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The Boxed Set

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

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Many readers like to read books in a series.

But what if you haven’t written a series?

What if, like myself, you have written standalones?

A great strategy I will be using in the next year, is the creation of a boxed set of three of my books. Runaways, The Choice, and Simon Says will be packaged as a “set” and given special pricing.

Ideally, sets should have something in common, such as: written in the same genre, taking place in a similar location or time period, and so on.

My three books all have the same basic theme: forgiveness, so they will be advertised as such.

Just another strategy to keep those books flying off the shelves.

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Why Not Write an Epigraph?

Posted on by Brenda Poulos

What is An Epigraph? (Not to be confused with epitaph).   26980408514_eda03edd2c

This is a technique I love, but had no idea there was an actual technical term for it.

Basically, it is a quote, short poem, excerpt from a book, Bible verse, stanza of a song, etc. that is set at the beginning of a text.

Epigraphs are often used at the beginning of chapters or they can be displayed on a separate page in a book, prior to the Prologue.

They set the stage—the tone—for the story that follows because they link to the general theme in some way.

An epigraph is used to attract…to mystify…to capture interest.

Here’s an example from my soon-to-be-released book, The Choice: Will’s Last Testament:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.”

You may have read this Bible verse before, but set-apart on its own page, it’s given weight… importance.

It gives direction for all that is to come.