Three in a bed

I should write comedy novels. All you have to do is hire a motorhome, take yourself, the wife and the dog away with you and let the research take care of itself. One thing we didn’t have in our possession was years of camping experience. Looking at the other happy campers we came across, I decided that their stoicism is what we need when it comes to defending the rights and principles of our glorious nation (Brexit!). They all smiled! I think they must have all been treated to a facelift at some time to make sure the smile remains fixed despite the weather and the conditions. And they all gave me the impression that they wouldn’t be beaten, whatever they came up against. The dog didn’t complain too much. She wasn’t too sure, and just to be on the safe side she decided our bed was much better than hers. So we ended up as three in the bed, cold, sleepless and wondering how, if ever, it could improve. We did manage though, and made the best of a “challenging” job. The end result was that we cut our holiday short by a day and got back to enjoy our comfortable bed, decent shower, cooked grub. Churchill once said, “Never give up”. I say, “Never again”.

Although I wasn’t able to devote my time to writing, I did manage to read a novel by Claire Francis (Dark Devotion). She made a name for herself by sailing round the world single handed. When she wrote her first thriller (Night Sky, I think), I read it and was surprised at how good she was. If there are any budding writers out there wanting to know how to craft a novel, they could learn a great deal from a master at work by reading one of her novels.

I thought about my WIP while I was away, and have reluctantly come to the conclusion that I will not finish the book. For that reason I have set it aside and will think of something else to occupy my mind on the literary front. I will continue to promote and advertise, but with a measure of control that has been a little lacking recently. I intend using Facebook again, but not until I have finished Michael Cooper’s book on the subject. I’ll probably have to read it twice, because I need to ensure I come close to the advice he is giving out.

I kept my eye on my book sales too. I sold none over a period of five days, probably because the FB ads had finished. But yesterday I sold six. It’s amazing how such a small number can get you excited. I don’t expect too much now, until I start advertising again. I need to wait until next month because of my self-imposed budget limit. If I exceed that, I’ll be pouring good money down the drain. And my wife will divorce me. Probably keep the dog though.

Those of you who have read my bio on my author’s page will know I published a religious book based on my conversion to Christianity. I preached at different fellowships when we lived in Spain: something I never believed I would be capable of. Once we returned to England, I assumed my preaching would come to an end. But God moves in mysterious ways (so they say), and I have been asked to join the preaching team at my local church. We’ve been attending for about two years now, so it’s probably about enough time for people to get to know us. Some people might wonder how I can justify my position as a preacher and a thriller writer at the same time, but I feel no conflict. If you’re curious about my “other side”, why not have a look at my book, A Word in Your Ear (How God changed my retirement plans). https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01EA6LWUQ.

So what next? A small promotion for Hell’s Gate today — price reduction to £0.99. A cross promotion coming up during October, but before that, more reading on Facebook advertising. Let’s hope I get to grips with it. Wish me luck!

Struggling and budding writers.

No progress on the literary front for me this week, simply because I’m being persuaded that my current WIP is not a good idea. I have seen figures (statistics) that support the premise that ‘series’ novels outsell ‘cross-genre’ novels by something like 80% to 20%. Having now published two thrillers with Marcus Blake as the main character, it makes sense for me to go for a third book with Marcus leading the way. But this puts me into the literary straight-jacket I’ve mentioned before, knowing I have to follow that line to improve my potential readership. I need a good plot for Marcus, and at the moment I’m more likely to win the lottery than I am to find a good plot. I’ll just keep my fingers crossed that something turns up.

We were at a family wedding last night. My niece, Sarah, was marrying her partner, Simon who she has lived with for about ten years. They have a daughter called Jasmine and a son, Hugh. Jasmine was very keen to meet me because she was amazed to discover some time ago that there was an author in the family. And not just that, but her Uncle Matthew had been mentioned in the credits to one of the books. She even took the book into school for a “Show and Tell”. Jasmine has already written a story: a five page story. She also played the Wedding March on the keyboard for her mum and dad as they walked up the aisle. Certainly a very talented little girl. We had to meet.

Jasmine told me she would like to write another story, so I asked her to come up with a 20 page book this time, and I will see if I can get it published for her. I would use CreateSpace if it’s possible, or maybe Lulu, but I would love to able to do this for her. I’ve no idea if I can produce a book that small, or even if CS will accept my account with Jasmine as the author. Time will tell though. It was lovely talking to Jasmine: she seemed so shy, and perhaps a little intimidated by my ‘reputation’.

On the subject of being the author for a title: I had to persuade CS that my re-sized paperback, Roselli’s Gold, was really my book. I sent the required proof to them and have since received the new book. Right size too.

Tomorrow we are off on a five day break. I’ve hired a motor-home and we’ll drive to Dorset and Devon. It’s a ‘try-out’ for us. I’ve never driven a motor-home before, so it looks like it could be fun. We’re not hiring a Winnebago, just a 2 berth Chausson. We’re taking the dog with us.

I have downloaded a book on Facebook advertising after seeking advice on one of the forums I use. In response to the question about audience relevance, I was told that anything below 9 is a waste of time. The book I downloaded is called ‘HELP, my Facebook ads suck!’ by Michael Cooper. At a cost of under £4, it isn’t money wasted. And when you consider my relevance on UK is 4, and on USA it’s 7, then I need help. The author of the book has an impressive CV, and the author who suggested the book has never dropped below a relevance of 9 since he bought the book. So here goes, maybe I’ll crack this FB advertising lark and see some improvement in my ROI. And maybe I’ll unearth a decent plot for Marcus Blake. Wish me luck.

Royalty and royalties

One event this week pricked my memory, taking me back to my early teenage years. It was the arrival of Prince George at his new school, St. Thomas’s, in Battersea. Watching the news item on TV, I noticed an arch behind Prince William (George’s father), and thought I recognised it. Then there was a shot of the school front, and I knew it had to be my old school, Sir Walter St. John’s, known as “Sinjuns”. I Googled it and, sure enough, there it was. It’s a Grade 2 listed building now. I left that school when I was fourteen, in my third year, because we moved down to Portsmouth. I took Pat up to the school once. This was before the M25, London orbital motorway was built. We always travelled through London when driving to see family or returning to base. I detoured up to Battersea High Street and stopped outside the school. The name had been changed, much to my disappointment. It was named after some councillor: almost certainly a political decision by a socialist council; after all, the founder, Sir Walter St. John, was a wealthy man. He set up the school in 1700 for the village of Battersea and the surrounding area. I’ve now joined the Sinjuns Facebook group.

On the book front, I came up against a hurdle with CreateSpace I haven’t encountered before: changing one of my titles from a 9x6 size to 8x5.25. The book had to be unpublished (deleted), and the new size listed as a new book. This was explained by CS. After doing the necessary, and approving the proof, I received an email from the “Content Valuation Team” saying I had to prove I had the rights to do this. The title has been available as a Kindle and paperback for a few years now, so it seems a bit odd that I had to go through this rigmarole when it was CS who explained what I needed to do in order to change the book size.

I’ve started dabbling in some research for my latest WIP. The working title is Conor Lenihan Revival because I am bringing the character back from the dead. No, it’s isn’t fantasy, but using editorial licence I have been able to start the novel with Conor almost breathing his last breath. I’m researching Cyberwarfare. It’s something of an eye-opener, being made aware of exactly what’s going on out there. I used cyber warfare in the prequel novel The Eagle’s Covenant, so it makes sense to dabble a bit more. The trouble though with research is that it tends to take you away from the reason for it all, and you end up reading stuff you can never use. It will be a while yet before I can say I’ve enough material to make the bare bones of a good thriller.

My Facebook advertising campaign is dragging its heels a bit. I’m performing better with the American audience than I am with UK. The ‘relevance’ factor for USA is 7/10, while UK is a lowly 4/10. I’m spending more than I’m earning, but I’m gritting my teeth and holding on. However I will be having a look at the UK audience and seeing if I can improve the relevance somehow. Could take a while. Hopefully I’ll get there before I run out of money. Wish me luck!