H.O. Charles's Blog, page 11
February 19, 2013
Blazed Union is now for sale on AMAZON!
For those using Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BHMH918
For those using Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00BHMH918
For those using Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00BHMH918
February 16, 2013
February 15, 2013
Book Four is DONE!
Just a few things to check over the weekend, but I'll be uploading docs from Monday. It shall be named....
Blazed Union
Slight break from the usual title format, but it fits the content of the book perfectly :-)
Be sure to follow my Blog or Facebook page for updates on when it becomes available in the various online outlets. Smashwords have really improved their response times over the last year, so we should have a good turnaround with their retail partners.
:D :D :D :D
HOC
Blazed Union
Slight break from the usual title format, but it fits the content of the book perfectly :-)
Be sure to follow my Blog or Facebook page for updates on when it becomes available in the various online outlets. Smashwords have really improved their response times over the last year, so we should have a good turnaround with their retail partners.
:D :D :D :D
HOC
February 1, 2013
Update on Book 4
A quick update to let you all know that I'm alive and still writing! It's still going... there was quite a lot to fit in the book that I hadn't initially accounted for, so that's caused a bit of a delay. I will get there eventually. I hope to begin the publishing process in a fortnight...
December 25, 2012
Merry Christmas to All
I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday! I am so full of food, I may be about to explode. Gnrg.
Fourth book won't make it out by the end of this month owing to various illnesses/obstacles, but it is very nearly done!
And to the reviewer who said that the third book was a good finale... the series is not finished yet! Oh no... there is so much more to come.
Fourth book won't make it out by the end of this month owing to various illnesses/obstacles, but it is very nearly done!
And to the reviewer who said that the third book was a good finale... the series is not finished yet! Oh no... there is so much more to come.
December 15, 2012
Giving too much attention to mass killings is a bad idea
I think now would be a good time for me to clamber onto my soap box and start yelling at the various news outlets to stop covering the Connecticut tragedy in such a sensationalist manner. There's no need to print the number of dead in block Caps all over the headline, and there's really no need to publish pictures of the killer and explain exactly how he went about doing what he did whilst overlaying sounds of blaring sirens and images of distraught family members. It's not that I fear this information would offend some people's sensitivities, rather that the evidence shows how media storms can give rise to copycat events.
Dr Park Dietz, a forensic psychiatrist who now heads the Threat Assessment Group, has campaigned repeatedly against the media overblow that follows a serial killing event because of the effect it has upon those already close to the edge.
Could Raoul Moat have acted the way he did because of the coverage that Derrick Bird's activities received during June of 2010?
The year before the Columbine High massacre, there were two threats of shootings in Pennsylvania's schools. In the 50 days after it, there were 354.
And could coverage of the 1982 Chicago cyanide murders have influenced the subsequent copycat threats and events that lasted until 1986? Dr Dietz claims that, after he repeatedly requested that journalists sober up their coverage and wind it down, the rates of threats dropped dramatically.
The suicide rate in the US rose by 12% in the month after Marilyn Monroe killed herself - could that be an effect of the coverage, too?
In an interview with Huffington Post's Johann Hari, Dietz said,
Charlie Brooker looked at this issue rather well in 2009:
Dr Park Dietz, a forensic psychiatrist who now heads the Threat Assessment Group, has campaigned repeatedly against the media overblow that follows a serial killing event because of the effect it has upon those already close to the edge.
Could Raoul Moat have acted the way he did because of the coverage that Derrick Bird's activities received during June of 2010?
The year before the Columbine High massacre, there were two threats of shootings in Pennsylvania's schools. In the 50 days after it, there were 354.
And could coverage of the 1982 Chicago cyanide murders have influenced the subsequent copycat threats and events that lasted until 1986? Dr Dietz claims that, after he repeatedly requested that journalists sober up their coverage and wind it down, the rates of threats dropped dramatically.
The suicide rate in the US rose by 12% in the month after Marilyn Monroe killed herself - could that be an effect of the coverage, too?
In an interview with Huffington Post's Johann Hari, Dietz said,
"Mass murderers are almost always depressed to the point of suicide, and angrily blame others for their problems. You've got to imagine this small number of people sitting at home, with guns on their laps and a list of people they hate in their minds. They feel willing to die. When they watch the coverage of a mass murder, one or two will say - 'That guy is just like me! That's the solution to my problem.'... They will say this quite openly to you when you interview them. It's a conscious process... The massacre seems to offer them both an escape from their unbearable pain, and an opportunity to punish the people they blame for their plight."Ultimately, serial killers ought to be forgotten about, ignored and consigned to the media bin for eternity. I sincerely hope that the TV, print and audio journalists out there will consider the impact of their coverage, because Dietz' warning of repeat killings seems to be well-grounded in evidence.
Charlie Brooker looked at this issue rather well in 2009:
December 6, 2012
And the winner is...
Olga Peci from Greece!
Well done, Olga! Hopefully this will make for an extra-fun Christmas!
Well done, Olga! Hopefully this will make for an extra-fun Christmas!
Competition closed!
It's the 6th of December - so it's time to choose the lucky winner!
Thank you to everyone who has entered - thank you for taking the time to read the book and write a review. You efforts are very much appreciated, as are your criticisms. Some very interesting points were made, and I have now moved the glossary to the front of the book as a result. Hopefully this will make the reading experience a little more enjoyable for all!
I have put everyone's name into my special, Excel-shaped hat, and shall shortly be generating a random number to select the winner.
A name will follow soon...
Thank you to everyone who has entered - thank you for taking the time to read the book and write a review. You efforts are very much appreciated, as are your criticisms. Some very interesting points were made, and I have now moved the glossary to the front of the book as a result. Hopefully this will make the reading experience a little more enjoyable for all!
I have put everyone's name into my special, Excel-shaped hat, and shall shortly be generating a random number to select the winner.
A name will follow soon...
December 1, 2012
There are just five days left...
Before the Kindle Fireblade competition closes! Make sure you get your entries in very soooooooooon!
STILL working on Book 4. I've written most of it now, but am not yet at the end... I'll get there one day!
STILL working on Book 4. I've written most of it now, but am not yet at the end... I'll get there one day!
November 28, 2012
Fireblade Array now on Createspace
To try and get paperback prices down, I've uploaded all three Fireblade Array books to Createspace! That means solid copies can now be bought from several locations, and readers will have more of a choice when it comes to postage costs.
I've updated the BUY page with links to the books in the Createspace store. Within a week these books will also appear on Amazon. Hurrah!
I've updated the BUY page with links to the books in the Createspace store. Within a week these books will also appear on Amazon. Hurrah!
