Of course, these were all from friends and family, whom I expect to be as honest as they can without hurting my feelings. But at least they are reading it, which says something about how engaging it is. Expecting other comments soon from those not related to me.
I’ll make this quick. The first proof copy of The Conscience of Abe’s Turn (the Advanced Copy version) arrived earlier this week (on Monday).
I had made a mock-up of the final version (also showed in the video), wrapping it around Julie Carobini’s Chocolate Beach, which happens to be about the same size (about 5.5″ x 8.5″ x .78″), and which I’m enjoying more and more the further along I read it. My original plan was to print up a bunch of advanced copies through Lulu, because they’re fast, if expensive. I had expected the final version to take between 1 and 3 months to come to market. However…
As it turns out, submitting the final book block and cover to Lightning Source (the on-demand printer & fulfillment company) went off without a hitch. As I sit here right now, the proof copy of the actual book (as it will appear on Amazon) is on a UPS Overnight plane (or at least ready to be loaded onto a plane), destined to be delivered to my front door tomorrow. If it looks good (as I expect it to), the book may have a page on Amazon before the week is out. (However, it may take longer for the full details to become available on Amazon, or for Amazon to realize that it can actually order copies.) And I’ll definitely be able to order as many copies as I want from Lightning Source, at about half what Lulu charges. So, bully!
I may have to figure out to whom to give the one and only “Advanced Copy” of the book (autographed, with a notation that it’s the one and only Advanced Copy ever produced).
-TimK
UPDATE: Indeed that’s what I’m going to do. I received the proof today (September 18) and approved it. (Then I noticed a minor font problem and decided not to correct it because it only affects 3 pages and you won’t even notice it unless you’re looking for it and you’re anal-perfectionist like I am.) Here’s a video of me opening the package from Lightning Source:
Ran across this real-life product, called the “Flying Alarm Clock.” The idea is that there’s a plastic propeller thingy on top of the alarm clock that pops off and flies across the room when the alarm goes off. To stop the alarm from wailing in your ears, you have to actually trudge out of bed, rummage around on the floor, locate the plastic propeller thingy where it has landed, drag it back to the clock base, all while a siren-alarm is blaring your ears, and re-attach the propeller to the clock. Or you can just hurl the damn thing across the room. (Not a recommended procedure, but I’m sure it would stop the alarm.)
This Flying Alarm Clock actually sounds like a great idea. Simple, elegant, and it would probably even get me out of bed in the morning. It also serves as a lesson in not diluting your product with too many features, as this quote from the video reveals: Continue reading “Funny Bits from around the Internet”
What reminded me was when my computer alarm went off this morning, reminding me to post a friday snippet today. So with my sincere apologies, here’s the final-draft version of that draft-0 snippet.
This one I discovered at Jim “Suldog” Sullivan’s blog, who left the meme open for whoever wants to do it. I guess I can no longer say I don’t usually do memes, because I’ve kinda been doing them.
Here’s how this one works (Da Rulez):
Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog; some random, some weird.
Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on each of their blogs.
Here’s a writing meme that’s been floating around the blogosphere. Leah Braemel (way back in May) tagged Julia Smith with it, who tagged Jennifer McKenzie, who said, “I hate tagging folks. If you want to do it, let me know you did and I’ll come visit.” So Amy Ruttan did just that, and also said, “I tag whoever wants to play.” And Ann of Fractured Fiction picked it up (and also said, “I’m not going to tag anyone”), wherefrom I discovered it, and here it is…
1. List one of your writing goals for the upcoming month. How likely are you to accomplish it?
One of the problems I’ve been wrestling with as a writer is that I don’t plan my stories in enough detail. That is, I know what the story is about, and I know where the story is going, but as I’m writing, I hit walls in the plot, and I need to stop, back off, and navigate around them. No problem, except that it brings me out of flow, and I also end up having to go back and fix problems earlier in the story, both of which take time.
So I thought I’d try something similar to Lazette Gifford’s Phase System, which she wrote about several years ago. This is something I call “Agile Storytelling.” Basically, I write out a zeroth draft, which tells the entire story, but in a broad, abbreviated style. I pretend like I don’t know how to write. I tell, don’t show. The result reads like crap, but in order to complete this zeroth draft, I do need to go deep into the plot and the characters. That allows me to solve all the conceptual problems quickly, without spending too much time fleshing out details that I’ll just need to revise later.
After that, I edit the zeroth draft in order to create a first draft. I add in all the details and descriptions. I show, don’t tell. I create something I would not be completely embarrassed to be seen in public with.
Today, I thought I’d show you something I normally would not reveal, part of a zeroth draft for a short story, one of the bonus extras in The Conscience of Abe’s Turn book. Next week, I’ll post the first-draft version.
-TimK
P.S. Please remember that the following reads like crap. I know it reads like crap. I omitted a lot of necessary detail and description. (I also included a bunch of details that had already been established through other stories, because those need to be retained in order for the series to make sense.) Continue reading “Something I Would Be Embarrassed to Be Seen With (Friday Snippet)”
Dear email spammers everywhere. For future reference:
I already have all the medications I need, and I sure as hell wouldn’t get them from Canada!?
I have already had all the news from CNN that I can stand.
I don’t have any need to make it “good,” because you can’t improve on perfection.
How do you know that an extra 5 inches would even fit in my pants?
And if you really want me to be able to have sex 10 times a day, please find me a babysitter.
I have not been selling stuff on eBay, nor buying it, nor do I have a Google AdWords account. (Okay. Not completely true, but I am smart enough to know whether an email is really coming from eBay or Google or not.)
I do not have an account with Wells Fargo.
For future reference, UPS tracking numbers do not begin with the letter N.
I have no friends; therefore, they do not send me Hallmark e-Cards.
I neither need nor care for a Rolex. And if I did, I wouldn’t want a cheap knock off.
And I do not need a website design service.
I do not speak Russian or Chinese.
I do not gamble or run a gambling site.
I do not need a job that pays “1000$,” nor one that pays $125,000.
Think about it: If I really wanted to see Angelina Jolie naked, I probably already have.
I do not care to hear from Jeff Dominguez, Geraldo Krueger, Scotty Kaplan, Blaine Hinkle, or anyone else whose name you made up.
If you could integrate these facts into your future marketing efforts, you would dramatically increase your response rate. At the same time, you would be improving life for all online marketers, especially those of us who actually know what we’re doing.
I just got off the phone with RCN, because I got my new RCN bill, the first after they switched completely to digital. They’ve proven better at irking me than even Comcast was.
To review, about a month and a half ago, I got an oversized postcard in the mail from RCN. It said, “You’ll lose programming on: July 22, 2008 [unless you get a digital converter box]. But once installed and the date has passed, you’ll enjoy more entertainment choices than ever before. For a limited time, YOUR FIRST STANDARD CONVERTER BOX IS FREE, and additional boxes are only $2.95 a month per box.” (emphasis in original) So I called right up and got 2 converter boxes.
The first problem is that this bill is $25.03 higher than the last one. (I was expecting something about $3 higher.) WTF? A brief examination showed that that they charged me $2.95 for one box and $5.95 for the other. On top of that, they back-billed me for last month’s rental on the converter boxes. (So double the overcharge amount.) And to sweeten the deal, they charged me for digital cable, which shows up as a $38.49 additional charge. WT-double-F? But more on that in a second. Continue reading “Check Your New RCN Bill for This Error”
