To blog, or not to blog

Years ago I started a blog because that’s what a writer needed to do.  A blog was a place for you to connect to potential readers and let your fans know when you had new stuff coming out.  I understand all of that, it’s just … difficult for me.

For a while I kept my post count up by recapping/reviewing shows, movies, fairy tales, etc.  And I’d put up some on my ideas on writing.  But I’ve really dropped the ball.  This will be my sixth post of the year (on this blog, but I haven’t posted much on my other blogs as well), but two of those were me just reposting stories, and two more were about books sales I was having. 

Now if I were spending my time working on my various projects, I wouldn’t feel so bad.  But I do spend a lot of time binge watching shows and playing solitaire.  I am writing, just not that much.

I’ve been in a bit of a writing slump for the past year or so.  I know that if I put the effort into to connecting with potential readers – through things like interesting blog posts – and keep it up, in six months or so I’ll see improved sales.  And if had a fan base breathlessly waiting for my next work, that would add gas to my smoldering writing fire.  It’s just the first six months of hard work with little direct evidence of benefit. 

But who ever said being a writer was easy?

Free ebooks in July Extravaganza

There are a couple big events coming up in July and I was going to have some free ebook deals, but then I decided to throw a couple more into the mix.  So in July you’ll be able to grab five of my ebooks all for the price of a click!  Here’s a listing of which books will be free on which days.

Political Pies

July 1 – 5

Everybody complains about politics, but does anyone do anything about it?  My attempt to do something about it is to collect forty of my short stories with a political element into this anthology.  My stories are either politically neutral or equally condemning of the national parties.  Instead of trying to sway you to one ideology or another, my goal is to just get people thinking about politics in the hopes a rose might grow out of all the political manure.

Since this is a collection of political stories, I try to have it free around elections, as well as the Fourth of July.  So as you’re prepping for the beer, BBQ, and booms of the Fourth, don’t forget books.

The Future is Coming

July 11 – 15

As a science fiction writer, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how technology will change the way we live.  I’ve come up with these ten short essays about science fictional elements that will – almost certainly – one day become science fact as a way for people to start coming to terms with them.  Because I’ve spent time thinking about clones and AIs, I feel that I’ll be okay when they do finally show up whereas most people will probably freak out.  I hope these essays will get people to start thinking about the future because, no matter what we do, the future is coming.

The main reason I started this extravaganza is because of the fifty anniversary of the moon landing.  So my two ebooks about the moon will be free – see below – and I just like to have this one about future technology also free.

The Moon Before Mars: Why returning to the moon makes more sense than rushing off to Mars

July 17 – 21

Over the last few years a lot of people have caught Mars fever.  It seems a week doesn’t go by without a report of some new group wanting to send people to Mars, or some big name in the industry talking about why we have to go to Mars, or articles talking about the glorious future humanity will have on Mars.  All of this worries me.  In my opinion, a Mars base is currently not sustainable because there’s no way for it to make money.  A few missions may fly doing extraordinary science, but if it’s then cancelled for cost the whole Mars Project may just be seen as an expensive stunt.

Fortunately, there are other places in the solar system besides Mars.  While bases on the moon and amongst the asteroids won’t be as inspirational as one on Mars, they will have opportunities for businesses to make goods and services as well as profits, meaning less chance of them being outright cancelled.  This will make life better on Earth and secure a firm foothold in space for humanity.  The essays in “The Moon Before Mars: Why returning to the moon makes more sense than rushing off to Mars” allow me to describe my ideas on what can be accomplished on the moon and with the asteroids, and why Mars isn’t the destiny of humanity its cheerleaders make it out to be.

The week this is free marks the Fiftieth Anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the moon.  So yeah, I want to have my collection of essays about why returning to the moon is our best bet in space available.

A Cabin Under a Cloudy Sea and other stories

July 17 – 21

Hopefully, in the not too distant future humans will return to the moon.  We will build bases and colonies, make farms and factories, and live, love and learn.  “A Cabin Under a Cloudy Sea and other stories” contains five of my short stories that are all set upon the moon.  They give the tiniest glimpse of the possibilities awaiting us there.

I’m a big supporter of the moon, so it makes sense for my collection of short stories set on the moon should also be available this week to mark the Apollo 11 anniversary.

Seventh Story Stockpile

July 25 – 29

Over the years, I’ve posted several short stories on websites that later – for one reason or another – died.  While the corpses of some of these sites are still around where you can read my stories, many have vanished from the internet.  And since there are few sites that will publish such previously published works, the only way you could read them was if I self-published them in a collection.

In addition to such “lost” stories, I’ve included some new stories that – for one reason or another – I felt I’d have a hard time finding someone to publish them.  So “Seventh Story Stockpile” basically contains stories I didn’t know what to do with.  Hopefully now I can move on to other projects.

Originally I was just going to have the other four ebooks free.  But as I was getting this ready, I realized that I might as well add another ebook to finish out the month. 

Grab my ebook “The Moon Before Mars” for free this week!

If all goes as planned, then on Thursday the Beresheet lander will touchdown in Mare Serenitatis.  This will make SpaceIL only the fourth entity to successfully land something on the moon.  They will follow in the footsteps of the Soviet Union’s Luna 9 in February 1966, the US’s Surveyor 1 in June 1966, and China’s Chang’e 3 in December 2013.  The big difference between this lander and previous ones, is that it is largely privately funded. 

I am a huge supporter of lunar exploration – both publically and privately financed – so I figured the best way to mark this occasion is to have a sale of my ebook “The Moon Before Mars: Why returning to the moon makes more sense than rushing off to Mars” where I go into far more depth on why I feel returning to the moon should be our next step in space.

Hopefully, Beresheet is just the beginning of humanity’s return to the moon.  India is hoping to become the fifth entity to land on the moon with its Chandrayaan-2, scheduled to launch in May.  And then Moon Express – another private company – hopes to launch their Lunar Scout by the end of the year.  It is possible more landers will land on the moon this year, then in the past forty years combined. 

So if the idea of lunar exploration excites you, check out my book.  For this week, it will only cost you the price of a click.