Lewis Perdue's Blog, page 29
May 9, 2012
Where I write thrillers. Outsi…
Where I write thrillers. Outside view. http://t.co/Yx8dLhVu
This is where I write thriller…
This is where I write thrillers. Non-fiction has another place, another feel. The anime is drawn by my daugh http://t.co/uCG38nyj
This is for all you women-in-combat haters
This is for all you women-in-combat haters: http://t.co/iJdrWRnJ And this is for the rest of you: http://t.co/6nqX2spx #thriller #romance
May 8, 2012
Books I wrote, but which I can’t Read
Books I wrote, but which I can’t read. Visit me at http://t.co/t2q8CzSJ http://t.co/Vr1NZR3X
May 7, 2012
Blues loses another brilliant …
Blues loses another brilliant light. http://t.co/1FMJzTNJ This via my friend and bluesman Zac Harmon.
Bookshelves of the day. Just a…
Bookshelves of the day. Just a few of the scores of books used to Research my romantic thriller, Daughter of http://t.co/1HMFiyYN
Just Say “NO!” To WinZip: …
Just Say “NO!” To WinZip: Yesterday, I was dumb enough to BUY a copy of WinZip 16.5, standard edition. Be warned… http://t.co/3MwpHbPi
May 6, 2012
Naked Wines invests $8m in 22 …
Naked Wines invests $8m in 22 winemakers in USA and Australia: NEWS RELEASE May 6, 2012 Naked Wines, the UK’s … http://t.co/2EBMBa0s
Goodbye November Man
Bill Granger was a sports writer, journalist, mystery writer and one helluva thriller writer. His November Man series created Devereaux, a haunted, philosophical, introspective spy who could not escape the implications of the deed and deaths that were his stock in life. Yet, he was driven by an existential imperative to do the necessary thing.
Bill Granger's well-worn books are always at hand in my library. Click image to enlarge. The third book in from the right is my copy of The November Man. And is totally worse for wear and re-reading.
I started my journalism career as a sports writer, then got into bare-knuckle reporting where doing the right thing meant not caring who you pissed off. I’ve never written a mystery, but every time I’ve written one of my thrillers, I have re-read one or more of Granger’s November Man books for inspiration. And to enjoy writing and thinking that set a higher bar than I can equal.
I have also tried my best to create characters in the style of Devereaux who aren’t just mechanisms caught up in the action of a thriller, but who are aware of the ethical, moral and religious implications of the double binds that force them to make hard decisions.
Bill Granger died last month according to today’s New York Times.
God Bless him.
April 28, 2012
How “Free” Got Me $2,202.29 From Amazon
Right. That sounds like the subject line in a spam an email.
But for me it’s both an epiphany and money in the bank.
And the proof that — so far — Amazon has treated me far, far better than traditional publisher when it comes to payments and promotion.
Screen capture from Amazon payment email.
HOW DID FREE GET ME 2.2k+?
Back in February, I re-edited my current thriller, Die By Wire, to eliminate some annoying typos and to clean up the overall format.
Then I enrolled it in the Amazon Select Program. And gave it away for five days.
After the five days was over, people ponied up real dollars (and pounds and other currencies) Die By Wire . They also bought copies of Die By Wire and other books. The illustration above is just U.S. Other countries paid well too.
And some of those freebie folks loaned the book to a friend (the “KOLL” payment.”) for which Amazon paid me … for the free loan.
The promotion also edged me into the top 10 paid bestseller lists for a while … and have allow my books to perform anywhere from 10X to 26X better than the three books I still have with a traditional publisher.
Reasons explaining that better performance here: How Traditional Publishers SUCK On eBooks and here: Traditional Bad Editing: Not Just For The Self-Published
CLEAR, TIMELY, TRANSPARENT ACCOUNTING
And unlike traditional publishers who play more accounting games than Hollywood producers and pay (maybe) six months or more after sales … and never tell you how many you sold or what sort of income to expect … and only pay every six months … And sometimes don’t pay at all …
Contrast that with Amazon:
Amazon & their real-time, online data:
Tell me daily basis how many books I have sold month to date.
Give me an accounting by the 15th of the month for how much money I made the previous month.
Pay within 60 days of that period, right into my bank account.
Clear, timely, transparent.
The numbers also let me know what forms of promotion pay off and help me to do better each period.
I would LOVE to love the traditional publishing model again. It worked super well for me back in the 1980s and produced beaucoup bestsellers.
But the traditional publishing model melted down, mired in a 19th-century business model and quill-and-pen accounting. I’d like to see it revive itself. But that will never happen as long as they try to blame all their woes on Amazon instead of the real causes.
