Why I’m an Indie Author.
Morgan Kelley
In today’s world of writing, the battlefield has been
divided. On one side you have the traditional publishing house author, and on
the other, the indie.
Which is better?
Well, as someone who has worked both sides of the fence, I’m
here to tell you that I wouldn’t ever go back to being in a publishing
company’s pocket.
I love being an Indie.
Here’s why.
I control my
characters. I get to write my stories my way. If I want to kill someone
off, I don’t have to worry about someone telling me that I can’t. It’s my way
or the highway in Morganville. That works for a control freak like me.
Next, I get to decide
the length of my books. Did you know that most publishing companies don’t
want huge novels? The amount of money they have to sell it for is a liability,
so they cap it at words.
HOW?
When you’re an author, like me, you know that the story
tells itself. When I sit down to write, I don’t think about how long it’s going
to be. I have a defined point in my mind that I want to get conveyed. Once I
start, it’s a free-for-all. I write to tell a tale, not to tell a word count.
You may think that’s silly, but when you think of it this
way, each one of my novels are at least 500 pages, maybe just a few pages short
or over. With my new one coming out, I hit 600 pages. A traditional publishing
company would tell me to cut it in half, make it two stories, and force the
reader (you) to wait for a second book release. It makes more money for
everyone involved.
That doesn’t work for me.
I hate having to wait six months to read a second book in a
series. So, as an author, I took an oath. I don’t do it. I put out ten to
twelve books a year for that reason. I want the reader to be happy, not pissed
off.
But alas, it’s not always greener on the Indie side of the
fence. There is one major downfall for me. It’s the publicity.
I hate it.
I’m a writer. What the heck do I know about promoting?
Nothing.
With a publishing company, you really don’t have to stress
it. You write, make them happy, and in return they sell your baby to the
masses. For any author, that’s a big fat perk. As an Indie, that’s not the
case. So instead, we toil away on our computers, pouring out our souls to
paper, and then have to struggle to get our words to the hungry book consumers.
If we fail, our books go unread, our words go unheard, and alas, our stories
go…untold.
It’s heartbreaking.
Maybe one day that will change.
Then again, maybe it won’t.
Either way, this author is done selling her soul to big
publishing companies. Instead, I choose to live in the little world which I
created, being perfectly content to please the people who find me.
For those who have, thank you.
For those who haven’t… I hope we meet someday. I have one
hell of a story to tell you.
I think you’ll love it.
Xoxox
Morgan.
Sinner Repent
Carter Chronicles Trilogy
Book One
Morgan Kelley
Genre: Erotic suspense/thriller
Date of Publication: March 11, 2014
ASIN: B00IYH7Z7C
Number of pages: 452
Cover Artist: Laura Gordon Design
Book Description:
Doctor Callista Carter only wants to heal. Running from a near life destroying case, she’s licking her wounds in a small town and off everyone’s radar.
Only, she’s drawn quite a bit of attention.
Someone’s taking lives, disguised behind the Seven Deadly Sins. It’s stirring up the small town, making waves.
The killers want her eliminated.
And the sheriff just wants her.
When Quinton Gaines is handed a slew of killings, he’s at a loss. He, too, has escaped to sleepy Myrtle Springs to regroup. Now, he’s reminded that death has no qualms with nipping at his heels. Yet, this may be the perfect opportunity to snag the elusive doctor, who has stolen his heart.
Or so he hopes…
When the killer gets personal, Quinn wishes he didn't drag Callie into the mess. Now, not only is she in danger for helping him, she’s marked to die.
Time’s running out.
Can love beat back the vicious claws of hate?
One truth is crystal clear. Quinton Gaines has to stop running in order to save his home and woman.
It’s not going to be easy with a madman hell bent on getting one thing…
REVENGE.
The killers won’t stop at anything. It’s time to get ready, and like any good Sinner... Repent.
Available at Amazon
Sinner Realized ~ Book Two ~ Luke's Story
Now Available
Sinner Reborn ~ Book Three~ Nate's Story.
Out Summer 2015
Excerpt
©
Copyright 2014 by Morgan Kelley LLC All rights reserved. First Edition * No
parts of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or in an
information storage or retrieval system without written consent from the
author.
All
characters and locations are fictional and any similarity to real life or
individuals is coincidental.
~ Prologue ~
Saturday Late Evening
As Sissy Parker
slowly began to wake, she had no idea where she was, or how she ended up there.
Trying to move her arms, Sissy could tell they were restrained above her head
and immediately began to panic.
Struggling to
get her bearings, she blinked rapidly, trying to take everything in. All around
her there were candles and sinister shadows. Deep down, she had this building
feeling of horror, as she could sense that there were malevolent eyes watching
her from the creepy darkness.
She knew that
something bad was coming.
As the fear
rushed through her, Sissy’s body shook in terror at all the possible scenarios
that were forming in her head. Having a wild imagination wasn’t her friend at
that moment.
It was her worst
nightmare.
Getting her
bearings, she knew what to do.
Sissy screamed.
What caught her
completely off guard was when no one tried to stop her frantic wails for help.
Instead, she was met with laughter.
Sick.
Horrible.
Terrifying
laughter.
Finally, after a
brief amount of time had passed, the first shadow stepped forward. Sissy stared
at the figure, trying to adjust to the dim light in the room.
“Who are you?”
she asked, her voice shaking.
Certainly, this
had to be some kind of bad dream. Any second now, she would wake up.
There was no
answer to her question, and that scared her just as much as what she suspected
to be the truth. In fact, the silence was chilling.
“Please…what do
you want from me? Why am I here?” she begged softly, as the words came out more
like a whimper.
The figure moved
forward, running a hand slowly down her naked body.
Sissy tried to
pull away from the whisper light caress. At that point, she would have
dislocated her own limbs to move out of her abductor’s reach.
“Stop! You’re
scaring me. This isn’t funny. What am I doing here?”
Laughter came
from another direction in the darkness, and Sissy whipped her head toward the
sound.
Oh God! There
was more than one!
At that moment,
Sissy knew that she was in some serious shit. Even she wouldn’t be able to talk
her way out of it with her pretty smile and nice clothes.
“WHO THE HELL
ARE YOU?” she screamed, as two other figures moved into the dim light beside
the first one.
They were all
clothed in hooded black robes tied with red silk belts. The first figure, the
one who had touched her, must have been the leader as that robe didn’t match
the others.
“We are The
Brethren of the Blood.”
That didn’t
sound good at all. In fact, that sounded bad.
REAL BAD.
“What do you
want with me?” she asked, scared out of her mind. The last thing that she
remembered was a sharp pain in the back of her head, and then…
She woke.
Naked.
Bound.
And in big
trouble.
“We’re here to
cleanse the sins which are suffocating our town.”
Sissy glared at
the figures who were moving into a circle around the table that she was resting
on. The tears came as she pleaded for her life.
“I’ll do
anything if you let me go. Please! This has to be some kind of mistake. You
have the wrong person!”
“No, Sissy, we
have the right one. You’re a vile example of humanity, and we’re here to fix what’s
broken.”
Suddenly, the
words registered. “What do you mean cleanse? How are you going to do that?”
“We’ll make you
our offering, purifying the town of the first sin.” They began moving around
her, touching her naked flesh with their chilly hands.
“Please,” she
begged.
At the contact,
the bound woman began getting more agitated. Her face was etched with
desperation.
And yet, they
paid her no mind.
Sissy began to
struggle, pulling at the bonds holding her to the table. She knew she needed to
fight.
“There’s no use
in struggling. We’ll do what needs to be done, and then make our offering.”
Reality hit as
Sissy finally understood what they were going to do to her. In the back of her
mind, the logical part of her brain was warning her of what was to come. The
confusion was finally overcome, and now it demanded she flee.
“What…are…you…”
She didn't get to finish.
The maniacal
laughter was enough to tell the tale.
Sissy was going
to be murdered.
“No, please!
I’ll do whatever you want! Please don’t kill me!” The begging had escalated and was now more
desperation than anything else.
More laughter
emanated from the circle, as they moved closer to the woman. Her struggles only
incited them, making the inevitable more enticing to them.
The first figure
began opening the red robe as Sissy stared in horror, shocked to see who lay
beneath the hood.
It couldn’t be!
There was no
conceivable way that what she was seeing was true.
“Oh, God, no,”
she whispered at the thought of what was about to happen.
“It’s too late
to call his name now.”
The other two
joined in with laughter.
Looking up into
the face, it was completely void of any emotion. It was as if there was no
concept that what was coming was wrong.
One by one, they
each undid their robes.
Horrifyingly, they
were all familiar. Sissy knew each of them personally.
Trying to get
their sympathy, she gazed into each set of eyes and pleaded her case. “No! Why
me?” she asked. “I never did anything to hurt you!”
Her words fell
on deaf ears as they moved toward her naked body.
Sissy started to
scream, praying that someone would hear and rescue her. Before long, Sissy
could feel something being stuffed into her mouth. It was then taped shut with
a large piece of duct tape.
Her body
reacted. Immediately, she began gagging as the tears stung her eyes.
“Hood her,” said
the first figure, picking up a shiny silver blade. The intent was to let Sissy
Parker see it as her final memory in this world. From the look on her face, as
the hood was drawn over her features, it did what it was intended to do.
There was
nothing but fear present as the end came closer.
Sinners needed
to pay.
Sissy tried to
cry out in pain, as the razor sharp knife began tearing through her body. From
the motions, she could feel something being carved into her flesh.
The blackness
surrounded her, as what little she could see swam in swirls. It was coming to
swallow her.
Her only thought
was how grateful she was that once in the abyss, she wouldn’t feel any more
agony.
As the three
cloaked figures stood around Sissy’s body, they began the long awaited ritual.
It was now underway.
The Brethren had
deemed her life forfeited.
She was unclean.
Sissy was the
first one chosen.
There were words
spoken over her as blood rushed, gushed, and spilled on the ground.
As it coated her
body, the room was heavily tinged with the scent of copper pennies. The only
thing lingering there, which was more powerful, was the silence.
In absence of
all talking, one message was clear.
It was just the
beginning, and they enjoyed every second of what they had just done.
This was power.
This was
strength.
This was…
perfect.
When the ritual
had ended, they moved Sissy’s barely live body to the field out past Walker’s
Point. They found the perfect spot and laid her in the grass.
Who knew how
long it would take the law to find her body? Yet, if it was meant to be, it
would happen.
The leader of
the group pulled the black hood from Sissy’s head and stared down at the
wide-eyed look on her face. It was quite obvious that she had greatly suffered.
Now, it was time
to end it. With one slice to her neck, the blood trickled out and sickly coated
the message.
With a gasp, she
struggled for her last breath, as her life ebbed away.
This woman
fought for life, every step of the way.
For that, they
were grateful.
Stepping back,
the three stared down at their masterpiece and admired their handiwork.
Sissy Parker may
have been the first one to die, but practice didn't have to make perfect.
They had done it
to the letter of their law.
At first there
was worry about making a mistake, but that had long since passed. Their only
hope was, as the next ones came to them, that they too, would each be just as
special.
No one said
anything as they turned to leave.
Each of the
three were living in the moment, in their own way, and committing this night to
memory.
Everything had
changed, and now there was no turning back to what used to be.
As they left the
beautiful woman alone in the wet grass, the next mission would be to head home
and climb into their warm beds. There was nothing but pure unadulterated
satisfaction filling them. Hopefully, they would each be able to sleep, despite
the adrenaline still surging over a job well done.
This sacrifice
was going down in the books.
With one glance
back, the moon eerily shone down on the destroyed life of Sissy Parker. Even
from where they stood, the final ominous word was visible.
Each saw
‘PRIDE’, carved grotesquely into her chest, and they were jubilant.
Now, everyone
would see her for her true sin.
There would be
no doubt as to what had caused her death.
This was on her,
and it was only beginning.
About the Author:
Morgan Kelley lives in the beautiful Pocono Mountains with her husband and two children. After attending college at Penn State University and studying Criminal Justice, Morgan knew her only true passion in life would be murder and books.
She put them both together and began her career as a writer. Other than books and writing, you can find Morgan hanging out in her garden and digging in the dirt.
Her other works include: The Junction, Serial Sins, The Blood Betrayal, The Killing Times (1), Sacred Burial Grounds (2), True Love Lost (3), Deep Dark Mire (4), Fire Burns Hot (5), Darkness of Truth (6), Devil Hath Come (7), Consumed by Wrath (8), Redemption is Here (9), Dead Shall Speak (10), Blood Red Rage (1) Lost & Broken (2), Unthinkable Games (3), Celestia is Falling (1), Vegas is Dying (2), Christmas is Killing (3), Love is Bleeding (4), Heaven is Weeping (5), Dangerous Revelations (1), Illegal Fantasies (Anthology 1), Romance Under Arrest (Anthology 2), and Holiday Reinforcements (Anthology 3)
Please feel free to visit Morgan at her website: www.morgankelley.com
or visit her blog at www.morgankelley.blogspot.com
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