I love birds.
In 2016, a parrot sanctuary on Vancouver Island closed permanently after its founder died leaving the facility in debt and hundreds of birds, once again, abandoned and at risk.
Over the next two years, dozens of volunteers lead by veterinarian and avian specialist, Dr. Anne McDonald, donated their time, expertise and money to nurse them back to health and rehome the occupants. It’s a story that still brings tears to my eyes and inspired my 5-book Mattie Saunders Series.
Foster child, bird rescuer, reluctant lover — Mattie Saunders never had it easy. Her life is a battle between passion and isolation, integrity and compromise. She’s built a sanctuary for exotic birds—creatures cast aside by careless owners—but connecting with people proves far more perilous.
From a desperate alliance with a rock star to save her bird refuge (The Rocker and the Bird Girl), to becoming entangled in a deadly investigation (Cold-Blooded), to confronting betrayal and violence in the pursuit of justice (The Bird Witch, The Bird Whisperer, The Flock), Mattie’s journey is both breathtaking and brutal.
As her life collides with activists, lovers, and outcasts, she becomes a voice for both the voiceless and herself. Blending romance and realism, tenderness and tension, The Mattie Saunders Series is an evocative exploration of what it means to heal — and to belong.
This series is close to me. As a heroine, Mattie embodies what I admire most in the women that are or have been in my life – courage, pragmatism, compassion. Through her, I’ve also had an opportunity to address a number of societal issues including sexual harassment, discrimination and environmental issues including the plight of birds – those extraordinarily beautiful, intelligent and at-risk creatures we share this planet with.
The series has never done well, perhaps because of its hybrid nature. Being part romance, part suspense and part eco-fiction, it’s been hard to market. In this relaunch I’ve used AI to find what I missed, to provide a different perspective. And it did!
For example, when I asked for keywords and categories it focused on the romance and women reader aspects of the work first and the environmental and social issues second, which was the exact opposite of the way I had previously marketed this series. Here are some examples of keywords AI suggested.
- romantic drama with social justice
- women’s fiction with romance
- Eco-thriller with romance
- Strong female protagonist
- contemporary romance with social activism
- romantic suspense with environmental themes
The same was true when I asked it to produce cover art. In this post are two previous covers, The Rocker and the Bird Girl and Cold-Blooded compared with the new AI generated ones.
I have no problem using AI to make marketing suggestions, using it to write fiction seems a contradiction to me. Why would I relinquish something I love to do, something that sustains me and helps me make sense of the world? However, being as close to the work as I am makes it difficult, if not impossible, to be objective.
I could have paid thousands of dollars to hire a book marketer and graphic artist to contribute to the relaunch, but instead I chose to pay $39.99 for a month subscription of use.ai
Beginning Jan. 29, the e-book edition of The Rocker and the Bird Girl will be free to download for 5 days and the four other books in the series will be deeply discounted on my Amazon site at https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU