Author: Toi Thomas

Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click here to learn more or sign up.

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through to make a purchase, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you. Any amount I make goes towards my dream to host a book fair in Hampton Roads, VA. Please see my About page for more details. Thank you for your support.

Optional Monthly Question: If you are an Indie author, do you make your own covers or purchase them? If you publish trad, how much input do you have about what goes on your cover?

I’ve designed all my book covers since going exclusively indie, outside of anthology covers I’ve contributed to. I like the control and the creative challenge. I also like polling readers throughout the process to see what does and doesn’t work, but sometimes I just do what I want anyway. That’s the beauty of self-publishing. Still, if I plan to actually make money with a publication, I do put effort into finding out what’s going to work for the genre and get reader feedback before letting my ego take over.

****

IWSG BOOK CLUB ON GOODREADS

#iwsgbookclub

Member Spotlight

Summer of L.U.C.K.- Goodreads, Amazon, Bookshop

Craft Book

Nail Your Novel- Goodreads, Amazon, Bookshop

We have some changes coming to the book club. More details will be provided in March, but here’s a sneak peek.

In January 2023, I completed 2 books, but my goal was three. I have a short book I plan to read to hopefully fit in with my February reads. 

2023 Reading Challenge Toi has read 2 books toward her goal of 36 books. hide 2 of 36 (5%) view books

Below you’ll find my star ratings and review tags for each title I completed in the indicated month. You can also click the images to see the thorough reviews.

Now, on to the personal updates.

I created a BuzzFeed quiz and would love for you to check it out.

I’ve been busy in a lot of ways, but the most challenging at the moment has been as a developmental editor to an aspiring writer. The great thing about this is that the writer has some natural talent. I’m just there to guide and hone. I’ve found that I’m better at helping people develop their stories than I am at writing my own, but I still love to write, and I’ve been able to do a little of that lately.

****

Do book covers really matter to you?
Are you excited about some changes with the book club?
It may take some time, but I promise, I will eventually stop by your blog.
My response time has gotten slower but I’m still making my rounds.

****

After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Jacqui Murray, 
Ronel Janse van Vuuren, 
Pat Garcia, and
Gwen Gardner!

****

Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share more inspiration and support. (This month, I’m #28).

Thank you for making it this far down the virtual page. Kudos to you! I’d love to know what you thought of this post in the comments below. Stay safe and be blessed.