Michael Raymond -- Author

Blog

I don't read Science Fiction

Posted by Mike Raymond at 08:31 AM on October 29, 2009

I've heard this time and again. This isn't about the book as much as it is about Cancer. Would you not donate to the Salvation Army because they use the word 'Army' and you are against war?

Would you guys not donate to Breast Cancer because you don't like nor wear pink?

Do you refuse to hand out candy at Halloween because of the sugar content?

Take another look. Read the Manifesto via the link at the left. Think. Is it about the book?

These aren't grapes!

Posted by Mike Raymond at 05:43 PM on April 02, 2009

The book sales have stalled, but I'm not worried. Times are changing and people aren't spending these days. I'm with you!

The books won't spoil, will be around for a long time. I've got books on my shelf that were written in the 1940's or earlier. Still a great read.

People have started to download the free copies. It's the same book. Enjoy the story, and buy a copy later when things are back to normal. Let me know if you enjoy it.

Share the free copy too. I want readers, the more the merrier! When planning the fund drive I didn't even figure in the electronic copies. Now I see that a happy reader is better than no readers. If one in 20 readers of the free one like it enough to buy a paper copy, that's great!

Cancer will be with us for a while.

Patience

Posted by mike-raymond at 05:58 AM on March 29, 2009

Well, history will tell if the book fundraising idea will be effective. I will never know of donations given by readers, only about book sales. They are dismal so far.

Of course, I knew that sales could not be vast due to my limited time for roadwork. I'm a single parent and so must be home, not out doing book marketing tours and readings.

I had counted on my contacts via email to spread the word, but that didn't come to much. In fact, my friends have not even bought books, except for three that I do greatly appreciate. Online sales are not happening too because people are reluctant to put their personal information into the Internet.

Locally, I have sold about 10 copies and given away an dozen or so. It is my hope that the resulting donations will happen after they read the story.

Offering the FREE download didn't make much difference, but about 15 are out there now.

If you are reading this and haven't downloaded, why not. You get a PDF file to view on screen. It really is a good story.

From Idea To Book

Posted by mike-raymond at 10:47 AM on December 11, 2008

It occured to me that some visitors to my site might be interested in the writing process that became the book. I will reflect on the creation here and welcome comments and questions.

In 2005 I wrote the first few pages of what was then planned to be a story about terrorists. Those pages sat for quite a while before I took up the story again, about six months.

I began writing in earnest after being inspired by a book by Carolyn Cee called 'The Literary Life'. In it she told of her own beginnings, writing her first book. The incentive thought was 'write anyway', good or bad. You can fix it up later, but just get it done. I liked that thought.

The book was a third written when the concept of the aliens first came into the story. Up to that time, it was genuine terrorists doing the nasty. It seemed to me that the world wasn't going to be happy with more about terrorists, given what was going on at the time.