Archive for the ‘Steampunk’ Category

Hits and Misses

Posted: May 23, 2013 in Steampunk, Alternate History, Science Fiction, Christian novels, apocalypse, angels, demons, book marketing, indie publishing, dystopia, Writing business
0

I’ve never been able to pat my head and rub my belly at the same time, and so I have been remiss in keeping up with my blog, or my writing for that matter. But I had decided early on that this summer was not going to be writing intensive. Instead, I have spent the last two weeks working on house stuff. I got a start (not a good start, but a start) on painting my deck, which sorely needs it. I did paint out dining room, and it looks great if I say so myself. I started tearing up tile in our kitchen in anticipation of putting in some kind of new flooring (not sure which yet). I replaced the sheetrock in our bathroom where a major crack has appeared. And I spent several days with my wife cleaning dust off of everything in the house because of all of my other endeavors. And, oh yeah, we caught a couple of movies. Ironman III and Star Trek–both thumbs up.

Infinity's reach final ebookBut even though I haven’t been pounding the keyboard, stuff has been happening. I have a book signing here in Keene tomorrow and Sunday at the Texas ABC. I told the manager that my two new books–Infinity’s Reach and The Champion–were a great deal more edgy than what he was used to selling, but he still insisted on the event, and he seems to be more excited about it than I am. Previous events haven’t been that well organized, but this one seems to be coming together well. I ordered 50 of each book for the ABC and I will be there three hours each day. I encourage you to come by.

Champion4 ebookAs part of that event, I sent out a press release (Tiffany: this is why authors need newswriting skills) and have a story in today’s Cleburne Times-Review, on the Keene Star website, in the Southwesterner and on Facebook. In addition, Mark Smith from the Times-Review will be coming tomorrow to interview me while at the book signing. So pretty cool, eh?

new artwork 11_glen robinson_ebook-1And more good news: I regularly get listings of books from Amazon that they recommend I purchase, as I presume other people do. Today they were promoting a book called Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp. Every heard of it? Well I guess I have, since I wrote it.

And the giveaway on Goodreads for ten copies of Infinity’s Reach is winding down, with 11 hours to go. Presently I have 664 people signing up to get 10 books. Glad that I’m not the one who has to decide who those autographed paperback copies go to.

But this blog is called hits and misses. I am still trying to figure out how to best use pricing and advertising on Facebook to my best advantage. Sales on If Tomorrow Comes were doing well a couple of months ago, and so as an experiment I decided in April to run Facebook ads promoting it, while raising ITC e-book pricing from $2.99 to $4.99 to pay for the ads. After three weeks I cancelled the advertising because it was costing more than I expected for less results than I expected. Yesterday I checked with Amazon and it appears that my sales actually went down during that time. And so I have dropped ITC prices back to $2.99.

There’s no great mystery to book marketing. For me it’s been hit or miss; trial and error. I am learning as I go, and so far haven’t made a million or lost my shirt. And so that’s a good thing.

But I have come to one conclusion. You have to keep trying until one day something you write will appear at just the right time with just the right person. And then it will take off.

At least, that’s the plan.

The Death of Jackson Paul

Posted: April 30, 2013 in book marketing, Science Fiction, Steampunk
0

Goodbye, Jackson Paul. We hardly knew ye.

For those who are unfamiliar with the name Jackson Paul, that’s another good reason why he must die. You see, Jackson Paul is my penname. Or it was. But I discovered that having a penname and self publishing aren’t necessarily conducive to each other.

KissfinalFor example, Smashwords is having trouble listing my pseudonominous books with those which are published under my legal name. I have tried every permutation I can think of, but because of the fact that there are two names on the documentation and inside, it refuses to list these books in its catalog that goes to places like Kobo and Barnes and Nobles.

In addition, Amazon has a feature entitled Author Central that offers features which help authors get their names known as well as their books. Well, apparently I am not the author of books by Jackson Paul, so those two books are basically orphans.

Finally you get into issues with copyright and with payment. Does the copyright belong to Glendal P. Robinson, Prevail Publications or Jackson Paul?

cover_edited-1My original reason in writing under a penname was to separate those books I write in Christian suspense with those I write for a secular audience. All well and good, but I didn’t think of the ramifications that I am dealing with now.

In addition, in order to smooth the waters, I decided to start a publishing company, Prevail Publications. The intention was to copyright under that name. But I discovered that it was a headache to keep another website going at the cost of all the other things I was trying to accomplish.

So, sometime this week, I am going to kill Jackson Paul and pull the plug on Prevail Publications.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that donations be sent to Amazon for purchase of one of Jackson Paul’s books….

 

The Biggest Mistake I’ve Made (so far) In Indie Book Publishing

Posted: April 13, 2013 in apocalypse, book marketing, Christian novels, dystopia, indie publishing, Science Fiction, Steampunk
3

Infinity's reach final ebookI’m not proud. It’s been sixteen months since I made the decision to go into independent book publishing after three decades of traditional publishing. I have already gone into the reasons why I did so, and I still think it was the right decision. And I knew from the very beginning that I was going to learn as I went on a trial and error level. As I say in my writing classes, “The day you stop being a student is the day you stop growing as a writer.”

stranger front onlySo to recount what I did: last year I launched four books under a new publishing name that my son and I made up: Prevail Publications. Two were under a penname: Jackson Paul. The other two were under my real name; one was a collection of short stories that I gave away on Smashwords to help build my name, the other was a book that had been traditionally published but had gone out of print. I hit Twitter pretty hard, rising from less than 2,000 followers to more than 13K as we speak. I sought out reviewers and tried to promote myself and my books on Facebook to the risk of alienating my friends and family.

At this juncture, I am doing pretty good monetarily. In fact, I am making more money indie publishing than I ever did with traditional publishing. But I also noticed a truism that I heard from another blog on writing that was very, very true: 90 percent of sales come from Amazon, and about 95% of sales are e-books.

That prompted me to try a different approach when I launched Infinity’s Reach earlier this month. I went with the KDP plan on Amazon, hoping that making the e-book free the first weekend would help me make a bigger splash. The jury’s still out with that one. The other thing I’m trying is to get more visibility on Goodreads, where I am giving away 10 paperback copies of Infinity’s Reach in the next month. Finally I decided to try Facebook advertising. So far, that’s had mixed results. Of course, I will share everything here–eventually.

The new cover. This says it all, I think.

The new cover. This says it all, I think.

But the BIGGEST MISTAKE I ever made was deciding to launch two books under a penname: Jackson Paul. My original logic was that since I had a history as a Christian suspense author, I didn’t want readers confused by The Kiss of Night, which is a sci-fi book, or Tom Horn, which is a western steampunk book. What I didn’t stop to consider was what that would do to the copyright information. I couldn’t make the copyright out to Jackson Paul, who didn’t exist. And if I made it out to Glendal P. Robinson (my legal name), well, that would just be a problem. So I created Prevail Publications and made it read: Copyright 2012 Prevail Publications.

KissfinalThe second thing that didn’t occur to me would be problems I would have on both Smashwords and on Amazon with listing these two books as my books. The two companies aren’t really friendly toward writers with pennames. Further, there were problems setting it up for payment. Even now I am trying to iron out issues with Smashwords, who are putting my books on hold for distribution to Kobo, Barnes and Noble and other distributors.

So sometime soon, I plan to put out new editions of these two books. And the covers will probably read: Glen Robinson, writing as Jackson Paul. I’m still not sure what to do about the copyright; I am not sure I can change it. It hasn’t been officially filed with the Library of Congress yet, but I do need to figure it out.

All in all, of all the blunder I have made since 2012 started, this is the one I would go back and correct if I could.

Last gasp. NaNoWriMo, here I come!

Posted: October 31, 2012 in Alternate History, creativity, NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Writing
2

Today is the last day of October, and tomorrow morning marks the beginning of National Novel Writing Month. For those who know NaNoWriMo, you’re know what’s going through my mind right now. Anticipation. Excitement. Wonder if I am making a terrible mistake. It’s a major commitment of time, energy and patience–both of you and those who normally count on you paying attention to them in November. But look at this way: It’s ME time. You are doing something for yourself here, and you will be better for it.

The first time I did it was 2008. I started four days after it started, debating up until the very last minute whether I could afford time to participate, as well as debating what I would write. I ended up writing the prescribed 50,000 words in 17 days. Yes, I am OCD. And I learned two things: it was possible for me to write creatively during the school year, and if I gave myself permission, I could write pretty fast.

The key, as I learned from reading at the NaNoWriMo site and from personal experience, is to not self edit. You do that before the month begins, and after you are through. I made some major mistakes in the writing, such as calling a major character Michelle in one chapter, then Melissa in the next. But it’s all good. That’s what editing is for. The book I wrote in 2008 ended up being my steampunk novel Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp. The book in 2009 was a scifi virus story called The Kiss of Night.

The main thing is to make it fun. Pick a story that’s relatively straightforward. Have fun with your characters and your storyline. Rather than challenging yourself to write The Great American Novel, write stuff that you enjoy writing–and possibly reading. If you are going to invest a month into this project, at least have fun doing it.

I will not be blogging much–I suspect–during the month of November, or at least until I get done. But I will keep you apprised as to how it is going. I hope you join me in this project. Trust me, it can be pretty fun.

Finding Your Audience

Posted: October 16, 2012 in Alternate History, apocalypse, book marketing, Christian novels, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Writing
0

From a marketing standpoint, success in any endeavor where you’re selling a commodity is primarily a matter of linking the right audience or customer with the right product. There are two ways to do this.

One way is to develop a product and then find someone to buy it. The plus of this is that if you are inventing or creating something, you can concentrate on making it the best product it can possibly be, regardless of who will use it. Then when it was completed, you turned toward the marketplace to find the perfect customer.

When I first started out as a book editor–a few years ago–that was the approach that our publishing house took. We would find a book manuscript we were enamored with, bought it, edited it and printed. Inevitably the process was followed with the words, “This is a book that [insert customer] needs to read.” The problem was that even though we thought the customer needed to read it, in many cases, they wouldn’t buy it.

A new president came to the publishing house and took one look at the stacks of books in our inventory that we felt were “needed” in the market, yet weren’t selling, and made some changes. No longer would we create the product first. Instead, we would take the second approach and do what most marketers–the smart ones, at least–do. We would find out what the customers wanted, not needed. Once we were confident in our evaluation of the market, we would go out and try to find product that they would want. Customer first, product second.

This came home to me when I first started being successfully published. I wrote practical stuff. And editors loved it. I wrote a lot of stuff directed at Seventh-day Adventists, and since I was an editor at a Seventh-day Adventist publishing house, I had a pretty good idea at what people–and my fellow editors–were looking for. Yesterday, my Drama Writing class had a visit from Marvin Moore, a good friend, formerly a fellow editor, and now the published author of 36 books, one of which has sold 100,000 copies. He has always written–and continues to write–for a Seventh-day Adventist market. He knows his market, he is known in that market, and he’s good at it.

I, on the other hand, have for the most part, turned my back on that market because I feel I have been called to write elsewhere. I write steampunk/alternate history, science fiction, apocalypse, and occasionally Christian suspense. I would have had a guaranteed audience if I had continued to write for my former employers, but I wanted to do something else. The risks are far greater–I don’t know if I will ever develop a reliable following writing what I write. But I don’t have to depend on writing as a primary income, and so I am following my muse.

No one ever said that writing wasn’t risky. If you want to write what you are inspired to write, then be prepared to deal with the challenge of following an audience.

But if you are mainly interested in making a living writing and getting read, then take the marketing approach. Find out what readers and editors are looking for, then give it to them.

That’s my advice.

What a Difference a Cover Makes!

Posted: August 13, 2012 in book marketing, creativity, Steampunk, Stories, Westerns, Writing
3

Here’s the old cover, taken from a historical photo of the real Tom Horn.

I will be the first to admit that I am a novice in the field of self-publishing. But I have learned a great deal since I jumped into the business at the beginning of 2012. Probably the most significant thing I have learned was how critical two things are as far as book sales are concerned: (1) a great cover; and (2) professional editing. Problem is, both of those cost money, which most beginning indy publishers just don’t have.

The new cover. This says it all, I think.

My steampunk book, Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp, was launched several months ago, and has received mixed reviews. Some people really like the story, with some even asking when the sequel will be out. Others criticize it for faulty editing and a weak cover. Well, after six months of work, I think those issues have been resolved.

I have been working with Mateusz Ozminski, a young illustrator in Poland, who has finally come up with a new cover for Tom Horn. And it is amazing to me the difference the new cover makes. Even from my perspective, just having a professional cover to me gives the project credibility. In the meantime, a full edit has corrected the majority of errors that readers were concerned with.

So I encourage you to visit Amazon, Barnes & Nobles or Smashwords and pick up a  99 cent copy of Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp. Mateusz and I are already talking about the sequel, which we hope to have out soon.

As always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

 

Why I like westerns, and the demise of the genre

Posted: June 22, 2012 in Alternate History, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Westerns, Writing
3

First of all, I want you to know that I truly enjoy a good western. I haven’t always felt that way. Growing up with a father who read westerns and wanted John Wayne movies, I saw my share of schlock. And that, I think, is what has led to the demise of the genre.

The fifties and sixties showed an overabundance of western stories in literature, on TV and in movies. But what happens when a theme is popular? It becomes an invitation for mediocrity and cliches. You see the same thing happening in my other favorite genre, science fiction. In the fifties and sixties, every science fiction movie dealt either with radiation or space exploration. After a while, they all started looking the same.

When Star Wars came out in 1979, there was a sudden flurry of look-alike stories–all of them space opera. Star Wars isn’t good science fiction; in a lot of ways it shouldn’t even be considered part of the genre. Really, it’s fantasy. And when people who don’t know the genre begin writing or directing in the field, you get schlock. Or people lean on the tried and true and you get cliches.

What westerns need is one good story that will be accepted by the mainstream. The last good big budget western movie that I can think of is “Silverado.” Another one that I really like is “Hidalgo,” with Viggo Mortensen. But neither made that big of a splash.

Science fiction, for the most part isn’t about science, just as westerns are really about the west. They are about people. Characters in science fiction stories have to deal with issues related to technology, just as we have to deal with technology every day. Westerns are about dealing with conflict on a very basic level–and that’s what I like about them. They are usually not sophisticated at all, in fact, they shun sophistication. The true western hero is very honest and very direct. He may be rough around the edges, but he gets the job done. And he often has a talent for seeing through all the bull that others are blinded by.

It’s been my pleasure to write a western steampunk novel, Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp, which unites alternate history with the western. It was a lot of fun writing it, and I plan on writing a sequel soon. For me, Tom Horn embodies all of the joys of the good western with the new twist that comes with alternate history.

I’d like to hear if you have any favorite western stories. Or if you disagree on what killed the genre.

Book Reviews

Posted: June 5, 2012 in book marketing, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Westerns, Writing
5

Just as an aside from what I previously posted:

I am presently looking for reviewers for two of my books. Tom Horn vs. The Warlords of Krupp, and The Kiss of Night.

If you are interested in reviewing either or both of these, leave a comment with your email address, and I will send you a free ebook copy.

If you are also looking for people/blogsites to review books, here is a good place to start.

Happy writing–and reading.

 

Loose ends

Posted: May 17, 2012 in Christian novels, Steampunk, Westerns, Writing
0

I spent the morning working on school stuff. Yes, school is over, but I am also responsible for the school’s website and the alumni magazine (what can I say? It’s a small school.). So I am trying to get at least the magazine “put to bed” this week so that my energies can be directed at my writing stuff.

I finished editing The Champion book 1 yesterday, and promptly started thinking about a couple of other things that need to be fixed in it. My friend and former student Edward Cheever will be doing the official editing as of next Wednesday. What I worked on was making sure that the Russian vocabulary I use in the story is accurate. Interesting thing about Russian is the Cyrillic alphabet. When you go online and ask for a translation of a word like “great” from English to Russian, you get it printed back in Cyrillic. Which doesn’t help me at all when one of my characters is supposed to be speaking Russian. But I worked at it last night and I think I have it resolved.

Edward has asked for a paper version of the manuscript. My printer is on the fritz (something about needing a new cartridge? Imagine that.), so I need to get that fixed in the next day or so.

In anticipation of the new Tom Horn cover, I am reformatting the ebook and editing it again in the process. That should appear sometime in the next couple of weeks.

Summer vacation is a lazy time in some people’s minds. Not for me. Lots to do, and I know the months will fly by.

Switching Gears

Posted: May 15, 2012 in apocalypse, Christian novels, Criticism, fear, Religion, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Westerns, Writing
0

It seems like I am always switching gears.

A little over a week ago, we had commencement, and I left teaching behind to focus on my writing career over the summer. Sometimes that takes a while to switch gears, but this time around, it doesn’t seem as hard. Maybe that’s because I have been spending so much time doing marketing for my independently published books.

But that’s where my next need to switch gears comes in. Since January I have self-published four books. One is an update of my classic end-time Christian story, If Tomorrow Comes. One is a collection of short stories entitled The Stranger and Other Stories that I am making available free of charge. One is a steampunk western entitled Tom Horn vs. the Warlords of Krupp. And the fourth is an apocalyptic story about a virus that prevents people from waking up entitled The Kiss of Night.

All of these are great books, and I am proud of them. But I have not spent as much time on any of them as I have what is coming.

The Champion is a three-part Christian suspense book series that answers the questions: Were the Old Testament gods real or not? And if they were, where did they go? This project is my baby. I have been working on it for five years and I am eager for it to succeed.

Right now, I am in the process of editing the first book, which introduces the main character 30-year-old Harris Borden, who sees himself a failure as a pastor. He asks for something significant to do, and his prayer is answered. He is called to confront the Universal Corporation, which is a front for demonic activity. He is thrown from a rooftop, shot at, chased into a collapsing building, wrongly imprisoned, stabbed, and well, you get the idea. While many Christian novels are looked at as too benign, this is far from it. And that’s just the first book.

So I find myself weeks away from launching The Champion, and am feeling a mixture of excitement and fear. There’s lots to do before launch. And I want to make sure that I present it in a way that will give it a fair shake.

In a lot of ways, everything I’ve done in independent publishing up to this point has been to teach me how to launch this. I’m eager to get people’s response to it.

 

Older Entries