As an indie author, it's difficult for me not to check the Amazon ranking of my three published works of fiction. When I ran the Kindle Countdown promotion a few weeks ago, I checked it at least once every few hours.
I still check it a few times a day, but I don't fret if the ranking grows or shrinks--the closer to #1 you get the better, as it means you've sold a few books.
Why?
I'm in this for the long haul. This isn't just a thing I'm doing to try get rich for a few years. I'll be writing for the rest of my life--hopefully that's a lot of decades to hone and perfect my craft.
Not too long ago, I was asked whether or not I'm going to try seek out a literary agent for Shadowkill. My answer was no. I spent far too many years chasing my tail with agents and traditional publishers. I'm going at this independently. There are others doing it (do the names Hugh Howey or Amanda Hocking ring a bell?), so why not I?
I'm roughly a fifth of the way through editing Shadowkill. If anyone out there would like to be a beta reader, please send me a quick e-mail at marksrpeterson@gmail.com and put Beta Reader in the subject line. I won't promise everyone will get a chance to be a beta reader, but I'll give it my best shot.
Friday, February 7, 2014
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Goodbye Simon and Schuster (AKA my wife's response to my goofy fake phone call)
The other day, I was shopping with my wife and she had me call her cell phone--a common occurance since she has a tendency to "lose" her phone. She thought she left it in the van, but when I dialed her purse started chiming her ringtone.
She picked it up and hung up.
"Hello," I said to nobody. "Oh, Simon and Schuster is offering 15 million. Not enough. Bye."
I then said to my wife, "One day, baby, I'll get a phone call like that."
She then said something amazing. "No, I think you'll do fine on your own. You don't need them."
After picking my jaw up from the floor, we talked a bit more about my books, how they've been selling so far, and what I had in store on the horizon for 2014.
"Yup," she said. "You'll do just fine without them."
If you look at the dedication page to all of my books (so far), I've put her name in them. Because, quite frankly, she's been there for it all. She's never told me to give up "the pipe dream" like so many others have. She's always supported it.
The bottom line is, in today's market, you really don't need the big name publishers to become successful. Follow the advice of those who have done it . . . and start. If you want this bad enough, you'll find a way.
I have.
And I'd like you to join me.
The world needs us.
She picked it up and hung up.
"Hello," I said to nobody. "Oh, Simon and Schuster is offering 15 million. Not enough. Bye."
I then said to my wife, "One day, baby, I'll get a phone call like that."
She then said something amazing. "No, I think you'll do fine on your own. You don't need them."
After picking my jaw up from the floor, we talked a bit more about my books, how they've been selling so far, and what I had in store on the horizon for 2014.
"Yup," she said. "You'll do just fine without them."
If you look at the dedication page to all of my books (so far), I've put her name in them. Because, quite frankly, she's been there for it all. She's never told me to give up "the pipe dream" like so many others have. She's always supported it.
The bottom line is, in today's market, you really don't need the big name publishers to become successful. Follow the advice of those who have done it . . . and start. If you want this bad enough, you'll find a way.
I have.
And I'd like you to join me.
The world needs us.
Monday, February 3, 2014
The anti-hero: Dexter's Dexter Morgan vs. Breaking Bad's Walter White
We all love a good hero. From Luke Skywalker to Captain Kirk and from John Wayne to Clint Eastwood, we love to root for the good guy. The hero.
But what if the hero is a bad guy--you could almost say Dirty Harry is a bad guy, for he's a cop who breaks the law, but for now I'm going to concentrate on two others.
On Netflix, I'm currently on season four of Dexter and several months back I finished watching Breaking Bad. I'm counting the days to February 24th when the final season of BB is on Netflix. Both Dexter's Dexter Morgan and Breaking Bad's Walter White--the main protagonists--are anti-heros.
Dexter is a serial killer.
Walter White is a meth cook.
Yet we root for them. We want them to win.
We're fascinated by Darth Vader, but only because we're fascinated by those evil creatures that do harm. We're not rooting for Darth Vader to win. He's a bad guy.
If I had to pin both Walter and Dexter together, I'd say Walter White has the better story. Why is Walter White making meth--really good meth, the best anyone's ever seen--when he could be doing something . . . legal? Because, as we see in season 1, he's dying. His insurance sucks. And he has no money set aside for the future. He has a handicapped son. Oh, and did I add that his brother-in-law is a DEA agent and is actually tracking down the dealers whom Walter White is working with? That, in and of, itself makes for a great story.
Dexter's story is good too, for he's a serial killer who's killing . . . well, other killers. He's a blood splatter expert for the Miami Police Department, which gives him access to all sorts of information.
In the end, your protagonist may be a bad guy. And if he or she is, make them interesting enough for us to follow. You don't have to get all Walter White crazy, but there are elements of both Walter's and Dexter's characters that put them close to getting caught. The tension is unnerving. Once again, that makes for a great story.
But what if the hero is a bad guy--you could almost say Dirty Harry is a bad guy, for he's a cop who breaks the law, but for now I'm going to concentrate on two others.
On Netflix, I'm currently on season four of Dexter and several months back I finished watching Breaking Bad. I'm counting the days to February 24th when the final season of BB is on Netflix. Both Dexter's Dexter Morgan and Breaking Bad's Walter White--the main protagonists--are anti-heros.
Dexter is a serial killer.
Walter White is a meth cook.
Yet we root for them. We want them to win.
We're fascinated by Darth Vader, but only because we're fascinated by those evil creatures that do harm. We're not rooting for Darth Vader to win. He's a bad guy.
If I had to pin both Walter and Dexter together, I'd say Walter White has the better story. Why is Walter White making meth--really good meth, the best anyone's ever seen--when he could be doing something . . . legal? Because, as we see in season 1, he's dying. His insurance sucks. And he has no money set aside for the future. He has a handicapped son. Oh, and did I add that his brother-in-law is a DEA agent and is actually tracking down the dealers whom Walter White is working with? That, in and of, itself makes for a great story.
Dexter's story is good too, for he's a serial killer who's killing . . . well, other killers. He's a blood splatter expert for the Miami Police Department, which gives him access to all sorts of information.
In the end, your protagonist may be a bad guy. And if he or she is, make them interesting enough for us to follow. You don't have to get all Walter White crazy, but there are elements of both Walter's and Dexter's characters that put them close to getting caught. The tension is unnerving. Once again, that makes for a great story.
Friday, January 31, 2014
Happenings In The Outhouse 31-Jan-2014 / What I learned from Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, and The Following
I don't watch much television. In fact, aside from the occasional nightly news (local, not the 24-hour news cable networks) and some late night funny men such as Jay Leno, Jimmy Fallon, and Jimmy Kimmel, I don't watch any television at all.
We have one television, and either my wife or kids seem to always be in control of it. I'm okay with it. Instead, I watch Netflix on either my Kindle or the app on my Android phone--I love it! Netflix has opened a lot of creative doors for me, in terms of keeping in touch with movies or TV shows. A few of my favorites are The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, House of Cards, Dexter, The Killing. And so many more.
I recently watched the first season of The Following. I hate to say it--because I feel Kevin Bacon is a strong actor--but I didn't like it very much. I have a number of reasons for it. First, there always seemed to be this high-speed pursuit to catch the bad guys and there was never any let up. Contrast this with The Walking Dead. In every single episode, you have the threat of the latest zombie attack. But there is a down time too. A breather, in other words. You need that in your stories. The Following had very little and I was exhausted after each episode.
Another reason I failed to like The Following is that there was no character arc throughout the season. Kevin Bacon's character never really changed. Sure, some of the minor characters did, but not enough to carry the story.
The final reason The Following didn't do it for me is that I never knew what the killer Joe Carroll and his followers were all about. What was their passion, aside from killing? It was never really clear.
Enter Breaking Bad. Walter White, a high school science teacher who gets struck with cancer and a bad case of poor insurance. He wants to provide for his family. He then discovers the best way he can do it: make meth. Over the five seasons--I haven't seen the final season yet as it does not come out on Netflix until February 24th--Walter White has some great character arcs. There is also the threat of getting caught.
It all makes for a great story.
The edits for Shadowkill are moving along at a steady pace. Right now, I'm roughly a sixth done with the edits and it's coming along nicely. As far as what I want to accomplish this year, I've kept my same list of goals, but I'm emphasizing two things: publishing more and getting healthier. The latter involves losing a certain amount of weight. How much, I'm keeping that to myself.
(As I re-read this post, I fear that I give the impression that I watch a lot of Netflix. I do not. I watch a little each day, but I'm usually doing it while I'm working on chores or for a few minutes just before going to bed--I know, I know, The Walking Dead is a poor show to try fall asleep to, but I haven't gotten any nightmares . . . yet.)
We have one television, and either my wife or kids seem to always be in control of it. I'm okay with it. Instead, I watch Netflix on either my Kindle or the app on my Android phone--I love it! Netflix has opened a lot of creative doors for me, in terms of keeping in touch with movies or TV shows. A few of my favorites are The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, House of Cards, Dexter, The Killing. And so many more.
I recently watched the first season of The Following. I hate to say it--because I feel Kevin Bacon is a strong actor--but I didn't like it very much. I have a number of reasons for it. First, there always seemed to be this high-speed pursuit to catch the bad guys and there was never any let up. Contrast this with The Walking Dead. In every single episode, you have the threat of the latest zombie attack. But there is a down time too. A breather, in other words. You need that in your stories. The Following had very little and I was exhausted after each episode.
Another reason I failed to like The Following is that there was no character arc throughout the season. Kevin Bacon's character never really changed. Sure, some of the minor characters did, but not enough to carry the story.
The final reason The Following didn't do it for me is that I never knew what the killer Joe Carroll and his followers were all about. What was their passion, aside from killing? It was never really clear.
Enter Breaking Bad. Walter White, a high school science teacher who gets struck with cancer and a bad case of poor insurance. He wants to provide for his family. He then discovers the best way he can do it: make meth. Over the five seasons--I haven't seen the final season yet as it does not come out on Netflix until February 24th--Walter White has some great character arcs. There is also the threat of getting caught.
It all makes for a great story.
The edits for Shadowkill are moving along at a steady pace. Right now, I'm roughly a sixth done with the edits and it's coming along nicely. As far as what I want to accomplish this year, I've kept my same list of goals, but I'm emphasizing two things: publishing more and getting healthier. The latter involves losing a certain amount of weight. How much, I'm keeping that to myself.
(As I re-read this post, I fear that I give the impression that I watch a lot of Netflix. I do not. I watch a little each day, but I'm usually doing it while I'm working on chores or for a few minutes just before going to bed--I know, I know, The Walking Dead is a poor show to try fall asleep to, but I haven't gotten any nightmares . . . yet.)
Friday, January 24, 2014
Happenings In The Outhouse 24-Jan-2014 / My latest Kindle Countdown promotion
Last week, I had a Kindle Countdown promotion for Beholder's Eye.
It was a grand success.
Okay, I did not sell millions of copies (or even hundreds, for that matter), but I tripled sales from the last promotion in November. In fact, I sold more at $1.99 than I did at $.99--go figure.
The highest my Amazon ranking for Beholder's Eye was 18,637. When it crept up into the forties, I was excited. I envisioned breaking into the thirties. Then I did it.
Okay, I thought. I'd love to get it into the twenties.
I did that too.
I thought the teens was something I could never do. But I put out one final tweet--keep in mind, on my last promotion, I tweeted a lot; not so much this time--with about 10 hours left and in that time I sold 8 copies. That was enough to push it into the teens: 18,637 to be exact.
Shadowkill is still going strong in the edits. I'm pushing to be done by the end of February. Now that I have a self-imposed deadline, something happens in my mind that cements it and envisions what is needed to succeed.
It was a grand success.
Okay, I did not sell millions of copies (or even hundreds, for that matter), but I tripled sales from the last promotion in November. In fact, I sold more at $1.99 than I did at $.99--go figure.
The highest my Amazon ranking for Beholder's Eye was 18,637. When it crept up into the forties, I was excited. I envisioned breaking into the thirties. Then I did it.
Okay, I thought. I'd love to get it into the twenties.
I did that too.
I thought the teens was something I could never do. But I put out one final tweet--keep in mind, on my last promotion, I tweeted a lot; not so much this time--with about 10 hours left and in that time I sold 8 copies. That was enough to push it into the teens: 18,637 to be exact.
Shadowkill is still going strong in the edits. I'm pushing to be done by the end of February. Now that I have a self-imposed deadline, something happens in my mind that cements it and envisions what is needed to succeed.
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
The amazing power of Walt Disney World
Having just spent an amazing time over the Christmas holiday down and in Orlando, with five full days at the Walt Disney World themeparks Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Studios, one word went through my mind: fun.
Then, as the days went along, I grew utterly amazed at the power of Walt Disney's longtail.
As writers, we hope to one day have an arsenal of stories that will make ourselves financial secure--some have only done it with one or two stories, but those are quite the rarity. Most writers who can crank out thirty or forty or fifty-plus novels can be financially set, when you look at the longtail.
The longtail is the trail of works you've created. Take Walt Disney. There were rides featuring Peter Pan, Swiss Family Robinson, Dumbo, Monster's Inc., and the list goes on. Most of these movies were made far before I was even born. And yet they still cause one to wonder and have fun.
In your writing business, don't think short term. Create for a lifetime. Long-term. Not just next month or next year. But the next few decades. Where do you want to be?
Now start creating it.
Then, as the days went along, I grew utterly amazed at the power of Walt Disney's longtail.
As writers, we hope to one day have an arsenal of stories that will make ourselves financial secure--some have only done it with one or two stories, but those are quite the rarity. Most writers who can crank out thirty or forty or fifty-plus novels can be financially set, when you look at the longtail.
The longtail is the trail of works you've created. Take Walt Disney. There were rides featuring Peter Pan, Swiss Family Robinson, Dumbo, Monster's Inc., and the list goes on. Most of these movies were made far before I was even born. And yet they still cause one to wonder and have fun.
In your writing business, don't think short term. Create for a lifetime. Long-term. Not just next month or next year. But the next few decades. Where do you want to be?
Now start creating it.
Monday, January 20, 2014
5-star review of "Write. Publish. Repeat." by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant
I've read a lot of books on publishing, and most are either not worth the space they're printed on or it's just a retelling of someone else's work.
"Write. Publish. Repeat." by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant is not in that realm. Not only do they give practical advice for indie authors, the advice is proven. It's not theory. Because of it, I find myself changing how I'm doing things with my books.
This book is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Like they say many times throughout the books, writing takes a lot of hard work. You will not achieve overnight success. But over time, if you write . . . publish . . . and repeat it all over again, success has a way of finding you.
Be sure to add "Write. Publish. Repeat." to your library today. I give it five out of five stars--I even rank it up there with On Writing by Stephen King and even The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. Let Write, Publish, and Repeat be the mantra for your successful writing career.
"Write. Publish. Repeat." by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant is not in that realm. Not only do they give practical advice for indie authors, the advice is proven. It's not theory. Because of it, I find myself changing how I'm doing things with my books.
This book is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Like they say many times throughout the books, writing takes a lot of hard work. You will not achieve overnight success. But over time, if you write . . . publish . . . and repeat it all over again, success has a way of finding you.
Be sure to add "Write. Publish. Repeat." to your library today. I give it five out of five stars--I even rank it up there with On Writing by Stephen King and even The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. Let Write, Publish, and Repeat be the mantra for your successful writing career.
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