For Readers (and Authors, too)
This blog is for anyone that reads my books, as well as for anyone else who is self-publishing, thinking about self-publishing, or just curious about what it’s like to be an author during rapidly changing times. Whenever you visit here, I hope you’ll share your own comments and thoughts. If you’d like to know whenever I post a new entry, please type your email address into the box in the right-hand column and check the appropriate box (and the newsletter one, too, while you’re at it).
Book Review: Dangerous, by Ian Probert (non-fiction)
Some two and half decades ago, an up and coming sportswriter focusing on boxing watched as the middleweight that had taken him under his wing was critically and permanently injured during a world title fight. The emotional impact of that event was enough to keep him from writing about his favorite sport ever again – until now.
Not long after that fight, the author was stricken by a chronic, undiagnosed illness that left him, like his boxer mentor, unable to lead a normal, productive life. But unlike that boxer, an accurate diagnosis eventually led to his recovery, as well as to a decision to revisit some of the demons in his own life following the death of his emotionally unavailable and abusive father.
Guest Post: Streamlining Your Writing Process with Self-Publishing Tools (by Dave Durden)
It can be a struggle to reconcile the need to be creative and the need to be disciplined and to set standards when writing a book. Often, the balance of efficiency and spontaneity will be determined by the circumstances under which we write. Strict deadlines necessitate efficient writing processes, whereas passion projects can operate under a looser timeline. Regardless of your purpose for writing, it is difficult to argue against the benefits of streamlining your self-publishing process and increasing your efficiency. You stand to save time which eventually leads to financial savings through increased productivity and greater output.
The Doodlebug War: It’s the Beta Readers Turn Now
I’m pleased to report that I’ve finished my last draft of the third book in the Frank Adversego thriller series. It’s now in the capable hands of a half dozen Friends of Frank who have kindly agreed to be beta readers. Pre-launch (“beta”) readers are a huge asset for to authors, helping them catch not just typos, but all the other sorts of gremlins that can be hard for an author to ferret out and banish because the author has become to immersed in the text to spot them.
Another Expert Weighs in on Election Hacking
Today the old Gray Lady, the New York Times, no less, weighed in on election hacking in an Op/Ed piece titled The Election Won’t be Rigged. But it Could be Hacked. Of course, anyone who’s read my second cybersecurity thriller, The Lafayette Campaign, a Tale of Election and Deceptions, already knew that. read more…
The Hacking of the 2016 Election – Did I Write the Script?
One of the big political stories this week is that experts believe that Russia has hacked the Democratic National Committee’s servers in an effort to help Trump win the presidential election. Today, security expert Bruce Schneier went further, in an editorial in the Washington Post, suggesting that Putin’s next move may be to exploit the woefully inadequate security of US voting machines to hack the election itself. read more…
Book Review: Born F.R.E.E. (SciFi: Dean C. Moore)
Reading a novel by Dean C. Moore is a bit like reading Douglas Adams’ entire Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Series – from the inside. When you open the first page, the author hits the stylistic warp drive, leaving you gasping for breath as plots, characters, subplots, manic scientific devices, parallel plots, and much, much more streak by you at hypersonic speed. How does he do that? read more…
Going Wide vs. KDP Exclusivity: What’s an Author to do?
In principle, every author (self published or otherwise) should be in favor of diversity and competition in the book distribution marketplace. The reason? Because competition in any area of commerce fosters continuing innovation, more choices, and more price competition. Unfortunately, sometimes a competitive marketplace turns into a monopolized one. When that happens, idealism may have to take a back seat to pragmatism, and an author may have to just make the best of what she’s got. read more…
Guest Post: This Is Why Self-Publishing Authors Should Work With Designers
This article is by Ellie Martin. You can find Ellie’s web site here.
When one thinks of a good book, it’s quite rare that the first thing that comes to mind is the book’s design. Why would it? It’s generally agreed that a good book is all about the words on the page and the power of the story between the two covers. It makes sense, then, that an author’s main focus is on the content of the book. The story is and rightly should be any serious author’s number one priority, but it should not be the only priority. read more…
Update on Book Three: The Doodlebug War
It’s been awhile since I posted, in part because I’ve been trying to move my next book forward while still wrestling with the marketing of the last one. The good news is that I’m about two thirds of the way through the first draft of book three, and hope to put its completion, and then revision, on a more reliable schedule. My goal is to issue the new book before the end of the year. read more…
Promotional Update (and books on sale)
Long-time readers of this blog will know that cracking the conundrum of book promotion has been a consistent theme (obsession?) of mine. In a nutshell, it’s an almost impossible, and certainly Quixotic, quest. With that by way of introduction, here’s a brief update on my sampling of the many promotional eBook newsletters out there. Relatedly, you can also buy each of my books for the next few days for $0.99 apiece.
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