Greatest feeling ever!

Got a new book coming out next week and I must say it’s a great feeling. Not because I finished another book, but because I finished a book that I started writing in 1997. As I slowly weed through more than two decades of manuscripts, there’s a certain joy that comes each time one is finally declared “finished”. Even as I re-read the manuscript for the thousandth time, I could still picture myself fourteen years ago, sitting upstairs in my sweltering bedroom pumping out the first draft of the story into a 546 megabyte hard drive all while dreaming of having legions of fans and wild success. It’s these dreams that have kept me writing for all of these years. But, I digress. What I really wanted to do is give you a quick overview of the people I use and trust to put a raw manuscript into absolute professional standards. When you sell an ebook, the cover and interior formatting must be perfect if you are to attract a growing audience. You don’t want to cheapen out on these things. So… once again, I get no kickback or any other incentive to mention these people, only that they have been fantastic when it comes to producing my ebooks. The first person I recommend is my cover artist Judy Bullard. Jubu@cox.net. She is absolutely fantastic and has an uncanny way of creating the exact cover I had envisioned in my head. She’s done the last four of my books, including my latest, which you can see on my blog. Here are the links to see my covers of books she’s done that are for sale now:

AFTER
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0050Q8D8U

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0050Q8D8U

DROP OUT
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FX0K7U
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005FX0K7U

INSECTLAND

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005P81J48

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005P81J48

The second person who makes my ebooks possible is Chris O’Byrne. You can check him out on Linkedin or his website. This is his email address. theebookeditor@gmail.com Chris is great at formatting the manuscript, assigning ISBN’s and downloading the manuscript to Kindle and Smashwords. So, that’s about it. Simple, huh? These two and a great story and you’ve got the makings for success. I’m confident my book is in the right hands and I’m getting ready to market and promote it like mad. Check out DREAM TRAVELER, available in about a week.

New book cover!

Here it is! My new book cover! Next step is to have the novel formatted to Kindle standards and then begin the promotion process. I'm almost glad winter is approaching.

Sales are strange!

I applaud Kindle and the new digital revolution for allowing me to publish and sell my books. I’ve spent the better part of the last twenty years writing non-stop and have accrued quite a collection. Like a diligent author, I market and promote heavily online, but have yet to hire an actual publicity person (that will come in time). That said, I just got my monthly royalty statement from Kindle Direct Publishing. Now, the amount won’t allow me to quit my job and move to Key West, but it’s a start. So, why have I given this post this title; because it’s true; sales are strange! Though my sales are steadily increasing each month, they are so wildly unpredictable it seems to have no logic. For example, I sold an average of three to ten books a day in October. And believe me, I’m very happy with those numbers. But here’s the thing, doing everything exactly the same: same marketing, promotion, and social media postings, my sales completely cut off so far this month. Literally, not one sale for the last two weeks. Then, this morning I checked and I’ve got sales. Lots of sales. Now, I don’t know if Kindle stats have been down for the last two weeks or what, but the numbers are in. To all who bought a book yesterday, thanks! And to whatever book-Gods there may be floating around in the celestial heavens, thanks for this magic spell.

And please check out my latest interview.

http://susanwhitfield.blogspot.com/2011/11/neil-ostroffs-insectland.html

New Interview!

Please check out my latest interview about INSECTLAND.

http://susanwhitfield.blogspot.com/2011/11/neil-ostroffs-insectland.html

FREE edits and critiques!

A few weeks ago I gave my list of free marketing/promo/writers sites that all authors should be on. And I got a great response. Thanks for all the thanks. Now, I want to share those sites that are dedicated to helping writers hone their craft. These sites provide FREE feedback from readers on anything from a back jacket blurb to a full read of a manuscript. The people on these sites are friendly and give great advice. I must warn you however, don’t even think of promoting your stuff or trying to sell your work. Marketing or promoting your work, even ever so subtly, is heavily frowned upon and will probably get you kicked off. Anyway, here they are in no particular order. The list is small. I suggest you check them out. Again, there are probably thousands of sites that offer these kinds of free edits, but I personally have found these five sites to be the best for honest feedback.

http://www.writers-network.com

http://www.inknit.com

http://www.authonomy.com

http://mywriterscircle.com

http://www.fictionpress.com

Reason to write

Home from vacation and looking forward to working sixty hours in the next six days… not! There are many reasons why people attempt to, or actually do, write a book. Some are for purely egotistical reasons: money, fame, the adulation of pretty girls and boys. Some people write books because they feel they have a story to tell the world, whether it’s fiction or non-fiction. Some people write stories purely for the joy, and care little if no one else but family members ever read their words. And some people write books because it’s all they know and envision themselves ever doing. Since birth, this last sect of writers have a constant, never-ending, burning, drive inside that compels them to put their observations and imaginations to the page. These are writers who don’t care about the perks of authorsdom (artistic license here) and must compose stories everyday, like a junkie needing to blast heroin into a greedy, suckling vein. That is the category of writer that I fall into (not the junkie part). Fame, fortune, none of it matters… or so I thought. Getting on that plane yesterday and leaving Miami to return up north and go back to work changed my perspective a bit. I’m still the compulsive, reclusive, prolific author, and I can still do without the fame and adulation, but I gotta tell ya, the fortune and being on endless vacation would be nice. Give a peak at my list of books. Thanks for your support.

Writing and fishing

I’m sitting on the dock this morning, my fishing rod baited with a shrimp and hoping to catch some lunch when a strange thought occurred to me. Fishing and becoming a successful author are similar activities. Except when you’re fishing, you use bait to catch stuff and when you’re a writer you use your books to try and catch something, that something being an agent, publisher, or audience. The analogy expounds even further. With fishing, the quality of bait is directly related to the amount of fish it will attract. An author’s book is like that. Better quality books attract more of an audience. When I throw my fishing bait into the ocean I never know what I will catch. Much like writing a book and then putting it out there on the internet for readers to find. You never know what’s going to happen or how many readers you’re going to attract. That’s why fishing appeals to me almost as much as writing does. The unknown of what may happen, what you may reel in. Or maybe it’s because I’ve been doing a lot of both while on vacation. My next post may be titled, Writing and Limes. Can anyone say Margarita?

Oh, and a quick writing tip that I’ve discovered can really give your books an immediate boost. Read each sentence you have that begins with THE and then read the sentence aloud without THE. See if THE can be eliminated. If it can, see how much stronger the sentence becomes.

Environment and inspiration

As readers of my blog know, I am currently on vacation in the Florida Keys while my step-kids are at our house up north. The Keys is and was home to many famous artists and writers including its most notable resident, Earnest Hemmingway. Hemmingway lived and fished here, and wrote some of his most memorable novels in this tropical paradise. So, how has my own writing been going? I must admit the scenery is breathtaking and watching the sunsets really does get the creative juices flowing. But I haven’t been as productive as I had hoped to be. Since I’ve been here, (a little over a week) I have almost finished with the final read of my new novel, DREAM TRAVELER; about a fifteen-year-old girl who travels to other times and dimensions whenever she falls asleep. I have also skimmed through my next novel, WASTED, about a group of crazy, drug-addicted friends, which is complete and ready for a final read. The clean air and abundant sunshine has helped make the process of revision easier, but it’s still hard to concentrate with so much beauty around me. I haven’t had any new ideas for books or started any new projects while I’ve been down here, but that’s okay. I have all winter and the coming ice and snow to isolate myself and start a new book. Also, I can’t spend too much time on my writing at the moment or my wife will get mad. Her not being a writer, I can imagine that it’s pretty frustrating that I’m sitting at my computer for hours at a time when the day outside is extraordinary. I just enjoy writing stories so damn much! Anyway, the ocean calls and the sun beckons. Gotta go.  

Vacation+no marketing=little sales

As I write this I am on vacation. Yes, vacation. That magical two weeks a year when you leave your cares behind and head off into the sunset. In my case, this is Key West Florida. It’s beautiful! Right now it’s 82 degrees and sunny with low humidity. I watched the recent snowstorm in the northeast on television and thanked my lucky stars that I left Pennsylvania two days before it hit. I do write on vacation, usually in the morning before the high heat of the day sets in, but it’s not nearly the output I do at home. Of course, if that were the case down here my wife wouldn’t be speaking to me right now. Anyway, to get to my point of the title of this post, since I have been on vacation (a week) I’ve done nothing to market or promote myself. Now, this may seem like a minuscule amount of time compared to the average human life span of 77 years, but for an author trying to get reader’s attention this seems like forever. Most ebook buyers are looking for something immediate and if you can’t snatch their attention with marketing you’re going to lose sales. My own sales have dropped nearly seventy percent this week. Now, I’m not complaining, vacation is awesome! I just don’t want my cyber-community to forget about the books I write while I’m away. Hence, this post.

Websites all writers should be on.

I’ve been doing a lot of marketing/promotion lately for my books and have come up with a “must-be-on” list for writers who want to promote their books. These website provide free services that can really get your books noticed. There are many other sites out there but I highly recommend you concentrate your marketing efforts on these. Did I mention that they are all free?

Linkedin.com

Thebookmarketingnetwork.com

Authorsden.com

Shelfari.com

Goodreads.com

Bookwhirl.com

Indieauthorsunite.com

Bookblogs.com

Booktown.com

Bookdaily.com

Published.com

Bookhitch.com

Believe in ghosts?

I work at a country Inn rumored to be haunted. And I’m not just saying that. The Inn has been written up in books about haunted places and actual ghost hunters have spent nights trying to capture on film inhabitants of the great beyond. One of more frequent questions I get asked by people who know the Inn’s history is if I have ever seen anything out of the ordinary? Now, I’m at the Inn late at night, I’ve done inventory in the “haunted” wine cellar at two in the morning. I’ve strolled through the old buildings for more than a decade and this is what I’ve seen that makes me question whether or not I believe in ghosts. Nothing. I’ve never witnessed one thing out of the ordinary. Sorry, but I just don’t believe there are such creatures as ghosts, which doesn’t altogether eliminate the concept of a hereafter. I just don’t think these beings of the netherworld are interested in hanging around old structures when no one is supposed to be watching them. I mean, if the human soul continues on after death than what could the afterlife be like? I have my own ideas.

AFTER

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0050Q8D8U

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0050Q8D8U

Free Promo! Free Promo!

Just a quick post before I spend my weekend working at my job and this little piece of promotion disappears into cyberspace. If you’re an indie writer and have a book to sell than check out the site below, Indie Snippets. They have a pretty good base of readers and having my books placed there has increased traffic to my book sites. I think they’re a little backlogged right now, but take a moment to fill out their submission form. It’s free, and free is always good.

http://indiesnippets.blogspot.com/2011/10/from-insectland-by-neil-d-ostroff.html#.TqA8AjA4kDE.facebook

Staycation for $1.25

Lately, I’ve been blogging about memories, life experiences, writing, my take on the publishing industry, etc. So, today I’ve decide to do some good ole’ fashioned promotion. My latest three books, all released in the last year, are now available for just $1.25. As I mentioned in a previous post, although these books all came out around the same few months, they took more than a decade for me to consider them finished. They all have been professionally edited, evaluated, and even made the NY publishing rounds with a prominent agent at FinePrint Literary Agency. They all got serious interest from major publishers such as Random House and Harper publishing who all agreed the material was “very strong and unique storytelling”. In the end and due to the shrinking marketplace for new writers, they were turned down. Then Kindle came along and we all know how this story ends. So, if you’re looking for a way to escape your normal routine for awhile and lose yourself in a good book, why not, for less than a cup of coffee, have a little staycation with one of my novels? I think you’ll agree it was the best buck-and-a-quarter entertainment you’ve ever spent.

AFTER
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0050Q8D8U

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0050Q8D8U

DROP OUT
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FX0K7U

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005FX0K7U

INSECTLAND

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005P81J48

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005P81J48

Riches vs. fame

I’ve been pondering the notion of my books one day going viral and selling millions of copies. I’ve been pondering how much my life would change and what I would do with my time if I didn’t have to work at a conventional job anymore. Of course, I would still write books, that’s a given, but what else would I do with my time? I guess it depends on the amount of sales. A million copies sold would allow me to live a life of ease, but if you’re talking in the millions, then I would like to give back a little. It’s always been a dream of mine to start my own publishing company and help out authors who write books that are wild, and a bit off the mainstream, like mine. But, the reality of the twenty-first century is that authors don’t need publishers anymore. With epublishing and Kindle Direct Publishing, author’s can be their own bosses. Maybe, I’d contribute to a college or give some money to an animal rescue or a homeless shelter. I don’t know. I guess, if I go viral we’ll see what happens. Riches are good. But what about fame? What does fame allow you to do? Let’s see. It can get you a good seat at a restaurant. It can most likely get you a romp in the sack with a member of the opposite sex… Gee, it’s hard to come up with another one. Without money, fame is nothing more than an ego boost. As of this writing, I’ve got almost fifty followers on my blog, my books have been “liked” on Amazon by dozens of strangers, my author’s den site has had over 45,000 hits, and my other sites have combined hits of over 25,000. That said, over 70,000 people, at least, have read about me, seen my books, and showed an interest in what I do. In a way, I guess that makes me famous. So let’s see what that fame can do for my writing career, because I sure ain’t getting rich off it. Yet.

My dead dog.

I dreamt of my dog last night. It has been exactly six months since I made that awful decision to put him down. He was deaf, crippled, and going blind. I had spent the last months of his life in denial of his condition and constantly cleaning up his incontinence. When I went to work I would have to line the floor with newspaper and still would come home to messes. Finally, when all he could do was eat, sleep, and spin in circles, I decided it was time. It took everything I had to walk into the vet’s office and hold my dog as the injection was administered. I would have been okay if all my dog did was go to sleep peacefully, but he didn’t. He whined and cried as the medication took effect. He hadn’t uttered a whimper for two months previous. Finally, after what seemed like minutes, he went limp in my arms and I put him onto the table. I looked at his lifeless body with his blind eyes open wide, and then went outside to sob. It was only the second time in my ten years of marriage that my wife had seen me cry. I spent the remainder of that day throwing away my dog’s things, except for his collar which I put away in a box.

So, why am I telling you this? Because I just wrote that scene into my latest book, turning that negative into a positive. Although my dog of fifteen years is gone now, his memory will live on.