David Gaughran's Blog, page 32

Sample Sunday: TRANSFECTION – Old-school sci-fi by David Gaughran

This week's Sample Sunday offering is from my latest e-book - Transfection - an old school sci-fi technothriller about a molecular biologist who makes a startling discovery which threatens his life.

I have printed the first section of the story below. If you like this sample and want to buy the rest, it's available from Amazon, Amazon UK, and Smashwords for $0.99/69p.

It was only released yesterday, but it want straight into the Science Fiction Short Story Charts at #14.

I hope you enjoy it.

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Transfection Released Across The World

My second release – Transfection - is a technothriller with old-school sci-fi undertones. A molecular biologist is on the run, but he doesn't know who wants him dead… or why.

I only uploaded Transfection a couple of hours ago, but it's already for sale on Amazon! For only $0.99!

Here's a quick taste of what you get for $0.99:

Molecular biologist Dr. Carl Peters is under pressure on two fronts: his research grants are disappearing and his marriage is falling apart. But when medical researchers...

Amazon: E-books Outselling All Print & Ad-Supported Kindle Is Top-Seller

On the same day that the American Association of Publishers (AAP) announced a rebound for print in March, and that e-books had dropped back to third place (behind trade paperback and hardback), Amazon declared that they were now selling more e-books than print books.

Yesterday, I covered the limitations of the AAP figures, namely that they only include a small number of publishing houses, they ignore more e-focused small and independent presses, and they don't include self-publishers.

Amazon...

AAP Figures Released: E-Books Keep on Truckin' But Print Isn't Dead Yet

The American Association of Publishers (AAP) have released their figures for March.

The headline figures were that e-books grew 145.7% year-on-year from March 2010 (in revenue terms), and print bounced back after a terrible start to the year, with two categories showing gains.

Adult Hardcover was up 6% year-on-year and Adult Mass Market Paperback grew 1.2%. Adult Trade Paperback fell 7.7%.

Despite that drop, Adult Trade Paperback was the #1 selling format at $115.9m, followed by Adult Hardback a...

A New Project, And A Special Treat

I have some news on upcoming releases, new projects, some interesting stuff from around the web that you may have missed, as well as a special surprise for my blog-readers.

The Never-Ending Blog Tour

The first gig on The Never-Ending Blog Tour is live right now. Declan Conner is a short story writer who provides excellent advice, interviews, and essays on his blog.

There is a wealth of information there, and you should especially check out the conversations he had with bestseller J. Carson...

Indie Publishing For International Writers, Step 7: Reviews: How To Get Them, And How To Deal With Them

This is the seventh part of my continuing series INDIE PUBLISHING FOR INTERNATIONAL WRITERS, a step-by-step guide to getting your stories into (digital) print. I'll be doing each step with you, learning as you do, because I've never done this before either. I will be compiling all these steps into a free e-book for my blog-readers when I am done.

Step 7: Reviews: How To Get Them, And How To Deal With Them

Some people are sceptical about the power of reviews and whether they have any...

The Biggest Mistake Self-Publishers Make

On this blog, and throughout my free guide – INDIE PUBLISHING FOR INTERNATIONAL WRITERS – I make the point that if self-publishers want to have any chance of success they have to present their work in the most professional manner possible.

That means a good cover designed by a pro, spending money on a professional editor, formatting your e-book correctly, and conducting yourself appropriately when marketing your novel.

There are many self-publishers who skip some or all of these steps and, as a...

Are Amazon Ripping Off International Customers?

I have been alerted to some inconsistent and unfair e-book pricing policies by Amazon in certain countries.

If you read e-books, and live outside the US, this information could drastically affect how much you pay. If you are a writer, and are selling internationally (and you should be, this is a global $80bn business), this is harming your sales right now.

When you go to Amazon.com and search for my e-book, you will see a price of $0.99, $1.16 or $3.44, depending on which country you live in...

A Bad Week For Agents

Even God got a day off on Sunday, so here's some stuff for you guys to chew on, while I try and get a story finished.

A Bad Week For… Agents

Agents made a lot of headlines this week. First we had top UK agent Ed Victor announcing the launch of his publishing imprint. Fellow agent Peter Cox bravely called for him to be thrown out of the Association of Author's Agents (quote in comments at end). 

Curtis Brown UK indicated they will follow Mr. Victor into publishing shortly. This is the agency...

Book Extras – Are They Worth The Trouble?

When you read a good book – and I mean a really good book – sometimes you are a little sad at the end. You have become close to the characters and you feel like you are losing a friend. You have walked many miles in their shoes, faced their challenges with them, until they triumphed against the odds, got the girl, or died a noble death.

Don't you wish sometimes that you could step back into that world again?

Today I want to talk about Book Extras, whether readers enjoy them, if it's worth an...