tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6576511790570691072024-03-13T15:14:58.200-05:00J.D.Currie: Off the Beaten TrackAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-87573046666613812012013-10-21T22:40:00.001-05:002013-10-21T22:43:52.484-05:00 Huge 99¢ Sale! 28 Books from a Dozen Authors!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGQw2x-0x8E/UD7xWF6KKEI/AAAAAAAAAKo/Jl3jSpO4XtE/s1600/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGQw2x-0x8E/UD7xWF6KKEI/AAAAAAAAAKo/Jl3jSpO4XtE/s200/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" width="129" /></a><span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Y</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ep, here in St. Louis, there's a definite Autumn feel in the air. Time to cozy up with that Kindle by the fire. It's the perfect time for a humongous (yes, I said HUMONGOUS)<a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/2013/10/hugesale.html?spref=bl"> 99¢ Sale! 28 Books from a Dozen Authors!</a> The eBooks listed on fellow writer, Michael K. Rose's blog page, <a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/2013/10/hugesale.html?spref=bl" target="_blank">Myriad Spheres</a>, are only $0.99 October 21-25. A few are always 99¢, but the majority are being offered at t<span style="line-height: 18px;">his special price for a limited time. They represent some of the best work from a dozen diverse authors, including yours truly, of course!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #cccccc; line-height: 18px;">Click on the link below and check it out!</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><br />
<a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/2013/10/hugesale.html?spref=bl"> 99¢ Sale! 28 Books from a Dozen Authors</a>!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-72353208961854419122013-05-06T23:14:00.000-05:002013-05-06T23:32:17.505-05:00Write! Like A Boss!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;">So one day you're on top of the world, with a
glowing 5 star review and a successful turn on the the top 100 bestseller
lists on Amazon, and you're feeling like you could be a real writer after
all... the next day you're slammed with a 2 star review, and the reviewer
doesn't seem to have found any of the good points of the 5 star reviewer...
Happens to the best of us, right? "There really is no accounting for
taste." That's why this blog post comes at the perfect time. Love
the attitude. And, by the way, my favorite scene from the Incredibles involves
Edna, the super hero costume designer. As she says, "I never look back,
darling! It distracts from the now!" ~Jeff</span><span style="font-size: 24pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q4RTbZUDWIU/UYiDmaJwPwI/AAAAAAAAARA/hRBd0OybJEc/s1600/edna-mode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q4RTbZUDWIU/UYiDmaJwPwI/AAAAAAAAARA/hRBd0OybJEc/s200/edna-mode.jpg" width="196" /></a><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;">The following is reblogged from <a href="http://chazzwrites.com/">ChazzWrites.com</a></span><span style="font-size: 24pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 24pt;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3J1BA4UmTis/UYh_QgCKYgI/AAAAAAAAAQw/MTj6Zh1Im4w/s1600/edna-mode.jpg"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #444444;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Write! Like a Boss!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">One of the movies we love here in the secret bunker
is <i>The Incredibles.</i> I love a good Bond movie and <i>The
Incredibles</i> is superheroes in a Bond movie. It’s a lot of fun, though,
for me, the most effecting scene is where the missiles close on the plane with
kids on board. Having kids makes you cry easily and I’ve cried during that
scene several times over.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;">Kind of a Spoiler</span><span style="font-size: 25pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: 15pt;">I</span><span style="font-size: small;">n the original plot for <i>The Incredibles,</i> the
plot called for the plane to be piloted by an ordinary human — a sweet old
man and friend of Elastigirl — who gets killed in the explosion. That was
revised when they decided it was too dark a turn for a kids’ movie.</span><span style="font-size: 15pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;">The best scene</span><span style="font-size: 25pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">For my wife, She Who Must Be Obeyed, the scene she
always brings up first is the attack on the city.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">Samuel L. Jackson, primed to defend innocents and
come out of retirement, really sells it when he sees the devastation and
shouts, “Honey! Where is my super suit?!” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">His wife’s reply: “Oh, no you don’t! I have been
planning this dinner with the Robinsons for weeks!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">“<i>Honey! Where is my super suit?!</i>“ <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;">The juxtaposition of the mundane with a superhero’s
clothing needs <i>is</i> funny, but it doesn’t stand out as much for
me. She Who Must Be Obeyed is not wrong. (That <i>can never </i>happen.)
However, it underlines that we can’t predict how our writing will be received.
We must write for ourselves and hope others of like mind will find us (or we
must find them). When I wrote for magazines, I was often surprised which bit of
a column provoked outrage and what spurred letters of admiration. People won’t
necessarily unpack your book the way you thought you sent it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: small;"><a href="http://chazzwrites.com/2013/05/05/write-like-a-boss/" target="_blank">Read more here</a></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-53198134803792986332013-02-27T10:42:00.003-06:002013-02-27T12:05:06.026-06:00Amazon Changes Free eBook Policy for Associates <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0000ee;"><a href="http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/amazon-to-change-free-ebook-policy-for-associates_b66039" target="_blank">Amazon to Change Free eBook Policy for Associates - GalleyCat</a> :</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;"></span></span><br />
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 12px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;">"Next month, <a href="https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/t58" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #0088cc; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Amazon will change its policy for associates</a> who help readers find free Kindle eBooks online, making certain sites ineligible for advertising fees. Here’s more from the company:</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;">
</span>
</span><br />
<blockquote style="border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 7px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; quotes: none;">
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 12px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;">Starting March 1, 2013, Associates who we determine are promoting and meet both conditions below for a given month will not be eligible for any advertising fees for that month within the Amazon Associates Program …</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;">1. At least 80% of all Kindle eBooks ordered and downloaded during Sessions attributed to your Special Links are free Kindle eBooks</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px;">2. 20,000 or more free Kindle eBooks are ordered and downloaded during Sessions attributed to your Special Links.</span> </span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style="border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 7px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; quotes: none;">
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 12px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The company predicted that the new policy will only affect .1 percent of its associates and will not count for advertising fees accrued before March 1, 2013. </span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style="border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 7px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; quotes: none;">
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 12px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/t58" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #0088cc; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">The online retailer explained in the FAQ</a>: “the Amazon Associates program is designed to compensate advertising partners for referring paid business to Amazon.” If your site exceeds the free eBook limit on any given month, you can still be a member of the Amazon associate program."</span></div>
</blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Amazon's recent change in policy undoubtedly will affect those of us who have continued to use KDP Select free book promotion as a marketing tool</b>. Kindle On the Cheap sent out a plea to its members today on Facebook: <i>"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Amazon has placed a limit on free Kindle book downloads that our community could go over in just a few days, putting our site in peril. Anytime you click to Amazon from our site, a cookie is opened for 24 hours and any free Kindle book you download counts against us. Please, to help us stay open, do not click and purchase a free Kindle book in the same browser where you browse books from TheCheapEbook.com (our new blog coming March 1) or our Facebook pages. Or, please use your device to search in the Amazon store for the freebie and download it that way."</span></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>For KDP Select promotions to be truly effective, book sites that promote free books have been essential for getting the word out and leading people to download our free books. </b>Other similar sites will also, if they haven't already, be forced to change how they include free books, if at all. I have been leaning away from continuing with KDP Select and the time to make a change may be now. The free book promotions on Amazon may have run their course and this is probably not such a bad thing. The glut of freebies out there has weakened the overall strength of indie books. Time to regroup, adjust , and move forward.</span><br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What does everyone think?</span></i></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-19722233633480451062013-02-17T22:46:00.000-06:002013-02-17T22:54:02.759-06:00JUDGMENT TRAMP is FREE Feb. 18-20!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGQw2x-0x8E/UD7xWF6KKEI/AAAAAAAAAKo/Jl3jSpO4XtE/s1600/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGQw2x-0x8E/UD7xWF6KKEI/AAAAAAAAAKo/Jl3jSpO4XtE/s320/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
<a href="http://amzn.to/wBpEKB">http://amzn.to/wBpEKB</a><br />
4.5 stars Amazon Kindle<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>From the first paragraph, you are hooked . . . characters are strong, realistic, and story line drags you right into the pages. Thrills, chills, a little romance, and great attention to detail. Could not put my Kindle down - stayed up til 3 am reading so I could find out what happens to everyone!"~</i>Debra Field</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>"Things are rarely what they appear to be in this deftly written novel of intrigue and judgment. Eb is a wonderful character, masculine yet real, dealing with real human challenges, trying to find inner peace in a world writhing with turmoil and hidden and half truths. The ending is powerful and, like the rest of the book, complicated and satisfying." ~</i>Martha Bryce</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ex-Army helicopter pilot Eb McLean is struggling to deal with his emotional scars and return to civilian life, but a sudden explosion and vicious murder throw him back into another kind of war. Now his sister Maggie's car is burning in front of their restaurant and hardened FBI agent Nick Kavadas wants to nail Eb for the crime. Eb finds himself in a race against time to find the real killer and peel back the layers of deceit and lies which threaten to destroy everything he holds dear. But whom can he trust? ATF Special Agent Danielle Ricci, who may be harboring a secret of her own? The sexy, but deadly, Imme Amoud? Or could his involvement with her be a fatal attraction? In the frantic hunt for the killer Eb is forced to confront his own tortured past. </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-37812441814751265472013-02-13T14:49:00.000-06:002013-02-13T14:49:10.413-06:00Love in a Mystery/Thriller? What's Love Got To Do With It?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken? Why, your protagonist, of course! Exploring the human side of characters is an important element of a story, even stories within "non-romance" genres, like mysteries and thrillers. For example, exploring
a protagonist's relationships and developing love interests not only
adds an element of suspense (such as when the reader is not sure if the
hero will get the girl), but gives your main character a dose of humanity
which will hopefully resonate with readers. </div>
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In
my Eb Maclean books, Fortress of Lies and Judgment Tramp, the
protagonist wants love but has an underlying fear, because of his past,
that he may be unworthy of it. He is "damaged goods". His desire to love
again and fear of remaining distant from it, is a driving force behind
solving the books' central mysteries and
peeling back the layers of deceit within his own family. Eb's trust and anger issues, as well as his (not necessarily ungrounded) paranoia further complicate things. His two sisters keep secrets from him, and he often finds himself in danger because of them.</div>
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A protagonist's love life can serve a useful purpose within the story framework--and more than that, it can be a foundation for every other aspect of the story. Janet Evanovich uses the two men in Stephanie Plum's life to give her access into a shady world that she would otherwise never experience. Ranger is her mentor, helping her to learn and survive as a bounty hunter, and Ranger's business interests also provide an almost endless number of mysteries for her to solve. Stephanie's other love, Joe Morelli, is a cop. It's natural that Ranger and Joe Morelli will tangle with each other occasionally, just as it is also natural that they will occasionally come together to help Stephanie when she's gotten herself in too deep. The other loves in Stephanie's life, her worry-wart mother, her long suffering father, her eccentric grandmother, all contribute to the chaos. The end result of those complex (and oftentimes comical) relationships is a fiction writer's dream.</div>
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Relationships always come with baggage of some type or another, and that can help us make sense of why a character does certain things--and often the key relationship in someone's life provides the impetus to drive a character to risk everything to solve a mystery. Eb Maclean isn't looking for trouble, but when someone puts a bomb in his sister's car he is forced to find them--because his sister, Maggie, won't be safe until that person is caught. Eb's deep love for Maggie is revealed when the reader sees what lengths he will go to in order to catch the bomber, and the possible consequence of losing her raises the stakes of the game--to a point where Eb must solve the mystery or lose everything that he cares about.</div>
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Love can also allow us to see a softer side of a character--and at the same time reveal what humans are capable of doing for love. A person can commit a crime for an altruistic reason--a man could rob a bank to get money for an operation that might save his son, and it could spiral out of control from there as the situation turns into a hostage crisis inside the bank. Is the man a good guy who made a bad choice--or is he a bad guy with a good motive for this one particular crime? The story could be written several different ways, but the love for his son would tend to humanize the man in the reader's eyes in any case. </div>
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There are many ways that a protagonists' love life can mold a story--and working the relationship angle to the fullest can make the difference between a flat, lifeless story and a great read. Love has everything to do with it--because it is a big reason why people do what they do.</div>
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How does your protagonist's love life impact the plot of your work?</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-13563572806988962362013-01-29T22:50:00.000-06:002013-01-30T12:39:37.612-06:00Starting at the beginning of your story..the real beginning.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Believe it or not, <u>The Guns of August</u> is a book about a certain time...August.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">More to the point, it's a book about events taking place in Europe during August of 1914, as the great powers of Europe bluffed, blustered, and ultimately stumbled into WWI. (<u>The Guns of August</u> is considered to be the definitive book about the start of WWI).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">August was the final month of decision for the European powers--the month that turned the short war that all the principles thought they were fighting into the long, bloody, tragic war that actually occurred. Germany, France, Russia and Britain reached the decision to go to war in late July and early August, but the event that many people associate with starting the war is the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand by Serbian nationalists in June of 1914. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So it would make sense that <u>The Guns of August</u> would start somewhere within that 1914 timeline--but that isn't the case at all. Barbara Tuchman, the Pulitzer prize-winning author of <u>The Guns of August</u>, started her book with a description of the funeral of Edward Vll in May, 1910. It's the perfect place to begin the narrative, because the leaders of Europe attended the funeral, and the intrigue at that event does a great job of setting the stage for the conflagration to come.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Tuchman then spends several chapters covering other aspects of the lead-up to war, and the events of August, 1914 aren't delved into until chapter 6 of her book.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The point of the above dissertation? <b>Barbara Tuchman knew what she wanted to write about--and she knew just where to start the story for maximum effec</b>t. Tuchman realized that the reader needed background in order to understand the story she wanted to tell, but she never forgot her main subject (described aptly by the title of the book)--and the result is a masterpiece.</span><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w1HaInp6-Ug/UQgCQw737sI/AAAAAAAAANw/8j7xV8II9gk/s1600/Where-do-i-begin_1306108017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w1HaInp6-Ug/UQgCQw737sI/AAAAAAAAANw/8j7xV8II9gk/s320/Where-do-i-begin_1306108017.jpg" height="242" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Budding fiction writers often get into big trouble when they confuse background details with the plot of their story, and they get into further trouble when they enter the story at the wrong place in time.</b> Sometimes they start the story too soon, and the book ends up with 80 pages of fluff before the real story begins. Or worse, the story doesn't start when it should, and the reader is left abandoned on page 2 in the middle of nowhere without anything to hold on to, and shortly thereafter gives up on the book.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Starting the story at the right point in time is one of the most critical judgments a writer can make--and there's no set formula for success.Every book is different, and a writer has to go with his or her gut and hope it leads in the right direction. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I knew I had a good start on my book, <u>Judgment Tramp,</u> when I reached the halfway point of the first draft and I was still comfortable with my first chapter. Looking back, I realize that the action in the first chapter provided a tipping point for the story--and all of the intrigue, twists and turns in the book could logically flow from the moment in chapter 1 when a bomb went off in Maggie's car. That event was the "what" of the book, and the reaction of the characters in the book to that event is the "why" of the story. Everything I did in the plotting of the book related directly to those two principals, and in doing so I successfully followed the same logic that Barbara Tuchman used when writing her book.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>The real beginning to a story is the beginning that makes everything afterward flow smoothly towards an exciting, satisfying ending</b>--but even more important, a good page 1 needs to lead to a great page two, and a better page 3, and.... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Finding that entry point into a story is easy sometimes, but often it isn't immediately apparent--and I think most writers struggle with it more often than not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I look back at the work I haven't finished, or the books I wrote that I'm unhappy with, the entry point into the story is usually a major part of the problem. Just like Barbara Tuchman, it's important to know what story we want to tell, and then determine the best place to start in order to give just the right amount of back story to draw your readers in, and build toward a satisfying climax and ending.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>So what questions should we be asking ourselves to help us determine the best point at which to start our story?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I can think of three different timelines right now:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>1. </b>The moment when the protagonist first realizes the magnitude of the challenge that awaits. In <u>Judgment Tramp</u>, this moment is when the bomb explodes in Maggie's car. Someone dies in that explosion, but for my protagonist, Eb Maclean, the horror of the murder is initially secondary, because he realizes that the bomb was meant to kill his sister--and that's all he can think about. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In a romance novel, it could be the moment when a woman meets her eventual lover--even if the character doesn't initially understand what's happening.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>2. </b>The moment when a character understands the cost of a prior action. A novel might start with the death of a character, and then flashback to the events that led to his or her demise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>3.</b> A funny, absurd, or poignant moment in your protagonist's life that is interesting solely because of what it reveals about the character. Lawrence Sanders was adept at using that device in his Archy McNally mystery series. The actual story can begin later--but the beginning can make the reader fall for the character and instill a desire to learn more about his or her life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>What do you think?</b> Give me some ideas on how you might approach this in your work. I'd love to get your perspective!</span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-75649897036569473182013-01-21T19:14:00.006-06:002013-01-23T12:23:57.603-06:00Twitter Following: What's Your Policy?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I took a bit of a hiatus from Twitter over the holidays and guiltily tackled the task of going through the list of tweeps who had followed me while I was "gone". (I'm positive they have been racked with anticipation). My norm has been to do this on a daily basis and I "follow back" a good 90% of those good folks who have chosen to follow me. A year ago I was a total neophyte to this twitter thing and made the common neophyte bumbles. For example, I made the annoying mistake of following absolutely everyone back with an invitation to look at my book or blog. (Yes, I was THAT guy!) I have picked up a few pointers since those early days. I realized as I was going through this rather extensive list of new followers that I had developed my own personal policy regarding who to follow, and it's this policy I'm choosing to share today. Do you need a personal policy for twitter following? I tend to think it's a good idea. The sheer number of tweets can become overwhelming and as your twitter following grows, it becomes harder and harder to sort through, and respond to relevant tweets.</span> <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. I follow only actual people and there are very few actual people I won't follow. I know you're real if you're not an egg (an actual photo of you is especially appreciated), and if you have taken the time to write even one line about yourself. You don't have to have won national awards, be Batman by night, or own a house in Maui. Just something, anything. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. If you are obviously trying to sell me something, or you are a business only that I am not interested in, I won't follow you. Sorry. I have a hard enough time wading through the tweets as it is.This is especially true if I click over to your tweets and find there are no reciprocal tweets. If you never retweet anyone else, then we're not gonna be good twitter friends.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. I like inspiration as much as the next guy. I need inspiration. But, I realized sometime back, I don't really want every quote, affirmation, insight,etc. in my twitter stream. Before you conclude that I am a curmudgeon, I'm not talking about people who tweet the occasional quote, positive saying , etc.. Love those. No, I'm talking about the twitter sites devoted totally to this activity. I honestly never realized there could be so many.. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. Twit Validation. Ok, I am a Twit and I don't think I should have to validate this... Seriously, if I have to apply to follow you... Come on, folks, this is just too time consuming, and frankly, I'm not sure if you should be on Twitter if this is a huge concern. Twitter is a hugely public forum. That's the nature of this social media beast. My policy: I won't jump through hoops to follow anybody..at least not on Twitter.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. Lastly, I rarely look at my direct messages anymore because they are filled with spam or well-meaning people (like I was) who ask me to go check out their product. I will probably follow you, but I hope you learn, as I did, that this is an approach that others generally don't appreciate.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Happy tweeting!</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wWfEra3oVfk/UP3m5gExM-I/AAAAAAAAANU/5GpQLVZZZSc/s1600/followmetwitter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wWfEra3oVfk/UP3m5gExM-I/AAAAAAAAANU/5GpQLVZZZSc/s320/followmetwitter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">~Jeff 8^D</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-73870102054466898262012-12-10T11:50:00.001-06:002012-12-10T12:31:34.580-06:00Happy Anniversary to me! Judgment Tramp is FREE for 2 days!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_EaKLyxcgXc/UMYgUGUdd4I/AAAAAAAAAMw/FRyk12TjeWA/s1600/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_EaKLyxcgXc/UMYgUGUdd4I/AAAAAAAAAMw/FRyk12TjeWA/s200/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" width="129" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was just over a year ago that I decided to venture into the world of indie writers. It's been,hands down, the best decision I could have made regarding my writing path. I've learned an incredible amount about this crazy business in just a year. I've found the community of indie writers to be some of the most supportive, generous, innovative, and creative people I've ever met. It has been a real privilege to be part of the excitement. I'm looking forward to an even better year going forward. So much more to do, learn,and write!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of course, you know I have to celebrate by doing a giveaway: Announcing 2 days only- Dec. 10 & 11- <a href="http://amzn.to/wBpEKB" target="_blank">JUDGMENT TRAMP is free</a> in the Kindle Store. Great time to grab a <a href="http://amzn.to/wBpEKB" target="_blank">copy</a>! Over 23,000 downloads since publishing last December! 4.5 stars on Amazon</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">THANKS ALL!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">~Jeff 8^D</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-18752967539923313032012-09-18T22:37:00.000-05:002012-10-15T09:51:23.658-05:00So What About Those One-Star Reviews? <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Guest Post by Kristin Comstock</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 of 10 people found the following review helpful</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="margin-right: 5px;"><span class="swSprite s_star_1_0 " style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-image: url(http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/common/sprites/sprite-site-wide-2._V146303866_.png); background-origin: initial; background-position: -82px 0px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; display: inline-block; height: 13px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 65px;" title="1.0 out of 5 stars"><span style="left: -9999px; position: absolute;">1.0 out of 5 stars</span></span> </span><span style="vertical-align: middle;"><b>DONT READ THIS BOOK</b>, <nobr>January 30, 1999</nobr></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">By <b>A Customer</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ray Bradbury tries to write a bestseller in this boring novel. He keeps the audience in the book for about three pages, then everyone falls asleep. If he could do it again, I think he should have never written books in the first place.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The dreaded one star review.</b> What does it mean really for writers and readers? I am not an author, and only a sometimes writer, but I am an avid reader and sometimes reviewer, and strong supporter of indie writers. Personally, I will probably never write a one- or two- star review. Why? I think I need to have actually read a book to review it fairly, and frankly, life is short and my reading list is long. I would never make it through a 1 or 2 star book. But that's just my personal philosophy. A</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">nd I certainly don't subscribe to the "I think this book is just a 3- star book, but there are a ton of 5 stars,so I'll give it a 1- star so it all balances, and everything will be right with the universe" phiIosophy. (Yes, I have seen this stated more than once. I'm not an author, but this one kind of steams me!) Don't get me wrong, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sure there are plenty of one-star reviews just begging to be written. Obviously, there are plenty of readers with a different perspective than mine,leaving one- and two-star reviews. I started thinking about this the other day while catching up on all the hot news surrounding reviews. What is the value of legitimate one-star reviews and why do reviewers leave them? So I spent a little time browsing reviews on Amazon. What I found was just what you would expect; the reasons for leaving one-star reviews are as diverse as the tastes of readers reading the books. Here's a look at some of the most common ones that I found.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many one-star reviews were given because a reader "couldn't get into it". As in " I just can't get into ________ (wizards, vampires, bondage, etc), so I'm giving this book a one star review." These reviewers seem to be using the star system to rank books according to their personal preferences,or as a way of relating how much appeal the book had for them.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes one-star reviews are given for typos, or poor editing. I have seen poor reviews based on one error that was troubling to the reviewer. ( By the way, lest we begin to believe this happens only with indie published books, I can point to at least 2 traditionally published ebooks I have read recently which would need to get this rating because of several minor proofreading errors.)<br />Particularly fascinating to me are the one-star reviews that also talk about strong points of a book or things that the reviewer liked. For example, Agatha Christie's classic bestseller, <u>And Then There Was None</u>: "It was well written. It was a page turner. But it had a very anti- climatic ending. So not worth my time or money" or this for a more recent bestseller,<u> Water For Elephants</u>, " This writing is <b>exceptional</b> and <b>managed to keep me interested </b>during the course of the book. Still these <b>marvelous</b> little glimpses of author Sara Gruen's potential do not permit me to recommend this book to anybody." (Huh?) So why a one star and not a 2 star? Or 3 star, if you find a book "fast paced and super compelling" but you didn't love the way the characters developed, as one <u>Hunger Games </u>reader wrote?<br />Sometimes reviewers wish the author had done something different , gone in another direction, as again in<u> The Hunger Games:</u> "I hoped that the plot device would give an opportunity to explore human nature...but it fails." And sometimes a reviewer just is not comfortable with the subject matter. How about those one-star reviews for the popular parenting book, <u>Everyone Poops</u>?</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">9 of 61 people found the following review helpful</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><span class="h3color tiny" style="color: #e47911;">This review is from: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Everyone-Poops-My-Body-Science/dp/0916291456/ref=cm_cr_pr_orig_subj" style="color: #004b91;">Everyone Poops (My Body Science) (Hardcover)</a></b></span></div>
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Honestly, if you're reading this book, you're in need of serious psychiatric help. This book should only be read by the most hard-core of poop fetishists, as it contains words that no self-respecting sailor would use. This is terrible. "POOP" STINKS</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So with so many reasons for giving out 1-star reviews, how should we, as readers and writers, be looking at this dreaded rating? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The master science fiction writer,Ray Bradbury, may have just shrugged off the review above. He expressed this perspective in his 1996 interview with Playboy magazine, <i>"</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>When I started writing seriously, I made the major discovery of my life - that I am right and everybody else is wrong if they disagree with me. What a great thing to learn: Don't listen to anyone else, and always go your own way."</i> There may be something to this attitude-after all, a writer has to be true to him or herself. But, as a writer, you may not be quite as confident or successful as Bradbury yet, so , perhaps, a more useful attitude may be to take what you can learn from the review and move forward- just as Ray Bradbury surely did. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maybe writers should even consider one-star reviews as a badge of honor. After all, most bestsellers have a healthy blend of 1 to 5 star reviews. Hang around long enough and it's hard for a book to escape them. Sure, I know those 1 star reviews are about as welcome as a bad case of poison ivy, but consider this: A few thoughtful, yet less than stellar, reviews, may lend a bit of authenticity to the book's reviews as a whole for the potential reader. People tend to be suspicious of a book with nothing but glowing reviews. <u>Wool (the Omnibus Edition)</u> by Hugh Howey, one of my favorite reads of 2012 has 1562 five-star and 12 one- star. A few of the negative reviewers express doubt over the validity of all those 5 star reviews. They can't believe they're in the minority and dislike a book that so many people are raving about. But the reality is, <b>readers hand out stars for all kinds of reasons and many times the basis for the rating is purely subjective and the low (or high) rating may or may not be an accurate reflection of the quality of the work. </b>Readers and writers both need to take the stars as a tool but certainly not as gospel. Different strokes for different folks, y'all.. and on that cliched note, I'll leave you with this profound quote from Kurt Vonnegut:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; line-height: 16px;"><i>"Any reviewer who expresses rage and loathing for a novel is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae."</i></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What are your thoughts on one star ratings as a reader or writer? Do you give out negative reviews? What is your criteria for a one star rating? </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>Kristin Comstock is a transplanted Michigander just like her friend,Jeff Currie. She is an educator, social media consultant and manager, avid reader, sometimes reviewer, and strong supporter of indie writers. She resides in Texas with her 3 very busy children, and 2 ornery cats. Track her down on Twitter @krismos.</i></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-11557868404187819572012-09-10T11:24:00.001-05:002012-09-10T11:42:05.863-05:00Utterances of an Overcrowded Mind: Author Interview: J.D. Currie (Me!) Re-posted<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Here is my interview by Paul Dorset from Sat., Sept. 8. Go to Paul's blog, <a href="http://blog.pauldorset.com/" target="_blank">Utterances of an Overcrowded Mind</a>, to catch up on his series of interviews with some truly amazing authors! </span></h3>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Today I am pleased to present to you all the fourteenth in a series of Author Interviews. Recently I sat down with the sick and twisted J.D. Currie and our conversation went something like this:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: I like to start my interviews by asking if you have any writing rituals?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: Not really - I don't have a favorite shirt I wear or anything. The only thing that's important when I'm writing is to find a spot where I can concentrate and focus on the story. Oddly enough, it doesn't have to necessarily be somewhere quiet. Sometimes a place like Panera Bread is good.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">What types of books do you like to read? Who are your favorite authors? Why?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I generally like the same sort of books I try to write - mainly thrillers or mysteries. I love reading Ken Follet, Jack Higgins, and I've read everything Alistair Maclean ever wrote. Once in a while I get out of my comfort zone and delve into literary fiction. I love Hemingway's short stories, but I'm not much of a fan of his books.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: If someone had the power to step into your creative mind what would they see?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: Probably smog, cheese, or maybe a landfill filled with empty M&M bags! I always have lots of story ideas. I tend to act out scenes of a story in my head, sometimes for an extended period, before I write anything down.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you have a favorite character in each of your series, aside from the lead? If so, which one and why?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Imme Amoud, who is a re-occurring character in my Eb Maclean series of books. Imme's on the side of the angels (barely!), but she is violent, sexy, and dangerous and she plays by her own rules. Imme's survived being near the Twin Towers on 9-11, and she has a mysterious past (that will slowly be revealed as the series goes on). Eb notices almost right away that her plummy English accent (supposedly acquired from her days at an upper class English boarding school) comes and goes depending on the type of persona she wants to convey at any given time. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">In all the years you’ve been publishing your work, what is the biggest mistake you made that you could share so others can avoid making it? <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I haven't been at it that long, so my big mistakes are probably still to come! I think my biggest mistake so far was writing my first two books without any consideration of e-publishing. That caused my editor/marketing partner a lot of trouble when the time came to put my book on Amazon - I hadn't done any formatting at all. I also wrote the book and put the e-version on Amazon before ever considering what kind of marketing plan to follow. I would recommend that authors begin building their author platform on social media (Twitter, Facebook) before publishing their book when possible.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: <span style="color: #222222;">How do you find the time to write?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: <span style="color: #222222;">This is one of the toughest things for me. I don't make enough time for writing. When I'm working on a story there is always a magic moment where the story grabs me...and then I know I'll stick with the project until it's finished. The problem is getting to that point! I'm trying to rectify this over the summer, and I plan on setting aside a certain number of hours every week to write. It's definitely a work in progress.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: <span style="color: #222222;">What is one thing you hope I do not tell the readers?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: <span style="color: #222222;">I guess I hope you don't talk about my sick, twisted little mind. It's a very odd thing being a fiction writer...I spend way too much time thinking about dark things...the less-than-savory aspects of human nature. It's an occupational hazard of any writer of thrillers. A good writer has to be willing to look at the dark side of human nature and have an active curiosity about why people do what they do in moments of stress.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">If you are self-published, what led to you going your own way?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I fell into indie publishing by accident. I wrote<span style="color: red;">Judgment Tramp</span> with the idea I would shop it around to agents, but a very good friend of mine passed away right when I finished the book. I made the decision to print and sell the book myself to raise money for a benefit we held for my friend, and that kind of made the decision for me. I don't regret self-publishing at all. I think it will become an even bigger part of the industry in years to come.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: Do you plot your stories or do you just get an idea and run with it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: I plot the basics of the story out in advance, but I'm not afraid to follow an idea if it comes up during the writing process. I think over-plotting a story is a mistake, and I think beginners get caught in this trap a lot, usually after 100 pages or so. Writers have to be flexible - the characters are often going to take over a bit, and sometimes that's the difference between a good story and a great story. Allowing the characters to act out a bit is also a good cure for writer's block.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you do a lot of editing or do you find that as time goes on your writing is more fully-formed?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I try not to edit at all. Usually I have to do some editing, but I try very hard to keep from being heavy-handed about it. I wonder how many writers chop the heart out of a great story because they've read somewhere that writers must edit their work, or because they've read that the first draft of a story is always bad. When I first started writing I over-described everything, but now I try to do in one sentence or a paragraph what I used to describe in a page and a half of narrative. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you have to do much research for your stories?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I try to do the minimum amount of research necessary to make my story fly. I'm not interested in writing Tom Clancy style techno thrillers, but I do want my stories to be realistic. I write about locales I understand - I'll never write a story set in Prague or Berlin unless I visit those places and become familiar with the area and people. I grew up in Michigan, and I love South Haven, Michigan, the area where <span style="color: red;">Judgment Tramp</span>is set. Using this area as the setting for my book was my way of writing what I know.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">What is your most recent book? Tell us a little about it<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yHIwyIBATGI/UE4Xc7ORZzI/AAAAAAAAALo/VSWe3thfB_A/s1600/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yHIwyIBATGI/UE4Xc7ORZzI/AAAAAAAAALo/VSWe3thfB_A/s200/JT-cover-Eb-Maclean2.jpg" width="129" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">My most recent book is <span style="color: red;">Judgment Tramp</span>. It's a thriller, but it has a bit of a psychological twist to it. The protagonist, Eb Maclean, is an ex-army helicopter pilot who is having trouble re-entering civilian life after being wounded in Iraq. He gets involved in a mystery when his half-sister's car is blown up outside of the restaurant she owns. As he stumbles toward solving the crime, Eb finds out that his own family is involved in the mystery, and he also has to confront some uncomfortable truths about himself. I wanted Eb to interact with strong female characters in the book (and the series), and that's something about my book that is different than many thrillers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you also write any poetry, non-fiction or short stories? <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I've recently become interested in writing short stories - something I thought would never happen five years ago! I intend to do more short stories in the coming months with the goal of publishing a compilation. I'm a working musician and piano teacher, so I'm in the beginning stages of writing a how-to book about playing the piano (The piano technique I use).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you have any pieces of work that will never see the light of day?</span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I have stillborn stories and "drawer novels," just as I'm sure every writer does. Never say never though. Something in one of those clunkers may inspire me someday to write the Great American Novel. Anything else I write I write for people to see...I don't keep a journal or anything like that.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Do you enter competitions? Are there any you could recommend?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I've entered the Writer's Digest short story competition the last two years. If I win I will definitely recommend it to others!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">How much marketing do you do for your published works or for your ‘brand’?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">I have to confess when I published <span style="color: red;">Judgment Tramp</span>on Amazon back in December 2011 I took a blind plunge into the murky online publishing world. I had virtually no platform, no experience with social media ( my Facebook didn't know my face, and Twitter was just some activity that celebrities did), or online marketing. In other words, I didn't know much about promoting my "brand." I quickly realized there would be a little more to this indie publishing thing than sitting back and watching the sales roll in!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Okay, I never really thought that - but to answer your question, I've found that it’s a matter of expanding my platform and exposure one bite at a time. I'm active on Twitter, and Goodreads. I also have a blog, and I continue to explore ways to get my name and writing out in front of people. I've found that being active within the community of indie writers is a must. I truly live by the belief that when we help each other to be successful we, in turn, help ourselves. Innovative marketing and building a brand is a key for any indie writer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: What do you do when you’re not writing? Do you have any hobbies or party tricks?<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">J.D.: I like old cars - I own a 1962 Corvair that I hope to get on the road someday. I also like model trains. Lately I've become interested in streetcars and interurban railways as they were a type of railroading that closely interacted with people's daily lives. Music is my other profession. When I'm not writing or playing around with my model trains, you'll find me playing keyboard with several bands around the St. Louis area.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Paul: </span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New';">Well, that was wonderful, J. D. I wish you all the best for a successful future.</span></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vn3_uDeCFGA/UEeH6FMG-vI/AAAAAAAAAfY/jSnF1FNdGhY/s1600/197799_10151086979251929_139670430_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #006599; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vn3_uDeCFGA/UEeH6FMG-vI/AAAAAAAAAfY/jSnF1FNdGhY/s200/197799_10151086979251929_139670430_n.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976563) 1px 1px 5px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; border-width: initial; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976563) 1px 1px 5px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-top: 5px; position: relative;" width="151" /></a></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b>About J.D. Currie: </b>I grew up in Michigan, and still feel a strong connection to the state. Currently I live in St. Louis, MO. I'm a writer and musician sharing stories in music and print. I was always meant to be a musician - everybody told me that - but it took half my life for me to fulfill that prophecy. The music is making me a better writer, and the writing is helping me tell better stories with my music. I'm the author of Fortress of Lies and Judgment Tramp, the first two books in the Eb Mclean thriller series.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="background-color: white;">J.D.'s Blog: </span><a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/" style="background-color: white; color: #006599; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">J.D. Currie</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">J.D. on Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/JDCurriewriter" style="color: #006599; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">@JDCurriewriter</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">J.D. on Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/J-D-Currie-Novels/125046234199377" style="color: #006599; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">J.D. Currie</a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">J.D.'s latest book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006IFJSBI" style="color: #006599; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Judgment Tramp</a> (Amazon)</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-4783951176243183792012-09-06T10:04:00.000-05:002012-09-06T12:25:10.745-05:005 Reasons Why Indie Writers May Or May Not Be Sticking With KDP Select.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It has been 9 months since I attempted my first free days
with KDP Select. My first promo was shortly after I published Judgment Tramp,
and truthfully, it wasn't exactly a success. (<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=657651179057069107#editor/target=post;postID=3883577961330621286;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=21;src=postname" target="_blank">Read about it here</a>) After that I
decided to do a lot of detective work to discover what other writers were doing
to make KDP Select work for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I read so many blog posts on the subject, I decided it would be
beneficial to collect them all in one place and provide a list for others who
were seeking information. Since then, I periodically search for new posts and
continue to list people's experiences in a loose chronological order. (<a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/p/a-gathering-of-kdp-select-experiences.html" target="_blank">You can find that list here.</a>) </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Over the course of the last 8 months or so, the majority
of experiences have been positive with more and more writers jumping on board
and giving it a try. I,personally, have run 5 more promos since the initial flop
with various degrees of success. However, the KDP trend seems to be shifting
somewhat, and, recently, I've come across more posts <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>from writers who have decided to cut loose from KDP
Select. In light of this, I
thought it would be useful to summarize why indie writers who have been participating in KDP Select may or may not have chosen to stick with it. Personally I've decided to
stick with it as long as the benefits of participating in KDP Select seem to outweigh the
negatives. I reevaluate every 90 days, but so far I don't see anything that
will give my marketing efforts the same boost. However, the reasons that others
are deciding differently are valid and worth considering. If you have been participating or are considering participating in KDP Select, maybe the following will help you decide which way to go. So here are the top reasons writers may or may not be sticking with KDP Select as gleaned from recent posts:</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DFNdmmW2HIw/UEbQ1DDcxKI/AAAAAAAAAK8/GEeYbFIV2jM/s1600/which-way-should-we-go.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DFNdmmW2HIw/UEbQ1DDcxKI/AAAAAAAAAK8/GEeYbFIV2jM/s320/which-way-should-we-go.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writers ARE sticking With KDP Select because:</span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. ...they are still enjoying the boost in sales after a free
promotion , and the potential exposure to thousands of readers they might not
have reached without the visibility free day promotions gives them. They may be one of the writers who credits the success of your books to KDP Select
and the opportunities the program has given them. The impact of KDP Select may
not be what it once was-writers are noticing a definite difference since around
April/May when Amazon changed the algorithms-but many are still finding
it a beneficial tool for marketing their books. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> This may be especially true if the writer is a new author because using the program gives writers who may not yet have a following the opportunity for immediate exposure.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. ...they are using ALL of KDP Select, including the free
days. and aren't counting on royalties from borrows to take them to the
bank.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Borrows are only part of the
picture and, frankly, if your price is higher than $2.99, you will get less in
royalties for that borrow than if the book had been purchased</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. ...they are willing to max out your free event by using
websites, blogs, Facebook pages and other social media to advertise their free promo. This
has become even more important for maximizing chances at a bump in sales
afterwards. The effect of a multitude of free downloads on sales rank has
diminished since the program was first introduced, but the more visibility you
achieve, whether through the promo itself or the lingering effect of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>having made extra effort to advertise
your book, the more likely it is that sales will pick up after your free promo. The number of free titles has increased as well, so books may need more of a marketing boost to push the number of free downloads up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. ...they like the great advertising<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>their book gets<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>when it appears on the free
bestseller lists right alongside the paid bestseller lists; not for vanity's
sake ( well, not much!), but because being next to the likes of Stephen King,
Michael Connelly, or<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brad Thor
makes for pretty darn good advertising. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5. ...they are using the power of KDP Select to cross-sell their books. This may be especially true if an author has a series of books. Putting one book in the free promotion often helps build a readership for other books in a series and increases sales across all of an author's books. Despite all the changes, KDP Select still remains a powerful tool for aiding readers to sift through all of the books now available at Amazon.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writers are NOT sticking with KDP Select because:</span></b></div>
</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. ...they believe that writers putting their books up for
free is devaluing. They are afraid the use of the free promotion is overdone and
creating a harmful "Walmart-like" expectation among readers who are
becoming less and less willing to pay for what they have worked so hard to
create and market.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p>2. ... they believe that giving Amazon exclusivity is not a good
idea, either for their books, and/or for the greater good. Perhaps they are a
writer who has developed a readership among Nook or Kobo owners and doesn't want to exclude them, or they've tried the KDP Select program and it was good, but
it's time to expand to other platforms. They may feel Amazon is dangerously
close to becoming a monopoly.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p>3. ...they don't like that their books' rankings take a rapid
plunge, sometimes below where they started, after coming off free days, and,
sometimes, take a while to recover. Since the algorithms have changed, free downloads don't seem to count as much toward sales rank as they used to and a book being free means no sales are recorded during those free days, of course, which most likely causes this initial plummet directly after a promo ends. My book has always plummeted initially and
then risen back up. This is the bounce that we used to get all the time. My
book hasn't bounced as well as some, but it has always bounced. What I notice, however, is a much slower rise in the rank.)(<a href="http://patriotsofmars.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-e-book-bubble-pops.html" target="_blank"><i>See Jeff Faris's insightful post about why you may not be achievIng the bounce quite as easily anymore</i>.</a>)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p>4. ...they've noticed an increase in 1- and 2-star reviews,
often coming from people who haven't reviewed any other books, or, obviously
read the book, which makes them question the review's validity and/or intention of the
reviewer. They see a tendency for some people who have downloaded books for free
to leave harsher reviews. They may have seen an effect on their book's prior stellar
ratings.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p>5.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>... they simply feel that KDP Select has run out of steam, and it's time to move on. It
has lost enough of its effectiveness for them and it no longer seems worth it
for many of the reasons listed above.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Which way are you going with KDP Select?</b></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-42065546546871727242012-08-20T12:55:00.000-05:002012-08-20T12:55:12.290-05:00Fear of Rejection: What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjdd5vSzwmc/UDJyr8Fu-II/AAAAAAAAAJs/htsOGUrvJn4/s1600/fear+of+rejection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjdd5vSzwmc/UDJyr8Fu-II/AAAAAAAAAJs/htsOGUrvJn4/s200/fear+of+rejection.jpg" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't know about you, but I have my moments of cowardice, and there are some things that bother the heck out of me. I don't like sharks--and I'm absolutely sure that one will be having me for dinner the moment I jump into the water. I'm not a big fan of power tools or machinery, especially after having the tip of my right ring finger re-attached after an accident involving a forklift. And most of all, I'm afraid of something a lot of people are afraid of--I'm afraid of <b>rejection<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">.</span></b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjdd5vSzwmc/UDJyr8Fu-II/AAAAAAAAAJs/htsOGUrvJn4/s1600/fear+of+rejection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writers have to deal with rejection all the time, so it follows that the writers who last in the business do so by finding ways to get past the hurt of receiving a bad review or a rejection slip in order to get something productive accomplished.</span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DoGArn8EBy8/UDJ0s-z_CZI/AAAAAAAAAKM/ycJeYixfVhs/s1600/rejectionstrong.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DoGArn8EBy8/UDJ0s-z_CZI/AAAAAAAAAKM/ycJeYixfVhs/s200/rejectionstrong.gif" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More to the point, writers have to find ways to make rejection work for them. In fact, it might not be a stretch to say that rejection, at least to some degree, is an essential element of professional writing. Rejection winnows out the weak and unfit--it serves as a form of career darwinism to improve the breed. I think there was some hand wringing from industry insiders when e-books came along--but I think the darwinistic trend of the e-market will function normally; it will still be a business where only the strong survive and the true talent rises to the top of the pile. I don't know about you, but I wouldn't have it any other way.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writers have to figure out a way to motivate themselves when rejection comes calling, and how an individual writer handles rejection will sometimes determine the path a writer takes in the quest for success.If a writer is trying to snag an agent, then the first step on the path to success is essentially laid out--and some great writers struggled for years before finally achieving success in finding an agent, Indie authors may have dodged that bullet, but there are still many bumps in the road to endure before an indie writer can become successful. I'm sure some indie authors went down that path to avoid the agent's slush pile, but I believe that being a successful indie writer is at least as hard as becoming a traditionally published author.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kWXGGnH_EnM/UDJ0sJ31YHI/AAAAAAAAAKE/FjGH83ABneo/s1600/rejection+thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kWXGGnH_EnM/UDJ0sJ31YHI/AAAAAAAAAKE/FjGH83ABneo/s200/rejection+thumb.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kWXGGnH_EnM/UDJ0sJ31YHI/AAAAAAAAAKE/FjGH83ABneo/s1600/rejection+thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Indie authors still have to sell books, and that entails so much more than writing. Indie authors may skip the agent finding process, but indie writers still have to deal with the criticism of the marketplace. More than any other writer, indie writers live and die by customer reviews. It's big part of the indie marketing process.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Indie writers have to put work out on the market to find out where they stand. An essential part of the indie writer's education is to understand how to interpret customer feedback--it's great if your project gets wonderful reviews, but it isn't the end of the world if you receive a few tough reviews--those reviews tell you about your work, and they also reveal a lot about your readers--because every review says as much about the author of the review as it does about your work.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wouldn't jump on my proverbial sword because of a bad review, and I certainly would resist the urge to think I knew everything about writing just because I received a few good reviews. I'll do my best to learn everything I can about this craft, but at the end of the day I have to write the way I write. <b>People will either buy into what I'm doing or they won't--but at least I will have been true to myself. I urge you to do the same.</b></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-81839111878442784082012-07-30T01:24:00.000-05:002012-07-30T01:26:44.486-05:00Streamlined Writing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xT5xfAbxEAQ/UBYn4DvWFHI/AAAAAAAAAJE/x2M4vUU8o0I/s1600/santafestreamliner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xT5xfAbxEAQ/UBYn4DvWFHI/AAAAAAAAAJE/x2M4vUU8o0I/s320/santafestreamliner.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
I like streamlined things--most of the trains, planes and automobiles I love are streamlined designs. My favorite big cat is the cheetah, and even though I have a horrible fear of them, I'm in awe of the way sharks can cut through the water.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
My writing, however, was anything but streamlined when I started--it was downright flabby. I could never resist the urge to write ten sentences when one would do--and my early writing was plagued with excessive narrative that didn't add a thing to the story.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
I still struggle with it--and worse yet, I sometimes overcompensate and cut too much out of my writing because I'm terrified of loading my work down with flab.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Over time I've learned (well, I've almost learned) to take certain steps to keep my writing streamlined without overdoing it.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
The first step was to understand what kind of writer I am--I'm not a 21st century male version of Jane Austen--and I'm happy to admit it. I want to write tight prose that hammers out the story with a bare minimum of language, and I'm learning to structure my writing that way right from the first draft. That was my early mistake; I overwrote my early first drafts, with the mistaken assumption that I could edit that bloated writing into a workable story or essay. It didn't work--and now I try to do just the opposite. Most of my rewriting now is adding details, and it seems to work better for me. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The second step is to use the dialogue in my story to its fullest extent to tell the story. I think many beginning writers are terrified of dialogue, but I think it's a misplaced fear. Characters can reveal essential elements of the story in a few sentences of dialogue that might be difficult, or even impossible to convey with less than a half page of narrative. Don't get me wrong--I think narrative has its place, but too often the flab in a story can be found in the narrative. I know that's true for me.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
The final step is to keep the story balanced. I described my method for achieving that in an earlier blog, and it really works well for me. I usually get too involved in character development, and it's a constant struggle to pare the character development back so it doesn't overwhelm every other aspect of the writing.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KzBcF19eNOY/UBYnkHWoCLI/AAAAAAAAAI0/knRatpbcDIg/s1600/streamlined+car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KzBcF19eNOY/UBYnkHWoCLI/AAAAAAAAAI0/knRatpbcDIg/s320/streamlined+car.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Every word in a story or essay must earn its keep, and I think that's the biggest challenge of all. Language is the writer's best friend, but it is a friend that needs to be reigned in constantly so the story can shine at full brilliance.</span><br />
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-30183905805803706972012-07-08T20:30:00.000-05:002012-07-08T20:50:54.025-05:00Spartan means--Arcadian ends...in writing, and in life<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I've been overweight a good deal of my adult life. It kinda crept up on me, because I'd never had a weight problem as a kid or a teenager, but in my mid twenties I started creeping up in weight. By the time I hit forty I was resigned to being heavy. I won't sugar coat it--I gave up. I made excuses for my weight, I rationalized my bad behavior away, and I settled into a life of comfortable obesity.</div>
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But it wasn't very comfortable, and the extra weight became harder to bear with each passing year. Being heavy isn't any fun at all, and when I developed heart trouble it became apparent that the extra weight was (and is) literally trying to kill me.</div>
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For me it's simple--I either have to move or die, and I've decided to get up out of the chair and move. I'm exercising almost every day, and I'm trying very hard to control my lousy eating habits. I'm walking, and I've decided to carry a loaded backpack to help me work myself into shape.</div>
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I've mentioned before that Colin Fletcher is one of my writing heroes, and his book, "The Complete Walker" remains as a definitive guide for the serious backpacker. Any discussion of backpacking will sooner or later turn toward the subject of getting in shape to walk with a pack on your back, and Fletcher coined a phrase at the end of a section of the book dealing with getting in shape to hike that stuck with me over the years--and inspired the title of this blog post:</div>
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<i>"I'm afraid all these strictures end up sounding ferociously austere. <span style="color: red;">But Arcadian ends can justify Spartan means.</span> Many a beautiful backpacking week or weekend has been ruined by crippled city-soft muscles--because their owners had failed to recognize the softness, or at any rate to remedy it." <span style="color: black;">-- Colin Fletcher, writing in The Complete Walker</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: black;">So my loaded backpack is my Spartan means, and living, and being healthy and in shape, will be my Arcadian ends. That's a deal I'm finally prepared to make.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">I have to make the same sort of deal with my writing life--I'm finding too many ways to avoid writing. It's frustrating, because I'm not suffering from a case of writer's block. I'm not having a crisis of confidence. And I'm certainly not losing interest...in some ways my interest in writing is greater than it ever was. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">So what's the problem? </span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">In my case it's pretty simple. I don't manage my time well. That's a killer for me. I need to organize my days better. My writing cross is time management, and it is easily as heavy a load as that forty-pound pack I carry on my walks.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">We all have a cross we carry--and the solution isn't to ignore it and hope it will go away. I'll gladly carry my writing cross, because I know that it, like the backpack, will feel lighter if I acclimate myself to the weight. Spartan means are justified by Arcadian ends, and I'm ready to pay the price to get the payoff. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">What's your writing cross? How do you deal with it? </span><i><span style="color: black;"> </span></i></div>
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-33722027601816828762012-06-29T01:00:00.000-05:002012-06-29T01:00:02.910-05:00Announcing the Release of Michael K. Rose's SHORT STORIES!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am pleased for the opportunity to help spread the word today about the latest release by the superb science fiction writer, Michael K. Rose.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DQ4Rx_mSpxA/T-kynWgOaqI/AAAAAAAAAHE/QTQaKHJMlmM/s1600/Short+Stories+ad+available.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="66" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DQ4Rx_mSpxA/T-kynWgOaqI/AAAAAAAAAHE/QTQaKHJMlmM/s320/Short+Stories+ad+available.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The science fiction stories of
Michael K. Rose can most accurately be described as eclectic. He is best known
for his science fiction adventure series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sullivan’s
War</i> and in this collection you will find stories that adhere to the strongest
expectations of the genre, such as “Sergeant Riley’s Account,” “Sleep” and “A
Random Selection.”</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But you will also find stories
that, while speculative in nature, owe more to literary fiction than anything
else. Works such as “Main & Church,” “Inner Life” and “Pedro X.” explore
the psyche as opposed to the outer reaches of the galaxy.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever your tastes, you are
bound to discover many favorites amongst these ten stories. The first five have
been previously available electronically but this is their first appearance in
print. The last five stories are new to this collection.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Contents:</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Sergeant Riley's Account"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Sleep"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Inner Life"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Mahler's Tenth"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"If I Profane with My Unworthiest Hand"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"A Random Selection"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Main & Church"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The Tunnel"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Pedro X."</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The Vast Expanse Beyond"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">eBook Editions Available at:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amazon’s U.S. Store: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008DWPEUS">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008DWPEUS</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amazon’s U.K. Store: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008DWPEUS">http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008DWPEUS</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">B&N’s Nook Store: <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/short-stories-michael-k-rose/1111753116?ean=2940014585989">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/short-stories-michael-k-rose/1111753116?ean=2940014585989</a>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All Other International Amazon Kindle Stores. Links
here: <a href="http://www.michaelkrose.com/short-stories">http://www.michaelkrose.com/short-stories</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Signed print copies are available from the author:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.michaelkrose.com/apps/webstore/products/show/3162997">http://www.michaelkrose.com/apps/webstore/products/show/3162997</a>
</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Praise for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Short Stories</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Michael K. Rose is an
insightful, compelling writer with a talent for nuance and timing. He is able
to make the impossible seem perfectly plausible and the unlikely seem as
natural as summer rain<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. Short Stories</i>
is not only fiction for the deep thinker but grand entertainment for the rest
of us, too. The tales are thought-provoking, intriguing, and have a tendency to
stay with the reader long after the last page is turned. Prepare to be
immersed!"</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- K. Wodke, co-author of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Betrayed</i></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"If there is an author new
to the world of publishing that I would place next to Ray Bradbury, Edgar Allan
Poe and Isaac Asimov, it has to be Michael K. Rose. His collection <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Short Stories</i> is not only entertaining,
it is fulfilling from both a philosophical as well as an emotional standpoint.
It is at times dark, light and colorful. It is sound in element, true to form
and at no time did I think to myself 'That's it?' </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Short Stories</i> is not only thought-provoking, it is the purest form
of literature, as rich as a bottle of Montrachet 1978 and as tasty as a
generous cut of Wagyu beef."</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Benjamin X. Wretlind, author
of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sketches
from the Spanish Mustang</i></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“From the science fiction of
everyday life, to the inner life of a human being, to the mysterious expanses
of space, these stories are vessels to carry you to places you never dreamed
you could go. No other writer today can pull together such different stories
and weave the words together with the skill to keep you thinking about them
long after you have finished.”</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q1zt_YX7484/T-kym84elmI/AAAAAAAAAG8/IbdOAbO7KUc/s1600/Headshot+1+300x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q1zt_YX7484/T-kym84elmI/AAAAAAAAAG8/IbdOAbO7KUc/s200/Headshot+1+300x.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Alexia Purdy, author of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ever
Shade<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Biography<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Michael K. Rose is the author of
the science fiction adventure series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sullivan’s
War</i>. He grew up in Arizona, where he now resides, after spending part of
his formative years overseas and in Maine.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When he is not writing, Michael
enjoys reading. He is a lover of classical music and regularly attends
performances of the Phoenix Symphony and Arizona Opera. He also enjoys tabletop
and card gaming.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> He
is an avid and enthusiastic traveler and has visited nearly thirty countries on
four continents.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from
Arizona State University.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To connect with Michael, please visit the following
links:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Website: <a href="http://www.michaelkrose.com/">http://www.michaelkrose.com</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Blog: <a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/">http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/MichaelKRose">http://twitter.com/#!/MichaelKRose</a>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000670152582">http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000670152582</a>
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-23577666552216403742012-06-21T00:30:00.000-05:002012-06-21T14:19:20.162-05:00PTSD,TBI, and Thomas Tweed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">**Way back, oh, 6 months or so ago, I began my Twitter life, and was fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of Benjamin X. Wretlind. Ben is an insightful, thought-provoking writer, and a gentleman to boot. I was immediately intrigued by the unique concept behind his Sketches From the Spanish Mustang novellas, and the book to be released July 1. I've read several of the novellas, including Cpl.Thomas Tweed's War. The protagonist in my books, Eb Maclean, also suffers from PTSD, like Thomas, and so I am doubly thrilled for the chance to host Benjamin Wretlind as a guest today as he discusses his character Thomas Tweed..**</span></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">My thanks to Jeff for allowing me
to write all over his blog. As I mentioned in my preview, Jeff and I go way
back...almost months, and in the social networking, connected world we live in,
that's quite a long time ago. What I've learned from Jeff is that he is
extremely helpful, always willing to go the extra mile, and he's a great
writer.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Since Jeff recently posted a piece
on his blog about post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and how it relates to
his character Eb Maclean, who appears in several works including Judgment
Tramp, I asked him if he'd like to host this bit on PTSD, TBI and Thomas Tweed.
Being the helpful person Jeff is, he said yes (of course).</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As Jeff, <a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/2012/06/eb-maclean-and-ptsd.html" target="_blank">in his recent blog post on PTSD</a>, said, "PTSD isn't just about having flashbacks (the standard TV
drama treatment of the condition) or temper issues, and sometimes the truth of
the condition's effect on someone is quite graphic. I want Eb Maclean to be
real, but I'm learning that every little aspect of his condition doesn't need
to be explained in detail. In fact, most of those details are probably more of
a distraction to the storyline."</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Thomas Tweed is one of the central
characters in Sketches from the Spanish Mustang and his story is probably the
most complicated and strange I've written. It's important to understand that even if a particular story
line doesn't seem to include him, he's there nonetheless. When I first set out
to sketch Tweed's life, I wasn't at all surprised to find he'd already been
stereotyped by many other characters in the book. Thomas is a vagrant. Thomas
is weird. Thomas is someone to avoid. Thomas needs help.</span></div>
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With the exception of one
character, Thomas is never viewed as the person he really is: a returning
Marine who suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Afghanistan and was
admitted to a hospital in Denver so he could deal with his PTSD.</div>
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There is a lot of attention given
these day to PTSD and an increased emphasis on TBI, however the fact of the
matter is, most people don't understand exactly what a person might be going
through, whether they returned from a war zone, they were involved in a crash
on the freeway or they simply fell off their bike in the worst possible
position. We look at PTSD as
something a veteran might suffer, but that's far from the truth.</div>
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In 2010, after I retired from the
military, I applied for a job to help returning soldiers find the resources
they needed. In addition, I was expected to weed out certain people who showed
a possibility of either PTSD or TBI, even if it wasn't documented in their
records. While I was very familiar with PTSD and TBI, I wasn't prepared to
learn about one case in particular.</div>
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A man like Thomas Tweed.</div>
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This particular man suffered from
an acute loss of memory from an improvised explosive device his squad ran
across in Afghanistan during a routine patrol. While a portion of his brain was
damaged from the explosion, he was able to recall some things from his past.
Through therapy, his brain registered the events that were lost as
"memories," but not everything stuck. It was almost like pouring
rocks through a sieve: some rocks stay, others pass through the slots in the
bottom.</div>
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This man had a wife and child, and
all three needed help.</div>
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I used that case as a background
for Thomas, and I also wanted to know what other people thought of him--those
who didn't know who he was or what he'd gone through. I wasn't quite sure how
to go about doing this until I watched a video from the band Shinedown called
"What a Shame."</div>
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I'm going to ask you to please
watch this video even if rock or alternative music isn't your thing. In
particular, pay attention to the lyrics and the video itself. (I'd print the
lyrics, but I think that might get someone in trouble with copyrights, etc.)</div>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0e0e0e; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">It was quite a shock to see this
video and know exactly what it was I wanted to do: portray a man as seen
through different eyes. Not all people would see him the same way, but he's a
person nonetheless. He has hopes, fears, desires. Thomas is really the embodiment
of every homeless man or woman you see on the street. He is a picture of
returning soldiers. He is a man. He is human.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0e0e0e; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">The story of Thomas Tweed is
really one of the central themes in Sketches from the Spanish Mustang. While
some people may think it revolves around the Artist and her gift or the
individual story lines she "sketches," in truth the novel is about
seeing things from a different point of view.</span></div>
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</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .15in;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0e0e0e; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Because if we don't do this, we'll
never know the truth: we're not all the same.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .15in;">
(And I'll tell you a little
secret: it was my grandmother who taught me about the license plates.
Incidentally, two of my previously held plates appear in this story. If you're
not sure what I mean, you should pick up Sketches from the Spanish Mustang and find
out.)</div>
</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">BIOGRAPHY</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-thkLnSj16wY/T-J9Up7H0UI/AAAAAAAAAGo/Oz9PFLzFvik/s1600/bravo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-thkLnSj16wY/T-J9Up7H0UI/AAAAAAAAAGo/Oz9PFLzFvik/s200/bravo.jpg" width="138" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Benjamin X. Wretlind, the author of <a href="http://bxwretlind.com/blog/castles-a-fictional-memoir-of-a-girl-with-scissors/" target="_blank">Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors</a> and <a href="http://bxwretlind.com/blog/sketches-from-the-spanish-mustang/" target="_blank">Sketches from the Spanish Mustang,</a> has been called "a Pulitzer-caliber writer" with "a unique American voice." Aside from novels, he has been published in many magazines throughout the past 10 years.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">SKETCHES FROM THE SPANISH MUSTANG</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WqkrLFgKdxY/T-J9T-O3CHI/AAAAAAAAAGg/2sAm-0bVeyE/s1600/Sketches_Front_Cover_1312x863.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WqkrLFgKdxY/T-J9T-O3CHI/AAAAAAAAAGg/2sAm-0bVeyE/s320/Sketches_Front_Cover_1312x863.jpg" width="210" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In <a href="http://bxwretlind.com/blog/sketches-from-the-spanish-mustang/" target="_blank">Sketches from the Spanish Mustang,</a> a haunting, heart-warming and often brutally direct exploration of the lives of seven people in the mining town of Cripple Creek, Colorado, a woman must come to grips with the failings that cost the lives of her husband and child. Bestselling author Michael K. Rose says: "Mr. Wretlind has penned a tale of such emotional and literary depth it will haunt the reader long after the last page is turned."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">With a pencil, a sketchbook and a keen eye for the details of the soul, the woman's lines and smudges, curves and tone reveal the stories behind her subjects. Life emerges on the page ó vengeance, salvation, love and death. The artist's subjects fight for survival, only to be saved in the sketches of a woman with a gift . . . and a curse.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">International Book Award winner Gregory G. Allen calls the book a "unique journey that rips away the outer layers of people allowing us to stare into their souls where humanity is universal: no matter the genre of writing."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://bxwretlind.com/blog/sketches-from-the-spanish-mustang/" target="_blank">Sketches from the Spanish Mustang</a> will be available at all major online retailers for $14.95 on July 1st, 2012. It will also be presented in an electronic format (e.g. Kindle, nook) for $5.95.</span><br />
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-30354319536146850772012-06-13T23:10:00.000-05:002012-06-21T02:43:39.969-05:00Eb Maclean and PTSD: The Challenge To Keep the Protagonist's Flaw From Taking Over the Story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I mentioned in a previous post that my protagonist in Judgment Tramp, Eb Maclean, has PTSD. His condition is common among servicemen and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, or in any other hazardous posting.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I made a conscious decision right from the beginning to saddle Eb with these problems--not only because I hoped it would help make him a more believable character, but also to hopefully shed some light on a condition that is more pervasive in our military than we think. About 20% of our returning service-people suffer from PTSD or depression upon returning home, and that number seems to be going up. </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pQnm4FvVYnA/T9V6c5xpXzI/AAAAAAAAAGU/wSG4KEAAHyE/s1600/PTSD-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pQnm4FvVYnA/T9V6c5xpXzI/AAAAAAAAAGU/wSG4KEAAHyE/s200/PTSD-1.jpg" width="195" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Weaving Eb's PTSD into the storyline seemed like a worthy goal, but there were problems, some of which I anticipated, and some that crept up on me once I began the writing process. I looked forward to the opportunity to make Eb flawed, and the PTSD was a handy device to help me introduce some less than stellar character attributes.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A stronger, more stable hero would make different decisions and move the story in a different direction. It is Eb's struggle that colors his actions and choices. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But I wanted to write thrillers, not literary fiction, and there has been a constant danger of allowing Eb's problems to carry the story away from my chosen genre. And there is always the additional danger of making a protagonist flawed to the point where the reader decides the effort of reading isn't worth the potential reward--because they decide the protagonist is not flawed at all, but is simply a jerk. I certainly didn't want that. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px;">PTSD as choice of flaw made him, in my mind, a more sympathetic character despite his unlikable qualities.</span></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm slowly learning to resist the urge to describe every aspect of Eb's PTSD...and my editor/beta reader helps to keep me honest in this regard. I also don't want the PTSD to become a cliche'.</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">PTSD isn't just about having flashbacks (the standard TV drama treatment of the condition) or temper issues, and sometimes the truth of the condition's effect on someone is quite graphic. I want Eb Maclean to be real, but I'm learning that every little aspect of his condition doesn't need to be explained in detail. In fact, most of those details are probably more of a distraction to the storyline.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I want my readers to see Eb as a real hero, flawed, but worthy of redemption. I expect the reader to have sympathy for Eb's problems, but I don't want that sympathy for him to take over and derail the story. It's a fine line and one that I keep in mind continually. </span></div>
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-21041710077061942312012-05-31T23:02:00.000-05:002012-05-31T23:02:47.804-05:00Freedom Isn't Free<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gs4cPrrznJo/T77lHifJwhI/AAAAAAAAAF0/zREEcpjVndk/s1600/soldier(6).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gs4cPrrznJo/T77lHifJwhI/AAAAAAAAAF0/zREEcpjVndk/s200/soldier(6).jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
Judgment Tramp is a book about the hunt for a killer, but it's also about a soldier's attempt to return to civilian life. Sure, the book is categorized as a mystery/thriller, but I think of it as more of a psychological thriller than anything else. </div>
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The protagonist, Eb Maclean, is just a guy who's trying to get his life back together. He isn't necessarily looking for trouble;but trouble seems to find him quite easily. A lot of his problems are inside of him, because, try as he might, he can't seem to leave the army in the past. His experience is troubling and it leads him to react to the events around him in specific ways.</div>
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Eb isn't a superhero. He isn't a Hollywood creation, and he isn't bigger than life. He's flawed, and sometimes he isn't even a nice person. He can be stuffy, judgmental, and even a bit of a bigot. He's angry. He's confused. And most of all, he's human, with all of the wonderful qualities and limitations of the species. He isn't Rambo--he's just a guy who answered the call to do a dirty, messy job that most people wouldn't do, and he will never fully recover from it. </div>
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Eb isn't special.</div>
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I write that as a matter of truth because Eb is a creation of mine, but in reality he is no different than any other soldier, past or present. None of our soldiers go to Iraq and Afghanistan (or Omaha Beach, or Gettysburg, or Monmouth Courthouse) and come back whole. They leave a little piece of themselves behind. They sometimes come home with problems like PTSD. We don't do enough for them--we should take better care of our people who give so much to us.</div>
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Eb is one of those people. He is not special--he is typical of the type of people who serve our nation. And I have no problem calling him a hero.</div>
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Like all of our military people, Eb didn't just pay the price for his service--he paid for all of us.</div>
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I hope you all have a wonderful Memorial Day holiday weekend. Please be safe, and remember to take a few moments to thank our servicemen and women for their sacrifice on our behalf. Eb Maclean is in good company. </div>
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<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CoQ9qfJGb9c/T77bh3sNp0I/AAAAAAAAAFg/RPSKXJEMZ0c/s1600/memorialday20112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CoQ9qfJGb9c/T77bh3sNp0I/AAAAAAAAAFg/RPSKXJEMZ0c/s200/memorialday20112.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<b>In honor of Memorial Day, <a href="http://amzn.to/wBpEKB" target="_blank">JUDGMENT TRAMP</a> (an Eb Maclean Novel) will be free :May 26 & 27 on Amazon.</b></div>
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-41230915906026966682012-05-23T19:37:00.000-05:002012-06-25T13:10:04.657-05:00KDP Select Free Days: 3rd Time's the Charm<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uDHhFTVfZhA/T7vl9FYemgI/AAAAAAAAAFU/AbN4DWSsI3A/s1600/Victory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uDHhFTVfZhA/T7vl9FYemgI/AAAAAAAAAFU/AbN4DWSsI3A/s200/Victory.jpg" width="132" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It has been over 3 weeks since I ran my last KDP Select free promo for my thriller, Judgment Tramp. And, although, I was never unhappy with my results the first 2 times, (I figured any exposure was good exposure),I had never reached anywhere near the success of some of the authors who were kind enough to allow me to share their experiences on this blog.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">But, you guessed it, this last promo blew the roof off the previous two.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Before I get into why I think this happened, let me give you some numbers. We all like numbers, don't we?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>1st promo</b> Dec. 26 & 27 (Mon. & Tues)--fresh out of the box, no platform, barely on twitter or other social media sites; in other words-I was clueless. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">---<u>Sales prior to promo</u>: 2 No borrows (what are those?)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">---<u>Downloads</u>: 400 US; 64 UK; 4 DE Total= 468 ;</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">(Averaged about 8-10 DL's /hour & they were fairly consistent; Highest ranking: #1431 in free)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Post-promo sales</u>: Sales did not happen. Book plummeted back to where it had been prior to the promo. I had only 2 sales the whole month of January.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> --<u>Attitude</u>: Still hopeful. Learning experience. Hoping for a few reviews.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>2nd Promo</b> Feb. 21-23 (Wed-Fri)--I considered myself to be a toddler more than a baby, at this point. I was active on twitter, blog up and running, but still working on adding other areas of marketing and social media activity-Reading, reading reading what others have shared.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Sales prior to promo</u>: 2 in Jan., 6 in Feb. before promo. No borrows ( and seriously not expecting any)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Downloads</u>: 693 US; 67 UK; 11 DE; 1 FR Total=772;</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">(Averaged 20 Dls/hour the first day, decreased to about 10/hour second day until late afternoon on second day, wherein I started to see a downward trend in DL's. By 3rd day the book was getting maybe 5 an hour. At this point, ranking started the plunge despite having over 24 hours left AND having broke into top 100 in Mystery/Thrillers. Highest ranking reached: #510 in free, and #68 in Mystery/Thrillers.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">---<u>Post-promo sales</u>: About 20 in the first week or so following the promo and then sales were trickling in every once in a while up until the 3rd promo. Not great, but, then again, better than prior to the promo.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Attitude: Hopeful. Learning experience. Disappointed that DLs seemed to hit a wall and decline suddenly before end of promo so the book's rank also declined but still more successful than first attempt.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>3rd Promo</b>: April 25,26 (Wed, Thurs.)--Added social media sites like Goodreads, and more reviews. I have toddling along and learning a little bit more about this online selfpub/marketing monster. Read, read, reading what everyone else is doing.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Sales prior to promo</u>: 14 in March, 7 in April prior to promo. No borrows.(Again, not expecting any)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Downloads</u>...wait for it... <b>8480 US;119 UK;7 FR;5 DE;1 ES; <i>Total= 8612!</i></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">Wow. </i><i> </i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Over 10x the DLs of the last promo which ran 1 day longer. </i>Ok, so bear with me, because I don't mind saying, it was exciting. Instead of counting DLs by the hour, I began to count them by the minute! My hope had been to double what I'd done in Feb. and I far exceeded that. By afternoon of first day , JT had already been downloaded more than in all 3 days of the Feb. promo. That evening, at one point, I realized over 800 had been downloaded in an hour! I climbed to the top 5 of my 2 niche categories-Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue, and Police Procedurals- fairly quickly(sometime the first morning), and by afternoon broke the top 100 in Mysteries/Thrillers. I stayed in the top 100 of all of these lists all the way through to the end of the promo. I reached #1 in Spy & #2 in Police, #11 in Mysteries/Thrillers. By evening I was in top 100 of the Free Bestsellers! I saw my book sitting there on the free lists next to heavy hitters like John Grisham, Vince Flynn, Ken Follett, and Jeffrey Archer, and so did readers-can't be anything bad in that! Early on I even fleetingly hit the Popular list. I even ended up on the bestseller lists in the UK.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My fear had been that JT would repeat what happened in Feb., when 3/4's of the way through the promo., the ranking started to slip. When the promo ended the book was no longer on a bestseller list, which I believe was the reason sales never really took off, even for the short period of time others had reported. I wanted badly to end in the top 100 and this time I was not disappointed.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--<u>Post-promo sales</u>: Ok, so that was exciting, but what would happen after the dust cleared and my little book was out there on it's own without 'Free' to help it along?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When I woke up that morning and looked at the ranking my heart about fell out of my chest-- #388,000 seriously? </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ok, while I was picking myself up off the floor, somehow it had climbed back up to 4 digits. Those Amazon algorithmists, what a bunch of pranksters....</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It didn't stay there, of course, but the book has enjoyed steady sales since it went back to paid. The first few days, just as so many have reported, were the best: Day 1:14 books, Day 2: 21 Day 3: 28 and 2 borrows (my first!); Day 4:19 and 5 borrows. The book even managed to stay in the top 100 in Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue for 5 more days, which was totally unexpected, and probably helped somewhat. I've even had borrows which continues to amaze me. I won't bore you with more details, but sales and ranking have slowly decreased, but not unexpectedly. However, over 3 weeks later, sales are still happening at a steady pace of 1-3 a day. Not amazing, but considering sales prior to this promo were more like 1-2 a week, I am still very pleased. ( I have seen only 1 UK sale by the way. International Sales is an area that needs exploring.)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">--Attitude: Hopeful. I see more possibilities now. It's all a learning experience right?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">SO what made the difference?</span></b><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1. <b>Categories</b>- I switched JT over to less populated niche categories after reading Ben Wretlind's analysis of categories <a href="http://bxwretlind.com/blog/2012/03/13/how-to-put-the-llamas-on-the-shelf-with-the-lucky-charms/" target="_blank">on his blog here</a>. This made it supremely easier to climb into the top 100 on the bestseller list.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2. <b>Help</b>- I asked my twitter buddies to retweet me. I mean I specifically messaged and asked other authors with whom I felt comfortable because we had a mutual helping relationship already established; and true to form, my fellow indies jumped right in there. In fact, I really do attribute the very quick rise in sales to their early tweeting and if you are one of those authors, I can't thank you enough for your help. At one point a twitter bot picked up that my twitter handle was the #5 twitter name on Twitter.(yes, that was 4 twitters in a sentence!). I have no idea how long that brief flash of social media fame lasted (I was right behind MSNBC) but I'm sure it gave JT the early boost at a critical time. I also joined tweet teams at <a href="http://www.worldliterarycafe.com/" target="_blank">WLC</a> which I like to do as often as I can anyway.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3.<b>Exposure</b>- Although I had submitted to Pixel of Ink (again), Ereader News Today, Digital Book Today, I was apparently too late and never got picked up (again). However, I had posted on many facebook sites, (actually I didn't have time to post on even half of the sites I had found), and some minor ebook sites. I sent an invitation out on Goodreads. and I posted on the Kindle Boards. I did not realize until sometime after that I had popped up in a couple places unexpectedly. I have an extensive list that hopefully I'll be able to share at some point, but I worked on doubling my exposure. I employed a friend to help me with this part, by the way. It is time consuming, but key. I believe downloads slowed so quickly during the previous promo because I had reached the limits of my platform at that point.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">4. <b>Luck and the old Success Begets Success thing- </b>I really think with some of this the stars have to align. I think that in my case, things fell into place this time. Also, when you hit those Bestseller lists, the ball really starts rolling. Downloads beget downloads. I'm not sure if it would happen this way again. There are rumors that the KDP Select magic is wearing off and others are not getting the great results they got before. Recently bloggers have reported Amazon algorithms have changed, and not favorably for the Select books. Perhaps. But for me the 3rd time was the charm. I plan on doing another free day soon. I'm hoping it will goose sales a bit and keep Judgment Tramp floating where it is- way above the pre-promo ranking and sales.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">**Oh,<b>and one other thing</b>, I decided to change the pricing for the book to $.99 after about 7-8 days, when I thought the book's ranking was slipping, to see if it would help keep it from plummeting. I saw absolutely NO difference. The sales stayed steadily the same and there were no borrows during that time period of 2 days. It simply wasn't worth losing the $1.65 per book, so I probably will not do that again, and certainly not as a means to jump start sales.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, now the question is, how to maintain decent sales after a successful KDP Select Free Book promo? What has everyone else been doing?</span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Read other authors' experiences on my page <a href="http://bit.ly/xmPhTm" target="_blank">"A Gathering of KDP Select Experiences"</a>.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-38497510761735521652012-05-21T02:21:00.002-05:002012-05-21T09:46:20.669-05:00Announcing New Release: Sullivan’s War: Book III - Edaline’s Dawn<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
At the beginning of April, I interviewed author Michael K. Rose shortly after his release of Book 2 of the amazing scifi series, <i>Sullivan's War</i>. I am pleased to be able to announce on this blog that Book 3 of the series is now available as well. Read about <i>Book III: Edaline's Dawn</i> below and check out my interview with Mr. Rose <a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/2012/04/interview-with-michael-k-rose.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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With the release of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">All
Good Men Serve the Devil</i>, the first book of the series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sullivan’s War</i>, Michael K. Rose began science fiction readers on an
adventure that would span the galaxy as Rick Sullivan, Frank Allen and Kate
Alexander came up against ruthless gang leaders, assassins, bounty hunters and
highly-trained soldiers from Edaline, Sullivan’s home planet.</div>
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Now, with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Book III
- Edaline’s Dawn</i>, all that Rick Sullivan has worked for comes to a head. In
this action-packed finale to the series, Sullivan finally returns to Edaline to
overthrow the planet's oppressive regime. Will he be able to help organize a
new uprising against the government? How do the mysterious hyperspace entities
figure into Sullivan’s future? And what will be the fate of Frank Allen?</div>
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Find out in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sullivan's
War: Book III - Edaline's Dawn</i>!</div>
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Praise for the series:</div>
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"Gritty, hardcore sci-fi with a fascinating twist,
guaranteed to please!"</div>
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"A sci-fi thriller laced with action and political
undertones. A Must Read!"</div>
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"Mr. Rose knocks another one out of the galaxy…<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=657651179057069107" name="_GoBack"></a>."</div>
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"The writing style is engaging and creative…."</div>
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"…this thrill-a-minute ride will keep you glued to
your seat until the very end."</div>
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For more information please visit: <a href="http://www.michaelkrose.com/sullivan-s-war">http://www.michaelkrose.com/sullivan-s-war</a></div>
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Biography</div>
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Michael K. Rose is a writer of science fiction and
literary fiction novels and short stories. His work has received rave 4- and
5-star reviews and the books in his <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sullivan's
War</i> series are frequent inhabitants of Amazon’s “Bestsellers in Science
Fiction Series” list.</div>
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Writing is not Michael’s only passion. He’s an avid
traveler and has visited over two dozen countries on four continents. He also
loves classical music and has season tickets to both the symphony and the
opera. He can be reached at myriad_spheres@yahoo.com.</div>
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Links:</div>
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Website:</div>
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<a href="http://www.michaelkrose.com/">http://www.michaelkrose.com</a></div>
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Blog:</div>
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<a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/">http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/</a></div>
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Twitter:</div>
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<a href="http://twitter.com/#!/michaelkrose">http://twitter.com/#!/michaelkrose</a></div>
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Facebook:</div>
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000670152582">http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000670152582</a></div>
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Amazon Author Page:</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-K.-Rose/e/B0062EIPN2/">http://www.amazon.com/Michael-K.-Rose/e/B0062EIPN2/</a></div>
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Goodreads Author Page: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5323090.Michael_K_Rose">http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5323090.Michael_K_Rose</a></div>
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-18609794737822102732012-04-27T10:58:00.000-05:002012-06-21T02:40:32.555-05:00Mark Your Path To Balance In Writing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NKqaVi9ucg0/T5YqLrJiDdI/AAAAAAAAAFA/fhQ9znfzVkg/s1600/markers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NKqaVi9ucg0/T5YqLrJiDdI/AAAAAAAAAFA/fhQ9znfzVkg/s200/markers.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/2012/04/writing-balanced-story.html" target="_blank">Last time</a> I said I'd talk about a technique for making sure your stories have the proper balance. First, though, let's establish that balance is often a means to an end. Balancing plot, setting, and character is a good place to start, but <i>adjusting</i> the balance between the three elements is the real goal. As a writer of thrillers, I want my books to be slightly plot heavy, and I leave much of the narrative about setting out. I try to relegate my character development to the dialogue between my characters. </div>
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But first there needs to be a reliable method for judging the writing, chapter by chapter, page by page, and sentence by sentence. I use the marker method, and it works very well. I first heard about this while talking to another writer, but I didn't really understand the system until I read a how-to article in one of the writing magazines. I tried it, and it worked like a charm!</div>
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Because we are looking for three different parameters within our writing, we need three different colours of magic markers: one for plot (I use red), one for character (blue), and one for setting (green). I tackle this job one page at a time, working from a printed copy. Here is a short excerpt from "Judgment Tramp", and I've coloured the sentences according to how I think they relate to the story. </div>
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<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Agent
Ricci was sitting in the driver's seat of a battered,
government-issued Ford Crown Victoria with the driver's side front
window down, making notes on a legal pad.</b></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>“Get
in, Mr. Maclean,” she said. She started the car. “We need to
talk.”</b></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="background-color: blue;">“Good
morning to you too,” I said crossly</span> <span style="color: lime;">as I closed the passenger door
and buckled my seat belt.</span></b></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">“It
hasn't been anything like a good morning,”</span> <span style="color: #cc0000;">she said</span> <span style="color: #cc0000;">as she backed out of the space.</span><span style="background-color: lime;"></span> <span style="color: blue;">She gunned the engine</span> <span style="color: #cc0000;">and made a U-turn to go up
the hill away from the beach.</span> <span style="background-color: blue;">“Where can we get a decent
breakfast?”</span></b></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>“I've
already had breakfast.”</b></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="color: blue;">“I
could care less. You can sit in a booth and watch me eat.”</span> <span style="background-color: lime;">She
looked away from the road for a moment</span> <span style="background-color: blue;">and gave me a cold stare.</span> “<span style="color: #cc0000;">And
then you can tell me why you lied to me yesterday.”</span></b></div>
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<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="color: black;">The first sentence is solid blue</span></span><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">, </span></b><span style="color: black;">and it tells us a lot about Ricci<b>, </b>even without knowing anything about the book</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">. </span></b><span style="color: black;">The next sentence is more about plot--she needs to "talk", and given what the first sentence tells us, that means she has some questions for Eb Maclean, so this sentence is marked red. </span></div>
<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">Eb isn't happy, and his reply shows it, so his response is marked blue for character, but then he is in the car, buckling his seat belt--the car has become the setting, and this part of the sentence is marked green.</span></div>
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<div class="western" lang="en-US" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">The rest of the excerpt is marked accordingly, and the excerpted example shows a reasonable balance between plot, setting, and character.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">Some sentences will be marked with more than one colour--perhaps red and blue if the sentence serves to reinforce plot and character at the same time. Once a chapter is marked it is easy to see if there is one predominant element in the writing, and if the balance isn't to your liking you can change it easily.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">The marker method can be expanded if you wish. I know of one writer who uses the marker method to check to see if the sensory aspects of writing are addressed. One colour would be used for auditory elements, another for olfaction (smells)..and so on.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">I like to keep it simple and stay with the three marker system. Now that I've been writing a while, I tend to use this technique only when I have a chapter that gives me trouble. For example, when things are not flowing, I tend to go crazy with dialogue, and I don't do enough picture-painting with my language, or I get bogged down in character description. There is a restaurant scene where Imme is talking about 9-11, and initially I got carried away and went off track with too much description that didn't add anything to the plot. The marker trick helped me see that, and I ended up cutting most of it out. Then the chapter started working.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><b>Give it a try. It's an easy system to use, and it will help you keep your writing under control. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><b><br /></b></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><b>What other techniques do you use to keep yourself on track?</b></span><br />
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-11409662708131598312012-04-17T01:09:00.000-05:002012-06-21T02:39:54.386-05:00A Question of Balance In Your Writing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--0_RfXHtfWc/T4up6saIspI/AAAAAAAAAE4/doSuySg258o/s1600/Healthy-Balance-1024x681.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--0_RfXHtfWc/T4up6saIspI/AAAAAAAAAE4/doSuySg258o/s200/Healthy-Balance-1024x681.jpg" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writing a story, a short story, novella, or a full length novel, is hard work. Most writers have a collection of unfinished novels and stories taking up space in the computer hard drive--stories that never got off the ground, or, just as likely, burned out after 100 pages or so.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes the story idea just isn't good enough, or the writer's attention is redirected elsewhere. Most writers have one or two stories that sit around in cyber never-never land, waiting to be finished.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At times, however, the story idea is fine--but the writer becomes overwhelmed in the middle of the first draft. Experienced writers are familiar with the "100 page curse", and often the writer is hard-pressed to understand why the story stalled out. Too often the writer blames "burnout", or "writer's block" for the problem, when in fact it is something very different; the real problem is that the story has been thrown out of balance, and the writer gives up and moves to another project.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Story balance is an important element of writing that is overlooked. A balanced story has just the right mixture of plot, character development, and setting. Most novel-length stories emphasize one of these elements over the others, but the best novels weave all three elements together in a way that elevates the entire work to a higher level.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's great, but what about that unfinished manuscript? </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first trick is to identify what type of writer you are. Some people write monumentally long first drafts and struggle to pare the finished manuscript down to size. Some writers throw a first draft together with the bare minimum...and then the challenge becomes fleshing out the finished product in a way that doesn't bury the original story.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most writers do one or another at various times. I'm this type of writer, although I must confess that I tend to write a more streamlined first draft than I did back in the day. "Judgment Tramp" was purposefully written to be plot driven, and I tried to add just enough character development and setting to flesh the book out. </span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The setting of "Judgment Tramp" was important to me--I love South Haven, Michigan, and I wanted it to be a big part of the book. I also made a decision to emulate Frederick Forsyth--I wanted my readers to have the opportunity to walk around in the town where my story was set and be able to find specific buildings and areas described in the book. But it was equally important to me that the setting of "Judgment Tramp" didn't take over from the story. I resisted the urge to write too much description of South Haven--and the finished book isn't bogged down by page after page of narrative that detracts from the plot (at least I hope it isn't!).</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also wanted my characters to be molded by the setting--we are all shaped by our locale, and Eb and Maggie are reflections of their upbringing. Michigan is a big part of who they are, and that's a key for a writer seeking balance; the characters and setting are to a great degree intertwined with each other. The plot of any story is dependent upon that character-setting relationship. Recognizing this is a huge step forward for a writer, and almost every first draft ever written needs tweaking to bring these elements into harmony with each other.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://jdcurrie.blogspot.com/2012/04/mark-your-path-to-balance.html" target="_blank">Next time </a>I'll delve into techniques that will help writer's check their story for balance.</span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-85110752456968600892012-04-05T07:32:00.000-05:002012-04-05T21:37:23.662-05:00An Interview With Author Michael K. Rose<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vM4OTdgcBWc/T3x--JM8vmI/AAAAAAAAAD8/aS5dRT1I8Xk/s1600/Author+Photo+Michael+Rose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vM4OTdgcBWc/T3x--JM8vmI/AAAAAAAAAD8/aS5dRT1I8Xk/s1600/Author+Photo+Michael+Rose.jpg" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Michael K. Rose is quickly becoming an Indie author to watch. </span><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b>He is a writer of science fiction and literary fiction novels and
short stories. His work has received rave 4- and 5-star reviews and the
books in his Sullivan's War series are frequent inhabitants of the
Science Fiction Series bestsellers list. More information about his
writing can be found at </b><a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1333558717_0">http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com</span></a></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MDQOJgs3i40/T3x_-bM2CEI/AAAAAAAAAEM/yU5RLqXLdSU/s1600/a+Sullivan%27s+War+4+covers+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="105" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MDQOJgs3i40/T3x_-bM2CEI/AAAAAAAAAEM/yU5RLqXLdSU/s320/a+Sullivan%27s+War+4+covers+copy.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">Michael, thanks for allowing us to ask you a few questions! Did you always want to be a writer?</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Actually,
no. I've always enjoyed writing and publishing a book was on my bucket
list for a long time but during various times in my life I've wanted to
be an astronaut, an actor, a musician,
an archaeologist and a travel writer (which counts, I guess, and still might be something I try my hand at).</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">When did you first begin to think you had an aptitude for writing?</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A
few years ago I had written some short stories. This was when I did
begin to think about being a writer. I thought they were pretty good and
so I started submitting them to the fiction magazines. I did this for a
couple of years, collecting rejection slips, before finally deciding to
put them out there on Amazon and to see what kind of response I got.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">Was there anything specific in your educational background that provided a spark for writing?</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've
always been an enthusiastic reader. Early on my dad introduced me to
the Sherlock Holmes stories and, via films and television shows, science
fiction (I'm an unabashed Trekkie). My interest in Victorian literature
has continued, as has my love for science fiction. During high school I
went to a prep school in New England and had great English teachers
there who introduced me to many of the classics. In
fact, one of them lent me Ray Bradbury's <span style="font-style: italic;">The Martian Chronicles</span>
from his own personal library. And writing has always come naturally to
me. I never had much difficulty with spelling or grammar and there were
few words that I troubled over when reading as a child. Again, I think
my dad reading the Sherlock Holmes stories to me
helped with that. I was exposed to words that my peers simply weren't
using so as my education continued I was at an advantage in that
respect.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">Did you
try going the traditional route at first--by wooing an agent? Or did
you decide right from the start to become an indie writer? Do you feel
like you made a good choice (to be an indie author)?</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As
mentioned, I paid my dues and collected a fair number of rejection
slips before I decided to
self-publish. And a year ago self-publishing wasn't even on my radar.
It took getting a Kindle and finding all the wonderful self-published
works available at Amazon for me to begin thinking about it. I decided I
would start small, see where that went, and in November of last year I
published a short story called <span style="font-style: italic;">Sleep</span> and a collection called <span style="font-style: italic;">Inner Lives</span>.
Sales were not impressive but reviews full of high praise soon began
trickling in. I was completely taken aback! I knew that I had a knack
for writing but the overwhelmingly positive response was a big surprise.
As of this writing, my work now has thirty-five positive reviews and
only one negative review. It still amazes me that so many people think
so highly of my writing.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Your books are "speculative" science fiction. How would you describe that to someone who is
unfamiliar with the genre? Do you see yourself sticking with science fiction in the future?</span> </span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Speculative
fiction is simply any fiction that includes elements that are not found
in the "real" world: magic, futuristic technology, vampires, etc. What
I've always loved about the genre, particularly science fiction, is the
limitless possibilities it offers. It is true that there are at least as
many stories as there are people on the planet, but when we travel to
other planets look at how many more possibilities there are! And I like
the speculation, I like asking and answering the "what ifs." I like
imagining what life would be like on another planet, on a spaceship, in a
parallel universe. I find it endlessly fascinating to explore how other
writers have imagined the universe.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now,
as a writer I do not limit
myself to speculative fiction. It is the lion's share of what I write
but I also have a few projects lined up that could best be called
"literary fiction." Interpret that as you will. :o)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">How
balanced are your books--between plot, setting and character
development? What aspect of this is the most difficult for you when you
are knocking out a first draft? </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I actually find that
setting plays less of a role in my work than either plot or character.
At least so far. I have one project lined up that would, essentially, be
a grand tour of the great cities of Europe and how each city affects
the main character in different ways. Regarding plot, I suppose some of
my more literary works (see the collection <span style="font-style: italic;">Inner Lives</span>, for example) could be accused of being bereft of plot. They are heavy in character development. The <span style="font-style: italic;">Sullivan's War</span> series is plot-heavy, particularly in the first book, but there is quite a bit more character development in <span style="font-style: italic;">Book II</span>. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Honestly, I find writing action the most difficult (ironic, considering how action-oriented <span style="font-style: italic;">Sullivan's War</span> is). I sometimes feel like writing about people fighting gets a bit stale but based on the reviews I've managed to pull it off.</span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You recently released <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/tags-on-product/B007PU954K/ref=tag_dpp_cust_edpp_sa" target="_blank">Book 2</a> in the Sullivan's War series, and I know
you are planning on the release of Book 3 soon. Did you find that the
first book in the series was the most difficult to write? </span></b></div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KFiM9ZAQrHo/T3yJaW5paQI/AAAAAAAAAEU/T4LQ23K0NHM/s1600/A+City+Without+Walls+600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KFiM9ZAQrHo/T3yJaW5paQI/AAAAAAAAAEU/T4LQ23K0NHM/s200/A+City+Without+Walls+600.jpg" width="150" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, it's not too difficult with Sullivan's
War, as they are all novellas. Each book was plotted after finishing the
one before it, however, because even though I had a general idea of
where I wanted to story to go, anything was bound to happen and throw a monkey wrench into
my plans. So, that made it easier to keep things consistent. Book I
came very easily to me. Book II wasn't too bad and now that I'm writing
Book III, I find that I'm being over-cautious. I am trying to avoid
repetition in the action scenes, descriptions, etc. So, I would say this
last one is the most difficult for that reason. Book III is also the
climax for the story. I have to get it right. It looks like it's going
to be non-stop action from beginning to end, very fast-paced, and I hope
my
readers feel satisfied with the ending. I'm working hard to make sure
that is the case.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">What
do you see as the future of the book industry? Will the traditional,
brick and mortar bookstore survive? Do you feel as though the future is
bright for indie authors? Is the playing field becoming more level with
the rise of the e-book? Do you think e-book marketing is beginning to
follow established patterns? Is there a clear-cut method for success as
an indie
writer? </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll
address these questions as a whole rather than one at a time. I
actually wrote a blog post about the future of books (here: <a href="http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/2012/01/future-of-books.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://myriadspheres.blogspot.com/2012/01/future-of-books.html</a>).
Briefly, I believe that the mass market paperback will become a thing
of the past and while books will survive, they will survive as
collectors' editions, items for those who want a physical copy of a book
they love to have signed, display on a shelf, etc. I like to use the
analogy of audiophile-grade vinyl records. They are still produced in
small batches for those who want them but most of the population will
opt for the CD or mp3 version. I could be wrong in this but if an ebook
costs the same as a paperback (and in many cases less) and ereaders
become
increasingly more common, I think a lot of people will find
themselves preferring digital copies. I hope that bookstores don't die
off. There are still many collectible books out there, books people will
want on their shelves. Will stores selling exclusively new material
survive? I don't know. Barnes & Noble made the transition to ebooks
and they could still have brick-and-mortar stores fifty years from now.
But I doubt they'll be the warehouse-type operations they are now. They
will carry the collectible versions and if they're smart, they'll
include a free digital version with each physical purchase (just as some
CD manufacturers have done). If they're smart they'll also begin to
offer ebooks in multiple formats. If they offer mobi files of a book at
the Nook store they will not be formatting themselves out of taking
part in the biggest game in town: the Kindle. And the <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> smart retailer will produce an ereader that can read <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> the major ebook formats. They'll sell all the formats as well.</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Regarding
marketing, it is all about exposure, as far as I can tell. The more
eyeballs on your book the better and it really doesn't seem to matter
who those eyeballs belong to. I think ebook readers are, partially due
to price, beginning to experiment outside of their comfort zones when it
comes to book genre. Indie authors are developing large and loyal
followings. It's completely possible a reader will pick up a book by an
Indie author based on rank and ratings and not even realize it's
self-published. The path to success seems clear: get your book out there
in any way possible. But do so tactfully and respectfully. No one likes
a self-interested asshole, which is something writers like you and I
realize. Make connections.
By helping each other we help ourselves. If a potential reader sees ten
tweets about a book, it is certainly better that those tweets come from
ten different people rather than one. And on that note, I would like to
thank you for all the support you've offered me and other Indie
authors. And thank you for the great interview as well!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks, Michael! As you mentioned, we all have to support each other, and I enjoy working in concert with great people like you to promote Indie authors.</span></b></div>
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-6653131873920170362012-03-29T13:11:00.000-05:002012-04-12T14:56:28.781-05:00Wrong Place, Right Time: How Dr. John Reminded Me To Study the Masters In Music and Writing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eOGrG5Q-ZSM/T3IGIMotZNI/AAAAAAAAADs/Dh0OK_cOd3w/s1600/Dr.+John.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eOGrG5Q-ZSM/T3IGIMotZNI/AAAAAAAAADs/Dh0OK_cOd3w/s1600/Dr.+John.jpg" /></a>The other day I made a decision to study Dr. John's piano technique. For those of you who don't follow music, Dr. John is the dean of New Orleans-style piano players, and he's well versed in the history of music in his city. Here's a YouTube link if you want to hear him:</div>
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_310080182" target="_blank">h</a><a href="ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUX5RKK1gtI">ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUX5RKK1gtI</a></div>
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I've been familiar with his music for years, but I never took the time to study it closely. I always figured I could approximate the New Orleans style with the skills I had, but lately I've been unhappy with my solo work when playing jobs with my bands, and I decided delve deeper into the New Orleans sound for inspiration.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It was a good thing I did--my idea of New Orleans piano had drifted considerably over the years...I thought I knew the sound and the techniques, but a few minutes of listening showed that I'd been fooling myself. I sounded nothing like Dr. John--and in fact, I was completely wrong in my interpretation of the style. Listen to the video--Dr. John has that distinctive right hand trill in his solos, and I had completely forgotten about it because I'd stopped listening to the music I was attempting to emulate.</div>
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I could have rationalized. After all, I was interpreting the style in my own unique way--I could have been satisfied with faking it. <b>I could have continued playing the same old crap and telling myself it was good enough when it really wasn't.</b> I probably would have done that (hell, I did do that!), but I finally got fed up with my same-old, same-old solos that never changed from one week to the next.</div>
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I realized that I stopped adding the trills to my solos because they were hard to do. Somewhere over the years they had slipped away from me, and when I started practicing I realized how bad my overall technique was--I'd also stopped practicing between jobs a while back.</div>
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Writing and music have a lot in common, and writers must be readers in the same way musicians have to also listen to music. I'm not trying to copy Dr. John anymore than I try to copy Ken Follett or Stephen King. </div>
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But I must understand Dr. John's music in order to play Jeff Currie's style of New Orleans blues. Dr. John has to understand the music of Professor Longhair and Jelly Roll Morton to create the "Dr. John" style. I might not use the right hand trill often, but it needs to be in my bag of tricks, along with other techniques I glean during my piano studies. If nothing else, I'll have that little push I need to get me out of my comfort zone.</div>
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<b>Everyone has to have a baseline of knowledge to perfect (or even improve) a skill. Listening to the style and technique of the masters is the first step toward that end for a musician, and reading and studying the work of top writers, is the first step for a writer. In other words, when you find yourself on the right road but you took a wrong turn, get back to basics...</b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, 'Times New Roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><i>I<b> been in the right place<br />But it must have been the wrong time<br />I'd have said the right thing<br />But I must have used the wrong line<br />I'd a took the right road<br />But I must have took a wrong turn<br />Would have made the right move<br />But I made it at the wrong time<br />I been on the right road<br />But I must have used the wrong car<br />My head was in a good place<br />And I wonder what it's bad for...</b></i><b>From "Right Place, Wrong Time", Dr. John</b></span></span></div>
<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05297177380496383805noreply@blogger.com0St Louis, MO, USA38.6270025 -90.199404238.527764000000005 -90.3573327 38.726241 -90.0414757tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-657651179057069107.post-40115855731202757912012-03-21T11:53:00.000-05:002012-03-26T11:49:51.039-05:00Writers, Diamonds Are Just Lumps Of Coal That Stuck It Out, and You Can Too!<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Sorry about the long delay between blog posts--I caught some sort of virus that bedeviled me all last week.</div>
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In my last post I mentioned some of the writers who inspired me, and someone commented on the fact that I was at least partially motivated by the thought that I could do as well as a best-selling author. I guess that was a bit shocking, but I honestly believe many of us started our first book with that exact thought in mind.</div>
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I think our favorite books intimidate us a little--and in my case the classic authors (Twain, Lee, Hemingway) still seem unreachable. But I was never intimidated by Clive Cussler, Jeffrey Archer, or Jack Higgins. Perhaps I should have been (and I'll say it again--I have a MUCH greater appreciation for those authors now that I've actually finished my two books). </div>
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You may be searching for another blog to read right now, after reading that horribly arrogant spiel, but hang on a second. That's what it takes to write a book--especially the first one. Writers need self confidence and (dare I say it?) even a touch of arrogance to see the way through a book-length project. Some writers may not show it, but I've never met a successful author who didn't believe in their talent--at least most of the time.</div>
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Don't get me wrong--writers have low moments. My best friend could tell you all about that--especially after a phone session devoted to propping me up when I'm going through the sulky-mopeys. All self confident people have moments of doubt, but those moments don't overwhelm successful writers--at least not for very long.</div>
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You don't believe me? You're wrong--because here's the deal: successful writers are (or should be) judged by only two things...<b>tenacity, and a willingness to keep educating themselves</b>. That's it.</div>
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Nothing else matters--I could care less if a writer is published. A successful writer (the writer who never quits trying and never stops learning) will be published, today, tomorrow, or next year. It's just a matter of time. Indie authors aren't left out of the party--the same confidence that makes a person a successful writer can make the writer a successful Indie author. Writing and marketing an Indie book is all about tenacity and continual learning, to gain knowledge about what works and what doesn't.</div>
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I was an unsuccessful writer for a long time. Before that I was just a guy who talked a lot about trying to write. I was sure I could write great books, but I never proved it to anyone. Now I've written two books, and I'm still not sure I've proved anything--to me or anyone else. But I'm a successful writer, and I still think I have the ability to write as well as those authors I named--if not now, then someday. My next book will be better.</div>
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I really believe everything I just wrote...99% of the time--and my friend will be there for me when I go through my next emotional swoon. </div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Find the confidence to believe that you can write at a professional level. Go figure out how to do it--and never stop learning. Have confidence. Fake it if necessary. Fake it until you believe it--and find that special friend who will believe on those days when you feel like a fraud.</b><br />
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