My brother Bob Atkinson (best-selling author, too) has a new adventure out from the Scottish Highlands!

Click on the cover to see it on Amazon!

From the #1 bestselling author, Bob Atkinson, comes a tale of Romance and rebellion.

The Scottish Highlands, 1746. The history books are telling Andy Macmillan, a British soldier from the 1970s, that Jacobite dreams are about to end in slaughter at the Battle of Culloden.

But Andy isn’t reading a book; he’s there himself in the Great Glen, awaiting the full force of redcoats to descend upon the rebels he’s sided with.

Desperate straits lead to unexpected alliances. Can Andy and the Highlanders trust turncoat Lieutenant Longholme?

The disfigured British officer has the power to turn both the battle and a lady’s heart. But whose side is he really on?

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“… be prepared for tears as I challenge you not to fall in love with these characters…”  – from an Amazon 5-star review Get your copy of the latest novel of romance an…

Source: Red Sky in the Morning – it’s launch day!

TWITTER! The most misunderstood – and underused – social media tool…

Oh, I’ve heard the mumblings and grumblings – “I don’t get any results from being on Twitter!”, and “People are only after followers on Twitter!”

And you know, I get that. If you have a blog on WordPress.com (which I do), you can rig it so my blog posts are tweeted automatically. And you know what kind of results I get?

Very little. I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of followers I have on my blog due to Twitter. But – and it’s a very big But – one of my dearest friends, Ms. Edenmary Black (I’ll wave at her now, ’cause I know she’s reading this) and I met on Twitter. And a cherished friendship developed. Simple as that. 

Now, do you know why I normally get almost nothing in regards to those hallowed results? Just go to your page on Twitter some time. Sit, and watch. Do it like I did, just a minute ago. If you refresh the screen every five seconds, you’ll see anywhere from three to 10 new tweets. Every five seconds. You can’t compete with such a mad rush of information. 

So, you want results from the little blue bird? It’s actually ridiculously simple. But it takes time – as any facet of building an author platform does. 

It starts with your follower list. Mind is comprised of over 2,000 good people. Oh my God, right? Yeah, OMG, until you harken back to my statement about “Very little” proclamation. As the mumblings attested, everyone who followed me is hoping that I’ll follow them in turn, then they can brag on their blog about all their thousands of madly gibbering fans.

But. What if? What if, one rainy Saturday, you get yourself a cup of coffee, sit down, and start bringing up the profiles of those followers. Right there in their profile, is their website, or blog. (By the way, this is one of my big gripes about Facebook – no links to other sites on profiles.) So, start with the first one, and go to their blog. From there, it’s like you do with any site. Have a look around, read an article, if you like the article, comment on it, and if the place interests you, start following. 

Now, here’s a footnote to that. As a very good friend of mine, Liz Long, stated not long ago in one of her blog posts, it starts with FRIENDSHIP. Don’t go all crazy and just join for the helluvit. You do that, you might as well stay with the status quo on Twitter. Engage, converse, befriend. Repeat that mantra however many times as twitter followers you have. If you have a sizable population trudging after you on the bird, it’s gonna take awhile. So what? 

And while we’re “whatting”, guess what? You have tapped into an endless pool of other authors, publishers, book bloggers, and reviewers. So, don’t use it like everyone else, as a bragging post. Get smart, and use it for what it is – an incredible resource.

‘Nuf said.

 

 

Giving book reviews – honest reviews – can be savage business for a writer

I’ve reviewed a few books over the last few months, partly because I enjoy reading, partly for the expanded view it gives me of other writing styles, and a little because I feel it’s a duty. Some of the resulting experiences have been pleasant. Good books, well laid out, good plot, and edited nicely.

Others? Not so much. And that’s where the danger comes in.

Now, I’m going to attempt saying this without coming off all snotty. I have read a number of articles that argue the advent of indie writing and publishing has brought into the marketplace quite a number of lesser quality writing. Flooded Amazon, Smashwords, and wherever else with tomes that, if capable of uttering sound, would resemble a bobcat being scalded by steaming hot water. And you know what?

They’re right.

Not all of them, of course. As I mentioned, some have been good reads – great reads, actually. They definitely fall into the other category I’ve read about – the good authors who, for whatever reason, never have their work published by a traditional publishing house. And, as anyone who knows me can attest, I am 100%, four-square, full-speed-ahead-and-damn-the-torpedoes behind whomever wants to thumb their nose at the aristocracy of the writing world and whip that book out write in their faces.

But boy – the other ones. Take one I read just this past week. I’m not going to name the author, title, or anything about the book. This isn’t the arena for that. What I will say is that it sucked. I mean, bad sucked. The editing was horrible, it flowed like a ’59 Edsel with four fouled plugs, and the main character – the heroine, mind you – was (I’m not a psychologist, but take my word for it) bipolar. I can’t really tell you how bad it all was. But here’s the kicker, and I can’t figure it out for the life of me. It’s getting four-and five-star reviews. From a lot of people. Now, I should say that a number of folks agreed with my assessment, almost to a “T”…but what the hell happened with the others? They loved it, couldn’t put it down, blah blah, freaking blah. And I am confident enough to say that if I gave any of my author bud’s a copy of it, they’d put it down within an hour – maybe less.

So. Reviewing. It’s scary business. It’s a time when you have to put friendships, feelings, and any other emotional tugs aside, and write what you think. Anything else would be a disservice to both the writer, and to their audience. And it can also score you serious scorn too – not to mention recrimination in the form of your own negative reviews. By the way – and as you can see – the name up at the top of this blog isn’t King, Stine, or Cook, so anyone receiving a negative review from me just might have the urge to wonder just who in hell I think I am. Fair question, that. Suffice to say, I’m not an authority on writing, and in the case of reading I only know what I enjoy and what I don’t. After that, let the chips fall as they may.

And for a writer, how can it get any more dangerous than that?

A sample of my short story “Do Unto Others” from my new Trilogy “Restless Souls”: 3 Dark Fables!”

Coming soon to Amazon!

Click on the cover to read the sample

 1.”Do Unto Others” (short story) – Jeremy is a street hood, lawless and unchained. When he is wronged by a local businessman, it becomes his mission to seek revenge. But his new enemy has friends – ones that don’t take kindly to intruders.

  2. “Colors” (short story) – Harrison Street. attorney, biker wannabe, coward. When he finds the bike of his dreams, it seems too good to be true. It is.

  3. “Simona Says” (novella) – Simona has had it rough. Death, disenchantment, and disappointment are all part of her life. She wants to be happy for a change, and she’s willing to do just about anything to find some. Anything.

The 16 Best Book Blogs to Read in 2016 | Scribendi.com

Click on the guy to read it!

Anyone who’s taken a crack at writing and publishing a book has it fresh in their mind just how complicated it can be. Genre. Audience. Editing. The Cover. Reviews. Publishing. Formatting. Oh, and lest we forget, how to write the darned thing. These blogs have much of that covered. They are some of the leaders in the industry on all that’s listed above, and a lot more. Go have a look!

Publishing … and Other Forms of Insanity: List of Online Reviewers Who Accept Self-Published Books

Let’s face it. No matter how many high-quality self-published books that have gone to the top of the charts on Amazon, a certain stigma is still attached to indie authors and their work. Happily, that is slowly changing, and there is an ever-increasing number of reviewers and bloggers who are willing to take a chance on books that are not traditionally published. Here is a list of some of those “brave” souls –

 

Click on the image to check out the list!

 

Joel Friedlander – “The Book Designer” – with helpful blogs on marketing, your writing platform, and more!

Click on the image to read it!

Blogs for Self-Publishers, May 7 – 13, 2016 including Nick Thacker, Kimberely Grabas, Jason Matthews, Ron Bueker, and Dan Blank

Author Platform: Why You’re Struggling and How to Fix It

My pal Ron Herron (Award-winning author R.L. Herron) announces his new book! And also tells us what really matters…

Click on the cover to see it on Amazon!

“No one knows how long the Cherokee people have lived in the Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee, although artifacts have been found indicating their ancestors were there more than 11,000 years ago…at the end of the last Ice Age.

After the discovery of gold in Cherokee territory, one of the most disgraceful things in American history began…the forcible removal of all Cherokee from land they had lived on for generations. More than 4,000 men, women and children died on the brutal 1200 mile forced march. It has gone down in history as “The Trail of Tears.”

Award-winning author R.L. Herron has created a spellbinding tale based on the curse of an assassinated Cherokee prophet that has followed one American family for eight generations with relentless, supernatural horror. ”

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My latest novel, Blood Lake, was just published. You will find it on Amazon and online at Barnes & Noble. (Whew!) There, the shameless publicity effort is done (don’t I wish). Now … Source: Thi…

Source: Things That Matter

BiblioCrunch – compilation of sites to list your book on…

Amazon is the mack-daddy when it comes to getting your book out – no question. But, if you had a child, would you call one friend, and hope everyone learns the news from them? Of course not. So, why list your book on one site? Why not put it on every site you can get your hands on?

Here is a list published by BiblioCrunch, listing quite a number of sites to place your book, as well as some Facebook pages to do the same…happy hunting 🙂

Source: BiblioCrunch | Self Publishing Blog

Two of my pal Stan R. Mitchell’s books are free today on Amazon…

Hey guys! Just wanted to let you know that for today (and today only) both “Sold Out” and the first full novel of the Detective Danny Acuff series are available on Amazon for free. (At …

Source: Two of my books are free today on Amazon