Author: Mike (Page 2 of 10)

A little about Mal…

07/25/2018 / Mike / 0 Comments

Since I’m giving away 3 copies of Mal-adaptive, I figured I’d talk a little about it.

What is Mal-adaptive? Mal-adaptive is a story about Malaika, a barista working in a big city just trying to make a living. She lives in an apartment with her roommate, Aaya, an ultra conservative girl who just so happens to work at a shop that sells BDSM supplies. Her best friend (and coworker), Ven, is a free spirit… likes to drink, likes to party, likes to have sex (and isn’t too particular who with). On the same day, an angel (Ephra) and a demon (Corson) show up at the Cruel Beans coffee shop in order to find Mal. They both have orders to follow her around. There’s also something about Armageddon, an evil corporation, and a Weapon that’s supposed to win the war for the side that has it. Add in a pinch of humor, and you’ve got Mal-adaptive in a nutshell.

Where did I come up with the idea? My girlfriend has fibromyalgia, which affects her muscles… especially in her neck and shoulders. Hearing her describe the pain as someone shoving knives into her shoulder blades is a bit… disconcerting to say the least. My brain seemed to jump on the idea of, ‘what if that’s NOT what’s causing her pain?’. instantly responding to the question, ‘she’s an angel who’s had her wings removed, and this is the residual pain she’s feeling’. Thus, the idea of Mal came to mind.

It’s that time of year again…

07/22/2018 / Mike / 0 Comments

I’ve made another trip around the sun, and you guys are getting the gifts again. You may have noticed the Rafflecopter giveaway over there on the sidebar (and if not, you can always click here). I’m giving away 3 signed copies of Mal-adaptive to some lucky peeps. The giveaway will run until August 5.

If a giveaway isn’t your style, from August 2 to August 5, you’ll be able to download a copy of Mal-adaptive in eBook form for only $0.99 (or £0.99 if you’re over on the other side of the pond).

So, the perfect birthday gift you could give me would be to go out and grab a copy of Mal, sign up for the giveaway, and share with everybody you know. It would make this cranky old author so very happy.

Putting a buck in an author’s hat…

06/23/2018 / Mike / 0 Comments

Today’s topic is about reviews. The picture I’ve used is a review for one of my books. That single review is worth more to me than I can express. THAT is how I really get paid as an independent author. I’m not saying that the reviews have to be that good, either. An honest, one-star review, that takes the time to tell me ‘why’ I only deserve one star… can be just as valuable as the one over there.

They say that if a street performer makes you stop and watch them for any amount of time, you owe them a buck (who are THEY?). While I would be okay with this ‘rule’, I rarely get a chance to see anyone performing on the street here in rural north Idaho. A street performer is putting on a show, displaying what they’ve got to entertain you with. They don’t get to pop out a sign with a cool picture and a few words describing their routine and a promise to entertain… they just do what they do to entertain and get paid based on how entertaining they were.

How many words per day should I write?

06/05/2018 / Mike / 1 Comment

First of all, that title is a little bit misleading. Some people like to use words… some like to use pages… others will only set aside blocks of time. It really doesn’t matter what you use to measure progress, though. Whether you write 5,000 words per day, or 5 words per week, progress is progress.

While setting a goal is important, one part of the process that people tend to forget is setting ‘reachable’ goals. Something you are actually able to do. Not only does this mean setting an attainable goal, but to also take into account what you are physically and/or mentally capable of. Those with disabilities and/or illnesses (be they visible or hidden), aren’t always able to sustain, maintain, or even reach goals that are repeated on website after website (such as: Write every day). So, the caveat regarding advice is: Take what you can, throw away what you can’t, and tweak what you need to for it to fit your needs.

Used and abused?

03/28/2018 / Mike / 0 Comments

I came across something strange today, and wanted to talk about it. While making sure my genre changes took affect on Mal-adaptive (it somehow found its way into the Horror category), I found that a copy of Unlimited was being offered used from another Amazon seller.

Needless to say, my first reaction was definitely a knee-jerk reaction. I’m not making any kind of commission from that sale! A bit affronted, I stopped to ask myself (and my girlfriend) what that meant.

An apology and a sneak peek…

03/08/2018 / Mike / 0 Comments

When life gets you down, you tend to drop everything… and I mean ‘everything’… that doesn’t pertain to just surviving. I’ve not been a very good human being the last almost year or so. I’ve neglected friends, family, and myself. So this is a giant “I’m sorry.” to all of those. I’ll try to do better.

On a different note, I have been slowly editing my next book, Praising Kane. I’m not sure why editing gets harder and harder with every book and story, but it does (maybe because I’m learning more each time).

Gettin’ old…

08/04/2017 / Mike / 0 Comments

Wednesday, I turned 45. My son told me, “You’re officially old now, dad.” He’s not known for his tact. In the vein of giving, I decided to share Mal-adaptive with everyone as my birthday gift.

Head on over to: http://mybook.to/MBMal , and it should take you to the correct version of Amazon, where you can download my book for free from August 4-6.

I hope you enjoy, and I also hope to share another book with you next year.

♫ These are a few of my favorite… books ♫…

07/20/2017 / Mike / 0 Comments

Not sure I’ve done one of these yet… and if I have, I think I’m gonna try to give it a little twist by saying that these are some of my favorite book… series. Most authors have at least a favorite book or hundred (and I’m no different), but having a series of books that stand out seems to be harder to find these days.

Without further ado *brain wanders off, wondering when ado became the replacement for a fuss or just a bit of trouble… and why it became so popular as a word… has it ever been popular?… why ado?… where was I?… oh, yeah*, my favorite book series:

Call me, Ishmael…

07/19/2017 / Mike / 1 Comment

… I really need to talk to you about something. But no, you’re being a mobi-dick and just keep texting me all these articles about knot-tying and white privilege.

While that would make a hilarious idea for an updated story of Moby Dick, it kinda ties in with what I’m gonna ramble about today… cell phones.

There have been many hundreds of thousands of articles written on cell phone etiquette… none of which have been apparently read by the people that need them the most. This leads me to believe that the worst offenders can’t read. Bad logic, I know. When I rode to school on my dinosaur, I had no idea just how popular and prevalent cell phones would become. What follows, are the same issues I’ve noticed that are still hanging around from the days where cell phones were nothing but a gigantic, brick-sized battery attached to a radio that could make telephone calls:

We need to have a talk(show)…

07/18/2017 / Mike / 2 Comments

We need to sit down and discuss things… as a country. We need to get the farthest, left-leaning socialist, and face them off with the farthest, right-leaning conservative, and everyone in between those two extremes… and get them to talk and listen to each other. No yelling. No name calling. No logical fallacies allowed for anyone.