Steven Hildreth Jr.'s Blog, page 5
May 3, 2012
BAYONETS AT DAWN: My interview with Laurence Thompson
I recently did an interview with fellow writer, blogger, and good friend Laurence Thompson, based out of Liverpool. Here is an excerpt from that interview:
Implicate Disorder: Your novella, The First Bayonet, was e-published last year. What was it about mainstream publishing that caused you to take this route instead? Was there something inherent in the work that made it more suitable?
Steven Hildreth, Jr.: Well, I don’t think it was the content, in and of itself, that caused me to take the self-publishing route, though I’ve known a couple of authors who have done that for exactly that reason. Really, what it is is that the publishing industry has become something of a good old boy network. For ordinary people trying to break into the writing game, it’s an enormous catch-22: you can’t be published mainstream unless you’ve been published mainstream before. If you know somebody who knows somebody, then the doors open, but most people—myself included—don’t know those people. So, my options really became either to attempt to break mainstream and repeat the same action with hopes for a different result, or jump in on self-publishing.
ID: Did you attempt to find an industry publisher or agent, or opt for the e-pub route from the beginning?
SH: I opted for e-publishing from the onset. I’ve witnessed colleagues of mine trying to break mainstream and saw the struggle they had to go through to market their work. I was not looking to go through the same process. I circumvented that and figured I would find a way to make up for the lack of advertising later.
ID: Yeah, the disadvantages of this approach I assume speak for themselves – having to self-edit, self-promote and so forth. On the other hand, has there been anything about self-publishing you’ve found particularly advantageous, that wouldn’t be the case if you’d sought a more traditional route?
SH: It has afforded complete autonomy in just about everything—my pricing, my cover, my marketing scheme, and so on. That does come as a double-edged blade, as you mentioned, but it also serves as a hell of a learning experience, taking control of all aspects of the writing and publishing process. Also, it kept me from wasting time looking for a publisher, which allowed me to roll right onto other projects.
You can read the full interview here. Warning: the interview does contain some strong language. Reader discretion is advised.
Implicate Disorder: Your novella, The First Bayonet, was e-published last year. What was it about mainstream publishing that caused you to take this route instead? Was there something inherent in the work that made it more suitable?
Steven Hildreth, Jr.: Well, I don’t think it was the content, in and of itself, that caused me to take the self-publishing route, though I’ve known a couple of authors who have done that for exactly that reason. Really, what it is is that the publishing industry has become something of a good old boy network. For ordinary people trying to break into the writing game, it’s an enormous catch-22: you can’t be published mainstream unless you’ve been published mainstream before. If you know somebody who knows somebody, then the doors open, but most people—myself included—don’t know those people. So, my options really became either to attempt to break mainstream and repeat the same action with hopes for a different result, or jump in on self-publishing.
ID: Did you attempt to find an industry publisher or agent, or opt for the e-pub route from the beginning?
SH: I opted for e-publishing from the onset. I’ve witnessed colleagues of mine trying to break mainstream and saw the struggle they had to go through to market their work. I was not looking to go through the same process. I circumvented that and figured I would find a way to make up for the lack of advertising later.
ID: Yeah, the disadvantages of this approach I assume speak for themselves – having to self-edit, self-promote and so forth. On the other hand, has there been anything about self-publishing you’ve found particularly advantageous, that wouldn’t be the case if you’d sought a more traditional route?
SH: It has afforded complete autonomy in just about everything—my pricing, my cover, my marketing scheme, and so on. That does come as a double-edged blade, as you mentioned, but it also serves as a hell of a learning experience, taking control of all aspects of the writing and publishing process. Also, it kept me from wasting time looking for a publisher, which allowed me to roll right onto other projects.
You can read the full interview here. Warning: the interview does contain some strong language. Reader discretion is advised.
Review: PROMIS: VIETNAM by Jack Murphy
Jack Murphy does it again.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
Review: PROMIS: Vietnam by Jack Murphy
Jack Murphy does it again.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
BOOK REVIEW: PROMIS: Vietnam by Jack Murphy
Jack Murphy does it again.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
PROMIS: Vietnam covers the exploits of SSG Sean Deckard, a former LRRP Ranger and the One-Zero (team leader) of RT Key West, based out of MACV-SOG's Command and Control--North. Deckard is turned onto the possibility of raiding the Vietcong's command center, but finds more than he bargains for.
The action doesn't let up, going from firefight to firefight with gruesome detail. We also get a look into what daily life was like for the men of MACV-SOG.
I personally feel the plot could have been better adapted into a longer novella or a short novel, and Murphy's minimalist detail makes characterization difficult to those outside the military, but Murphy's target audience seems to be the military crowd, so that works out in his favor.
All in all, a rip-roaring military adventure and a solid entry into a series of novellas. I look forward to reading the sequel.
You can buy PROMIS: Vietnam for the Amazon Kindle here.
FEATURED AUTHOR: Cynthia Vespia
Occasionally, I'll be featuring authors on my blog, and snippets of their work. The following is a snippet from Demon Hunter: Saga, from Cynthia Vespia:
As the mighty hunter of demons, Costa Calabrese has known wealth, fame, the fear of men and true love. Now one brush with The Destroyer is threatening the life he treasures. Costa’s entire world is being exposed as nothing but a lie. Costa’s greatest and final battle is at hand as he battles the darkest demons of all…the ones in his head.
A thousand possibilities ran through my mind. I tried to persuade myself that he was right. Talisa would come back and everything would be as it was before. Deep in my heart I knew the truth. And then I saw it, the marking on the wall just as in my visions. It read: “I am sent here by the chosen one. So shall it be written. So shall it be done. Child of light, be it daughter or son, is to be destroyed.” She was gone just like that. Vanished without a trace or an explanation. The only thing that made any sense to me were the visions. Something dark and sinister had invaded our home and swept Talisa off into the night. How could I have let this happen? I speak all the time of not having regret and now I had to live with another. I would never, ever forgive myself for leaving her that day. I had tried to make peace within myself, saying it would only be for a little while and then I’d return to her and we’d live out our lives together until we were old and gray. But suddenly my perfect world had been turned upside down and I’d somehow lost the love of my life. I fell to my knees, shattered with despair. Paralay tried to comfort me to no avail. Nothing he could say would make me feel any better. The only person I wanted to talk to was the one person I couldn’t find. My breath caught in my chest and I started to shudder. I couldn’t speak. Pain hollowed out my insides like a searing hot knife and I felt as though my heart might literally shatter. I couldn’t catch my breath and when I did I only managed to utter one word. “Destroyer.”
Do you know what horrors lie beyond these pages? Costa Calabrese has just uncovered the truth about his past. Some truths should never be revealed. When you learn you’re the son of the worlds foremost and feared hunter of demons, life’s rules inevitably change. Now Costa has been chosen to walk in his famed father’s footsteps and take up the role his bloodline demands of him…whether he wants to or not. He is a killer of killers, laying waste to the scourge of evil that threatens the existence of mankind. He is the chosen one. He is the Demon Hunter.
Find out more about Cynthia Vespia and Demon Hunter: Saga at her website, on Facebook , and at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
You can purchase Demon Hunter: Saga here.
April 9, 2012
Review: REFLEXIVE FIRE by Jack Murphy
In the military action thriller genre, it's common to talk the talk. It's the bare minimum, after all--in today's information-rich society, it is ridiculously easy to pick out an author who didn't do the research. But even among those who can talk the talk, there is an exalted category, those who have walked the walk. Those who have literally put their lives on the line outside the wire and bring their experiences with them to the written word.
Jack Murphy is one of the few who can talk the talk and that has walked the walk. As an eight years veteran of United States Special Operations Forces, Murphy has been the shooter on the front lines, and he delivers authenticity in spades in his debut print novel, Reflexive Fire. From weapons to small unit tactics, from leadership principle to an operations order, Murphy brings a nigh-unparalleled level of realism to his prose, outperforming established mainstream authors such as Vince Flynn and Brad Thor.
But Reflexive Fire is far from a military instruction manual. It tells the tale of a sinister plot by innocuous-sounding organizations to claim stake to the reins of humanity and forever change the human race. It is in this space that Murphy is an excellent storyteller, creating a scenario that gives the reader pause as to what is going on behind the scenes of global politics, and question whether or not there are certifiable people with power and capital at their fingertips. Once the full scope of the enemy that Deckard, the protagonist, was revealed, I could not put the book down.
I read Murphy's work long before he walked the walk, and even back then, it was clear that he had talent in regards to writing in the action genre. It gives me great pleasure to say that with his experience, Jack Murphy has only gotten better, and I anxiously look forward to additional entries in the Deckard series.
You can purchase Reflexive Fire here.
Jack Murphy is one of the few who can talk the talk and that has walked the walk. As an eight years veteran of United States Special Operations Forces, Murphy has been the shooter on the front lines, and he delivers authenticity in spades in his debut print novel, Reflexive Fire. From weapons to small unit tactics, from leadership principle to an operations order, Murphy brings a nigh-unparalleled level of realism to his prose, outperforming established mainstream authors such as Vince Flynn and Brad Thor.
But Reflexive Fire is far from a military instruction manual. It tells the tale of a sinister plot by innocuous-sounding organizations to claim stake to the reins of humanity and forever change the human race. It is in this space that Murphy is an excellent storyteller, creating a scenario that gives the reader pause as to what is going on behind the scenes of global politics, and question whether or not there are certifiable people with power and capital at their fingertips. Once the full scope of the enemy that Deckard, the protagonist, was revealed, I could not put the book down.
I read Murphy's work long before he walked the walk, and even back then, it was clear that he had talent in regards to writing in the action genre. It gives me great pleasure to say that with his experience, Jack Murphy has only gotten better, and I anxiously look forward to additional entries in the Deckard series.
You can purchase Reflexive Fire here.
April 2, 2012
Updates
Haven't posted here in a while, so I'll take an opportunity to post a couple of updates here:
--currently working on a new, untitled novel. Updates on that will follow.
--I have a new author photo up, and I will have a new banner for both my Facebook and this blog soon.
--THE FIRST BAYONET is still available on the iBookstore, Lulu, and Barnes & Noble. If you haven't bought it yet, do it! If you have bought it, share it with your friends!
--I have a few projects up my sleeve for when I finish the novel I've been working on. I don't know which one I'll work on first, but know that the buck doesn't stop here.
Stay tuned!
--currently working on a new, untitled novel. Updates on that will follow.
--I have a new author photo up, and I will have a new banner for both my Facebook and this blog soon.
--THE FIRST BAYONET is still available on the iBookstore, Lulu, and Barnes & Noble. If you haven't bought it yet, do it! If you have bought it, share it with your friends!
--I have a few projects up my sleeve for when I finish the novel I've been working on. I don't know which one I'll work on first, but know that the buck doesn't stop here.
Stay tuned!
January 10, 2012
Politics
I just want to take a brief moment to address my friends, family, and fans in regards to politics and my writing. No, I'm not going to try and shovel some political cause down your throat. I just wanted to make something clear, get it off my chest.
In my spare time, I debate a lot of politics. I've always been a very vocal person with my beliefs, and I have never been afraid to mix it up with somebody verbally over a hot-button topic. I am neither conservative nor liberal; I am neither Democrat nor Republican. I have my views that I am right wing on, and I have my views that I am left wing on. If you asked me to classify myself politically, I wouldn't be able to tell you, since I see wisdom in many political philosophies, save fascism and Soviet communism.
Here soon, if you were to Google my name, you may find an editorial regarding a certain presidential hopeful, and I'm sure that, given said candidate's fan base, it will receive a lot of flak. What I am here to ask you is this: when it comes time to read my novels, ignore it.
That's right. Ignore anything you've ever hear me say or write, politically.
Most writers of this genre are the opposite of me. They are not afraid to show their political beliefs in their fiction and target a specific audience. However, that is not my style. I don't want to appeal to one audience or another. What I want to do is create an action thriller with a political element to it that incites debate. I want left-wingers and right-wingers to pick up The First Bayonet and in between action scenes, engage in the debate between Zaina and Williams about interventionalism vs. isolationism. When The African Catalyst comes out, you'll find that it takes place during a retelling of the 2008 elections, and I want Democrats and Republicans both to read the book and debate who was right and who was wrong.
A little something about my writing process: when I write the good guys, I write them as if they are the good guys. When I write the bad guys, I write them as if they are the good guys. When I write a Republican character, I write as if I am a Republican. When I am writing a Democratic character, I write as if I am a Democrat. I strive for neutrality in my work so that I may draw in more readers and cause the debate, instead of forcing those who don't agree with me to shut my book in disgust.
I hope you will keep this in mind when reading my works. I thank you all for your support, and I look forward to entertaining you with further writings.
-Steven Hildreth Jr.
Tucson, AZ
January 10th, 2012
In my spare time, I debate a lot of politics. I've always been a very vocal person with my beliefs, and I have never been afraid to mix it up with somebody verbally over a hot-button topic. I am neither conservative nor liberal; I am neither Democrat nor Republican. I have my views that I am right wing on, and I have my views that I am left wing on. If you asked me to classify myself politically, I wouldn't be able to tell you, since I see wisdom in many political philosophies, save fascism and Soviet communism.
Here soon, if you were to Google my name, you may find an editorial regarding a certain presidential hopeful, and I'm sure that, given said candidate's fan base, it will receive a lot of flak. What I am here to ask you is this: when it comes time to read my novels, ignore it.
That's right. Ignore anything you've ever hear me say or write, politically.
Most writers of this genre are the opposite of me. They are not afraid to show their political beliefs in their fiction and target a specific audience. However, that is not my style. I don't want to appeal to one audience or another. What I want to do is create an action thriller with a political element to it that incites debate. I want left-wingers and right-wingers to pick up The First Bayonet and in between action scenes, engage in the debate between Zaina and Williams about interventionalism vs. isolationism. When The African Catalyst comes out, you'll find that it takes place during a retelling of the 2008 elections, and I want Democrats and Republicans both to read the book and debate who was right and who was wrong.
A little something about my writing process: when I write the good guys, I write them as if they are the good guys. When I write the bad guys, I write them as if they are the good guys. When I write a Republican character, I write as if I am a Republican. When I am writing a Democratic character, I write as if I am a Democrat. I strive for neutrality in my work so that I may draw in more readers and cause the debate, instead of forcing those who don't agree with me to shut my book in disgust.
I hope you will keep this in mind when reading my works. I thank you all for your support, and I look forward to entertaining you with further writings.
-Steven Hildreth Jr.
Tucson, AZ
January 10th, 2012
December 26, 2011
December 17, 2011
The First Bayonet cover
The cover is designed by my friend, Shay Saldana. I placed her in a daunting position by coming to her with just two weeks and change to complete this project. She went above and beyond all expectations with her finished product, and she deserves special recognition for her hard work and dedication towards The First Bayonet.
Thank you, Shay! Good job!
Thank you, Shay! Good job!
