Email List

If you'd like to know about the latest promos, offers and publications, get on the email list by using the Contact Form on the sidebar. Thank you!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

My 3rd book...the beginnings

Well, it's starting to rattle around in my head now, though it'll be a while before I write it.
The main character is a dolphin, it's set in Atlantis, and is based on the anti-democracy found in my host country, Hungary. If anyone has any interesting true stories about the present regime, please contact me either here or at my website (http://www.djc.yolasite.com/contact-dani-j-caile.php). I don't want to miss out any juicy bits - though I have a few.

Writing - how? Advice 1

I've noticed the posts I write anything about writing seem to get more views, so I'll try to 'keep off' politics, cars and fancy women :-)
So, writing. Is it advice anyone wants?
Advice number 1. Find a  voice.
Since I was old enough to put pen to paper I've tried my hand at writing, but nothing seemed serious enough. A few years ago, I really had a go at writing but again I found that, as hard as I tried to write seriously, it just wasn't happening. Then it clicked. It's fiction. Just write, forget serious. Write with the knowledge in your head and it just pours out. You don't need to write exactly how your experiences happened, just take a piece here, a piece there, and you have a story. If you can ignore the hobgoblins, etc, all of the 1st book is my life. The bits in the 2nd book that aren't from the Bible are also from my life. Yes, the border 'that's not you' thing really happened. Yes, driving down a newly built motorway not opened yet did happen. Yes, opening an enormous energy portal while my body died did happ...okay, so that one didn't :-). Oh, and the serious bit? I completely forgot about it. The seriousness in my writing is below the superficial fun/fiction/story. And it's there, believe me.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Authonomy.com, the Lowdown

I've been a part of authonomy.com since December 2011, and initially it seemed like a great site, until I realised its flaws. Ranks and ratings can be manipulated with a little 'cheating' or with no care for the quality of literature you back. Clone books zoom up the ranking as they already have a reader base on the site, and are able to collect backers easier than strange, wacky books such as mine. Saying that, I did reach rank 81 with my 1st, getting stuck behind the 'block' of dead wood waiting for the Editor's Desk. And the comments you receive are homogeneous and rarely different, as the site is only used by a bunch of would-be-authors looking for backers by being over-friendly and using flattery to gain some ground.
Where are da readers at? Goodreads is okay. Jottify could be better.

The thing about writing...

...is that I love it. I can't read much nowadays, it all seems the same to me, all clones or mixed clones of other work. Pointless to read, with nothing to learn. So I wondered just what it was like to write. I wrote. 2 books have come out of my head, and a 3rd is growing. They have layers, too - so I've heard - well, I planned it that way. How deep do you like to read? I love alliteration, too. I must be nuts.

Marketing going well?

Finally sent out my last few books from my 2nd order. Now I have no copies, so I'm waiting for some people to ask for signed copies so I can order some more. Self-publishing is difficult. Not only do you need to write good books, you also have to market them. But not much is happening, other than one or two people who want copies.
How can someone be heard in a globalised world like this? I thought making a website (http://www.djc.yolasite.com/), creating a blog, putting some quizzes on facebook, creating some 'phoney' fb publishing events would create some attention. They did, but not much. 725 people have tried my 'Grim Reaper' quiz, but only 4 have tried the Jesus one. Few friends replied to the events. Two online magazines got back to me about a review, and then went quiet. Twitter only goes out to those who are following...very few. Where can you go to tell the world?? I'm definitely not in this for the money, I worked out I'm making 150 Ft per book, which is about 50 pence. Someone mentioned 'audio book', but who would read it...
Other than this, I'm proud I wrote my books, and that some people have read them. As for those who didn't read them or didn't give the books a few seconds at least, well, you're missing out...

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Working too hard?

One of my tutors mentioned I was pushing myself too hard. So I started working harder. Now I'm working on 2 small essays, my 20 page thesis, started one screenplay for ScriptFrenzy, will do the other afterwards, I'm collecting ideas for my 3rd book, AND, of course, working. Mmm, still doesn't feel enough. Top marks for my Psychology essay, Yippee!

1st sells the 2nd

Hello Russia! (you really should comment, I'd love to know who you are)
I finally handed a copy of my 1st book over to a colleague, after waiting for it to arrive from the printers, only for him to message me the next day saying could he have a copy of the 2nd. I guess he liked the 1st one! Met him today and I was happy to hear some positive feedback from the book. He suggested an Audio book as a promotional tool...it's an idea. Just who would do it??? Any suggestions, anyone?