Author: Jim Devitt

Jim Devitt’s debut YA novel, The Card, hit #1 in three separate categories on the Kindle Bestseller list in early January and was a finalist in the Guys Can Read Indie Author Contest this past summer. Devitt currently lives in Miami, FL with his wife Melissa and their children. Learn more about Jim at his blog and his Amazon author page.

Google Plus is a +1


5 Billion clicks per day

A bird whispered in my ear, and no, it wasn’t Twitter, that some peeps in the IU universe have requested a post on Google Plus. I had a couple of choices on what I was going to do today—real work that earns money, brand myself with a hot iron, or, write about Google+. Well, Google+ won!

There are many differing opinions on the effectiveness of this social media platform. I’ve always said, “If over 100 million people are on it, then it can’t be all bad.”

Not too bad for a platform that’s only been around since June of 2011. It’s estimated that the Google “+1” button is triggered over five BILLION times per day. An amazing stat considering how tricky it is to actually hover over that button and hope you can type something. Continue reading “Google Plus is a +1”

Good Night, Irene.

Okay, I’ve seen this post a hundred times and I always said, “It’ll never happen to me.” Well, it did. What a feeling … and it is not good.

The computer glowed as I headed out to do some stuff. As usual, I waved goodbye to my electronic friend and off I went. Meanwhile, while I was out enjoying a Friday afternoon in Coral Gables, meeting a friend for happy hour, my computer decides to have its own kind of happy hour.

On arrival back at the homestead, I saw the blinking cursor in the upper left hand corner. Ah—no problem, I thought. This has happened to me a million times. Punching the button, I sat back, waiting for the monster to awaken from its sleep. Nothing—after a few minutes, all I saw was a black screen with that damned cursor blinking at me from the upper left hand corner. Continue reading “Good Night, Irene.”

A Matter of Perspective

Lonely?

Writer.

 

That word looks so lonely. Every author has heard the proverbial, “Writing is the loneliest profession.”

Really.

We spend countless hours in front of the keyboard, with our imaginary and sometimes not so imaginary friends.

Think about it, if you write 750 words per hour (a decent clip, about what I average when I’m rolling) that means in the best case scenario, that’s 133 hours for a 100,000 word novel. In other words if you wrote for a solid five hours per day, it would work out to roughly 27 days—month and a week if you believe in weekends. Continue reading “A Matter of Perspective”

Can Authors be Rock Stars?

Can Authors be Rock Stars?

Pop culture, famous “A” list actors and mega sports stars fill the media spotlight. Huge numbers of fans flock to be a part of the “in” crowd or to see their hero in person. Jimmy Buffett, Phish, Lady Gaga or Kenny Chesney  sellout concerts in less than twenty minutes.

All performers and athletes connect with their fans causing everything from mild hysteria to crazy outfits and painted faces. The old black and white clips of fainting girls in the presence of Elvis or the Beatles has become an indelible image in our history. Continue reading “Can Authors be Rock Stars?”