"All For Love" Release Party! (+WQ161)

You're invited!
Yes, a party! You're invited to the "All For Love" Facebook Release Party! Come and join! There'll be a cover reveal, book trailer, website, maybe a few games...come!
https://www.facebook.com/events/1712419848981371/

The Iron Writer 2015 Winter Open Prelims is still on, so if you'd like to read some stories, come over to the Iron Writer website...
http://theironwriter.com

And WQ161 is up! I think I did well...as did many others on the site.
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-161/
And mine is here, too :-)

WQ161 - image above (pick a song for this man to be singing), a captive audience, a short window of opportunity

Dave held them captive in the local pub with his crazy rendition of Billy Idol’s “In the Midnight Hour” on his accordion. I almost forgot our plan as his mesmerizing antics on the lounge’s pool table while wearing his beloved protective goggles made the audience ‘cry for more’. Only the shove from a couple of girls coming back from the toilets brought me back. There would be only a short window of opportunity and there was no way I could miss it, otherwise all would be lost. I edged to the bar and slid behind the backs of those sitting on the stools, all of them cheering Dave on with drinks in their hands. Getting closer to the landlord standing behind the counter and watching Dave while cleaning a glass with his favourite towel, I tried to catch his eye. On my fifth attempt, he noticed me and reluctantly put the glass down and leaned over to hear me.
“What can I get yer, mate?” said the landlord.
“Two pints of ale and a packet of pork scratchings, please!” I shouted above the noise. I waved over to Dave and gave him the thumbs up. Finally, we had been served!

The Oregon Fiasco!

This Oregon thing is hilarious. Thirty Right wing men and women (WHITE) have taken over a Federal wildlife refuge WITH GUNS demanding the Feds look into returning land claims...

Really? Are you serious? To them? Yep. (Tangent: They're unemployed and retired, right? Do they get Government benefits and/or food stamps or something?)

Thankfully, now there are a ton of sources that state the record right...it belongs to the Paiute tribe.

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/06/oregon-militia-malheur-wildlife-refuge-paiute-indian-tribe-sacred-land
http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/06/us/native-tribe-blasts-oregon-takeover/index.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/01/07/tribe-to-protesters-occupying-oregon-wildlife-refuge-we-were-here-first-get-the-hell-out/
..etc, etc.
What I got from the Washington Post goes something like this...
In 1868 the leaders of the Paiute tribe were forced to sign a Treaty by the Feds (as were many other tribes) and were then marched under armed guard off the land in the Oregon winter (walking through a few feet of snow) to a place next to a city dump (which had nothing to offer them).
BUT because the Senate has/had NO RESPECT for NON-WHITES, they didn't bother to ratify the Treaty, thus making it void... therefore, under American Law, the land still belongs to the Paiute tribe.
And what's happening?
Nothing. No one listens to them.
Why?
Because they're NOT WHITE and they DON'T HAVE GUNS sticking in your face.

A sale? PLUS Iron Writer Prelim Open story!

I sold a copy of 'Bethlehem Fiasco' :-)
http://www.amazon.com/Bethlehem-Fiasco-Dani-J-Caile-ebook/dp/B007UJHQ42
It shot from nowhere to....Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #204,471 Paid in Kindle Store 
#252 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Humorous 
#2018 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Humor & Satire > General Humor 
#3365 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Humor & Satire > Humorous

...with just one sale...really? Super :-)
OH NO! It's someone who wants revenge! Was it...HarperCollins? Run! Run for the hills!
Or was it someone who downloaded "Manna-X" and thought they'd get another? Who knows?
All I know is that ONE MORE is out there!

AND there's one more story out there in the Iron Writer 2015 Winter Open Prelims!
This story will DEFINITELY turn into a novel. Read it and you'll see why :-)
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-2016-winter-solstice-open-anais-nin-bracket/

Still waiting for the new November/December magazine with a ton of great things...

HarperCollins investigation part 3....A Classic?

Maybe I was too hard on HarperCollins and the REAL publishing world in that last post.
Maybe I should have a look at another book...a classic, one that I like. Let's see what I can make of that?
I had to chose "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley, my favourite writer. It has 1,906 reviews on Amazon. 21% of them are 3 stars or below...why? Let's find out...
Comments: There's a lot of problems about the formatting, and also a lot of people who don't realise that back in the 1930s, writers wrote in a certain style that is not acceptable in this day's market.
To really appreciate this book, you need to understand that. Who has read "Gulliver's Travels"? Then you know what I mean...
So, I'm not convinced yet...let's have a look at Huxley's debut, a wonderful book called "Crome Yellow". I was transfixed when I read it, not because it was a fantastic story but the way it flowed and written so smoothly...it has only 56 reviews, 41% are 3 stars or below...oh wow! Let's see why...
Comments:Some had trouble with formatting again, the book or audio or whatever. Others again didn't realise it was a satire on aristocracy and their lifestyle, which slows things down and is kinda pretentious. Another example of people not knowing what they have in their hands. It's not a 2015 Bestseller with a formulaic plot and seen-before characters.

So, maybe I was being a little hard on HarperCollins...nah!...maybe they have helped to DE-EDUCATE the reader... for want of creating a word. Publishers like HarperCollins have helped to bring down the READER IQ over this past half-century. For sure.

HarperCollins harpering on...investigation!

Why is this post WHITE? Anyway... :-)

Got another rejection from Daily Science Fiction...exactly the same letter as before. I must try harder, maybe they'll read it next time.
The "BooksGoSocialDaily" competition... I tried on a Sunday, the last day of the week, only to find out that there was one book (pretty awful book, too) earlier in the week that had a ton of votes. I finally got 17 votes! That put me in about 5th place for that week. But the competition has no 'quality'. Just get your friends to vote.

...yes, it's a continuation of my "The Trouble with Goats and Sheep" by Joanna Cannon HarperCollins investigation!
As an Indie author, I get reviews from a few people I know, other indie authors and ALSO complete strangers...those are the ones to look out for. Those are the ones where you find out what you're really worth. Yes, it's fantastic to get a 4/5 star review from ANYONE but from someone who has no connection to you whatsoever, it's unbelievably great. If your book is good, the stranger will be 'up' with the 4 and 5 star reviews on Amazon.

However, if you get 3 or below, the stranger is one of these...
1. a person you know who hates your guts
2. a person who hates the subject of the book (why did they read it?)
3. a troll who likes to give bad reviews
4. (and this happens) someone who can't string a sentence together or lost something in translation.
I got a 3 star Amazon review once...one of my Dani's Shorts filled with element-controlled vignettes.

My point?

Go and look at a HarperCollins backed book. They are full of 4/5 star reviews from the same type of people, AND from satisfied readers, too. But they also have a number of reviews that are 3 stars or below. "The Trouble with Goats and Sheep" hasn't come out yet, so no reviews BUT there are quotes from people who have read it...AND GUESS WHAT? They're ALL WRITERS. Not friends, not strangers, but colleagues. You would've thought HarperCollins could've got oneliners from CRITICS and REVIEWERS, but no. 

So what did I do next? I checked out the writers of those quotes....are they reliable sources for a good book? Judge for yourself! I certainly won't be buying "The Trouble with Goats and Sheep" (I hated the "Look Inside") and especially if the FREE SAMPLER is $2.54...

I read a few 4/5 star reviews of a book or two of theirs, and then went down to the 3 or below. The people who put 3 stars or below reviews are STRANGERS...they are NOT people on my 4 part list (see above). They are unbiased. 
Here's the list of those who gave one liners and information about one of their own books, it's a long list...I've taken off the names so I don't get hate mail. And I thoroughly recommend that you do the same to the NEXT big BESTSELLER any of the Big Publishing Houses back.

DISCLAIMER: I am NOT trying to DESTROY anyone here, I'm merely pointing out that HarperCollins could do better than this. I expect MORE from the REAL publishing industry, not THIS. But WHO is reading this blog, anyway? Eh?  (Oh my, here come some reviews from people in my 4 part list, probably from people who hate me or haven't even given my books a chance).

15% of reviews 3 stars or below
Comments: Boring, sad, disappointing, Forest Gump without the humour.

22% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Dull, self pitying, whiney, slow, doesn't go anywhere.

27% of reviews 3 or below (other reviews 50/50 between 4/5...no one really likes this book)
Comments: Starts out strong but petters out, self-conscious and smug.

26% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Dragged, mediocre, disappointing.

There's a new book with 4/5 reviews(23) and older books have 2 to 6 reviews.
This all indicates that this is a new author on the 'proper publishing scene' and that these are friend/colleague reviews. There is one comment that sprung up..."a less irritating chick flick".

10% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: A good start but goes downhill, predictable characters, sad.

30% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Sad and depressing, inaccurate.

11% of reviews 3 or below (9 reviews, one 3 star from a Top Reviewer...a stranger)
Comments: unoriginal, no payoff, no connection with the main character.

32% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Pointless, far-fetched.

15% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Formulaic. Actually, all comments of all books say "not one of her best"...which one is her best?

13% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Slow, couldn't connect with the main character.

44% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Boring, predictable, formulaic, a big yawn.

40% of reviews 3 or below
Comments: Starts off good, then lackluster, formulaic, clone.


...I wish these reviewers would read my books.... :-(

A chance to win $100!? I'll try that!

Yes, I just saw this opportunity for writers...so I put in "How to" and let's see how it goes.
Please go over here, register as a 'reader' and vote for my nice little book :-) If I'm top of the list at the end of Sunday, I win $100!
http://booksgosocialdaily.com/how-to-build-a-castle-in-seven-easy-steps/

News...
Firefly & Wisp Nov/Dec 2015...we're waiting for the guys at the publishing site to 'click' a button. I think they're still on holiday.
"All For Love" should be coming out mid-Jan 2016
A collaboration is going along slowly, though I might finish it alone.
Another collaboration is halted for now.
Working on a larger plot to enlarge my Xmas 12 Days story into a book.
Working on "How to... 2"
Submitting to a few sci-fi magazines (so far, only rejections)...
In the Iron Writer 2015 Winter Open Prelims at the end of the week with a GREAT story (vignette).

The New Year brings more... :-)

WQ 160 + Iron Writer Challenges

Sorry to say I didn't win the 50-50 Challenge 140 :-(
I got the popular vote...

But lost in the Iron Writer voting 4-5. Richard's story was a good one, though :-) I'm glad he got another win, he deserved it.

In a week I'll be in the 2015 Winter Open with another EXACTLY 500 word story. Link later.
Firefly double issue (November+December) is ready, though still no link...

But now it's WQ160!
Go see the stories on the Iron Writer website...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-160
Or read mine here :-)

WQ160 – image above, fruitcake, returning to work after the holidays

"Scalpel," ordered Doctor Bungles.
"But doctor, you haven't seen the patient's notes, yet," said Nurse Petticoat, showing him the paperwork on her clipboard.
"Oh yes, silly me. You know what it's like, returning to work after the holidays. You forget the routine, jump right into the fun bit." The other members of staff in the room gave a polite laugh. "What's the problem, nurse? Bypass? Arteries? Kidney stones? Transplant? Corns?" The doctor turned the pages on the clipboard and gasped.
"Oh my! Really?" he exclaimed.
"Yes, doctor. Whole," said the nurse. They looked over at the patient, anesthetized and ready to go.
"Whole? Some people know how to spend their holidays, don't they? This I will have to see."
Nurse Petticoat passed him the scalpel and he began. After a fine cut across the stomach and a little swabbing of his forehead from the nurse, he stretched open the incision with his hands to reveal the glorious prize.
"Oh, doctor, that's amazing!" said the nurse. Surprise filled the room.
"Yes, it is. That's the biggest Kugelhupf I've ever seen." The doctor pulled out the sweet confectionary from the patient and laid it down on a large plate. "Anyone for fruitcake?"