I'm a killer for back page comments on my books :-) Some of you haven't seen them, I'm sure, as you'd need to buy the Print version to see them. I also have a 'swear free zone' label on the back. So, here they are, those writers (and their books) who were so nice to allow me to print what they said :-)
Man by a tree
"The sole purpose of a book is to be read"...err, sorry, that one's me :-)
"Sharp, dark and sardonic are rarely found wrapped in a single package" Greg Levin (Notes on an Orange Burial). Greg was the 2nd to make me believe in my writing, though he still hasn't followed me on twitter!
"I've fallen in love" Bryn Hammond (Amagalant). A strange Australian writer with an even stranger writing style - I love it!
"a damned good tale" Fredrik Nath (The Cyclist - A World War II Thriller). Fred was the FIRST person to ever comment on any of my writing. And his is fantastic! He even put Man by a tree on his own website.
The Bethlehem Fiasco
"Irreverent, quirky and fun" Fredrik Nath (The Cyclist - A World War II Thriller). Yes, Fred was so nice, he even gave me a comment for my 2nd book :-)
"...a light and breezy read..." Iso Nuys (Paid on Return) Sadly, I can't find his book anywhere. it was VERY good.
"I loved it!" Dave Tarragon (The Chemo Diairies) Dave changed to Dave Crews, and this book can only be seem in part on authonomy.com. It's a true story, well worth a read!
The Rage of Atlantis
"Hilarious" Eponymous Rex (Bot). Bot was the fastest moving book on authonomy.com EVER. It's one hell of a read. Here is the Amazon link to BOT . He also put Man by a tree on his website
"Amazing" J.T. Bennett (Four Corners) Man of few words, nice book, too.
"Flash Gordon meets Water-world" Karen Bates (Faking it in France) Great book about living in France :-)
"Wow" Jo Lynn (Who Killed the President?) I remember when this book was an unreadable draft, and only recently, it hit No.1 on authonomy.com. Now a damn fine read. I don't think it's in print yet, though.
"Heck, I'd buy it." Leon Gower (Universal Constance) Actually, I don't think he ever did, but at least he said he would...:-)
...this post took am hour to put together, hope you enjoyed it :-)
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
55 worder from 'Manna-X'
Yes, I put that little dialogue on Briggs' website. You can find it here to vote on it.
Unfortunately, that site is suffering from negative voting from those overzealous friends of other authors...so please vote well :-)
I will also compete in the Iron Writer's Challenge on May the 9th. Writers are given 4 elements and need to write a 500 word story which includes all 4. There may even be a compilation book made from the stories...more exposure!
This week one new reader said my characters are 'flat'...our own character is made from what we do and what we say, it's the same in my books. They are not made by physical descriptions.
Unfortunately, that site is suffering from negative voting from those overzealous friends of other authors...so please vote well :-)
I will also compete in the Iron Writer's Challenge on May the 9th. Writers are given 4 elements and need to write a 500 word story which includes all 4. There may even be a compilation book made from the stories...more exposure!
This week one new reader said my characters are 'flat'...our own character is made from what we do and what we say, it's the same in my books. They are not made by physical descriptions.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Manna-X snippet :-)~
Just had to :-)~
"Oh come on guys…"
"When in Rome." All three were sitting on large mangalicas,
smelly long-haired wild pigs, a kolbasz speciality, Ekron brandishing his short
fat hobgoblin sword on a red-haired monster, Sniff wiping his nose continuously
on the neck of his white beast, whereas Grint was crushing a black grunt and
eating some rancid chicken he'd found on the way. Graham turned his pale horse
back towards their target, shaking his head.
"When are you guys going to take anything
seriously?"
"How about now, dead boy." Ekron smacked his pig on
it's hind and it gave a screech before speeding off to its prey. Sniff and
Grint's rides rallied to its call, they held on as all three sped past Graham.
Grint lost his chicken.
"Does anyone have a spare sandwich or casserole?"
"Hey! Wait up!" Graham kicked his ride and
in no time had passed the strange looking trio and was heading straight for the
clearing where Zir held Fiona hostage.
Romance Post
Yes, I know I do quirky sardonic comedy, but there was once a time when 'Man by a tree' was going to be a 'love story'...but as with 'serious literature', I couldn't pull it off, I either kept laughing at my own writing or vomiting. I read other authors' attempts at romance and I just can't keep a straight face. Knowing what's behind it...is the secret out? No. No one understands. Good. The illusion hasn't been broken yet. Shhh.
Anyway, there's a character in 'Man by a tree' called Sarah, and readers don't get her until...the end. There was a part of the book I cut out in the 'final' draft (if there is such a thing) about a 'romance' but it didn't fit the book, the story or the style.
In 'Bethlehem Fiasco' there was a friendship between Jesus and his 'old man' - yes, a phallic reference, but no relationship with Mary, sorry, the 'old man' has that - yes, ANOTHER phallic reference.
In 'Rage' there were many friendships, including one between Sipho and a female dolphin, Kang Dee, but no romance.
Now, in 'Manna-X', there's going to be a sort-of-relationship between Graham and Fiona...well, Fiona thinks there will be / might be...it's going to be interesting to write it...started and it can go any way...:-)
And THANKS for the 6000 views!!! This blog is getting anywhere from 20-120 views per day. May we go on to the big 10k :-))
Anyway, there's a character in 'Man by a tree' called Sarah, and readers don't get her until...the end. There was a part of the book I cut out in the 'final' draft (if there is such a thing) about a 'romance' but it didn't fit the book, the story or the style.
In 'Bethlehem Fiasco' there was a friendship between Jesus and his 'old man' - yes, a phallic reference, but no relationship with Mary, sorry, the 'old man' has that - yes, ANOTHER phallic reference.
In 'Rage' there were many friendships, including one between Sipho and a female dolphin, Kang Dee, but no romance.
Now, in 'Manna-X', there's going to be a sort-of-relationship between Graham and Fiona...well, Fiona thinks there will be / might be...it's going to be interesting to write it...started and it can go any way...:-)
And THANKS for the 6000 views!!! This blog is getting anywhere from 20-120 views per day. May we go on to the big 10k :-))
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Unexpected post
Sometimes I get a surprise, for example, Sean Connolly on authonomy.com sent me this comment about 'Man by a tree'...
"I actually enjoyed reading this book
and think it will do well at the end of the day. There is a superb flow
to this that nearly took me away from the story as I was so deep in the
book. Thats a good thing for me as I lose concentration very easily.
Great humour, great pace and a great future for this. Well done."
Due to lack of sales, I always have doubts as to whether I'm getting anywhere, but when I read comments like this, with yet another reader/writer thinking there's something special, it helps me in the 'quest' for the perfect sentence...:-)
Due to lack of sales, I always have doubts as to whether I'm getting anywhere, but when I read comments like this, with yet another reader/writer thinking there's something special, it helps me in the 'quest' for the perfect sentence...:-)
Anyone can meditate on a mountain
I always say that anyone can meditate on the top of a mountain. A lot of people don't get it.
And anyone can write when all they have to do is write. But can they really?
I think you need to DO life to write, and not sit in front of your computer and think "Now, what shall I write today?"
Yesterday, two of my family had a tiny tiny 2 line dialogue about something, and an idea INSTANTLY popped into my head. Here is the dialogue I wrote down.
Life gives these gems (at least I think they are) of human social exchange. It's little tiny bits of life which you need to catch and write down, and not copy from the classics or from another writer or movie. It's why I write, to share these things. Like when Billy Connolly was asking for directions in Glasgow, an old lady said "You know, I don't think you can get there from here." lol
(I added 1 word for another entry into Austin Briggs' competition this month (the word 'decide'), it'll be up to vote on soon hopefully...)
And anyone can write when all they have to do is write. But can they really?
I think you need to DO life to write, and not sit in front of your computer and think "Now, what shall I write today?"
Yesterday, two of my family had a tiny tiny 2 line dialogue about something, and an idea INSTANTLY popped into my head. Here is the dialogue I wrote down.
Life gives these gems (at least I think they are) of human social exchange. It's little tiny bits of life which you need to catch and write down, and not copy from the classics or from another writer or movie. It's why I write, to share these things. Like when Billy Connolly was asking for directions in Glasgow, an old lady said "You know, I don't think you can get there from here." lol
"Is this okay?"
"It doesn't
matter."
"Like
this?"
"No, not
like that."
"This?"
"No, turn it
around. Yes. No. Like that."
"Like
this?"
"Yes, that's
better. Err..no, no, it's not."
"So, it
doesn't matter?"
"No, no, it
doesn't matter."
"Like
this?"
"No, not like that! Oh, I'll do it."(I added 1 word for another entry into Austin Briggs' competition this month (the word 'decide'), it'll be up to vote on soon hopefully...)
Friday, March 15, 2013
More lovely comments!
Slowly moved onto 21,000 words for 'Manna-X' (14,000 rough ones here), just worked out another 'twist' so a few more 1000 to come. But the writing process for this one is different to the others, which is good for experience, I guess.
Comments! Lovely comments!
On authonomy.com, a few comments on my writing...
Dieter Keller on 'Manna-X'..."It is my cup tea. The first chapter grabs my attention because its different. You get used to seeing the same thing over and over on this site, but this is refreshing. Can't wait to read more."
'Evermoore' (who?) on 'TDX2"..."I have to say...You doooooooooo make me smile. The way you write is quick, efficient, clear and fun. I'm so glad to have found your page and so many more books that I hope are just as enjoyable as this!"
And in e-mail...
Jasper T. Scott on 'Rage'...."Still enjoying your book. The dolphin is hilarious!"
...and I'm still enjoying his :-)
All great news :-)
Comments! Lovely comments!
Dieter Keller on 'Manna-X'..."It is my cup tea. The first chapter grabs my attention because its different. You get used to seeing the same thing over and over on this site, but this is refreshing. Can't wait to read more."
'Evermoore' (who?) on 'TDX2"..."I have to say...You doooooooooo make me smile. The way you write is quick, efficient, clear and fun. I'm so glad to have found your page and so many more books that I hope are just as enjoyable as this!"
And in e-mail...
Jasper T. Scott on 'Rage'...."Still enjoying your book. The dolphin is hilarious!"
...and I'm still enjoying his :-)
All great news :-)
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Economical
And I think I've just received the compliment I've been waiting for all these years. "Economical".
I am not one for long winded descriptions, I believe the reader should use their own experience of the type of situations and characters I present. I don't believe in shoving details down the throat of the reader, destroying any freedom they have in their own creativity. "The sullen old man dressed in a blue suit with matching tie mourned over..." blah blah blah... Nowadays it's usual clothing description that gets me, I call it 'ClothingDescriptionitus', Grisham suffers from it, as do so many others..."He ran down the dirt and dusty street in a faded blue loincloth..." Why do writers need to overload nouns with adjectives? Do they think it's what literature should be? All you have to do is read some Hemingway, ANY Hemingway, and you'll feel an economical style, one which allows you to think, not only in description but also in hidden meanings - he doesn'T spell it out for you, the reader has to work it out for themselves what exactly is going on. Freedom.
I am not one for long winded descriptions, I believe the reader should use their own experience of the type of situations and characters I present. I don't believe in shoving details down the throat of the reader, destroying any freedom they have in their own creativity. "The sullen old man dressed in a blue suit with matching tie mourned over..." blah blah blah... Nowadays it's usual clothing description that gets me, I call it 'ClothingDescriptionitus', Grisham suffers from it, as do so many others..."He ran down the dirt and dusty street in a faded blue loincloth..." Why do writers need to overload nouns with adjectives? Do they think it's what literature should be? All you have to do is read some Hemingway, ANY Hemingway, and you'll feel an economical style, one which allows you to think, not only in description but also in hidden meanings - he doesn'T spell it out for you, the reader has to work it out for themselves what exactly is going on. Freedom.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Where ideas come from
Where do the ideas come from? From nowhere.
I thought I'd write out a scene between Fiona and Graham, one I had a vague idea of how it started. Then an idea appeared. And another. In no time I had over 1000 words, some great ideas - taking the piss out of Dan Brown, adding some conceptual continuity, some great dialogue exchanges...it was wonderful. In one sitting I was able to write some great words AND deal with some of the plot. And where did it all come from? Nowhere, that's where. The process of writing created the writing. It's true what they say, sit down and write. Something will appear :-)
I thought I'd write out a scene between Fiona and Graham, one I had a vague idea of how it started. Then an idea appeared. And another. In no time I had over 1000 words, some great ideas - taking the piss out of Dan Brown, adding some conceptual continuity, some great dialogue exchanges...it was wonderful. In one sitting I was able to write some great words AND deal with some of the plot. And where did it all come from? Nowhere, that's where. The process of writing created the writing. It's true what they say, sit down and write. Something will appear :-)
Manna-X comments :-)
"interesting book - great narrative, and full use of dialogue - works well indeed..."
I might be able to use this for the back cover :-) Thanks, Su Dan, and 'Seasons', that's a nice book you got there.
And another from confused comment from 'cowgurl4Jesus8912', I'll put the best bit up here...
" I did find it a little hard to follow...But as I continued to read it became easier for me to figure out and understand. While not my cup of tea I do think there are those out there who would really enjoy this story. On a positive note, I liked the 1st chapter you drew me in and made me curious as to what Rihat was doing. I also found the part where the Dob's were walking around trying to eat, figure out their device to be quite humorous and entertaining."
Still reading 'Escape', nice read, very relaxing. Had a look at it's reviews on Amazon, and I couldn't believe it. Out of 16 reviews, 4 were 2-star and there was even a 1-star! The 1-star was from a guy who only loves a certain style of the genre and he gives 3 or 1 stars to anything not in that. I hope I don't get guys like him (but no one can be safe from them).
Why do people give 1- or 2-star reviews? Do they want people to fail? Do they get a kick out of it? I'd better not say anything more...when I mentioned something about 'negative voting' on Austin Briggs' site, my 3rd story dropped straight down :-(
But it looks like 'Manna-X' is getting the right feedback, and it's no way near finished or polished yet :-)
Monday, March 11, 2013
Anonymous Post :-)
Thank you, Anonymous, for starting what I hope will be a growing trend! You made a good choice, 'Bethlehem Fiasco', a favourite of many of my small group of readers. I hope you enjoy the farcical yet profound nature of that book. I certainly enjoyed writing it...oh, I remember those days, on the crest of a wave, 1000s of words flowed from my fingers with ease and grace (slap).
It would be interesting for some feedback, or even a REVIEW! on AMAZON...it would be an "Amazon Verified Purchase"! Now THAT would help things move along :-) Maybe...
On a side-note: 'Manna-X' is still moving along, at about 200 words a day...might be able to finish before Christmas at this rate...And what about those movie scripts? I'd need 26 hours in the day...but they will come! Eventually.
Update: This post is getting a lot of hits!
Okay, as of 22 Sept 2013...
'Dani's Shorts' and 'TDX2' are still available FREE here...
https://www.smashwords.com/books/byseries/2766
All my other books are on Amazon :-)
http://www.amazon.com/Dani-J-Caile/e/B00CDX0HSM
Please review wherever you can :-)...
And I'll be in the Iron Writer Autumn Equinox Open VERY soon. Please get your voting fingers ready :-)
http://theironwriter.com/tournament/2013-autumn-equnoix-open-participants/
It would be interesting for some feedback, or even a REVIEW! on AMAZON...it would be an "Amazon Verified Purchase"! Now THAT would help things move along :-) Maybe...
On a side-note: 'Manna-X' is still moving along, at about 200 words a day...might be able to finish before Christmas at this rate...And what about those movie scripts? I'd need 26 hours in the day...but they will come! Eventually.
Update: This post is getting a lot of hits!
Okay, as of 22 Sept 2013...
'Dani's Shorts' and 'TDX2' are still available FREE here...
https://www.smashwords.com/books/byseries/2766
All my other books are on Amazon :-)
http://www.amazon.com/Dani-J-Caile/e/B00CDX0HSM
Please review wherever you can :-)...
And I'll be in the Iron Writer Autumn Equinox Open VERY soon. Please get your voting fingers ready :-)
http://theironwriter.com/tournament/2013-autumn-equnoix-open-participants/
Found a GEM!
This last month I've been searching the indies for a good writer. I thought I'd found 1 or 2 but after reading more into their books, they were crap too! There are, of course, some indies who I want to read more of but can't because I'd need to BUY their books (but if I can't get any sales, then I can't buy anything, either).
This certain writer's book has been sitting in my phone for a month. Because it didn't have a title, only a number, I kept overlooking it, until now. 'Escape' by Jasper Scott I still haven't finished it yet, I WILL review it on Amazon, and it's everything a book should be! It flows fantastically, there's a wonderful story, etc. (Ed: save it for the review)! Fortunately enough, he's also a NICE GUY and will review one of mine! (Yippie, finally!)
He's already said...
"Read the first few pages of Rage of Atlantis, and I can't wait to read more. You have me hooked already with your wry, descriptive--and best of all, economical--writing style. This is a book I think I'm about to really enjoy. Thanks for passing it along!"
...is the ball going to start rolling? Will people start to read my books? Who knows?
But I'd like to say a BIG THANK YOU to Jasper for these kind words :-)
This certain writer's book has been sitting in my phone for a month. Because it didn't have a title, only a number, I kept overlooking it, until now. 'Escape' by Jasper Scott I still haven't finished it yet, I WILL review it on Amazon, and it's everything a book should be! It flows fantastically, there's a wonderful story, etc. (Ed: save it for the review)! Fortunately enough, he's also a NICE GUY and will review one of mine! (Yippie, finally!)
He's already said...
"Read the first few pages of Rage of Atlantis, and I can't wait to read more. You have me hooked already with your wry, descriptive--and best of all, economical--writing style. This is a book I think I'm about to really enjoy. Thanks for passing it along!"
...is the ball going to start rolling? Will people start to read my books? Who knows?
But I'd like to say a BIG THANK YOU to Jasper for these kind words :-)
Sunday, March 10, 2013
What's the story? All 3 books!
I thought I'd help those who needed a little help in deciding whether my books are their 'cup of tea', so here's their stories (up to the 'volcano', of course). Ya don't think I'm gonna tell ya the ends, do ya? :-)
'Man by a tree'
Kailen the hobgoblin King sabotages the 'soul pickup' list, as ordered, and Graham Reader (aka Grim Reaper) picks up a few souls, until he can't find one, which is a BIG problem for God. Graham doesn't know what to do but Satan does, as he gets ready to invade God's home 'up above' and take his comfortable chair. In the meantime, Doug, a second-rate musician, tries to make it big with his latest music band, oblivious to fate. Graham asks around, trying to find the lost soul, until God catches up with him...
'The Bethlehem Fiasco'
After a freak accidental 'angel blood' incident at birth, Jesus can hear voices in his head, a fact he learns to forgot. God and Satan are aware of the fact that a monkey (human) has angel blood in their system and they wait for contact. As an adult, Jesus goes off to look for himself, only to find his 'inner conscience' (God/Satan/Lucifer/whoever is on the line) and John the Baptist and his cohorts, eager for a profit, at any cost...
'The Rage of Atlantis'
Set at the beginning of time, 2 evil Atlantean politicians want their dream to come true, and will pay any price to achieve it, irrespective of their own fellow humans. Chief of Security Sipho and his sidekick Kang Dee the dolphin investigate the last in a long line of terrorist attacks against their city, only to succumb to the evils of the time...
'Man by a tree'
Kailen the hobgoblin King sabotages the 'soul pickup' list, as ordered, and Graham Reader (aka Grim Reaper) picks up a few souls, until he can't find one, which is a BIG problem for God. Graham doesn't know what to do but Satan does, as he gets ready to invade God's home 'up above' and take his comfortable chair. In the meantime, Doug, a second-rate musician, tries to make it big with his latest music band, oblivious to fate. Graham asks around, trying to find the lost soul, until God catches up with him...
'The Bethlehem Fiasco'
After a freak accidental 'angel blood' incident at birth, Jesus can hear voices in his head, a fact he learns to forgot. God and Satan are aware of the fact that a monkey (human) has angel blood in their system and they wait for contact. As an adult, Jesus goes off to look for himself, only to find his 'inner conscience' (God/Satan/Lucifer/whoever is on the line) and John the Baptist and his cohorts, eager for a profit, at any cost...
'The Rage of Atlantis'
Set at the beginning of time, 2 evil Atlantean politicians want their dream to come true, and will pay any price to achieve it, irrespective of their own fellow humans. Chief of Security Sipho and his sidekick Kang Dee the dolphin investigate the last in a long line of terrorist attacks against their city, only to succumb to the evils of the time...
Friday, March 8, 2013
The craze has started ! :-)
Thank you 'Anonymous' for starting the craze of buying my books :-) I hope you chose wisely....
Man by a tree is heavy to start but races onto a 'volcanic' finale
Rage of Atlantis can crush brains, but
Bethlehem Fiasco is a healthy snack for all the family :-)~
TDX2 is basically a linear 'extra' adventure for Graham Reader (free here), whereas...
MannaX (No.5) (in the writing process) is another fully fledged complex plot book.
And to help you navigate my strange little neo-plantonic universe, here are the main characters from the 4 books so far...
In all 4 books to date...
God - He's the man in charge, 'up above'. He knows all, sees all. He's not as stupid as he seems.
Satan - Lord and master of 'down below', banished from 'up above' many years ago, all he wants is to be No.1!
Kailen - Lord over all hobgoblins. He also has hopes and desires.
In 3 books...
Graham Reader (1+2+4) (Grim Reaper) - Once shepherd, now Mr. Death, he's been worn down by over 2000 years of picking up souls. To put it bluntly, he doesn't enjoy his job anymore.
Michael (1+2+3) - Once a great angel with his sword in hand, now he's the owner of a dangerous clipboard.
In 2 books...
Lucifer (1+2) - Satan's side kick, loves himself. That's why God threw him out of 'up above', too much pride.
Sniff & Grint (1+2) - Two of the laziest and stupidest hobgoblins you'll ever (not) meet. (Grint has a bit part in 'The Bethlehem Fiasco'- see if you can spot him :-))
Drukan (2+3) - the 'newboy' hobgoblin who turned into 'the little man' with special powers
Man by a tree only...
Jerry (Jeremiel) - Friend of Graham's a bit of a wayward angel. Michael hates him.
Doug - A down-and-out muso, looking for his 'Big Break'. Will he find it?
Sarah - Actually, who is she?
The Bethlehem Fiasco only...
Jesus - the man himself, confused, but has a big heart
John the Baptist - wanna be baptised? It'll cost ya
Gaspar - a criminal mastermind, once mistaken for a wise man
Pilate - the Roman Prefect of Judea
Herod & his son, Antipas - Two of the craziest rulers...ever
Caiaphas - the High Priest of Judea
Bassus - lower priest
And loads more...:-)
The Rage of Atlantis only...
Sipho - a not-so-great High Chief of Security for Atlantis
Kang Dee - Sipho's female dolphin sidekick
Oediouspelus - a greedy leader of Atlantis
Plagamus - an evil leader of Atlantis
the Auditor - a cheating draughts-playing Death statistician
Gabriel - a not-so-great clever angel
Iolus - the evil guys' inside man
Audrey - God's long-suffering personal assistant
And loads loads more :-)
Man by a tree is heavy to start but races onto a 'volcanic' finale
Rage of Atlantis can crush brains, but
Bethlehem Fiasco is a healthy snack for all the family :-)~
TDX2 is basically a linear 'extra' adventure for Graham Reader (free here), whereas...
MannaX (No.5) (in the writing process) is another fully fledged complex plot book.
And to help you navigate my strange little neo-plantonic universe, here are the main characters from the 4 books so far...
In all 4 books to date...
God - He's the man in charge, 'up above'. He knows all, sees all. He's not as stupid as he seems.
Satan - Lord and master of 'down below', banished from 'up above' many years ago, all he wants is to be No.1!
Kailen - Lord over all hobgoblins. He also has hopes and desires.
In 3 books...
Graham Reader (1+2+4) (Grim Reaper) - Once shepherd, now Mr. Death, he's been worn down by over 2000 years of picking up souls. To put it bluntly, he doesn't enjoy his job anymore.
Michael (1+2+3) - Once a great angel with his sword in hand, now he's the owner of a dangerous clipboard.
In 2 books...
Lucifer (1+2) - Satan's side kick, loves himself. That's why God threw him out of 'up above', too much pride.
Sniff & Grint (1+2) - Two of the laziest and stupidest hobgoblins you'll ever (not) meet. (Grint has a bit part in 'The Bethlehem Fiasco'- see if you can spot him :-))
Drukan (2+3) - the 'newboy' hobgoblin who turned into 'the little man' with special powers
Man by a tree only...
Jerry (Jeremiel) - Friend of Graham's a bit of a wayward angel. Michael hates him.
Doug - A down-and-out muso, looking for his 'Big Break'. Will he find it?
Sarah - Actually, who is she?
The Bethlehem Fiasco only...
Jesus - the man himself, confused, but has a big heart
John the Baptist - wanna be baptised? It'll cost ya
Gaspar - a criminal mastermind, once mistaken for a wise man
Pilate - the Roman Prefect of Judea
Herod & his son, Antipas - Two of the craziest rulers...ever
Caiaphas - the High Priest of Judea
Bassus - lower priest
And loads more...:-)
The Rage of Atlantis only...
Sipho - a not-so-great High Chief of Security for Atlantis
Kang Dee - Sipho's female dolphin sidekick
Oediouspelus - a greedy leader of Atlantis
Plagamus - an evil leader of Atlantis
the Auditor - a cheating draughts-playing Death statistician
Gabriel - a not-so-great clever angel
Iolus - the evil guys' inside man
Audrey - God's long-suffering personal assistant
And loads loads more :-)
Writing...is Fashion
When I can get my head down and write, it's the greatest feeling ever, to produce something which wasn't there a moment ago, something which encapsules thoughts, emotions, ideas for eternity. At the end of writing a story, there is a feeling of euphoria and you can't wait for someone else to read it.
...that's the problem. I thought that if you wrote something good, someone would read it, publish it and more people would get the chance to experience the 'joy' within the writing. Wrong. Sure, your friends love the stuff, they want more, but really, what is literature? Fashion. Someone buys a book because someone else did, or they see a good review in a magazine or see a huge display in the shop. Some say the books find their readers. I don't think so...
...so I'm writing, loving the process and one day, maybe one day someone will buy one of my books...just the one, maybe.
...that's the problem. I thought that if you wrote something good, someone would read it, publish it and more people would get the chance to experience the 'joy' within the writing. Wrong. Sure, your friends love the stuff, they want more, but really, what is literature? Fashion. Someone buys a book because someone else did, or they see a good review in a magazine or see a huge display in the shop. Some say the books find their readers. I don't think so...
...so I'm writing, loving the process and one day, maybe one day someone will buy one of my books...just the one, maybe.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
3rd try, it could be the one!
It looks like I'm still playing the game with Mr. Briggs.
Put on a new 55 worder here...
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/its-a-mystery/
And he LOVES it...so here's hoping.
Please come and vote 'thumbs up' :-)
...but saying that, he is commenting on ALL new stories and saying how LOVELY they ALL are.
This man cannot be trusted.
Still working through 'MannaX', it's coming slowly, and it's a LOVELY thing...
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
Put on a new 55 worder here...
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/its-a-mystery/
And he LOVES it...so here's hoping.
Please come and vote 'thumbs up' :-)
...but saying that, he is commenting on ALL new stories and saying how LOVELY they ALL are.
This man cannot be trusted.
Still working through 'MannaX', it's coming slowly, and it's a LOVELY thing...
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
Sunday, March 3, 2013
The Original Post
Wow! Already got my first comment/review for 'Manna-X'! Okay, so she only read the 1st two chapters but hey!
It's from Debbie Roxburgh, her book Speedy McCready is in a position for the Editor's Desk for the end of the month on authonomy, which means a REAL editor gets to look at your work.
And AGAIN, someone (who doesn't know my other work) says it's 'original' ! 'Man by a tree', 'Bethlehem Fiasco', 'Rage of Atlantis', and now 'Manna-X'?! (people only said 'TDX2' was 'fresh and lively', though I think someone said 'original', can't remember...
I'll use this comment for the back cover..."quirky, bizarre, amusing and above all, original"
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
Anyway, this is what she says...:-)
Dani
I have read the first two chapters.
I haven't come across anything quite like this on the site so far. The beginning really pulled me in with Rihat digging a hole to bury his 'precious cargo' in. Alone is the desert, or so he thinks, until he hears a voice.
The clever humour begins with the dialogue between the two men.
"What's a Jew doing here?"
"What's a linguist doing in a hole?"
I loved the image of Moront's silhouette picking its nose.
Graham Reader appears at the end of this chapter - what a very ordinary name for the Grim Reaper - like that the initials are kept the same.
There is the mystery of what is in the bag Rihat was trying to bury and why it's making a humming sound.
Chapter two
We meet God. He is not the omnipotent being I expected him to be - rather a tired, old man with problems.
Plenty of wacky humour in this chapter with the problem of the coffee machine and God banging his head on his desk in despair.
To me, some of your scenes, read like a Monty Python sketch because the imagery is so clear.
"What do you see, bird brain?" An insult from God - this made me smile.
Things take on a serious note when the Overlords appear to God asking him where the Manna-X Machine is and Graham Reader is deployed to find out.
A few typos in this chapter - please ignore is you aren't interested in that kind of edit.
'Five oh five ( Five o' five, I think)
"We'd like to check on it's (its) secureness ...'
"You're about 3000 (3,000) years late ... '
This is a very engaging read - quirky, bizarre, amusing and above all, original.
I think what I found most intriguing was that you have taken characters from biblical/historical settings and thrown them into a world of pure fantasy. The humour that runs through your writing is pitched just right - it would be easy to 'overdo' it but you rein it in enough for this not to be a purely comedic piece.
Top stars and hoping the book does as well as it deserves.
Debbie
It's from Debbie Roxburgh, her book Speedy McCready is in a position for the Editor's Desk for the end of the month on authonomy, which means a REAL editor gets to look at your work.
And AGAIN, someone (who doesn't know my other work) says it's 'original' ! 'Man by a tree', 'Bethlehem Fiasco', 'Rage of Atlantis', and now 'Manna-X'?! (people only said 'TDX2' was 'fresh and lively', though I think someone said 'original', can't remember...
I'll use this comment for the back cover..."quirky, bizarre, amusing and above all, original"
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
Anyway, this is what she says...:-)
Dani
I have read the first two chapters.
I haven't come across anything quite like this on the site so far. The beginning really pulled me in with Rihat digging a hole to bury his 'precious cargo' in. Alone is the desert, or so he thinks, until he hears a voice.
The clever humour begins with the dialogue between the two men.
"What's a Jew doing here?"
"What's a linguist doing in a hole?"
I loved the image of Moront's silhouette picking its nose.
Graham Reader appears at the end of this chapter - what a very ordinary name for the Grim Reaper - like that the initials are kept the same.
There is the mystery of what is in the bag Rihat was trying to bury and why it's making a humming sound.
Chapter two
We meet God. He is not the omnipotent being I expected him to be - rather a tired, old man with problems.
Plenty of wacky humour in this chapter with the problem of the coffee machine and God banging his head on his desk in despair.
To me, some of your scenes, read like a Monty Python sketch because the imagery is so clear.
"What do you see, bird brain?" An insult from God - this made me smile.
Things take on a serious note when the Overlords appear to God asking him where the Manna-X Machine is and Graham Reader is deployed to find out.
A few typos in this chapter - please ignore is you aren't interested in that kind of edit.
'Five oh five ( Five o' five, I think)
"We'd like to check on it's (its) secureness ...'
"You're about 3000 (3,000) years late ... '
This is a very engaging read - quirky, bizarre, amusing and above all, original.
I think what I found most intriguing was that you have taken characters from biblical/historical settings and thrown them into a world of pure fantasy. The humour that runs through your writing is pitched just right - it would be easy to 'overdo' it but you rein it in enough for this not to be a purely comedic piece.
Top stars and hoping the book does as well as it deserves.
Debbie
Saturday, March 2, 2013
'Manna-X' (1st part) can now be read...:-)
So, I've finally put up the first 13,000 or so words of 'Manna-X' on authonomy.com.
It's still rough, needs a bit of work, but it's 'out there', you can read it and give some feedback!
Please tell me how you feel (if you get to the end of this first bit of the book) :-)
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
It's still rough, needs a bit of work, but it's 'out there', you can read it and give some feedback!
Please tell me how you feel (if you get to the end of this first bit of the book) :-)
http://authonomy.com/books/50429/manna-x/
Two cars totally trashed...(biting)
My 1st book 'Man by a tree' is a favourite of a lot of my readers...yes, there are now a lot more readers than I can count on my fingers :-)...I had a little read of it the other day and it's filled with good stuff - how did I do that?
Anyhow, I remember when I first 'put it out', a lot of other writers said the phrase "Two cars totally trashed" which starts Part 1 scene 2 wasn't smooth enough, it had to be changed. Well, it's not meant to be smooth, it's meant to bite! Have you ever felt moving metal hit your soft skin? It isn't pleasant. When you have a car, plane or motorbike accident, the pain includes that 'biting' metal, that feeling which makes you realise that your body isn't bullet-proof, isn't immortal. One nice slice of 'fast moving' metal against your skin and you know about it. So, in that phrase, I tried to encapsule that feeling, and I think I have...check out the book :-)
http://amzn.to/14wkkew
Anyhow, I remember when I first 'put it out', a lot of other writers said the phrase "Two cars totally trashed" which starts Part 1 scene 2 wasn't smooth enough, it had to be changed. Well, it's not meant to be smooth, it's meant to bite! Have you ever felt moving metal hit your soft skin? It isn't pleasant. When you have a car, plane or motorbike accident, the pain includes that 'biting' metal, that feeling which makes you realise that your body isn't bullet-proof, isn't immortal. One nice slice of 'fast moving' metal against your skin and you know about it. So, in that phrase, I tried to encapsule that feeling, and I think I have...check out the book :-)
http://amzn.to/14wkkew
Friday, March 1, 2013
Civilisation Burnout
You know, there's a lot of burnouts, I even have to write about teacher's burnout soon, but I think I have 'civilisation burnout'. I'm not having a nervous breakdown, I've just had enough of all this shit. Everything is money, position, power. The only thing I would like is self-sufficiency, away from the creeps and arseholes who 'run' our lives, thinking they're so clever by covering our hearts and minds with all their 'organisation' and 'achievements' and 'troubles'. We haven't moved one step away from the trees yet, and it's been a few 100,000 years! When will we learn! Read my books, you might understand...if only I could reach a wider audience...
Sunday, February 24, 2013
My 2nd interview which 'expired'...:-)
Well, my 2nd interview 'expired' on epublishabook.com, so here it is, in all it's glory...yeah, right :-)
Your last book 'Rage of Atlantis was made available to the public in June 2012. How well has it been received by the public so far?
Well, I could count my sales on both hands, but those who have read it say it's fantastic and should be read by a much larger audience.
Your book falls under the main fantasy genre. Do you tag it with other genres? What do you see as the pros and cons of writing fantasy fiction on the publishing scene?
This book is much more than just fantasy. For myself, I find the genre tags to be too restrictive as I don't write with a genre in mind. I try not to write clones and so it's tricky to pinpoint exactly in which part of the market it should go, be it fantasy, sci-fi, detective, thrilller, comedy.
What part of your writing time do you devote to marketing your book?
Once the writing's done, the marketing begins. It's part of self-publishing, but I don't really know how to do it. What I'm trying to say is, I love writing, I hate marketing.
What marketing tools do you use to improve your ranking on Amazon?
Sales. More sales. Even more sales. Sales produce sales. And begging. Begging for my readers to add a review. Which is like pulling off toe-nails.
What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing vs being published?
The disadvantage of self-publishing is that your book goes nowhere without you putting your foot in somewhere and doing some self-marketing...which I hate. But once you have something written, you can put it out into the world, you don't need to wait for the impossible dream of being picked up by an agent or publisher. There is a chance of being read through self-publishing, though it's slim as I've seen. But better than nothing. Well, that's what I keep telling myself (banging head against wall).
What do you do to get book reviews? How successful has your quest for reviews been so far?
Beg. Beg some more. Grovel. It hasn't been so successful. I've given books away, reviewed other authors, kissed babies, promised World Peace, but nothing seems to work. For all my 3 books on Amazon, there are reviews on both Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk, but they are few, very few. I did, however, receive an interview about my 2nd books 'The Bethlehem Fiasco', perhaps my greatest success so far...excluding this one :-) (well, apparently only for 1 month, but HEY, got a little exposure...or not)
Your last book 'Rage of Atlantis was made available to the public in June 2012. How well has it been received by the public so far?
Well, I could count my sales on both hands, but those who have read it say it's fantastic and should be read by a much larger audience.
Your book falls under the main fantasy genre. Do you tag it with other genres? What do you see as the pros and cons of writing fantasy fiction on the publishing scene?
This book is much more than just fantasy. For myself, I find the genre tags to be too restrictive as I don't write with a genre in mind. I try not to write clones and so it's tricky to pinpoint exactly in which part of the market it should go, be it fantasy, sci-fi, detective, thrilller, comedy.
What part of your writing time do you devote to marketing your book?
Once the writing's done, the marketing begins. It's part of self-publishing, but I don't really know how to do it. What I'm trying to say is, I love writing, I hate marketing.
What marketing tools do you use to improve your ranking on Amazon?
Sales. More sales. Even more sales. Sales produce sales. And begging. Begging for my readers to add a review. Which is like pulling off toe-nails.
What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing vs being published?
The disadvantage of self-publishing is that your book goes nowhere without you putting your foot in somewhere and doing some self-marketing...which I hate. But once you have something written, you can put it out into the world, you don't need to wait for the impossible dream of being picked up by an agent or publisher. There is a chance of being read through self-publishing, though it's slim as I've seen. But better than nothing. Well, that's what I keep telling myself (banging head against wall).
What do you do to get book reviews? How successful has your quest for reviews been so far?
Beg. Beg some more. Grovel. It hasn't been so successful. I've given books away, reviewed other authors, kissed babies, promised World Peace, but nothing seems to work. For all my 3 books on Amazon, there are reviews on both Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk, but they are few, very few. I did, however, receive an interview about my 2nd books 'The Bethlehem Fiasco', perhaps my greatest success so far...excluding this one :-) (well, apparently only for 1 month, but HEY, got a little exposure...or not)
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Monkeys + Religion
You know, there's that youtube video of that guy in Korea doing "Gangnam Style", now there's a new video of people just being stupid and dancing any old way, and calling it a 'style'. My books call humans monkeys. Can't you see why? People have so much time on their hands and their priorities are all so messed up.
In Hungary, there will soon be YET AGAIN, new legislation in the school, children will have either Religious lessons or Virtue lessons. Problem is, there is no one who can pass the strict rules for being a Virtue teacher, other than Relgious teachers, so those Religious teachers who can't get a job as a Religious teacher will become Virtue teachers...did you get that? I hope you did.
Religion. I think I'm going to have a BIG THINK about it, and write something, something which will make people think. On Jottify, a popular amateur poet wrote a poem about the uselessness of prayer, and you should've seen the response! So many Christians patronising her! "Oh, you have the right to your own opinion..." Why did they have to open their mouths in the first place? Are they trying to reinforce their faith? Their faith in nothing? "God is all around us." "Jesus Lives". Yes? Then I want his phone number.
In Hungary, there will soon be YET AGAIN, new legislation in the school, children will have either Religious lessons or Virtue lessons. Problem is, there is no one who can pass the strict rules for being a Virtue teacher, other than Relgious teachers, so those Religious teachers who can't get a job as a Religious teacher will become Virtue teachers...did you get that? I hope you did.
Religion. I think I'm going to have a BIG THINK about it, and write something, something which will make people think. On Jottify, a popular amateur poet wrote a poem about the uselessness of prayer, and you should've seen the response! So many Christians patronising her! "Oh, you have the right to your own opinion..." Why did they have to open their mouths in the first place? Are they trying to reinforce their faith? Their faith in nothing? "God is all around us." "Jesus Lives". Yes? Then I want his phone number.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Hemingway- 'The Sun Also Rises' Part 2
Did you know?
1. Hemingway made a hurtful remark against Henry James, as he also lost certain parts of his body, as did Jake, Hemingway's main character.
2. Gertrude Stein DID NOT say "You are all a Lost Generation" first. It was a French petrol station owner, disciplining one of his employees (who fought in WW1) after not being able to fix Stein's car. She merely copied him.
3. The Sun Also Rises is NOT an attack on the Lost Generation, but actually a tragedy...Hemingway "didn't mean the book to be a hollow or bitter satire but a damn tragedy with the Earth abiding forever as the hero."
4. Hemingway strips away imitations and creates a new complex pastoral vision, one closer to reality and nature, its wildness, showing us that the traditional pastoral vision does not lead us closer to nature and is in fact one of the tamest literary forms.
...and get this...:-)
5. Hemingway was going to re-title the book in the 2nd printing to...The Sun Also Rises (Like Your Cock If You Have One) but thankfully didn't.
Isn't it a great thing to study literature? You can find out why you're reading books which you wouldn't normally pick up in a month of Sundays :-)
1. Hemingway made a hurtful remark against Henry James, as he also lost certain parts of his body, as did Jake, Hemingway's main character.
2. Gertrude Stein DID NOT say "You are all a Lost Generation" first. It was a French petrol station owner, disciplining one of his employees (who fought in WW1) after not being able to fix Stein's car. She merely copied him.
3. The Sun Also Rises is NOT an attack on the Lost Generation, but actually a tragedy...Hemingway "didn't mean the book to be a hollow or bitter satire but a damn tragedy with the Earth abiding forever as the hero."
4. Hemingway strips away imitations and creates a new complex pastoral vision, one closer to reality and nature, its wildness, showing us that the traditional pastoral vision does not lead us closer to nature and is in fact one of the tamest literary forms.
...and get this...:-)
5. Hemingway was going to re-title the book in the 2nd printing to...The Sun Also Rises (Like Your Cock If You Have One) but thankfully didn't.
Isn't it a great thing to study literature? You can find out why you're reading books which you wouldn't normally pick up in a month of Sundays :-)
Monday, February 18, 2013
Hemingway - 'The Sun Also Rises'
I had to read Hemingway's 'The Sun Also Rises' for an assignment, and my first impression was 'What the hell is this?' Up to Chapter 12 it reads like some pedestrian travelogue, along with some forced dialogue and men running after 1 loose woman.
But in Chapter 12, something actually happens! Hemingway goes straight back to the classics, and creates a 'complex pastoral vision' (you might have to go and look that one up - I did). And then it goes back to as before, but with that edge from Chapter 12 still running through the reader's mind.
I can now see why it's a classic.
But my question is, why did I have to drag myself through 11 chapters to get to the juicy bit?
Still, I'm glad I did :-)
You can't beat a classic...unless you're looking for pure entertainment, which is 'The Bethlehem Fiasco' :-)
But in Chapter 12, something actually happens! Hemingway goes straight back to the classics, and creates a 'complex pastoral vision' (you might have to go and look that one up - I did). And then it goes back to as before, but with that edge from Chapter 12 still running through the reader's mind.
I can now see why it's a classic.
But my question is, why did I have to drag myself through 11 chapters to get to the juicy bit?
Still, I'm glad I did :-)
You can't beat a classic...unless you're looking for pure entertainment, which is 'The Bethlehem Fiasco' :-)
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Over 5000 views! :-)
This blog has NOW had over 5000 views! Cool! Thanks to those who care and Mr. Briggs :-)
I got a bunch of views from the Netherlands the other day, I wonder who you are...
I'm at 15,000 words on the new book (some important essays have slowed me down) ...I'm also at a crossroads with it...getting a 'new' direction with the plot.
I have my 2nd try for 55 dollars on Austin Briggs site, at 24+ votes after 46!! That site has been hit by a lot of negativity!
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
My 1st short story is still Number 1 'ever' there :-), now at 72+ after 84
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/not-me/
And my FREE ebook has been downloaded 106 times...it's tricky to get people to get something free, huh? Should I offer something else with it? Money, perhaps?
I got a bunch of views from the Netherlands the other day, I wonder who you are...
I'm at 15,000 words on the new book (some important essays have slowed me down) ...I'm also at a crossroads with it...getting a 'new' direction with the plot.
I have my 2nd try for 55 dollars on Austin Briggs site, at 24+ votes after 46!! That site has been hit by a lot of negativity!
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
My 1st short story is still Number 1 'ever' there :-), now at 72+ after 84
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/not-me/
And my FREE ebook has been downloaded 106 times...it's tricky to get people to get something free, huh? Should I offer something else with it? Money, perhaps?
As if by Magic...
I was hoovering the flat, you know how it is, and the kids have been to tons of parties recently. Parties means balloons. Loads of them. So, I was hoovering, after the million and one other 'tasks', and these balloons were a real pain! I threw one in disgust and swore at it, and 'bang!', it blew up. I thought for a moment and tried it again, threw a balloon, swore at it, and 'bang!'. I turned off the hoover and called over to the love of my life...I think about 2 weeks of flowers and chocolates might do it...:-(
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Nothing post
Yes, this is the post we've all been waiting for, the 'nothing' post! (party time!)
Not much is happening, due to pressures of life and college, creativity has hit an all time low, other than the odd line like "Your name's Hugh, yeah?" (it's funny in Hungarian).
Put my 2nd 55 word story on that website http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
Doubt if I'll win, but the more votes the better, just to get it up the chart.
103 downloads of TDX2, it's going slow. I also have an opportunity to put up a 'Guest Post' on someone else's blog. Hopefully it's better than this one! Please vote for the story :-)
Not much is happening, due to pressures of life and college, creativity has hit an all time low, other than the odd line like "Your name's Hugh, yeah?" (it's funny in Hungarian).
Put my 2nd 55 word story on that website http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
Doubt if I'll win, but the more votes the better, just to get it up the chart.
103 downloads of TDX2, it's going slow. I also have an opportunity to put up a 'Guest Post' on someone else's blog. Hopefully it's better than this one! Please vote for the story :-)
Sunday, February 10, 2013
NEW 55 word story + 1st part of Manna-X
OK, so here's the 2nd try at winning some money! I'm aiming at 100+ votes :-)
Please vote, and get anyone else you know to vote, or failing that, any other IP address :-)~
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
And here's a revamped introduction to 'Manna-X', with help from authonomy.com writers.
I hope you like it :-)
Short Pitch: Hidden for over 3000 years, the Manna Machine, Manna-X, becomes the treasured prize of a select few. Can you hear the tick of the Manna-X?
If this wasn't far enough, then what was? Rihat began to dig, out in the middle of nowhere, far from any living man, creature or tree, days from any encounter with a settlement. He dug deeper and deeper, under the light of the moon and the stars, stopping only to listen to the faint sounds on the breeze. A distant howl of a lone wolf brought out an instinct bordering on paranoia to protect the precious cargo. 'Run like the wind, run as far and as fast as you can, allow no one to take or touch the item which you carry. Hide it for all eternity, away from our imminent destruction, away from the hearts and minds of all humanity...' He'd left his Master in the doomed Holy city, to suffer the onslaught of the Babylonian heathens.
“Degemer Mad.”
Rihat stood up in his now three-foot deep hole, looking around, scanning the open plain and saw no one. He dug once again, sweat pouring out of every pore, thinking it was only the mind playing tricks.
“Ahoj.”
A second sound. That was a word. Or was it? He'd roamed north for so long, it could be any language.
“Yassou.”
That was Greek for sure. He knew a little Greek, Stavros was his name.
“Shalom.”
Hebrew.
“Shalom?” Was it wise to reply?
“Hello! What ya doing?”
There was someone else here in this open plain. Rihat grabbed the sack containing his heavy burden and jumped out of the hole and into another. On landing there was a snapping of wood, quickly followed by excruciating pain.
“Argh!”
“Ooo, that looks nasty, you wanna get that seen to.”
There was a silhouette of a man in the hole, illuminated by the moon, sitting, watching, picking his nose.
“Argh!” The pain was unbearable. “I think I’ve broken my leg.”
“Yes, snapped it right off, if you ask me. Congratulations.” The man applauded.
As well as the overwhelming pain, it was warm, very warm in the hole, comfortable though numb.
“Is it me, or is it warm down here?” Every word was torture.
“It’s just you, there's no heating down here. Probably that’s where the warmth is coming from.” The man pointed down. A pool of blood trickled onto the bottom of the hole.
“What’s that?”
“My guess is yours, 'cause it's not mine. Looks like your leg isn’t your only problem.”
His bag. Rihat must’ve landed on his bag holding the item. He was immobile on one side.
“Oh, Tiamat!”
“You said it.”
After so long running, hiding, feeling thirst and hunger and above all, fear of being captured, to end like this?
“Where am I?” Life, draining away.
“About half an hour from unconsciousness, if you ask me.” This man wasn't helpful.
“No, where are we?”
“In a hole. Next question.”
There was no time or energy for this.
“No. Where is this hole?”
“Oh! On the Plain, far from the nearest settlement.”
Would he drown in his own blood before…?
“And who are you?”
“Me? Err, let me think now…” Don't think too long. “Moront, Moront Pilock, that’s me. Linguist, translator, interpreter, at your service.” He ignored the man's attempt to shake hands, what a time to be polite.
“What kind of name is that?”
Please vote, and get anyone else you know to vote, or failing that, any other IP address :-)~
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/a-true-teen-adventure/
And here's a revamped introduction to 'Manna-X', with help from authonomy.com writers.
I hope you like it :-)
Short Pitch: Hidden for over 3000 years, the Manna Machine, Manna-X, becomes the treasured prize of a select few. Can you hear the tick of the Manna-X?
If this wasn't far enough, then what was? Rihat began to dig, out in the middle of nowhere, far from any living man, creature or tree, days from any encounter with a settlement. He dug deeper and deeper, under the light of the moon and the stars, stopping only to listen to the faint sounds on the breeze. A distant howl of a lone wolf brought out an instinct bordering on paranoia to protect the precious cargo. 'Run like the wind, run as far and as fast as you can, allow no one to take or touch the item which you carry. Hide it for all eternity, away from our imminent destruction, away from the hearts and minds of all humanity...' He'd left his Master in the doomed Holy city, to suffer the onslaught of the Babylonian heathens.
“Degemer Mad.”
Rihat stood up in his now three-foot deep hole, looking around, scanning the open plain and saw no one. He dug once again, sweat pouring out of every pore, thinking it was only the mind playing tricks.
“Ahoj.”
A second sound. That was a word. Or was it? He'd roamed north for so long, it could be any language.
“Yassou.”
That was Greek for sure. He knew a little Greek, Stavros was his name.
“Shalom.”
Hebrew.
“Shalom?” Was it wise to reply?
“Hello! What ya doing?”
There was someone else here in this open plain. Rihat grabbed the sack containing his heavy burden and jumped out of the hole and into another. On landing there was a snapping of wood, quickly followed by excruciating pain.
“Argh!”
“Ooo, that looks nasty, you wanna get that seen to.”
There was a silhouette of a man in the hole, illuminated by the moon, sitting, watching, picking his nose.
“Argh!” The pain was unbearable. “I think I’ve broken my leg.”
“Yes, snapped it right off, if you ask me. Congratulations.” The man applauded.
As well as the overwhelming pain, it was warm, very warm in the hole, comfortable though numb.
“Is it me, or is it warm down here?” Every word was torture.
“It’s just you, there's no heating down here. Probably that’s where the warmth is coming from.” The man pointed down. A pool of blood trickled onto the bottom of the hole.
“What’s that?”
“My guess is yours, 'cause it's not mine. Looks like your leg isn’t your only problem.”
His bag. Rihat must’ve landed on his bag holding the item. He was immobile on one side.
“Oh, Tiamat!”
“You said it.”
After so long running, hiding, feeling thirst and hunger and above all, fear of being captured, to end like this?
“Where am I?” Life, draining away.
“About half an hour from unconsciousness, if you ask me.” This man wasn't helpful.
“No, where are we?”
“In a hole. Next question.”
There was no time or energy for this.
“No. Where is this hole?”
“Oh! On the Plain, far from the nearest settlement.”
Would he drown in his own blood before…?
“And who are you?”
“Me? Err, let me think now…” Don't think too long. “Moront, Moront Pilock, that’s me. Linguist, translator, interpreter, at your service.” He ignored the man's attempt to shake hands, what a time to be polite.
“What kind of name is that?”
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
TDX2 + Fashion
TDX2 (Too Dull to Die), my free ebook (here on Smashwords.com) finally went over 100 downloads! Yeah!
It's unbelieveable how hard I had to work to get those last 25 or so! This is what it's like to get someone to read a book!
I also got a new comment in authonomy.com...
I loved the dialogue. When I first started chapter one, some of the narrative sections felt like they could use some firming up. But as I went down to the conversation between Guido and Graham, I was drawn in to the story by the clever dialogue and fun and original details. At some points, the rhythm was spot on and it flowed exceptionally well.
You know, I've read so many free ebooks in the last few weeks, it hurts. All of them were terrible. I found myself reading my OWN free ebook to alleviate the pain. I also read so many starts to books by self-published authors on Amazon.com that my eyes bled from puffed-up descriptions and poor unrealistic dialogue. But these books had so many 5* reviews! These authors have tons of friends willing to lie / money to pay semi-professional reviewers.
The more I see of the literary market, the more I believe that it is the worst type of fashion. Who cares whether it's 'good' literature or not, it's a superficial subjective thing, all that matters is 'who is reading this book, what do they think of it, do I follow them'? All you have to do is look at '50 Shades' to see that.
It's unbelieveable how hard I had to work to get those last 25 or so! This is what it's like to get someone to read a book!
I also got a new comment in authonomy.com...
I loved the dialogue. When I first started chapter one, some of the narrative sections felt like they could use some firming up. But as I went down to the conversation between Guido and Graham, I was drawn in to the story by the clever dialogue and fun and original details. At some points, the rhythm was spot on and it flowed exceptionally well.
You know, I've read so many free ebooks in the last few weeks, it hurts. All of them were terrible. I found myself reading my OWN free ebook to alleviate the pain. I also read so many starts to books by self-published authors on Amazon.com that my eyes bled from puffed-up descriptions and poor unrealistic dialogue. But these books had so many 5* reviews! These authors have tons of friends willing to lie / money to pay semi-professional reviewers.
The more I see of the literary market, the more I believe that it is the worst type of fashion. Who cares whether it's 'good' literature or not, it's a superficial subjective thing, all that matters is 'who is reading this book, what do they think of it, do I follow them'? All you have to do is look at '50 Shades' to see that.
Monday, February 4, 2013
New book - over 10,000 words
The beginning of the new book is almost ready to be shown on authonomy.com, just got to edit it a bit.
I've also submitted another 55 word story to the theme of 'Adventure' - I really need the money. I'll put the link here on a blog post so you can vote for it if you have the time.
Not that votes count much, I'm top of the 'ever' list as you can see (Not Me), but that doesn't mean I got the money...
But I tried to write a good one this time (not that the 1st was bad, maybe he didn't understand its depth, but hey)
So, a bit of editing, and you can see the new book, it's fantastic, really :-)
I've also submitted another 55 word story to the theme of 'Adventure' - I really need the money. I'll put the link here on a blog post so you can vote for it if you have the time.
Not that votes count much, I'm top of the 'ever' list as you can see (Not Me), but that doesn't mean I got the money...
So, a bit of editing, and you can see the new book, it's fantastic, really :-)
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Exquisite banality
The 55 word story competition: I'd like to thank all who took the time to vote for me and I APOLOGISE from the bottom of my heart for not winning a dime. I didn't get them 55 bucks. I didn't even get 30 (massive applause). However, my story 'Not Me' is No.1 on his 'Top 10 Flash Stories Ever' list (+70 out of 78 votes). 74 people out of 78 liked it. He wasn't one of them. This is what he wrote...
I know that on top of brilliant writing, some folks like Dani J Caile really drove exposure to this contest, for which I’m deeply grateful. Please write again, who knows, you may win next month!
...which basically says in his opinion my story was shit.
I'm not going to write to him, not going to comment, what's the point. It's just as I wrote here on Paul Dorset's website 'Definition of 'good' literature'. It's all down to the internal and external influences of the judge. If he has a reading level of a 6 year old, so be it.
My own thoughts of my story is...
'A vulgar glimpse of young urban English life with a profusion of linking pronouns, culminating in a punchline with yet another simple pronoun'. In my opinion, that's literature. Clone, dull and lame it is not. (go on, read between the words of that last sentence :-)) ....if you wanna see it all, and see the stories which won, here's the link...http://austinbriggs.com/blog/january-2013-winners/
So, that made me think whether I'm a good writer. It certainly made me pause in writing my 5th (yes, I know I said 4th, but TDX2 is so 'big' I consider it my 4th now)
Why am I writing? To make money? (laughs from my partner in the background) No. I started because I wanted to prove to myself I could do it. Now I look for the perfect sentence. They only come through the process of writing. They 'appear'. From exquisite banality comes a gem. It's those gems I crave for. And sometimes they appear, among the corny, cheesey sardonic dialogues and bleak sparse descriptions.
Go, look for them :-) http://amzn.to/14wkkew and here for free https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975
I know that on top of brilliant writing, some folks like Dani J Caile really drove exposure to this contest, for which I’m deeply grateful. Please write again, who knows, you may win next month!
...which basically says in his opinion my story was shit.
I'm not going to write to him, not going to comment, what's the point. It's just as I wrote here on Paul Dorset's website 'Definition of 'good' literature'. It's all down to the internal and external influences of the judge. If he has a reading level of a 6 year old, so be it.
My own thoughts of my story is...
'A vulgar glimpse of young urban English life with a profusion of linking pronouns, culminating in a punchline with yet another simple pronoun'. In my opinion, that's literature. Clone, dull and lame it is not. (go on, read between the words of that last sentence :-)) ....if you wanna see it all, and see the stories which won, here's the link...http://austinbriggs.com/blog/january-2013-winners/
So, that made me think whether I'm a good writer. It certainly made me pause in writing my 5th (yes, I know I said 4th, but TDX2 is so 'big' I consider it my 4th now)
Why am I writing? To make money? (laughs from my partner in the background) No. I started because I wanted to prove to myself I could do it. Now I look for the perfect sentence. They only come through the process of writing. They 'appear'. From exquisite banality comes a gem. It's those gems I crave for. And sometimes they appear, among the corny, cheesey sardonic dialogues and bleak sparse descriptions.
Go, look for them :-) http://amzn.to/14wkkew and here for free https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975
Thursday, January 31, 2013
New competition! + TDX2 comments!
Just got to hear about a new competition, thought I's try it, the “Dear Lucky Agent” contest,for Young Adult and Sci-fi writers
http://tinyurl.com/a8msdw2
The prizes...
Top 3 winners all get:
1) A critique of the first 10 double-spaced pages of your work, by your agent judge.
2) A free one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com ($50 value)!
I'm not really entering for the prizes, just for the chance of winning...:-)
I also got a few comments on authonomy.com for TDX2 !
I find this fun and very easy on the eyes. You main characters are working well for you here and are going to continue to do so but you need to push the book. I do think you have a little gem here. Good narrative voice, good story line, nice flow and good pitch. Well done and I can score this high as I see good things ahead.
Lighter, smaller, but still great! And it's so short I can read it again and again! Watch out for my 'TT'! lol
http://tinyurl.com/a8msdw2
The prizes...
Top 3 winners all get:
1) A critique of the first 10 double-spaced pages of your work, by your agent judge.
2) A free one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com ($50 value)!
I'm not really entering for the prizes, just for the chance of winning...:-)
I also got a few comments on authonomy.com for TDX2 !
I find this fun and very easy on the eyes. You main characters are working well for you here and are going to continue to do so but you need to push the book. I do think you have a little gem here. Good narrative voice, good story line, nice flow and good pitch. Well done and I can score this high as I see good things ahead.
Lighter, smaller, but still great! And it's so short I can read it again and again! Watch out for my 'TT'! lol
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Article and NEW interview!
Yes, Paul Dorset (John Cox) allowed me to add an article to his blog. It's about 'Good' literature and how to 'assess' it. I can't reproduce it here, so here's the link :-)
I also had an interview last night with Justin Bienvenue, he's put it on his website here...but I'm the 2nd of 3000 on the same page, which will change in a day or two, and he's spelt my name wrong (D.A. Caile)..so here it is...
Interview with D.A (??) Caile.
1. I haven’t come across many writers of Humor, what can you tell us about it and what it’s like for you to write about?
I didn't choose to write humor, it chose me. I wanted to write serious literature, full of prose and heart, so deep, so wonderful. But when I tried, I found myself laughing. It wasn't me, I'm sardonic, I can't write seriously. So I wrote sardonically, and this strange quirky corny style appeared. I felt proud of it, so I stuck to it.
2. Care to tell us about your recent novel and your other distinct works?
I have 3 books and a free novella out at the moment, all based on the same quirky universe using the same basic characters throughout the series, ie. Satan, God, hobgoblins, angels, monkeys…sorry, humans, and plenty of anti-heros. Due to interviews such as this one, people are starting to wake up to them. I'm also working on my 4th book at the moment, 'Manna-X', and it's going well. My free novella 'TDX2' is still available for download if anyone's interested :-)
3. What is it like to write about Fantasy Fiction?
You can create your own world in fantasy fiction, bend the rules. When I first wrote in my style, I got stuck but then I realised, it's fantasy, anything goes, use your imagination and ideas. So I did. Now the words 'unique, original, different' appear among comments made by my readers.
4. How has being an English teacher and proofreading come in handy and helped you in your writing as an author?
Teaching English helps with my own lousy use of grammar and lexicon, and it also gives me an opportunity to 'play' with the language. Sometimes a student says something strange and it sparks off a crazy idea. Proofreading hasn't helped, though, I can't seem to edit my own work!
5. What type of publishing do you usually go with and how has the experience been for you?
Self-publishing. I have no patience to wait until forever to get a rejection letter from those publishers who are open for submissions. I have a tiny reader base, which has a chance to grow…any day now…I'm sure of it…almost positive…, and I'm happy to self-publish and give them and myself the opportunity to read what I have written. Those who've read all my books can't wait for the next one.
6. Is there a certain trait or theme you always try to incorporate into your novels?
Perhaps that good wins over evil, not so believeable, I know. Ever heard of 'conceptual continuity'? It was a Zappa thing, and that's what I always try to incoporate, links between books, kind of inside jokes. Or using the same characters, ie. Sniff and Grint, the hobgoblins, or my favourite, Graham Reader, the Grim Reaper.
7. I noticed you keep track of votes and downloads of your books, I myself do the same sometimes, Why do you think this is important as an author to do?
As a small self-published author, I'm 'on my own', I don't have editors and agents and a large publishing firm behind me. Keeping up with any information about my writing 'career' allows myself and my readers to be in the picture about what's going on. Every download and vote is important to my 'well-being'.
8. Where do you get the inspiration for some of your humorous quirky stories?
From my environment, my surroundings, what I read, what I see, I experience. The best thing for me is to forget about writing and live. Then things happen. Strange things. Or is it just me?
9. Since you’re a man of humor got any good jokes or a funny tale to share with us?
Ha! A tale? I don't know about funny, but typical, and it's real. A couple's internet goes on the blink, it takes the service provider 4 months to send out an engineer. Engineers come out but can't find the manhole cover for the cable. The council dig a hole in the pavement for the engineer to sort out the cable. After one week, the council fill the hole up again. One hour later, the service provider engineer comes to sort out the cable and finds no hole, so he leaves. Months go by with lots of calls and finally another engineer appears. He climbs the electricity pylon.
"Where ya goin'?"
"Up the pole. The cable's up here."
10. What have you found to be a solid factor in the writing and making of a quality novel?
Ooo, tricky. First, stick to Freytag's pyramid, it's a winner. And second, write from your own experience, make it real, all your dialogues, actions, descriptions. No pretending, no 'fakeness'. Other than that, in my opinion it's all subjective. Thanks for questions :-)
Links:
TDX2 free download
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...
Books on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...
Blog
http://danijcaile.blogspot.hu/
I also had an interview last night with Justin Bienvenue, he's put it on his website here...but I'm the 2nd of 3000 on the same page, which will change in a day or two, and he's spelt my name wrong (D.A. Caile)..so here it is...
Interview with D.A (??) Caile.
1. I haven’t come across many writers of Humor, what can you tell us about it and what it’s like for you to write about?
I didn't choose to write humor, it chose me. I wanted to write serious literature, full of prose and heart, so deep, so wonderful. But when I tried, I found myself laughing. It wasn't me, I'm sardonic, I can't write seriously. So I wrote sardonically, and this strange quirky corny style appeared. I felt proud of it, so I stuck to it.
2. Care to tell us about your recent novel and your other distinct works?
I have 3 books and a free novella out at the moment, all based on the same quirky universe using the same basic characters throughout the series, ie. Satan, God, hobgoblins, angels, monkeys…sorry, humans, and plenty of anti-heros. Due to interviews such as this one, people are starting to wake up to them. I'm also working on my 4th book at the moment, 'Manna-X', and it's going well. My free novella 'TDX2' is still available for download if anyone's interested :-)
3. What is it like to write about Fantasy Fiction?
You can create your own world in fantasy fiction, bend the rules. When I first wrote in my style, I got stuck but then I realised, it's fantasy, anything goes, use your imagination and ideas. So I did. Now the words 'unique, original, different' appear among comments made by my readers.
4. How has being an English teacher and proofreading come in handy and helped you in your writing as an author?
Teaching English helps with my own lousy use of grammar and lexicon, and it also gives me an opportunity to 'play' with the language. Sometimes a student says something strange and it sparks off a crazy idea. Proofreading hasn't helped, though, I can't seem to edit my own work!
5. What type of publishing do you usually go with and how has the experience been for you?
Self-publishing. I have no patience to wait until forever to get a rejection letter from those publishers who are open for submissions. I have a tiny reader base, which has a chance to grow…any day now…I'm sure of it…almost positive…, and I'm happy to self-publish and give them and myself the opportunity to read what I have written. Those who've read all my books can't wait for the next one.
6. Is there a certain trait or theme you always try to incorporate into your novels?
Perhaps that good wins over evil, not so believeable, I know. Ever heard of 'conceptual continuity'? It was a Zappa thing, and that's what I always try to incoporate, links between books, kind of inside jokes. Or using the same characters, ie. Sniff and Grint, the hobgoblins, or my favourite, Graham Reader, the Grim Reaper.
7. I noticed you keep track of votes and downloads of your books, I myself do the same sometimes, Why do you think this is important as an author to do?
As a small self-published author, I'm 'on my own', I don't have editors and agents and a large publishing firm behind me. Keeping up with any information about my writing 'career' allows myself and my readers to be in the picture about what's going on. Every download and vote is important to my 'well-being'.
8. Where do you get the inspiration for some of your humorous quirky stories?
From my environment, my surroundings, what I read, what I see, I experience. The best thing for me is to forget about writing and live. Then things happen. Strange things. Or is it just me?
9. Since you’re a man of humor got any good jokes or a funny tale to share with us?
Ha! A tale? I don't know about funny, but typical, and it's real. A couple's internet goes on the blink, it takes the service provider 4 months to send out an engineer. Engineers come out but can't find the manhole cover for the cable. The council dig a hole in the pavement for the engineer to sort out the cable. After one week, the council fill the hole up again. One hour later, the service provider engineer comes to sort out the cable and finds no hole, so he leaves. Months go by with lots of calls and finally another engineer appears. He climbs the electricity pylon.
"Where ya goin'?"
"Up the pole. The cable's up here."
10. What have you found to be a solid factor in the writing and making of a quality novel?
Ooo, tricky. First, stick to Freytag's pyramid, it's a winner. And second, write from your own experience, make it real, all your dialogues, actions, descriptions. No pretending, no 'fakeness'. Other than that, in my opinion it's all subjective. Thanks for questions :-)
Links:
TDX2 free download
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...
Books on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...
Blog
http://danijcaile.blogspot.hu/
Monday, January 28, 2013
Update on Everything! TDX2, Not Me, books, articles, intervierws...
Update on everything :-)
My new little free novella 'TDX2' on Smashwords.com is now on...
TDX2 - 92 downloads, 4 libraries, 60 'Likes'
Francine, a devil of a reviewer on Goodreads (174 reviews, all VERY honest) wrote...
I read the novella I told you I would, TDX2, I put it up under my reviews. I loved it, was funny. I'll add it to my blog later tonight or tomorrow. Thanks for letting me read it!
Her review was 4 out of 5 stars...
A humourous romp through the afterlife! A lot of fun to read, had me laughing out loud a lot of times and other times wondering if I'd end up like the main character, too dull to die!
I also got 1 review from Anita (thanks) 5 out of 5 stars...
Good story, worth to read it. Dani's books are smart, funny and give you a new perspective. I've read them all, can't wait for the next one.
But I got 2 out 5 stars from a Goodreads member :-( ...then I saw how she (I'm guessing) rated other books, lots of 2s and 3s. She gave 'Catch 22' 3 stars...how can you do that?? Anyway, this is going to happen, not everyone's going to like it.
My 99 cents Kindles are rated like this now...
Rage - Amazon.com Kindle rating : 515,539
Beth - Amazon. com Kindle rating: 627,689
MBAT Amazon. com Kindle rating: 995,550
Trilogy Amazon. com Kindle rating:1,284,612
And my 55 word story on Austin Briggs website has: +65 from 71 votes (3 voted minus) with 2 comments...
Akos commented: How can you be sure it was you? What if it wasn’t? Funny short one. Make more:-)))
Carl commented: That was a funny story
I'm also waiting on 1 article and 1 new interview from Paul Dorset's website :-) The article is about 'good' literature and how subjective it all is, and the interview is about...me :-)
My new little free novella 'TDX2' on Smashwords.com is now on...
TDX2 - 92 downloads, 4 libraries, 60 'Likes'
Francine, a devil of a reviewer on Goodreads (174 reviews, all VERY honest) wrote...
I read the novella I told you I would, TDX2, I put it up under my reviews. I loved it, was funny. I'll add it to my blog later tonight or tomorrow. Thanks for letting me read it!
Her review was 4 out of 5 stars...
A humourous romp through the afterlife! A lot of fun to read, had me laughing out loud a lot of times and other times wondering if I'd end up like the main character, too dull to die!
I also got 1 review from Anita (thanks) 5 out of 5 stars...
Good story, worth to read it. Dani's books are smart, funny and give you a new perspective. I've read them all, can't wait for the next one.
But I got 2 out 5 stars from a Goodreads member :-( ...then I saw how she (I'm guessing) rated other books, lots of 2s and 3s. She gave 'Catch 22' 3 stars...how can you do that?? Anyway, this is going to happen, not everyone's going to like it.
My 99 cents Kindles are rated like this now...
Rage - Amazon.com Kindle rating : 515,539
Beth - Amazon. com Kindle rating: 627,689
MBAT Amazon. com Kindle rating: 995,550
Trilogy Amazon. com Kindle rating:1,284,612
And my 55 word story on Austin Briggs website has: +65 from 71 votes (3 voted minus) with 2 comments...
Akos commented: How can you be sure it was you? What if it wasn’t? Funny short one. Make more:-)))
Carl commented: That was a funny story
I'm also waiting on 1 article and 1 new interview from Paul Dorset's website :-) The article is about 'good' literature and how subjective it all is, and the interview is about...me :-)
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Sniff and Grint are back!
Yes, not only is Graham Reader, the anti-hero Grim Reaper, in my next book, but Sniff and Grint are back!
Check out the first draft of their first scene :-)
Check out the first draft of their first scene :-)
No matter how
many times Ekron hit the 'reset' button, the radar still showed the
abnormalites. Slumped over his bench, he gazed into the bleeping screen.
"Okay, guys.
Compared to you, I'm new here. Just what exactly is this?" Ekron looked
over to his two workmates. They were both sitting on deckchairs, lying in the
rays of three large neon signs they'd stolen from a local chain of pizzerias,
sipping on their homemade Mai Tais.
"Eh?"
"I said,
what is this?"
"Can't you
see we're busy?" Sniff spat his straw out and punched Grint in the side.
"Go and see what he wants."
"Eh?"
"I
said...never mind." Sniff recognised Grint's 'eh?' routine. He could play
it all day. He got off his deckchair and dragged his ugly little hobgoblin body
over to the radar while cursing Ekron under his breath.
"Look."
Ekron pointed to the 4 abnormalites. Sniff tried to wipe them off the screen
with his soggy booger-ridden sleeve, adding some abnormalities of his own.
"Thanks a lot." Ekron cleaned the screen with a rag.
"Mmm. What
are they?"
"You tell me.
Monkeys, souls, dogs, cats, and any other animal you can think of, it's all
there, but those...the system doesn't recognise them."
"Oh, is that
why they're flashing red?"
"I guess so,
I don't know." Ekron had been stationed here at Outpost 452 for only a few
months, he hadn't seen much action in that time. Pick up a soul or two, go
investigate the occasional do-badder, but nothing like this. Sniff tapped the
screen a few times.
"Is it a
bug?"
"I told you,
I don't know. I'm going to have to report this."
"What?"
Sniff had already covered the communication switch with his hand. "Do you
know what'll happen if you do?"
"What?"
"Something."
"Something?
What do you mean?"
"Something
will happen. Why d'ya wanna go and do a thing like that? We're all nice and
peaceful here."
"You are.
Look, it's not going away. There's a problem, we have to report it."
After a short
staring match, Sniff let go of the communication switch.
"Okay, but I
warned you. Remember that." Ekron hit the switch and contacted Headquarters.
Friday, January 25, 2013
New book, new ideas
TDX2 Free ebook still going strong, 84 downloads, 3 libraries and 38 likes, and I'm still waiting for Premium status to be sent out to all places. I also have 58+ votes for my 55 word story, let's see what Mr. Briggs thinks of that at the end of the month. I'm thinking 1 of 2 things, either nothing or something.
New book! New ideas! This one has been rattling around in my head for a while now, and finally I have some actual words written down, about 3000 or so.
It's amazing how writing works. I have a pen that seems to help me bring out quirky ideas, and once one idea is down, more appear, maybe 2 or 3, so you write them down, then a few more appear... Need a bit more research for this one, too. I'll finally get Moses in on the act, and the Overlords, too, cunningly (not) disguised as Men in Black, and Graham Reader (Yeh!) is back, with a female monkey...sorry...human sidekick. Oh, it's coming along nicely :-) Slowly, but nicely...
New book! New ideas! This one has been rattling around in my head for a while now, and finally I have some actual words written down, about 3000 or so.
It's amazing how writing works. I have a pen that seems to help me bring out quirky ideas, and once one idea is down, more appear, maybe 2 or 3, so you write them down, then a few more appear... Need a bit more research for this one, too. I'll finally get Moses in on the act, and the Overlords, too, cunningly (not) disguised as Men in Black, and Graham Reader (Yeh!) is back, with a female monkey...sorry...human sidekick. Oh, it's coming along nicely :-) Slowly, but nicely...
Thursday, January 24, 2013
4th book Extract 1...
Now 80 downloads for TDX2, I was hoping for 100+, who knows, but I've really squeezed the networks I know to get that.
I now have 55 + votes from 59 for Austin Briggs 55 word story competition, thanks to my friends. Unfortunately, the votes aren't the only thing which he judges by. The judgement criteria includes votes BUT the final decision comes from how awesome he thinks your story is. Maybe no 55 dollars. I really needed the money. It's a good story, so much back-story to it. The guy thinks the baby is his, but who knows? Only the girl. But he's so big-headed he thinks it must be him. Anyway, fingers crossed.
The 4th book...based in Budapest, with a ton of historical facts behind it. Read an extract from Chapter 1...
I now have 55 + votes from 59 for Austin Briggs 55 word story competition, thanks to my friends. Unfortunately, the votes aren't the only thing which he judges by. The judgement criteria includes votes BUT the final decision comes from how awesome he thinks your story is. Maybe no 55 dollars. I really needed the money. It's a good story, so much back-story to it. The guy thinks the baby is his, but who knows? Only the girl. But he's so big-headed he thinks it must be him. Anyway, fingers crossed.
The 4th book...based in Budapest, with a ton of historical facts behind it. Read an extract from Chapter 1...
If this wasn't far enough, then he didn't know what was. Out
in the middle of nowhere, far from any living man, creature or tree, days from
his last encounter with any kind of settlement, Rihat began to dig. Stopping
only to listen to the faint sounds on the breeze, he dug deeper under the light
of the moon and the stars. With a distant howl of a wolf, Rihat protected his
precious cargo, an instinct bordering on paranoia. His Master had told him to
run like the wind, run as far and as fast as he could, allow no one to take or
touch the item which he carried, and hide it for all eternity, away from the
imminent destruction of the temple in the holy city, away from the hearts and minds of all
humanity...
"Szia."
Rihat abruptly stood up in his now 3-foot deep hole. He
looked around, scanning the open plain lit up by the moon and saw no one. After
some moments of silence, he began digging in earnest once again, thinking it
was only his mind playing tricks.
"Ahoj."
A second sound. Someone was here, or were they? Was that a
word he'd heard? It was from no language he knew. He'd been roaming north now
for well over 3 weeks, it could be anything.
"Yassou.”
Rihat was sure that was Greek. He knew a little Greek,
Stavros was his name.
"Hello."
That was Rihat's language.
"Hello?"
"Hello! What ya doing?"
There was someone else in this open plain. Jumping out
of his hole, Rihat grabbed the sack containing his heavy burden, started running into
the night, and tripped into another larger and much deeper hole. On landing, he
heard the snapping of wood and knew it wasn't.
"Argh!"
"You wanna watch that. Oh dear. Are you alright?"
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
55 word contest + TDX2 Update 2
Austin Briggs, a fine chap, has a 55 word story competition online. If you have the most Votes at the end of the month, you win 55 dollars. Please click, read and if you like it, vote!! :-) I need 55 dollars.
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/not-me/
Update on TDX2...10 days online for free AT Smashwords...https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975... 74 downloads, 18 Likes and in 3 libraries (I really don't know what the libraries are, but hey). Awaiting a review, perhaps more will come. It's a nice little story, just an advert to my style of writing, really, but a nice little romp in itself.
http://austinbriggs.com/flash-fiction-contest/not-me/
Update on TDX2...10 days online for free AT Smashwords...https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975... 74 downloads, 18 Likes and in 3 libraries (I really don't know what the libraries are, but hey). Awaiting a review, perhaps more will come. It's a nice little story, just an advert to my style of writing, really, but a nice little romp in itself.
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Author's feature: Linda Talbot on Dani J Caile: HEAVEN, HELL AND THE SEARCH FOR SATISFACTION
The first feature ever on this blog! Linda Talbot, fantasy author of Gift of Green Fire, a strange collection of short stories, and brand new Time Trance of the Gods (Book One), another collection of short stories based on ancient Greek Gods and mortals, was very kind to create this feature about me and my writing. It made me think about a few things...Hope you enjoy it :-)
HEAVEN, HELL AND THE
SEARCH FOR SATISFACTION
Dani J Caile has a bustling and bizarre imagination. It
erupts with a host of earthly and otherwordly beings that one would expect to
collide with baffling incoherence.
But beneath the wayward events and a humour that moves from
pertinent to playful pun, lie clear concerns for humanity.
His novella Too Dull to Die, a free Smashwords
edition, relates the fate of Guido, who is returned to Earth after death for
another go at living because he has experienced no passion, pathos or even
memorable moments.
"Guido is based on myself," admits Caile,
"but without the life."
Guido eventually confronts God and accuses him of not caring
about humanity. But it transpires God has left man to his own ends. And when
Guido queries the point of the bible, God points out HE did not write it. If he
had there would have been more jokes.
Says Caile, "Just imagine if there was a God, because I
think no one can prove or disprove that point, if he loved you, wouldn't he
want you to grow and take responsibility for your own life, like a true father
over his children? In my opinion, man is responsible for his actions, whether
there is a God or not."
In his third book The Rage of Atlantis, he considered
the obstacles people put in the way of fulfilment and personal responsibility
and how people seek scapegoats to increase the influence and feed the desires
of those in power.
His influences were diverse. He explains,"Rage
stemmed from thoughts of 9/11, Hungarian politics, dolphins and the hatred
found in Marilyn Manson's 'Holy Wood.'
"What can we do to live fulfilling lives? Change?
People find it hard to change. All we can do is live as impeccably as possible,
I guess."
Caile's characters comprise a motley community. As well as
hapless man, there are curious creations from hobgoblins to dolphins who talk.
And there are often elements of extremes; good and evil, heaven and hell.
"It's easier to write in extremes and easier for the
reader to understand the message given," he says, "Of course life is
not black and white, but very, very grey. Hubble can see colours but the
universe only sees black and white, life or death. You can't plead with the
universe for a second chance. It's black and white, like life. You either do
something or you don't. "
In his book The
Bethlehem Fiasco, a man is alone in the desert looking for answers. Is the
influence he may subsequently have over people, beneficial or likely to lead to conflict?
Caile believes, "I think prophets are fantastic people.
The Bethlehem Fiasco attacks the disciples, not Christ. Belief is a very
good thing, it gives you a purpose. Religion is another matter - money, power,
control over the masses. Christ, Buddha, were great men but what came after
them was corruption and greed."
But, for all the obstacles and pitfalls, this author
believes everyone can live a fulfilling life. "Find your real priorities,
motives and desires. The goals may be large or small. For instance Grint, a
hobgoblin in Man by a Tree, my
first book, thinks a fulfilling life is eating and sleeping."
How do Caile's characters emerge?
He claims, "All my characters and ideas come from my
surroundings. Someone says or does something or my mind spots something 'not
quite right' or suddenly sees something or someone in a different light.
Characters become composites of people I have 'experienced.'"
When asked if he once believed in fairies, he replies wryly,
"How can you not believe in fairies? I have two living in my home. They
put sugar and sweetness in my life. Actually, it took me six months to realise
that the background picture on my computer was changed to a fairy scene of
flowers and mushrooms by my daughter. Besides, wouldn't the world be a better
place with fairies? Now Leprechauns - you have to watch out for them!"
Caile was brought up in Cambridgeshire, England and now
lives in Budapest. What will he write next?
"My next book is in connection with the Manna Machine,
the mythical device which fed the Israelites for 40 years, but the story will
be set in the present. I'm still working on the plot and characters but once
that's done, give me two months and it'll be complete."
His fans will no doubt delight in more offbeat fantasy and
food for thought.
Linda Talbot
Gift of Green Fire
Time Trance of the Gods (Book One)
Saturday, January 19, 2013
TDX2 - Status Report after 7 days
It's been 7 days since I put TDX2 on Smashwords.com for free. 61 downloads and 100s of pageviews. I even have 11 'Likes' and 1 review, with more to come. I added TDX2 to Goodreads and things are happening there, too. It's also been approved for the Premium Catalog, which means it goes to...
Apple (iBookstores), Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, WH Smith, Diesel eBook Store, eBooks Eros, Baker & Taylor, Page Foundry, and others...
For 7 days, that's pretty good, considering no one knows me. I might have another interview up soon (scandalous) and an article (cross your fingers). Still reading 'Attila', and a few stories from other indie authors...
Apple (iBookstores), Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, WH Smith, Diesel eBook Store, eBooks Eros, Baker & Taylor, Page Foundry, and others...
For 7 days, that's pretty good, considering no one knows me. I might have another interview up soon (scandalous) and an article (cross your fingers). Still reading 'Attila', and a few stories from other indie authors...
Friday, January 18, 2013
Napier's Attila again...
I gave William Napier's 'Attila the Judgement' another chance, and it's a nice little romp through The Roman's Eastern Empire - so far, because it's almost 600 pages, a brick by comparison, and won't take a day to read.
BUT I hate Priscus The author takes on this character as his 1st person Point of View, speaking through this pompous Roman 'tutor'. There are really nice pieces of writing, smooth, adventure style, broken by the occasional shitty dialogue (but I've got used to Napier's dialogue voice), then suddenly there's a passage where Priscus (sounds like a disease or facial wart) takes over - I have to put the book down at that point and start again some other time.
So, other than Priscus, a weak 3 out of 5 read so far, like most of the reviews (7 out of 22) on Amazon, but definitely not worth the six 5* reviews it got.
BUT I hate Priscus The author takes on this character as his 1st person Point of View, speaking through this pompous Roman 'tutor'. There are really nice pieces of writing, smooth, adventure style, broken by the occasional shitty dialogue (but I've got used to Napier's dialogue voice), then suddenly there's a passage where Priscus (sounds like a disease or facial wart) takes over - I have to put the book down at that point and start again some other time.
So, other than Priscus, a weak 3 out of 5 read so far, like most of the reviews (7 out of 22) on Amazon, but definitely not worth the six 5* reviews it got.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
You can't beat a Jules Verne book!
I got another book for Christmas, plain green cover, small, very thin recycled paper, absolutely nothing to write home about. 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth' written by Jules Verne in 1864. I remembered that old movie from the 60s/70s with that terrible American actor. I put it down and read the other (which I still haven't picked up since stopping at page 184). When the other showed its true colours, I picked it up. At first a slow start but then it I got caught up in the adventure. It was a great story, you can see why it's a classic!
I did, howeer, have 2 'ecological' problems. The group of 3, Axel, the professor and Hans effected the environment under the surface, first with the stream, and then with the explosion, with the sea draining down into the depths of the Earth. The first I was upset with, but the 2nd I was horrified!
Other than that, it was a FANTASTIC read! 11 out of 10 for Jules Verne!
I did, howeer, have 2 'ecological' problems. The group of 3, Axel, the professor and Hans effected the environment under the surface, first with the stream, and then with the explosion, with the sea draining down into the depths of the Earth. The first I was upset with, but the 2nd I was horrified!
Other than that, it was a FANTASTIC read! 11 out of 10 for Jules Verne!
Saturday, January 12, 2013
When Guido meets God...
TDX2 (Too Dull to Die) is now FREE to download at Smashwords (just saying again). For those who are concerned about downloading something which might 'contaminate' them or make them think or even possibly make them laugh...whatever...here's a snippet from the conversation between Guido and God almost at the end of the story. Cut a bit out...you need to 'download' it, you know :-)
....
....
....
“So,
there’s no connection between you and say, the Bible?” God laughed.
“Tell
me Guido, who wrote that book? Did I?”
“Well…”
“I’m sure it would be
a better read if I’d written it.” God picked up Guido’s form again. “It would
have more jokes in it, for a start..."....
...“Looking
at this form of yours, I wouldn’t call you bad. I’d call you…dull, sad even.”
“Dull? Sad?”
“Yes,
Guido. You see, there’s something special about the time you can spend in the
physical universe, there are natural ‘points’ in your allowed time where you
can experience certain aspects of life to some degree, perhaps even to the
full, with opportunities to expand your understanding and knowledge of both the
positive and negative things in life, like love, laughter, success, hate, envy,
abandonment, failure, to name but a few.” God looked at Guido’s shape and form,
unchanged since dying. ”It seems you missed out on every single one of these.
That takes talent, and some effort. You’ve experienced everything, of course,
it would be impossible not to, but you seem to have miraculously experienced
them all to the least.”
“When you say it like
that, I feel such a loser.”
Too Dull to Die FREE ebook!
Yes, I finally put TDX2 (too dull to die) online as a free ebook, at Smashwords...
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975
Had 7 downloads within the 1st hour, so at least 7 people had a look. If you downloaded it and there was no cover picture, download it again, it has one now :-) Smashwords didn't accept my first cover, so I had to resize it, took a little time.
The 3 books are also available very cheap in Kindle format, $0.99 on Amazon.com and £1.02 on Amazon.co.uk.
My 2nd interview is still there, as is my 1st inteview.
Still 'thinking' about the 4th book, it's getting there, becoming a mass of words in my mind, a search for...:-)
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/273975
Had 7 downloads within the 1st hour, so at least 7 people had a look. If you downloaded it and there was no cover picture, download it again, it has one now :-) Smashwords didn't accept my first cover, so I had to resize it, took a little time.
The 3 books are also available very cheap in Kindle format, $0.99 on Amazon.com and £1.02 on Amazon.co.uk.
My 2nd interview is still there, as is my 1st inteview.
Still 'thinking' about the 4th book, it's getting there, becoming a mass of words in my mind, a search for...:-)
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
INTERVIEW! - my 2nd interview online :-)
Well, yes, somehow through all this twittering, I got myself on an 'author promotional drive', and I've finally got another interview online!
See it here at epublishabook.com live...
It's a little witty, if I may say so myself, but TRUE. The truth has a certain absurdity.
See it here at epublishabook.com live...
It's a little witty, if I may say so myself, but TRUE. The truth has a certain absurdity.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Amazon reviews...bogus or real?
Something is wrong with Amazon reviews. Loads of books have tons of 5* reviews, but once you read a few pages, you can see that this just isn't possible, the writing or the story or both are bad (not naming any names).
Are they bogus reviews or real? I thought reviews were meant to help someone decide which book was for them. Apparently not. How naive I am.
So, just what is the point of 'bogus' Amazon reviews? Sure, your friends want to do good by you, but it looks like 5* reviews depend on your social circle who...
1. have enough money to buy a book from Amazon;
2. are willing to express how great your book is, even though after reading only 1 page, you can see there are problems with it.
Now, when I look at a book's reviews, I check the lower star reviews as well as the 5 stars, especially the 1 star, they're sometimes funny, you take them with a pinch of salt. I'll probably get my fair share of them - I hope not, as I feel I wouldn't deserve them, but hey, out of the hundreds of comments on all those author sites, there were 1 or 2 who had something bad to say. All I know is my writing isn't as bad as a lot of those books out there, even those with 64 5 star reviews!
I have a small social circle, relatively I know, but those who felt they needed to say something, have. And I'm still bugging the rest of them to read my books and give a review :-) Everyone is busy...
Oh right, so, what is the point of 'bogus' 5* Amazon reviews? Sales. They sell your book. It's as simple as that. Some people buy reviews, others ask their friends (as I mentioned). Of course, authors would deny all knowledge of this - they want to sell their books. It's a business, a cut-throat business.
If I had any money, would I do it too? What is the point?
Are they bogus reviews or real? I thought reviews were meant to help someone decide which book was for them. Apparently not. How naive I am.
So, just what is the point of 'bogus' Amazon reviews? Sure, your friends want to do good by you, but it looks like 5* reviews depend on your social circle who...
1. have enough money to buy a book from Amazon;
2. are willing to express how great your book is, even though after reading only 1 page, you can see there are problems with it.
Now, when I look at a book's reviews, I check the lower star reviews as well as the 5 stars, especially the 1 star, they're sometimes funny, you take them with a pinch of salt. I'll probably get my fair share of them - I hope not, as I feel I wouldn't deserve them, but hey, out of the hundreds of comments on all those author sites, there were 1 or 2 who had something bad to say. All I know is my writing isn't as bad as a lot of those books out there, even those with 64 5 star reviews!
I have a small social circle, relatively I know, but those who felt they needed to say something, have. And I'm still bugging the rest of them to read my books and give a review :-) Everyone is busy...
Oh right, so, what is the point of 'bogus' 5* Amazon reviews? Sales. They sell your book. It's as simple as that. Some people buy reviews, others ask their friends (as I mentioned). Of course, authors would deny all knowledge of this - they want to sell their books. It's a business, a cut-throat business.
If I had any money, would I do it too? What is the point?
Saturday, January 5, 2013
A Sale! Let's have a party!
Yes, finally got a Kindle sale of 'Rage of Atlantis' (rank #183,280 in the Kindle store) yesterday from a fellow author on Twitter, Melodie Ramone. Visit her blog and find out about her book 'After Forever Ends', which is quite high in the ranks (#37,229) ...my other 2 books are still well over 1 million somewhere. Well, I didn't make any money, but now another person will read my 3rd book - hopefully. I'm actually a little stressed as to what she'll say about it, she mentioned she'd review it!
A NEW interview is coming too! On January the 8th. Nothing special, but only my 2nd so far! This one is about marketing my 3rd book. Will post the address up on that day...
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Is 'self-published' a dirty word? No.
I came across this wonderful circle of interviews of indie authors by other indie authors, and there was a question 'Self-published or published?' One indie author said she was published by a small publisher. I decided to track down this publisher and see if I could submit my work. After a few moments, I found out that...
1. there was no sole publisher with that name;
2. that name was connected to a publishing business, a printing house.
In the old days they called it 'vanity publishing'. I can only assume that someone 'ordered' copies to be made from that printing house and gave them as a 'gift'. So, no small publisher to submit my work to...:-(
But hey, isn't this way self-publishing? So this author wasn't 'published', she was 'self-published'. Is 'self-published' such a dirty word?
Look at the list of names from wiki of authors who self-published...
Virginia Woolf, Ezra Pound, John Ruskin, Marcel Proust, Martin Luther, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Jane Austen, Derek Walcott, William Blake, William Morris, James Joyce, Benjamin Franklin, Anthony Hope, Rudyard Kipling, D. H. Lawrence, Thomas Paine, Edgar Allan Poe, Carl Sandburg, George Bernard Shaw, Upton Sinclair, Gertrude Stein, Henry David Thoreau, Stephen Crane, E. E. Cummings, Zane Grey, Mark Twain, and Ernest Vincent Wright.
Ebook self-publishers include J. K. Rowling (yes, really!), Ian Fleming, Barbara Cartland and Catherine Cookson, Adam Croft, Stephen Leather, Deepak Chopra, and Pat Ingoldsby.
WHAT A LIST!!!!
1. there was no sole publisher with that name;
2. that name was connected to a publishing business, a printing house.
In the old days they called it 'vanity publishing'. I can only assume that someone 'ordered' copies to be made from that printing house and gave them as a 'gift'. So, no small publisher to submit my work to...:-(
But hey, isn't this way self-publishing? So this author wasn't 'published', she was 'self-published'. Is 'self-published' such a dirty word?
Look at the list of names from wiki of authors who self-published...
Virginia Woolf, Ezra Pound, John Ruskin, Marcel Proust, Martin Luther, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Jane Austen, Derek Walcott, William Blake, William Morris, James Joyce, Benjamin Franklin, Anthony Hope, Rudyard Kipling, D. H. Lawrence, Thomas Paine, Edgar Allan Poe, Carl Sandburg, George Bernard Shaw, Upton Sinclair, Gertrude Stein, Henry David Thoreau, Stephen Crane, E. E. Cummings, Zane Grey, Mark Twain, and Ernest Vincent Wright.
Ebook self-publishers include J. K. Rowling (yes, really!), Ian Fleming, Barbara Cartland and Catherine Cookson, Adam Croft, Stephen Leather, Deepak Chopra, and Pat Ingoldsby.
WHAT A LIST!!!!
569 pages? You're crazy, Orion!
I got a book for Christmas. William Napier 'Attila the Judgement'.
It's a 3rd person POV (point of view) Historical fiction about the Romans and Atilla the Hun. It's strange, it doesn't know where it's going in terms of style, it keeps changing from one paragraph to the next, you get a really nice flowing paragraph and it ends in a stinky sentence which is way out of style. The dialogue to cliche too, then rude, then so unreal.
The story is good, though there are too many coincidences for it to work right. And the story kinda loses strength after Part One. Plus at one point one Roman called Knuckles struggles to kill one single Hun, then suddenly he can kill hundreds with his bare hands and club, crushing skulls, etc. Just like a Hollywood blockbuster. So what is this book? Who knows?
Head jumping happens a bit, too, even more irritating than when I do it. At least when I do it, there's a break of some sort.
AND on page 181, suddenly from out of the blue comes a 1st person POV (point of view). Where did that come from? It continues on for I don't know how long, I stopped on page 183..of 569 pages?!
Do I read on? Only because I can't find my 'Catcher in the Rye' at the moment...
I can't believe this book got a publisher. Who is it? Orion! Jesus! Someone in their office has a screw loose. Congratulations to William Napier, though, he got a 3 book deal from them! Which is more than what I could...
It's a 3rd person POV (point of view) Historical fiction about the Romans and Atilla the Hun. It's strange, it doesn't know where it's going in terms of style, it keeps changing from one paragraph to the next, you get a really nice flowing paragraph and it ends in a stinky sentence which is way out of style. The dialogue to cliche too, then rude, then so unreal.
The story is good, though there are too many coincidences for it to work right. And the story kinda loses strength after Part One. Plus at one point one Roman called Knuckles struggles to kill one single Hun, then suddenly he can kill hundreds with his bare hands and club, crushing skulls, etc. Just like a Hollywood blockbuster. So what is this book? Who knows?
Head jumping happens a bit, too, even more irritating than when I do it. At least when I do it, there's a break of some sort.
AND on page 181, suddenly from out of the blue comes a 1st person POV (point of view). Where did that come from? It continues on for I don't know how long, I stopped on page 183..of 569 pages?!
Do I read on? Only because I can't find my 'Catcher in the Rye' at the moment...
I can't believe this book got a publisher. Who is it? Orion! Jesus! Someone in their office has a screw loose. Congratulations to William Napier, though, he got a 3 book deal from them! Which is more than what I could...
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Researching the 4th book
Researching a new book is just one of those wonderful things in the journey of creating. Sorry? What?
Yes, researching, going round in circles, trying to find the answers to the questions which will be the skeleton to the logic of your book, I like it. Well, I would. Got a hell of a lot of it done in the last few days, pieces are falling into place in my mind, scenes are appearing, coming to life...
Those French are crazy when it comes to numbers. They count up to 60 and then stop. 70 is actually 60+10, 80 is 4*20, and 99 is 4*20+19 (quatre-vingt-dix-neuf)! 100 is finally a new number (cent). Crazy. Just wondering how to put it in...great fun!
Yes, researching, going round in circles, trying to find the answers to the questions which will be the skeleton to the logic of your book, I like it. Well, I would. Got a hell of a lot of it done in the last few days, pieces are falling into place in my mind, scenes are appearing, coming to life...
Those French are crazy when it comes to numbers. They count up to 60 and then stop. 70 is actually 60+10, 80 is 4*20, and 99 is 4*20+19 (quatre-vingt-dix-neuf)! 100 is finally a new number (cent). Crazy. Just wondering how to put it in...great fun!
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