A Strand Runs Through It

A Strand of Golden South Sea Pearls

There is one particular strand (oh, how I wish I had one of those) that runs through Edward, Con Extraordinaire and Sirocco, Storm over Land and Sea. Maybe it was wishful thinking on my part that I wove it into these two books; but it served me well, I think, as part of these different stories. Of course, Edward is there, too, but I really wouldn’t wish one like him on any woman. Quite likely, some of us have met, even loved and then been deceived by, one of his ilk.

Other than drawing from one’s life experiences, where do those ideas come from? Mostly at two in the morning only to vanish upon waking up. Like most writers do I assume, I keep a notepad by my bed so I can catch that wisp of a thought, that perfect sentence, that new idea. And it is treasured like a precious pearl, to be strung along with others, maybe not yet perfectly formed. At least they are there, ready to be polished; as they are, time and time again, until the writer perceives his or her strand of verbal pearls to be as perfect as they can be.

Who reads my books anyway?

My target audience—that is who the marketing guys would call the readers for my books—should be carefully, coldly viewed and—yes, targeted. I should be writing to them; to their taste and reading level. That last one really hurts. Reading rather grown-up books at an early age, I learned not only to comprehend and appreciate the melody of words and to be an excellent speller, I also learned about people, about their feelings, and about the world. It is a never-ending journey.

I enjoy composing the perfect sentence with the perfect nuance. It has a rhythm, a melody. That’s how I like, nay, must write. But it is not how to sell. Not to today’s speed reader who prefers action over substance. Hence, I sell very few copies of my fiction, and almost none of my non-fiction book about my cat and other shelter animals.

So, how to be successful? Writing vapid romance? Steamy sex? Mindless violence? Little volumes with those themes sell like the proverbial hotcakes. I should take heed. The trouble is, if one still needs to know what one writes about, I am too old, too conservative, and likely too uptight to let loose with stories like that. Maybe it’s just sour grapes.

Wherein then lies the answer? I do not know. Meantime, however, I shall continue to write what I love to write. And I shall try to do the best I can with it. YOU are my audience, my readers. I write for you. No survey shall diminish that.

* * *

Perhaps I need to appeal to Toth, the Egyptian God of Writing



SIROCCO, Storm over Land and Sea - SECOND EDITION - ON SALE

Feedback from reader to author can be a precious gift. Thus, I listened closely when one of my readers proclaimed, “I just wanted for Jonathan to get laid.”

Well, my (male) audience has spoken. So, I had a glass of wine (ok, two) and rewrote the last chapter of SIROCCO, Storm over Land and Sea. It may not be as hot and steamy, or as explicit as a lot of other works, but one thing is clear: Boy finally gets girl. I must admit that I, too, like the ending much better now. Alas, the Epilogue still stands. Sorry, world—after all, it was December 2012!

Kindle Edition Reduced from $5.99 to $3.99

Print Edition Reduced from $11.95 to $9.95

Perhaps, one of these days, I’ll sell enough books to buy “Lorenzo’s” mega-yacht, the Bucanero. Who is Lorenzo? The answer lies in Sirocco.

Though, to be honest, I’d rather have a Valiant-40 like the Tumbleweed. What is a Valiant? That answer, too, lies in Sirocco.

KHAMSIN, The Devil Wind of The Nile--Second Edition

I have cracked the whip (or somebody did).

After painstakingly re-editing KHAMSIN, The Devil Wind of The Nile, the Second Edition for this Egyptian saga is now available.

In celebration of my blurry eyes (and Spring), a special price-reduction went into effect as follows:

Kindle/Nook Editions,

reduced from $7.99 to $4.99

Paperback reduced from $14.95 to $ 12.95

 Just thought I'd let you know.