Updating the Web Site

Some of you may have noticed that the website has gone through a significant update. I had grown tired of the "all black, all the time" look of my previous website design and I wanted to brighten it up. I also wanted to focus more on selling books and less on my infrequently updated blog.To that end, I've switched to the lighter blue design with a slider bar on top and the last three blog entries group together just below. The slider bar contains links to my books on Lulu and Amazon and it works well. It just might be a little too big.My next step will be the increase my promotional activities and try to sell more books this year. I hope that I can convince you all to take a chance on me.Other than that, work on the Canvasser is going well. The challenge with a screenplay is that you only have 120 pages to write but you put a lot more effort into those pages as everything has to be laser-focused. It's been a good experience and I'm hoping to wrap it up soon. TTYL.

Long Time No See

Wow. I must apologize as I've been away from this website for a really long time. However, I have been really busy with things that were really exciting.For the most part, my time during the past 6 months has been focused on running for Ottawa City Council. Despite long odds, no money and few volunteers, we managed to put together an excellent showing in Capital Ward. Despite all of the long hours, I found that the experience was really worth it as I met some amazing people, campaigned on issues I cared about and worked hard to represent a community that has become my home. I'm not sure that I would ever do it again but it was well worth the experience!Following the campaign, I was hoping to participate in National Novel Writing Month but I found that I was simply too exhausted. I have for the most part been working on my next project, The Canvasser, a comedy screenplay which I hope to film on a micro-budget next year. I'm also working on a couple of other screenplays (tis the season of screenplays), namely I, Virus and an unnamed project over the long term while trying to find time to edit my 2012 NaNoWriMo project, Other than I, and my children's book,  Ballad of the Four Princesses, into novella format. Over the next couple of months, I also need to update my website so that it's less like a blog and more of a bookstore. I wish that I had more hours in the day.Next year will be a big one for me as I hope to finally focus on the promotional aspect of my writing career and go ahead and starting making and meeting new fans. It's going to be an exciting year and I hope that I will be able to keep all of your updated.I don't think I've ever had as much fun writing as I have recently so I'll see if I can keep up the momentum into 2015. Thanks again for all of your support.

What I've Been Up To

Sorry everyone for the long time in between posts but I've been working on a lot of interesting things recently.Aside from non-book related activities and travel, I've been working on editing the manuscript that I developed during the 2012 National Novel Writing Month - Other than I. My current plan is to finish another edit on it over the next few months before I submit it to an editor. Aside from that, I don't have a lot of promotional events going on during the summer months and this project will take up most of my free time. In the meantime, I will have a number of Amazon promotions offering discounts on my previous novel: Evermore: Call of the Nocturne. If all goes well with Other than I, I should be able to start production on the next book in the Evermore series in November. The name is under wraps for now but I hope to have more news on this project soon.Until then, please enjoy your summer ... and buy my book if you haven't already.

Evermore: Call of the Nocturne Now 40% Off on Lulu

Great news for those of you who have not yet bought my debut novel, Evermore: Call of the Nocturne. Lulu, the site where I self-publish, is having a special sale where you can 40% of all of their print editions. I repeat ... 40%!All you have to do is go to the Lulu Bookstore, find my book, add it to your basket and then use the coupon code FALLSALE40 when you check out. It's that simple.So if you've been meaning to read it for a while, now's your chance. You'll have a great time and you'll save money.

Toronto Launch

I kept it below the radar, but a couple weekends ago I went to Toronto to do a soft launch of my debut novel Evermore: Call of the Nocturne. The idea behind the soft launch is not really to promote the book but use it as an excuse to meet with all of the people who bring the book to fruition. Well, that and watching Blue Jays games.

After coming in on Friday and drinking some beers with an old Friday. I spend Saturday afternoon watching a Blue Jays game. I hadn't seen a game in Skydome Rogers Centre since about 2008 and I was impressed by how much the baseball experience had improved. The Blue Jays lost (again) but I had a great time, got a massive sunburn and watched the dome close following the game (cool). Following the game, I got lost walking around Toronto and saw some of its amazing neighbourhoods including Queen's Park, the University of Toronto, Little Italy and Koreatown.I met Erin Stropes (my editor) and Jordan Knoll (my cover designer) at a neat little pub called "No One Writes to the Colonel" in Koreatown. We had a great time. It was amazing to finally meet to people with whom I had been working with for years to make my dream a reality. My only regret is that I didn't have more time and that I didn't take any pictures (d'oh).On Sunday, I visited with Kevin Bae, the illustrator for both the back and front covers. We met for lunch and talked for a couple of hours before I grabbed my train. We had a great time and it was cool to find out what he had been up to over the last couple of years, including getting married. Anyway, we had a great time. I wish I had more time to spend in Toronto so I could see these guys more often. It also gives me more motivation to get moving on my next project so I can work with these guys again.

Evermore: Call of the Nocturne Kindle Edition now 99 cents

Now that it's been out for a few months, it was time to lower the price of the Kindle Edition to 99 cents. I've spoken on this subject before in my blog post "The 99-cent e-book" and now it's time to try the price point out to see what impact it will have on sales. Hopefully, it will encourage more people to take the leap of faith on an unknown author and an unknown story.The Evermore: Call of the Nocturne Kindle Edition is available on the Kindle Store.

Thanks Everyone for the Great Book Launch!

Yesterday. I held the official book launch for my first novel, Evermore: Call of the Nocturne, at Black Squirrel Books in Centretown. It was a blast. We started off with about eight people and spent the first 30 to 40 minutes eating fancy cheeses, drinking tasty beverages and chatting amongst ourselves.

Then, I gave a short speech in which I thanked everyone who had helped me during the book's long production cycle. I followed this up with a short reading from the book. I choose Chapter Three as it was fairly short and gave everyone a pretty good introduction into the story and the main character, Blue. However, no sooner had I finished did another group of eight people enter the store. If only I had waited another 15-20 minutes. Some people asked me to read another section but I figured that one chapter would be enough. Anymore than that and it would have been too much. At least the latecomers got to eat cake.

Oh yes the cake! I had it specially made by the good folks at the Nutty Greek Bakery on Rochester. It was peanut butter and chocolate. They even made an edible copy of my book cover to adorn the top. Mmmm, delicious! I can still taste it.Then, we milled about and chatted some more. Lots of great friends bought books and got me to sign them. Nothing else could make an author happier than someone asking him to sign their book. Oh yeah, the cake got demolished.And then it was over. People went home. I helped the owners clean up. I returned the chairs the next day and that was it. I still haven't got rid of all the cheese. At least now I get a moment to relax and reflect and a wonderful experience.I would to thank everyone for coming. You guys are the best. I would like to thank those who bought books. You're awesome. I would also like to thank the owners, Vaughn and Stephen, of Black Squirrel Books for being such gracious and supportive hosts. I will be back.It was an experience of a lifetime and I was fortunate to share it with some of my best friends. Until next time.