Month: August 2017

The Journal, Thursday, 8/31

Hey Folks, Before the sun is up, I already know today will be another day of learning/reading for me. For one thing, irrationally, I’ve become attached to the beginning and ending of months. Go figure. Frankly, I’m glad August is almost gone. From a writing standpoint, it’s been a traumatic month for me. I probably could have pulled myself out of it any number of times, but I didn’t, so. And in a way, I feel as if I’ve been holding myself back, sort of waiting. Anyway, I’m glad it’s almost gone. *** We’re in an age in which companies … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 8/30

Hey Folks, Not a lot to talk about today. I started the day a little late. Still catching up on my sleep, I guess. I made my rounds of the Internet. DWS is back, mostly. I listened to the vids from Week 4 of my current workshop and enjoyed it. A lot of meat there. I guess maybe there was a lot of meat in Weeks 2 and 3 as well, but I wasn’t as interested in those. It would depend on where your interests lie. I also received a link to my FREE copy of “Write. Publish. Repeat Conversations” … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 8/29

Hey Folks, In the interest of “fair and balanced reporting,” via The Digital Reader check out David Gaughran’s “The Visibility Gambit” at https://davidgaughran.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/the-visibility-gambit/. Spoiler Alert: This is in favor of going with Amazon KDP Select, but be sure to read the comments too. Hey, whatever works for you. To learn more about KDP Select (this feeds Kindle Unlimited) and determine whether it’s right for you, visit https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/. Be sure to also read https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A6KILDRNSCOBA?ref_=kdp_KDPS_faq/ and then click the link for KDP Terms and Conditions and read that. I decided today to take a chance, though really it isn’t much of a … Read more

The Journal, Monday, 8/28

Hey Folks, Well, this is too important for “Of Interest.” It’s more like “Please Don’t Miss This.” And please don’t just scan the headlines. There are a lot of gems in the text. I’m not overstating when I say these guys do what Dean Wesley Smith does to help writers, but they take it a step (or several steps) farther. But whereas DWS teaches writing techniques, these guys teach how to get to your writing and how to build your audience. What to do after you’ve written. But there’s nothing dry and boring here. Via The Digital Reader, see “10 … Read more

The Journal, Sunday, 8/27

Hey Folks, Topic: Following Up on DWS’ “The Value of a Paperback” Yesterday Dean explained in his post why indie authors should publish to paper as well as ebook. He made some good points. (If you didn’t read it and would like to, click http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/the-value-of-a-paperback/.) It’s always good to have your books available to more people in more ways. Got it. But there are other considerations too, both positive and negative. On the positive side, when the reader comes across one of my titles on Amazon, B&N, et al, if I have both paper and ebooks editions out, the reader … Read more

The Journal, Saturday, 8/26

Hey Folks, Well, a Saturday. The sun is still a couple hours from coming up as I write this. I’ve done my daily rounds of the Internet, made my usual stops. If you enjoy a bit of history along with really great photos and some personal insights, check Linda Maye Adams’ blog at http://lindamayeadams.com/2017/08/26/a-veteranwriter-looks-at-history-leesylvania-state-park/. Over the past few days I’ve started several bits of fiction. Each time I let them go. I’m not sure whether they weren’t working or it was just that I wasn’t in the mood. Probably the latter. I mean, you don’t have to be in the … Read more

The Journal, Friday, 8/25

Hey Folks, Well, we take our fame where we find it, don’t we? As I posted to Facebook this morning, Hey, who knew I was still so unpopular along the gulf coast of Texas? I mean it was only the one night of drunken debauchery, pillaging, etc. In the Corps I was “Taz.” Now I’m upgraded to a hurricane? And anyway, shouldn’t that be a himmicane? *** I started the day by adding universal links to each of my collection covers on my 10-story and 5-story collection pages on my website. Each of my novels has its own page but … Read more

The Journal, Thursday, 8/24

Hey Folks, Well, I’m back. A company called ReDigi is attempting to get an appeals court to let them resell “used” ebooks. Nonsense, in my opinion. And the way ReDigi wants to do it would cut the publisher and author out of any royalties. So double nonsense. Nothing in an ebook can ever become degraded. There are no physical pages to be underlined and highlighted and dog-eared, etc. According to current law (see https://the-digital-reader.com/2017/08/23/ruling-redigi-case-cant-re-open-door-used-ebook-market-door-never-closed/) an ebook can’t be sold as “used” but the seller can sell the media on which it is stored. (There’s another link on the linked article … Read more

The Journal, Wednesday, 8/23

Hey Folks, Well, yesterday (on Dean’s recommendation) I read the first 300+ pages of Patterson’s “Along Came a Spider.” I think it’s the first of his Alex Cross series. This morning I read the last 130 pages. It held my attention, but it wasn’t particularly well written. Several annoying “little” things kept me from being able to become deeply involved in the story. Things that involuntarily jump out at the reader like a really bad spelling error. He did use some of the pacing “tricks” I recently taught in a seminar, but surprisingly few of the grounding techniques. Of course, … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 8/22

Hey Folks, Yesterday, in response to my topic On Bad Advice, I got a very good comment. Be sure to check it out at http://hestanbrough.com/the-journal-monday-821/#comments/. Topic: How to Choose a First Reader I mentioned first readers yesterday, almost in passing. Today I want to cover the topic a little more thoroughly. The perfect first reader, first of all, is not a writer. She (to avoid the he-she fiasco) is an avid reader, one who consumes novels like most people consume air and water. She is also someone who either has read and already likes your work or wants to read … Read more