Featured Author: James Raven

James RavenJames Raven was born in London and grew up in the gritty streets of Peckham. His first book was published when he was twenty-five.

He has been a journalist for most of his working life. After reporting for newspapers, he moved into television as a news scriptwriter. He then worked his way up to become Director of a UK News Division.

James and a colleague run an independent TV production company which has made a series of sports programmes and factual documentaries. However, spends most of his time writing. He is the author of a number of books including Rollover, Stark Warning, and Urban Myth.Learn more about James from his Amazon author page and his website.

MaliciousMalicious
by James Raven
Available from Amazon US and Amazon UK.

Cover up your webcams…or suffer the consequences.

He calls himself the Slave Master. He spies on women through their computer webcams. Then he blackmails those who unknowingly reveal their secrets to him. His last victim was brutally murdered. Now he’s targeting the cop in charge of the investigation. To him she’s the perfect prey – because she has secrets of her own.

How to add a MailChimp email signup form to your blog

mailchimp-logoLet me say it right upfront: I hate emailed newsletters. Most businesses send them out far too frequently for my taste. I usually let them languish in my spam folder unless I’m in the market for something they’re selling. But with Facebook limiting the organic reach of posts (unless you pay them), a newsletter is one of the few free ways left for us to be certain that our fans get word of a new release.

So when David Gaughran recommended MailChimp, I gave a lusty sigh, bit the bullet, and signed up. MailChimp is free for mailing lists with fewer than 2,000 addresses. The free service also limits the number of newsletters you can send out per year, but the limit is something like 800. I’m only intending to annoy people when I have a new book out, so I’m pretty sure I’ll be okay. Continue reading “How to add a MailChimp email signup form to your blog”

The Organizing War

organizeWriters always seem to be busy. Most of us have to work a second job to keep the bills paid. Granted I’m “retired” but I also have a 100 acre farm to look after, which means my time is usually at a premium. I’ve discovered the more books I write, the less I seem to stay prepared for impromptu marketing opportunities. And this is an important thing when you’re an Indie.

So what’s a busy person to do? It takes time to organize all our writing stuff. Not everyone has the skills to adapt specialized software programs to their uses. But even a simple Word document can save you oodles of time when it comes to promotions.

Admittedly I probably spend too many hours on Facebook. Scanning the posts, I laugh, cry, and occasionally find opportunities for free marketing. Why not? There are dozens of pages that WANT you to post your book links. Some require the ASIN, others want the ISBN, and most want the actual buy links to the pages. If you have multiple books this can be a real pain to get everything needed for a promo. Continue reading “The Organizing War”

Flash Fiction Vote: Which Was Your Favorite?

voteguyCheck out the entries in the flash fiction challenge this week: which one will come out on top? You decide. Take a read; cast your vote. Which was your favorite?

Check out this week’s entries here. Make your choice, then use those share buttons at the bottom of the post to spread the word.

Voting polls close Thursday at 5 PM Pacific time.

 

Which author wrote your favorite story this week?

  • Ed Drury (37%, 71 Votes)
  • Jerrid Edgington (25%, 48 Votes)
  • Sara Stark (12%, 23 Votes)
  • Marjorie McCoy (7%, 14 Votes)
  • Kathy Steinemann (7%, 13 Votes)
  • TJ Perkins (6%, 12 Votes)
  • Jon Jefferson (3%, 5 Votes)
  • James R Tate (3%, 5 Votes)
  • MatoSkaChikala (1%, 2 Votes)
  • graydon archer (1%, 1 Votes)

Total Voters: 194

Loading ... Loading ...

NOTE: Entrants whose submissions exceed the 250 word limit are eliminated from the poll.