In other words, not only must authors today - as tedious and "non-writing" as it may seem to some - have a vibrant and regular presence on the web through blogging and social networking platforms, but we must also be careful not to SPAM folks with unwanted market pitches about our work, new sales or deals, our newest blog tour, the newest review of our work, etc.
One of the visitors aptly commented that her favorite authors were REAL people online. They talked about - IE, posted status updates - about life and hobbies and their interests, interacted with folks on a personal basis, and didn't spend every moment online stalking folks and shoving their works down the masses throats.
I can attest to this. I've recently cut some folks from Twitter and Facebook (the latter, in one particular instance), simply because EVERY POST was about their work: a review, a blurb, the new Amazon link, a blog tour, an interview...in fact, this person's profile picture was of him/her reading their OWN book, which I found far more irritating than just the cover of their book, for some reason.
I think I've managed not to over-pimp myself here on this blog. I post news when it comes, I did have a blog tour in November of 2010 (after which I tried to lay low for a bit), but that's about all.
I just eclipsed the one year anniversary of kevinlucia.com, and I'd say the focus here has been much sharper and far more personal - and perhaps more interesting - than the old kevinlucia.net (now gone and dead, may it rest in peace). Basically, this blog is an online journal of rambling thoughts about everything from horror, fiction in general, writing & marketing (hence this post), to the state of children's television, education, intervention for special needs children and any other whimsy that crosses my fevered little brain.
It's also become a sounding board for my frustrations as a writer, educator, parent - and a writing parent who's trying to educate (or trying to GET educated) - and for random bits of trivia relevant to, well, whatever.
But, I haven't had much occasion to pimp myself lately. Sadly, that's because I've hit quite a dry stretch in publications. Got a few acceptances out there that aren't anywhere near publication, but other than that, it's been like a dry desert announcement-wise. SO, for the smattering of new folks adding me on Twitter, Facebook, and Google +, here's a self-pimping moment, after which this blog shall resume it's daily unscheduled randomness.
So, I've written some fiction. The most recent and longest work is a novella, Hiram Grange & The Chosen One, Book 4 in the The Hiram Grange Chronicles. All the novellas link together, but they're also standalone and can be read in any order, so you needn't read all the others to enjoy mine. It's got some decent reviews, my favorites being the following:
“In
the mood for a wild ride of a book? Something smart and scary and
exciting? Kevin Lucia’s HIRAM GRANGE & THE CHOSEN ONE fits the
bill to perfection. It teems with monsters and demons, with arcane
lore, black magic and narrow escapes. What could be more delicious?
Long live Hiram Grange!”
~ Robert Dunbar, Bram Stoker Nominated author of THE SHORE and MARTYRS & MONSTERS
“HIRAM GRANGE & THE CHOSEN ONE moves fast, fun and furious... I couldn't put it down! If you've always thirsted for James Bond to have a serving of Lovecraft -- you'll eat this one up.”
John Everson, Bram
Stoker Award Winning Author of Covenant
Brilliantly paced and with very few moments for the reader to stop and catch their breath, Hiram Grange and the Chosen One is an adrenaline drenched jaunt through the realms of horror, fantasy and dark humor. Violence and gore abound, presented expertly by Lucia in a way that not only shows his raw talent, but the ruggedness of Hiram’s character as well.
Apex Publications
If you like monsters and guns and snarky quasi-British guys with bad habits saving the day, go snag it on Amazon.com now.
I recently edited my first - and hopefully not last - issue of Shroud Magazine, Issue #10 Halloween Special. It was great working with folks like Rio Youers, Norman Partridge, Kelly Owen, Bob Ford, Thomas Phillips, Alethea Kontis and others. If you love Halloween goodness - even in August - go grab that, also.
So, I've also had some short fiction published. They're okay. All horror/speculative fiction. I'll list them in order of publication, first being most recent, so which means - as an FYI - the last few are early stories, and may not show the same word economy as the more recent stories. (FYI: I get no kickbacks for these. I was paid once, and that's all she wrote). The first one, actually, is a freebie online:
The Crow's Caw - As The Crow Flies
The Midnight Diner, Volume 3 - Lonely Places
Brutality as Art - A Willing Donor
Abominations - Water God of Clarke Street
Northern Haunts - Old Bassler House
Morpheus Tales, Issue #1 - The Sliding (An expanded version of Old Bassler House, of which I also offer as a free graphic e-novel here.)
The Midnight Diner: Volume 1 - The Way Station (1st published story, so a bit wordy...)
And those are the ones I'm okay with folks reading. I have a whole year of stories and publications that are just...eh...because they were very early efforts. Maybe I'll rewrite them someday. Most probably not.
But wait...I've got more. See, I've also seen the publication of several non-fiction pieces drawing their inspiration directly from real life. They're completely different than the stories above, published in a VERY different market. They are listed below:
In Times of Need - Hope For Christmas
Praying Together - A Chorus of Prayers
Love Is A Flame - Encouraging My Dream
Praying From The Heart - More Than We Asked For
Love Is A Verb - Between Baby and Basketball
Life Savors - Right Choice
So there you go. Pimping done. Back to the semi-randomness....
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