what I want them to buy, but finding out what meets and suits their needs." His customers even followed him when he transferred to another store in town.

In a similar fashion, my sister-in-law, a massage therapist, asks her newsletter subscribers for their advice. "Tell me how I can make your experience better," she writes. She wants her readers to lead enhanced lives, offering details about workshops she's attended that have helped with her mental and physical health. She's looking at the whole person, not just that they get their muscles taken care of by her.

In their book, The Heart of Marketing: Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back, authors Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski are more interested in creating a relationship than closing a sale. They use the soft-sale approach to marketing products and services as opposed to the bottom-line driven method. Much recognition has been given to them as they lead others in this heart-inspired style of doing business.

As you market your books, don't be so focused on the sale, but on the buyer. Naturally, you want him to buy a book or two (how about ten?), but there is more to life than your book. You can tell him how helpful the book is with its tips on collecting butterflies or growing petunias. Or for a novel, you can tell of its merit due to reviews you've receivedóhow others have found it enjoyable. But if you are vain, prideful, or snotty, you can turn customers off. Listen to those who come to your book signings. Engage in their thoughts and comments about what makes them tick. Let it be about them, and they will remember how good you made them feel. Follow this rule of the heart and watch your readership grow.

You, too, can become a caring client advisor!

[This article was first published in the July 07, 2010 issue of WritersWeekly.]

~ Alice J. Wisler loves it when her husband cooks dinner so that she has more time to create characters for her Southern novels. While she feels everyone would benefit from reading about Ducee and her pineapple chutney-making rituals (RAIN SONG), bandana-wearing Jonas and his swinging wrench (HOW SWEET IT IS), and Aunt Sheerly's enthusiasm for winning the Kitty Hawk song competition (HATTERAS GIRL), her children remind her that there is more to life than her novels published by Bethany House. However, she's sure they wouldn't mind if you ventured to her website to read more, sign up for her newsletter, or comment on her blog: http://www.alicewisler.com

After Christmas Novel Sale

Want an after Christmas special just for being at my blog?

Of course you do! My novels go well with that flavored coffee Santa brought you.

So act now!

Order any one of my five novels for only $14.00.

Rain Song
How Sweet It Is
Hatteras Girl
A Wedding Invitation
Still Life in Shadows


Yes, order any novel for $14.00 (includes S/H). I'll sign each one. Order by January 3, 2013! The offer ends then.

Send a check for $14.00 to:
Daniel's House Publications
c/o Alice Wisler
201 Monticello Avenue
Durham, NC 27707

OR

Use the Paypal tab below. The menu drops down; choose your selection.

Choose a novel for only $14.00

Option 1---Rain Song $14.00 USD Option 2---How Sweet It Is $14.00 USD Option 3---Hatteras Girl $14.00 USD Option 4---A Wedding Invitation $14.00 USD Option 5---Still Life in Shadows $14.00 USD

In honor of Dixie

Today, and today only, I am offering any of my inspirational novels (autographed) to you for only $11! It's Dixie, my beagle's 11th birthday and she thinks this is a great way to celebrate her life and the joy of reading! (Of course, she reads.) The $11 price includes shipping costs. My novels retail for $14.99, so this is a nice birthday deal! (And if you like cake, How Sweet It Is is about a cake decorator in the mountains of North Carolina.)

Simply send a check today for $11 (USD) to the address below or pay via PayPal.
Specify which novel you'd like.





Address:
201 Monticello Avenue
Durham, NC 27707

OR

Use the Paypal button below.

Choose your novel

Rain Song How Sweet It Is Hatteras Girl A Wedding Invitation Still Life in Shadows

Being Invited

Ever get an invitation to a wedding, where you so wanted to attend, but then realized that the invite was really addressed to the previous owners of your home? Well, that happened to me. The invitation was beautiful, the way certain wedding invitations can be. The reception was to be held at some fancy country club in New York. I toyed with the idea . . . What if I showed up? I'd know no one, but hey, there would be free prime rib and lobster bisque.


Ever attend the wrong wedding? Nope? Me neither. But my character Samantha Bravencourt does. She gets an invitation saying Avery Jones is getting married. Only, it's not the Avery Jones she went to college with.


A Wedding Invitation, my fourth novel with Bethany House Publishers, was both fun and nostalgic to write. Fun, because I enjoy creating zany characters with names like Beanie and Little. Those are two of the boarders at Aunt Dovie's house in Winston-Salem, NC.


The nostalgic part of the creating came as I recalled my own days at a refugee camp where I taught in the 1980s. My novel is loosely based on my experience there. The camp was located in Bataan, Philippines and housed over 17,000 Indochinese refugees. I taught English to the children.


The Amerasians are who intrigued me. These half Vietnamese, half American (U.S.) were treated poorly and often given no education in Vietnam. I got to know many of these kids and included one in particular in A Wedding Invitation. Lien is purely fictitious, but she is a component of Amerasian girls I had as students. These kids wanted to belong and be accepted, only they didn’t usually achieve that goal well because they were often rude and loud. Perhaps that was the only way they’d get any attention.


Lien strives for this, showing us that we all have the need to be invited, accepted, and befriended. She learns that God invites us, too. In his eyes, we are each accepted, forgiven, and loved with an everlasting love.


What a great world it would be if we could reach over and beyond society's prejudices and accept those we live near and work with. When we do this, we open our hearts and lives to some priceless gems. That's eventually what Samantha realizes about Lien. Lien is funny, intelligent, insightful, and grateful. Of course, the time it takes for Sam to realize these characteristics about the Amerasian is lengthy. But the result is a friendship well worth the trip.

All Things Southern: Moonshine

Sugar, water, malt, cornmeal and yeast. These are the key ingredients for moonshine. No, I'm not planning on making a batch today, but I am interested in the subject, especially since it fits in with my novel A Wedding Invitation, and making moonshine has been quite profitable in my state of North Carolina.

What's the history of moonshine? Well, one thing is for sure, it came about before NASCAR (National Associate of Stock Car Auto Racing). In fact, making a moonshine run in a fast car was how NASCAR got her beginnings. During the Prohibition years of 1920 through 1933, running from the law in order to make a moonshine delivery at night in a souped-up car was common in the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee. Once Prohibition ended, the question of what to do with these racing cars was raised. That's when car races became popular entertainment in the rural South. Wilkes County, North Carolina was the hot spot to see the races. Vance Packard called Wilkes County the bootleg capital of America.

Who invented moonshine? We can thank the Scots and the Scotch-Irish, who settled in the Appalachian Mountains 300 years ago and made moonshine like they did back in Scotland. In their Scottish farmlands, these farmers used leftover grains to ferment into liquor. The farmers, weary of over taxation on their properties and the absence of religious freedom, immigrated to America for better lives. They brought their hopes, families, and distillery ingenuity with them.

Today, folks are curbing the 180 proof moonshine of days gone by and giving the whiskey a smoother, gentler taste. Liquor stores sell moonshine flavored with fruit which is easier on the palate. And moonshine is legal to produce as long as you have a license like the makers of Catdaddy, a distillery in Madison, North Carolina.

In A Wedding Invitation, there is much talk of Uncle Charlie, a notorious relative, who had his share of moonshine tales. Here's some about him on page 53.

I nod, recalling having previously heard the name of this particular cemetery. Uncle Charlie is buried there, with a headstone that has a motorcycle engraved in it. My great-uncle liked to ride fast, and my relatives tell me that his Harley out-sped any police car on the Forsyth County squad. He also made moonshine, borrowing a recipe from Scottish immigrants who settled in the Appalachian Mountains.

Anyway, I saw a program on how moonshine was made in our mountains (and am sure it still is), and ever since then knew I had to incorporate my new knowledge into one of my novels.

Moonshine, truly a Southern tale of adventure, secrecy, and the birth of NASCAR.

All Things Southern: Aunt Dovie's Oatmeal Bread

In celebration of my newest novel, A WEDDING INVITATION, I'll be posting some columns under the heading All Things Southern. These posts will be about topics related to my novel and to the South.

My first entry contains a recipe which can be found at the back of my novel.


Dovie’s Oatmeal Bread

Aunt Dovie is known by some family members to pick up boarders quicker than a dog picks up fleas. Dovie's old house in Winston- Salem, NC (home to Krispy Kreme donuts) is always open to those in need of some good nutrition and love. Women move in for as long as they need a place to stay, enjoying her company and care. Two of my favorite boarders are Beanie and Pearl. Beanie has a bottle of cure-all for aches and pains and Pearl makes strawberry-rhubarb pies, using a pinch of tapioca.

Along with raising butterflies and hens, Dovie bakes oatmeal bread. She serves it at meals with a mound of fresh butter. At each meal her prayers end with "Amen and Amen!" Then she's been known to dance around the kitchen with a tea towel. The fact that she can't dance to the music's beat never stops her. Dovie believes in being jovial. Her bread recipe is full of warmth, and will make your mouth and tummy smile.


Dovie’s Oatmeal Bread
1 cup of old fashioned oats (not instant)
1½ cups of boiling water
¾ cup of molasses
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 teaspoons of salt
2 cups of warm water
1 tablespoon of active dry yeast
4 cups of bread flour
4 cups of whole-wheat flour


Combine the oats and boiling in a large mixing bowl and let sit for at least thirty minutes. Add the molasses, oil and salt to the oatmeal mixture, combining well. In a separate bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add to the oatmeal mixture. Stir in the flour, one cup at a time. Once the dough starts to pull from the sides of the bowl, turn onto a floured surface and knead in the rest of the flour until smooth. Continue to knead for about eight minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning it so that all sides are coated. Cover with a damp cloth. Let rise until doubled in size, about an hour. Punch down and divide dough in half. Shape into two loaves and place dough in two greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place loaf pans in oven for five minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F. and bake for an additional 40 minutes. Loaves should brown and will be ready to take out of oven when they sound hollow when lightly tapped.

A Carolina Journey

A Carolina journey – for the author and characters


The Herald Sun

~*~*~*


AUTHOR READING:WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday
WHERE: The Regulator Bookshop
720 Ninth St., Durham
“A Wedding Invitation” (Bethany House)
By Alice Wisler
BY DAWN BAUMGARTNER VAUGHAN
dvaughan@heraldsun.com;
419-6563

~*~*~*~*


DURHAM – Four years ago, Durham author Alice J. Wisler realized her aspirations with a book deal and her first novel, “Rain Song,” set in Mount Olive, N.C. Three more novels have followed, once a year – “How Sweet It Is,” set in the North Carolina mountains, “Hatteras Girl,” set on the coast, and now “A Wedding Invitation,” set partially in Winston-Salem. Wisler said she likes writing about North Carolina towns.


While working on “A Wedding Invitation,” she even held a contest for her fans to suggest character names. Lien’s and Carson’s names were both chosen by a Durham resident.With the first book, Wisler said, she was just so excited to be published. “Then as time goes on, there’s so much more to it. It’s not as though you’ve arrived,” she said. “You begin to see the long road ahead. You see others who’ve been continually published and learn from them. It’s not like you can rest – unless you’ve written ‘The Help.’ ”


Wisler has devoted fans, but even so, being an author isn’t quite the piece of cake one might assume.

Speaking of food, gathering at the table or in a kitchen is integral to building relationships in Wisler’s novels – and in most of our lives, too. The characters in “A Wedding Invitation” do much of their gathering in Aunt Dovie’s kitchen or in a Vietnamese restaurant.

At the center is Samantha, who lives in Northern Virginia and works at her mom’s ladies’ clothing store, but goes to Winston-Salem for a wedding it turns out she wasn’t actually invited to. She stays with her aunt, who takes in those who need some TLC. Samantha also reconnects with a man from her past. Seven years prior, in the mid-1980s, Samantha worked in a refugee camp in the Philippines for Vietnamese, Laotian and Cambodian people displaced from the Vietnam War. Carson was the young man she longed for, but he had a girlfriend back home so kept her at a distance. Samantha never got over him. In Winston, she also reconnects with a teenage girl, Lien, from the refugee camp. Samantha gains a new perspective of Lien and herself.

Like a true North Carolinian would know, after first reference, Winston-Salem is just referred to as “Winston.” Samples of Wisler’s own experiences are used in the book, like teaching in a refugee camp. In one scene, Dovie brings butterflies to a cemetery for a Compassionate Friends butterfly release, and Wisler leaned on Compassionate Friends after the death of her young son.

The book’s title, “A Wedding Invitation,” came also to Wisler, meant for the previous person who lived there. Unlike Samantha, Wisler didn’t go to the wedding. But she kept the fancy invitation and always wondered about it. It was the seed for this story.

Wisler’s four novels have been classified as in the “inspirational” genre, and published by Bethany House. The characters’ spiritual life is part of their daily lives, too. They go to church. They pray. They talk about God to each other. They don’t try to drive home a specific religious message or guarantee a happy ending. “A Wedding Invitation” is about second chances. It’s also about accepting flaws and moving on.

She wrote her first novel without aiming at particular genre, but Bethany House picked it up right away as inspirational fiction. She thinks there are more authors now in that genre that write more realistic stories.“I try to put relationships with God in their lives, but not in your face,” Wisler said. “It’s not like a sermon or prayer meeting. Certainly I want Christian characters to be flawed.”

The books Wisler is working on now may or may not be deemed inspirational, and she wants to reach a broader readership – both those who already read her novels, plus those who have yet to discover her. She’ll begin to veer away from 20-something protagonists in contemporary romances. Future books will feature an Amish man who fled the life to the North Carolina mountains, and another about a bereaved mother traveling the country in an RV, who also makes memory quilts.

“I’m looking to see where my writing is leading me,” Wisler said.

Copyright 2011 The Herald-Sun. All rights reserved. © heraldsun.com 2011

An invitation

And so, in one week, my fourth inspirational novel will arrive! A Wedding Invitation has a little of everything from Elvis to missing cats to sorrow to joy. It is based roughly on my seventeen months in a remote refugee camp in Bataan, Philippines where I taught English to southeast Asian children.

I invite each of you to pick up a copy. A Wedding Invitation is about wanting to belong, to be accepted, and the beauty that comes when we are.

Here is a review from Library Review Journal:
Samantha Bravencourt has just returned home to Virginia after teaching English at a refugee camp in the Philippines. When she travels to North Carolina to attend the wedding of an old college friend, Samantha runs into an old flame, Carson, who broke her heart. She also meets a young refugee, Lien, who asks for Samantha and Carson’s help in locating her mother. The search reveals long-buried secrets that cause Samantha to examine her own past so she can move forward. VERDICT Romance and drama meet in this latest by Wisler (Hatteras Girl), who does a wonderful job conveying Southern charm. Readers who enjoy the works of Susan May Warren and Tamara Leigh will also appreciate this.

Just Around the Corner

It's just about to happen! A Wedding Invitation, my fourth stand-alone contemporary novel, is going to be released by Bethany House this October! In honor of its publication, I thought this was a good time to talk about weddings.



Do you like attending weddings? How many do you get invited to each year? Did you watch Will and Kate marry this past April? What did you like best about viewing a telecasted wedding as opposed to physically being there?

Comment below about weddings----the wonderful, the bizarre, the quaint, and the sweet.

I invite you also to talk about wedding invitations you've received. And, of course, I invite you to read A Wedding Invitation.