fiction

Marty Singer #2 – Blueblood – released!

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I’m incredibly excited to announce that the second book in the Marty Singer crime fiction series, Blueblood, is available for all major e-readers and will be available in paperback within the week!

Synopsis

Four unrelated murders. Nothing special in Washington DC. Not even good enough to make the evening news. But then a concerned police lieutenant approaches retired homicide detective Marty Singer with a simple fact that changes everything.

They were all cops.

In a race to stop the killings, Marty tackles the case from the outside, chasing the killer from deadly Southeast DC to the heart of the Virginia gangland, on a mission to stop the spilling of yet more Blueblood.

Tempted? Read more at Goodreads (Chapter One), Amazon’s Look Inside (halfway through Chapter 3).

Buy
You can get Blueblood at all major digital retailers for just $3.99 right now:

Amazon
Kobo
Smashwords

Apple/iBooks, Barnes & Noble, and Sony will ship at the end of this week and should be available soon. Paperback copies are going through vetting at CreateSpace as you read this and should be available within just a few days.

Stay tuned for contests and giveaways!

Seven Into the Bleak: Free today!

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My cascading six day fantasy sale continues with Seven Into the Bleak, FREE on Amazon.com today and tomorrow (June 25 – 26) only!

Synopsis

A band of companions–each with his or her own reasons–delves deep into the heart of the Bleak, the infamous and horrifying cavern world miles beneath their own. But their dreams of a quick journey fade into black when their way home is cut off.

Tavern songs dwell on heroes returning laden with loot, fame, and glory, but rarely do they talk of the fear, and loneliness, and misery of life in the World Under the World. The group of seven is hard-pressed to simply survive–both from struggles within and without–and there will be no songs to sing of the companions if they succumb to the horrors of The Bleak.

Seven into the Bleak is an original fantasy short story of 8,100 words or about 30 paperback pages.

Ready…Read…Review!
If you enjoy Seven Into the Bleak, please consider writing a review at any one of the following fine websites. Your support is what makes my writing possible. Thanks in advance!

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Seven-Into-the-Bleak-ebook/dp/B00818DIVG/
Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13639606-seven-into-the-bleak
Librarything http://www.librarything.com/work/12595544/reviews/85867240
Shelfari http://www.shelfari.com/books/28841899/Seven-Into-the-Bleak

Don’t Forget…
Tomorrow ends my six-day, cascading fantasy sale, but don’t forget all three stories are normally available for just 99¢!

Assassin: Free today!

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My cascading six day fantasy sale continues with Assassin, FREE on Amazon.com today and tomorrow (June 23 – 24) only!

Synopsis

For almost twenty years, war has raged between the mountainkingdomofThraceand the sea-faringlandofAndal, exhausting both nations. Prince Lowan, the educated and debonair second son of the King of Thrace, has arrived to make peace with his father’s enemies. But the price Andal requires for peace is high–too high–and Lowan knows there are many ways to influence a nation at war.

Assassin is an original fantasy short story of 4,200 words, or about 17 paperback pages. It includes a Story Notes section, outlining the background and thought process behind the writing as well as an excerpt from Matthew Iden’s fantasy short story Sword of Kings.

Ready…Read…Review!
If you enjoy Assassin, please consider writing a review at any one of the following fine websites. Your support is what makes my writing possible. Thanks in advance!

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Assassin-ebook/product-reviews/B007JJSMTQ/
Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13556737-assassin
Librarything http://www.librarything.com/work/12595546/reviews/85867256
Shelfari http://www.shelfari.com/books/27846208/Assassin

Don’t forget…
One more fantasy short story is on sale over the next few days: Seven Into the Bleak (June 25-25)!

Addendum
As of 8:30 EST, Assassin hasn’t gone free yet due to server latency at Amazon. I’ve asked them to look into it and push it to free manually, but of course that might be me whistling in the wind. I’ll update here when it goes free.

Assassin is free as of 12:30 p.m. EST. Have at it!

The Price of Art

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I’m friends with a musician (not Vince Gill) who is considering throwing in the towel or at least going on strike, until he can find a way to support himself through his art. This isn’t a debut; he’s been playing and touring for thirty years. He’s had no illusions about his chances of hitting it big, but he’s persevered for a very long time by working hard, growing his talent, and creating a following.

But it’s not enough.

He’s sick of social media, he’s sick of planning his life out 16 weeks, he’s tired of having to do online shows for Paypal “tips”…in short, he’d like to pursue his art, entertain some people, and not starve doing it.

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Don’t Let Your Manuscript Push You Around

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At a certain point when you’re writing, no matter what the subject matter or how excited you are about a plot–often when you’re ready to revise or rewrite–there’s a moment when you’ll feel like you’re being pushed around by the words on the page.

And that’s the wrong relationship to have with a manuscript.

[Read more…]