Gary M. Martin's Blog, page 5

Time, and what's next.

It's been a while since my last blog. So many things going on right now I haven't had a lot of time.

I'm getting close to completing my next book. Again it's the time thing. For now I also have to keep up a full time job. At the same time I don't want to cut corners to get this book out. I hope to be stronger in some of my development than I was with Nexus. And the third book I hope to be better than the second, and so and so on.

My next book is tentatively titled THE COMING OF DARK. It is a supernatural horor novel. The rough draft should be finished this weekend. After a little break I'll re-read it again and find out how much re-work, and fine tuning I'll have to do.

I'm still deciding how to publish it. The easiest and quickest route would be to publish an ebook. The thing is I also like the physical book format. What to do? Guess I'll figure that out later.

end of giveaway

My first book giveaway is over and the books are on their way to the winners. Now is the waiting game. I am anxious to get reviews of my book. Of course I'm hoping for good ones, ones that will stroke my ego. But if I get negative reviews I hope that they are informative so that I can learn from them and improve on the next one. Oh, yes, another one is coming. I hope to release another book in February or March of this year. It is a paranormal horror novel tentatively titled THE COMING OF DARK.

I have to admit that I was ignorant on how to promote my book. I sent out a couple of books for review not realizing that unless I was willing to pay good money for a quick review the process was going to take weeks, even months. I opted for the free method and am still waiting.

E-books

Dean Koontz previously put out a three-part e-book on the Odd Thomas series titled "Odd Interlude." It was not put out in a physical book form. Because of this he received a lot of complaints from people who do not especially like the digital form. Many said that they would prefer to have the 'real' books in their hands.

I agree to a point. As an author I like the e-book because it makes it so easy for people to get. Sure, people can order either my hardback, or paperback book, and get it in a few days, but lets face it, people today are impatient, myself included. As far as royalties they'r not that different. The e-books are priced less, but because the cost to send the book electronically is extremely low the percentage of the royalties an author gets is much higher.

As a consumer I like to have the 'real' book in my hands. I like to see it on my bookshelf along with others I've read.
Another thing, do you think years from now that a rare book discovered on a Kindle will be worth anything?

Let me finish by saying that "Odd Interlude" by Dean Koontz will be available as a paperback on January 2, 2013.

advertising

I am experiencing a lot of new things in the last few months. When my book was first published I didn't think much about promoting it. I was naive to think that a little bit of promotion by Xlibris (publisher), word of mouth by me, and the fact that my book was online at several bookstores was enough.

I must admit that I was somewhat computer illiterate. Oh, I was familiar with the word processing part, but not much else. Through a lot of trial and errors,(some made here on Goodreads) though, I've begun to get a grasp of the cyber world.

Up until a few months ago I was never on a social site. I had an e-mail address, but only checked on it once or twice a month.

Now I have my own website that I'm constantly trying to make better. I am a member of a couple of social sites. I have links to several places that are promoting my book.

I just starting advertising on Goodreads.
Sure, I hope a million people decide to buy my book from this ad, but what I'm realistically hoping for is that people will read my book and give me feedback on it. I would love some objective opinions. I'd like to know if I'm on the right track. Am I getting close or am I heading down a dirt road? I need some reviews.

The testament -review

The Testament by John Grisham

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


An angry, bitter, extremely rich, old man is examined by psychiatrists and is found to be of sound mind. Only minutes after signing his last will and testament he jumps to his death out the window of his high rise.

According to his last will all of his billions of dollars are to go to a heir which no one has heard of. The woman is a missionary who is serving deep in the jungles of Brazil.

Nate O'riley, a disgraced corporate attorney who is in and out of rehab for alcohol, is sent to find her. Meanwhile, attorneys for the children and ex-wife are contesting the will.

This is a great adventure where a man, accustomed to money and an affluent life style, is faced with the harshness of the Brazillian jungle, where money won't buy much, and death is just one wrong move away.

It is the story of the underside of family members who fight a bitter battle over the wealth that they feel they deserve.

I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes a good adventure with legal twists.



View all my reviews

Random thoughts.

I don't think I'm very good at blogging. My mind often drifts away from the subject. Now where was I?

I hope to tie my blog here with my website blog that way I won't have to think so much.

The local newspaper came out with a story about me and my novel NEXUS. I'm
trying to be humble about it. I know the story won't be read by too many people. Just to be sure, though, I'm keeping the phone lines open in case Steven Spielburg should call. If he were to make a movie of my book I would insist on a cameo. Like Stephen King sometimes does. In my younger days I could have played the leading man role like Tom Cruise. Okay, I'm lying. I never could play that role. I would have probably been cast as the strange guy who walks down the street, head bent over, mumbling to himself. But hey, a job is a job.

I'm working on a new book. This one is tentatively titled THE COMING OF DARK. It is a horror novel. Later I will talk about it, but right now I see that the doctors are here. They are telling me that I have to go back with them. So until next time.

progress

I just got through emailing information about me and my book to the editor of the
Eatonton Messanger newspaper. If all goes well there will be a little story about me in wendesday's edition.

To all my fans,(or fan)I'm one rung closer to the top of the ladder of success. Of course, I am starting at the
bottom. I've got a long way to go, but at least if I fall it won't be very far.

giveaway

This is the first giveaway of my first
book. This is both exciting and scary.

I'm hoping for some good reviews. Not
simply because it would stimulate my
book sales, but because I want the satisfaction of knowing that people enjoyed my book.

If I should get some bad reviews I will be hurt, but hopefuly I'll learn from
whatever criticisms I receive.

I'm glad I came across Goodreads. It is a great place for authors and readers
alike. For me the reading groups are great. Personally I don't know anyone who reads as much as myself.

nexus

This is my first book. In fact only a
handful of family members even knew that I was writing a book until I had it in hand. I wasn't sure how it would be received. I spent most of my adult life
working in electrical construction so what did I know about writing a book.

Nexus is my first published book, but it
is not my initial venture into writing. I have several unfinished manuscripts that I may finish and publish at a future date. When I'm not trying to figure out the internet and how to get the word out that I even have a book out there, I'm working on what I think will be may next novel. It is a horror novel tentatively titled "the coming of dark."

I think Nexus is a good first book because it has a lot of action and a cast of characters. There's a little
sadness in it, but for the most part it's a good, lively adventure.

I need some feedback on Nexus in case I'm wrong.