2012: The Lineup

I've been busy as hell trying to get some projects closer to completion. While I've been heads down working, I haven't really given the blog much attention. When I happen to think of it, I flush with embarrassment because it seems like I'm neglecting a loved one. I don't want to neglect any loved ones, especially my readers. So, I thought I'd give you guys (er, and gal(s)) a glimpse into the things I have lined up for this year.

First, I'm trying to right a wrong by publishing The Old Royal. I said in a previous post that I hoped to release this by the end of January. I had to eat crow in the previous post. I'm happy to say that my wife returned the manuscript to me and assured me it didn't require a rewrite as I had initially suspected when I jumped the gun. I am more pleased to say that I managed to edit nearly a third of the manuscript this past weekend, which, for me, is an astonishingly immense amount of editing to accomplish. I think I've said before how much I hate editing. I'd rather have my fingers pounded with a ball peen hammer. So, I hope to have this completed and handed over to my beta readers soon.

Second, I am still in the early editing phases of a Southern Gothic called Lathem's Lament. I mentioned a little bit of what it's about in this post. This is a story set in the 50s in rural Georgia. It's mainly about a family dealing with life at home while their son is fighting over in Korea. The story follows the family as well as some of the neighbors and each chapter is told from a different character's point of view. I know it's a deviation from my usual crime and horror fiction, but it's a story that I had in me and begged to be written. I obliged and hope I do it justice and that my readers will enjoy it. There is a crime that takes place in it as well as a supernatural event. Anyway, I'm working on getting it ready to hand off to the wife, too. When I release it, I hope to hear some positive reviews for it. After all, the readers are the final judges.

In addition to this vintage story, I have a Southern Gothic/crime caper in mind that I've been itching to write. I've already started it, but haven't gotten very far with everything else in line ahead of it. This is a story set in the early 30s (also in Georgia—can you see the theme here?) about a black man on the run from a lynch mob for murdering a white girl. I'm still a little sketchy on the ending because I haven't nailed it down, but I've got some ideas about how it might end. You'll have to stay tuned to find out more about it. The tentative title is Rabbit on the Run. If I can execute it the way I see it in my head, I think it'll be a fantastic read.

I mentioned a ball peen hammer earlier, which brings me to this last project. Another book set in rural Georgia, this time in the 70s. The protagonist is a Vietnam vet who witnesses a meeting between some members of the Dixie Mafia and a politician. He's running for his life as the Dixie Mafia pursues him (mainly a thug who enjoys using a ball peen hammer on his victims) and, at the same time, trying to expose the corruption he has recently discovered. I'm excited about this one, but I'll be lucky if I can release it this year. The title I have in mind is Greasing the Squeaky Wheel.

There you have it! Four big projects, all in various stages of the writing/editing process. I hope some of these sound as exciting to you as they do to me. Check back to learn how I'm progressing and watch for the stories that interest you most. They're coming. I don't know when, but I can assure you, they ARE coming. As I get closer to the publishing date for each, I'll provide some sneak peeks at the covers. Thanks for reading!

3-Day Book Giveaway

For three days only (Jan. 11 through Jan. 13), my ebook Majoring in Murder will be given away for free on Amazon for Kindle. If you've already received a copy, help a starving artist out by recommending it to your reader friends. And, if you enjoyed the book, please (I can't stress this enough), write a review or, at least, rate it. I would definitely appreciate it!

Majoring in Murder is the story of an average college student's transition from mundane academia to a life where he rubs elbows with some nefarious criminals who blackmail him to rub people out. Jason Mashburn has to deal with one of life's darkest taboos, murdering others. His biggest hurdle, however, is trying to find a way out of his predicament without putting his family in more jeopardy than they already are, all while keeping his double-life a secret. This is the first in a series of the metamorphosis of a hitman.

You can find it here: Free copy of Majoring in Murder. I hope you enjoy the story and please remember to review or rate it. Thanks for stopping in. Tell your friends.

My Feet Hurt: An Update Status

Hi everyone!

I hope your holiday season is progressing happily along. This title pretty much summarizes how I feel. Not trying to be whiny (that'd be a horrible of me since I am fortunate enough to be in a nice location), but my feet really do hurt. We're staying just off the main drag, Duval Street, only three blocks from South Beach. Whenever we go anywhere, we walk. I've walked from one end of Key West to the other. I got to see Hemingway's house, the southern-most point of the continental US, Highway 1's zero mile-marker, Mallory Square, Higgs Beach, etc. And, my feet are sore.

I've taken an ass-load of pictures and hope to take more. There's so much here to see and do! This morning, I laid out on South Beach and read some of Duane Swierczynski's, The Wheelman. So far...Awesome! I'm completely loving it. This guy can spin an engrossing crime story.

However, the best thing about this trip so far, aside from the typical vacationy stuff and time with family, is the part where I finished the first draft for The Old Royal. I thought I would have completed it two days ago. God knows I was at the finale when I'd left off at home. But, I didn't want to rush it, so I took my time, thought it out, and wrapped it up yesterday. Now, I've got about six days to try to complete an editorial pass through it. I think I can squeeze in the time for that. If not, I'm going to make the time. I'm still shooting for a mid-to-late January release for the book. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

I hope everyone's holiday season is great! Thanks for stopping by.

Hello, Vacation!

So, tomorrow morning, we're leave for the Florida keys where we will spend our Christmas vacation. I can't wait. I've got my swimming shorts packed, plenty of short and t-shirts, my camera (for plenty of pictures I plan to share with you all), my cell phone, which also has my Kindle app (so I can read plenty of crime fiction), and my laptop so I can finish working on The Old Royal, which, by the way, is near completion.

Currently, I'm reading Victor Gischler's Suicide Squeeze. So far, it's freaking awesome! Gischler's the man! I've also packed Duane Swierczynski's paperback, The Wheelman, which sounds like a kick-ass book. I hope I'm not disappointed by it. Something tells me I won't be.

I've been looking at pictures of Key West and they look beautiful, an island paradise. I imagine there will be plenty of photo opportunities. We'll see. Like I said, I plan to share a lot of the pictures I take with everyone when we return, but I don't want to even think of coming back when I haven't even left yet.

While there, I'll wrap up the first draft of The Old Royal. I worked on it quite a bit today and have reached the climactic end. I'm giddy with anticipation of its conclusion and I doubt you'll be disappointed. Of course, once I finish it, I'll start in on the editing. Yuck. That's the part I dread the most, but I'm excited about getting it out of my head and onto the page. I want it to be the best story yet. Let's keep our fingers crossed that I do it justice in the editing phase. Right now, I'm just daydreaming of sitting on the beach as the sun sets over the ocean (snapping some pictures, of course) and working on my story. Reminiscent of Ernest Hemingway, but with more of a Raymond Chandler twist. What can I say? I love crime fiction.

So, here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Kwanza, Happy Chanukkah...(whatever your preference, please don't be offended if I left one out) from the Keys.

Majoring in Murder: available in paperback!

My novel, Majoring in Murder, about a college student-turned-hitman is now available via CreateSpace. If you haven't yet read it and don't own an eReader or just prefer the printed page (as I still do), then you should pick up a copy. While you're at, pick up copies as Christmas gifts for the readers in your life.

The paperback edition should be available on Amazon and B&N soon. It takes roughly 5 to 7 days to appear on Amazon. I'm guessing it takes longer than that to hit Barnes & Noble. In the meantime, you can check out my author page on Amazon to see the other books I've written. Tell your friends and check back often for updates.

Currently, I'm working on a time travel novel called The Old Royal. So far, everyone I've pitched the idea to has said it sounds awesome. I'm still in the early stages of writing it, so I can't really say too much about it. Believe me, I want to. I'm really jazzed about the story because it has so much potential. I've got a lot of it written already, but I don't want to build up a lot of hype and then have the story fizzle out. I hope to release a sneak peek of the cover early next year, maybe late January or early February once the manuscript is finished. If it sounds interesting, I encourage you to check back here for updates.

As I did with the release of my anthology, I'll leave you with some details for Majoring in Murder:

Page Count: 220
Category: Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Hard-Boiled
Trim Size: 6" x 9"
Synopsis:

Jason Mashburn is a typical college student with a promising future. His biggest concern is making good grades to keep his dad happy until he moves into a new dorm. Little does Jason know that his new roommate comes with baggage that would set Jason's life on a new course. When Jason finds himself under the control of a Mafia boss, Jason must find a way to protect his family as he attempts to stay alive and out of jail, all while he figures a way to get himself out from under the boss's thumb.

Victor Gischler's The Deputy, FREE!

I'm not sure if this is for a limited time (Victor didn't say if this would change), but Victor Gischler's The Deputy is free. According to his blog post, you can find it anywhere ebooks are sold.

Now, if you're not familiar with Mr. Gischler's work, let me just say that I bought his novel, Gun Monkeys, sometime ago because I heard it was a hard-boiled tale with hitmen. Hitmen? Hard-boiled? Those are two things right up my alley, so you better believe I got a copy. At that time, I was reading the likes of Raymond Chandler, Ross MacDonald, and Dashiell Hammett. I wanted to see if this Gischler-guy could write entertaining hard-boiled, hitman, crime fiction. He did! I absolutely loved that book. Since then, I've picked up a few of his other books: The Deputy and Shotgun Opera. I you're a fan of hard-boiled crime fiction, you should do yourself a favor and read Gischler. I doubt you'll regret it.

A couple of links you might find useful:
Victor's Blog
Amazon author page

Majoring in Murder is now available!

My novel, Majoring in Murder, is now available on Amazon and Smashwords.

It will be available soon on Barnes & Noble as well as in paperback from CreateSpace. If you enjoy crime fiction, especially the hitman sub-genre, then make sure you get your copy today. Check back for availability updates!

Here's the cover and a synopsis:

“As a college student with a promising future, Jason Mashburn gets an education that will change him forever. Jason's only concerns are studying hard in order to keep up his grades so he can please his dad. But, when a mafia boss blackmails him into knocking people off, good grades are the least of Jason's problems. Experience the metamorphasis of a killer as Jason recounts his story, descending into the depths of the underworld as he receives an education in dealing death. Majoring in Murder is that story of young man's transformation from studious academic to cold-blooded killer.”

Shaking things up a bit

As I said in my last post, I wanted to redecorate the website and my blog. Well, I managed to take care of the website. As for my blog, I changed the name and the banner picture. That's probably all of the changes I'm going to make to the appearance. The other change(s) I plan to make is to the content of my blogs.

What I set out to do from the start was blog about my endeavor to become a professional novelist. It feels like I've deviated from that goal, instead blogging about things I've read literary agents saying. While that can be informative for aspiring writers, there's more to it than me regurgitating what they say. Also, I'd like to share more of my own, first-hand experiences.

Recently, I've discovered another aspiring writer. Albeit, one who apparently has a big head start on me and has more experiences. I went back to the beginning of his blog posts and began reading. I found his blogs entertaining, informative, and very motivational. Then it dawned on me: this is what I had envisioned for my own blog. So, from this post forward, I want to return to my original idea and follow through, sharing my experiences as a writer working to make it in the publishing industry.

I hope you'll visit often, share your own experiences through the comments, and become a friend. Thanks for visiting.

Please stand by while I redecorate the blog...

I realize I haven't posted anything in quite some time. That's because I am hard at work on my third novel. It's a crime novel, currently called Double Dealing, but that is more than likely going to change. I have a list of titles that have come to me during the writing process that I like more.

But, I digress. Now, to the point. While writing my first crime novel, I've been reading hard-boiled crime fiction to keep my mind on track as I write. Here's something I've learned in the process. I love hard-boiled crime fiction!

While I set out to write horror and dark fiction, which I still like, I've grown to enjoy the shoot-em-up crime novels better. Also, I find it easier to come up with more appealing ideas I want to write about in crime fiction than I do in horror or dark fiction. So, instead of branding myself as a horror author, and while I'm still extremely early in my writing career, I've decided to redecorate my blog (and the website, eventually) to reflect the genre I've come to embrace.

I mean, seriously, wouldn't it be odd to brand one's self as a crime writer and have their website feel like a crypt? That, to me at least, is counter intuitive. So bear with me, dear friends, while my website undergoes some cosmetic changes.