Today the second round entrants were announced. Sadly, my submission was cut. I knew going in the competition was going to be rough. I had hoped to make it far enough to get the novel reviewed to help with my marketing.
Congrats to all who made it through. Maybe I’ll try again next year.
Two posts in a single day! I think that’s a record!
Here, in Oklahoma, we’ve been hit with another round of winter weather. This time wasn’t as bad as the last but it’s still just damn cold. I opted this morning to drive to my office for the day’s work and quickly regretted it upon my arrival.
Tonight was what I’ve dubbed “Guy’s Night In”. My three-year-old and I spent the evening indoors while my wife went to have dinner with a friend. His choice for the evening entertainment? Lego Marvel Super Heroes.
I won’t go into a long-winded rant about a video game. But if you’re a parent looking for something to hold your kid’s attention span for a fairly decent amount of time without spending a tremendous amount of money or exposing them to a bunch of adult oriented content, this game is a must. My toddler and I enjoy going into the city area and having a good time. Plus it’s fun to listen to him talk about the things I read about in comics as as kid.
I just received notification that the Apple iBook version of Fate’s Haven has been made available on iTunes. A list of all other available version can be found under the bookstore link on my website. Thanks!
When I signed up for Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing Select program, I was forced to pull my novel from Barnes & Noble and a few other places. The good news is, As of this coming Friday, August 16th, I won’t be bound by their terms any longer.
My goal is to re-launch Fate’s Haven with slightly re-worked cover art in the following places:
It will take about a week for some of these stores to receive my submission and make it available on their stores. If you don’t see it, just check back. I intend to monitor each and post frequent updates as the editions become available.
Also, if you already have a digital edition, you should be able to receive the updated version by removing the eBook from your device (not your account) and simply download it again. If you have trouble, contact me and I’ll do my best to help.
To all you Kindle owners, May 24-27 Amazon will be posting my novel free of charge to help promote my book. Please share with as many people as possible, as reviews are always helpful to guide potential customers and promote future sales!
Over the past few days I’ve received positive feedback. A few individuals noted they weren’t aware this was a hobby of mine. I thought I’d share a little background.
More than twenty years ago I wrote a story. I was just a child so it wasn’t anything to be taken seriously. It was less than a page long and not something I did for any school assignment; Heck, it wasn’t even original. I can’t say I’ve always wanted to write. I can’t even say I’ve always enjoyed it either. But it’s always been something I was good at in school…or so I thought.
I told myself I was good at writing for a long time. My work was decent enough to get good grades in high school. It was even something I enjoyed doing in high school. My assignments were typically opinion-oriented; and I have an opinion on just about everything. During my senior year of high school I started working on something that became lengthy, though not very good at all. Again, it wasn’t original. It lacked substance and it wasn’t descriptive enough. At the time I thought it was decent and worked feverishly for over a year. I abandoned it once I realized how bad it really was.
My first year in college I met my first professor: a Composition I teacher named Bryan. For the same of anonymity I’m keeping his full name removed. I remember thinking he was a complete ass. My first assignment was an essay; an opinion essay. I don’t even remember the topic. What I remember is this: he handed it back and told me “this is the biggest piece of shit I’ve ever read. Do it again.” From that moment on he worked me to the bone. My papers came back with constant red marks. The smallest errors were circled and notes were made in the margins with long explanations. He took the time to point out every flaw I made in everything I wrote. I had him for Composition II also. At the end of that semester I handed him a paper that he gave back to me a week later and said “this is the best thing you’ve written for me. Good job.” I wish I had a copy of it. I hated him for a long time. I felt like he was constantly picking on me just to feel good about himself. I did eventually fight back some and gained his respect. I think he was trying to teach me not to take anyone’s crap, not even his.
I remember Bryan telling us to take pride in the things we write. I don’t always follow through with that one. I know that I don’t put 100% into everything. Sometimes I barely put in enough to get by. But on a lot of the things I do write, I always hear his comments. They cause me to question every word in every sentence. I may not be able to work everything down to the point where he wouldn’t ever have a comment. I don’t have the option of finding out. I learned last year he passed away a few years ago. I honestly don’t know what he would say if I could hand him something I produced recently. I just try to put the effort in that would have gotten the best response.
It’s strange to always be looking back at those classes. I haven’t been his student in over ten years. His class isn’t even associated with my degree but he’s still one of the few that stands out in my mind. He may even stand out the most
So here I am, twenty years later, hoping that what I’ve created isn’t a piece of absolute garbage in the mind of my Composition instructor. I’ve never really been good at telling a story verbally. My hope is I can tell the story with words and paint the picture while doing so.
