One of the great things about self-publishing
as an indie author is the bonds you develop with fellow writers. The following
is the second of many interviews that will be conducted with my esteemed
colleagues.
Tell us about the books you currently have available.
I have several books available. My first was My Suicide Note: A Sockdolager From Me To America. I chose the word Sockdolager because I saw it as the word of the day, and it means a concise argument or a closing, well done and convincing argument. It's a discussion with the reader about over 30 topics of problems that government has the ability to solve but does not, and is quite contradictory about it. For example, if the FDA is concerned with public health and safety, and recalls beef the second they find out about e.coli, or they shut down plants for health violations, why then have they not banned cigarettes? That shows how much they really care about taking their job seriously, and the same goes for Congress and government in general. I even provide a few of my own solutions at the bottom in case a wealthy reader happens to find my book and takes things into their own hands.
My second book, Building Your Own Computer - No Frills, No Filler, Just Answers. was written because there are tons of people out there confused over computer hardware and the evolution they take every 2 years. I write from experience, as i've put together several of my own from scratch, and the other books on the market give you 300 pages of nonsense and even still use computer jargon when people are still confused when we're talking about memory. I cut it down to 50 pages, include pictures, spell everything out for the reader, and talk about what will directly affect them as consumers so that they know what they want, what they need, and what they might want in the future from their computers. It gives them purchasing power, they get more for their money, and I even include a small troubleshooting section at the bottom with information most books just won't give you without experience. You DON'T want to find out what standoffs are the hard way.
My third book, Meditations For My Children, was written for teenagers and parents to gauge the maturity development of children to make sure that everything in developing in line with school studies and body growth. Just because one does well in school and isn't on drugs doesn't make them mature. The world is a cruel place, and we need to make sure kids enter college with a standard of ethics and morality, and have the ability to ask themselves tough questions and things they wouldn't normally ask themselves. We know we aren't adults until we stop answering questions with "I dunno" right? I also include a bunch of uplifting ideas in there to help manage sadness and depression, because we all know kids can do some crazy things these days.
My fourth book, Quick Exercise For Everybody - Your Body Is What You Make It was written because I was tired of seeing my friends and other people reach for exercise programs that just take your money and make you sweat a little. I used to exercise myself, and I scoured the internet for information that delivered. I forget who used the quote, but "If you learn only methods, you are bound to use those methods. If you learn principles, you can devise your own methods." and that's what my book does. It gives you the principle of developing muscle, increasing your metabolism, and creating your own diet so that you're not stuck to using any one thing that might not work for you. The purpose is to teach you what you need to know, so that you can apply it and adapt it to your own lifestyle, because what works for me might not work for you. We need to get it right the first time, and it'll teach you what you need to know.
My fifth book, The Anti-Bible, is a collection of photo's about God's contradictory nature. It's very funny, and provides a laugh for anyone. I knew a book like this wasn't on the market, and I thought people would enjoy it, and so I put it together. Here's one of the good ones: GOD IS OMNIPRESENT. ADAM AND EVE HIDE SUCCESSFULLY IN GARDEN. Haha.
The process I use to write my literature is that I allow it to just come to me. You can't just sit down and slap your fingers on the keys and allow anything meaningful to develop. You get tired, you have mental stress at various stages of the week, and you just really have to be in the mood. I find that if I force myself to write, my literature turns to garbage in no time fast. Usually I don't need more than two or three days off, and the motivation comes all by itself, so I don't find the writing difficult at all. I'm creative all by myself, I just need the motivation and excitement to continue the process.
I would share a favorite paragraph from each of my books, but the fact of the matter is that I can't share just a paragraph. There's so much information and detail going on that you need an entire chapter. All of my books have about 20% worth of free preview though, so that's space saved on here.
I'm in the middle of writing My Journal As A New Father, detailing my experience of being an expecting father, and will include the first three months of my baby's life. Some of us just aren't dedicated, and for those of us who are, I'm here to let them know what it's really about.
I'm also in the middle of writing RPG Baby! Level Up Your Child! Which is a child development book full of quoted research and information solely for the purpose of giving your child the best leg up they can get. It includes information such as giving the baby the highest IQ and development possible, what research has shown, things to look out for, and what you can do to basically make every one of your kids a mature smarty pants.
I'm also in the middle of my first fiction novel. It's coming along quite nicely, I haven't chosen a name for it yet, but it's part of a series of 4 other books that are just for the sake of giving the reader the backstory! That's right. The 6th book will be the actual beginning of my series' story, and beyond. That's because the plot i've chosen integrates the 5 books with each other, and converges into the 6th, with mystery and conflict aplenty. It's literally quite fantastic.
Which writers and artists have influenced your work so far?
What inspires you to write?
My wife and my baby inspired me to write. Since i'm a logistical and analytical person, I figured that my chances were highest of becoming successful in life the earliest if I wrote. I actually began writing when I was tired of life (at 24? I know...) and of the government lying and not taking care of its people like it's supposed to, and spawned my first book because I thought I would write a letter to the government as if it had forced me to commit suicide, and that's what caused the spark. It started over a year ago, but after I published the work after cleaning up the anger it contained in exchange for wit 6 months ago, I've been pushing out a book a month almost ever since.
If you could take three books with you on to a desert island - which ones would you choose and why?
From your experiences so far, what would be your best piece of advice for aspiring indie authors?
From my experience so far, the best advice I can give for aspiring indie authors would be to try to polish as much as you can the first time, because first impressions are crucial, but don't let perfect be the enemy of very good. I would also say that as new writers, we need to remove ourselves from our text in introductions and descriptions - people don't want to read about our life story. They picked up the book because they were interested. They read it because they wanted to know more. Keep yourself to your author bio, and you might have a better start than I did. Don't just be an author. Be a good writer.
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Author of Meditations For My Children, Building Your Own Computer - No Frills, No Filler, Just Answers, My Suicide Note: A Sockdolager From Me To America, Quick Exercise For Everybody - Your Body Is What You Make It, and The Anti-Bible. Samples of my work may be found below.
http://www.smashwords.com/
