A Bump In The Night

Good Books You Probably Never Heard Of - Part 9

A Bump in the Night by Crispian Thurlborn

https://amzn.to/2KBx666

We think life can be difficult. But being dead has its own problems.

Mr Snaggle and Mr Snuffle, those Arbitrators of the Quick and the Dead, have a new problem on their hands: their good friend, Mr Bump (that fellow who ferries folks across the river to the realm of the dead), is fading. Fading from being a ghost to being truly dead. And if Mr Bump goes, who’s going to do the ferrying?

This is a ginormous problem and Mr Snaggle and Mr Snuffle are doing their darnedest to help their friend. Seemingly, though, without success. That is, until little Penny shows up.

Crispian Thurlborn’s A Bump in the Night is a ghost story. It’s an urban fantasy tale. It’s a literary think about the meaning of life — and death. It’s a book that is at once humorous and serious.

In a style that would make Dickens envious, Thurlborn tells us a story we won’t soon forget. The tale lingers there on the edge of your mind, just like… Well, just like a ghost.

And while A Bump in the Night isn’t a Christmas story, it does have ghosts and the themes in the book go very well with “peace on earth, goodwill towards men”.

Crispian Thurlborn is one of my favorite authors. If you haven’t read anything by him, let me say his writing is on par with that of the best writers writing today.

Do yourself a favor and get a copy of A Bump in the Night. You won’t be sorry, and you may just find yourself putting the book in your pile to read again.

Comments are always welcome; and, until next time, happy reading!

Daguerreotype

Good Books You Probably Never Heard Of - Part 8

Daguerreotype by Ray Zacek

https://www.amazon.com/Daguerreotype-Ray-Zacek-ebook/dp/B00EN3JJI4

Garth Colby finds among his late brother’s belongings a remarkably preserved early Daguerreotype depicting a Parisian street scene. Because of the remarkable condition of the photograph, Garth realizes he has a small fortune on his hands. And, of course, that’s where the trouble begins.

For the photograph has a long and sordid history. A history of producing hallucinations and insanity. Money-hungry Garth, though, is ignorant of this history. But more importantly, if he did know the history, would he care? Money solves everything, right?

Even though Daguerreotype is a horror or macabre novella, Zacek handles the form in a way that brings as much satisfaction as one would get from a novel. We are treated to well-developed characters. We experience a fully developed storyline, hauntingly told, that holds our attention right to the end. And the suspense, as Zacek weaves the past and present together, is unrelenting.

Some readers balk at the shorter prose forms. If you aren’t especially fond of them, I invite you to think of Daguerreotype as a long lost script for a never produced episode of The Twilight Zone. Yes, Daguerreotype is that good. It is well worth an hour of your time.

The book is only 99¢, and it’s also on Kindle Unlimited.

Very highly recommended!

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

Ben Willoughby

Good Books You Probably Never Heard Of - Part 7

I’m back with Good Books You Probably Never Heard Of. And today we’re not looking at one book. We’re looking at one remarkable author.

Ben Willoughby and I met on Twitter, and I’m glad we did. His horror books have provided hours of scary, spooky, and at times hilarious entertainment.

He is also the very talented artist who is responsible for the awesome book covers of my Pierce Mostyn series.

In addition to writing horror, Ben has written a high fantasy novel, Gods on the Mountain, and is working on The Zeppelin Lords dieselpunk trilogy.

It is his horror tales, however, I want to highlight in this post, for they are the books I’ve read and thoroughly enjoyed. So without further ado, let’s take a look at Ben Willoughby’s Reign of Terror.

Mannegishi is based on a Cree Indian legend. The small people, the Mannegishi, play pranks on people. They’re tricksters. And at first Jonathan Banks wonders if perhaps he hasn’t had the misfortune of drawing the attention of the Little People. But then things start taking an ugly turn, and so does the story. Highly recommended.

Daddy’s Girl is a ghost story you won’t easily forget. Alex never knew her father. He died when she was very young. However, through the stories about him, she learned he was a warm and loving person, and was a devoted father who loved her very much. When she goes off to college she discovers what a father’s love truly means. And woe to those who threaten Daddy’s Girl. You don’t want to miss this story.

The House That Homed is a hilarious dark comedy. And Willoughby handles the comedy and terror with equal aplomb. You just might never want to be home alone again. Thoroughly entertaining.

Raw Head is another tale based on Native American legend. A serial killer is brutally murdering children. And events cause Susie to fear that the child she is carrying may be the next victim. Can the killer be stopped? What if the killer isn’t human? An emotionally powerful tale.

Deadly Whispers is a dark comedy that takes a whole new look at Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, or ASMR. And let me tell you, that look is both chilling, and funny. Very funny, in fact. There’s also a love story. Horror, humor, and love. A combination guaranteed to creep you out and warm your heart at the same time. And the ending? Well, I never saw that one coming! Very highly recommended.

If you are looking for horror tales that are well-written and come from a very fertile imagination, look no further than Willoughby’s books. They’re superb.

If you are a writer in need of a book cover, I highly recommend Ben Willoughby. He understands book covers. You can get in touch with him on Twitter.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

Four Years

November marks my four year anniversary as an independent author-publisher. And they’ve been four super wonderful years. I’m very much looking forward to year 5.

I’ve published 28 books, with number 29 coming out by year’s end. If I’d gone the traditional publishing route, I might still be looking for an agent. Screw traditional publishing. It’s the indie life for me!

Now I’d love to write that I just bought that Rolls Royce I’ve always dreamed of owning with my royalties from this year. Unfortunately, my desire has greatly outpaced my earnings.

Am I disappointed? I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t. But I’m only disappointed a teeny-weeny bit. Why? Because I have 28 books, soon to be 29, available for people to enjoy. I’m making some money. And people, at least some people, like my stories. Plus I’m doing what I always wanted to do and loving it. What more can one ask for?

I’ve learned a lot these past four years and I’m hoping the next four years will at least allow me to buy a Ford Focus. :)

While all that sounds optimistic, fundamentally I’m a pragmatist. In the end, what works is what counts. I’ve read dozens of books, articles, and blogposts by writers as to what works and what doesn’t. I don’t focus on the fads or the gimmicks or the golden parachutes. I look at what truly works.

For indie writers, there is one refrain that has been constantly sounded by virtually all the successful writers — and it’s simple: write fast, write in series, publish often, and build a mailing list. Those 4 things are what virtually all successful indie authors have done and are doing.  Sure there are exceptions. But they are the exceptions.

If you are an indie writer and aren’t writing fast, aren’t writing one or more series, if you aren’t publishing often, and you aren’t building a mailing list — then you will almost certainly fail. It doesn’t matter how good your writing is. Indie readers want lots of books, because they tend to be voracious readers, and they want them in series. It’s that simple.

Self-publishing today is easy and gaining in respectability. And I’m glad. For anyone who wants to write and publish a book, now that person can. There are no longer any gatekeepers stopping people. We can tell the world whatever is on our hearts and minds. We can tell the world all the stories we want to. And that is a good thing.

Marketing, however, remains the bugaboo — for both indies and the big corporate publishers.

Finding one’s audience is the real challenge for any artist or entertainer who hopes to make a living producing art. And fiction writers are both artist and entertainer. And this is where a mailing list can help the writer. Because a mailing list is really a list of those who like your work, or are at least interested. You won’t get that from Amazon or Apple or Barnes and Noble. They keep the email addresses to themselves.

Marketing in some form is essential to getting our name and our work out in front of potential readers and buyers. A mailing list is simply a voluntarily captive audience, as it were. There are other forms of marketing, and they should be used. But you writers, don’t neglect the mailing list.

For the curious, I’ve earned the following royalties for my efforts:

2014 (2 months) $113.48

2015   $233.87

2016   $231.04

2017   $212.53

2018 (through October) $280.53

Those earnings came from the sale of 513 books, 35 borrows, and 23,202 page reads.

As you can see, I’m no mega-star. No bestseller. No award winner. But I’m not ashamed of those numbers. Thus far I’ve achieved all that with but 4 weeks of paid advertising done at the beginning of this year. The bulk of my sales and page reads came from free advertising venues.

My fan base is tiny. And I do mean tiny. But it’s a start and I continue to be excited and encouraged with every sale and page read.

For the coming year I’m going to focus on the indie formula for success. I plan on writing lots, at least 1,000 finished words a day and hopefully I can push that to 2,000 or 2,500 on a consistent basis.

The old pulp formula, which is now the indie formula, is alive and well. Publishing 3 books in 3 months proved it to me. It’s what has given me my best year ever. I had sustained sales for 4 months after the third book was published. If I’d had more ready to go… Who knows, I might have been a bestseller.

I’m also going to work on building my mailing list. I’m a believer in the 1,000 fan theory. Which is this: all an artist needs is 1,000 super fans (those folks who will buy whatever you put out — books, recordings, cups, sweatshirts, etc.) to make a living from his art.

To find those fans, I’ll be using such avenues as Prolific Works and BookFunnel: giving away a free copy of a story in exchange for an email. The process is slow and tedious. Many unsubscribe right away. Many drop off in the first few months, and many never open an email. I’ll cull from the list those who are unresponsive. Leaving the folks who are hopefully interested in my books.

I love writing. I love being retired so I have the freedom to write all day if I choose. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Life is grand.

Comments are always welcome. And until next time, happy reading!