Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

I don’t know whether to feel incredibly stupid or just, ‘Meh, life lesson.’Ì� So, for my annual Christmas present, I spend money to advertise my books.Ìý In the past, it’s been on facebook â€� mostly for my marching band series (or promoting the latest release).Ìý This year, I decided to put my holiday funds towards marketing with A Luxury Travel Blog.Ìý I had options of tweeting or an interview, but the lure of 295,000+ twitter followers pretty much made the decision for me.Ìý Also, a bunch of people I follow, follow ALTB, so it also helped me make my choice.

I researched best times to post on Twitter and waited until the weekend after Thanksgiving.Ìý My post went up right as scheduled.Ìý Unsurprisingly, I had only one RT and as of yesterday ZERO sales.Ìý An additional tweet went up Sunday, and there will be a final one later this week.Ìý And…no adds on Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ or Shelfari. ÌýWith the second tweet, I yielded 2 sales.

Accurate representation of feelings.

While not many people can write off a $100+ mistake, I guess…yeah, I’m super disappointed.Ìý Maybe it will pay off somewhere down the road, but for now, I can’t help but being bummed.

Another instance in which I am Liz Lemon.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks.

I’ve posted on , and Room 702 FINALLY landed (one of my biggest ‘getsâ€� and an article I had pinned a lot of hopes on).Ìý While I am INFINITELY grateful that someone took the time to read my book and post about it (for free) and had nothing negative to say, I had foolishly believed this would translate into book sales.Ìý Cut to: sad Ann.Ìý I did not wake up to a single sale.

So, given the, er, ‘whelmingâ€� reaction, I decided to go to the next level…paying for advertising.Ìý In this case, and as a first test, tweeting to the audience of A Luxury Travel Blog.Ìý Why them?Ìý Mostly due to the a) time of year and b) number of impressions.Ìý As of today, ATLB has close to 292,000 people following it.Ìý For my funds, I get three tweets.

Now, it’s decision time:

When should I tweet?Ìý I know I want to tweet the week after / around American Thanksgiving.Ìý Why?Ìý People are online, buying gifts and I want to push my book as a present.Ìý However, how much is too much?Ìý Other than Sunday morning (which, through other forms of social media, seems like an appropriate time to post), I’m not sure when else.

What to say exactly?Ìý Links to the book, obviously â€� however, as the book seems to be selling only in the UK, do I post the Amazon link?Ìý iTunes?Ìý My website?

Content?Ìý The logline?Ìý A quote?

First try (clean, limited, matches the ‘tone� of the other tweets.)

#Room702 One hotel suite. One year. Many stories.

And I still have 68 characters to go.Ìý And I should probably use my Twitter handle.

#Room702 by @ABenjaminAuthorÌýOne hotel suite. One year. Many stories.

This leaves me with 49 characters.

Need a gift for your favorite traveler this season?Ìý ÌýOne hotel suite. One year. Many stories.

Leaves only a scant 15 characters for (hopeful) retweets.

Argh.Ìý I’ll get there.Ìý One day.Ìý Soon.

Maybe I should have worked out the tweets before sending that PayPal payment through.

Advice welcome!

Another pic to share. Ìý

Hubs has to travel a lot of work. ÌýHe’s routinely in and out of the country, so this is pretty much a weekly occurrence for me.

Ìý

PS � MAJOR spoilers, consider yourselves warned.

So, earlier this year, I read Divergent by Veronica Roth.Ìý What can I say?Ìý Not only do I love me some dystopian YA, but I also loved the price point ($3.99, yes, this is a big deal to me).Ìý I immediately downloaded the next book in the series, Insurgent, and even pre-ordered Alleigant, patiently waiting for the 3rd book to become available (I did the same with the Hunger Games).

And now that I’ve finished reading, all I can think is, ‘what wasted potential.�

Of course, parallels will be made between Tris Prior and Katniss Everdeen and they should.Ìý While I respect both young (fictional) women and their complexities (and how far superior they are to Bella Swan), in the end, Katniss comes out ahead for me.Ìý Katniss, for better or worse, makes in character decisions, which, unfortunately, Tris completely derails from in Alleigant.

What I also can’t fathom is Ms. Roth’s decision to go from a singularly voiced novel (1st person, Tris) to a dual voice in the last book of the series (Tris and Four).Ìý Furthermore, because the two characters aren’t really that different, I would go right into one the other character’s chapter and get jarred into, ‘Oh yeah, it’s not the protagonist.’Ì� The choice is odd and doesn’t add anything to the book â€� if anything, it distracts.

And finally, the ending.

While I still have issues with Mockingjay, in the end, I think Suzanne Collins does her worldÌý and characters justice.Ìý And yet, for the Divergent world, I have to ask, Veronica Roth…why?Ìý Why did your editor / publisher / betas let you do this to your so wonderfully constructed fictional space?Ìý Character death(s) aside, the close of this series is beyond disheartening, hastily thrown together and leaves an altogether bad taste in my mouth.

Would I recommend the series?Ìý That’s difficult to answer.Ìý The first two books are very worth it, but the end is just…a disappointment.

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IDK, I saw this posted elsewhere and thought, ‘easy blog post.â€� ÌýI may do a similar post tomorrow.

1. ÌýA go-to drink.

(alcoholic) Trader Vic’s Original Mai Tai (what are calories?).

(non-alcoholic) A tie between original full fat Coca Cola (can take me out of Atlanta, but some ties remain) and a fresh Lemon mint juice.

2. ÌýA go-to Karaoke song.

Say It Ain’t So, Weezer

3. ÌýA uniform

If I had my way, I would wear jeans, ballet flats, a t-shirt or some single color shirt and a scarf.

4. ÌýA hairsylist she loves.

I had one. ÌýShe was great â€� she came to my house and gave me great color and would even cut Hubsâ€� hair. ÌýToo bad she lives in Los Angeles. Ìý:( ÌýAnd I haven’t lived in the States in 6 years.

5. ÌýAn exercise routine.

If I’m motivated, the week will consist of 5 visits to the gym during lunch, 1 or 2 sessions of kickfit, 1 or 2 sessions of Physique 57 and additional walking.

Notice I said, ‘if I’m motivated� � ask me how often that happens.

6. ÌýA happy place

At home w/Hubs watching our favorite shows. Sitting outside on the deck of my childhood home.

7. ÌýThings she’s grateful for

Hubs. ÌýCreativity. ÌýAwesome friends around the world.

8. ÌýA healthy sense of self

Well, it’s something I’m always working on. ÌýIf I could only get my active brain to shut down at night and block out the ‘what’s the point of writing if you haven’t sold any books, just stop alreadyâ€� thoughts, I’d be in a much better place. ÌýFortunately, those days only happen one day a week or so â€� 1 out of 7 ain’t bad!

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“You get a strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place.Ìý Like you’ll not only miss the people you love but you’ll miss the person you are now at this time and this place, because you’ll never be this way ever again.â€�

- Azar Nafisi

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This struck a chord with my ex-pat self.Ìý Usually, we are the leavers and not the er, leavees, but it’s still a melancholic feeling each time it happens.

It has dawned on me that I travel quite a bit and maybe other people would find my notes helpful! ÌýMaybe I’ll be able to remember some other recent trips and share my thoughts about them. ÌýWho says I always have to write about writing?

So, as mentioned in the previous post, we were supposed to go to Nepal, but due to bad weather, decided to opt for Copenhagen instead. ÌýI immediately took to my usual places for apartment rental: ÌýAirBnB, VRBO, Trip Advisor and Roomarama. ÌýHad it just been Hubs and I on our own, we probably would’ve opted for either or (maybe for another visit). ÌýHowever, half the fun of traveling with friends is actually being with friends and apartment vacation rentals are much more conducive to this. ÌýEither way, we found a (very difficult to find in Europe) complete with a crib and toys.

The overnight flight wasn’t that bad â€� Dreamliner + very few passengers = make your own lie flat seat. ÌýEach of us managed a few hours sleep and were met by Anna for an early check in (8:30AM) at the apartment. ÌýCrashing for an hour or two, we showered and headed out to explore. ÌýWhile I trust any person going to Copenhagen would hit the usual sources for the top tourist things to do and see, I wanted to highlight some of the specific neighborhood delights:

The first night, still tired from our overnight flight, we decided to dine in and given there are limited opportunities for good sushi in Doha, unanimously opted for Hatoba (found via ). ÌýTrue story, the lady thought we were ordering way too much food. ÌýIn reality, we ate everything except some of the edamame!

And many noms were had.

Once we secured reservations to Ìýand had a look at the forecast (one of our days was heavy with drizzle), I knew I needed a trip to the salon. ÌýFortunately, there was one right across the street! ÌýI stopped in during the morning and made an appointment for the afternoon. ÌýOne hour and perfect highlights later, I was glad for the appointment. ÌýThe prices were a little steep, but within reason.

It doesn’t look like much from the front, but great highlights inside!

Essentially right across the street was our ‘localâ€� coffee shop which we visited each morning. ÌýWhile the apartment did come with a coffee maker, we branched out to buy from this store. ÌýNot only did they have coffee, but I tried the ginger lemonade (a treat) and we had a few pastries from the shop (also very good).

Exterior.

Interior.

I think my last recommendation would be what we deemed a ‘side dogâ€� (a holdover from the side pretzels to be found all over Istanbul). ÌýWe found one right around the corner from where we were staying and they make a perfect any time treat.

Made of yum.

And a word to note â€� don’t visit the Carlsberg factory â€� it’s a complete waste of money! ÌýSave your funds and head to the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam!!

Ex-pat living has a lot of benefits â€� case in point, random travel. ÌýI say ‘randomâ€� because me, Hubs and our friends had plans to journey to Nepal last week when a cyclone and bad weather forced us to take a step back and consider our options. ÌýAside from some ongoing issues with Qatar Airways, The friends had been to Kathmandu previously and thought that the weather could make for a very interrupted trip. ÌýSo, we cancelled the tickets and tried to decide where else we wanted to go. ÌýTop of the list was actually Baku, Azerbaijan, but none of us had visas. ÌýWe also tossed around Budapest and Morocco before deciding on Copenhagen. ÌýWithin 12 hours, the new tickets were purchased, bags were repacked and a suitable apartment rental was found. ÌýHaving dinner together to celebrate our new destination, we got into the spirit of Denmark by watching before our 2AM departure. ÌýHe spends most of the episode interacting with the chef and staff from , the top rated restaurant in the world (2011, 2012) and ranked #2 this year.

“Wouldn’t it be funny if we went?�

Spoiler alert � we get to go.

Cut to: me digging out my smartphone and somehow obtaining reservations for Friday evening at 7:30.

Not quite ready to believe this had happened (people make reservations for up to 3 or 4 months in advance), it wasn’t until the restaurant called to get my credit card to hold the booking that I believed we were actually going. ÌýSo, in the brisk Fall air, we made way for our culinary journey.

For the record, I am by no means a foodie. ÌýTo put this whole meal into perspective â€� I ate McDonald’s as a snack the afternoon before my dinner at Noma. ÌýThe meal following was airplane food on my return flight to Doha.

Here’s the best part â€� I don’t think they care. ÌýThe staff were not pretentious in the least. ÌýThey were regular, approachable people, which was good because making a booking at such an esteemed restaurant, I was a bit nervous â€� would I do or say something wrong? ÌýWould I wear the right thing? ÌýWould I even like the food?

From the moment we were even near the restaurant, all of my anxious energy disappeared. ÌýLiterally, one of the wait staff saw us trying to take pictures and stepped right outside to offer his help. ÌýOur jackets were taken and we were shown to our table. ÌýConfirmation that one of our group could not eat gluten or dairy was clarified and we decided on a DELICIOUS celebratory bottle of champagne to start the meal. ÌýAs food began appearing in front of us it became clear that each of the staff worked at Noma because of their love of food and hospitality. ÌýEach person we interacted with was genuine in their response to our questions and had nothing but patience as we became more inebriated. ÌýI know that this level of service exists elsewhere, but the combination of food and care made for something truly memorable.

So, why were we really there? ÌýThe food of course! ÌýEach course (of which there were 20+) was something completely unique and different, with out of this world presentation.

This is a very simple version of what we were served. The explanations and ingredients were much more involved.

I think my top courses were: ÌýWild duck (succulent and perfectly cooked), Elbleskiver and greens (the perfect comfort food) and quite honestly â€� the pork fat butter that came with our bread! ÌýYou haven’t lived until you’ve had it. ÌýProps to the amazing gluten free bread as well.

One of the yummy starters.

While the bill at the end did involve some sticker shock, I say, you only live once. ÌýIf you can’t enjoy a meal at one of the best restaurants on earth with friends, then what’s the point of travel? ÌýDo I usually spend that much on food? ÌýOf course not. ÌýWould I do something like this again? ÌýDefinitely. Ìý And should I ever find myself in Denmark again, another dinner at Noma is top of my listâ€�

And what about you, dear reader, any recent memorable meals to mention?

…or, when one picture disrupts 168 pages of editing.

You might look at the below picture and wonder how it could force me to step back, look at my existing draft and think, ‘Well, shit…I wish I would’ve thought of this or seen it earlier.â€� ÌýFor the WIP I’m presently getting through, I saw this picture this morning and knew it was going to cause some rewrites. ÌýThe thing is, the idea this image prompted is SUCH a better fit than what is currently in place, I really have no option other than to go back and rewrite. ÌýIn the end, I know it will make my book that much better, so…back to page 111 to start correcting!

Above image byÌý is entitled Road to Samarkand.

How about you, reader? ÌýHave any late moments of inspiration that have caused you to wish you could go back in time?

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