Ryan Steck's Blog: Ryan's Blog
June 6, 2022
Why I started streaming on Twitch
Marketing a book isn't easy. Especially when you're a new author looking to build readers for your series, trying to get the word out.
The issue is that, with so many books coming out, how do you highlight your own? For me, that problem is only made harder by the fact that I'm also editor-in-chief of The Real Book Spy. It's literally my job to cover other authors' books and help connect readers with thrillers they'll hopefully love.
Self-promotion isn't something I'm necessarily good at, or a fan of, to be quite honest with you. I'm much more in my zone talking about other books from my literary heroes like Vince Flynn, C.J. Box, Daniel Silva, and Brad Thor, to name a few. However, at the same time, I can't tell you how excited I am that we're now so close to the launch of FIELDS OF FIRE, my debut novel. It's gotten a great review from Publisher Weekly, as well as some terrific reviews right here on Goodreads. More than anything, I just hope readers enjoy meeting my hero, Matthew Redd, and going on this adventure with him.
In the meantime, though, when discussions took place about marketing and audiences, it was a conversation with my agent that prompted me to start streaming on Twitch. More on that in a second. First, what's streaming?
Believe it or not, streaming video games is a multi-billion dollar industry that has exploded in recent years. I know, I know . . . my reaction was probably pretty similar to yours. "Who wants to watch other people play video games?" Heck, I grew up having to watch others play games because my older cousins wouldn't ever let me have a turn on the original Nintendo. I was floored to find out that this is something people do to make money, and even more shocked that people spend money to watch, frankly. But, hear me out, because I was wrong.
Streaming on Twitch isn't *just* playing video games. It's almost, in a way, like watching reality TV. Streamers, or gamers, build audiences (we call them communities in the gamer world) who want to hang out with them and interact with them. Playing video games is just a part of the deal, but far from the only reason people might join in. Really, it's about hanging out.
A couple of weeks ago, I launched a Twitch channel where I play Call of Duty: Warzone two hours a night. I can't even begin to tell you how rewarding it's been, to be honest. Just seeing the same people each night, chatting with everyone who stops by, and getting to know my community has been more fun than I ever imagined. People like Box, Ann (who is a HUGE Brad Thor far), Jse (who loves Jack Carr), Virginia, Jessica, Jordyn, and others have become friends. Nobody is expected to hang around the whole time, or to tune in each night, but I've had so much fun getting to know you all and look forward to each stream for that reason.
The other side to this, if I'm being honest though, is that Twitch is a space where no other thriller authors have really attempted to make a name for themselves. Look, Fox News isn't bringing me on when they can call Jack Carr up and have him come talk about whatever issues are dominating the news cycle that day. And they should because Jack is fantastic at literally everything. Brad Thor too. Or Don Winslow. Or Daniel Silva. Or Joel C. Rosenberg. Or someone who has a background in something related to a headline. Not me. Not yet, at least.
Twitch, on the other hand, has given me space to grow and network in my own way, on my own time. I was fortunate enough to hit affiliate after a few days, and now people can subscribe to my channel. I've been doing giveaways, and have a TON more planned in the coming weeks. And sure, Warzone is cool and fun to play with my buddies, but I don't look forward to gaming all day. I get excited to pop into chat and see how everyone else is doing, and to continue getting to know everyone on a more personal level.
One other thing: I talk about my book a lot there. And not only FIELDS OF FIRE, but the Matthew Redd series in general, including book 2, which I finished and sent to my publisher a few months ago. That comes out next year and introduces a character named Mikey Derhammer (think of him as the Scott Coleman to Redd's Mitch Rapp). Well, *if* you end up liking my books, here's another reason to swing by the stream and follow me on Twitch too . . . Mikey is my real-life best friend, who I fictionalized for the books, but he's also my duo in Warzone and plays the game with me every night. So, my readers can get to know the man behind the character just by tuning in, on top of learning other facts and insights about the books and characters.
Again, this is something I'm really excited about and dedicated to, so if you'd like to learn more or just come hang out with us, click the link below. See you there!
https://www.twitch.tv/legit_twitch
The issue is that, with so many books coming out, how do you highlight your own? For me, that problem is only made harder by the fact that I'm also editor-in-chief of The Real Book Spy. It's literally my job to cover other authors' books and help connect readers with thrillers they'll hopefully love.
Self-promotion isn't something I'm necessarily good at, or a fan of, to be quite honest with you. I'm much more in my zone talking about other books from my literary heroes like Vince Flynn, C.J. Box, Daniel Silva, and Brad Thor, to name a few. However, at the same time, I can't tell you how excited I am that we're now so close to the launch of FIELDS OF FIRE, my debut novel. It's gotten a great review from Publisher Weekly, as well as some terrific reviews right here on Goodreads. More than anything, I just hope readers enjoy meeting my hero, Matthew Redd, and going on this adventure with him.
In the meantime, though, when discussions took place about marketing and audiences, it was a conversation with my agent that prompted me to start streaming on Twitch. More on that in a second. First, what's streaming?
Believe it or not, streaming video games is a multi-billion dollar industry that has exploded in recent years. I know, I know . . . my reaction was probably pretty similar to yours. "Who wants to watch other people play video games?" Heck, I grew up having to watch others play games because my older cousins wouldn't ever let me have a turn on the original Nintendo. I was floored to find out that this is something people do to make money, and even more shocked that people spend money to watch, frankly. But, hear me out, because I was wrong.
Streaming on Twitch isn't *just* playing video games. It's almost, in a way, like watching reality TV. Streamers, or gamers, build audiences (we call them communities in the gamer world) who want to hang out with them and interact with them. Playing video games is just a part of the deal, but far from the only reason people might join in. Really, it's about hanging out.
A couple of weeks ago, I launched a Twitch channel where I play Call of Duty: Warzone two hours a night. I can't even begin to tell you how rewarding it's been, to be honest. Just seeing the same people each night, chatting with everyone who stops by, and getting to know my community has been more fun than I ever imagined. People like Box, Ann (who is a HUGE Brad Thor far), Jse (who loves Jack Carr), Virginia, Jessica, Jordyn, and others have become friends. Nobody is expected to hang around the whole time, or to tune in each night, but I've had so much fun getting to know you all and look forward to each stream for that reason.
The other side to this, if I'm being honest though, is that Twitch is a space where no other thriller authors have really attempted to make a name for themselves. Look, Fox News isn't bringing me on when they can call Jack Carr up and have him come talk about whatever issues are dominating the news cycle that day. And they should because Jack is fantastic at literally everything. Brad Thor too. Or Don Winslow. Or Daniel Silva. Or Joel C. Rosenberg. Or someone who has a background in something related to a headline. Not me. Not yet, at least.
Twitch, on the other hand, has given me space to grow and network in my own way, on my own time. I was fortunate enough to hit affiliate after a few days, and now people can subscribe to my channel. I've been doing giveaways, and have a TON more planned in the coming weeks. And sure, Warzone is cool and fun to play with my buddies, but I don't look forward to gaming all day. I get excited to pop into chat and see how everyone else is doing, and to continue getting to know everyone on a more personal level.
One other thing: I talk about my book a lot there. And not only FIELDS OF FIRE, but the Matthew Redd series in general, including book 2, which I finished and sent to my publisher a few months ago. That comes out next year and introduces a character named Mikey Derhammer (think of him as the Scott Coleman to Redd's Mitch Rapp). Well, *if* you end up liking my books, here's another reason to swing by the stream and follow me on Twitch too . . . Mikey is my real-life best friend, who I fictionalized for the books, but he's also my duo in Warzone and plays the game with me every night. So, my readers can get to know the man behind the character just by tuning in, on top of learning other facts and insights about the books and characters.
Again, this is something I'm really excited about and dedicated to, so if you'd like to learn more or just come hang out with us, click the link below. See you there!
https://www.twitch.tv/legit_twitch
December 18, 2021
Why I chose Montana as the setting for my first book
Fields of FireWhy did I choose Montana as the setting for my first book?
That's a question I wanted to answer with my first ever Goodreads blog post. Before I get into that, though, I just want to take a moment to say how surreal this whole thing is for me. For the last decade, I've been a freelance editor, on top of working as a thriller insider and critic over at The Real Book Spy. Never did I think I would be gearing up to release my own book, but here we are.
Quickly, I'd like to thank everyone who has pre-ordered FIELDS OF FIRE. The book doesn't come out until August 2, 2022, but I can't tell you how important pre-orders are to a book's success. So to everyone who has placed their order way in advance, I cannot thank you enough.
Okay, so Montana? That's not exactly where we see these types of books often set, right? And THAT is why I chose Big Sky country when I started writing FIELDS OF FIRE more than half a decade ago.
As mentioned above, I work on thrillers (as an editor), and I cover them (as a Book Spy), so when it came time for me to sit and plot my own, I wanted to deliver something that was indeed unlike anything I'd ever touched—as a fan, editor, or critic—and one day it hit me that we hardly ever see the Mitch Rapp types in Colorado, or Jason Bourne in Wyoming, or Scot Harvath in one of the Dakotas. Generally, these types of thrillers are set in Washington, D.C. or the surrounding area, or a big city like New York, LA, or even someplace overseas.
But the west, the vast and beautiful wild west, is a place that has primarily been used only for mysteries and crime. I'm a big fan of those books and genres, don't get me wrong. I'm on record as saying my two favorite authors are the late Vince Flynn and C.J. Box. In one sense, their books/series couldn't be more different. And yet, there are undertones that are the very same. I thought about that for weeks, then wrote down on a legal pad: "Vince Flynn meets C.J. Box." That was the book I was going to write.
(Fun fact, that very tagline was what I pitched to my agent when it was done. It was also used on the submission to my now publisher when they first received the manuscript.)
After doing some research, I landed on Montana as the setting for a number of reasons that, quite frankly, would spoil the book if I told you here. So it's fair to say that the decision was plot-driven. However, I fell in love with area, the west in general, and found myself embracing the obstacles that popped up as I dropped my hero, a former Marine Raider named Matthew Redd, into the open landscape.
Now, years later, I look back and see that this book, the series really, would only work here . . . and I can't wait for you all to see just why that is.
Stay tuned for more blog posts as I plan to write regularly here. In the meantime, if you'd like to check out the FIELDS OF FIRE Amazon page, visit: https://amzn.to/3eaGVaJ
That's a question I wanted to answer with my first ever Goodreads blog post. Before I get into that, though, I just want to take a moment to say how surreal this whole thing is for me. For the last decade, I've been a freelance editor, on top of working as a thriller insider and critic over at The Real Book Spy. Never did I think I would be gearing up to release my own book, but here we are.
Quickly, I'd like to thank everyone who has pre-ordered FIELDS OF FIRE. The book doesn't come out until August 2, 2022, but I can't tell you how important pre-orders are to a book's success. So to everyone who has placed their order way in advance, I cannot thank you enough.
Okay, so Montana? That's not exactly where we see these types of books often set, right? And THAT is why I chose Big Sky country when I started writing FIELDS OF FIRE more than half a decade ago.
As mentioned above, I work on thrillers (as an editor), and I cover them (as a Book Spy), so when it came time for me to sit and plot my own, I wanted to deliver something that was indeed unlike anything I'd ever touched—as a fan, editor, or critic—and one day it hit me that we hardly ever see the Mitch Rapp types in Colorado, or Jason Bourne in Wyoming, or Scot Harvath in one of the Dakotas. Generally, these types of thrillers are set in Washington, D.C. or the surrounding area, or a big city like New York, LA, or even someplace overseas.
But the west, the vast and beautiful wild west, is a place that has primarily been used only for mysteries and crime. I'm a big fan of those books and genres, don't get me wrong. I'm on record as saying my two favorite authors are the late Vince Flynn and C.J. Box. In one sense, their books/series couldn't be more different. And yet, there are undertones that are the very same. I thought about that for weeks, then wrote down on a legal pad: "Vince Flynn meets C.J. Box." That was the book I was going to write.
(Fun fact, that very tagline was what I pitched to my agent when it was done. It was also used on the submission to my now publisher when they first received the manuscript.)
After doing some research, I landed on Montana as the setting for a number of reasons that, quite frankly, would spoil the book if I told you here. So it's fair to say that the decision was plot-driven. However, I fell in love with area, the west in general, and found myself embracing the obstacles that popped up as I dropped my hero, a former Marine Raider named Matthew Redd, into the open landscape.
Now, years later, I look back and see that this book, the series really, would only work here . . . and I can't wait for you all to see just why that is.
Stay tuned for more blog posts as I plan to write regularly here. In the meantime, if you'd like to check out the FIELDS OF FIRE Amazon page, visit: https://amzn.to/3eaGVaJ
Ryan's Blog
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