Cast Your Vote Against Cancer

Here's your chance to vote against CANCER. We have an anthology of vampire stories and all of the proceeds are going for a fellow writer who has a rather severe form of cancer and a ton of medical bills. By voting up The Bitten Anthology, you will be helping to raise awareness of the book and increase the money we can raise. You might have to search a bit, the book is currently at 349 but I'm hoping it will rise:https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/47810.2014_Must_Reads?page=4

And if you really like vampires and really dislike cancer, you can buy the e-book here: http://www.amazon.com/Bitten-Trish-Marie-Dawson-ebook/dp/B00LDYV010/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405827730&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bitten

That’s it, no more giveaways

 

 

It’s hard on someone just starting in their writing career to get the kind of feedback they need, which is why the idea of giving books away in the hopes of garnering reviews seems to be an acceptable tradeoff. Except that I’ve given away thousands of books and got exactly one review as a result. At least it was a favorable review: I gave away a short story which I clearly labeled as “a very short story” and was given a 1 star review because it wasn’t a full-length novel. He also mentioned something about me writing at about the middle school level. I won’t argue that point, but you’re welcome to click on either of my books on the right hand side and decide for yourself the validity of the statement.

But the point is that I have decided it is not worth my time to give away books in the hopes that it might somehow benefit me. This is not me grumbling, nor am I saying that readers are not holding up their end of the bargain. What I gave away I gave away with perhaps hopes but without implied obligations. It is simply a business decision, as well as the feeling that my work is worthy of the modest price I have attached to it. Because honestly, if I did not feel that my writing was worth more than nothing, why would anyone be expected to read it?

People don’t appreciate what is given for free, which is why we tend to waste what nature has given us while lusting after those things that have been shrink-wrapped and put on display on store shelves. This is not an observation I like to make, but I will not deny the truth of it just because the thought doesn’t appeal to me. Again, this is not a value judgment but a statement of fact. As optimistic and altruistic as I tend to be, a writer cannot afford to stray too far from the facts.

So if you’re reading this as I write it, you may have one last chance to grab my book—Perchance to Dream—on Amazon for free. I think it has a couple of hours left on the giveaway. Do I want you to give it a fair and honest review for the work I’ve done? Of course I do. But I’ve already decided you’ll probably appreciate it less because you haven’t invested any money in it. Hell, chances are you’ll download it and never get around to reading it, in the same way I record things on my DVR I never get around to watching. Which is why I’ll never give my work away for free again. At least for now : )

Free Books You Should Own

I recently wrote about the fact that, as an author, I have to compete with all of those who have come before me. Not only that, but many of the greatest books ever written are available absolutely free. With that thought in mind, I did a little searching and have assembled a short list of essential books that are available for free on Kindle. I'm sure they are available electronically in other ways than Kindle, but things being what they are, it's easiest just to share the Kindle links. I've only just scratched the surface, so look for more lists to come.

Ten Free Books

 

 

1.       The Call Of The Wild by Jack London

http://www.amazon.com/Call-Wild-Jack-London-ebook/dp/B0083ZBW2Y/ref=sr_1_5?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388895658&sr=1-5&keywords=jack+london

2.       The People Of The Abyss by Jack London

http://www.amazon.com/People-Abyss-Jack-London-ebook/dp/B0082S2B40/ref=sr_1_15?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388895719&sr=1-15&keywords=jack+london

3.       Martin Eden by Jack London

http://www.amazon.com/Martin-Eden-Jack-London-ebook/dp/B004TPFKPM/ref=sr_1_17?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388895809&sr=1-17&keywords=jack+london

 

4.       The Iron Heel by Jack London
http://www.amazon.com/Iron-Heel-Jack-London-ebook/dp/B00847CZZO/ref=sr_1_6?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388895895&sr=1-6&keywords=jack+london

5.       The Octopus by Frank Norris

http://www.amazon.com/Octopus-story-California-Frank-Norris-ebook/dp/B0083Z80AQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388896028&sr=1-3&keywords=frank+norris

 

6.       The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

http://www.amazon.com/Picture-Dorian-Gray-Oscar-Wilde-ebook/dp/B0084AXZK0/ref=sr_1_5?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388896148&sr=1-5&keywords=john+steinbeck

7.       The House Of Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

http://www.amazon.com/House-Seven-Gables-Nathaniel-Hawthorne-ebook/dp/B0083ZR2KU/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388976189&sr=1-1&keywords=house+of+seven+gables

8.       The Republic by Plato

http://www.amazon.com/Republic-Plato-ebook/dp/B0082SV87G/ref=sr_1_1?s=digitaltext&ie=UTF8&qid=1388976467&sr=1-1&keywords=plato+republic

9.       Symposium by Plato

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_5?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=plato%20republic&sprefix=plato%2Cdigital-text%2C367#/ref=sr_st?keywords=plato+republic&qid=1388976463&rh=n%3A133140011%2Ck%3Aplato+republic&sort=price

 
10.   Heart Of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Darkness-Joseph-Conrad-ebook/dp/B0084AMNWQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388976914&sr=1-3&keywords=heart+of+darkness