Leon Stevens's Blog, page 39

Songs for a Sunday: Wyatt C. Louis

Wyatt C. Louis is a Nêhiyaw singer-songwriter based in Moh’kinstsís on Treaty 7 Territory. (more on treaties below)

Treaty 7 (Southwest Alberta) is the last of the Numbered Treaties made between the Government of Canada and the Plains First Nations. It was signed on 22 September 1877 by five First Nations: the Siksika (Blackfoot), Kainai (Blood), Piikani (Peigan), Stoney-Nakoda, and Tsuut’ina (Sarcee). Different understandings of the treaty’s purpose, combined with significant culture and language barriers and what some have argued were deliberate attempts to mislead the First Nations on the part of the government negotiators, have led to ongoing conflicts and claims.

To make a long story short, in essence, the Canadian government wanted land for resources and industry and to build railways to connect the east and west, protecting their interests from the United States to the south. Many indigenous groups had no concept of land ownership and may have believed it was an agreement to share the areas of interest.

There are hundreds of disputed land claims currently in Canadian courts.

You can read more here about Canada treaties.

-Leon

Want to read more music blogs? Here are some of the ones I follow: Mostly Music Covers, Take it Easy, Beetley Pete, A Sound Day, PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture, SuperdekesVinylReviews, Fox Reviews Rock

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Weekend Wrap-up: Regarder les Jeux Olympiques, Deuxième Partie

I’ll be glad when the Olympics are over. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy watching many of the sports, but it can me exhausting. Not as exhausting as running the Marathon, which I just finished (watching, not running).

I remember watching the Olympics as a child, when it was the only time you were able to see some of the sports, so every 4 years, we automatically became weightlifting fans, or experts at determining if the diver’s splash was too much.

Field events like hammer throw, discus, and shot put seemed odd but fun to watch, and what was up with all the ribbon swinging and jumping around on the gymnastics mat?

The first time I saw men competing in the rings, I was amazed at the strength displayed by the athletes, with physiques rivaling some bodybuilders.

With the launching of specialty channels like ESPN in the US and TSN in Canada, we were now able to watch these sports on a regular basis, removing some of the mystery. Track athletes now have the Diamond League to showcase their talents and earn money, now making them professional.

Is the amateur/professional debate over now? I think it started when hockey and basketball were added to the games. I remember arguing that the Olympics were the games to showcase the best amateur athletes, but it is really about the best athletes in the world competing for bragging rights, and now with so many athletes making money in their chosen sport, it’s hard not to not have professionals.

Was there a highlight for me in these Paris Olympics? I’d like to say the Canadian men winning the 4X100 relay was, but it’s a toss up between Dutch sprinter Femke Bol coming from behind to win the gold in the 4X400 mixed rela, and Armand Duplantis winning gold and setting a new world record of 6.25m in the pole vault.

Side note: What are people Googling the most right now? When I typed “translate” in the search bar it autocompleted to “translate english to french”.

When I wanted to get the correct spelling for Armand’s name, “Armand” auto completed to “Armand Duplantis girlfriend”. Apparently he’s a hot commodity… or his girlfriend is…You be the judge:

Is it just me or does Armand look like Timothee Chalamet?

Stay tuned for a post-Olympic report. Let’s see what they do for the closing ceremonies. I think the cauldron balloon should be let go to drift away in the night…

-Leon

In case you missed it:Weekend Wrap-up: Regarder les Jeux Olympiques, Deuxième PartieFree Book Friday Aug. 9: E-reader upgrade.Thursday Thoughts: Reviews and PresalesWeird Wednesday: Seeing Double (Gold, that is.)Music Monday: 2007 plus a bonus section!

Hope you enjoyed the recap! Feel free to share it with others.

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Free Book Friday Aug. 9: E-reader upgrade.

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I’ve had a Kobo eReader for a long time, and other than a minor issue with the power switch not working sometimes, it has served me well. But lately, most of the authors I have been partnering with have their books on Amazon, so I decided to use an advance of my book royalties and purchase a Kindle. I do have the Kindle reader on my laptop, but that isn’t very convenient.

I had borrowed a Kindle only to discover I couldn’t put books on it because it wasn’t on my account, so it basically forced my hand into my wallet to pry the credit card away from it’s comfortable hiding place.

-Leon

The story behind Free Book Friday:

I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?

Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.

Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.

Reads From StoryOrigin

StoryOrigin allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!

Free Books/KU July 16th-Aug 21st Review Copies (These are free!)

Review copies: Like reviewing books? Try my two poetry collections: Lines by Leon and A Wonder of Words

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book (poetry or science fiction or both): Leon’s Newsletter

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Thursday Thoughts: Reviews and Presales

Some authors try to give out as many review copies of new books in advance of their publication, so that when the day arrives there will be many reviews to entice new readers to buy a newly published book.

There’s a few problems though. Amazon which has about two-thirds of the eBook market, doesn’t allow reviews to be posted until the book is published. The workaround is that many authors publish the paperback version in advance to which readers can post reviews. So really, launch day is a bit watered down since the book is already out.

The big issue is getting the reviews. Many readers will jump at the chance to get a free book, but will not always carry through with the review. Review rates for published books run around five percent, so if I specify that I am giving out an advance review copy, there is an expectation on the reader who accepts it.

Two months ago I set up a signup sheet for my latest book. I made it a longer process to weed out any “Freeders” (people who are only interested in free books). Applicants had to answer several questions:

Do you want to review Euphrates Vanished?
Have you read the first chapter? (I provided a link to download a copy. All applicants did.)
Do you still want to review the book? (Everyone answered yes.)
Have read any books by Leon Stevens? Please list.
If not, what is your favorite sci-fi book?
Can you commit to a 4-week deadline from when you receive your copy? (Again, all said yes.)

I received 12 applicants, which is a very low number considering I’ve heard that some authors send out hundreds of copies.

I sent out a reminder during the fourth week and a final email four days after launch. I asked that if they were choosing not to review to let me know and one reader did, stating being in his 70s, the book was not quite resonant to his demographic.

So, how many reviews did I get? Two. Yeah…that’s disappointing.

I have 600+ subscribers and about 250-300 regularly open each newsletter. So, when I sent out the call for early reviewers, I was hoping to get at least 20. I only recognized a couple of the emails on the signup sheet, so that expectation fell short.

I constantly weed out the inactive subscribers, ten unopened newsletters in a row will automatically unsubscribe you. I have had readers re-subscribe which I find interesting.

I dropped the price for the two months before launch. I was hoping for more advance sales from my subscribers, but only I received 5. Advance sales help the Amazon rankings as they take effect on the day of publication, so having 10, 20, or 100 pre-sales can launch a book into the #1 spot, giving it visibility on the charts.

Of course, I can’t make my subscribers buy books, and I do enjoy crafting my newsletters providing them with insights on what it is like to be an indie author, introducing them to other author, and entertaining them, and of course I will continue to do so.

If you have recently launched a book, how did it go?
If you are a reviewer…hit me up.

-Leon

-Leon

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Weird Wednesday: Seeing Double (Gold, that is.)

It was a good showing for Canadian athletes in the hammer throw with Camryn Rogers winning gold in the women’s competition and Ethan Katzberg winning the gold in the men’s.

Except that’s not Katzberg, that’s the other Canadian hammer thrower, Rowan Hamilton. This is Ethan:

Here they are side by side.

Apparently, to qualify to be a Canadian hammer thrower, you have to share some DNA with another famous Canadian, singer Burton Cummings.

But seriously, it is the first time since 1912 that a Canadian has won a medal in the event, and for Camryn Rogers, she is the first Canadian female to do so.

Congrats to all the athletes who have competed so far!

My newsletter goes out every Wednesday: Lines by Leon Super Newsletter Extravaganza

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Music Monday: 2007 plus a bonus section!

There is a radio show on CBC here in Canada that occasionally does a feature called SYNTH: Songs You Need To Hear.

Now, I can’t say to someone, “You’ll like this song” (or book for that matter) because I can’t presume that others will share my taste in music (or books), so it is safer to say, “You might like this” and if they don’t like it, so be it.

Maybe you will find a new favorite.

CBC MUSIC, Central · Mornings with CBC Music

Lets start with some Canadian artists.

If you didn’t know who Leslie Feist was at the beginning of 2007, by the end you did.

Face it. If you are going to write a song with counting, you’re going to be on Sesame Street. Guaranteed. And there are going to monsters and chickens. Guaranteed.

State of Shock may have been 10 years too late.

Not sure where Faber Drive fits in. There is a tinge of country rock in there.

Jully Black is a Canadian singer, songwriter and actress. She has released 4 studio albums, and 2 remix EPs. She has collaborated and written for many artists, including Nas, Saukrates, Choclair, Kardinal Offishall, Destiny’s Child, and Sean Paul.

Heading south for a couple. It took me a few years before I really appreciated this next song. It must be something about the band because it was the same with an earlier song, My Doorbell.

Sometimes you completely forget about a great song:

And back to Canada.

I forgot how much I liked Billy Talent so here are a couple of earlier hits. Just a heads up, if you are not a fan of some screamed lyrics, you may want to take a pass, otherwise, get ready to get some aggression out.

Bonus Billy:

-Leon

Now available!

Want to read more music blogs? Here are some of the ones I follow: Mostly Music Covers, Take it Easy, Beetley Pete, A Sound Day, PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture, SuperdekesVinylReviews, Peat Long’s Blog, Fox Reviews Rock

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Songs for a Sunday: First Aid Kit

First Aid Kit is a Swedish folk duo consisting of the sisters Johanna and Klara Söderberg.

-Leon

Want to read more music blogs? Here are some of the ones I follow: Mostly Music Covers, Take it Easy, Beetley Pete, A Sound Day, PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture, SuperdekesVinylReviews, Fox Reviews Rock

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Weekend Wrap-up: Watching the Olympics

Since many of the Olympic events are a lot of waiting for something to happen, the best way to watch them is to record and them view at your leisure. You also enjoy not having to sit through the commercials. Maybe advertisers should take a page from the Super Bowl…

6 hours of cycling road racing becomes 30 minutes of skipping ahead 5 minutes at a timeThe heats of the 100m sprints can be watched in eight, ten second chunks.The two-day decathlon is a couple of hours out of your day

Fortunately the games are in Paris (like you didn’t know that), so most of the events take place while I am sleeping (or attempting to remain sleeping, but that’s another story).

You just have to avoid any live updates, or accidently clicking through a currently running event as you are enjoying your morning coffee.

What is the most impressive event of the Summer Olympics? You could argue that the Decathlon is the best test of athletic prowess or that the Marathon is the ultimate in a historical perspective.

One of the most watched is the 100m track sprints, which crowns the world’s fastest athletes. I do enjoy a good sub-ten second moment, but I also find the high jump quite fascinating.

Do you have a favorite sport?

-Leon

In case you missed it:Weekend Wrap-up: Watching the OlympicsFree Book Friday Aug. 2: AI…oh my…Thursday Thoughts: Five YearsWeird Wednesday July 31: Tri, tri again.Tuesday Top Ten: Discontinued Olympic Sports

Hope you enjoyed the recap! Feel free to share it with others.

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Free Book Friday Aug. 2: AI…oh my…

WordPress has incorporated AI into its platform an is now flagging complex words, presumably to make the reading easier. Apparently, words like: receive and purchase are too difficult for you to understand, but in a recent post contingent and delve are not.

So, I would be remiss if I neglected to include an itemized catalogue of all the terminology utilized in the discourse I bestow upon the esteemed readers of my oft daily offerings.

[Author’s note: None of the words in the previous paragraph were flagged (but previous was)…]

The AI assistant has also analyzed this post and offered the following:

“The blog content includes a mix of promotional content and personal reflections. Consider organizing the content to clearly separate the different sections, such as by using subheadings or bullet points. Additionally, for the author’s note, consider using a lighter, more conversational tone to engage readers. Lastly, consider integrating the images in a way that complements the text and provides context.“

The optimum titles for the post should be:

WordPress AI Integration: Simplifying Complex Words for Better ReadabilityEnhancing Readability: Terminology Catalogue and AI Integration in WordPressOptimizing Content: AI Assistance and Terminology Catalogue in WordPress

I’ll stick with my original title and content, thank you very much, now that I figured out how to turn off the damn AI.

Oh, the post image? That was the AI as well. You know what? I’m good with it.

-Leon

Have you purchased—Sorry, I mean, did you buy a copy of Euphrates Vanished yet?

The story behind Free Book Friday:

I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?

Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.

Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.

Reads From StoryOrigin

StoryOrigin allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!

Free Books/KU July 16th-Aug 21stLast day: Sales and Purchase Links Review Copies (These are free!)

Review copies: Like reviewing books? Try my two poetry collections: Lines by Leon and A Wonder of Words

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book (poetry or science fiction or both): Leon’s Newsletter

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!

Thursday Thoughts: Five Years

If you told me five years ago that in five years I would have seven published books to my name, I would have scoffed and said, “Sure, whatever Nostradamus. And the whole world will shut down for a couple of years…”

If you told me five years ago the book marketing is an uphill battle I would have said, “So? What does that have to do with me?” and then I would have said, “Besides, all you have to do is post something on the internet and millions of people see it and ‘Boom’ you’re going viral…”

If you would have told me five years ago—

Okay, nobody really knows what the future holds. But we do our best to map out our life’s journey, hoping for the best, hoping everything will at least be comfortable, and planning for possible setbacks and unforeseen circumstances.

So, here I am. My latest book is officially released today and I am about one third through writing the prequel, deciding what adventures my characters will experience in the third book, and—

Posting stuff on the internet which automatically goes viral?

Yeah…

-Leon

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/

Sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter and receive a free book!

Oh, pick me! C’mon, space stuff!