Author Event Pics

It was lots of fun to present my book last Thursday at Village Books. Thanks to all who came out to hear me speak, and who bought books. Check it out...

 Introducing myself

 Did I mention...it makes a great holiday gift?

Reading Chapter One

Signing for customers

Thanks again to all who came out to support this venture. Happy holidays to all!

Now a Kindle Version

Runtime Error is now available as a Kindle ebook. Check it out HERE.

Amazon makes it pretty easy to publish through Kindle Direct Publishing. I sent my ebook file for the version that is on the iTunes Store, and they converted it for Kindle. What was nice, was that they converted it for free, and was posted for sale on Amazon within 24 hours.

The paper version will be for sale on Amazon within a couple of days. The price will be lower because Amazon's self-publishing house (Create Space) is so much cheaper than Lulu, where I have been publishing. Don't get me wrong, Lulu's been great, and was the way I gained access to the iTunes Store, and to Nook sales through Barnes and Noble. And the quality of their print-on-demand books is superb, better than Amazon's. But I sold books at the event, and need to order more. I will try Create Space this time and see if anyone notices a difference in quality.

Have a Kindle? Check out Runtime Error for your Kindle!

This Thursday Night!

Getting very excited for my first author event at Village Books in Bellingham.  Here are some pics of me getting ready:

Thinking about what to say at an author's event

Alright, time to get to work...

...hope all goes well!

If you are in Bellingham on December 15th, please stop in at Village Books at 7:00 PM. I'd love to see you there.

On the Self

Here's a photo of Runtime Error on the shelf at Village Books in Bellingham. 

I love the little "local author" tag. Village Books has been great, from giving my book a chance, to hosting an author event (this coming Thursday!). If you are in Bellingham,  stop by and support an independent book store.

Pitch

On December 7th, I get to attend a "pitch" event in Seattle. I was invited by Amazon to hear speakers, and then meet with a couple of editors to pitch my book.


I had to research what a "pitch" is. A pitch is a sales pitch for your creative work. There are some rules that I read up on, and one that came through loud and clear was that authors must have a single sentence synopsis that tells what the book is about. The key word, though, is "urgency." The pitch must create a sense of urgency in the plot. Apart from that, there are four things this pitch sentence must include:

1. the setting
2. the main character
3. the conflict
4. why this book is different from others (the hook?)

All in one sentence.

Here's what I've got so far:

• Seattle detective Holden Morris must protect a witness to a break-in at a computer research lab, a case which will pit him against government assassins, and lead him to question the nature of reality as a strange, experimental computer alters the physical universe.

I also broke the rules a little, and added a question at the beginning:

• Does saving one life matter when the world may be ending? Seattle detective Holden Morris must protect a lovely young witness to a crime, a crime she may be party to, and which will pit him against government assassins, and lead everyone to question the nature of reality as a strange, experimental computer alters the physical universe.

I'm not sure that this pitch event isn't just an Amazon pitch for their editing and promotional services. If so, I hope I get a good dinner out of it, because Seattle's a long drive. Still, it will be interesting to meet other independent authors, and to hear what editors have to say.

I am about 100 pages into the sequel!

Brick and Mortar

This week finds Runtime Error on the shelves of Village Books, in the lovely Fairhaven district of Bellingham, WA. This is the first placement of my novel in a "brick and mortar" store.

Independent book stores offer a wonderful opportunity for exposure for a self-published author. Village Books has a great selection of titles, is a well-established business, and yet still offers opportunities for new authors like myself.

I look forward to seeing anyone in the Bellingham area on December 15, for an author event at Village Books. It will be at 7:00 PM - be there or be, well, somewhere else that is not as cool.

eBook Mania!

My novel has just been offered as a Nook book by Barnes and Noble.  This is the second e-reader version that is available. The iTunes store has carried Runtime Error for about a month now.

Most of my sales have been ebook sales. I have been able to price my work significantly lower as an indie publisher for ebook sales. I love a real book, and the hard copies that I have received are of good quality and look great. But print-on-demand publishing has a high per-unit cost, and forces the price of a good 'ol paperback higher than the large publishers I compete with. Quite a bit higher.

I am still waiting for approval for Amazon sales, and distribution for Kindle. But it's coming.

In the meantime, would it kill you to write a review, or at least rate my book in iTunes?