Susan Mallery: To App or Not to App

Hosted by Kate Please give another warm, Bandita welcome to my good friend, Susan Mallery, who just happens to be one of my favorite writers, too! I asked Susan to come back today to tell us about her new iPhone and Android app. It's the coolest thing--and I should know because I raced to download it onto my Droid! She’s the only person I know who has her own app!!! Go Susan, go Susan! Take it away!

Thank you, Kate! I’m thrilled that you invited me back to visit the hackey hudjson. Yes, it’s true. People around the world can go to the iTunes App Store or the Android Market, search for my name, and presto! there I’ll be, Susan Mallery in app form. And did I mention that it’s free?

Why did I decide to get an app? The shallow but honest answer is that I wanted an app because apps are new and shiny and having my own makes me feel fancy. The deeper, more professional truth is that our online world is becoming more mobile, and I want readers to be able to find me wherever they look.

I will admit, though, that it’s disconcerting to turn on my phone and see my own face staring up at me.

Virtual Tour of the Free Susan Mallery App

When you click the Books button, the first thing you see is ALREADY HOME, my latest release! After clicking the cover, you can read a free excerpt, reviews, a description of the book, and you can find links to buy the book. The links are for paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats, so whatever you’re looking for, it’s here.

Under the News button, you’ll find all my latest news alerts, Dear Reader letters, recipes, Fool’s Gold between-the-books updates, and you can even tap into my tweet stream. Don’t ask me how it all gets there. I don’t know, and I don’t need to know. But isn’t it fun that it’s right there at your fingertips?!

Within the app, you can watch videos, listen to podcasts, and even see the massive wardrobe of my toy poodle, Nikki. Every time I have new media available, you’ll be able to find it on my app and in the Members Only section of my website, http://www.susanmallery.com/.

There’s a second page of buttons on the app, which is where you’ll find the fan Chat Wall, and one really funky button that had me really confused. The QR scanner. Do you know about this? QR codes are like barcodes for apps. I saw a QR code on a home for sale in my neighborhood recently, so I whipped out my phone, opened the free Susan Mallery app, and scanned the QR code. Voila! I went on a virtual tour of my neighbor’s house while standing outside holding my phone in my hand! How cool is that?

Do you have an iPhone, iPod Touch, or an Android? If so, what apps have you downloaded so far? What else would you like to see inside the free Susan Mallery app? If I added a tip calculator, would you use it? If I added a Playlist of some of my favorite songs, would you be interested in that? If you don’t have an iPhone or Android, how do you prefer to connect with the authors you love?