SPECIAL FREE EBOOK PROMOTION!
My Scifi book Elsewhere will be available for FREE from Amazon #Kindle
starting tomorrow March 12th!
The promotion will run for 5 days. If
you haven't already, then be sure to download ELSEWHERE for FREE during
this 5 day promotion!
Also look for my newest novel DISGRUNTLED also available for your Kindle for only 99 cents!
Here is the link to ELSEWHERE...remember the free promotion begins tomorrow March 12th!
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Writer's Block, Bukowski and the Post Office
Today I would like to suggest yet another tip
to becoming a better writer. Today's tip actually has more to do with
not writing than actually writing, as odd as that might sound.
BALANCE.
This topic occurred to me while reading Notes of a Dirty Old Man by Charles Bukowski. In one particular piece Bukowski attempts to explain a bout of writer's block that he once suffered and indirectly attributes his problems to the existence of daily mail delivery.
Anyone who has read anything that I have ever written knows how much I love Charles Bukowski. I have always been drawn to his direct no holds bar way of writing. The reader never has to wonder what Bukowski is thinking. Make no mistake he is going to tell you and in no uncertain terms. He has been called a bully, a hack, a womanizer and worse. Regardless as to what you or I may think of the man he is clearly one of the most influential writers of the last century.
As a former postal employee, Bukowski has every right to criticize the postal service. He worked for that organization for a decade first as a mail carrier and later as a postal clerk. To put it bluntly, the man paid his dues in that organization and has every right to criticize his former employer.
Despite this fact, I have to wonder if the distraction of daily mail delivery is really a legitimate excuse for writer's block. In this particular exert, Bukowski admits that he became obsessed with reading and responding to his readers' correspondence. At the outset this sounds admirable. He later admits that he usually only responded to the women, and more often to the attractive female readers who included photos of themselves in their correspondence. These admissions lead the reader to question whether the interruption of his daily mail carrier was really the cause of his struggles with writer's block. Instead, allow me to suggest that the contents of those deliveries and his obsession with certain female fans might actually have been the root cause.
While I doubt that many of us have had this same exact experience we have all experienced writer's block. Whether we write novels, poetry, short stories or even something more technical or business related each of us has stared at a blank screen or sheet of paper in frustration at some point.
May I suggest that rather than blame arbitrary events and distractions (such as daily mail delivery) for our problems that we should all learn to lead a more balanced life. We cannot afford to become our own creations. Balance is the key to everything. If you write in the mornings then by all means write in the mornings. But do something else in the afternoon and evening. If you write in the afternoons or evening by all means be true to your routine but find something different and more social to do during your mornings.
Despite certain stereotypes not all great writers are antisocial recluses.
I hope that together we can continue to grow as writers and as human beings.
It is essential to find a good healthy balance that will allow each of us to become a better writer every day!
Thanks again for reading and as always...
KEEP WRITING!
BALANCE.
This topic occurred to me while reading Notes of a Dirty Old Man by Charles Bukowski. In one particular piece Bukowski attempts to explain a bout of writer's block that he once suffered and indirectly attributes his problems to the existence of daily mail delivery.
Anyone who has read anything that I have ever written knows how much I love Charles Bukowski. I have always been drawn to his direct no holds bar way of writing. The reader never has to wonder what Bukowski is thinking. Make no mistake he is going to tell you and in no uncertain terms. He has been called a bully, a hack, a womanizer and worse. Regardless as to what you or I may think of the man he is clearly one of the most influential writers of the last century.
As a former postal employee, Bukowski has every right to criticize the postal service. He worked for that organization for a decade first as a mail carrier and later as a postal clerk. To put it bluntly, the man paid his dues in that organization and has every right to criticize his former employer.
Despite this fact, I have to wonder if the distraction of daily mail delivery is really a legitimate excuse for writer's block. In this particular exert, Bukowski admits that he became obsessed with reading and responding to his readers' correspondence. At the outset this sounds admirable. He later admits that he usually only responded to the women, and more often to the attractive female readers who included photos of themselves in their correspondence. These admissions lead the reader to question whether the interruption of his daily mail carrier was really the cause of his struggles with writer's block. Instead, allow me to suggest that the contents of those deliveries and his obsession with certain female fans might actually have been the root cause.
While I doubt that many of us have had this same exact experience we have all experienced writer's block. Whether we write novels, poetry, short stories or even something more technical or business related each of us has stared at a blank screen or sheet of paper in frustration at some point.
May I suggest that rather than blame arbitrary events and distractions (such as daily mail delivery) for our problems that we should all learn to lead a more balanced life. We cannot afford to become our own creations. Balance is the key to everything. If you write in the mornings then by all means write in the mornings. But do something else in the afternoon and evening. If you write in the afternoons or evening by all means be true to your routine but find something different and more social to do during your mornings.
Despite certain stereotypes not all great writers are antisocial recluses.
I hope that together we can continue to grow as writers and as human beings.
It is essential to find a good healthy balance that will allow each of us to become a better writer every day!
Thanks again for reading and as always...
KEEP WRITING!
Monday, February 2, 2015
My favorite moment of the Superbowl....
Today I take a break from my ongoing blog series to share some thoughts on last nights big event...namely the Superbowl.
My favorite moment by far did not happen on the television screen. While trolling through Twitter and reading all of the reactions to the morbid Nationwide commercial (I'll let you look that one up if you happen to be the ONLY person on the planet who hasn't seen it or any of the memes it produced) I came across a very simple tweet from a reader.
This intelligent young woman simply stated that while the rest of her family was watching the Superbowl she was enjoying a book.
At first this might not sound like much but let the implication sink in for a moment.
While the rest of us (including me, I freely admit) were engrossed in a ballgame this young woman was reading. The significance of this may not be obvious but allow me to expand.
In a world filled with handheld and online video games (not to mention YouTube and what not) this young woman prefers to read. I am both shocked and encouraged by this admission. I myself love reading and prefer it to most forms of media. If I have learned anything by tracking my book sales these past few years it is that more readers use an electronic device (aka Kindle or Nook) to read books than actually buy paper books these days.
I am a bit of a dinosaur, I'll admit, in many ways. My preference for actual books further alienates me from the average American. I still like to hold a book in my hand and I rarely go anywhere without one type of book or another in hand. (Right now I am reading Notes of a Dirty Old Man by Charles Bukowski.)
It was refreshing to see this tweet from someone significantly younger than me during the Superbowl. Now I can't be sure whether the tweeter (is that even a word?) was reading a paper book or on an electronic device. The truth is, it doesn't really matter.
What matters is that she rejected the social norm to stare blankly at a screen all day and she chose to read instead.
I hope that all of you find this anomaly as encouraging as I do.
Until next time...
KEEP WRITING! (and reading!)
My favorite moment by far did not happen on the television screen. While trolling through Twitter and reading all of the reactions to the morbid Nationwide commercial (I'll let you look that one up if you happen to be the ONLY person on the planet who hasn't seen it or any of the memes it produced) I came across a very simple tweet from a reader.
This intelligent young woman simply stated that while the rest of her family was watching the Superbowl she was enjoying a book.
At first this might not sound like much but let the implication sink in for a moment.
While the rest of us (including me, I freely admit) were engrossed in a ballgame this young woman was reading. The significance of this may not be obvious but allow me to expand.
In a world filled with handheld and online video games (not to mention YouTube and what not) this young woman prefers to read. I am both shocked and encouraged by this admission. I myself love reading and prefer it to most forms of media. If I have learned anything by tracking my book sales these past few years it is that more readers use an electronic device (aka Kindle or Nook) to read books than actually buy paper books these days.
I am a bit of a dinosaur, I'll admit, in many ways. My preference for actual books further alienates me from the average American. I still like to hold a book in my hand and I rarely go anywhere without one type of book or another in hand. (Right now I am reading Notes of a Dirty Old Man by Charles Bukowski.)
It was refreshing to see this tweet from someone significantly younger than me during the Superbowl. Now I can't be sure whether the tweeter (is that even a word?) was reading a paper book or on an electronic device. The truth is, it doesn't really matter.
What matters is that she rejected the social norm to stare blankly at a screen all day and she chose to read instead.
I hope that all of you find this anomaly as encouraging as I do.
Until next time...
KEEP WRITING! (and reading!)
Sunday, February 1, 2015
New Series: Writing Tips for Potential Authors
Hello friends and fellow readers!
Today I begin a series of writing tips that I have collected not only from my own experiences but from interaction with other authors. I hope that each of you find something new and positive that will encourage your own writing.
#1: STAY POSITIVE
This may sound like a no brainer but doubt can be a killer. There are going to be periods of rejection in each of our lives. An independent author is going to face a lot of rejection. I recall my first rejection came as a form letter from Dark Horse Comics. I had submitted a storyline for a potential comic book that I titled "The Worst of Times." Anyone who has dealt with the comics industry knows that the big boys (Marvel and DC) do not accept unsolicited submissions...but the smaller imprints do! Thus my submission to Dark Horse. Dark Horse sent me a very polite yet firm letter stating that while they appreciated my submission they had no interest in my story "at this time."
That was 2010.
Five years later I'm not even sure if Dark Horse is still around but if they are they still have no interest in my story lol.
As some of you already know, I later expanded this storyline into my first novel also titled The Worst of Times. I am proud to report that we are fast approaching our one thousandth download of The Worst of Times for Amazon Kindle!
My point is that just because a story or idea is rejected by one format or publisher does not mean the death of that story. Only your own self doubt can truly destroy the potential success of your creation.
I hope that this first tip proves useful to all of you. I plan on offering many more in future posts!
As always...
KEEP WRITING!!!
Today I begin a series of writing tips that I have collected not only from my own experiences but from interaction with other authors. I hope that each of you find something new and positive that will encourage your own writing.
#1: STAY POSITIVE
This may sound like a no brainer but doubt can be a killer. There are going to be periods of rejection in each of our lives. An independent author is going to face a lot of rejection. I recall my first rejection came as a form letter from Dark Horse Comics. I had submitted a storyline for a potential comic book that I titled "The Worst of Times." Anyone who has dealt with the comics industry knows that the big boys (Marvel and DC) do not accept unsolicited submissions...but the smaller imprints do! Thus my submission to Dark Horse. Dark Horse sent me a very polite yet firm letter stating that while they appreciated my submission they had no interest in my story "at this time."
That was 2010.
Five years later I'm not even sure if Dark Horse is still around but if they are they still have no interest in my story lol.
As some of you already know, I later expanded this storyline into my first novel also titled The Worst of Times. I am proud to report that we are fast approaching our one thousandth download of The Worst of Times for Amazon Kindle!
My point is that just because a story or idea is rejected by one format or publisher does not mean the death of that story. Only your own self doubt can truly destroy the potential success of your creation.
I hope that this first tip proves useful to all of you. I plan on offering many more in future posts!
As always...
KEEP WRITING!!!
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Short stories verses novels
Hello friends and fellow readers!
Today I would like to talk about reader preferences. I recently had a conversation with a friend who told me that he wishes he could read more. After asking several questions I came to the conclusion that my friend has plenty of free time in which to read but that he is intimidated by the size of most modern novels. Anything over a hundred pages scares the pants off of him (not literally I hope).
I gave this problem some thought and came up with what I think is a possible solution. I suggested that my friend start of with a short story collection rather than read an entire novel. He commented that even those are intimidating because of the number of pages and the sheer size of the novels. I can't disagree with either statement. My suggestion was that he focus on the table of contents and start with some of the shorter of the stories and work his way up.
To be clear, my friend is not new to reading. He actually has an associates degree and is and educated man. He simply is used to reading for more technical purposes and not for pleasure.
I wonder how many other potential or past readers feel the same way?
Does word count and book length chase away the casual reader?
As always I welcome any thoughts, suggestions and comments.
Thanks again for reading and I hope that many of you will join me in setting time aside to read everyday.
As always KEEP WRITING (and in this case KEEP READING!)
Today I would like to talk about reader preferences. I recently had a conversation with a friend who told me that he wishes he could read more. After asking several questions I came to the conclusion that my friend has plenty of free time in which to read but that he is intimidated by the size of most modern novels. Anything over a hundred pages scares the pants off of him (not literally I hope).
I gave this problem some thought and came up with what I think is a possible solution. I suggested that my friend start of with a short story collection rather than read an entire novel. He commented that even those are intimidating because of the number of pages and the sheer size of the novels. I can't disagree with either statement. My suggestion was that he focus on the table of contents and start with some of the shorter of the stories and work his way up.
To be clear, my friend is not new to reading. He actually has an associates degree and is and educated man. He simply is used to reading for more technical purposes and not for pleasure.
I wonder how many other potential or past readers feel the same way?
Does word count and book length chase away the casual reader?
As always I welcome any thoughts, suggestions and comments.
Thanks again for reading and I hope that many of you will join me in setting time aside to read everyday.
As always KEEP WRITING (and in this case KEEP READING!)
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Today I would like to talk about my recent experience with a local bookstore here in the Louisville KY area. I will spare that company from using it's name since my experience was a negative one.
Some time ago I was walking through my favorite part of old Louisville and came across a local bookstore. I entered the store to browse and noticed that in the far back corner there was a "Local Author's" section. I decided to ask about offering my books on that shelf and the young man behind the counter was very polite and helpful. He provided me with both an email address and a phone # for the store manager and suggested I contact said manager. I thanked the young man and went about my day.
A few days later I emailed the manager. There was no reply. I waited a week later and emailed again. This time I also called. Still no reply. I decided to take a chance and make a second phone call. This time I got through to the manager.
I wish I could tell you that the conversation was a pleasant one. It was not. We discussed pricing and the store manager told me that the store would have to mark up the list price of my books since I sale them at the minimal price allowed by my publisher. In case you are wondering, my publisher has set $12.99 as the minimum price for my detective novel The Worst of Times (which is almost 400 pages) and $9.99 for my science fiction book Elsewhere (which is 200 pages).
I expressed my concern that marking the price up to the suggested in store price of $19.99 (for The Worst of Times) seemed counter productive. My goal has always been to make my writing as available and affordable as possible...not to make the largest profit.
The manager informed me in not uncertain terms that I had no idea what it took to stay in the bookstore business and preceded to lecture me about overhead, distributor costs etc.
Long story short (too late, right?) my novels will not be appearing on the shelf at that particular bookstore anytime soon.
I hope that my experience with this particular store manager was the exception for my fellow authors rather than the rule.
As always I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions you might have...and thanks again for reading!
Keep Writing!
Some time ago I was walking through my favorite part of old Louisville and came across a local bookstore. I entered the store to browse and noticed that in the far back corner there was a "Local Author's" section. I decided to ask about offering my books on that shelf and the young man behind the counter was very polite and helpful. He provided me with both an email address and a phone # for the store manager and suggested I contact said manager. I thanked the young man and went about my day.
A few days later I emailed the manager. There was no reply. I waited a week later and emailed again. This time I also called. Still no reply. I decided to take a chance and make a second phone call. This time I got through to the manager.
I wish I could tell you that the conversation was a pleasant one. It was not. We discussed pricing and the store manager told me that the store would have to mark up the list price of my books since I sale them at the minimal price allowed by my publisher. In case you are wondering, my publisher has set $12.99 as the minimum price for my detective novel The Worst of Times (which is almost 400 pages) and $9.99 for my science fiction book Elsewhere (which is 200 pages).
I expressed my concern that marking the price up to the suggested in store price of $19.99 (for The Worst of Times) seemed counter productive. My goal has always been to make my writing as available and affordable as possible...not to make the largest profit.
The manager informed me in not uncertain terms that I had no idea what it took to stay in the bookstore business and preceded to lecture me about overhead, distributor costs etc.
Long story short (too late, right?) my novels will not be appearing on the shelf at that particular bookstore anytime soon.
I hope that my experience with this particular store manager was the exception for my fellow authors rather than the rule.
As always I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions you might have...and thanks again for reading!
Keep Writing!
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Elsewhere now available in paperback and for Kindle and NOOK!
As of today my new scifi book ELSEWHERE is available in the following formats.
Here are direct links to purchase ELSEWHERE in paperback or for Kindle or Nook:
Prestige Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley/dp/1505440157
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley-ebook/dp/B00QAS3SCS
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/elsewhere-john-eric-buckley/1120966159
Thanks again for all of your kind words and support!
John Eric Buckley
Here are direct links to purchase ELSEWHERE in paperback or for Kindle or Nook:
Prestige Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley/dp/1505440157
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley-ebook/dp/B00QAS3SCS
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/elsewhere-john-eric-buckley/1120966159
Thanks again for all of your kind words and support!
John Eric Buckley
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