Category Archives: Blogging

April 9, 2016 · 8:51 am

News updates: health, book covers, paperbacks

I’d originally started this blog as a blog, but really it’s more of a news site these days for whatever’s going on in my publishing adventures (thus the lack of regular posts). But there has been a little news in the last month, and here it is:

News 1: Weight loss/Health

Despite not being a blogger, I did start a bloggy sort of thing the other day — a weight loss challenge. If you’re curious, you can read my first post on my wife’s blog: John’s Little Problem. I’ll be posting something there every Monday.

News 2: New Covers

The old covers were cool, but book 1’s looked a little like a karate book, in my opinion. Couple that with the name “Kick,” and I think I was turning a lot of folks away who might have enjoyed reading a story about a body-hopping dead guy with a fast food habit (who also fights evil). So I went out and re-branded the series. Here, have a look: new covers.

News 3: Paperbacks

Being an indie author, it’s super easy to forget about paperbacks because so much of our sales come from ebooks. For a reader to buy a paperback, one or more of the following has to happen:

the reader has to love reading paperbacks.
the reader has to know the author exists.
the reader has to discover the book in a book store.
the reader loved the ebook so much she just had to buy the paperback.

I’m sure there are other reasons (gifts, pet termites, book burnings, etc.). The point is, I’ve neglected all these folks for far too long. Also, it just looks cool having my books in multiple formats. As of now, all the Jenkins Cycle books are available in both ebook and paperback. For “Kick,” the audiobook will be out hopefully before summer, that’s all I can promise right now. I’ll get around to publishing “Thief’s Odyssey” in paperback when my designer, Lindy Moone, frees up a little time.

Cheers

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Filed under Blogging, Indie Publishing

Tagged as book covers, lindy moone, low carb, paperback, weight loss challenge

February 27, 2015 · 7:13 am

Jillianne Hamilton, author of Molly Miranda: Thief for Hire

I ran into Jillianne in the comments section of the Sell More Books Show, then immediately checked out her new book, Molly Miranda: Thief for Hire. After reading the exciting first chapter, I felt compelled to contact her. She was really cool, answered a bunch of my questions. There were a great many similarities in our interest in things thiefy, as well as the research we did before writing our respective caper stories. When Jillianne suggested we interview each other and post them today on our blogs, I enthusiastically agreed.

Tell us about Molly Miranda. What makes her tick?

JH: Molly Miranda is in her early twenties and has a pretty average life- except for the fact that she makes her living by stealing big ticket items like art, jewelry and the odd historical artifact. She doesn’t really consider herself good at anything else and gets twitchy when she’s not out on assignment. She feels safest when she’s just acquired a hefty amount of cash as money equals stability. For Molly, financial security equals happiness.

Have you always been interested in thieves in fiction? If not, why now?

JH: Not specifically. I knew I wanted to make Molly a criminal. I initially considered making her a hired assassin but thought it might be easier to make her a likeable character if her crime didn’t physically hurt anyone so I made her a burglar who steals items from people who can afford to have things stolen from them. Plus, my book is a comedy. Much easier to make a book funny and light-hearted if nobody is being murdered. Once I decided to make her a thief, I did some research and became fascinated. Obsessed, even. I think I could pull of a decent heist if the opportunity ever came up.

What sort of research went into Thief For Hire?

JH: I basically inhaled Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief by Bill Mason. Such a fantastic read. Like, ohmygod. Unbelievable. I also read Catch Me If You Can by Frank Abagnale, The Rescue Artist by Edward Dolnick, The Thefts of the Mona Lisa by Noah Charney (Charney is a fantastic wealth of art theft information) and The Gardner Heist by Ulrich Boser. I’ve also watched a lot of documentaries (mostly via YouTube) on art forgeries, art thefts and famous thieves like Bonnie and Clyde.

I see that Thief For Hire is your only book on Amazon. Have you written other novels? Short stories?

JH: Molly Miranda: Thief for Hire is my first published novel. I’m currently working on the sequel. I’ve been writing fiction since childhood. I also have a free ebook on blog design available on my website. (I’m a web designer in my 9-5 life so I’ve got some knowledge on the topic.)

Considering many people have been victims of theft, did you have any moral qualms writing a positive portrayal of an unapologetic thief?

JH: During the writing of Thief for Hire, I didn’t feel too bad about writing Molly’s crimes. There are people who get hurt during the course of the book, but not by Molly specifically. She doesn’t want to hurt people and she’d never steal from people who financially struggle. Example: if she found a wallet with a thousand bucks cash in it, she would try to return it. She enjoys the challenge of the theft as much as getting paid for it. In the sequel I’m writing now, I did feel a little guilt writing this one scene where Molly has to get a teeeeeeny bit violent. But nothing serious. I’m sure more scenes will come up where I’ll feel guilty writing them because Molly isn’t exactly innocent… but you just have to deal with that if you are going to write a character who makes her living as a criminal.

—

You can read Jillianne’s interview of me over on her blog: Jillianne-Hamilton.com

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Filed under Blogging, Indie Publishing

Tagged as books about thieves, burglars, caper stories

July 25, 2014 · 8:40 am

P.T. Hylton’s a 100 percenter…!

I thought this was interesting because I sort of agree 🙂

http://www.pthylton.com/writers-stop-10-brains

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Filed under Awesome Indies, Blogging

Tagged as 10 percent of brain, hollywood, tropes

June 24, 2014 · 6:50 am

Literary Subversions — coolest author blog I’ve seen yet

One of my Awesome Indies, Lindy Moone, has one of the coolest author blogs around. Here’s a bet: if you go over there and click around the menu system at the top and don’t think it’s cool, I actually might donate my next million dollars to a good cause of my choosing, but won’t tell anyone what I may or may not choose. Deal?

Seriously though, check it out:

http://www.lindymoone.com/

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Filed under Awesome Indies, Blogging

Tagged as awesome indie, great art, lindy moone, literary subversions

May 29, 2014 · 4:25 pm

A Rant On Being An Author

Russel Blake rants, love it:

A Rant On Being An Author.

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Filed under Blogging, Funny

April 19, 2014 · 10:43 am

P.T. Hylton speaketh again!

I love this guy, something about him. He’s just cool. I liked him before he read my book and 5 starred it, and did the contest where he gives away 4 in an entire month, but whatever, now I love him like a billion times more….hmm, maybe I need to walk that back a little. I like him like a neighbor who lives across the street, firm handshakes only, manly head nods like “yo man, mad props” and “sup” and “I enjoy ultimate fighting, how about you?”

Check out his latest video — lots of fun.

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Filed under Blogging, Just Cool, Writing Experience

Tagged as author video, P.T. Hylton, regulation 19

March 22, 2014 · 1:56 am

Added a new menu thing

I wanted to showcase some of the funny pieces I’ve done on the blog, but didn’t feel the little categories drop down quite did it. So I added a little menu item up top called “Fun” and put all the links to things like “Ten years from now” and “Mutaphysics” into it.

Enjoy

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Tagged as fun, funny, short fiction

March 16, 2014 · 1:22 pm

Author Linda Welch reposted my St. Patrick’s Day story

Is it not the height of vanity that I’m linking to someone who’s linking to me? Oh well, I’m vain.

http://lindadwelch.com/2014/03/wherever-you-go-and-whatever-you-do-may-the-luck-of-the-irish-be-there-with-you/

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Filed under Blogging, Funny

Tagged as linda welch, st. patrick's day, vanity

March 9, 2014 · 8:28 pm

A Self-Pubbing Future

This guy’s really clued-in to the indie market.

A Self-Pubbing Future.

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Filed under Blogging, Indie Publishing, Writing Market

Tagged as indie publishing, marketing, russell blake

March 7, 2014 · 9:58 am

Take a walk on the dark side of the street for change…grab it while it’s free.

Now that it’s available for Kindle, I’ll be buying it…

< < Here’s the link for Amazon > >

Dreaming...

Take a walk on the dark side of the street for change...grab it while it's free.

Unhinged
By Logan Keys

“Logan Keys takes you on a guided tour of the dark recesses of the human psyche. The writing is sharp and compelling, prodding you forward when your instincts are screaming “turn back” Author J Mathew Mckern
“Unhinged is a bleak foray into the Stygian depths of humanity’s nastier aspects.” Jim Adams

An assemblage of pure madness, Unhinged is a miasma quick fix for the horror junkie. Visceral and vicious, each morsel more disturbing than the last. Guaranteed to hijack your mind, these lost souls will stay with you long after the last page has been turned.

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