The Bookie Monster reviewed Still Dying 2, and you should read it!
http://www.bookie-monster.com/2014/01/still-dying-2-anthology.html
The Bookie Monster reviewed Still Dying 2, and you should read it!
http://www.bookie-monster.com/2014/01/still-dying-2-anthology.html
Yesterday you were amazed with my heartfelt and enigmatic first half of 2013 in review… and now… without further ado…
In the beginning of August I re-released Death Metal in paperback with the new cover, which I like. I also started to think about ideas for the second book in the series, so look for that in 2014(I hope). I also released Golden Lion Cafe Complete, with all of the stories in one release. I also released Dagon, the fourth story in the Keyport Cthulhu series. And kicked off the third Flagler Beach Fiction Series story arc with JandJ Fitness Part 1.
September was another busy month, with JandJ Fitness Parts 2, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5 released. I ended the month with JandJ Fitness Complete, putting them all together in one spot.
In October I decided to slow down the releases, especially anything horror, as most horror books would be pushed out in this month and I’d get lost in the shuffle. Instead, I started the fourth Flagler Beach Fiction Series with Flagler Fish Company Part 1. Part 2 and Part 3 were also released in October. I was also lucky enough to get involved in a charity anthology with some amazing authors and got to write a cool chapter in the ongoing story, The Carnival 13 by SAD House Press.
With the start of November I released the fifth and final story (for now) in the Keyport Cthulhu series, Evil. I then released Keyport Cthulhu in eBook and Print versions, with all five stories in one. Flagler Fish Company Part 4 and Part 5 came next. Then it was time for Flagler Fish Company Complete in both eBook and Print. November also saw a sequel for me and Tim Baker with Dying Days: Siege 2, a return to European Village. Speaking of Dying Days, I also released the long-awaited Dying Days: Origins, which featured Tosha Shorb, a woman many readers should recognize. It was also released in Print. I was also lucky enough to be invited into the Epic Apocalypse Apocalyptic Horror Box Set (with Darlene Bobich: Zombie Killer included). You really need to check out the killer lineup, with Mark Tufo, Joe McKinney, John O’Brien, Heath Stallcup, Shawn Chesser and James Cook.
Another great lineup was formed and released in December, with Still Dying 2 (yet another Dying Days release), featuring an anthology of great authors playing in my zombie world: Mark Tufo, Patrick C. Greene, Frank Edler, Tim Baker, AD Roland, Brent Abell, Jaime Johnesee and Sean Slagle. It also came out in Print.
I was also able to update a few books, add some more into print, and also release everything on Barnes & Noble, Kobo, SmashWords and Apple.
And 2013 isn’t done yet… my Necromance series of horror erotica has been picked up by Hazardous Press as part of their Hazardous Encounters line, and the first two will be out within a few days (I’ll post a new link, don’t worry), with many more in 2014.
So add another 28 to the list in the second half of 2013. All told, I put out 45 releases in 2013… not bad, eh? I don’t expect to be as prolific in 2014 with this many releases, as I’m concentrating on some longer novels, but you’ll still see plenty out there from me.
Armand
SPOTLIGHT ON: Tim Baker
What is the title of your story in Still Dying 2?
Dying Days: Angel
Quick description of it (no spoilers)
Angel Godwin must escape her own home or be taken by zombies.
Something unique about it.
It leads into Dying Days: The Siege of European Village
Your promo links.
Website: www.blindoggbooks.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlindoggBooks
Twitter: @blindoggbooks
Author photo courtesy www.imagesbytasia.com
Your short Bio.
Rhode Island native Tim Baker released his first novel, Living the Dream, in August, 2009 and has followed up with 5 others since then. Tim writes fast-paced, off-beat crime stories full of colorful characters and loaded with unexpected and often humorous twists and turns, set in Flagler Beach and St. Augustine, Florida.
He also thinks his favorite author, Armand Rosamilia, has beautiful eyes. Which he does.
Kindle ($3.99): http://www.amazon.com/Still-Dying-2-Days-ebook/dp/B00H4HHALO/ref=la_B004S48J6G_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1386293844&sr=1-2
Print ($12.99): https://www.createspace.com/4557463
SPOTLIGHT ON: Tim Baker
What is your latest release and what genre is it?
Dying Days: Siege 2
Zombie/Horror
Quick description of it.
Siege 2 is the sequel to “Dying Days: The Siege of European Village”. It follows a small band of survivors in their efforts to find a safe haven from the never ending zombie hordes.
Something unique about it.
Siege 2 was co-written by Armand Rosamilia and me. The story focuses on 4 main characters. Two from Armand’s Dying Days series (Darlene Bobich & John Murphy) and two from my own series of thrillers (Ike & Brewski). In so doing, Armand and I combined the respective worlds of our existing books into one.
Links for people to buy it.
Your promo links.
Website: www.blindoggbooks.com
Blog: http://blindoggbooks.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlindoggBooks
Twitter: @blindoggbooks
Your short Bio.
Tim Baker was born and raised in Rhode Island, where he lived until moving to Florida in 2006. He has written 6 novels and co-written 2 zombie novellas. He is an avid dog lover, a motorcycle enthusiast and a proud member of Red Sox Nation!
I wrote last week… and I had a good seven days doing it, too… even though I only wrote on five of them…
Tues 10/8 – 2,455 words
Wed 10/9 – 3,003 words
Thurs 10/10 – 2,346 words
Fri 10/11 – 0 words (meeting other authors and then my radio show)
Sat 10/12 – 0 words (World Zombie Day in Jacksonville)
Sun 10/13 – 5,600 words (co-writing the sequel to Dying Days: The Siege of European Village with Tim Baker and then my own projects)
Mon 10/14 – 2,154
Projects completed: Flagler Fish Company Parts 1 and 2... sequel to Dying Days: The Siege of European Village.
15,560 words done in the week… My weekly goal is 10,000 words, so I made up for the week before a bit (I only hit 8,872 then)… I’m up about 4,000 words on the month and year and I hope to keep it going… Today starts a new week for me, so my goal is to not only hit my 2,000 words but to get ahead as much as possible.
I’ll try to keep my weekly posts going as long as people are interested in them. I hope it will inspire you to hit your own daily and weekly goals, and it keeps me honest by having to say what I wrote whether I hit the mark or failed…
Armand Rosamilia
Books, Beer and Blogshit posted a sweet kiss-ass post about not only The Castaways but Tim Baker’s B-Sides and Mando’s Manic Melodies shows, all airing live tonight on Surf 17 Radio
http://booksbeerblogshit.blogspot.com/2013/09/friday-night-special.html
Over the past couple of years I’ve done countless book signings (I could actually count them and figure out a number but I’m too lazy, and countless makes it seem like I’ve done hundreds of them). Whether it was a solo book signing or one with Tim Baker or at a convention, I always try to come up with a game plan to get me in and out of the event with minimal energy and manpower to do it. I also hate carrying heavy boxes of books.
My problem (and it is a good problem) is I can bring 45 print books with me to a signing. 45 different titles I am in. That is quite a few choices, although I don’t have all of them in bulk to sell. I usually have 10 different titles, sometimes 12… but then, when you carry a dozen copies of each, you run into carrying three boxes of books or more. Quite heavy. I have an old luggage dolly I use, but the wheels are getting stiff and it can only hold three of the smaller boxes. And it rattles if I pull it over uneven surfaces.
I also make sure I have a pen in my pocket and some singles and fives for change. The pen is usually new, since I steal one each book signing from Tim Baker. I guess I could figure out how many signings Tim and I do based on the pile of pens on my desk at home. What else? Tim usually brings the table if we need one, and a couple of chairs. We all have boxes of bookmarks and business cards, and enough back stock in books to supply a bookstore.
But I’ve been to conventions where authors and publishers bring an entire small city of items with them, and it amazes me. The work involved to lug it in and out, especially if you only sell a few books. Ideally, leaving a signing with empty boxes is always the goal.
Here’s my question for those who do book signings, whether it is at your local bookstore, at a convention or just about anywhere else you sit down at a table and start peddling your wares: what do you bring along, and do you have a Book Signing Kit with items you have to have in it?
Armand
I might have touched on this idea but it bears repeating… because I say so. And if I already wrote a blog about it, I’m too lazy to look, and I want to come into this fresh, without reading what I’d written previously. The problem with being serious with this writing gig for the last 18 months is I tend to forget what came before. There’s also the fact I was in a much different place, physically and mentally, a year and a half ago.
I’ve been writing on and off since I was twelve, and releasing stories and novellas here and there since about 2000, but I tend to look at the last year or two as the time I got really serious about doing this as a hopeful career and not just a fun hobby. So far, so good…
And I consider myself a Horror author. There are those who consider me a Zombie author. I really just want to be an Author. But is that too late for me?
Fellow author Tim Baker and I were out and about the other night doing something very important (OK, we were once again drinking banana bread beer at Farley’s Irish Pub), and there was a guy there who pointed at me and said ‘Aren’t you the Zombie Guy?’
I get that every now and then, and it is such an ego stroke for me to be recognized not as the guy who seems to eat too much and hang out, but as the Zombie Guy. He didn’t recognize Tim Baker, but that’s another story.
When I sit and write all morning in Kokomo’s Cafe, customers come in and out and I talk to a few of them. The one day I wasn’t there? Owner Tina posted a shot of my empty seat (below) and I got so much crap from people calling me a slacker I had to get back to work the next day. And it was awesome… I’m getting the reputation around town and it’s pretty cool. And not for when I tear up the Chinese buffet anymore, either.
But what if I write a romantic comedy? An epic fantasy? A book with fuzzy lovable polar bears? Do I have to start all over again? Will my Horror and/or Zombie readers be willing to read it, or simply dismiss it? What if you read a funny book I wrote about a turtle family and then a reader loved it and picked up Highway To Hell, with a brutal opening? Would they run away, never to read another story from me?
I’m not interested in finding pen-names and starting again (I did it already with my erotica), but I never started writing Zombie stories to be known as the Zombie Guy. I started writing to be known as a Published Author. Or am I being an idiot? Isn’t it better to be known for something, sell some books, and keep living the dream?
I bring this up because I have a very non-Horror idea brewing in my head, and it won’t go away. Since I’m currently wading through Dying Days 3 I can push it off for a few weeks, but I know once this zombie book is finished the idea will jump right back at me front and center.
And, at this point, I think I need to write it. And see what happens…
Brent Abell (http://brentabell.wordpress.com/) was kind enough to pass me these questions along, and I am honored to answer them. Then I will choose three authors at the end to keep it going, and answer the questions themselves…
Questions for Armand Rosamilia
What are you working on right now?
Besides keeping my weight over 300 lbs.? I am in the midst of Dying Days 3, my continuing zombie story. I should have the first draft done by May 1st and then it goes to the editor, with a late June release planned. I’m also working on 16 other stories at once, too…
How does it differ from other works in its genre?
It is just better. OK, maybe it isn’t… but I like writing it, and other people like reading it so far. And it has zombies in it. But it’s more about the people. But it also has zombies in it.
What experiences have influenced you?
I think you need every experience to influence you, either good or bad. As a writer I’m constantly people watching and committing conversations or ideas to memory. Monday, for instance, I witnessed a sixty year old woman breaking up with her fifty year old boyfriend because his kids are ‘animals’, as she put it. I eavesdropped on the entire conversation, and added a character or two to a future story.
Why do you write what you do?
I can’t help it. I have always read horror and been fascinated by apocalyptic ideas and stories, so zombies are just another means to an end (pun intended). The old adage ‘write what you know’ applies to what you read a lot of as well. I’ve read a ton of horror books in my life so far.
How does your writing process work?
Better some days than others. I set a daily goal of 2,000 words and then attempt to get there between 8 am and noon Monday through Friday, and get up early on the weekends and hit my goals before the kids are fully awake and bothering me to eat.
What is the hardest part about writing?
The daily discipline. Some days I just want to play on Facebook and push it off until tomorrow. But then I know my goal for tomorrow will be 4,000 words and I’d be rushing. So I bust my butt to get it done. Or else.
What would you like to try as a writer that you haven’t yet?
Getting out of my comfort zone completely. I’d love to write a romantic comedy or a straight action thriller, or maybe even a historical dramatic piece. I’ve dabbled in erotica and enjoyed it, and I know straying too far away from horror might piss off my fan base, but I will eventually expand my range.
Who are the authors you most admire?
Anyone who braves the rejection and fear and just writes and completes a story. I run into so many people who swear they are going to write, and so many more who have something incomplete. Rare do you find someone who finished a story and submitted it or published it themselves, and then kept writing. I have over seventy stories/novellas/etc. on sale right now, and my goal is fifty times that… and that would be a lot of stories! (I can’t figure out the math on that)
Who are new authors to watch out for?
I was recently in the Fifty Shades of Decay anthology, and I found some amazing authors in there I will be reading more of. Some might not be new to you, but to me they are. I love when I read someone’s work and it blows me away and I have to pile on their back-list and catch up.
What scares you?
Fear of losing you… and dogs. Maybe dogs more.
Thanks for taking the time to read this senseless crap. If you want to read even more senseless crap, next Wednesday go over to see authors Tim Baker (http://blindoggbooks.wordpress.com/), Tonia Brown (www.thebackseatwriter.com) and Lisa Woods (http://LisaWoodsWrites.com) as they answer these fascinating questions and try to outdo me with my subversively interesting answers.