Up around the bend

The world, and the way we live in it, has changed. These are extraordinary times. How has the business of being an author changed, for you, in this new reality?

by Dietrich

These are extraordinary times, and the world keeps revolving and evolving and many of the events going on around us keep us on the edge of our seats. And in order for me to get any decent writing done, I sometimes feel I need to extract myself from what’s going on in the real world, tune it all out, sit at my desk and get my head into the imaginary world that my characters live in.

As far as the publishing industry goes, in the years that I’ve been an author a lot has happened. Digital print-on-demand has become a great option to traditional offset printing. And we’ve bounced from print books to books-on-tape, to ebooks on disc to ebooks online, and back to print again. And audiobooks have come along, and they continue to be a growing segment of the industry. And self-publishing has evolved and continues to offer another avenue for authors as well as for readers. Platforms like Smashwords and CreateSpace allow indie authors to upload and market their work. 

While there has been a recent decline for the big-box book stores, it seems that many indie bookstores are starting to pick up and thrive once more. And Amazon’s book sales just keep jumping and showing stronger numbers every year. Social media, blogs and podcasts have become popular ways for published authors as well as those who are self-published to get noticed and promote their work online. And more literary festivals, conventions and special events keep popping up. 

Whatever the format, print books, ebooks, audiobooks, traditionally published or self-published, the good news is people continue to read, and they’re not just looking for the latest books, they’re also interested in backlists too.

And there are great blog sites like this one where an author can join in with other authors and be heard, and if they’re crafty, they can sneak in a little self-promotion. For example:

Cradle of the Deep 

Getting into bed with the wrong guy can get you killed.

Wanting to free herself from her boyfriend, aging gangster ‘Maddog’ Palmieri, Bobbi Ricci concocts a misguided plan with Denny, Maddog’s ex-driver, a guy who’s bent on getting even with the gangster for the humiliating way in which he was sacked.

Helping themselves to the gangster’s secret money stash, along with his Cadillac, Bobbi and Denny slip out of town, expecting to lay low for a while before enjoying the spoils.

Realizing he’s been betrayed, an enraged Maddog calls in stone-cold killer Lee Trane. As Trane picks up their trail, plans quickly change for Bobbi and Denny, who now find themselves on a wild chase of misadventure through northern British Columbia and into Alaska.

Time is running out for them once they find out that Trane’s been sent to do away with them, or worse, bring them back – either way, Maddog will make them pay.

It comes out November 3rd, and can be preordered from my publisher ECW Press here.