Here are some frequent questions I get. If you have one that isn't answered here, feel free to contact me through the contact button which goes to my email. Or DM through Instagram. My social media tabs are in the sidebar also.
Do you write under any other pen names?
No. Chrissy Q Martin is the only name I write under. And currently, I only write YA romance books with just kisses. There are some authors who write sweet books under one name and spicier books under another name, but I don't. I don't write spicy books under another name. And if you see books with a similar author name to mine, it's someone else who deserves the credit for their books.
Are there going to be more books in the "Running on Love & Donuts" series?
I never say never. I intended this series to end after three books but kept the option open to continue it. The fourth book "Rebel on Holiday" features another main character, who was a side character in books two and three. There's also a free book featuring the grandmas and you can find it under the "Free Books" tab. I have ideas for other books, but nothing else finished at this point.
What do you mean by "Sweet Romance" books?
There's lots of jargon in the book world with how to describe books. I call my books sweet (with no spice), and others call them clean and wholesome. Clean and Wholesome is a book category on Amazon and I'm not here to debate the term "clean." I don't view sex as dirty, and I'm all for everyone reading what they're comfortable reading, but I don't write sex scenes in my books because quite a few of my readers are in middle school. I see "clean" as meaning a book doesn't have language, violence, or sex, and it's appropriate for a young teen (or adult who prefers no spice) to read. Basically...I write books with happy endings, no violence, no strong language, and no sex. Some characters may talk about sex in general...like waiting to have sex...but there are no sex scenes in the books and not even a hint of anything happening behind closed doors. I'll leave that to the reader's imagination. I write stories I'm comfortable reading/listening to with kids. As far as language, cr@p is used once in a couple of books, but I use it to show the emotion of a side character and when they speak one word during a tense scene. There are just kisses in my books, from awkward first kisses to swoony, dreamy ones. I'm fine with my books being called light, fluffy, and cute...I actually love it. Some of my books touch on serious topics (addiction, survivor guilt, anxiety, loneliness, severe allergies, trauma, etc.) but I try my best to focus on the outcome and happy endings of the stories. It's about the characters developing and helping create joy in you...the reader.
Do your books have swearing or strong language?
See the answer above about Sweet Romance. The short answer, no. The long answer, there are a couple words in a few books. There's cr@p, maybe a d@mn. There is also, "he swears under his breath." The couple strong words are only used to show the emotion of a side character and they're used in a tense scene. I can tell you I strongly debated some of the words in a few books, and ultimately left them in where I thought they were needed. You won't see any of the F word in my books, and if there's more than two strong words used in a book, then that's probably more than I wanted. I understand swearing is fairly common in real life, and if you swear, go for it. But if you know me, I rarely swear, and my books reflect that. My books are already wordy, and I don't need to add extra words with swear words. If you like to swear and read my books, feel free to pencil in your own additions. :)
Why are some of your books no longer in Kindle Unlimited (KU)?
I have nothing against KU and typically start with all my books in Kindle Unlimited. Kindle Unlimited readers are amazing, and certain books do well in the program. If you don't know, authors are paid by the page read for books borrowed from the KU program. The amount varies each month, but it's not even a penny a page (on average, $0.004 cents a page). As an author, I'm limited by KU. If my books are in KU, I'm agreeing to be exclusive with Amazon (this rule does not always apply to traditionally published books, but it does to me as an indie author). That means my ebooks can't be up for sale or offered anywhere else. I have removed some books from KU and will continue to remove others to offer them for sale in other stores and so you can request your library to have them. I will also be able to sell the ebooks in my own store (coming soon) and can offer readers a discount on bundles. It's more about not having all my eggs (books) in one basket (Amazon). Thank you so much if you're a Kindle Unlimited subscriber and for supporting those who have their books there. And thank you for those of you who also support authors through other stores and avenues. It's nice to have options.
Do you use AI in your books or covers?
No. Every book I've ever written is straight from my head, to my hands, to my keyboard. Every cover on my published books is commissioned from a cover designer, who uses stock photos. The covers I have designed (Grandmas on a Road Trip) also used stock vector images. I have played around with AI. I used Bing Create to try and get images of my visions of characters and places for The Everlove Chronicles. You can see those images on my Pinterest inspiration board. But I will never use those images for covers, or in any of my books. I have tried using Bing AI to generate blurbs or marketing text, but I find I often have to change it, so it doesn't save me time. I've done social media videos showing the humorous, and often not even close, ideas AI thinks my books are about. I have used AI audio/voices for some of my books, but they are only available for free on my YouTube channel. I'm not comfortable offering them for sale. I'm currently recording my own voice for an audiobook (to be posted on my YouTube channel) and I would love to hire a professional narrator someday (those would be put up for sale), but I'm not at that income level yet. I know people have varying opinions on the use of AI, and I'm not going to debate it. You are welcome to your own opinions on it. I will only be clear in how I have used it. And I don't use it to write my books or do my covers.
