“Deadly Faux”… Launched… Pitched… and Promoted with a Killer Spiff for Writers Who Love a Case Study in Craft

My new novel was released today, from Turner Publishing.  If you’ve experienced such a day yourself, you know the feeling.  And if you haven’t… keep reading, I have something that might help make it happen for you, sooner rather than later.

“Deadly Faux,” is the sequel to my 2004 novel “Bait and Switch” (the reissue of which comes out from Turner in a month).  It’s a hybrid mystery/thriller about taking down bad guys using less than conventional or even reasonable means, with a civilian hero enlisted as the point man in an off-the-books FBI sting that uses seduction as both strategy and weaponry.  Our chiseled hero, you see, while being Grade-A Prime seduction fodder with a touch of attitude, is much more than he seems.

I mention “Bait and Switch,” the earlier book that introduced Wolfgang Schmitt as an unwitting and unaware hero, because it garnered some serious critical chops.  In addition to some enthusiastic reviews, Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review, named it their monthly lead Editors Choice (July), and at year-end named it to two lists: Best Books of 2004 (lead entry, Mass Market), and — this next one being slightly paradoxical — Best Overlooked Books of 2oo4… note the second entry).

I mention this in the event that — in the hope of enticing you to give it a go — the premise alone doesn’t quite persuade.

The Concept of Deadly Faux

What if the Feds seek out, and find, a guy with the chops to seduce the right women in the wrong places, for the purpose of eliciting and gathering evidence in major investigations into serious bad guys and darkly duplicitous organizations, all of it covert and off the books?

The Premise of Deadly Faux

Wolfgang Schmitt, having previously assisted the Feds nail a stock-scamming billionaire, is brought back undercover to bring down a corrupt casino owner and his Machiavellian wife while snagging a deadly organized crime lord who has eluded them for over a decade.  And what if, just like last time, nothing and nobody is as advertised, leaving Wolf to sort it all out — and with any luck (because it may or may not be part of the script) survive it — on his own?

So there is it… if you thought this post was strictly about promoting my new title, there’s a quick lesson on the critical difference between concept and premise.  Both, while hierarchically different, should be compelling.

By far the best pitch for “Deadly Faux” was made by James N. Frey, he of the massively famous craft book, “How to Write a Damned Good Novel,” and the two and half decades of fabled writing workshops that followed.  His blurb  can be read directly to the right of this, in the other column.

Here are a couple more A-list author endorsements:

“Deadly Faux is a fast, fun read with plot twists I did not see coming and a satisfying ending.” —Phillip Margolin, New York Times bestselling author of Sleight of Hand

“An absolute must read, Deadly Faux is guaranteed entertainment. In Wolfgang Schmitt, Larry Brooks has created a wise-cracking protagonist who is witty, resourceful, intelligent, and, most surprisingly, vulnerable. Brooks plunges Wolf into a seemingly unwinnable caldron involving Las Vegas casinos, the mob, and femme fatales, then turns the heat up high. I finished Deadly Faux in one sitting, couldn’t put it down, and can’t wait to read the next book. Step aside Nelson DeMille and Stuart Woods—Schmitt happens!” —Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of The Jury Master

Click HERE for the trade paperback.  If you prefer a brick and mortar bookstore, they may have it, they may not (yet), but they definitely can/will order it for you.

Click HERE for Kindle… or HERE for Nook.

Your support is appreciated.

A Special Offer/Win-Win Promo for Writers

The trouble with novelists who have social media presence (let’s be honest, it’s a strategy) is that it boils down to this: writers tying to sell their work to other writers. If you have a Facebook friend-base comprised mainly of other writers, we get about three t0 five “announcing my new novel!” notices a day.  Each and every one has my empathy and support… but I want a better strategy for this very focused demographic that, quite frankly, doesn’t do all that much you-buy-mine-and-I’ll-buy-yours quid pro quo.

I’d rather show you a real reason — as a writer — to buy and read my novel, beyond the promise that you’ll love it.  So here it is:

I’m writing an ebook entitled, “The Inner Life of “Deadly Faux.”

Basically it’s a detailed deconstruction of the entire “Deadly Faux” manuscript relative to the Six Core Competencies (from “Story Engineering“) and the six realms of “Story Physics.”   Along with a behind the curtain recounting of the novel’s journey from hopeful manuscript to publication, which reads like a thriller spiced with shades of horror.  Let’s just say… the author almost died.

Think of it as the reality of storytelling colliding with the chillier realities of getting and staying published.   Both are inescapable.

This ebook means I can’t hide from the very naked transparency of what I’ve written and how I got there.  I’ve been preaching the gospel of mission-driven storytelling craft on this site for four years now… this ebook is where I walk the talk.  Or not… that’s your call.

Either way, this will be like a med student throwing back the sheet from a freshly sanitized cadaver, with every pore and orifice open for your instection.  Hopefully you’ll conclude that the patient will live to sleuth on the sly for the Feds another day, and why.

To get the ebook — its FREE — just send your online “Deadly Faux” receipt to me at storyfixer@gmail.com… or if you purchased at a bookstore, just tell me where, and your best memory of the stock (how many books, and where in the store it was found).  In about two weeks I’ll be sending it out, via a link I’ll have posted here with a discreet URL for you only.

To my knowledge nothing like this has ever been undertaken or offered.  My goal is to over-deliver, which will lead to good things for both of us.  Thanks for considering.  And if you have a book club and want to work up a presentation, let’s talk.  I’m all ears on what you would suggest for this book that resides outside the box, or if within it, promises to kick out the sides.

“Deadly Faux”… Launched… Pitched… and Promoted with a Killer Spiff for Writers Who Love a Case Study in Craft is a post from: Larry Brooks at storyfix.com