Month: August 2012

At Last … A Plan!

We all know that marketing ourselves can be a real pain in the you-know-what. Some people love it and others wish they would never have to look at another Tweet. Anecdotal evidence here on Indies Unlimited has suggested that if you do nothing, your book sales will not slip.

Planning and Scheduling = Success

My belief is that if you have a strong platform and multiple books on the marketplace, then that might be true. However, if you are a new author or just have a single book out, then you had better find a way for people to find you.

Today, I’m sharing with you a simple method to make sense of all of this. We are going to put together an “Editorial Calendar” (fancy terminology adopted in the social media marketing business) to help you stay on track with your plan. Continue reading “At Last … A Plan!”

Flash Fiction Challenge: Win, Lose or Run

Photo by K.S. Brooks

Today might be Eddie’s last chance. He ran out of money a long time ago. He ran out of things to hock and pawn and sell a long time ago. He ran out of friends he could borrow from.

Aunt Sadie wouldn’t miss a few twenties from her purse though. Anyway, today is a sure thing. He’d pay her back. He’d pay Big Vinnie back. Everything would be okay again.

Today would be different. This would be his day. He could see the horse he picked really wanted to win. It was right there in his eye: winner. Eddie could feel the electricity in the air. He could feel victory deep down in his bones. He always could.

In 250 words or less, tell me a story incorporating the elements in the picture. The 250 word limit will be strictly enforced. Continue reading “Flash Fiction Challenge: Win, Lose or Run”

Mark Jacobs Announces New Release

A Bittersweet Science by Mark JacobsAuthor Mark Jacobs is pleased to announce the release of his new contemporary fiction book, A Bittersweet Science.

A Bittersweet Science offers an epic look into the world of big-time boxing from the perspectives of the many individuals who make up this frequently brutal, yet often entrancing sport. From the exploited fighters who bleed for pay to the scurrilous promoters and slick young television executives who make the backroom deals to the sardonic journalists who are there to record it all with a jaded eye. More than just a boxing story, A Bittersweet Science asks the profound question of whether the ends really do justify the means in a world without objective morality.

A Bittersweet Science was released on August 15, 2012 by St. Januarius Publishing. It is available on Amazon.com as an e-book, and will be free to download on Sunday, August 17th.

Off The Hook

You’ve probably already heard that wonderfully creepy urban tale about a teenage boy and girl making out in a car in some Lovers Lane in Anytown, USA, and how the boy starts telling the girl of the “Hook Murders” in the area, whereby amorous teens are being killed by an insane, escaped killer with a hook for a hand. Perhaps not the smartest move on the boy’s part, as his girlfriend gets all distracted by fear, going from initial anxiety to eventual near-hysteria, resisting his advances and demanding they leave that instant. Which he eventually does. He’s all bummed, they bicker on the way back, arrive at her place, she jumps out, slams the door…. and screams. He runs around to her side of the vehicle…. and sees what she sees: a single bloody hook dangling from the door handle.

Creeped out? Good, because I am, and a good haunting is no fun alone. Continue reading “Off The Hook”