Sunday, March 25, 2012

Blog 11. How social is a social network?

This afternoon I finished the sequel to Milkshake . Unlike Milkshake which I struggled to title until re-reading the final draft, this sequel had a title virtually from the first page. 


The Destiny Stone is complete at just under 78,000 words.


No-one has read it yet.


I've decided I need a few Beta readers to check things like plot, if the various timelines integrate with each other as well as grammar and spellings etc.


So as a small experiment in the power of social networking, I've advertised for Beta  readers on Facebook, Twitter, and the website of my publisher, Night. One fellow Night author has already kindly agreed to read it through, on the basis of enjoying and being a staunch support of Milkshake.


It will be interesting to see where (if any) the offers come from, how many I get, and also what feedback I eventually get from them.


I'll keep you posted.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

BLOG 10 - The Pirate Blog

Someone at work boasted at having found a site with 'free' e books.
 They'd downloaded 300.
 I may have downloaded free music in the past -  certainly not 300 albums in one go. 
 But at least with music, it doesn't require your undivided attention. You could easily load 300 albums onto your Ipod and play them in the background while you go about your business. However, a book requires a semblance on concentration and engagement. You'd probably have to stop most things to read a book. 
I hasten to add I've since changed my attitude to online piracy since becoming an unwilling victim of Cap'n (phone) Jack
So why on earth download 300 different titles at once at once? Think about it. Isn't that just literary looting for the sake of it?
I've yet to receive any royalties for 'Milkshake' Its been for sale for nearly 5 months and I'm due my first royalty sometime this month.
 I'm not holding my breath. I haven't ordered the Porsche. I haven't booked a celebratory table at a flash restaurant in anticipation. With the amount I'm expecting I'm confident Macca's don't take reservations.
'Milkshake' has been variously priced @ 99c (75p) for the ebook and $11.99 (7.50GBP). One sale; ANY sale is a significant event, both for my ego and, eventually my bank account.
I'm not against free books, or free digital content in general. in fact I'd rather someone read for free, than not read for the sake of 99c. I can fully understand the clever marketing logic of offering an online title for free for a limited period to drive traffic to a particular title before adding a price back onto it.
So please consider the author next time internet temptation stares at you from your PC screen. I read a slogan recently along the lines of  'ebook -  took 2 years to write - cost 99c. Cappacino. Took 3 minutes to make -  cost $4.00.'
See you next time.