New Kindles Are Here!

Amazon once again sets a new bar in the ereader price wars that have been smoldering for the past few years. For the first time ever, there is a mainstream ereader that is way below $100. I am predicting that this will only increase the rapid shift from paper books to ebooks. Paper books will never go away, but what remains to be seen is what types of books will remain mostly in print and which ones will go to ebooks. Fiction has been the easy choice for ebooks, but what about non-fiction?

To be fair, Barnes & Noble also has a really good price on their entry-level ereader, which is now at $89. Both of these price points will mean that people who have thought about giving an ereader as a gift but felt that the price was too high now have almost no excuse for not purchasing one. Unfortunately, Sony has not yet dropped the price of their ereaders, $149 being their price point. And Kobo has their least expensive ereader at $99.

What will this mean for writers? It should mean another explosive growth phase in people finding and purchasing their books, novellas, short stories, etc. over the next year or two. And not just in the United States either. The United Kingdom is getting the cheap Kindle as well for 89 pounds, and there are others around the world that will also benefit from these less-expensive models. This is no longer a fad, it is an established new way to consume books and other publications.

I’ll be celebrating soon with my new Kindle once my first novel comes out. In the mean time, for everyone who desires, I’ve got my first short story that is available on all formats, available for $.99 titled The Collection. It’s a fun, interesting story about dolls…but not in the way you might expect. Links at the right will take you to places to purchase it. If you are a writer, now is possibly the best time ever to connect with readers. If you are a reader, you’ve never had such access to so many good stories and writers. Life is good!

What Do You Want To Read Next?

So, I've got a lot of ideas rolling around in my noggin, and it would be great to have some help with the direction that I should take.  I've got 3 different short story ideas that I'm keen on working on, but can't decide which one should come first.  So, my readers, friends, family and fans, which short story should I work on, and publish, first: The one with the girl and the car, the one with the unusual ritual, or the one with the puppets?

Put your answer in the comments on this post.  And I'll decide at the end of this weekend - September 25.  I'll post a follow-up with which one wins the popular vote.

Update:  The verdict is in:  The Girl and the Car is my next short story!  I'll keep you all posted when it's available.  Thanks for voting!

First Publication!

Finally!  I've taken the plunge with one of my short stories and published it.  I had a fun time writing it, and I hope people enjoy reading it as well.  It will soon be available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Sony, and a host of other ereaders the world over.

Wow.  That's mind-boggling to think about.  I could have sales in Canada, England, Germany, Australia, Japan, Italy, Egypt, Norway, Brazil, and any other number of countries.  And just a few short years ago I would have been happy enough to have had my stories available just in the United States!  This truly is an amazing time to be a writer.

Over time, I will be adding more short stories, along with the ultimate publication of my first novel by the end of this year.  For those who have been thinking about doing this self-publishing deal, I'm telling you NOW is the time - don't wait, just do it.  What's the worst that could happen?  Exactly, you might actually enjoy writing and publishing and do well.  So go and do it!  For those who are already doing it, I'm encouraging you to continue and to do even more.  There is so much opportunity out there now, it's crazy not to try some new ideas.

If you like, the link to the Kindle version of my new short story, The Collection, is below.  Keep writing!

The Collection - Kindle short story

John Locke Strikes Deal With Simon & Schuster

Yet another interesting event has taken place in this ever-changing world of publishing.  In the past week, million-plus ebook selling indie author John Locke has signed an agreement with Simon & Schuster to put out the print versions of his Donovan Creed series (and possibly others).  This is the same publisher that also has a partnership with ebook sensation Amanda Hocking.  What's going on over at S&S?

This deal is very interesting, to say the least.  For comparison, a traditional publishing contract would deal with virtually all aspects of a book: the pricing, the versions (hardback, paperback, ebook, etc.), where to distribute (U.S. only, North America, World, etc.), and so on.  Amanda Hocking's deal is mostly similar to this deal, as she is having S&S take over the heavy lifting of a small set of her successful books.  Locke's deal, on the other hand, is really a major departure from the traditional publishing model.

Possibly the biggest part of the deal is the fact that S&S is going to be starting a whole new imprint, John Locke Books, to release the Donovan Creed books under.  Talk about negotiation skills!  This imprint will only release the print versions of his books - the ebook rights Locke himself retained, and will presumably continue to sell.  Pricing of his ebooks may or may not remain where they have been, but that's his call, since he kept those rights.  His books are anticipated to start going on sale in February of 2012.

What seems to be the biggest question, and probably the most important, especially for S&S, is:  what will the print versions be priced at?  Some thoughts out there are that they will need to be as cheap as possible in order to have chance at competing with the ebook versions, which presently sell for $.99 each (U.S. currency).  I'm wondering if S&S hasn't decided that it will treat the print version as a separate entity, wholly different and distinct from the ebook version, and therefore will price them as they usually price paperbacks.  Either way, this is a unique deal that will be watched closely in the coming months, by publishers, traditionally published authors, and indie/self-published authors alike.

I know I'd like to fend off deals like this with a stick, so I best get writing.  And you should too!

Reading Variety

Hey gang!  I wanted to spend just a little time talking about what I see as an important aspect to a writer.  Not only does a writer need to write, but a writer needs to READ as well.  And not just those genres that you enjoy, either.  You need to read a variety of books, from all kinds of genres, both fiction and non-fiction.

Seriously?!  Why would I advocate reading something that you don't enjoy?  Am I nuts?  Well, we can take that up at another time, but think about this for a few minutes.  You already enjoy your particular genre, let's say that's Science Fiction.  You've read a lot in that genre, probably a lot of Asimov, plenty of the Star Trek novels (they just keep coming!), etc., etc.  And you know what these people like - they like SciFi!

But, what about reading a western?  What, you ask, would be the benefit of reading a western?  Well, think about this for a minute.  If you read a few westerns, you might suddenly conjure up a new SciFi story with elements of old westerns.  Maybe there is a unique melding of the 2 disparate ideas that you could form, making a unique world that is all your own.  How cool would that be, to start your own unique series?

What about reading romance?  Do you think that you might be able to learn a few things to make your relationships more believable, more real, more true-to-life?  And what about non-fiction books?  Using my SciFi example, have you kept up with what is actually happening with the space program for the United States?  What about China?  Europe?  Private space companies?  These can spark a lot of new and different ideas that you could incorporate into a new world or your existing world.

Perhaps there is a biography that you've been wanting to read about.  So, read it!  You never know, you might find some character details that are interesting and that you could devise a new character, or a new villian.  Maybe the great-great-great-great-great-grandson of a dictator comes on the scene, but he is now the dictator of a whole planet!

This is what makes writing fiction so much fun!  There are plenty of ideas out there to keep people busy for years; even more so when some of these ideas are put together in new and interesting ways.  And humanity's progress on a variety of different fronts suddenly changes our understanding of how things work and provides new fodder to exploit.  So, read, read, and read some more - in a variety of different genres.  You'll find plenty of new ideas to exploit and make your own.  Cheers!

So Much For My Next Bestseller...

The Perfect Novel?

There is no such thing as a perfect book and the more you work to make a book perfect, the more you turn it into a polished stone with no character or voice. Leave your book rough, leave your voice alone, mail the book to an editor or indie publish the book and do another.
 
There is no perfect book. Never has been, never will be. And you certainly won’t write the first one. Sorry.

The immortal words of Dean Wesley Smith.  I hear from so many corners that one needs to spend an inordinate amount of time on editing, re-editing, checking for continuity, grammar, grammar, grammar, spelling, etc. before your book is ready for publishing.  The interesting (or perhaps funny) thing is:  I can find any "normally" published book that has errors of one sort or another in it.  By normal, I mean traditionally published by a print publisher, not having the author self-publish.

Why is this the case?  Why do people feel the need to harp so much on the supposed need to spend all this time reviewing and editing your novel?  I'm really not sure, but I'm getting more than a little peeved about it.  Look, I'm going to do the best that I can, and that's all I can do.  That's all that you can do.  That's all that anyone can do.  There is no perfect book, but there sure are a lot of popular books.

I've heard plenty of people bemoaning the fact the Stephanie Meyers books are so popular.  Why are they making a big stink about it?  Well, supposedly it's "bad writing".  Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't (I haven't read them, so I have no opinion).  But if people are happy with it, and are choosing to spend the money to purchase the books, why should anyone care?  From what I can tell, it's because they think that she's somehow "dumbing down" the profession of author.  I get the impression that they somehow try to outdo each other in lifting their noses higher than the next person; a sort of snooty contest, in other words.

People are also picking on John Locke and his success.  I've actually read a chapter or two of one of his more recent titles, and I've got to say, while it might not be my most favorite series, I can easily see where people love it.  It's a great escape, full of larger-than-life characters and situations.  I should be so fortunate to be just a quarter as successful as he is.

Every published writer has to go through the stage of the "first novel".  It won't be perfect, the characters might be a tad two dimensional, the story line might be a little thin or contrived.  But the fact is, they've accomplished something that the vast, vast majority of people in this world will never do:  they've written a full novel.  These first-time novelists will continue to learn and hone the craft, but that doesn't mean that they will never have an error here or there.  Many people find James Patterson (among many others) and his writing pretty bland, but that doesn't stop him from selling tons of copies.  From what I can see, those people who are finding fault with all of these bad novels and stories that are out there probably are jealous.  They are jealous of the fact that someone finished a novel, they are jealous of the fact that someone else thought it was entertaining, they are jealous that they are enjoying some modicum of success, both personally and professionally.

Get over it!  You can't control what others do, so why are you complaining about it?  Are you hoping that someone will do something, that they will stop all of these "non-authors" from putting out their works?  I actually saw someone propose (jokingly, I'm sure, but I bet there's a bit of hope from them that it happens) that there should be a law against people putting out crap.  REALLY?!  Wow...just, wow.

To those that wish the crap would just stop, I say - shut up and work on your own shit!  To those that feel that they need to keep editing and re-editing, I say - do what you can (take pride in what you are doing, and do it right), and then put it out there, imperfections and all, and get working on the next story or novel.