Ruth Kaufman - Award-Winning Author and Romance Writer

Ruth Kaufman is the author of My Life as a Star, My Life as an Extra, My Once & Future Love, The Bride Tournament, Follow Your Heart, At His Command and other books.

Facebook Release Party Today for Highlanders, Lords and Lovers!

By

We’re  thrilled to announce the release of our new boxed set, Highlanders, Lords and Lovers, via a Facebook Release Party, today, 10/5 from 1:00-6:00PM Central. We hope you visit, comment and enter to win one of four $25 Amazon gift cards.

And if you hop to each of our author sites before Friday, 10/9, collect the names of the mystery icons, then return to Elizabeth’s site and enter them into the rafflecopter, you’ll be entered to win an ebook from each of us.

HLL features two Scottish and two English medievals by bestselling authors. Just .99 for all four, or free with Kindle Unlimited.

AMBER by Elizabeth Rose
Can a pure dove change the morals of a devil or will he change her morals first?

FOLLOW YOUR HEART by Ruth Kaufman
When irresistible attraction makes their marriage of convenience inconvenient, will his dangerous secrets keep them from following their hearts?

THE HIGHLANDER’S OUTLAW BRIDE by Cathy MacRae
Forced into a marriage neither wants, it’ll take a king’s edict and sacrifice from both to discover what love means. But can they accept their losses and learn from their mistakes before she marries another?

HIGHLAND DAYDREAMS by April Holthaus As they travel across land and sea, they discover a secret about her past that’s worth its weight in gold. Will he be able to keep his promise to return her to her family, knowing he may lose her forever?

New Boxed Set: Highlanders, Lords and Lovers!

By

My second book Follow Your Heart is part of a new .99 boxed set that released this week: Highlanders, Lords and Lovers. 
HLL features two English and two Scottish medievals by bestselling authors.                                                            
AMBER by Elizabeth Rose 

Can a pure dove change the morals of a devil or will he change her morals first?

FOLLOW YOUR HEART by Ruth Kaufman
When irresistible attraction makes their marriage of convenience inconvenient, will his dangerous secrets keep them from following their hearts?

THE HIGHLANDER’S OUTLAW BRIDE by Cathy MacRae
Forced into a marriage neither wants, it will take a king’s edict and sacrifice from both to discover what love means. But can they accept their losses and learn from their mistakes before Brianna marries another?

HIGHLAND DAYDREAMS by April Holthaus As they travel across land and sea, Lara and Bram discover a secret about her past that’s worth its weight in gold. Will Bram be able to keep his promise to return her to her family, knowing he may lose her forever?

Do you like medievals? If so, do you have a time period and/or setting preference? If you don’t like medievals, why not? If you haven’t read any, perhaps you’ll give these a try.

Top 5 reasons not to write a screenplay

By

Since I’m an on-camera talent in addition to being a novelist, I often get asked if I’m going to write screenplays for my books.

For me, that answer is no, though sometimes I get a nagging feeling I should try. Here’s why I haven’t:

1) It’s hard enough to learn about and market to the romance novel industry while self-publishing more and writing new books. Learning about and taking the time to write and then sell screenplays is, honestly, a bit daunting. I doubt I could do both at once in addition to acting and freelance writing, which help pay the bills.

2) My current releases are set in medieval England, so production costs would be sky high. I need castles, horses, armor and swords. One book has an important battle scene. Shows like Reign clearly have the budget for the settings and gorgeous costumes (whether historically accurate or not). Yes, these days there’s crowdfunding, but running a Kickstarter or Indiegogo campaign for that much money would be difficult and yet another thing to learn about and fit into my day.

3) Many more famous author friends and those I follow in the community haven’t had movies made of their bestselling novels. I know of a few that were optioned, which is great, but never heard that the films were made. One friend’s book will be turned into a movie for the Hallmark Channel. And she did write the screenplay…but she’s had multiple bestselling novels. I haven’t. Yet?

4) Some may think screenplays are easier because they’re much shorter than most novels and don’t require all of the description and internal monologue. I think they’re harder, because most of the story, emotion and conflict must be conveyed through dialogue alone.

5) I’ve seen many scripts I think could be better…in the story and/or the actual writing. I’ve even edited several, and the authors were quite pleased with my suggestions and comments. Yet I’ve never been motivated to try my hand at one.

Will I change my mind? Time will tell.

Customer service can make (or break) your day

By

Yesterday on my way to a callback in the far western suburbs, I was following a small white truck on the highway. I couldn’t see past or over it, so I maintained what I thought was a safe distance. All of a sudden, a huge section of a truck tire appeared before me. No time to change lanes. I ran over it. It hit the bottom of my car with a jarring force. I looked in the rear view mirror and saw the car behind me run over it, too. Fortunately, we all kept driving without apparent incident. 

My heart was racing, of course, but my car seemed ok…so on I drove. Until I exited the highway and pulled up to a stoplight. I heard a scraping sound that continued as I made my way down the street. I pulled into a bank parking lot to see some black plastic dangling and rubbing the tire. I pushed it out of the way, made it to my destination. At the callback, I asked if there was a car repair nearby because I didn’t want to make the long drive back to the city without having the undercarriage looked at. On the other, I had a lot to accomplish that afternoon, and didn’t want to spend hours waiting for the verdict. Lucky for me, there was a Car-X nearby (actually, the helpful person said Carmax…but then another helpful person cleared it up after I couldn’t find a Carmax near me. I wonder how often the two get confused.)  
I drove less than three minutes to the Car-X in Aurora. Within minutes, they had my car lifted up. Something had come loose, but they were able to repair it very quickly. And refused to charge me anything or even take a tip. This kind gesture brought tears to my eyes after the frazzlement (my word, but I think it fits) I’d experienced that day. With all of the bad customer service these days, finding a place that was so pleasant, helpful, efficient and nice was quite rewarding. I’m going to give them a great Yelp review, too.
That experience made my day. But when you’re not getting great or even good customer service, how do you tamp down frustration? I do my best to take deep breaths, make sure to keep my voice calm and tell myself it’s a first world problem.

What is a “published author?” I am. Finally.

By

Not that many years ago, “published” was easy to define. You went to a bookstore, saw all of the full shelves, and knew those books were published. You might have even looked at the spine or copyright page, and recognized the publishing house. You knew that someone, perhaps several or many someones, had loved, approved of and paid for the rights to make that manuscript a book.

Now, anyone can write and make a book available to the world, basically for free via Amazon if they don’t hire an editor(s) or cover designer. That project could be considered published, without any vetting whatsoever. It may be great, or, it may perpetuate the view that self-published books aren’t as good as those that are traditionally published.

I’ve pursued traditional publishing since 1995. Despite many close calls and more than a dozen revision letters on various projects, never got “the call” that an editor wanted to buy my book(s). So after a lot of hemming and hawing, as you may know I finally self-published in 2015. I’ve released two books so far, with a third and fourth on the way. Both books have been reviewed by Publishers Weekly and have earned assorted praise and 5 star reviews. My first is in an Amazon bestselling boxed set. I didn’t feel published, however, until yesterday, when my PAN membership was approved by RWA. I’ve wanted to join PAN for 20 years. What does that mean? Read on.

Some authors’ organizations use member requirements to define published. For example:
Romance Writers of America, with more than 10,000 members, has a Published Authors Network, or PAN. The membership requirement effective 9/1/15 states, “Any RWA General or Honorary member in good standing who has earned at least $1,000 on a single published Eligible Novel* or Eligible Novella** shall be eligible for membership in PAN, provided however that works offered through Predatory Publishing companies shall not qualify.” You must provide proof of earnings. 

I believe sales and earnings are part of the definition of published. For me, it’s not enough to just see my book online or hold one in my hand. So $1,000 on a single book with no requirements to keep publishing and earning isn’t that high. Others may disagree.

Novelists. Inc., which has around 800 members, has these options on their membership application:
“I have published at least two novels over 50,000 words with a traditional, royalty-paying publisher, with an advance of at least $2000 each, or with royalty earnings over $2000 each in a 12-month period.”

“I have independently published at least two novels over 50,000 words, with earnings of at least $5000 each in a 12-month period (proof of earnings will be requested).”

Note that self-published authors are held to a much higher standard. Hmm. 

What do you think “published” means?

5 Tips to Prevent Social Media Online Overwhelm

By

Whether I’m wearing my author, reader or actor hat, the amount of online information and sources for that information are overwhelming.

Yet so much valuable material is shared, including:

  • casting notices-some of which are taken down as soon as enough submissions are received 
  • writing, marketing and social media tips in Facebook groups and articles/posts
  • specific projects editors/agents are looking for right now
  • info about writing conferences and contests

I don’t want to miss anything I might need, but I also don’t want to be one of those people always checking/online instead of getting things done. So how do we get the info we need in the most time-effective manner?

1) Only check some things certain times of the day. And/or set a time limit. There are apps for this, or you exercise self-discipline.

2) Take advantage of custom notifications. I have different email accounts for different purposes: one personal, one for acting, one for writing, one for shopping and one for miscellaneous things. Each account has a different notification (the shopping one is silent!), so I only have to stop what I’m doing and check if I hear certain sounds.

I also have Facebook notifications for all groups I really care about, and check notifications every hour or so to see if there’s anything I need to pursue.

Your phone can be distracting, too. I also have custom ring tones for certain friends and one for talent agencies (“Popular” from Wicked). The only downside is I don’t have all clients and obviously potential clients in my phone, and sometimes agents use other numbers. So when I hear the default ringtone, I often check rather than wait to see if someone leaves a message.

3) Focus on one or two social media outlets you like best and find their shortcuts. For example, I use lists on Twitter (casting, authors, publishing, etc.) and favorites on Facebook. This takes a bit of time to set up, but will save time going forward.

4) Skim and skedaddle. You don’t have to read every word of every post. Learn to skim for highlights and to skedaddle as soon as you realize something isn’t as important or interesting as you thought it would be.

5) Respond efficiently. While you want to be careful what you post (as we keep hearing, the Internet lives forever), keep track of how long you spend on each comment or post. See if you can trim that time.

If you have other tips, please share!

The power of “Yes, and….”

By


I’m a pantser, not a plotter, which means I don’t write an outline or synopsis (summary of the entire story) before I write the pages. I start with an idea, maybe asking a few “what if” or “what next” questions, then let the characters tell me what to write by seeing their world through their eyes.

Sometimes I do need to make decisions in advance. In my second release, FOLLOW YOUR HEART, the heroine Joanna is a glass-painter. I knew I had to have at least one scene in her workshop with other characters present so I could show her at work. But I didn’t know what would happen in those scenes or whose point of view they’d be in. 


Other times, things happen that I didn’t see coming–such as an event near the middle of FYH involving an antagonist. I was so surprised at a certain discovery that my jaw literally dropped. Instead of wondering how I was going to make that work because it took the story in a different direction, I couldn’t wait to see what happened next. I did step out of the scene for a bit o think how I could heighten the stakes even more. Once I figured that out, the characters were back in charge.  

Perhaps because I’ve had so much improv training (including Second City) and performance experience, I believe in following the rule of “Yes, and” when writing. This means that once something has been established in a scene, you can’t deny it or say no. You must agree with it and add something new. 

For example, if we were scene partners in an improv class or show and you said, “I’m so glad you’re my sister,” I couldn’t say, “No, I’m not. I’m your mother.” I could say, “Me, too. And being the oldest is the best.” This moves the scene forward by providing new information, which is a gift to your partner. 

This can be time-consuming at first if something happens that sends me off to do a lot more research, but I’m sharing the characters’ story.

I hope readers enjoy Joanna and Adrian’s story as much as I did writing it. 

Ruth’s Blog Hop Winners & Castles, Knights and Chivalry news

By

Medieval Madness-Ruth’s Winners: Thanks to everyone who participated in the 11-author Medieval Madness Blog Hop August 2-8.

The three winners of my contest are: Amanda S., kaisquared and Linda. Congratulations! You’ll each win Castles, Knights and Chivalry, the Amazon Best Seller boxed set featuring my first medieval At His Command and medievals by Laurel O’Donnell, Elizabeth Rose and Kathryn Loch.

Please send your contact info to [email protected]. If I don’t hear from you by the 16th, I’ll see if I can find you. If I can’t, I’ll generate more random numbers to find new winners.

Castles, Knights and Chivalry News: I’m thrilled to report that CKC is currently:

Thanks to everyone who’s reading it or planning to. I hope you’ll let one of us know what you think, and/or post a review. 

Medieval Madness: participate in our multi-author blog hop to win prizes!

By

Hello! Welcome to the Medieval Madness Multi-Author Hop! 

My featured book is FOLLOW YOUR HEART. She’s a stained glass painter struggling to save her workshop from ruin. He’s on a quest to restore his family estate. Passion makes their marriage of convenience inconvenient. 









Here’s how you can participate in Medieval Madness:

ENTER TO WIN A KINDLE FIRE H6: Visit all of our sites! See the banner to the right for instructions.

ENTER MY CONTEST: Leave a comment on this post about why you love to read medievals. Three commenters will receive Castles, Knights and Chivalry. This boxed set of 4 medievals that released 8/1 features At His Command by me and books by Laurel O’Donnell, Elizabeth Rose and Kathryn Loch.

ENJOY OUR RECIPES: Here’s mine! I thought about including a medieval recipe from one of the great books I have about medieval food, but decided on this one instead.

Love chocolate? These easy cookies may not be the most attractive in the box, but they taste amazing. Let me know what you think!

Chocolate Nut Drop Cookies (Selma Weiss)
Melt in double boiler (my mom figured out you can microwave in a glass bowl):
1 can Eagle milk (I figured out you can use low fat or fat free)
1 1/2 c. chocolate chips
2 T butter

Mix in well:
1 C sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/2 C chopped nuts (I prefer walnuts)

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 minutes. Watch closely so bottoms don’t burn. Makes appx. 60 cookies.

FOR MORE INFO: Check out all of these medieval authors’ sites to learn about them and their books:

1) Elizabeth Rose            2) Laurel O’Donnell
5) April Holthaus           6) Emma Prince
7) Suzan Tisdale             8) Keira Montclair
9) Eliza Knight               10) Ruth Kaufman

11) Lana Williams


Thanks to Elizabeth Rose for arranging this event.

The .99 boxed set: trends in e-book pricing

By

Several months ago, the prolific Laurel O’Donnell reached out via e-mail to invite me to join in a boxed set with her and two others, Elizabeth Rose and Kathryn Loch. The offer was quite flattering…they’ve all released many more books than I have (so far), and are bestsellers. I’m not…yet? Also, Laurel’s The Angel and the Prince is on my keeper shelf, so I was honored that she wanted one of my books sold with hers.

The process of putting the set together was easier than I’d expected. Fortunately her talented husband did all of the formatting, so the only expense was the set’s cover.

We needed to decide on the title, pricing and release date. And how much promotion we were willing to pay for. After tossing around some ideas, we agreed on Castles, Knights and Chivalry.

I struggled a bit with pricing. Many, many boxed sets are priced at .99 these days, and usually range from three to 10 full-length books. Amazon gives 35% royalties for .99 books, or approximately .09 per author per sale. Recently I saw a set with 11 books…for free!

I see both sides of the issue. On the one hand, it’s easier for readers to give unfamiliar or newer authors a chance if they’re part of a low priced boxed set. Then, perhaps, they’ll go on to buy the author’s other books. On the other, what’s happening to the value of books? My contribution, At His Command, currently sells at $2.99, and has only been available since January. Would joining the box cannibalize individual book sales? The other three books have been available longer. Do e-books have limited shelf lives (pun intended) at a regular price (already significantly lower than their print counterparts) nowadays because so many new releases? As of this writing, Amazon show over 10,000 new romance releases…in the past 30 days, including just over 800 historical romances.

CKandC has been on preorder and officially releases August 1st. I’m thrilled to say it’s been climbing the Amazon’s Hot New Releases charts, currently #2 in Ancient World, #7 in Medieval, and #54 in all Historical Romance. Out of the top 100 Historical Romance Hot New Releases at the moment, only seven are boxed sets. In terms of sales, we’re at

We’ll be doing a small amount of promotion in addition to Facebook and Twitter. How will the set do? Many have become bestsellers, so there’s that dream….Stay tuned!