Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, Italy, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Travel, Writing stuff | Tags: Amazon, blogging, direct publishing, Italy, jim downey, Kickstarter, Kindle, literature, promotion, reviews, travel
A break in the travelogs to share a couple items of interest…
Got a very nice email yesterday from someone who had just read Communion of Dreams. He specifically said that I could use excerpts from his email, so here’s a bit I wanted to share:
So many of the elements in the story gel it together almost seamlessly. One thing that I feel was expertly crafted, was the balance between informing the reader about back story, history, and some subplot, but not revealing the whole story of it. The most stand out example is the fire-flu. The story is briefly mentioned several times, and gets the reader thinking, and the gear turning. It is immediate and real, and leads one to wonder what is going on behind the scenes. It generates this feeling fullness and leads to a sense of wonderment (which is paramount in novels, and very hard to craft). As I read, I constantly wanted to know more about the fire-flu, what actually happened. Who experienced what, and how. It could have been an entire story in and of itself. It’s a subtle thing, but it makes or breaks a story in my opinion. Give a taste and leave one wanting more. The character development was also quite good. Human psychology was extremely accurate, and I sensed almost no errors or impossible traits present in anyone. It leads to a very real understanding and connectedness with the characters.
I *do* appreciate getting such feedback. Particularly as I am gearing up to write the prequel. Formal reviews and ratings on Amazon are also very welcome, and will help others decide for themselves whether or not they want to read the book.
Speaking of writing the prequel, as I mentioned the other day I am also working to put together a Kickstarter campaign. Most of the elements of this are things I or my wife can do. But one thing I need help with is in producing a short video explaining what the campaign is and why I think it is worthy of support from the Kickstarter community. So I’m looking for someone who has good video production skills and something of an artistic sensibility. If you are such a person, and would be interested in working with me on this project, please leave a comment or drop me a note ( jim@communionofdreams.com ).
OK, back to working on the next travelog. Hope to have it available later today.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Alzheimer's, Amazon, Art, Babylon 5, Ballistics, Book Conservation, Connections, Feedback, General Musings, Italy, J. Michael Straczynski, JMS, Marketing, Predictions, Promotion, Publishing, Religion, Science Fiction, Survival, Travel, Writing stuff | Tags: Alzheimer's, Amazon, antiquity, art, Babylon 5, ballistics, blogging, care-giving, direct publishing, firearms, free, guns, Hades, Italy, jim downey, John Bourke, Kickstarter, Kindle, Lake Avernus, literature, love, memoir, predictions, promotion, Rome, Science Fiction, travel, writing, Z'ha'dum
I mentioned the other day that my trip to Italy had kicked loose some writing blocks I had been struggling with, and that it had given me ideas for additional stories and novels. It did. It also made me think hard about some decisions I needed to make. Not just about writing. Also about how I spend my life.
Simply put, I have several things I still want to accomplish before I die. Things which I won’t accomplish if I keep putting them off, putting time and energy into things which really don’t matter. Like arguments. Like writing fluff which other people could write, just in order to earn a little money. My time — my life — is more valuable than that.
I think that it was the experience of seeing so many incredible accomplishments from Classical Antiquity still around some 2,000 years later which made an impact on me.
Now, I have no illusions that anything I do will last that long. Nor am I going to give up ‘living in the moment’ and trying to enjoy my life and those I share it with. But I am going to reshuffle my priorities in some very concrete ways.
One of these will be much less time dinking-around in social media. Oh, I will still participate to some extent, still maintain connections with my friends and fans. But I am going to be less self-indulgent in that regard.
Another change in priority will mean writing fewer reviews and articles. That means a loss of income which has made a difference in recent years, and I have to find a way to replace that. After all, I still have to live. The result of this will be a Kickstarter campaign which will be formulated and announced in coming weeks — plenty of people have said that they are looking forward to seeing what my next novel is, and this is one way for them to help make that a reality sooner rather than later, a chance for them to put their money where their mouth is.
(And speaking of Kickstarter campaigns, some friends of mine just launched one to expand their artistic repertoire which I highly recommend — you can find it here: Ancient Metalsmithing Made Modern, or Perfecting Pressblech )
I recently turned 54. And I have accomplished a number of things of which I am justly proud. I have friends and family I love. I have a wonderful wife. I have written books and articles which have brought joy, knowledge, and solace to others. I have helped to preserve history in the form of books & documents. I have created art, sold art, made my little corner of the world a slightly better place. I’ve even helped expand the pool of ballistics knowledge a bit. Frankly, I’ve lived longer and accomplished more than I ever really expected to.
But I have more yet to do. Time to get on with it.
Jim Downey
*Yes, a Babylon 5 reference. In this case specifically to the episode “Conflicts of Interest” in which Sheridan makes the following statement:
I’ve been doing a great deal of thinking, Zack. There are several hundred unpleasant things I’ve been avoiding doing since I got back from Z’ha’dum. Now with Delenn gone I don’t have any excuses. I have to start taking care of them.”
Appropriately enough, one of the places I got to visit while in Italy was Lake Avernus — which the Romans considered the entrance to Hades. Yeah, I’ve been to Hell and back. It’s given me a new perspective.
Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, James Burke, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science, Science Fiction, Society, tech, Writing stuff | Tags: Amazon, blogging, direct publishing, free, jim downey, Kickstarter, Kindle, literature, predictions, publishing, science, Science Fiction, Seth Godin, technology, writing
Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions came out when I was only four years old, but the ideas it contained percolated through the culture I grew up with, having substantial impact on everything I read at a crucial point in my life. In many ways, the concept of paradigm shift was self-fulfilling, as it came to define and dominate a lot of the intellectual backdrop of my formative years. This in no small part will explain a *lot* of the ‘meaning’ of Communion of Dreams.
And, unsurprisingly, it still has a major influence on how I see the world. Which is why sometimes I am willing to try seemingly absurd things: not because I think that they will necessarily succeed, but because I am looking for an inflection point, a fulcrum, which will allow me to assess and perhaps change perspective.
One of those things has been playing with the idea of doing a Kickstarter in lieu of a conventional publishing deal, as I mentioned previously. Of course, I’m hardly the first writer to consider this, since it seems that Kickstarter-type crowdfunding of creative projects has started to take hold in our society.
Well, I just came across another one, something of a template by author Seth Godin. Here’s an excerpt from his blog about it yesterday:
My idea: Kickstart + bookstore + ebooks.
The publisher (my key to the bookstore) is only willing to go ahead with the rest of the plan if my Kickstarter works. No Kickstarter, no distribution, the stakes are high. (As you saw at the Domino Project, the ebook part is easy now, but the bookstore is still critical to reach the many readers who find and buy books in stores).
If the Kickstarter works, then all the funders will get to read the book before anyone else, plus there are bonuses and previews and special editions. A few weeks after the early funders (that would be you) get to read it, the book will be available to book buyers for purchase the traditional way (wherever fine books are sold in the US, including digital readers). Of course, the Kickstarter funders get a better price, get it first and get unique bonuses, plus the pleasure of being in early–and knowing that they made it happen. The only way this book becomes real is if my readers get behind it now.
This was outlining his project, basically starting it. For the experiment he set a goal of $40,000 on his Kickstarter, and had it running for four weeks to see if it was viable.
He met his goal in three hours. And it is currently funded at $194,873 – almost 500% of his goal.
Now, Godin is a published author and successful self-promoter. He has a real following. Most authors, myself included, have no where near his level of support going into such an effort.
But he has found his fulcrum. He has proven that this is possible, at least under some conditions.
Are there other fulcrums out there? Is it possible for other authors to succeed under different conditions?
Specifically, is it possible for me to do?
Your thoughts welcome.
Jim Downey
Filed under: Amazon, Feedback, Kindle, Marketing, Promotion, Publishing, Science Fiction | Tags: Amazon, direct publishing, jim downey, Kickstarter, Kindle, literature, Science Fiction, writing
I mentioned yesterday “Stay tuned for further developments.” Well, what I’ve had kicking around in my head for a while was trying something . . .
That something is this: seeing if now that Communion of Dreams is starting to show some real traction with readers, perhaps I can attract a conventional publishing deal.
See, while the self-publishing thing seems to be working, it is taking a *lot* of time and energy (which I expected). And frankly, I would much rather put that time and energy into writing another couple of books. Because I have at least two more books in the Communion of Dreams ‘universe’ which I have been wanting to write for a while. Both of those are actually prequels – then there is also the matter of whether or not I want to attempt a sequel to Communion.
Were I to land a conventional publishing deal favorable enough, I could contract for another two or three books as part of the package, and turn over at least a substantial chunk of the time spent on promotional efforts and bookkeeping to the publisher. Chances are, they would even have some money for advertising, not to mention getting the book into conventional bookstores.
Oh, I know the reality of modern publishing well enough to realize that I would still have to do a lot of work to promote the book(s). But being able to hand most of that over to others would be worthwhile. And getting a sufficient amount of money in advance to take off some of the financial pressure of needing to earn money day in and day out would be a big help as well.
I’ve also considered doing something like a ‘Kickstarter’ project to get advertising money and something akin to an advance check, but I don’t think I’m to the point where that is a viable model. But going to a publisher with proven stats of 14,000 downloads in the first three months, as well as the very positive reviews, might be viable.
So I am giving this serious consideration. Thoughts welcomed.
Jim Downey
Communion Of Dreams 