Neil D. Ostroff's Blog, page 16

Writers are transport machines

It’s raining. Fat drops meander down the glass windowpane in my office like so many overfed translucent snails. Water puddles in the street forming miniature estuaries where worms tunnel up from drowning liquid seeking refuge across the sidewalk only to die between the smooth beaks of a snacking warbles.

And here I sit in front of my computer belting out another novel.

Writer’s are transport machines. We put words on the page and transport reader’s minds to other places and times. But at what cost to the writer’s psyche?

A great author once said that being a writer is like having to do homework every day for the rest of your life. There is always something to do; editing, rewriting, better setting details, characterization, etc. Not a day goes by that I don’t spend time working on one of my books or upcoming projects. Tens of thousands of hours spent plotting, pitching, and producing. Sometimes I wonder what I would have done with those hours had I not been a writer?

Perhaps, I would’ve become a great businessman, or politician? Or perhaps, I would have wasted my days sludged in front of a television or video game? Perhaps, I would have been a barfly and one drunken evening met someone other than my wife and then ruined my life because of some momentary lapse of judgment and bored, primal impulse?

Unless I can invent a time machine, I’ll never know. My current work-in-progress deals with these kinds of questions, but I’m not going to get into pre-promotion right now. What makes the ‘what if’s’ flow on days like this?

There are social sacrifices all serious writers make. It is the loneliest profession in the world, after all. The saddest however, is the writer who doesn’t hit the grand success they’ve dreamt of and think they have wasted their time pursuing their passion. If you truly enjoy your craft than that enjoyment itself is the reward; not fortune, fame, or recognition. All the sacrifices made are worth it.

To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING
Click here to read my blog!
http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Why even write?

I’ve been doing the internet interview thing again and recently I was asked something that I hadn’t been asked before. The questioned posed was; “What do you hope to achieve with your writing?”

I had to think about that one for a moment before I could offer a reasonable response. I’m actually not looking to achieve anything with my writing except to provide people with entertainment (an imaginary retreat from the real world). I’m not looking to win any big awards (though I’m not opposed). I don’t think I’m going to get rich from this (though that would be nice). And I’m not looking at my writing as a way to meet women (I’m married). So why exactly am I constantly in front of my keyboard tapping until carpel tunnel kicks in?

Simple, I’m addicted to storytelling.

I describe my books as quick, exciting, thought-provoking, powerful reads, devoid of mind-numbingly boring character details, but characters that will forever haunt your memory. My plots are both uniquely insightful and yet jarring at the same time.

I don’t think my books will ever hit the mainstream market but I could get a viral following of readers who want to experience the kinds of stories that stay with you long after finishing the final page. As one of my fans put it in an email to me; “I love your novels because I can read them in a few hours, which is good, because I can never put them down once I start one.”

Such high praise pinks my cheeks. The freedom of an author to write any type of novel they want without worrying if a certain publisher will accept the material is amazing. I will NEVER have a publisher or agent tell me to rewrite a novel again.

In my early, exciting days as a New York-agent-represented author I had several publishers tell me to take out what I thought were some of the best parts of my novels because they felt the scenes wouldn’t sell to the mainstream public. Well, guess what? I don’t want to sell to the mainstream public. I want to sell to people who are interested in reading something they’ve never read before, something that may touch them deeply or maybe scare the h*ll out of them. No boring, conventional, formulaic, mainstream stories here. Just a crazy, obsessed, introverted author airing out the over-cluttered attic of his mind.

To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING

Click here to read my blog!
http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Strange writer!

I used to think I was a really strange person. While everyone else I knew was out socializing and going to concerts, movies, and having meals out, I would stay at home, sit in my room, and write stories.

I thought I was even odder when I got older and went to college. While I did my fair share of partying, I never got into that whole social clique thing. While my friends would be outside playing football or Frisbee tag, I’d be in my dorm room cranking out poetry (that’s what I was into at the time) and writing short stories; always dreaming that fame and fortune would come my way and make this obsession of mine seem tangible. I even got a reputation at school of a guy who wouldn’t answer his dorm room door even if I was in there because I’d be writing and didn’t want to be disturbed.

My friends never teased me though for they saw my ambition and determination to make it as an author.

Fast-forward fifteen years of sitting alone in rented apartment after apartment, and then finally buying a home, constantly writing, ignoring request to meet with friends, go spend a day in the city, or even gather some buddies for a beer at a bar; spending 90% of my time alone and writing. Amazingly, an incredible woman actually fell in love with me and my quirks, and we got married.

More years of fervent writing passed. My wife nor I never gave up hope of hitting it big with my books. Then Facebook came along and the era of the internet and everything changed forever.

Suddenly, I’m back in touch with all those people of my past who were left wondering whatever happened to me. Suddenly, the whole world opened up to my unique writing style and my books, and provided me a way to sell my work to a potential audience of billions. Suddenly, all my friends see the result of all those years of isolation and sacrifice. Now they read my books. Now they send me text, Facebook, and email messages saying how much they like my stuff. Now they read my blog and follow my career. Now, they don’t think I’m so strange anymore. And that has made it all the sacrifice worth it.

Click here to read my blog!
http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Give me patience!

The secret to making it as a successful indie writer is this: PATIENCE. Authors are experiencing first hand a new era in book selling where a writer can instantly connect with a publisher and then sell directly to a reader. This offers millions of new voices to be heard, which can be both a good thing and a bad thing for readers. Good, if the story is well-written, and bad for all the novice books taking up virtual shelf space and attention.

It used to be that authors received a quarterly notice on sales and had no way of knowing how they were going until then. Now, sales recordings are almost instant. A writer can check hourly if he or she has sold a book. This can lead to daunting feelings of “things aren’t happening fast enough”.

Yesterday, I was a little depressed because I only logged seven sales for all my books for the day. What I didn’t take into account is how many I would sell over the three month period. If I only received notice of sales quarterly, I would show hundreds of sales and that would make any indie writer happy.

With the electronic age my books have no shelf life so they will be available for purchase forever. It’s kind of mind boggling when you think about it. I have my entire life to market and promote my books. Wow!

To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

You never know!

I’ve been a thriller sci-fi writer for more than twenty years now and over that span of time my books have gotten the attention of numerous literary agents and publishers. In 2005, I signed with a major literary agent from a major NY literary agency. This agency had sold hundreds of books and film rights, some for as much as seven figures. I was very excited.
My agent loved all six (at the time) of my books and like all good agents edited them and provided insight to help make the stories more saleable, all without asking for a dime in advance. We had several exciting close-call deals and a few heart-racing moments while waiting to see what kind of money was going to be offered. My agent encouraged me to keep writing more books and truly believed that one day I’d hit it big.
Then something happened that turned my world around; a close friend was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. But here’s the kicker… he was given just two weeks to live. He went from his nine-to-five life, to knowing he had a very limited amount of time left. Having no close family and no money for a good hospital, he was left with little option except to die alone. It is then that my wife and I decided to hospice him.
It was an incredibly powerful experience watching as his life slipped away and how he dealt with it psychologically. When the day finally came that he passed on, I was there to shut off the ventilator and pull the sheet over his head. I’ve never been the same since.
As a writer, I wanted to capture something of the moment and relay what I learned from watching someone’s life end. Having never written a literary fiction novel before, I suddenly found myself in the throes of a powerful statement about the meaning of life. DROP OUT was written in a fanatic ten day period.
When I sent the completed manuscript off to my agent, he was extremely disappointed that I had gone this literary route and had no intentions of ever trying to sell the book. I had no intentions of letting the book sit in a drawer, so after a few emails and telephone calls we decided to end our partnership. I was devastated to be back among the ranks of agent-less authors.
Then something amazing happened.
I indie published DROP OUT a little over a year and a half ago, and since then sales have grown steadily each month. At this point, nearly ten thousand copies of the book have been downloaded and I’ve gotten to as low as 1,500 on Amazon’s paid sales ranking. But what is most heart-warming and gives me the most satisfaction is the emails and reviews that I’ve gotten telling me how the book has changed people’s lives. Almost every review is a five star and what the reader’s are saying… well, check it out yourself.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FX0K7U
I’d like to thank my former agent for dropping me (no pun intended) and giving me the freedom to publish my books on my own. Especially, for giving DROP OUT a chance to change people’s lives. When it comes to the world of big publishing, deadlines, competition, and profit, it’s good to know that by avoiding all that nonsense, a little story with a powerful message can make such a difference in how people view their mortal time on this planet.
To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Not all glory and riches

It used to be that to become a published author (besides just writing a really good book) you also had to spend countless hours writing and addressing query letters, waiting patiently for agent’s responses (months), and then miracle upon miracles, you got signed to a LEGITIMATE agency. That was only the beginning.


Then it was up to the agent to make that one-in-a-hundred sale as opposed to the one-in-a-million chance that an un-agented author had. Then, miracle upon miracles, if your book got sold, then came the marketing and promotion, the signings, the hope and praying that it stayed on the shelf long enough to acquire an audience. And, if three weeks later it wasn’t selling, it was gone for good.


But today, things have changed. Writers are now able to bypass all that other hardship and get their books out there to sell literally minutes after writing “the end” at the bottom of the last page. However, it’s not all glory and instant riches.


The ability for pretty much anyone who’s ever laid fingers to a keyboard and scrawled a story and then put it out there for sale to the world opens the playing field to a lot of garbage, but like carousing a bookstore, you just need to take your time to find the perfect book.


I’ve sold more books on my own in the last year than I ever imagined I would all due to publishing through KDP and Smashwords. I will admit I spend a huge amount of time marketing and promoting, but I’d be doing that anyway if I’d been published traditionally. And I get a thirty percent royalty.


I had an agent from a top agency and after three and a half years with no sales he dropped me due to what he said is a quickly shrinking professional marketplace. Judging from the soaring sales of ereaders and my novels, I tend to agree.


To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

A writer’s warning!

Technology now allows us writers to offer our books and stories to the world. Through Amazon, Smashwords, and such, indie writers can now sell their stuff to virtually anyone with access to a computer, ereader, or smart phone. As artists, we willingly check the accept box to whatever agreement these epublishers throw out there without really understanding the implications of the contract.

Case in point, I was recently banned from my Google + account because they thought I might be spamming. I set up a community as an extension of my blog and to showcase my books. Before I knew it, I was banned with no way to reinstate the account. I cannot delete the community from which I got banned because my account is suspended… catch 22.

I understand why these parameters are set up, but Google does not give detailed specifics on what is acceptable and what is not directly up front, while making it exceedingly easy to start a community and seems to encourage users to do so. Had I been warned before that a community can’t have your own name as a title, I wouldn’t have hit ‘create a community’. A pop-up notice would have been nice. This appears to be the case with most of these sites that seek to enhance their user-ship.

I also recently had an experience where I was nearly banned from KDP because some book selling website had listed my book DROP OUT for less than what KDP was charging. I had no knowledge of this and when I was informed that my nine published books were about to be banned I nearly went into hysterics. Image the God-like power of this company. A single computer assessment could have destroyed what’s taken me years to build. Just like that, my writing career could have been nearly over.

What I’m trying to say is don’t jump into these threads and communities without first reading the guidelines very carefully. I doubt there is a real human judging what’s spam and what’s legitimate information and the system works by recognizing keywords and algorithms. As of right now I am still banned from Google + and me interacting with more than 700 people in my circles. I have tried without success to lift the ban and I am now contemplating shutting down the profile entirely and starting over.

Let this be a warning to those authors looking for ways to get your books noticed. Do not blindly market without first reading the guidelines. No author should ever feel the panic I felt when I thought my publisher Amazon was about to shut me down. Until something greater in the world of selling books comes along, we are all just vulnerable pawns in this new world publishing game.

To read more about me and my books please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

A writer’s calling

I recently received my ninth unsolicited review for DROP OUT ( http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FX0K7U ) on Amazon and I am quite pleased with the five star rating and comment. It seems the book is really having an impact on people. I’ve been getting fan email (for the first time) and reading a lot of discussions on social media about how the story has changed reader’s lives. That’s what I had hoped for when I wrote the book.

I knew the plot would question the reader’s outlook on life but what surprised me most is by how much. I wrote the first draft of the story during an eight day period when my wife was performing hospice for a friend who was dying of pancreatic cancer. This friend went into the doctor with a backache, got the horrible diagnosis, and passed away a week later. The second half of DROP OUT is based on this experience of dealing with those last days of life.

The first half of the book examines loss and tragedy and how one man couldn’t cope. He drops out of society to live out his days in isolation and loneliness. Disfigured and depressed, the main character learns the importance of living life to the fullest by someone who has little life left. The same lesson learned on the day our friend died in his apartment leaving behind a long list of regrets and unfulfilled dreams.

Funny thing about DROP OUT, it’s the only manuscript that my agent didn’t want to represent, saying it was too literary and that he signed me to be a thriller/YA sci-fi writer. When I became adamant that he give it a chance in the marketplace he dropped me as a client. I went through a phase of depression and anger, and cursed everyone and the world. What saved me from giving up the dream of becoming a published author was the very theme I had written about in DROP OUT. Live your dreams no matter what.

Now, three years after losing my NY agent and two years after publishing DROP OUT, I find that the book is by far my best seller out of my nine books now available worldwide. I’ve sold thousands of copies and given away even more. Although I’d like to say it’s made me rich… it hasn’t, but I’m no longer thinking about writing just for the money. I believe reading DROP OUT will affect a reader deeply and give pause to reflect upon the meaning of life, love, and loss. If I have achieved that, then I have achieved all that I ever hoped my writing would do.

My blog ALWAYS WRITING: http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Define success

I was asked the other day if I thought I was a successful author. Instead of a simple yes or no answer, I found myself rather perplexed by the question. If by definition a successful author supports themselves wholly by their craft, then the answer is no. If by definition a successful author is one who has legions of fans and gets world-wide recognition, then the answer is no. If by definition a successful author is one who enjoys the writing process, the editing process, and the birth of a complete book… then the answer is yes.

I define the measure of an author’s success by how happy they are while writing their books. I write books. I sell books. People tell me they like my books. Though I have not received tremendous sales they have been steady these last two years and with the virtual bookshelf in existence forever, who knows how far I could go?

Success is defined and measured differently by different people. Just a few short years ago (since 2007 when Kindle first came out) a struggling writer’s success was measured in just two ways; traditionally published or not. Self-publishing and indie publishing were sure signs of failure, even though the author never even had his work tested in the mainstream readership.

I had a powerful, NY agent who loved my books but after four years of trying and wooing the big houses he still couldn’t sell a single one. Does that make me a failure? Since that time, I’ve sold thousands of ebooks through Kindle, Nook, and Kobo and gotten some really great reviews. Does that make me a success?

One’s own perception of success and failure are deeply personal issues and different for all of us. Though I haven’t achieved rock star/writer fame (yet), the mere fact that my stuff is out there and gets read is enough for me to label my twenty-plus writing career a success. Though I may never achieve the heights of Stephen King or Clive Cussler, with the advent of digital publishing at least I (we all) have a fair stake in the publishing game.

My blog: http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

Okay results

Well, the bookgorilla promotion for SILENT INVASION didn’t go as well as it had for DROP OUT, but I still got down to the 5,000 rank on Amazon. I’ve come to believe that the majority of book buyers who purchase a book because of an ad on a website are older readers compared to the middle-grade/YA readers. I’ve always done fairly well on promotions for my thrillers, but my other genres seem to mostly sell by word-of-word.

What that means, is my younger audience is texting, tweeting, and Facebooking about my books, rather than being exposed by surfing reader’s sites. I think younger readers know what they like to read and tend to stick within those genres, while older readers are more likely to be intrigued by an interesting plot or synopsis. If you are planning to pay for a sponsorship for a younger audience make certain you concentrate on sites devoted especially to them.

I think my mistake with this promotion for SILENT INVASION is that my main audience is finishing up the school year right now and aren’t as interested in reading for pleasure at the moment with final papers and tests due. I won’t do another middle-grade/YA sponsorship until mid-summer, when kids are looking to pass the time.

My blog: http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com