Lexi C. Foss Publishes in Portuguese Market!

March 8, 2020 • News

USA Today Bestselling Author Lexi C. Foss loves to play in dark worlds, especially ones that bite.
Recently, her life as an author has reached new heights and her work is being published in Portuguese for the Brazilian market.

CJC: When you first started publishing your work in 2017, did you ever envision seeing your books translated into other languages? How did that come about?

LF: I think all authors dream of having their books read by a wide audience. Meaning, they want others to read and enjoy their work. At least, that’s always been my goal. I didn’t necessarily include foreign language translation into that “dream” until an email arrived in my inbox from 3DEA Editora asking if I would be open to having my Mershano Series translated into Portuguese. It was one of those “is this really happening?” emails that I will remember for years to come.

CJC: Having traveled both domestically and internationally to attend author signing events, what was it like to travel to South America for Bienal do Livro Rio last year?

LF: Surreal. I spent half my experience wondering if I’d fallen into a dream world of some kind. I just couldn’t believe it was happening.

The Bienal was HUGE with over 800,000 readers attending throughout the festival. It was overwhelming at points, which was new to me. I don’t normally feel overwhelmed at US signings, mostly because I speak English and I’ve done enough that I know what to expect. However, when I arrived at the Bienal to a huge crowd, I was a bit in shock. I hadn’t understood the attendance aspect of the event and expected it to be similar to a US signing. It wasn’t. It reminded me more of DragonCon in Atlanta. But the Brazilian readers were very kind and loving, and they all understood that I didn’t speak Portuguese. They were incredibly patient while I wrote messages in their books with the assistance of a translator. It was such a great experience with the language barrier adding a fun twist.

CJC: For authors looking to get published in different markets what advice would you give them?

LF: There are two routes for international publishing: through a publisher in that market, or indie publishing. Regardless of the path, I recommend researching heavily. When 3DEA Editora approached me, I followed up with a few authors already working with them to ask about their publishing experiences. I also conferred with an Intellectual Property lawyer who reviewed the contract with me. I’ve most recently started indie publishing (Inocência Perdida & Liberdade Perdida) in Portuguese after extensively interviewing a Portuguese translator and vetting her background. Just like a lot of things in this industry: It’s all about research.

CJC: What hurdles have you overcome in expanding your brand and encompassing different marketing tactics?

LF: Every market has a different set of marketing principles. That’s the biggest hurdle to tackle because it requires so much research (there’s that word again!). My teaser designer has had to work a lot with my translators on text translations because what we may use in English isn’t what other countries are attracted to in their respective languages. I’m also fortunate to have an awesome PR Team that handles my ads for me and they are beginning the process of releasing Facebook ads in Brazil for my newest indie published release. It’s going to be fun to review analytics and see what works and what doesn’t.

CJC: Are you looking to have other books/series translated into other languages in the future and if so which ones?

LF: The next language I would really like to publish in is German. From what I’ve read (researched!), the German market is huge for readership. I’d really like to test my paranormal series and see if any of them intrigue the German market.

I also plan to publish more in Portuguese. I’m actively working with 3DEA Editora to determine what’s next with them 🙂

Oh, and I have a book releasing in Spanish soon. I’m excited to see how it does!!

CJC: What goals/projects do you have for the remainder of 2020?

LF: I have a lot of projects slated for 2020. Too many, probably. I tend to be pretty ambitious with my schedule, so we’ll see if I survive it! Actually, one of my goals for 2020 is to start saying “no” a little more and put my own worlds first. I have a lot of open series that I want to continue writing within, and a few series I’d like to wrap up as well.

My biggest goal for 2020 is to continue to have fun. Authors often find themselves wrapped up in the expectations of external parties. I can’t function like that, so I need to protect my creative side. Which ropes back into my “say no” goal, but also into my overall approach for 2020. I’m writing what I want to write, when I want to write it. My muse takes precedence. If I suffocate her, the work will suffer.

CJC: I want to say a special thank you to Lexi C. Foss for featuring Garrett and I on the cover of Liberdade Perdida. This was a once in a life time moment to be featured on my first book cover project published in another language. It also means so much because I come from a Portuguese background (my Dad was porn in Portugal and both my parents speak it fluently).

Pick up your copy of Liberdade Perdida which is now available here!

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