Times Have Changed

When I was your age...

Okay, maybe I sound like a grandpa, but it's true. Times have changed... for writers and readers that is.

In the past, a book would come out with enthusiasm and hit the shelves. Maybe it would do well, maybe not so well, but eventually the book would disappear from the bookstore. And unless you were a big name, the book would be lost only to be found in a discount bin at a used book store.

Now, fans can find you at any time. You can play with promotion strategies and get the book back in front of people. 

Today, we started a price promotion around the US Open, tennis's fourth Grand Slam of the year. 

99 cents for 5 years of work... seems fair!

Last night, on Amazon's overall ranking, the book was sitting at 600,000. Within hours of running the promotion, the book was ranking at 15,000 overall. At one point, GAME OF LOVE was back in the top 500 in the Sports fiction category. 

Here's the thing: almost 18 months after GAME OF LOVE came out, we can still get the book in front of new readers and sell well. It is a great time to be a writer and a reader. Books no longer disappear. They remain, they have lasting power because the story is a good one.

Wouldn't it be nice if a good book could hit the top 100 list for years and years to come by merely promoting it? A novel concept... no pun intended :)

Thank you for supporting this little novel that didn't have enough sex for the big publishers. 

Thank you for supporting this author who was too much of a risk for the other publishers. 

Thank you for reviewing it on Amazon and Goodreads because readers who would not know me otherwise continue to find this little book. 

And thank you for sending me notes and emails about how much you enjoyed it. You are the fuel I need to keep at it.

Fight the good fight!

Winner Announcement!
...and Rafflecopter Giveaway!

I am elated to announce that my novel, GAME OF LOVE, is the winner of Outstanding “Romance” in the 2016 IAN Book of the Year awards.

It took five years to publish this novel. Five years of doubt, rewrites, rejections, edits, giving up, giving in, and finally finding the team that put Gemma and Andre's story out into the world. 

Since then, the book has won multiple awards. I am honored and humbled. Thank you for the support and encouragement. Thank you for spreading the word. It seems that you've been right to believe in this book. You are in good company :)

Fight the good fight!

To celebrate, I'm giving away (5) Free Kindle copies of the novel. Please spread the word!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Small Gesture of Appreciation

Thankful for our Veterans

I was going to write a long post, explaining why I want to contribute. I wrote multiple drafts, but in the end I deleted all of them. I realized I was trying to justify and explain and hopefully convince others that this was a good thing to do. In the end, I'm doing this because veterans matter. As you know, I write stories of second chances and I believe that our veterans deserve a second chance.

I will donate every penny I earn from the book royalties in the month of November to four veterans' charities. 

http://bobwoodrufffoundation.org/

www.woundedwarriorproject.com

https://www.fisherhouse.org/

https://www.fallenheroesfund.org/

I don't know how else to thank these brave women and men. So I'll start with this small gesture. And to make sure I get the most out of November for this cause, thanks to my publisher, Curiosity Quills Press, I'm piggybacking on their special promotion from Black Friday (Nov 27th 2015) through Cyber Monday (Nov 30th 2015) to get maximum exposure.

In fact, if you know of a veteran who may like a story of love and second chances, message me on Twitter (https://twitter.com/araTHEwriter) or leave a comment here and I will gift them a Kindle copy of Game of Love direct from Amazon.com.

Spread the word if you feel inclined to do so. Or just wish these brave warriors your best.

Fight the good fight!

#ThrowbackThursday - FOUR YEARS AGO

Four years ago today...

I was printing out copies of a fledgeling manuscript that at the time was named "Aces."

I was about to share pages from my first complete novel.

I was preparing my luggage.

I was rechecking my hotel reservations at the Newport Beach Hyatt.

I was nervous.

I wanted to cancel my registration.

I was about to attend my very first writers' conference.

I questioned my sanity.

I wanted to be a writer.

I had promised my wife and kids that I can achieve my dream.

Today...

I am double checking the presentation slides for the two workshops I plan to give.

I am preparing for my speech on Sunday as the Special Guest Speaker.

I am packing my luggage.

I am rechecking my hotel reservations.

I am excited.

I am grateful for all the writing community and book lovers have done for my career and my novel.

I question my sanity.

I am an award-winning author.

I have a bestselling book.

I am invited regularly to speak at author events.

I want to always improve and evolve as a writer.

I want to make my wife and kids proud.

I am the luckiest person alive.

Tomorrow...

Is full of possibility and magic.


Fight the good fight!

Game of Love -- The Music that Influenced the Book

The Power of Music

I've blogged about this before: music is an important element of my writing.

When a new concept is developing, one of the first things I do is build the playlist for the book. As the name suggests, I go through songs in my library that evoke the right image and mood. The song may influence a scene, a chapter, a line of dialogue... sometimes an entire scene.

This is how it starts and by the time I'm about a quarter of the way into writing the book, I have a complete play list of songs. I will share my playlist in a later post. For now, I want to focus on one song that helped set the right tone of loss. In the excerpt below, Gemma has been with Andre's friends at Zuma Beach, near Point Dume. Here is the scene from GAME OF LOVE

###

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (Excerpt)

“Love all, but trust a few.”

~William Shakespeare

Gemma allowed herself to relax as more songs came from Dan’s guitar. A sense of melancholy had joined the tent, though. Maybe it was the selection of songs. She doubted it. 

She leaned over to Andre. “This isn’t just a regular day at the beach, is it?” 

He shook his head. “We’re here to remember a friend who passed away just over a year ago. He was Linda’s fiancé.”

Gemma’s face froze, and a combination of grief and shame overwhelmed her. She did not belong here. She needed to say something to Linda, to apologize. Instead Andre spoke. 

“Dan, play ‘Empty Space’.” 

Silence draped the canopy. Andre held Gemma’s hand. They focused on Dan, who after a moment’s hesitation played an airy guitar intro, transporting her somewhere in the heavens. Then he sang: 

Can we walk away, pretending not to see the empty space?

We don’t give reasons why, the gleaming tears flow gently from our eyes.

Miss you so, dear friend―fly, to your cloud, dear friend.

Lamenting what’s too late, we never talk about the tears we cried.

It comes to us all, we’re bound by the time that keeps us here for a while.

And I miss you so, dear friend―fly, to your cloud, dear friend.

When the song ended, Gemma came out of her trance and saw everyone hugging Linda. Red swollen eyes and wet cheeks reshaped the faces of the clan. She wiped her own tears. Maybe she didn’t belong, but she wanted to.

###

These were the lyrics of Empty Space written by my brother, Armen Grigorian, nearly 20 years ago. The lyrics are raw and honest. And the melody, haunting.

For the first time, you get to hear the actual song as written and performed by my brother, nearly two decades ago.

It pays off to have creative people in your life ;)

Fight the good fight!

Humbled

When "Thank You" Just Doesn't Cut It

It has been three weeks today, since my debut novel GAME OF LOVE was officially released. So much has happened since then that it feels like it's been months not weeks.

Let's recap what has happened so far:

• The book was granted the 5-Star Review by Readers' Favorite which is why the book now carries their emblem 
• 31 reviews on Amazon with an average score of 4.8/5.0
• 47 ratings/reviews on Goodreads with an average score of 4.83/5.00
• More than twenty bloggers reviewed the book
• More than thirty other bloggers either announced the release of the book, or shared an excerpt, or interviewed me
• The New York Time bestselling greats Susan Mallery and Jay Crownover even jumped into the mix and announced my book on release day to their tens of thousands of followers
• Hundreds upon hundreds of Facebook posts, comments, shares AND Twitter posts, comments, and retweets have been splashed across all social media
• I've had people rave about it from Sweden to Ireland to India to Mexico, across the United States and back to the UK

When nearly six years ago my wife told me to chase the dream, the idea that I could actually complete a novel was the dream. But once it was done and my wife told me she loved it and that I should try to see if I can get it published, a whole new realm of terror entered my life. That started a 4+ year journey of editing, revising, querying, getting rejected, more editing, more rejections, more studying, then an agent bites, then publishers are interested, then the book is published and now anyone across the globe can read my book...

More than a week ago I had my first book signing event at the Burbank Barnes & Noble. The manager was stunned by the turnout, calling it the largest author event they've ever had. They sold out of the books and even bought some of my personal copies to resell.

Over the last few weeks I've been saying thank you to hundreds of people. I've written it, spoken it, tweeted it, you name it. But those two words don't seem to cut it. It feels like that's not enough. But I don't know what other phrase can do justice to how I feel.

In the end I know that everyone is busy. We all have hundreds of thousands of other book options at our disposal. We can watch TV, go to the movies, spend time with family and friends. Yet, all these people decided spending time with my novel was the option of choice.

So here I am grateful. Thankful, of course, but also profoundly humbled at the generosity of those who've decided to take a chance on my story.

So here it comes... the phrase that isn't strong enough to adequately show what I feel. Are you ready? Good.

Thank you! I can't do this without you. I do this for you. Thank you for your support and generosity.

Fight the good fight!
Mine has just begun.

Readers' Favorite Book Review - 5 Stars for GAME OF LOVE

FIVE STAR Review for GAME OF LOVE

In advance of the May 4th release of my novel, I am very excited to announce that Readers' Favorite has given GAME OF LOVE a shiny Five Star Review.

Let me be clear. Every single review, every tweet, email, and message is as valuable as the other. I am honored and humbled. It is always about the reader and what my stories do for them.

What makes this special is that Readers' Favorite has a reach that will introduce my story to even more readers.

Although there are no spoilers in the review below... there are "hints" so proceed with caution :)

My novel's cover can officially carry the emblem that is trusted by readers.

Thank you!

Fight the good fight!

GAME OF LOVE Launch and Epic Giveaway!

Calling All Tennis and #TeamVika Fans!

GIVEAWAY OFFICIALLY CLOSED ON JUNE 2, 2015

Victoria Azarenka Autographed GAME OF LOVE t-shirt and more!

Game of Love officially releases world-wide on May 4th, 2015!

So how do we celebrate this epic day? 

With an epic Giveaway!

Some background first...

If you know tennis, you know the name Victoria Azarenka (Vika). She was the former #1 player in the world just over a year ago. She's won two Grand Slams, has reached the finals in a few more, and is on a comeback trail from an injury a year ago.

Hey, Ara! What does this have to do with your novel???

Okay, okay. I'll get to the point...

On March 14th, 2015, during the BNP Paribas open in Indian Wells, California, Victoria Azarenka played a match against Flipkens. Vika won 6-2, 6-4.

Right after her victory she joined the Tennis Channel team and was interviewed.

Once Ms. Azarenka finished her interview she approached the gate where dozens of fans waited for her, hoping for a picture or an autograph.

I was there with my posse promoting Game of Love to a tennis crowd. She was presented with one of the GAME OF LOVE t-shirts which she studied momentarily, smiled then proceeded to autograph the t-shirt.

Her generosity can now be one very lucky person's winning!

All you have to do is enter the rafflecopter giveaway (see below)

Giveaway

Yes, I am giving this and many other prizes to those who enter. Five prizes in all.

What's included in the Grand Prize?

• Signed Game of Love T-Shirt
• Autographed copy of Game of Love
• Your name of choice in my next novel -- It will be a secondary character and I will do my best to not use it for a jerk... but no promises :)

Why am I doing this? Because I'm just super nice. AND because we need to celebrate the official release of my debut novel, GAME OF LOVE!

Did I mention you can buy it now?!?!

                         Amazon | Barnes & Noble

How do you enter this giveaway? Scroll down and you'll see the rafflecopter widget. There are many ways to earn an entry (Tweet, Facebook post, subscribe to my website, etc) -- it's all explained in the rafflecopter widget. But to thank my fans, those who have gone the extra mile, I've done something special!

Starting April 22th through end of May, you can earn additional entries by taking a picture of the cover of Game of Love! A book cover selfie. Check out the Pintrest site for examples.

PHOTO COVER CONTEST

All you have to do is take a picture of the book cover (physical or digital) anywhere that you find interesting. Get creative! It can be where you read the book, or where you fell in love, or where you love to visit. It can be anywhere for that matter. Look even my cat Pete's getting into the act!

For the Photo Cover contest, no purchase is necessary. You can download the free Preview copy on your Kindle or Nook and take the same picture or find an image of the cover and do the same. Once you've taken the picture, you can do one of the following:

• Tweet it to @araTHEwriter -- that will be your evidence. To make it super easy on you, copy and paste the line below and attach the photo:

               ➢ I'm reading #GameOfLove by @araTHEwriter! www.tennisnovel.com

• or... Post it on my Facebook page.

Don't waste more time. Go ahead and enter the giveaway! and GOOD LUCK!!!!

Don't forget: the official launch is May 4th! 

May the Fourth Be with Game of Love! 

Get it? Okay, I thought it was funny!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Goodreads -- A Lifecycle of Emotions

The Emotional Lifecycle

Your book is added to Goodreads!

And you want to just...

Then in one magical moment, this happens...

And you feel gooood!

Then this happens...

You wanted it, you got it, now you feel like...

Then you get this!

And your happy dance is so epic you throw out your hip...

In the very next moment you realize this will happen too. Eventually...

So you calm down, feel thankful for what you have, and prepare for what is yet to come...

So if you want to put me through this roller coaster, go ahead and add my book to your Goodreads shelf! ;)

Fight the good fight!

This Happened...

THIRTY-ONE DAYS TO GO AND..

The doorbell rang...

The nice Fedex man gave me this...

Then I opened it...

Then I hugged the book for a bit and remembered how many times I almost gave up on her. How many times I was told, "Maybe this one isn't the one." How many times I thought, "Maybe this dream is just a dream."

But now I hold it in my hands. Gemma and Andre's story is being read even before it's been officially published. It's real. Thank you to those who stood by me and told me they believed in me.

If you're so inclined, you can pre-order the book on Amazon, or Barnes & Noble. Or just sign up on my website and you'll get updates directly.

Did I mention 31 DAYS TO GO!?

Thank you.

Fight the good fight!

The Marriage of Nutella and Ara

An epic announcement on World Nutella Day!

As you may know by now, I am a big Nutella fan. I don't mean I'm big, as in large, although I could stand to lose an ounce or two. What I do mean is that I love Nutella.

So it should come as no surprise that Nutella makes an appearance in my debut novel, Game of Love in a scene where Gemma, a world-class athlete, decides to indulge and share a Nutella croissant with Andre. This is symbolic of freedom from her old way of being.

Unfortunately, there was some concern over the use of a brand name. After all, I don't want to be sued, much less by my favorite brand! Although the product is shown in positive light (I mean after all, it is the symbol for freedom) I decided to contact Nutella's parent company, Ferrero USA and ask for permission to use their brand.

Let's level set here: I am a nobody. So why would they even bother to respond? Well, they did.

I am elated to announce that the good people at Ferrero have given me permission to use their brand in my novel! So on this, World Nutella Day, I am announcing a marriage between my favorite product and my debut novel, Game of Love. I will be forever tied to Nutella.

So, enjoy some Nutella, subscribe to my blog (right there to your right), add Game of Love to your Goodreads bookshelf and when you read my novel on May 4th, go ahead and consume liberal amounts of Nutella.

Coming soon: Cover reveal and Amazon Pre-Order!

Fight the good fight!

Dude Writes Like a Lady

"Oh, I thought you were a woman."

Not a lot of guys would grin if they were told that. I heard it five times...in a span of 40 minutes...by Literary Agents no less!

An explanation is in order.

In early June, I attended the Santa Barbara Writers Conference. This was my second year attending. In

Lunch on the beach during the conference

advance of the conference, I had sent in pages from the first chapter of Game of Love (my manuscript).

Although the story is a dual-perspective novel (switches between the female and male protagonists), the first chapter begins with her, Gemma. In fact, the story is Gemma's story. Andre is the agent of change. Also, although one could argue that this is a love story and therefore probably a romance novel, this story is can also pass for women's fiction.

So, to summarize: the pitch to the agents is that the manuscript is women's fiction or romance (depending on what they're looking for), the story begins in the head of my female protagonist, and to top it all off, my name is not the most manly name in the world.

Ara the Barbarian? Ara the Invader? You see what I mean?

Anyway, so as I waited for my first meeting, I began shadow boxing, humming the Rocky theme, and asking myself, "Are you going to bring it? Well are you?"

With that, I entered the lion's den. I found the first agent and marched up to her.

"Hi, I'm Ara. Nice to meet you." Firm handshake. Very manly.

"Oh." Pause. "Nice to meet you too." Pause. A shy grin. "I thought you were a woman."

The first time, my eyes went wide before I grinned. By the fourth one, I was laughing, full of pride.

Why, you ask?

Because I had succeeded in effectively capturing a woman's voice in the opening pages. I had done my job as a writer -- respect the characters. The agents all said the same thing. "You've nailed it," one said. Another said, "Readers may be surprised."

To be fair, this is not an out of the world skill. Successful authors do it all the time. A famous example: JK Rowling is not a teenage boy. You get the point. This is normal and has to be done. We all do it.

But for me, this feedback was monumental. When I set out to write Game of Love, I wanted to tell Gemma's story. Not the way a guy would perceive it, but the way she would perceive her life and the challenges she faced.

I've blogged about this before, and if you don't believe me that's fine. Just believe me when I say that I believe my characters are real. They exist in my head, my thoughts and imagination. My job is to listen to them and put their words on paper, the best way I can.

It appears I did a good job of that--or at a minimum the character is credible. Now all I have to do is convince an agent and then an acquiring editor that the story I've told is a sellable one.

Fight the good fight!