Marketing, Marketing, Marketing....

Updated for 2021

This guide operates under the assumption that you have already produced an extremely professional book.

Step 1: The Really Obvious Stuff

For social media, I have a guide to that right here.

Become active on forums and different writing communities. Join a local author group and make friends. Find the people more successful than you and learn from them. There is a subreddit for every genre—use them! If you write fantasy, hang out and interact on /r/fantasy. After people get to know you, dropping a line or two about your own writing (tastefully...) will be welcomed and respected.

 

Step 2: Printing

If you're really serious about making money in the crazy world of books, you need to spend money first. I highly recommend getting a few thousand (~$100) bookmarks printed at UPrinting that describe your book, have a link to your website, and links to Amazon. If you have multiple series or genres, get multiple bookmarks. Give them out at live events and hand them out everywhere you go. Go to bookstores and ask to leave them by the register or in your genre's section. Drop a stack off at a local coffee shop. Always keep a stack in your car and a few in your wallet to hand out to people you meet who might be interested.

The banner: Having a great banner is critical for live events. A great banner can run up to $400. Honestly, an eye catching banner will not only bring people to your booth at an event, it will sell copies for you. In the picture below, I left my banner in the car. I don’t think it mattered much, because my canvas art operates much in the same way as my banner does. It draws people to the table.

My setup at Anime Ohio, 2021. I had already sold out of 4 titles, so my offerings were sparse. Normally the book rack would be full, and the presentation would be a bit better.

My setup at Anime Ohio, 2021. I had already sold out of 4 titles, so my offerings were sparse. Normally the book rack would be full, and the presentation would be a bit better.

Step 3: Going Live

I've said it before about a thousand times on reddit, live events are the best way to market when you’re just starting out. Now that you have beautiful bookmarks and a great banner, find every event you can and book a table. If you want to go to a huge event, get other authors to split the table with you and bring down the cost. The table pictured above cost $30 and I made hundreds.

How to sell in person: I've read plenty of posts from other indie authors about how they feel gross selling in person and they can't do it. They don't have the personality for sales. Guess what? The moment you tried to make money from book sales, you became a lifelong salesman. At my first live event, I only sold 3 books. I still blame the frigid weather and outdoors setting for the most part, but I didn't know how to sell. I sat behind my booth and waited for people to come up and ask a direct question. The event drew about 1,000 people and I only sold to 3 of them. Pathetic.

Find people selling books at your own live events and watch them for 10 or 15 minutes to get the feel of how they do it. Observe them make a cold sale to a disinterested passerby. Get a good 30 second pitch down and stick to it. You'll be pulling people in left and right.

  • My actual spiel at live events: stranger walks by and A) if they glance at my banner, ask if they like fantasy or B) ask if they like to read. If they like fantasy, give them a Goblin Wars bookmark and pitch them the book. If they like to read, ask them what genre. I'm in 3 genres, so I can usually grab them from that point. Always end your pitch with a price. Don't make the customer ask for it. Offer them a deal on multiple books, especially if you have 2+ out in the same series.

  • Another great strategy: take pictures (with permission) of cos players at live events and post them to your website in a Convention Recap style blog post. After you take a picture, hand them a bookmark with your address and tell them it will be posted soon. You just sent traffic to your website and every click is a potential sale.

Step 4: What do I write / how much?

The obvious answer is obvious. Write what you love! And never stop. With only 1 book released, physical promotion and live events are tough. People don't take you seriously and you can only market to fans of 1 genre. The truth is, series sell. Standalone novels are outsold by series novels 2 to 1 or better at live events. An article I read once said that you need to spend 90% of your "book time" writing and only 10% marketing. Every time you release a new novel, bump another 10% into marketing. That's a good formula to follow.

  • Don't skimp on a cover and good editing. You'll destroy potential fans if they read your first book and find errors or the cover is crap. The upfront cost might hurt, but you're hopeless without it. If you need a cover artist, I can recommend a few, just shoot me an email. If you need an editor, I know a couple of those too.

Step 5: Online Marketing

Unless you miraculously get accepted to the shrine of holy book sales known only by whispers (aka BookBub), you need to be careful with online advertisers. A few services out there look great, but many of them are expensive scams veiled as instant success. To name a few of the well known scams: Reedsy, BookDaily, NetGalley, etc. Stay away. For a detailed video on how to build ad stacks and make money (including a list of places to use when promoting), check out this post.

  • KDP & Kindle Select - I recommend it. I know a lot of people don't, but I've found the countdown deals to be fantastic.

  • KDP free download days - I sort of recommend it. Only do free days for book 1 of a series that already has book 2 released. You want to gain long term fans. Use those days sparingly.

  • Kindle Unlimited - I recommend it. You still get a cut of the sale price and it encourages people to give it a shot. Plus, there are several websites and subreddits devoted to books on KU and they will advertise you for free. This is especially true for romance / erotica.

Do a blog tour. What's that? Find a blogger (like me) and book reviewers and send them free copies of your eBooks to check out. Ask them to interview you for their blog. Run a giveaway contest on their blog. Ask other authors to be interviewed for your own blog so you can share an audience. Offer to write guest posts on other blogs about anything the owner of the blog wants to read. The more places that have your name and a picture of your book, the better.

Step 6: Mad Profits

Be realistic. Don't set out to self-publish or publish through a small press and quit your day job. Especially in the first year, it won't even pay for itself. Your covers and editor fees will rack up and that mountain of book related debt won't start to erode until you have 2+ novels released. Try to only check your sales rankings once a week and you'll avoid most disappointment. Use your sales rank as a reward: every 10,000 words you write on your work in progress earns another peek into Amazon.com's author central. 

 

 

Feel free to comment and add your own advice. And of course, since this is a post on marketing, check out my books!

Indy Wizard World ComiCon Recap

Indianapolis ComiCon this weekend was a blast! I loved getting to meet some awesome fans and hang out with cos players and celebrities alike.

Here are a few pictures from the event:

 

The booth. I shared space with Tony Acree, Violet Patterson, and C. Bryan Brown.

The booth. I shared space with Tony Acree, Violet Patterson, and C. Bryan Brown.

Awesome Pyro (TF2) cosplay

Awesome Pyro (TF2) cosplay

Na'vi is one of my favorite Legend of Zelda characters. Very rarely done as cosplay.

Na'vi is one of my favorite Legend of Zelda characters. Very rarely done as cosplay.

Incredidlbe combo.

Incredidlbe combo.

Very good zombie.

Very good zombie.

The best part of the entire event happened on Friday night. A few of us were hanging out in the hotel bar when David Del Rocco and Michael Rooker walked in! Rocco didn't come over or even acknowledge that we exit, but we bought Merle a drink and he gave us half an hour of his time. Getting to hang out and chat with Merle was a once in a lifetime experience. 

Want to see more cos play pictures? Click here!

Giving away 2 copies of Goblin Wars! Book 2 Release Date!

Click here to enter the Goodreads giveaway! Two copies up for grabs!

 

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Goblin Wars Part One by Stuart Thaman

The Goblin Wars Part One

by Stuart Thaman

Giveaway ends March 01, 2015.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win


The Goblin Wars Part Two: Death of a King is set for release on March 1st! 

Interview with Daniel Kucan - actor, author, badass

Daniel Kucan - Self-published author, Command & Conquer actor, professional martial artist, and renowned carpenter

 

 

Firstly, I think it is fair to say you've had a wild life. Acting, writing, carpentry and more. Have any of those professions felt like a true calling? If you had to pick one job for the rest of your life, what would it be?

 

I think secret agent would be cool, except for the ‘secret’ part. It’s only cool if everyone knows you’re a secret agent, but I guess that sort of defeats the purpose. You can’t really be a ‘famous agent’, and being famous rocks. Guess I better give this some more thought.

 

I'm a huge fan of the Command & Conquer series. What has been your favorite roll for C&C? Were you ever asked to do a part and refused?

 

When my older brother Joe started working on the very first C&C, I was living in New York and Joe brought me out to Vegas to work on it with him. He and I and several other actors had a big discussion about who was gonna be the bad guy and no one wanted to do it. We settled on Joe because he was the scariest, but it wasn’t really his first choice. Ironic because it made him a global superstar, and I ended up getting exploded, slapped, set on fire, ion cannoned, run over, mortared, and killed in various and sundry other ghastly ways. I think my favorite was getting tortured by the blonde supermodel… you know they actually PAID me to do that? Crazy world.

 

What inspired your writing? Was there an exact moment when you sat down to put words onto paper and knew you would be a writer?

 

I’ve written stories since I was very young, probably second grade. But there is a difference, I think, between a writer and a storyteller. I love telling stories. My first novel is a semi-autobiographical series of stories set in the professional fight world. And the thing is, every fighter I know is a GREAT storyteller. I think a lot of guys fight simply so that they have stories to tell. There is a really deep and rich history of pugilism stories that are constrained to oral tradition because they are only told in gyms or BJJ schools or what-have-you. One of my goals in writing Full Contact was to get some of the things I experienced written down.

 

Did you read a lot when you were growing up? If so, what were your favorite authors? Have they influenced your style at all?

 

The first big chunk or reading that I read on my own was The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander when I was about eight. I can’t overstate how they utterly changed my life. I think it’s a crime that we have young kids reading Dick and Jane when they could be reading about Taran kicking the shit out of the forces of darkness.

 

When writing, do any of your characters feel a lot like you? Have you purposely written yourself into any works?

 

Full Contact is certainly based on events of my life, but I wouldn't say that it’s ME.  Some smartypants once said that the characters in our dreams are all aspects of our own personality. I guess I feel the same way about the fiction we create.

 

Do you have any more books planned for after Full Contact? Any works in progress?

 

My next novel is called The Gossamer Prince and is an urban fairy tale with all sorts of dark and sinister turns: you know, goblins and devils running loose among the downtown crowd, vampires and temptress goddesses and renegade dragons eating up the souls of the wicked.  Joe and I are also working on a play for our theater company in Las Vegas. It’s an adaptation of a Fritz Lang film and we are really excited about it.

 

Have you ever considered writing in the style / universe of Command and Conquer?

 

Funny you should ask!  Joe and I tried for several years to acquire the rights to create a C&C movie, but EA wouldn’t even entertain the notion. I’m sure they have their own plans for the franchise and I can say unequivocally that it will suck so hard that the fabric of the universe may actually be damaged by the vacuum created.  

 

What sort of advice would you give to an aspiring writer? How about to an aspiring martial artist?

 

To a writer, I would say, “Write.” To a fighter, I would say, “avoid fighting.”

Seriously though, I really like writing and I really like fighting. But the part about fighting that I could never get over (and that kept me from being truly great) was that I simply didn’t have the fighting instinct. I never liked beating someone up.  I was good at it, at the science of it. But when I lost I felt lousy, and when I won I felt… uh.. lousier. I still fight a lot, probably too much for my wife’s taste. But I’m generally teaching or helping someone out.  When I write, no one ever gets a dislocated jaw or a cracked rib.

 

Lastly, where can we find your books? 

Amazon * Author Bio * Goodreads

The last 3 books I've tried to read have had some serious issues...

I understand that many self published authors have little to no budget for editing and proofing. Many people try to edit their own manuscripts. As you can imagine, editing your own work isn't a great practice. How do you know if you wrote some absolute shit? How can you be sure that you catch every typo and grammatical mistake? I am by no means a flawless editor or writer, but some of these will make you shake your head.

Here are a few examples of things I've read in the past few days. Some of these sentences are worse than others, but all of them should have been flagged by an editor. 

Sentence 1: "Dirt coated the skirts, revealing the age and abuse that this building had survived through."

Where do I begin? Firstly, survived is redundant with through. You could simply chop the last word off and be ok as far as that error is concerned. The second issue with the sentence is one I find in a ton of self published works. The word "this" should be saved for textbooks. It hijacks the reader's attention away from the vivid imagery and reminds them that they are reading a book. I'll probably rant more on that later.

Sentence 2: "He wanted to dip down below and meet this man, ask him several questions."

Not surprisingly, sentence 2 comes from the same book as sentence 1, only a paragraph later. When I was reading, I resolved to keep going after the first glaring sentence, but gave up after the second. Again, "this" could easily be changed to "the" and some sort of connector needs to replace that comma. Perhaps, "He wanted to dive down and meet the man. Maybe he could ask him a few questions."

Sentence 3: "She decided to definitely not mention [character], because any mentions of her always upset [character], and [character] was still considering what to think about what [character] had said."

I took out the character names to somewhat hide the book. A few good rules to follow are such: if a sentences takes longer than 1 breath to read aloud, cut it down. Also, don't repeat large words within the same paragraph, much less the same sentence. Those rules aside, a few other things bother me about this line. Considering what to think about -- so... she is contemplating HOW to contemplate something else? What?

Sentence 4: "As a child, [character] was told about the Bogeyman. It's a fictional monster or entity that laid under the bed. An imaginary creature used by parents to frighten children - to teach them not to suck their thumbs, and generally to deviate from bad behavior."

First of all, you don't need to explain urban legends. You especially don't need to explain the Bogeyman. Saying "monster or entity" is useless. If you really want to make the point that the Bogeyman might not be a *monster*, just say that. Otherwise, you are wasting words. The second half of the section has a redundancy issue as well. Deviating from bad behavior includes thumb sucking. Plus, as mentioned before, you don't need to explain the origins of urban legends! Also, saying that the Boogeyman lays under the bed isn't nearly vivid enough. Unless this is children's horror, that monster needs to lurk. Maybe prowl. Perhaps he could hunt under the bed. Anything except lay there and chill out.

 

Let's talk about the word this. I performed a few searches on very successful eBooks (I have their pdfs) to see if perhaps I am the only person on Earth who hates the word this. It seems that I'm not alone. Outside of dialogue, several famous fantasy novels don't use it a single time. Sci-fi has the same results. I tested a few others and found the word only once outside dialogue, and it was used appropriately. When I see the word, it jars me. It takes me out of the moment. It makes me instantly hate the author for derailing my journey. In almost every single case, the word can easily be changed to the.

 

In closing, my advice is to hire a professional editor. Can't afford the $200+ it might cost? Don't publish until you can afford it. Releasing something with glaring mistakes will only make potential readers hate your work and never support you in the future, no matter how skilled you become.  Sacrifice up front and reap the rewards later. 

Quotation Marks and Other Instruments of the Devil

I was reading a book last night when suddenly, I came upon very strange looking punctuation. The book is horribly written trash, the apparent standard for the big presses these days, but it felt well edited. Or so I thought.

Without giving away the book, here is basically what they wrote: "Blah, blah, blah, ghost and shit, OMG teen drama, blah, blah"."

That's right - they have 3 punctuation marks... In a book that is consistently ranked in the Amazon top 1,000. Next time someone berates small press for poor editing, I really want to hand them this garbage and see what they think.

Anyways, what's the actual rule for quotations and punctuation? The error above isn't the only one I've seen. Many authors (and presumably editors) are baffled by the required location of punctuation involving quotes.

Here it is: unless you have a rather uncommon sentence structure, punctuation goes inside the quotes.

Looking for more specifics? Here is a website that beautifully explains the rules.

And of course, since the Brits insist on doing everything their own way, England basically throws all expected grammatical conventions out the window.

Book Trailers: yes or no?

I've read a lot of posts around the wonderful interwebz that talk about book trailers: short little video clips that summarize a book's plot in about a minute.

Personally, I've only ever watched a few, and they were mostly for books I had already finished. I liked a few, I disliked a few.

Has anyone ever watched a book trailer and then bought the book specifically because the trailer was that good? Has anyone ever watched a trailer and decided against a book they were previously interested in? What makes a good book trailer?

Do you think your book trailer has the right stuff to seal the deal and bring about a sale? Post it below and I'll embed it in this post!

Probably the best book trailer I've seen:

I'm not sure if this trailer is for a hardcore erotica or a crime-noir thriller, but regardless, I'm interested. Very good production quality as well.

Another solid noir style trailer. Not as good as the two above, but certainly effective.

Pretty sweet trailer from a new author

Very well made book trailer that captures the tone of the novel perfectly. 

Peer into the mind of a horror editor...

Interview with Sanitarium Magazine editor Barry Skelhorn

 

When did you get into the fiction industry and what drew you toward the horror genre?

When I was young, my Granddad lent me a copy of Frankenstein – which I devoured. Soon after that he lent me Dracula and a few collections of M.R James. Over time I read more and more horror and it grew from there.

There is just something about horror and the written word, the writer leads you one way, but it is your imagination that fills in the darker gaps and that’s the beauty of it.


As an editor selecting a story for publication, what is the line that you won't cross? How much violence, even beautifully written, is too much?

Personally I think that most subjects, if they are in the correct context can add to a story. However I won’t entertain any works of fiction with any graphic sexual reference to minors.




What is your take on the standard giants of the horror genre such as King, Matheson, Laymon, Bierce, and Koontz? How do some of the indie writers of today stack up against the legends?

Everyone has to start somewhere. As the story goes; without Tabitha King picking Carrie out of the bin and giving her feedback maybe King wouldn’t be where he is now.

 

There are so many indie authors that are making strides in the horror genre today – it would be wrong to single a few out. I would also like to give a shout out to the small and not so small independent presses that are keeping the integrity of the business together.



When selecting a story for publication, do you tend to prefer more psychological and subtle themes or more overt and graphic tales?

The way Sanitarium works is simple – you never know what is going to be behind each case file. Each issue that we collate we try and keep a mix of sub-genres so there is an eclectic collection of tales for the reader.

 

I find going from (for example) one zombie story, then another and another is great. But after a while you end up comparing them and not enjoying them as much.




What direction do you see the Sanitarium Magazine taking in the future? Any major milestones coming up?

We are working on a new look that we are bringing in one piece at a time. The magazine will be offering a printed copy as payment from the start of 2015. Also we are changing the tag line so we can cover more in its pages. “Showcasing Horror Fiction, Dark Verse and Macabre Entertainment”



Which issue of Sanitarium Magazine do you consider to be the best? What sets it apart?

Cover wise I love issue 20 with Kevin Spencer’s artwork “skull” – the vibrant colours and washed effect really works for me. As for the stories, there are a few stand out ones for me but we have found everyone has their favourites and we’re happy with that.




If you could interview any horror writer, living or dead, who would it be? How do you think they would act face to face?

Sadly one of the greats we were close to interviewing with was James Herbert. We are based in the UK and he lived only a short drive away but it was not to be. I think his style of writing where it was quite close to the bone both with gore and sexual undertones struck the right balance.

 

I would of course love to interview Clive Barker, Stephen King.


What is the most terrifying thing you've ever read?

I think this has to be put in context. I was 16, on a family holiday in France and we were staying in a large converted farmhouse just outside of Bordeaux – I was staying in the bat house.

 

Whilst staying there I started to re-read Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot. The summer storms were a sight to be seen and the atmosphere was just right for a good scare. So with every turn of the page, the story gripped me more than it had the first time around.



Have you had any horrific experiences in your own life that you couldn't explain?

I wouldn’t say horrific but there were a couple when we stayed in the farmhouse. Whilst staying in the bat house one night I felt something hit the bedframe at the foot of the bed. Thinking nothing of it I just fell back asleep. I felt it again, this time I was jolted awake and flicked on the light. My Brother, asleep in the other bed next to mine, was sound asleep. Looking around the room, nothing seemed untoward, so hitting the light I went back to sleep.

 

It wasn’t until the morning when both of us awoke did we realised what had happened. My bed, which has started flush against the wall, was now a good foot from the wall.  

It turns out that when they were renovating the farmhouse, they came across a soldier’s helmet with a bullet hole through it – I think I was sleeping in his snipers nest and he wasn’t best pleased.


Finally, does your love of horror branch into other media such as movie, music, art, etc.?

 

Most media interests me in the horror world. I have mentioned Clive Barker as a writer but I also love his style of art from “The Hellbound Heart” to “Abarat” and everything in between. If I could I would have a piece hanging in my office for inspiration. Another that I really have a lot of time for is the theatre and plays such as Danny Bolye’s Frankenstein, Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black. It would be interesting to work with some of the writers who have appeared in Sanitarium and put together a 3 Act show with some of the stories.   

Interview with Evan Camby

Evan Camby

 

What got you into horror? Have you always been a fan of the genre or did one particular work pique your interest? 

 

From a very young age, I preferred horror and the macabre to anything else.  I remember one year I missed a lot of school because I got very sick, and I spent the days in bed watching a marathon of old Vincent Price films.  Many of them were based on works by Edgar Allan Poe, which guided me towards his books.  I read everything I could of Poe's and he was my first, biggest influence.  I loved the way he created such rich, Gothic atmospheres even in very short works.



On of your stories, Hat Man, deals with night terrors. Do you have any personal experience with sleep paralysis or other terror-inducing sleep disorders? An interesting phenomenon occurs during the hallucinations triggered by sleep paralysis where the brain has trouble recalling the face of a remembered person and thus places a hood or dark hat over the character in an attempt to make the blurred face appear logical. 

 

Hat Man is definitely based on night terrors I had when I was young.  In fact, 80% of what Bernice lives through in Hat Man are things that actually happened to me.  I have read all the scientific explanations behind sleep paralysis and night terrors, and I do think there is a physiological component to them.  However, no one will ever be able to convince me that there isn't also a supernatural element to what I experienced.  




Have you ever used a Ouija board yourself? If so, how did it go? 

 

I have, with a childhood friend.  We both loved ghost stories and anything spooky, so we played with it often.  The only thing I can remember happening when we played was that she would get terrible migraines almost every time, which is part of why we stopped altogether.  Another reason we stopped was a story that her mom told us.  Her mom said that when she was a little girl, she played with the Ouija with her friends, until something happened that scared them out of it.  One of the girls she played with had recently lost a family member who, by all accounts, was not a nice guy.  So, they asked the board what happened to him, if he was in a better place, that type of thing.  She told us that the board suddenly shifted under their fingers, and then spelled out "Satan knows" before sliding across the room and hitting the wall.  Of course, she might have made the whole thing up,  but that story coupled with the migraines was enough to scare us out of playing with the Ouija anymore.  I haven't picked it up since. 




Almost everyone experiences some type of terrifying, unexplained event. What's yours?  

 

Other than the night terrors, which were truly terrifying, I have experienced a lot of strange events.  I'll pick one from when I was a kid.  I grew up in a house set back deep in the woods, with big windows all over the first floor looking out at the trees. My mom says I used to stand at the windows and smile and wave outside. One day she asked me who I was waving to, and I said, "All the people."  Now, no one was outside.  At least, not that she could see.




Do you believe in ghosts? How about spiritual beings such as angels and demons?  

 

Definitely, I believe in all of them. I don't think that this life is all there is and that there is a lot we don't know and can't prove.  There is real evil in the world, both natural and supernatural.  I also believe there is pure good and love that counteracts that, whether it's angels or God or whatever your particular beliefs name it.  



When you first started writing horror, how did your friends and family respond? 

 

It's not a surprise to anyone who knows me.  Most little girls play with baby-dolls--I had a plastic skeleton who I named Skellie that I carried around.  My parents are a little shocked, though, that I remember the night terrors so vividly, since it's been over twenty years since I first had them.  



What has been the most difficult thing that continually plagues you as an author?  

 

Self doubt is a huge obstacle to getting words on the page.  What I've learned to do is "brain dump"--just get it all out there.  No matter how terrible that first draft is, you can always go back and change things, edit, add, subtract.  My advice to writers who struggle with the same issue is to give yourself permission to suck.  Really, it's OK if what you put down is terrible at first.  None of it's permanent, it's not as if your first rough draft will be tattooed on your body forever.  But if you don't at least start somewhere, the words will never make the jump from your brain to the page.  


What is the most unique advice you've ever been given by another professional in the writing world? Did that advice prove to be useful?  

 

I read an interview where Stephen King answered the question, "What makes a talented writer?" or something along those lines.  I'm paraphrasing, but basically he said that if you write something, and someone pays you for the story, and you then take that money and pay your light bill with it, he considers you talented.  I love that.  It takes the pressure off of setting out to be the next Hemingway, and lets me have fun and focus on being a storyteller who people pay to entertain them.  That's something I can be proud of, too, it's not all about Pulitzers and The Paris Review.



If you had to pick one author for your writing to be favorably compared to, which would you pick? What elements from other writers do you try to incorporate into your own writing?  

 

In my dreams, Vladimir Nabokov, simply because of his mastery of the English language.  As far as my genre goes, Stephen King knows how to tell a great story and create realistic, flawed characters, and that's my main focus in writing.  The fanciest prose, scores of allegories, and a dreamy, stream-of-consciousness style of writing are worthless if you can't tell a story worth a damn.  I want to entertain and help people immerse themselves in the more visceral and scary elements of the world in which we live, and he is the master of that.

 

Lastly, where can we find your stuff?

Amazon * Twitter

Got a pretty cool paperback yesterday...

As you may recall, a while back I got to read and review Into the Aether by T. C. Pearce. If you read that review, you'd know that I really, really enjoyed that book. Yesterday, I got a copy of the paperback in the mail. I was thrilled to see an excerpt of my review printed on the back!

 

 

I plan on giving the book to my fiance, Anna, who loves YA and supernatural fantasy, and who also does book review videos for YouTube. I can't wait to see what she thinks of Into the Aether. It really is a fantastic book.

Oldham County ComiCon

Just got back from the Oldham County ComiCon - also known as OC3. For a first year event, it was done incredibly well. They advertised heavily, organized it well, and drew in over 3,000 people! The Hydra Publications booth did very well and I sold out of my Goblin Wars paperbacks. I got to see tons of great cosplayers, met some awesome fans, and hopefully made some new fans too. All in all, it was a solid event.

Me.jpg

I'll certainly be coming back again next year. Already looking forward to it. 

Interview with Raven Oak

Amaskan's Blood

When writing high fantasy, what is the most difficult aspect of world creation?

For me, the most difficult portion of world building is linguistics--making sure that the character & place names of a world fit each individual country's or kingdom's culture, without sounding like an obvious "borrow" from France or Christianity. I want my fantasy worlds to be rich and complex and sound like they are their own entity rather than just something borrowed or revamped from Earth. I'm not a linguist, so making sure I do that well takes a lot of time and effort. (Why can't we all be Tolkien, dang it!?) 

 

 

Where do you find inspiration for your character names and regions of your world?

Oops! I sort of answered that in the question above by complete coincidence. To elaborate, I enjoy borrowing. InAmaskan's Blood, the name of the continent is Boahim, which reminded me of Hebrew words. Knowing that the Hebrew culture and mythos has played a heavy role in literature, video games, movies, etc., it worked well for a culture steeped in religion and war and family. All three are heavy elements in my novel. But I wanted each individual kingdom in the Little Dozen Kingdoms to still be distinct in its own identity, so I tweaked elements or created them anew as needed. The Kingdom of Alexander has a fairly heavy French-English influence, whereas Shad borrows elements of its naming and culture from India. When I'm writing sci-fi, I do much the same thing. Building entire civilizations and planets full of people isn't all that different in sci-fi vs. fantasy.

 

 

How has being a writer impacted your everyday world?

Being a writer changed everything. Cliche answer, yet true. Honestly, I never did see things the same way others did, even as a child. People would walk past the busker on the street corner, but in my mind, I'd by asking a million questions. Why was he busking? Was he homeless or did he just want to entertain? Or did he need a music job and think this would be the way? Why guitar? Because it was easily portable, or did he always feel drawn to that instrument? The questions wouldn't end until I'd created an entire scenario in my head about this busker that I passed five minutes ago. 

In a more literal sense, writing changed my world because after twelve years, I quit teaching to pursue writing full-time. My day to day has changed. I now spend 8-15 hours a day writing and editing. In some ways, I'm more busy now than I ever was a teacher working 55 hour work weeks.

 

 

 

Where do you find the best inspiration outside of other fantasy novels?

Everyday life. Just people watching. Also, dreams. Some of my best ideas began as dreams.

 

 

In your opinion, what is the best fantasy world ever created, in any medium?

Wow. That's a tough question. I don't know that I can answer with only one world... Off hand, I would have to mention Middle Earth (Tolkien) and Pern (McCaffrey). Those are the big ones that stand out in my mind. If I can, I'd throw in the mythos of Star Wars and Star Trek because their influence alone has been monumental to sci-fi/fantasy. 

 

As far as your writing process is concerned, do you tend to make a plan and stick to it, or do you prefer to let the story arise organically as you go?

A mix of both. I outline in a decent amount of detail, but I'm not adverse to allowing the story to grow and develop outside of my outline. For example, with Amaskan's Blood, I had a completely different ending in mind when I began the book, but as the characters grew into the story, the twists moved the plot line in a different direction completely--a better direction, I think. (And no, I won't say what the ending is because...spoilers!)

 

 

What is the best advice another writer has ever given to you?

Put my butt in the chair and write. Every. Single. Day. Also: All rules are meant to be broken, except that one!

 

 

What has been the most frustrating aspect of being an author?

The business side of it.

 

With the growth of social media, promotion and marketing has rested firmly on the shoulders of the authors. It's time consuming--time better spent writing--but books sell best through word-of-mouth. If a writer wants to be successful, promotion and marketing is a necessary evil.

 

          Finally, where can we find your work?

Amazon

B&N

Apple iBooks

Kobo

 Goodreads

Huge list of books on sale from Hydra Publications! Perfect for Halloween!

For We Are Many      Stuart Thaman          http://www.amazon.com/We-Are-Many-Stuart-Thaman-ebook/dp/B00N0A0OKS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615878&sr=8-2&keywords=for+we+are+many

 

Reality Check       Eric Garrison           http://www.amazon.com/Reality-Check-Eric-Garrison/dp/0615926142/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-2&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Watchers       Tony Acree              http://www.amazon.com/Watchers-Victor-McCain-Thriller-ebook/dp/B00JOS52TI/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-4&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Gunpowder and Lead    Kate Lynd        http://www.amazon.com/Gunpowder-Lead-Outlaw-Kate-Lynd-ebook/dp/B00J2ESR14/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-5&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The List                 Tom Wallace         http://www.amazon.com/List-Jack-Dantzler-Book-ebook/dp/B00GMOKO6I/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-6&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Gnosis                   Tom Wallace         http://www.amazon.com/Gnosis-Jack-Dantzler-Book-3-ebook/dp/B00GMOF3L4/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-8&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Eternal Patrol          Michael G. Wallace http://www.amazon.com/Eternal-Patrol-Mike-Wallace/dp/0615739768/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-10&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Empyreal Fate        Rachel Hunter         http://www.amazon.com/Empyreal-Fate-Llathalan-Annal-Volume/dp/0615638589/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-11&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Ukishima               Nigel Sellars            http://www.amazon.com/Ukishima-Nigel-Sellars/dp/0615607373/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-12&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Parrot Told Me  Rachael Rawlings   http://www.amazon.com/Parrot-Told-Me-Rachael-Rawlings-ebook/dp/B00GBN8QI8/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614129&sr=8-13&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Without a Conscious James William Peercy http://www.amazon.com/Without-Conscious-James-William-Peercy/dp/0615637833/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614491&sr=8-17&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Heart Denied   Linda Anne Wulf  http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Denied-Linda-Anne-Wulf-ebook/dp/B00GJCNCVM/ref=sr_1_20?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-20&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Hand of God    Tony Acree         http://www.amazon.com/Hand-God-Victor-McCain-Book-ebook/dp/B00GBFZIMS/ref=sr_1_21?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614902&sr=8-21&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Dearly Departed      Rachael Rawlings  http://www.amazon.com/Dearly-Departed-Grave-Reminders-Book-ebook/dp/B00GJ6NYH0/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-22&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Fire of Heaven   Tom Wallace       http://www.amazon.com/Fire-Heaven-Jack-Dantzler-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00K0LH7TQ/ref=sr_1_23?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-23&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Blood of the Highland Moon Morinda Montgomery  http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Highland-Moon-Morinda-Montgomery-ebook/dp/B00HYO5RIU/ref=sr_1_24?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-24&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Bounty Hunter          Kate Lynd          http://www.amazon.com/Bounty-Hunter-Kate-Lynd-ebook/dp/B00GEFY44S/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-25&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Secret                     Morinda Montgomery http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Morinda-Montgomery-ebook/dp/B00HYOADYI/ref=sr_1_26?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-26&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Love Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me   Lyndi Alexander http://www.amazon.com/Love-Me-Kiss-Kill/dp/0615934757/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-27&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Morning Star Ethos   Desiree Finkbeiner  http://www.amazon.com/Morning-Star-Ethos-Volume-1/dp/0615638635/ref=sr_1_28?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-28&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Know-it-all Girl  Joanna Foreman http://www.amazon.com/Know---All-Girl-Joanna-Foreman-ebook/dp/B00GCS4S84/ref=sr_1_30?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-30&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Amy the Astronaut   Steven Donahue  http://www.amazon.com/Astronaut-Flight-Freedom-Steven-Donahue/dp/0615931952/ref=sr_1_31?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-31&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Wall Outside     James William Peercy http://www.amazon.com/The-Wall-Outside-Xun-Ove/dp/0615934749/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&qid=1414614544&sr=8-32&keywords=hydra+publications

 

The Human Equations Dave Creek http://www.amazon.com/Human-Equations-Dave-Creek-ebook/dp/B00NB51BMM/ref=sr_1_33?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615191&sr=8-33&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Ethos Equinox  Desiree Finkbeiner  http://www.amazon.com/Ethos-Equinox-2-Desiree-Finkbeiner-ebook/dp/B00O7RMVI6/ref=sr_1_34?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615213&sr=8-34&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Heart of the Hunter   Linda Anne Wulf  http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Hunter-Linda-Anne-Wulf-ebook/dp/B00GJCN6IG/ref=sr_1_35?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615213&sr=8-35&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Anon                       Peter Giglio   http://www.amazon.com/Anon-Peter-Giglio-ebook/dp/B00GEFY0GA/ref=sr_1_39?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615213&sr=8-39&keywords=hydra+publications

 

Beyond Anon           Peter Giglio    http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Anon-Peter-Giglio-ebook/dp/B00HYO0EZG/ref=sr_1_38?ie=UTF8&qid=1414615213&sr=8-38&keywords=hydra+publications

Interview with M. C. Angelus


What got you interested in horror? Were any of your friends or family members shocked by your choice of writing genre?

 

I've always been interested in the supernatural and paranormal, ever since I was young. I remember watching silly ghost hunting shows and reading Dracula in the fifth grade. I suppose it stems from my natural curiosity about everything, and horror is always about the strange and unknown. Plus, it's fun to be scared, sometimes.

 

My family has gotten use to my morbidity, though they question my interest in serial killers at times.

 

I noticed that your short stories all have to do with unnatural creatures. Which, if any, of the 'standard' unnatural creatures do you believe might exist?

 

I believe in ghosts, which seems really ridiculous but sometimes a video or audio recording surfaces that just makes you question everything. I also think there are some really messed up things in the deep sea where sunlight never pierces. There's a pretty strong case for the Yeti, providing there aren't a ton of them and they stay far up the Himalayas. Definitely don't believe in Bigfoot, though.

 

 

Have you seen any of the shows like 'Monster Hunters' or 'Finding Bigfoot' and if so, what is your take?

 

My mom loves Finding Bigfoot. We both think all of those shows are really ridiculous and really hilarious. I highly doubt any of them are going to find anything out there, if there was anything to be found in the first place.

 

 

What is it about unnatural creatures that makes them so terrifying? Why do some legends which are obviously fake make their way to notoriety? 

 

We are naturally afraid of predators, but there aren't a whole lot of animals that can take us down anymore. These creatures are often a mix-mash of many things, serving to deliver a message or a lesson (the first story in the collection actually deals with this.) The people telling it may not necessarily believe in the existence of the monster, but they do believe in the message the story is conveying.

 

Which unnatural creature do you consider to be most terrifying?

 

There's an internet story called the Goatman, based somewhat off the legend of the Skinwalker. The stories go that it finds groups in remote areas and 'imitates' members of the group – if you're not paying attention, its imitation works, but when do look closer you see that its imitation is a poor mask. Its exact reason for infiltrating groups is unknown. I'm terribly frightened by nighttime and any sort of "invasion," so the Goatman story strikes a deep chord in me.

 

 

Is there any author that influences your writing in a tangible way?

 

H.P. Lovecraft's themes of existential, cosmic horror and strange monsters certainly influenced me. The most Lovecraftian story in the collection is probably The Orchard, but there are certainly echoes of him throughout.

 

I also read a lot of Neil Gaiman and Stephen King, as well as writers on Reddit and Tumblr.

 

 

What was the impetus that made you sit down and begin your career?

 

I've recently started college, so I've been strapped in cash, and thus in the grand tradition of artists everywhere, I started selling my work opposed to posting just posting it online in order to feed myself.

 

I also love hearing comments and feedback about my stuff, so I hope by putting out ebooks I can attract more people and get more feedback. But it's mostly about feeding myself.

 

 

 

What has been the most challenging aspect of being an author?

 

 

Finding inspiration, and then getting yourself to actually sit down and write stuff. I question all the time if my stuff's actually scary, or if the people reading it are just humoring me. Having internet strangers read it and give feedback definitely helps prevent that thinking and keeps me from getting discouraged.

 

 

Finally, where can we find your stuff?

·         Kobo

·         Barnes and Noble

·         Amazon

·        Smashwords

·         My blog