Mary Montague Sikes - Monti!

Introducing Mary Montague Sikes - Monti




Monti is well along in her virtual blog tour and today she stops here to share some views on book trailers and news on her releases.



Book Trailers – Do They Help You Select a Book?


Book trailers have become pretty popular among writers. My two latest books, Night Watch and Dangerous Hearts, have book trailers. I just checked and Night Watch has been viewed 161 times and Dangerous Hearts has been played 185. Of course, some of the views counted are my visits checking to see how many other folks have come by to see it. I don’t know how many views an author can expect from trailers of his/her books, but I think that would be an interesting statistic to have.

As I thought about Night Watch and the connection of my book to the sea, I was pleased my trailer illustrates that dramatic link for readers who love the water and visiting places surrounded by it. Although I know that everyone who views a book trailer doesn’t buy the book, I wonder if some people do.

(Karen stepping in here to say she's intrigued by this, since she has a boat of her own)

Monti and The Question du Jour

If you are purchasing a book, will looking at a trailer influence you strongly for or against a purchase?

Will you even bother to take a look? Here are the links to my trailers: (Karen here again- Blogger is having a link attachment glitch this morning. Please copy and paste the urls to see Monti's trailers. I'm still working on getting them active)




http://www.photoshow.com/watch/zX6ym2DE

http://www.photoshow.com/watch/Rc4xI2Ue

More and more often now in order to be successful, published authors must become marketers. I wonder what promotional ideas work best for them. Please share your thoughts on book trailers as a useful marketing tool.

My virtual blog book tour for Night Watch is nearing an end. This is my last stop on the tour which seems a little sad. I’ve loved meeting lots of new people along the way. I hope I’ve picked up some new readers and blog followers as well.

Thank you, KK for having me as your guest. It’s fun to be a part of a different blog each day and discover different styles of blog interaction.

Please don't forget I have a contest going. The winner will receive an autographed copy of my new novel, Night Watch. Just leave a comment at each site where I will be guest blogging as my Blog Book Tour for Night Watch continues. The schedule is below:

Nov. 11 - Patricia Stoltey

Nov. 12 - Nancy Williams

Nov. 15 - AlexCavanaugh

Nov. 16 - Marian Allen

Nov. 17 - Bodie Parkhurst

Nov. 18 - Thoughts in Progress

Nov. 19 - K. K. Brees

Mary Montague Sikes The Official Bio!

Monti is an award-winning author, freelance writer, photographer, artist, and teacher who loves to travel, especially to exotic tropical locations. The settings for her books and articles include Jamaica, Antigua, Trinidad, and St. Martin. Her most recent research trips carried her to Los Cabos on the western coast of Mexico, to Yellowstone National Park where she took over 500 photographs, and to Carmel-by-the-Sea where she marveled at photo opportunities wherever she turned.

The Fredericksburg, VA native is author of seven award-winning books. She presents workshops on promotion and marketing to state and national conventions as well as to many local writers groups. Hotels to Remember, a coffee table book that includes the Jefferson Hotel, the Homestead, and the Hotel Del Coronado is illustrated with her artwork and photographs.

A founder of Virginia Romance Writers, she has served on the Board of Governors of the Virginia Writers Club and is a member and past president of the Richmond Branch of the National League of American Pen Women. Her poem and paintings are featured in Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln, an anthology of work by members of the National League of American Pen Women. She is included in Who’s Who in American Women.

Her paintings are exhibited widely in Virginia and are in private and public collections in the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean. Night Watch, her latest novel, was released earlier this year. Dangerous Hearts, a novella set in Virginia, was released by Red Rose Publishing in June.

Dan Brown's Favorite Word

Not a Spoiler

I've just finished Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol. It was a hefty paperback, somewhere over 500 pages, and I suspect the editor got tired of editing after the first couple of hundred, went out for coffee, and didn't return. This isn't going to be a book review - I don't do those but do admire those who can write good ones. I don't even read all that many reviews. Mostly I make up my mind by browsing, checking out the front and back covers and reading the first few lines.

I enjoyed The DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons not so much. Didn't care for the blood and gore but decided to give this latest in the series a try. It was a good read but nothing spectacular.

It was a thriller with an interesting shortened time frame - everything taking place within 24 hours and mostly over the course of one night. What took away from the read was a word that first insinuated itself in describing one of the characters.

Elegant

"The elegant African-American..." Odd choice for a descriptor, I noted, but read on. Then this was elegant and that was elegant. Everything was elegant. Elegant. Elegant. Elegant. After a bit, I wondered if Brown wasn't playing a game with the editors to see if they'd catch it. They didn't. It became irritating and a detractor and a distraction. Elegant. Ick.

I wish the editor had reported back to work after the coffee break. Just goes to prove we all need editors. You can't edit your own work.

Monti Visits This Week

I'll be posting, or rather Monti will, later on this week. Please stop back on the 19th to share in her virtual book tour.