Help Me Market The Jordinia Series!
In the fall of 2013, I was a 24-year-old stay-at-home mom, living at my parents' house with my husband and our one-year-old baby. I had little direction in my life at that time. I had no college degree or career. Outside of motherhood, I felt my life had no purpose. I was lapsing into depression when a fateful stroke of inspiration one morning changed everything.
The idea to write a romantic YA/NA Fantasy adventure story - something akin to my childhood favorites, such as The Princess Bride, Anastasia, or Shrek - struck me while I was on the floor of my mother's basement apartment, playing with my toddler. I grabbed a notebook and pen, and an entire tale about a lost duchess, and the three men competing to seek her, began to flow out of my pen.
I won't go into detail about the three months it took me to write the 165,000-word, nearly 700-page first draft, and the seven months of 164 rejection letters that followed. I learned, in the most agonizing of ways, that this whole publishing thing wouldn't be as easy as I'd thought. But after taking the advice of the incredible writers and agents who were kind enough to point me in the right direction, I rewrote the book again and again, until it received its very first offer from a small Texas publisher, called 48fourteen!
THE DUCHESS QUEST (JORDINIA: BOOK 1) was finally published, exactly one year after I finished writing it, on October 3, 2014! Here's the cover, courtesy of 48fourteen and AM Design Studios:
Becoming a published author changed my life. It gave me purpose, gave me something to create and share. I was, and still am, deeply in love with these characters and their story. Writing and editing my novel gave me a reason to get out of bed in the morning. It taught me how to work hard, and learn new things every single day. Criticism and slow sales humbled me. The whole experience also taught me balance and perspective, as I'm still at home full-time with my young son, and now with our own home to take care of. And, most importantly, the industry introduced me to the most amazing people, including other writers, publishers, editors, illustrators, and bloggers/reviewers. These are professional friendships I cherish.
To me, being a writer isn't just about the catharsis of writing, the charm of the story, or the profound sense of accomplishment when you hold your own paperback in your hands for the first time (although those are certainly motivators!). At the soul of it, it's about people. It's about connecting with my readers, touching their hearts, and even helping them follow their dreams. My greatest wish is to connect with more people through my writing. That's why I need your financial help to market it.
Back to the series: I continued to write from my heart, and 48fourteen published more of my romantic fantasy adventure novels, including the sequel, THE DUCHESS INHERITANCE (JORDINIA: BOOK 2), in April 2015:
Here I am holding both books, the happiest author in the world!
In 2016, I revisted Jordinia for a third full-length novel, THE DUCHESS'S DESCENDANTS (JORDINIA: BOOK 3), about the next generation (which was promptly signed by 48fourteen), and then wrote a prequel to the trilogy, THE LAST EMPRESS: A JORDINIA PREQUEL NOVELLA, which I give away for free online. Currently, I'm working on a fifth and final installment of Jordinia. Here's the series, all lined up:
I have gladly devoted four years of my and family's lives to Jordinia so far, as well as to my other publications. This has meant some sacrifices, including time away from my family, many hours poured into my craft - while helping other authors edit their novels or seek publication along the way, and having invested thousands of dollars of our own money into book copies and conventions, materials and marketing for my books, in order to pursue my dream of entertaining and touching as many hearts as possible with them.
As most indie artists learn, despite our best efforts and the countless hours, years, sweat and tears we pour into our work, we don't always have the reach we hoped for. But I'm not giving up. I want more readers to escape to Jordinia and fall in love with the characters. I yearn for people to be enchanted and entertained, to be provided a happy escape into an adventure that will enthrall them and keep them company, and give them the joy and thrill that a great story, whether on paper or screen, has always given to me. My message as an author, to every single reader of my books, is: You are not alone, and love awaits you in the world. 
^(Here I am at Rust City Book Con in Troy, Michigan in August 2016, workin' hard on a Saturday to sell some books! On the left, you can see The Duchess Quest. The Wrong Prince [featured] and The Red Pearl are both spin-offs of the Jordinia series.)
^I even wrote, recorded, and produced my own soundtrack to the first book, which is available as an audio CD from Amazon. You can hear several of the songs for free on YouTube. (Yep, that's me singing!)
Some readers and bloggers so far have adored the Jordinia series (and songs!). They're the ones who fan the flames and keep me going every day. And the readers who did not have taught me something equally important. The truth is, I am grateful to everyone who takes a chance on Jordinia. But they can't take a chance on it if they don't know about it. Readers can't read something they can't find. And they certainly can't fall in love with something they've never heard of. Although the series is available on Amazon, and as the author, I keep a very active presence on social media, it still isn't enough to reach my full potential audience. That's why I created this page. I have invested everything I could (and then some), but I still need a bit more - especially this year! - to afford the unique blend of display advertising, email promotions, networking conventions, virtual book tours, and other marketing tools and opportunities that will be necessary to introduce Jordinia to more readers.
Why do I say "especially this year"? So glad you asked! As I've changed and grown as a writer, and taken into account lots of feedback on my debut novel, The Duchess Quest has been been re-edited, and is being rereleased this year by 48fourteen, alongside the premier release of Book 3 and the official Amazon e-publication of the prequel novella! Yup, that's 3 new book releases in one day, happening very soon! 
^ (Here's the third book in the series, which 48fourteen will be releasing for the very first time in 2017. Advance readers of the ARC have unanimously loved it, some even feeling it's the best in the series so far! You can read this book as a standalone, without needing to read the first two in the series.)
With these exciting new changes and additions, I truly believe with all my might that this series deserves a second look, a second chance.
Today, I ask you to help me afford marketing for this series that has saved me from my depression, created a career and so many special friendships, and has the potential to bring many hours of entertainment and smiles to new readers. Your donations will help pay for marketing services such as book tours, review queries, local book conference registration, display advertising campaigns, email marketing promotions, and even the opportunity to bring my story in front of a film producer.
My dedication to and enthusiasm for this series will never fade, and every dollar that comes in will help me pursue my marketing goals, so that I can share my life's work with the world. Art, humor, love, and creativity make the world a better place. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your help!
Yours,
C.K. Brooke
