Phil Halton's Blog, page 7

Marketing for Introverts

[image error]Available on Amazon

I came across Lauren Sapala’s book, “Firefly Magic: Heart Powered Marketing for Highly Sensitive Writers,” while looking for material on marketing for authors. While I don’t identify as a “Highly Sensitive Person,” I am an introvert – albeit one trained by 26 years in the Army to act like an extrovert – and self-marketing doesn’t come naturally to me. I connected with Lauren on Twitter, and she sent me a copy of her work to read. I’m very glad that she did.

I think that it is a common misconception among unpublished writers that either a) marketing is someone else’s problem or b) it’s someone else problem as long as you have a traditional publisher. Both ideas are wrong – writing and marketing are two sides of the publishing coin. Writers who want to make a living as writers need to be adept at both, regardless of how they are published.

Perhaps self-promotion comes easily for some people, though I suspect that blowhards and braggarts don’t necessarily sell a lot of books. For the rest of us, who thought that being a writer meant a life time of quietly tapping away at our stories, with the occasional cocktail party to break up the solitude, we just need to get over ourselves and get on with it. No one will read our book unless it is marketed, and no one has a more vested interest in marketing our books than ourselves.

Lauren’s book is a very nice blend of encouragement and explanation, ranging from high level concepts to delving into the nitty-gritty of things like pricing and finding your micro-niche. She has a practical approach to writing as work, and so doesn’t shy away from things like finding ways to diversify your income.

While aimed at introverts in particular, I think that the approach Lauren advocates for would work well for most writers – rather than “selling” your work at every juncture, she talks about building community and connection, and getting your message across in a more sensitive way. Finding your marketing voice is as important as finding your writing voice, and Lauren’s work should get you thinking along alternative lines about what that might sound like.

At times, Lauren’s writing takes a New Age/Spiritual turn, which might be your cup of tea or might not. I don’t think it detracts from the book at all, and is an example of Lauren writing with her own authentic voice. I don’t think it hurts for anyone to get in touch with that side of things from time to time in any case.

As a bonus, she has included a very detailed bibliography that should point you in the right direction as you explore other aspects of marketing as well.

“Firefly Magic” is a good place to start if you’ve written a book and wonder “Now what?” Particularly if the idea of self-marketing makes you at all uncomfortable, introvert or not, this may very well be the book for you. While aimed at writers, much of what is included could apply equally to other artists as well.

I appreciate that Lauren took the time to put these ideas out into the world, where I know they will find a receptive audience.

**Also, you might consider checking out Lauren’s other books, “The INFJ Writer” and her autobiographical novel about addiction, “Between the Shadow and Lo.”

Blood & Bourbon May 2018

The fourth edition of Blood & Bourbon has finally hit the shelves, and it is an interesting one. It includes contributions from: Zachary Honey, John W. Dennehy, Israela Margalit, Reggie Mills, Benjamin Fine, Rosaleen Bertolino, David Lefkowitz, Joel Minor, Jon Kemsley Clark, Bruce McDougall, Jeff Nazzaro, Daniel Uncapher, Pablo Javier Herrera, J. J. Steinfeld, Alexander Illingsworth and John Grey.

This is also the first edition to include material that was entirely generated by an A.I. – can you recognize non-human creative writing when you see it?

You can find it for sale in paperback or e-book here.

10 Facts about the Taliban

I recently wrote a short article for the website Military History Now, titled “Generation Taliban — 10 Surprising Facts About Afghanistan’s Tireless Insurgent Army.”

After nearly two decades of fighting against the Taliban, I’m regularly surprised at how little the public actually knows about the organization.

The Artist’s Journey

Some of you may know the author Steven Pressfield from his military fiction novels such as “Gates of Fire,” or as the screenwriter for “The Legend of Bagger Vance.” As of late, his focus has shifted towards providing guidance to artists of all stripes, based on his own experiences.

Books like “The War of Art,” “Turning Pro,” “Nobody Wants to Read Your Shit” and “Do the Work” are great primers on how to shift from aspiring to create art to doing the daily work of being an artist. Of the three, “The War of Art” spoke to me the most, as it focuses on combating the internal obstacles to success that we all create.

His latest book on art, “The Artist’s Journey,” has been serialized through his website, and  focuses on another aspect of allowing yourself to become an artist – recognizing that when you write, paint, dance or whatever, you are connecting through your sub-conscious to something bigger than yourself. I think that this is entirely true, and anyone who has been “in the flow” when working on a project has experienced it. When my characters start to speak for themselves, and events start to unfold of their own volition, then I know that I am producing my best work (that in fact isn’t really mine at all).

My follow up novel to “This Shall be a House of Peace” essentially downloaded itself into my head one day while I was in that “flow state” doing something else entirely. I’m looking forward to revealing that story to the world as well, but not quite yet.

If you think that you want to create art, of whatever kind, check out Steven Pressfield’s books and his blog – there is enough material there to spur on a lifetime of creation.

 

Review: My War Gone By…

Purchase it here.

I think that Anthony Lloyd’s autobiographical book on his experiences in Yugoslavia as a photojournalist is, hands down, the best book on war that I’ve ever read.

There are better books, to be certain, on commanding troops in combat, that help to understand the nature of a particular conflict, or on the theory of war. I don’t believe, however, that anyone has captured the nature of war as experienced by a human being better than Anthony Lloyd.

Full disclosure: I met Anthony while working in Afghanistan, and he was a friend of a friend. I found him, in person, to be incredibly engaging albeit a bit of a tragic figure. At that time in my life, I looked up to him in many ways, not yet having had a bellyful of war as he had. I see him now through the a different lens. I better understand the personal toll he paid to gain the understanding necessary to write this book.

While Anthony’s experience of pin balling between being a war junkie in Yugoslavia and a heroin junkie in London is likely quite unique, the feelings that drove him to that life are not. Classic novels like “The Red Badge of Courage” are all about “seeing the elephant,” or gaining first-hand knowledge of war, but few are as raw and honest as this work.

I can say with all sincerity that I am a recovering war junkie too, with my own experiences in the Balkans, and reading this was difficult. If you can at all relate to simultaneous attraction and repulsion exerted by combat, or want to understand it, all I can say is that you need to read what Anthony Lloyd has to say in “My War Gone By, I Miss It So.”

Private D.S. Taylor

This short article was produced by Captain Jon Link at 32 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters, based on research that I conducted after finding Pte Desmond’s grave in a local cemetery.






Toronto – Nearly 75 years after his suicide, Private Desmond Taylor of the The Queen’s York Rangers RCAC 1st Americans was remembered by members of Regiment in a ceremony at his graveside near St. John the Baptist Norway in the Beaches neighbourhood.

“His story is tragic but this small act of remembrance shines light on a forgotten history and is a reminder that military leaders have an obligation to their soldiers,” said Lieutenant Colonel Philip Halton, a former Commanding Officer of the Rangers who rediscovered this forgotten soldier. “Recognizing the failure to safeguard his wellbeing may also be especially fitting during Pride Toronto.”

Although there are many unknown details, Private Taylor probably killed himself after being outted as a homosexual.


In 1940, with Europe ablaze, the 27 year old enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force to become a pilot. Initially, things went well; he was noted by his superiors as being a “fine, clean cut type [with] above average intelligence.”

The Board of Inquiry into his death indicates that while training, he read a psychology book which suggested that he write about incidents from his life that caused him anxiety. He did so, committing to paper his innermost thoughts and concerns – but he then lost his writings. Who found the papers and what they revealed about Private Taylor remains a mystery, but he soon found himself being harassed and perhaps blackmailed for being gay.

“We don’t know if Private Taylor, to use modern language, would have identified as gay,” said Lieutenant Colonel Halton. “And the Board of Inquiry doesn’t identify who got their hands on his papers and what they did to put him under so much pressure.”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Private Taylor soon struggled with his training, was discharged from the Air Force and returned home to Toronto.

He must have been determined to do his part in the war against Fascism because, despite his earlier experience, he re-enlisted in early 1942 – this time in the army as a Queen’s York Ranger. But his reputation followed him up to Camp Borden, Ontario and, in only a few months, the harassment began anew. Again, his performance began to suffer.

On May 27th, Private Taylor was late for parade and given seven days of confinement to barracks as a punishment. Another soldier confined with him that evening was Private Frank Spirnyak, who testified at the Board of Inquiry, “[Private Taylor] has been my best friend since I came to Camp Borden and he considered me his best friend. He was quiet and friendly and like a brother to me.” Frank knew his friend was under great stress because of the lost papers, but evidently did not know how difficult the situation had become for him.

The next morning, Private Taylor’s body was found on the bayonet assault course: he had shot himself through the chest with his service rifle.

From failure of leadership to full inclusion
“It’s not certain whether he asked the leadership of the Regiment for help, or if he did, what response he received,” said Lieutenant Colonel Halton. “But even without knowing this, two things are clear: Private Taylor was a Ranger who felt so much hopelessness that he took his own life; and that this is something that we should never accept.”
Private Taylor’s death did not receive much attention in 1942, and his name was lost to the Regiment until very recently. Given the number of Canadians who were killed during the Second World War, it is easy for one death to be forgotten.

But Private Desmond Taylor is now remembered and, in addition to serving as a reminder, his story illustrates how far the modern Canadian Armed Forces has come. It’s not perfect, but Private Taylor would likely be comforted to know that sexual orientation is not a barrier to service and that harassment of any kind is a crime.

14 June 2018

I’m privileged to have the opportunity on 14 June 2018 at 7PM to speak at Lambton House about the role of the Queen’s Rangers in the construction of Dundas Street.

My focus is going to be on how this particular route fit into John Grave Simcoe’s vision for the colony – which at times was at odds with his superiors, the existing colonists, and perhaps even with reality!

You can see further details on the evening here at the Lambton House website.

 

Ranger Anthology

The Queen’s York Rangers have a long and fascinating history, stretching from 1756 to present day. The most interesting part of this is the personal stories of individual soldiers that reflect their inside view of the larger events of history. I’ve decided to put together an anthology of these stories, tentatively titled “Rangers in Operations,” where Rangers convey their stories in their own words. I’m going to blend historical material with stories from the present day, and hopefully show that in the past 250 years, there is a common thread in our history – that of dedicated men and women serving a cause larger than themselves. Once complete, I’ll donate proceeds from the sale to Regimental Council, who provide assistance to the Regiment and to individual soldiers in need.

New B&B Edition

Well, we finally managed to get the “Fall 2017” edition of Blood & Bourbon out the door. Was it painful? A little – though the commitment made to tall the writers, artists and photographers who were accepted helped us to make it through.

The launch party at 3030 Dundas West showed who amongst our fans was willing to brave the ice and snow to show their support – which was fantastic.

No rest for the wicked, though – we’ve just opened to submissions for Spring 2018, and this time around, the theme is “Money.”

Novel: This Shall be a House of Peace

I’m really excited to announce that my first novel, titled “This Shall be a House of Peace,” will be published by Dundurn Press, and will hit the bookshelves on 12 January, 2019. It’s also available for pre-order now, at all the usual places – Amazon, Indigo, etc.

You can purchase is here.

This Shall be a House of Peace

“The Mullah” lives in isolation in an Afghan village with the students of his madrassa. When one of them is beaten by bandits, he feels compelled to act, starting a chain of events which spiral out of control. Facing near certain death, he must decide whether to return to isolation or to sweep the country clear of thieves, apostates and sinners.