To Promote or Not to Promote

There is an issue that has been at the forefront of my mind for months now. It's an issue that is a hot topic among indie writers. Can you guess what it is? Can you?

Oh, right. It's in the title.

Promotion. Ads, giveaways, book-signings, interviews, reviews, rinse, repeat. Is it important? Is it necessary? I don't know. But to some authors, it seems that promotion is more important than production. I mean, they spend months or years producing the next great literary work, then when they publish it, they seem to forget that they're writers. They become marketers. They work constantly, obsessively at it, always trying to find that one great technique or method that'll guarantee bestseller status.

I would never argue that promoting is useless. We've all got to get word of our masterpieces out, we've got to let all the readers out there know that we have something they'll love. But it's too much. Too much stress.

Let's see, between my efforts to get as much writing as possible done, a full time job, spending time with my wife and kids, chores, errands, and time to, you know, eat, sleep and have the occasional shower, I don't have a whole lot of time left over to devote to promoting my books.

Yet, I'm doing all right. Thanks to all the fantastic folks out there, I'm doing all right. J.K. Rowling does not fear that I'll break her sales numbers any time soon but readers are finding my books, readers are reading my books and it seems that readers are enjoying my books (and, hopefully, they'll continue to do so for years to come).

Can promoting more (in my case, 'more' would be read as 'at all') help my sales? Maybe. But enough to warrant all the time that I could have used to continue writing the conclusion to Rites of Ascension? Or even the time that I could be wrestling with my son, or playing tea party with my daughter? I don't know. It has worked for some. The big names in indie publishing--John Locke, Amanda Hocking, J.A. Konrath--have certainly benefited from marketing. But for every story I hear of promoting making a real difference, there are fifty stories of authors who have promoted the living heck out of their work and they're struggling to find even a handful of readers.

There's one more thing to consider. I, too, am a consumer. But when I'm online, I don't look at ads. I just don't register them. They appear all over the place and I sail right on by. Assuming I'm normal (according to my lovely Cori, that's a shaky assumption but never mind that) then it seems plausible to extrapolate that many others don't stop what they're doing to read the ads either. So what's the point?

This will raise many eyebrows among the indie crowd--to many, marketing is as important, or more important, than writing. To those, I say, "Hey, it's a free country. Do what you like." I think what I'd like to do is write a few pages and then color a picture with my daughter.

Rites of Ascension II: Blood of War Now Available

It's out and on sale at Amazon.com for $2.99!

Rites of Ascension II: Blood of War

The Journey Continues.
After his foster father's brutal murder, Jurel Histane unleashed powers beyond his comprehension, perpetrating a bloodbath that left him horrified to the core of his soul.
That day, he discovered the truth.
He knows who he is, he knows what he is.
And now he is on the run, accompanied by his only friends: Kurin, a Salosian healer; Mikal, the commander of the Salosian army; and Gaven, once Jurel's enemy.
He is on the run from a relentless foe: the Soldiers of God, the military army of the Prelacy, intent on destroying him before the truth gets out.
He is on the run from himself, from the darkness lurking, from the awesome power that he desperately does not want.
But there can be no escape. He must either confront the forces rallying against him, or he must die. And if he dies, the world dies with him.
Yet, before he can face his enemy, he must face himself. He must come to terms with the terrible truth that has been hidden all his life beneath the facade of the simple farm boy he once was.

Rites of Ascension II: Blood of War

The wait is over! Rites of Ascension II: Blood of War is finished! Look for it in the Kindle store at Amazon.com by the beginning of next week!

Thanks for your patience. And an extra thanks to Kathleen Valentine at Valentine Design for another phenomenal cover!

Ever Seen a Grown Man Cry?

Yeah, so have I. You hit him with a line-drive in the right place and he's bound to weep a little. But that's not the point here.

So.

Tomorrow is September 2nd. The Friday before Labour Day. Long weekend. Last big summer weekend. After this weekend, it's back to business, back to the slog, back to school.

My daughter is going to school. Junior Kindergarten. She's four.

Seems weird that I'm so choked up about this whole thing. It's a fact of life, it's a part of growing up, it is what it is. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, every time I think about it, I end up all teary eyed and caught between a deep sense of sorrow and a nearly overwhelming pride.

So.

Tomorrow, before I go to work, I'm going to drive her to school. I'm going to help her out of her seat belt (which seems to be more appropriate for a race car driver or a fighter pilot). I'm going to give her a big hug, and a kiss on the forehead. I'm going to tell her how much I love her and how proud of her I am. And then I'm going to hope she turns away before I sniffle.

Then I'll go and find a quiet place to continue working on Rites of Ascension III (title yet pending).

By the way, Blood of War is done. The final draft is here, and I like it. All I'm waiting for is the cover art. I realize it's an afterthought here but I'm thinking about my little girl.

Sorry for the maudlin ramble.

Oh My Goodness How Time Flies!

Has it been almost a month? Really? Where have I been?

More precisely, how did a month go by so quickly?

All right, well of course I know the answer to that. Between upheavals at work, a family vacation that covered half the continent (By car. With a hyper-active four year old. And a seventeen month old that has a scream that physically hurts--I know this. I heard it often), and house-type stuff that couldn't wait any longer, I've been busy. Like wake-up-at-the-crack-of-dawn-and-don't-sit-down-until-I-collapsed-zombified-into-bed busy.

So, I apologize for the dearth of updates here. I hope things have settled enough that I'll have more time to devote to this, my budding career.

There is some good news and some bad news:
The good news is, work on Rites of Ascension II: Blood of War continues. It's really, seriously, truly almost ready to hit Amazon.
The bad news is it's not going as quickly as I'd hoped. It's coming, and it's not going to be much longer, but I still need to finish revising it one last time--and I'm about half way through. The story is fine. I just want to make sure I get the words and the tone right. I'm still hoping for the end of August. There's not that much left.

So, to recap:
1) I am, in fact, alive. Sorry about the lack of updates.
2) Life happens; I've been insanely busy.
3) Blood of War is almost done. Really.
4) Thanks for your patience.
5) I'll be talking to you soon!

Now, back to getting pounced on by a hyper-active four year old and a seventeen month old with a painful scream.

Mr. Konrath is absolutely right. Again.

Here's the thing. I'm trying to become a better writer. I want my stories to mean something, to say something...and say it well.

If you're not a writer, then let me tell you: writing a book, any book, is...easy. Writing a good book...well that's hard.

Mr. Konrath over at A Newbie's Guide to Publishing tells us something very important:
Be Deliberate.

I won't bother rehashing his words here because he's done a perfectly fine job. Check it out here.

Some Surprising Revelations: Books I Didn't think I'd Like

I suppose it comes as no surprise that I prefer reading fantasy novels. Specifically, I like epic and series fantasy. That love affair started when I was about twelve, so that would be...add two...carry the one...twenty-three years ago. Twenty-three years in which I have concentrated heavily on the fantasy shelves. There are plenty of good and great fantasy series out there: Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, Terry Brooks Shannara stuff, Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth--there are too many to enumerate here.
Lately, I've had the urge to explore, to experiment in other genres. I knew a long time ago that there were plenty of great books in other genres but I'd forgotten.
I have a few I'd like to mention here:

Seize the Night, Dean Koontz:
Wow, what descriptive writing. Each and every image he paints is absolutely the best possible image for that moment. The writing flows like water and the characters float on top. My favourite Dean Koontz book.

Over the Edge, Jonathan Kellerman:
Classic whodunit with a neat spin. Writing that evokes the old fashioned cop mysteries but somehow manages to avoid being cliched. A deeply involved mystery that had me guessing right up to the climax.

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Stephen King:
I have a daughter only a little younger than the protagonist, Trisha. I kept wanting to put the book down because my heart was constantly in my throat, and yet the damned thing stayed glued to my hands until I read the last word. Damn you, Mr. King. Damn you!

The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss:
I know it's fantasy so I'm cheating. It's my blog. I can do that. I haven't read Wise Man's Fear yet but if it's half as good as The Name of the Wind, then it's still better than 90% of everything else out there. That book is the most beautifully written book I've ever had the honour to read. I don't even know where to begin extolling its virtues without sounding like Mr. Rothfuss's publisher paid me copious amounts of money. Mr. Rothfuss, thank you.

There have been many other good books that have kept me up past my bedtime, or gotten me in trouble with my lovely Cori--"Remi, where's the fire extinguisher?" "Hold on, hold on. I'm at a good part."--but these are the ones that stick out most in my head.

Happy reading!