Lane Diamond's Blog, page 14
January 13, 2012
These eBooks by Lane Diamond are now available to Amazon Prime members.
I've decided to participate in the Amazon KDP Select program, making my following titles available to Amazon Prime members through their lending library.
Psychological thriller novel, Forgive Me, Alex.
Psychological adventure short story, Devane's Reality.
Feel-good South American adventure short story, Wind Tunnel.
I think this offers a terrific opportunity to my readers. I hope you'll agree, and that you'll take advantage, and that you'll tell the world, and we'll have peace on Earth, rainbows on the moon and—-
Err… okay, got a little carried away there.
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January 10, 2012
Lane Diamond is once again hanging his "Freelance Editor" shingle.
Yep, because I love working 24 hours per day, I'm once again making room for a select few clients for my freelance editing service. Now that our initial blast of releases is complete for Evolved Publishing, my shingle, which has been down for several months, will hang once again.
My primary interest is in authors still needing some developmental assistance to bring their books to a level at which they are marketable. Frankly, I find this the most rewarding process – good for my heart and soul. There's just no better feeling than helping writers get to that point where they can legitimately pursue their dreams of becoming published authors.
For more, just click on my EDITING SERVICE page.
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Raffle for Free eBook Copy of "Forgive Me, Alex" – Hosted by Tim Ward
Book blogger, podcaster, and all-around friend of authors, Tim Ward, is hosting a raffle today for a FREE copy of my eBook, Forgive Me, Alex. There is absolutely no purchase required, and no obligation of any kind.
However, we offered to sweeten the pot for the lucky winner: If you win the raffle, and if you subsequently post a review of Forgive Me, Alex online, at the site from which you downloaded the book, we will provide you with a second free eBook – any book published by Evolved Publishing.
Oh, and he's also giving away a copy of my short story, Wind Tunnel. Nice.
Check it all out at Tim's website. But hurry! It runs for a week.
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January 5, 2012
What makes a great character in fiction?
I love books that give me rich, real characters. They must appear as breathing, walking, talking people who live on the page. Do not give me plastic, shallow clichés, please.
Let us take, for example, Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee's singular masterpiece. Is he an ordinary man engaged in an extraordinary act? Is he an extraordinary man doing what such men do? Is he a simple smalltown lawyer, an easy-going, unobtrusive gentleman hoping to raise his kids well and survive as a single father?
Yes. To all of those, yes. He is a rich, deep character for which we as readers can peel back layer after layer.
Here are some more of my favorite characters:
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Santiago, the old Cuban fisherman from Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea.
Alessandro Giuliani, the World War I vet from Mark Helprin's A Soldier of the Great War.
Hawkeye from James Fennimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans.
Owen Meany, the diminutive but strong protagonist in John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany.
Jack Reacher from Lee Child's series of thriller novels.
Myron Bolitor from Harlan Coben's series of mystery-thrillers.
Odd Thomas from Dean Koontz's multi-book series.
George Smiley from John Le Carre's Cold War spy thrillers.
These are just a few, but each of them offers a rich emotional and intellectual depth that brings them to life. What do they look like? I don't know. I don't care. How they look is not something that grabs most readers by the throat and compels them to learn more about the characters. We want to know what really makes them tick.
As an author, I seek to create just such characters. Readers will judge whether I've succeeded, but early feedback for Forgive Me, Alex looks positive.
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December 31, 2011
Let's make 2012 a banner year, shall we?
Whatever your dream's desire, I hope you find it in 2012.
My dream's desire? Hmm… let's see….
HEADLINE:
" Forgive Me, Alex , the psychological thriller by Lane Diamond, is the newest entry on the Bestseller List!"
Yeah, that's a pretty good dream.
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December 29, 2011
Coffee – Elixir of the Gods
Abraham Lincoln said, "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe."
Preparation. I like that, but here's my question: How could one even get started were it not for coffee?
Or am I just a lousy-morning person? Probably. I've always been a night owl, since my wee days as an aspiring author, back when pacifiers were an amazing distraction. (I gave those up years ago.)
I swear, sometimes I want to skip the whole brewing thing and go right to chewing on the beans.
I awoke this morning, as Arlo Guthrie once sang, "…hung down, brung down, hung up, and all kinds of mean, nasty, ugly things!"
Then I had a cup of coffee. Then I had a second cup of coffee. And I thought, "You know, I'm just about ready to dig into work and ge—" Then I had a third cup of coffee.
Aaaaahhhhhhhhh………… Yes, now I'm ready to get down to some serious work. Now I've sharpened my axe… err… brain.
Do you have a guilty pleasure that functions also as grease for your mental wheels?
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December 28, 2011
Dear Readers, Have you posted your reviews online?
One of the tools that authors have always relied on, indeed that many have lived or died on (metaphorically speaking), is the priceless Reader Review.
In this new eBook environment we live in, this is easier than ever, and arguably more important than ever. Let's face it, when you go to Amazon or Barnes and Noble, or Smashwords or BookieJar, what's one of the key indicators to help you decide if a book is worth your hard-earned entertainment dollar?
Yes, you can sample the book online, reading the first several pages, or even chapters, of the book. I always do this now. Indeed, I wouldn't think of buying a book from an unknown author without doing so. The next thing I look at are the reviews. If there are only a couple of them, I assume—fairly or not—that those are from the author's brother, or girlfriend, or husband, or favored pet. If there are several of them, I read them and get a better sense of whether I want to try the book.
And so, if you purchase (or pick up free) an indie author's eBook, and you don't leave a review, you're making it harder for that author to succeed. Why should you care? Well, Dear Reader, if you like the author's work, but that author fails and decides to just stick with the day job, you'll lose a source of pleasant entertainment.
Sooooo…… As an example, to date I've given away 87 copies of my short story, Paradox, at Smashwords. Yuppers! It is Free Free Free Free Free. 87 times, it's been free. I've even seen some nice reviews on blogs, Facebook, Twitter. Guess what I haven't seen? Not a single review has been posted at Smashwords. If I had a big 'ol frowney face, I'd insert it here.
Now, in order to post a review at Smashwords, you have to purchase (download) the book there. However, you can post reviews at Amazon, in all likelihood, without a direct purchase. Ditto at BookieJar. Ditto at Goodreads. All you need at those locations is an account, which is free and without obligation.
Thus, if you'd like to help out this poor starving author, or any other, please take a moment to post ratings and/or reviews. In my case, you can do so at:
For Paradox: Goodreads ; Amazon ; Barnes and Noble ; Smashwords ; BookieJar.
For Forgive Me, Alex: Goodreads ; Amazon ; Barnes and Noble ; Smashwords ; BookieJar.
For Evolution: Vol. 1: Goodreads ; Amazon ; Barnes and Noble ; Smashwords ; BookieJar.
For Devane's Reality: Goodreads ; Amazon ; Barnes and Noble ; Smashwords ; BookieJar.
For Wind Tunnel: Goodreads ; Amazon ; Barnes and Noble ; Smashwords ; BookieJar.
So rate and review to your heart's desire, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
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December 27, 2011
Why set psychological thriller, "Forgive Me, Alex," in sleepy little Algonquin, Illinois?
Yes, there is a method to my madness. Let's face it: when we think serial killers and places like… oh, New York, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles—any big city—we think, "Yeah, that's just how it is."
Yet when we think of human monsters assaulting small-town America, some out-of-the-way, comfortable little bedroom community or rural farm country, a certain sense of shock and dismay assaults us. Such locations are the "good" places, the quiet places where everyone knows his neighbors, the idyllic settings where bad things don't happen—at least, where bad unnatural things don't happen.
It's silly, of course, since senseless murder is a horrifying event no matter where it occurs. Yet we feel differently about it when it happens someplace… safe. It upsets our fragile psychology, our sense of security, our comfort in letting the kids walk several blocks to school. Surely, no monsters hide in places like this.
Ah, but evil can lurk even where we least expect it. All the cruel beasts need is a supply of unwary subjects, a source of fuel to drive their sick, twisted, psychopathic engine.
Thus, I chose Algonquin, Illinois, my hometown, as the setting for Forgive Me, Alex, because it is just such a place. I felt comfortable helping the reader feel that sense of angst because, after all, I grew up there. I know it. I don't spend too much time building up the setting, because I think that, beyond the aforementioned small-town qualities, the story would be effective in any small town. I do hope, however, that you get a sense of the simple, quiet nature of the place.
Don't forget: You still have a few days to save $2.00 on the book at Smashwords. Just use Coupon Code BC83B. Don't forget to post your review when done.
Thank you, and happy New Year.
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