David R. Michael's Blog, page 38

Dark Eva Reviews THE SUMMONING FIRE

 

Dark Eva Reviews The Summoning Fire!
 
The writing style is very engaging, to the point, and direct, which helps flesh out the characters…


I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the author for casting a demon who actually acts like one and doesn't spend the entire novel moping about his existence and how sorry he was to be born. And he uses a magic language system that isn't Latin or Anglo-Saxon derived, which is a nice change…


A word of caution: this novel contains highly graphic depictions of violence. I'm not talking about cartoon violence. I mean that if you squirm at some highly graphic, sadomasochistic sex scenes, you might want to skip this one, as Michael doesn't hold back at all…
 
Click here to read the whole review.
 
-David
 

Where I Live in What I Write

 
Write what you know, they say.
 
When it comes to where I set my stories, I do that a lot. Here are a few quick examples:

The Summoning Fire – I had Hell make their Rift here in Tulsa, where I live. So, yes, Tulsa is the geographic center of Hell on Earth. Too bad it got rather … blasted.
"Nostalgia" – I set the story at the Tulsa State Fair. I think I even mentioned that in the story.
Demon Candy – All of the stories in the soon-to-be-released collection are set here in Tulsa.
"The Perfect Hiding Place" – I set the story in my rather suburban neighborhood. The chimps live in my house. For that matter, so do the two kids.
Nasty, Brutish & Short Short – Multiple stories in the collection are set in the house we used to live in. "Emmy", "When Writers Attack", and "Straightening Up" all happen in a house with the exact same floorplan.
The Girl Who Ran With Horses – Set in Oklahoma, mentions Tulsa a few times.

 
A few more:

"Wind Up MILF Action Figure On Her Day Off" – Starts out at a Tulsa apartment complex where we used to live.
"Effie Two-Five" – Set in a fictionalized, urbanized version of Tulsa that I call Rio Cruces (which is a Spanish phrase that means "river crossing", which, if you dig deep enough, is what Tulsa meant in some Native American language).
"Evanescent" – A story I haven't released yet also takes place in my neighborhood. I even used the odd-looking house across the street from us. And a Starbucks a couple miles away.

 
Most of the time, though, you probably wouldn't know. I don't use names city names or street names a lot. I don't usually go into a lot of nitty gritty setting detail. I paint with a broad brush. Like the old house where we used to live. I don't describe the house so much as that's the house I have in my mind while I'm telling the story. Where the details are important, I include them. To you, when you read the story, it probably looks completely different. I'm OK with that.
 
So, yeah, write what you know.
 
-David
 

A Stevie Story

NOTE: This is the second story I wrote about Stevie Buckbee. You can read the first story here. In this story, the family names and horse names are all settled, as is most of the backstory. So this story is almost canon.
 
Stevie Gets Back in the Saddle
by David Michael
 
"Yes," Stevie Buckbee said, again, "I'm ready. I have to do this. Today."
 
"Do you want me to hold him?" Dad asked.
 
"No," Stevie said. "This is between him and me."
 
Thirteen year old Stevie couldn't quite lift the saddle over Jack Rabbit's back, so Dad had saddled the horse, then led him into the corral. There Dad had dropped the reins and said for the umpteenth time that morning, "Are you ready? You don't have to do this yet. You have all day."
 
But she did have to do it, ready or not. The fingers of her right hand brushed across the scar on her lip, a nervous habit she had developed the last couple weeks.
 
Forcing her hands to her sides, Stevie pushed herself off the top rail of the fence, landing so that the impact pushed her feet deeper into her boots. She hesitated only an instant before walking to where Jack Rabbit stood, looking as nervous as she felt, his eyes flicking from her to Dad to her brother Blake and then back to her.
 
As Stevie moved toward Jack Rabbit, Dad moved to the fence, where Blake also stood, watching, the two of them giving the girl and the horse space. Not a lot of space, though.
 
Stevie looked Jack Rabbit in the eye as she stepped up. "It's OK, boy," she said. She let the reins continue to hang untouched while she stroked Jack Rabbit's long nose with her right hand. "See? The bruise is almost gone. The scars are healing."
 
"My god, Stevie," her friends at school had said the first day after spring break. "What happened to your face?"
 
Even Kelly Butcher and Amber Coffee, her nemeses at school and soccer and all things social, had been taken aback. At least on the first day. By Friday they had been back to normal, and their comments about the bruises had moved from concern to pity to assurances that "your new face can't help but be an improvement."
 
On the first day of spring break, not quite two weeks ago, Jack Rabbit had thrown Stevie, then kicked her, one of his rear hooves hitting her in the face. Which hoof no one seemed to agree on. All Stevie could remember was moving up to help Blake, seeing Jack Rabbit hunch, and then feeling the shock, breathing the dust as she lay on the packed earth of the corral, staring up at the sky, one eye swelling shut while she tasted blood, wondering if she had lost any teeth.
 
"Everything's OK, boy," Stevie said, still stroking Jack Rabbit's nose. She couldn't be sure if she was reassuring the horse or just putting off the moment. The moment she had to face.
 
Getting thrown hadn't hurt Stevie any. Except her pride. Some. She had lived around horses her entire life. She had been thrown more times than she could remember. She had learned to get up, dust herself off, and get back on. And, after enough times, she had learned how to slide off, how to land on her feet, how to not get hurt.
 
Jack Rabbit was her horse, though. Her first horse that was really hers. A three year old gelding that Dad purchased just for her.
 
Stevie hadn't had much time to ride Jack Rabbit. A couple times at Thanksgiving, then Christmas. They had ridden all over the ranch during the days of Christmas break. Those days had been the best, and she had hated traveling back to her Aunt's house in far away Tulsa for school again. Stevie had been looking forward to spring break ever since, through almost three whole months.
 
But she had only been able to ride Jack Rabbit once. And he had thrown her. Then kicked her.
 
Dad had almost killed Jack Rabbit that first night. He had gotten as far as loading the gun. But he had calmed down as both Stevie and Blake convinced him that it wasn't the horse's fault. They had been careless. Dad calmed down, but not before chewing out Blake and Stevie both.
 
Dad wasn't at the corral when it happened, hadn't even been at the ranch. It had just been Blake and Stevie, putting the young horse through his daily exercise.
 
Jack Rabbit had thrown her as soon as she settled into the saddle. Blake had made sure Stevie was alright, then taken the reins, stepped into the stirrup and threw his leg over. "I'll settle him down a bit for you," he had said. But then Jack Rabbit had hunched and jumped and Blake, caught by surprise, had flown off too. Stevie had moved to help Blake–and stupidly walked behind the horse.
 
Blake had rushed Stevie to the emergency room, calling Dad on the way.
 
Blake had blamed himself. Dad had blamed Blake too, before he started blaming the horse and loading his gun. Stevie had cried and cried. Jack Rabbit was her horse, and now Dad was going to kill him, but it wasn't Jack Rabbit's fault.
 
That had been a bad day for everyone at the ranch.
 
The week hadn't improved much after that. Dad wouldn't let her ride again, not any horse, not that week. He had stopped drinking, though, mostly, that week, as he took care of Stevie. That had almost made up for her not being able to ride, seeing Dad sober and helping Blake with the daily chores.
 
"It's not your fault, boy," Stevie said, keeping her voice calm. "I still love you." She finally reached for the reins.
 
Jack Rabbit tensed as she took the reins and moved down his left side. Left hand on the pommel, holding the reins tight, she put her left foot in the stirrup. Then she put her right hand on the cantle of the saddle. Jack Rabbit shifted.
 
She heard both Dad and Blake begin to move from their positions by the fence.
 
"Steady boy," she said, loud enough for all three of the men in her life to hear. Despite the confidence she tried to keep in her voice, she was scared. She had to get back in the saddle now. Or she wouldn't have another chance before summer.
 
Dad had driven up to get her last night, a four hour trip both ways. And he would have to repeat the trip, drive her back tomorrow night. That was unusual, a rare outing for him. Stevie harbored no hopes that he might be willing to do it again before school was out.
 
It was now or never.
 
Taking a deeper breath than was necessary, she pulled herself up, swinging her right foot over the saddle. She secured her right foot in its stirrup before she settled into the saddle. Jack Rabbit shifted again, and both Dad and Blake edged forward.
 
She kept her left hand on the pommel, still gripping the reins, her knuckles white. With her right hand, she patted Jack Rabbit's back. "It's OK, boy," she said. "It's all good."
 
Jack Rabbit snorted and shook his head, but that was all.
 
"All is forgiven," she went on. "But let's talk about it as we walk, OK?"
 
Jack Rabbit snorted again, but when Stevie relaxed the reins and touched his ribs with toe of her boot, he moved forward.
 
Stevie smiled at Dad and Blake, as she and her horse walked away. She turned her attention back to Jack Rabbit. "All is forgiven," she repeated. Jack Rabbit flicked his ears, as he listened to her. "You're just lucky you didn't knock any of my teeth out. Dad would've been so upset then, about all that dental work down the drain…"
 

Writing Progress Report

 
Writing progress report for the week starting Monday, December 27, 2010.
 








Writing Project


Words




Monday


Line edited "Afterimage" with Editor.







Tuesday


Line edited "Afterimage" with Editor.







Wednesday


Edited "Inferno".
Line edited "Inferno" with Editor.
Edited "Summer Breeze".
Edited "Sweet Tooth".







Thursday


Line edited "Summer Breeze".
Line edited "Sweet Tooth".
Created project for Demon Candy book interior.







Friday


Finished "rough cut" of Demon Candy printed book interior.
Planned next two short story collections.







Saturday








Sunday


















Total








 








Marketing/Submission




Monday


Setup all 6 ebooks on Smashwords so they now ship to Sony and Apple stores.
Posted a 5-page preview of TSF to Guns & Magic.
Updated promo thread for HG on KB and MR.
Updated promo thread for TSF on KB and MR.




Tuesday


Updated promo thread for HG on NB.
Updated promo thread for TSF on NB.
Built a tool for converting my blog-formatted stories into basic ebook formatting.




Wednesday





Thursday





Friday





Saturday





Sunday


Updated promo thread for "Baptism" on KB and MR.
Created a promo thread for "Baptism" on NB.
Created a promo thread for "Nostalgia" on NB.
Created a promo thread for NBSS on NB.
Created a promo thread for Serene Morning on NB.




 
Reading List

The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett.

 

I'm Interviewed on I Am A Reader, Not A Writer

 

 
Author Interview & Book Giveaway: The Girl Who Ran With Horses by David Michael
 
If you could invite any 5 people to dinner who would you choose?
 
Mark Twain, Robert Heinlein, Elliot Erwitt, Vincent Van Gogh, and Tom Petty.
That would be one bizarre/awesome dinner party.
 
If you could be one of the Greek Gods, which would it be, male or
female, doesn't matter and why?
 
I loved James Woods's portrayal of Hades in "Hercules". If I could be that cool, I'd go for Hades. Otherwise, I'd probably settle for Ares. If you're going to be a god, might as well be in charge of something cool.
 
And you can sign up for a giveaway of The Girl Who Ran With Horses!
 
Read the whole interview here…
 
-David
 

Woot! Royalties!

 
Amazon DTP direct deposited my first Kindle ebook earnings this week. Not a lot of money, but very exciting nonetheless.
 
Now I just need CreateSpace, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble to cough up.
 
-David
 

How I Stopped Feeling Like a Self-Published Author

 
I made the decision to "go indie" with my writing this year. I don't regret this decision in the slightest. But even after releasing The Summoning Fire, a couple short stories, and a some flash fiction collections, I still didn't feel like a Real Author.
 
When I thought about going to a local writers con next year, I felt nervous about mentioning my book to anyone I met. Because it was, you know, self-published. When I showed the printed proof to a local writing group, I got the delusional relative treatment. Obviously, I should be pitied–and I must suck–because I had taken publishing into my own hands.
 
Sometime in November, though, around the time I released The Girl Who Ran With Horses, I started feeling like a Real Author. I didn't even notice the transition. I only spotted the change in my attitude in the last couple weeks.
 
Selling copies of both books helped, as well as accumulating mostly-favorable reviews from people I don't know. But I think the real cause of the change was simple math.
 
That is, I added 1 more novel to my list.
 
The stereotypical self-published author of the 20th century spent years writing his magnum opus. He is the Great American Author of the Great American Novel. He has written a book that simply must be published. He doesn't mind spending the money because the book is that important to him–and to the world. And once he's done this service to humanity, he doesn't write anything else. Why would he? He's already written the most important book ever. Look at how long it took him to finish. It must be important. Look at the rejections from publishers. It must be ahead of its time. And so on.
 
That's not what I was doing. That's not how I was approaching the release of my books. But I still felt the stigma and shame associated with self-publishing.
 
With the release of my second novel, though, I (finally) broke out of that pattern in my mind.
 
With the upcoming release of Demon Candy next month I will break out further. Then still more with the release of another short novel in February. After that, I have even more work that I will be releasing. Plus, I'll be writing more than ever before as I pursue my goal of full-time writing. Full-time indie writing.
 
There are still some lingering bits of self-published shame clinging to my psyche. But I think I should be rid of them before the end of 2011. Consider it another goal for the New Year.
 
-David
 

Because, Yeah, I Write Software…

 
Back in 2004 or so when I started blogging, I finally shook off the last of what I called my "typewriter habits". The first typewriter habit I ditched after college (because, yes, I'm old enough that I used a typewriter to type my reports in college) was the urge to hit the spacebar twice after full stops (periods). In 2004, I stopped indenting my paragraphs with the tab key.
 
Shocking, I know. 21st century and all, and there I was, typing journal entries with indented paragraphs. Journal entries. That no one would ever see. Laid out and formatted like I was typing up term papers.
 
Once I started blogging, though, I changed. No more indented paragraphs, and a blank line between each paragraph. I adopted that format for all my writing.
 
Which was great, right up until I started releasing ebooks.
 
I *like* writing with no indents and a blank line to separate paragraphs. It's very … laid back. And blocky. It looks good in my entries. And in my stories in The Journal.
 
But you don't format fiction that way. Not in print, not in ebooks.
 
Converting from that format into something useful for an ebook or printed book had become a problem-prone chore. I wasn't looking forward to doing it over and over.
 
I saw two choices:

I change back. Not for the blogs or journaling. But for the fiction. Because changing my habits is so easy.
I write a software tool that does the work for me.

 
I went for the second choice.
 
Because, yeah, I write software.
 
It's a very simple tool. I save out the entry from The Journal into a proprietary format. The tool loads that file and runs it through a few conversions steps. All empty paragraphs are removed, all left-aligned paragraphs are indented, and the default font and point size are set to something generic. This is then saved out as an RTF (rich text format) file that can be opened in MS Word and easily manipulated.
 
It took me less than 3 hours to write the tool. The tool will save me a more time than that in January alone. And I'll probably improve it as I go along.
 
Some days, I *like* being a software geek.
 
-David
 

Pulling Together the Next Release

 
My next release will be a novella composed of four related horror stories. I'm calling the novella Demon Candy . Two of the stories have been posted here on Guns & Magic ("Summer Breeze" and "Sweet Tooth"). Those will be compiled with two other stories that have been mentioned in the weekly "Writing Progress Reports" but never posted ("Inferno" and "Afterimage").
 
I finished line editing "Afterimage" this afternoon (using Serenity's Editor). I'll need to line edit "Inferno" next. Then I'll pick up the older stories and get them edited and polished, as well.
 
I considered releasing these stories as standalone short story ebooks, but decided the stories didn't make much sense by themselves. The stories are all interrelated and build off the other stories. So a small collection it is. One of the stories is 18K words, so it's almost a novella by itself. The total for all four stories is about 30,000 words.
 
My "release checklist" is still evolving. Right now it looks like this:

Write story.
Leave story alone for a while.
Read and edit story.
Send story to first readers.
Compile feedback about story from first readers.
Read and edit story.
Line edit story with Serenity's Editor.
Read (and maybe edit) story.
Create cover art for story.
Format story for ebook and/or print-on-demand.
Read (and maybe edit) formatted versions of story.
Upload story to ebook sites and/or print-on-demand.

 
Seems like a long, tedious process all listed out like that.
 
It's more fun than it looks.
 
Anyway, coming soon: Demon Candy .
 
And then I have another novella lined up, a speculative fiction/contemporary fantasy story.
 
I'm Planning Big for the New Year.
 
-David
 

THE GIRL WHO RAN WITH HORSES Gets 5 Stars from WV Stitcher

 
Brenda Casto at WV Stitcher gives The Girl Who Ran With Horses 5 Stars!
 
The authors writing drew me to Stevie immediately, and made it easy to connect with her. I could also see where her family was coming from, they are all suffering, and each one is handling it the best way they can…


A heartwarming story that horse lovers of all ages will enjoy reading. A story that is easy to connect with because the author deals with problems that are easy for alot of people to relate to. The characters are also down to earth and easy to connect with, making you hope that all will work out for them.
 
Click here to read the whole review…
 
-David