#Goodreads should come with a warning label. NOT FOR AUTHORS

Yeah. We say it all the time. Goodreads isn't for authors.

But heck, it's where a ton of readers hang out so...

EXACTLY. It's where readers hang out. Not authors.

But authors are readers, too, so this makes for a difficult challenge.

Readers like to chat about current reads whether they be loving or hating them, and the majority  don't know the authors personally so they don't owe them special howdy-do-dee politeness yet they manage to hold a bookish conversation with thoughtfulness and manners. While others can be darn right mean.

Authors like to check out their latest reviews and encourage people to add their books to their lists/read their work. And once upon a time, we used to enjoy interacting with readers of our work on there, too. Because of the minority of readers and authors behaving badly on there, it's not an advised practice anymore.

Times have changed.

Goodreads is not author friendly. Think of Goodreads as the sounding board for readers. It's a READER site. Be there as a reader and be the good author and upload your books to stock the database, but don't be chatting with your author hat on unless in an author-aimed group. You may not like what you hear.

Goodreads.

The place where authors go to thicken their skin.

Yes. The whole "I'm not publishing my debut book because I got bullied on Goodreads' is the reason for this post. In short, a newb self-pubber asked why her not-yet-released book had been down-rated.A simple enough question, right? But some readers didn't think so. She should have pulled up her big girl pants and walked away. Instead, she up-rated said book with five stars from two different profiles. This of course enraged the already pissed-off readers. Heated discussions exploded in the review threads and links made their way to Facebook and Twitter. Everyone was chatting about this last night. It was painful. I couldn't watch. I felt bad for the author, but I also wondered why she wasn't making good on a bad situation. Think about it? With all talking about this, in a few hours, her book when from a shoddy 2 stars to a solid 4 1/2 stars. If she had any sense, she'd get that book out TODAY. Talk about no publicity is bad publicity.

Nope. I'm not mentioning names. And nope I'm not providing a link.

I'm just going to pass on some Goodreads survival tips.

• After you've added your book/s to the database, leave your author hat at the door.
• Don't rate your own book. It's tacky as shite and tells readers your book holds those same qualities.
• Don't comment on reviews/add to reader discussions of books you authored UNLESS you've been invited to. You don't want to stifle readers from chatting about your work. Often, when reminded an author is watching, a discussion can become stilted or heated. Why would you want that?
• Grow a thick skin. Goodreads is full of wonderful readers who adore interacting with authors, unfortunately, the bitter and ill-mannered few have made this an impossible feature of Goodreads.

What about you? Got any thoughts on Goodreads and how best to approach the author/reader divide happening on  there?

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With Love...WIN 1 Night Stand Swag & Grab A Sweet Irish Kiss!

With Love... welcome to my little stop on the Valentines Hop. Here, I share a first kiss. The one from Dracula's Kiss.

No heaving bosoms, and definitely no kissing cousins. But what you will find is a naughty vampire ready to make a meal out of -- erm, I mean kiss -- a fangbanger. So pull up a chair, poor yourself a glass of something red, and enjoy.

Contest at the end of the post to win 1NS swag & digital copy of Sweet Irish Kiss.

Dracula's Kiss, (c) JoAnne Kenrick -- All rights reserved.

BLURB: Cathela's Office Halloween Ball is a complete bust. She spills out of her Dracula's Bride costume, and her vamp fetish chases away her boyfriend. Only redeeming feature to the night? Necking multiple shots of Dracula's Kiss—a lush Black Cherry Vodka cocktail—and an interlude with a gorgeous man dressed Gary Oldman style.

No one comes close to satisfying Alec Murray's needs until he meets Cathela during some lame-ass party for bankers. One taste of her blood, sweet yet darkly dangerous, he knows she's perfect for him.

A night of goth bondage is planned for one. For the other, a night of sexual control is a must. A perfect fit. Alec is compelled to reveal his true nature but can their relationship survive his dark secret?

“Forgive me and let me make it up tae ye.” He slipped his arms around her shoulders and

pried her from the wall before pivoting her so her back lay against his chest. It happened too fast, giving her no chance to protest.

Who does this guy think he is? She tried to will herself to fight him off then run like the wind. But her goth self—and the Dracula’s Kisses he’d mixed for her— enticed her to stay wrapped in his arms and enjoy the sense of safe-danger he seemed to offer. This was what she wanted to happen when she took the path down here, if she was honest with herself. She recalled how she’d felt him following her, and how the silly girl in her pretended to run from him. She’d beckoned this to happen. It hadn’t been a drunken, made-up game after all.

She tried to make sense of the whys and whens until he slid his hand over her curves and toward her sex. The thin, imitation silk ruffled under his touch and slipped over her skin. He pressed his fingers taut against her clit and cupped her soft, swollen mound, caressing her. She leaned her head back, steadying her weight against him. No more thinking. Her eyes closed with the ecstasy and her muscles tensed in anticipation of release, pulling at her stomach and making her toes curl in response.

“We shouldn’t do this. I have no idea who you are or anything, and....”

Pathetic, Cathela, you are pathetic. How about you say no and move away from the hot vampire? That would help. Yes, it would.

“And yet here ye are, moaning in delight, begging me tae continue.”

And I have a boyfriend called...something? What was his name again?

He swiped her hair across her shoulder and planted sweet kisses along her exposed neck. She couldn’t believe it, her fantasy had come true. While she tried to figure out what she had done to deserve such pleasure, he pierced her skin with his teeth and clutched his fingers onto her like a cat kneading. His sharp nails scratched the surface of her costume, and his embrace, intense and full of passion, scared her. She’d let it go too far.

“I can’t do this. I’m taken.” She pushed him away, panting, gasping for air and sensibility. Nick wasn’t perfect, and was probably upstairs flirting with the witch that very minute. But they were, for all intents and purposes, still living together and in love...weren’t they?

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Talina from Bookin' It and Night Owl reads from Dracula's Kiss

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