Nike Daniels from "Behind the Hood"

Here's a drawing that I did last night of Nike from "Behind the Hood." You can read about him here: Chapters 1 to 8 of Behind the Hood  or click on the links below and buy the book. He is one of the main characters, and the feud in the story is between him and Tama (who you can see on the cover at the bottom of this posting).

 

LINKS to BEHIND THE HOOD:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Amazon DE

Maia Daniels

Here's a drawing that I did of Maia from Behind the Hood. 

 

 

LINKS to BEHIND THE HOOD:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Amazon DE

New Zealand Glossary (for the Behind the Lives series).

Dialogue:

Please note: Not all New Zealanders speak the same. Dialogue can be regional and also relates to socio-economic backgrounds. This is why some characters may use the words below while others use a clearer pronunciation. The main example is when Nike uses wuz, but his wife says was. Jess is Samoan, whereas Nike is a South Auckland Maori).

Bro – Brother or friend.

Cos – Because.

Coupla – Couple of.


Cuppa - Cup of tea.

Cuz – Cousin.

Dammit – Damn it.

Didja   - Did you.

Diff – Difference.

Dunno – Don't know.

‘em – them.

When the g is taken off the ending of  –ing words (gerunds) it still means the same thing. It is done to show pronunciation in dialogue.


Hafta – Have to.

Ja and Ya both mean - You. (The ja version is used after a word that ends in d).

Lil and li’l both mean – Little.


Mate – Friend.

Mista – Mister.

Nuthin’- Nothing.


Outta – Out of.

Prob’ly – Probably.

Sumpthin’- The way something is said by some people in New Zealand.

Wanna - Want to.

Whatcha and What’chu are both – What are you?


Wuz – Was.

Sayings

Eyes bugged out – When someone is surprised their eyes go big.

Five finger discount – To steal.


Getup – What someone is wearing. This word in my book was also put together with the Rocky Horror Show. The Rocky Horror Show is both a famous play and film. Used in my book it just means Tama thinks Leila looks strange in the black veil.


Gig – Performance, usually a band performing. But, in the context Maia uses it, it means presentation.

Gunja and weed – Marijuana.

Pint-sized – Small.

To pop a cherry – To take someone’s virginity. I will not explain any more sexual terms. Google the Urban Dictionary to find out any saying that you do not understand. This online dictionary has a lot of slang.

Tui-ed – Tui is a brand of beer that is famous in New Zealand. When Tama says he was Tui-ed out of his mind it means he was extremely drunk.

Wrapped – Rapt / Extremely happy. (Wrapped is not an error. The saying stems back from the 1990s and is peculiar to New Zealand and Australia, though not everyone uses it. Its use depends on particular people and where and whom they grew up with.)

Other Meanings

Maori:

Maori – The indigenous people of New Zealand.

Marae – The land where a Maori meeting house is.

Moko – A Maori tattoo that is usually on the face. Tama deviates from the norm by putting his moko-like design on the head. This is not common.

Whanau – Family.

Other:

Junkie – Drug addict.

P – Meth (a type of drug).

When Tama uses the word pig or pigs he is referring to the police.

Ranch-slider – A sliding glass door.

Some LINKS to BEHIND THE HOOD:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Amazon DE

Facebook advertisments, likes...

I have done two Facebook advertisements in an attempt to get likes for my author page that would eventuate into sales. The first one I paid $50 dollars for and got from memory around 50 or 60 likes. Not much bang for the buck, and no sales to boot. However, Facebook gave me a free $50 dollar coupon, which ended in sales and over 200 likes. I believe the difference was basically down to the wording of my ad.

1st ad:

Life on the rough side of New Zealand, where gang culture, drink, drugs, sex and violence are a way of life. Available now on Amazon.

2nd ad: 


NewZealand author Marita A.Hansen weaves a breathtaking tale of revenge & violence in the 1st book from the new series Behind the Lives

A much better ad the second time around. So, take the time to think about what you want to say, otherwise you'll be throwing away money.

Although the sales from the second ad did barely cover costs, the promotion was what was valuable, getting people to talk about my book.

That's the really good thing about Facebook ads, they are displayed on the right people's pages. This is achieved through the person who is placing the ad tagging it correctly. In the Interest section I inputted keywords that related to my book, such as Once Were Warriors, Outrageous Fortune, Boy (the Movie), New Zealand, Maori, Street Lit Review, Urban Literature, and so forth. And I noticed, in particular, when someone liked my page that they had Boy as a favourite movie, and occasionally Once Were Warriors. Furthermore, I was able to specify what countries that I wanted to show my ad in, choosing English speaking ones. Here's a breakdown of some of the countries where people liked my ad (Please note that the countries other than the UK, NZ, Canada, the US, Ireland, Singapore and Australia weren't connected to my ads):

Countries

109	United Kingdom
102	New Zealand
52	Canada
38	United States of America
11	Ireland
10	Singapore
8	India
8	Australia
4	Pakistan
4	Malaysia
1	Jordan
1	Sri Lanka
1	Mauritius
1	Indonesia
1	Cyprus
1	Bosnia & Herzegovina
1	Belgium
1	Switzerland
1	Germany

	Just a thought when you consider what advertising you might like to do. Though, keep in mind I'm still squeamish about doing another ad, but may have to bite the bullet, hitting my worn-out purse to promote my book. Otherwise, how will people know about it?
	https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marita-A-Hansen