Dissolution of Peace – Flores Factor

Too Long Between Publications

Writing

by Richard Flores IV on 2022-05-17 0 Comments

I am starting to feel like a broken record on this blog, but each time I feel genuine in my words. But sometimes a little something comes up that really hits you. Something that sticks in your mind and puts some thing in perspective.

In just a few short weeks, the 10th anniversary of the release of my first novel, Dissolution of Peace will come to pass. I realized this when I was on Facebook’s Memories section and saw that I debuted the Broken Trust trailer eight years ago. That was my third novel. And in eight years, I’ve managed to publish one more novel.

It isn’t just novels, my short story publications have been pretty sporadic as well. And though I have one as recently as 2020, it is coming up on 18 months since that one came out. And the blog hasn’t had a new post in a year. And the odd thing is, none of it feels that long ago.

I have excuses, some of which are valid. My father did pass away in March of 2021. I’ve had a lot going on with my day job. And Factor Four Magazine did relaunch in 2022. But at the end of the day, I just haven’t been on top of my writing like I used to be. And the results are showing through as a publication gap.

And while I was pretty hard on myself about it yesterday, when I came to discover the dates, I am taking a little different look at it a day later. Today I find myself thinking about the things I have done rather than the things I have not done. It has given me a different perspective.

I did bring back a magazine I was very passionate about. I am providing a venue for other writers to sell their high quality flash fiction. I am have always been extremely saddened by having to close Factor Four Magazine, and so relaunching it has been a very crowning achievement coming out of a depression filled 2020 and 2021.

I’ve also taken charge of my time and maximized two passions I enjoy. The first is writing, the second is live streaming over on Twitch. As a result, I finished the first draft of the third book in the Serenity Saga trilogy, and I am now well over 56,000 words into my first fantasy novel. The publishing process is slower than I’d like, but I am making progress nearly every day. And with any luck I can continue to use my Writing with Richard streams to advance through the first round edits, and get these books to beta readers soon. I do need to find a new editor for line edits/copy edits, so let me know if you know someone.

I’ve also continued to shop around six short stories, three of which I wrote in the last two years. And sometimes, when you’re already down on yourself, the rejection cycle can be really hard. But I am also on the other side of this, and I understand that not all stories are rejected because they are bad. And sometimes it just takes time to find the right place for a story.

I think the next step for me is to just keep plugging away. Devote the time I need to make things happen. But also recognize my need to do other things in my life besides work, write, and stream. I need to spend time with the family, read, enjoy TV, movies, and watch hockey. It has to be okay to to do other things and to keep life enjoyable. Because even too much of the things I do enjoy can lead to burn out.

I intend to continue on my writing path, and while I can’t say when the next novels will come out just yet. I can say that I am confident a new one is on the horizon. And what may be next is to include edits and blog posts in my Writing with Richard streams.

I can’t promise what my blog posting schedule will look like. Or even how regular it will be. But what I can say is that I just have to keep trying. And that the schedule has to be mine, and not something that is either too ambitious or being done because I feel I owe it to someone.

And to the new and old fans that have been sticking it out, waiting patiently for something new, and still being happy to support what is already released, I have to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. I appreciate your support always.

Stop on by on Twitch one of these days, I’d love to say hello and share in the writing conversation with you all.

Where have you been?

Uncategorized

by Richard Flores IV on 2014-08-24 0 Comments

I know I have been a really bad host lately. I keep inviting people to the party, but then I never show up. I’ve been less than active on this blog and not very active on social media either. So what has been going on?

Well, I’ve been a bit down about things. I have not felt very validated as an author and have been in one of those self induced moods where I hide from the world. But, I’ve come back out from my cave, and I didn’t see my shadow. So I think that means I am able to break down this barrier and start working on what I enjoy. And to start, I put out this blog post.

So what have I been up to?

DetCon1

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Well, lets start with the biggest of things that kept me away. And that is DetCon1. Most of you know how excited I was about being part of the participants for this great convention. And it was really a good time. I got to meet some great people, break down my fear of reading in public, and even got a few great compliments.

One of the things that was so cool was I got to meet, and for just a little bit, talk with John Picacio. He is one of my all time favorite artists and we talked for brief moment before he was off to do more Guest of Honor stuff. But, he happened to know who I was. We’ve interacted a few times on Twitter, and I guess he seemed to remember me from there. I also attended some of his panels, including one where he broke down how he did “Girl with Microphone”, which is one of my favorite art pieces (bottom left of the picture below is my print copy which I won at the art show!).

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I also spoke to Neil Clarke of Clarkesworld at some length after one of his panels (the day before we sat on a panel together). Clarkesworld, and Neil, have been a great inspiration to my work on Plasma Frequency. And Neil was very much aware of my publication and I was so pleased to know that. He also shared some great insight with me into his own experience in the business and I was quite surprised by things I learned from him. Needless to say, it made me feel as if Plasma Frequency was doing some good in the Science Fiction short market world and I can’t wait to push forward.

Photo by Al Bogdan

I also had a panelist on my first panel tell me that I had a “Stephen King vibe” to me. I took that to be a compliment and he seemed genuinely surprised that I had not hear this before. Perhaps that means that I am good on these panels and can be invited back for more. I don’t believe I have signed up for WorldCon in Spokane, so I better do that now.

I had a big fear of reading in public. I am not the best out-loud reader and I notice if more and more as I get older. I stubble over words when I read out-loud to the kids. So I was really worried. I did have a reading, but it was late and not many people showed up. I went last, and many people walked out during my reading. I don’t know if that was from boredom or from it being close to the end of the panel. I hope it was the later.

Plasma Frequency

Oh, this magazine of mine. It is always on the list of things that keep me from writing, but that is a good thing. We are starting year 3 with the publication of Issue 13 on September 5th. We are making some changes to the publication this year. And just like last year we are letting our readers choose half the stories we publish in the Year 2 Anthology. You can vote on those here: LINK.

We really need the support of our readers if we hope to continue. So we are also asking for your ideas and thoughts in our survey that is just before the story voting. We are also asking you to pick the cover artist for the anthology. So if you have read Plasma Frequency at all, please go complete the survey.

A Day Job

So I got one of those again. Which is good because I was out of a good paying job for sometime. But I have one that pays pretty good now. I am still in physical security. The job is boring, has lots of down time, and the hours really suck. But, I did finally get a laptop this last week. So I can now make use of the down time. Can’t do much about the bad hours right now. It is just hard on family time, especially once the kids are back in school. But, I will make use of the downtime to get things done that need to get done.

A new cover for Volition Agent

So, I finally decided I needed to do something about the cover for Volition Agent. The original cover wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t enticing buyers either. So I had Rebecca Treadway at ATRTink redo the cover. What do you think? I think it is awesome while still using the model and photographer that worked so hard to get me the first cover. Also, you can now get Volition Agent on Kindle for just 99 cents. So go pick up a copy here: LINK

Family Time

So I touched on this when I mentioned the new job. It has meant that when I am off work, I am spending time with the family. This is because I know that time won’t be around when all three kids are in school on my days off and I don’t see them. Especially since I work 18 of my 40 hours on Saturday and Sunday. So I have been spending the time with them exploring Washington state, our new home state.

My Health

My health hasn’t been so good as of late. I am thinking my gallbladder is acting up. I was in a lot of pain off and on while at DetCon1 and lost 10 pounds in the week I was gone. Which is odd, considering you don’t typically lose weight on a vacation. I can’t see a doctor until 2015, unless something changes and I can get insurance before then. That is a long story. But I have to have them run a whole series of tests on me, because I am also dealing with some other issues health wise. All in all I need to make sure I take care of myself.

Feelings of Failing

I touched on this at the start of this blog. I can’t help but feel as though I am failing at doing what I love. Writing is so much fun to me, but I am just not getting the attention of readers. I recently discovered that none of my books have even broke even. And that is a bit of a sad fact of being a self-published author. And when you feel like you are failing is can be difficult to motivate yourself to write. So while I have a whole list above of valid reasons that kept me from writing. This funk is the real reason. The rest are just excuses.

So what is coming next?

Well, finally adding a laptop to the equation should help me get back into the swing of things. I will be able to get more writing and Plasma Frequency business done when I am away from home. And that is a huge plus. It also means I will be able to finally start putting words down on the sequel to Dissolution of Peace, which is starting to be on pace to be a lot longer of a novel than the original is. I am still trying to think of a good series title for this series. Any ideas from my readers?

I am trying to keep my chin up. DetCon1 was a huge boost to that. I think once the kids are back in school, and before the Washington rain hits, I’ll take this laptop out to one of the great state parks here and use nature as my inspiration to start putting the letters on the page again. In the meantime, I think this blog post is a good re-connection with the writing world and I’m ready to get things rolling again.

2014: Looking Ahead

Writing

by Richard Flores IV on 2014-01-04 0 Comments

10310_wpm_lowres So it is 2014, though I am still a bit in denial about that, and now is the time everyone puts up new year posts. I guess I will too. There is a saying, “If everyone jumped off a bridge, would you?” I always thought that was kind of a silly saying. I mean if everyone is doing it, there has to be a reason for it. So at the very least I’d start gathering some facts.

None of that has to do with 2014, I don’t foresee any massive bridge jumping events in the near future. In fact, I am not very good at predicting the future. If I was, the Sharks would have already won the Stanley Cup years ago. So while I say I am looking ahead, I am really just planning ahead and hoping it all works out.

I’m not much for the resolutions thing. The meaning of resolution has been perverted over the years, and the definition really should be changed. Now a days a resolution is a plan you make in January and break by February (March for the diehard folks). Personally, I am so sick of the lose weight and eat better resolutions. There are no points for originality there. And the gym advertising that starts in late December and runs through February kills me. Undoubtedly the gyms make money hand of fist with people who buy memberships in January and never use the gym again after April.

I do like to make plans for the new year though. A plan sounds better. And everyone know even the best plans go to shit real fast. So when your “plan” gets all jacked up, it was expected all along. I never feel nearly as guilty when my plans fail as I did when my resolutions failed. That being said, one of my personal plans for 2014 is to lose some weight (yeah, I know what I just said). So far so good. Even with the holidays in the way, I’ve lost almost 12 pounds in December. I have no plans for a gym membership though. My new apartment has a fitness center on site, so perhaps once all the resolvers have given up, I can start using the treadmill there. Of course, a walk around the block is also free.

I have a number of personal plans for 2014, but that really wasn’t the point of this blog. This blog was more about what I plan to do in the writing and publishing aspects of my life. That is why most people read my blog. Actually the truth is I don’t really know why most people read my blog. I’m not even sure how many people bother to read past the few corny jokes. So I suppose if you’ve made it this far down my blog, I owe you some good solid blogging. But, as my credit rating suggests, I rarely deliver on what I owe.

My first goal for 2014 is to release three novels this year.

Three. The past two years I’ve only released one a year. And many writers were surprised I had time to release them that fast. So three is a pretty lofty goal.

Here is what stands in the way: Broken Trust is already way behind schedule. So at this point a March release seems impossible. My editor, who I love to work with, is also very behind. I’m guessing May before that one comes out. The sequel to Dissolution of Peace is slow going. I’ve been hitting a lot of stumbling blocks on that one. Hopefully the ball gets rolling on that one. And finally, I don’t have a solid novel idea in place for the third novel this year.

Here is why it can happen: Broken Trust is almost ready right now. So I just need to get it rolling through the process again and it will be ready for release. All the cards are in place. The sequel to Dissolution of Peace is being written and once I find my groove, I can tear out a lot of words per day. For that third novel, I am playing around with a Volition Agent sequel (though I hadn’t planned on one). Volition Agent was always planned to be a stand alone book. But I am thinking about writing more about Lexia. I do also have plans for a third novel in the Dissolution of Peace story line. And I left Broken Trust open for a sequel as well. But I also have ideas in their infancy for other novels. One, could be an elaboration of my first short story “Death Watch“.

My second goal is to increase the pay rates at Plasma Frequency.

I had really hoped to do this in 2013. I wanted to push hard to triple our rates, but the goal was just out of reach for a number of reasons. But, I learned a lot in 2013 about the business and have made some changes. This year I hope to go from 1 cent to at least 2 cents by the end of 2014.

Here is what stands in the way: The funding is the biggest challenge. I still fund about 95% of the operating costs for the magazine. And not that I am out of work I can’t afford to increase those costs. Also, increasing our readership has been harder than I expected.

Here is why it can happen: We recently started charging for our electronic issue. We’ve seen a slight reduction in electronic subscriptions but we did see an increase in print subscriptions. Amazon gives us more exposure and that has resulted in a steady increase in readership. We’ve also seen an increase in social media interactions and reader feedback. All this means Plasma Frequency is on the up and coming.

My third goal is to start speaking at Conventions.

After attending Lone Star Con 3 this year. I knew I wanted to speak at these convention panels.

Here is what stands in the way: I don’t have much “cred” to get convention programmers to consider me. That is the hardest part. I also have to have the money to get to many of these conventions. I’m still learning what conventions there are and when they are.

Here is why it can happen: I’ve already applied to DetCon to participate. I am already going there and I keep hoping they will contact me for at least one panel. I’ve also started looking into all the other conventions out there. Also, I am confident once someone gives me the chance I’d be really good at it. I love public speaking. And, as my blog reflects, I love sharing my experience and knowledge with others.

My forth goal is to expand what I do.

I want to be a writer. I don’t want a day job anymore. Of course, I need one. Writers rarely make major amounts of money. But my hope is to expand what I write and what I publish so that writing become more of a substantial source of income.

Here is what stands in the way: The odds. Making a lot of sales on my books is tough. Also, to make more I need to write more. And funding so I can publish more is also a challenge. Plus, once I get a day job that gets in the way of writing time. Also, it can be hard to write new things when you are so used to what you already write. I write Sci-Fi. I’ve considered non-fiction recently but fiction is what I know so that is a challenge in itself.

Here is why it can happen: If I keep writing, the sales are bound to happen. The more books I put out (hopefully 3 this year) means the more I have to sell. Also, in the coming weeks Plasma Frequency will be announcing a plan to publish longer fiction. As far as non-fiction goes, that is what I blog. So I suppose that if I put my mind to it I can find a topic to write a non-fiction book on. Though with my current publishing plans, the non-fiction book likely wouldn’t release until 2015.

So those are my plans for my writing career in 2014. Now to see what actually happens.

Updates: Moving, Depression, and Failing to Write

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-12-30 2 Comments

The Bad

As a pessimist, I’ll start with the bad first.

Some of you may know from previous posts, and if you follow me on social media, that I recently underwent a major move. I moved from my hometown of Vacaville, CA to Auburn, Washington. I’ve rarely left the State of California for vacation. The farthest I lived from Vacaville was about 5 years in Folsom, CA about an hour away. So needless to say moving two states away was a big move, and a little bit scary of one too.

To top it off, I’ve gone from a four bedroom house to a three bedroom apartment. This is another big adjustment. I am not used to neighbors walking around above me. Or having to walk forever to the trash. Or even the smaller size of an apartment. My family has had to adjust to the smaller spaces and the lack of a yard, or other things we are used to having in a house.

Family is another thing that has changed a bit. This move was originally planned for the middle of June. When the kids would be out of school and there would be time for my wife to transfer her job. But my landlord told us we needed to move right before the holidays. I had already been fired from my job. So after a long talk with my wife, we decided that it was practical to move twice. Once locally and then again six months later in June. So we had to accelerate the plans.

So Amy and I drove all our belonging up to Washington. Amy flew back to California and I was left up here alone. I got really sick (I had already been fighting a cold). And in the end I didn’t get anything done in the first week. Things like getting a job didn’t happen. Then Amy brought our kids up after they finished out the schooling and started winter break. Then Amy went back to California. She has to keep working down there until her job transfers, a date that hasn’t been set yet. So I spent Christmas with the boys. This is the first Christmas Amy and I haven’t had together in over 10 years. Even thought one of us always seemed to have to work, we saw each other.

So it has been hard. I have been suffering form a bit of depression and though I know that is normal, I can’t really slip past it. I find myself sleeping late, moping around the house. I force myself to go out, but it isn’t as much fun as it should be. And the main thing that has suffered is my writing. I haven’t written anything in almost a month. I haven’t even opened any of my projects to review.

There have been a lot of delays to add to a already depressed Richard. For example, I had planned to have responses from beta readers on Broken Trust by December 1. All but one reader bailed out on me and hasn’t even bothered to respond. So now I am looking for a new set of readers to look over this. If you beta read for me, I’ll send you a signed paperback copy of the book when it is released as a Thank You gift (US Residents). Contact me if you are interested.

The fixes on Dissolution of Peace are still delayed by the editor. She is doing the absolute best she can, but delays keep jumping up all over the place. Hopefully the second edition can be released in January, but I can’t make any more promises on that.

The sequel to Dissolution of Peace is slow going. Perhaps I should explain why. Aside from the depression and busy life I’ve had, I am not sure I like how the sequel is progressing. Originally I wrote the manuscripts for three novels. The first is now Dissolution of Peace. The second occurred after a lot of time had passed since the end of the first. I made a decision that I owed the readers the story that occurred during this time lapse. So I decided that was what I would write as the sequel. The problem is, it isn’t progressing the way I thought it would. I think part of this is my own self being critical of my work. Depression and a lack of interest in writing anything is probably a huge factor too.

What I really needed to to was to break the slump in my lack of writing. With all this free time on my hands, I should be writing more not less. And I should be writing for my own sanity. Since most of my books are still packed, I need this escape. As I have mentioned several times over writing is my stress relief. But honestly, it seems to be the first thing I am distracted from when I get upset.

The Good

I’ve wanted to move to Washington for over four years. I’m finally here. That part I am thrilled about. This is very beautiful country. I love the rain, the evergreens, the natural beauty, and the state parks. Yesterday I discovered Flaming Geyser State Park which is only about 20 minutes from me. I think I could spend a long time sitting there writing while listening to the rivers and streams. And I’ll be exploring some more of the State Parks later this week. My own apartment complex is nestled in the hills surrounded by trees and it is a beautiful setting. I’ve posted a few pictures here.

The downsizing has also been good. I’ve managed to purge a lot of stuff I probably should have thrown out years ago. I made a lot of charitable donations before I left Vacaville with the stuff my family no longer needed. It has also allowed me to better organize myself since my office has to be shared with my bedroom. And when Amy does move up here, she won’t want my office clutter everywhere. There are a few pluses to living in an apartment too. Things like no yard to maintain, no trash or water bills, and generally lower electric costs. The lower rent also helps. Unlike Vacaville, the apartment rents in Auburn are cheaper than the house rents. And the saved money will be going into our “buy a house” fund. Something that is on my two years goal list.

There is good news from Broken Trust. I have cover art for the novel ready. Mallory Rock, a great cover artist, did this cover for me. I had a lot of trouble with this cover. I really wanted to see certain things from it. But I couldn’t hit the mark. Mallory managed to hit the mark with this one. Even thought it didn’t hit all the check boxes I wanted, it did give me what I needed. A cover that was amazing and reflects the feel of the novel. Don’t forget, you can get a free signed copy by being a beta reader for this book. Read an early copy of this book, give me your thoughts and suggestions, and not only will you help shape the book. I’ll send you a free copy, signed by me.

Dissolution of Peace got a very nice shout out on Twitter from @CWVanderReyden. His rave reviews of my book led to another person buying the book. This is the first time that I have known of a direct recommendation resulting in the buying of my book. And it was a simple word of mouth review. I appreciate those types of reviews and praise a lot. In many cases they can be more valuable that the professional reviewer. So please leave a review of my books on Amazon and Goodreads. And tell a friend. They can really make my day when I find out about them.

I forced myself to blog today. That means I finally wrote something. I’m hoping that means that when I am done here (and done making my kids lunch), I’ll start writing again on the next novel. I need to crank that out and get it going for release in 2014. I had a lofty goal of releasing three novels in 2014. I think it can be done with how far along Broken Trust is. But it will be a challenge just the same. But the only way it will be done it to write.

And though my wife is not here with me, I do have the advantages of Google+ hangout to see her. And she will be flying up to see us to the end of January. And we will just keep our fingers crossed that her job transfer comes quickly and we won’t have to wait out too much longer. There are a lot of couples who have to spend countless time apart, and I just have to remain optimistic that this will all work out in the long run.

And that about summarizes this move for me. We moved to Washington to make a change that we couldn’t do in California. And now that we have made the move, I have to remain optimistic that this was the right choice and that it will all fall into place soon enough.

Why I NaNoWriMo Failed

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-11-30 1 Comment

frustrated_writer_200 They say excuses are like assholes; everybody has one and they usually stink. But not everybody has a blog where they can wallow in their own stench. So for my first blog is a little while, let me ask you all to sniff my… no wait… Let me ask you all to listed to my excuses for not succeeding at NaNoWriMo.

‘Excuse’ is not necessarily the right word though. That implies that what happened will make it okay that I didn’t complete NaNoWriMo. But it doesn’t make it okay. Or maybe it does. ‘Reasons’ is a better word to use. So these are the reasons I didn’t complete a novel during National Novel Writing Month.

I not only didn’t complete a novel, I didn’t even come close. I completed 15643 words on Dereliction of Duty, which is not even close to giving it the old college try. In fact, I stopped writing after the 11th. And the days before that were not consistent. All in all, I flat out failed to even try to do this.

I stated off with a commitment to do it. I was eager by the middle of October. I had the drive to do it and expected that I could. This was going to be my NaNo year. Then on October 28th my job calls me very late in the day and tells me not to come to work the next day. No explanation given, just simply that they’d be in touch. So I spent that whole night, and the remainder of the week, wondering what I had done wrong. I had done nothing wrong and could think of nothing I had done wrong. I still maintain that I’ve done nothing wrong.

It wasn’t until the 1st of November that they finally contacted me. They needed me to come out and interview with them. I did. Their entire case against me was flimsy, falsified, and inadequate. But they knew if they didn’t blame me for something they’d have to pay me for all my time off. That wasn’t going to happen. And since I anticipated I was going to be fired, I began looking for work.

When I am out of work, I can’t sit back and collect unemployment checks (which I still haven’t received any of those). I have to spend those hours when I would have been working, out looking for work. When I am doing anything other than looking for work I feel like I am not doing my best to find work. So every time I started writing my novel, I felt I needed to be looking for work. My mind just wasn’t in it. Not to mention my mind running though the what ifs of the on going investigation. I thought these coworkers were my friends, or at least that we got along, and a number of them back-stabbed me hard. Finally on November 19th, over three weeks later, the company fired me. By that point I knew it was coming. That doesn’t mean it was any easier. I absolutely loved that job, my recent promotion made it even better, and to lose it was a heart breaking moment. I had expected to work there for a long time to come. But, this is one reason I couldn’t focus on NaNoWriMo.

Rewind to the start of October. There was a discussion of a coworker who wanted to move to Asheville, North Carolina. He is very talented with music, and he said the music scene was strong there. He also told me the writing scene is strong there. But, North Carolina is too far from my family and though I once wanted to move out of state, as I mentioned above, I just got this promotion and I loved my job.

My wife and I have contemplated moving out of California for a number of years. I’d say five or more now. My personal choice has always been Washington State. I have been up there several times and I absolutely love it. But every time we started to plan a move up there, we backed out for one reason or another. The most recent time being because I got the promotion at work. But anytime someone talked about moving to another state, I’d always get to thinking about Washington. I finally said to myself, or God, or whomever was listening to my thoughts at that time, that I needed some sign that I had made the right choice to stay in California and work for the company I was with. A week later I was suspended out of nowhere (did I mention I’d never been in trouble there before).

Well as far as signs from a higher power, I think this was the slap in the face I needed. So I began to discuss the idea with my wife again. The family and I drove up to Spokane (which I had never been to) on the 5th. Then we drove across the state to Seattle on the 6th. Then we drove down to Vancouver (Washington) on the 7th. And home on the 8th. From my house that is a lengthy car ride, and a lot of miles covered. But I wanted my wife to see the state that I wanted to go to. Plus, I had a friend to visit, family to visit, and a job to test for. So you can see, there wasn’t much time for writing those four days.

At that point we decided we would make this change. We would try to make this move up there in June or July when the kids finished this school year. Then we’d move to either Spokane or Seattle depending on where I could get work and my wife could transfer her job.

Fast forward to the 15th of November (my Birthday). My landlord shows up at my house with a 30 day notice to move out. Now keep in mind, I’m paying the rent. But there was a little mix up where someone stole his mail and the rent check got cashed by someone else. But my bank cleared it up and he got paid. I guess that was enough for him, because he wanted us out by the 15th of December.

So, my wife and I had numerous long talks. And the decision was made to accelerate our plans to move. We didn’t see the point in moving, just to do it again in six or so months. So, I had to go back up to Seattle for a job interview on the 20th, 21st, and 22nd. I also looked at several places to live. And, we did find a place that would take us in on my wife’s income.

So now, I’ve been packing and planning a long distance move (something close to 900 miles) up to Washington State. And trying to pack this house up. And downsize it a bit so I don’t have to haul as much.

All this while still working to get Issue 9 of Plasma Frequency out on the deadline of December 5th.

Losing a job, and now moving plans, meant I just simply haven’t had my mind on the story I need to write.

But there is some good news too. My next novel to be released, Broken Trust, is in the hands of beta readers. Also, the great artist Mallory Rock designed the cover art of it. I’ll do a formal reveal very soon (though you can already see it if you follow me on Facebook). And, I’m told the second edition of Dissolution of Peace is very close to being ready.

Anyway, those are my assholes, er.. I mean excuses, for why I didn’t win at NaNoWriMo.

Project Announcements

Writing

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-10-07 1 Comment

As always, I have several projects going on in my life. There are some things that I can’t wait to share with you, so I am going to give you a few updates on some projects. I’ll ask for a little bit of your on input on some of these. So please feel free to leave a few comments with your thoughts. I’d love the feedback.

Dissolution of Peace Second Edition

As most of you who follow me on Twitter and Facebook know, I have hired another editor to do over the manuscript of Dissolution of Peace and fix the mistakes that were missed by me despite my first editor’s best efforts. I am a difficult person to be an editor for because I simply don’t get it. There are many grammar and spelling rules that I simply don’t understand. And even when they are explained to me a thousand times, I just don’t get it. So even though my first editor was amazing, I still missed a lot of stuff.

I hired a new editor for Volition Agent, and I have since hired her to look over Dissolution of Peace again. The main reason I felt compelled to get this done right away is that I got a big explosion of reviews. And, while all the reviews seem to love the story, a lot pointed out distracting grammar mistakes. And, I listed to my readers and feel that fixing those will be a simple thing to do. My new editor Tiffany Carrera is a great match for my books. She is patient with me and my lack of knowledge, she deals with me constantly asking “how much longer”, and she has a passion for assisting writers with getting their work to be as perfect as possible. Tiffany is also a prior member of the military, which is handy since I write a lot of stories with a Military and/or Police element to them.

At last update from Tiffany, she was a little over halfway through it. My hope was to get it out by the one year anniversary of the book, but that doesn’t look likely. Maybe by my birthday in November (feel free to send gifts) I will have it out. I am going to ask Amazon to notify all of those who bought the kindle edition, so that they can download the updated version. Hopefully that won’t be a problem. But that will be up to Amazon. Of course I will update on Twitter, Facebook, and here.

The Next Novel

I am really excited about my next novel. I recently asked my social media followers to give their ideas on a few titles for the next book. I am terrible with titles and I always will be. I originally billed this as being a Post Apocalyptic/ Dystopian novel. But I think I will cross off the Dystopian part. In fact, it has more to do with rebuilding than any dystopia. There are two titles out of the list that I really like. Broken Trust and The Council’s Mistake. I am leaning more towards Broken Trust because it plays on several levels of the story and in several different story lines. Though the story is also propelled by several of the Council’s mistakes, the title doesn’t work for me is some way. I would like to know what you think of the titles, let me know.

I have also put together a blurb for the book. Tell me what you think:

Liam Fisher never wanted to be a leader. But after finding the survivors, protecting them, and founding the city-state of Lagoon Hills; the people demanded he be their leader. Instead, Liam agreed to sit on a Council with four other leaders, each of them with a specialty.

Together with Talya Brooks, the person who saved his life after the collapse, Liam runs the militia of Lagoon Hills. And though it was tough early on, the people of the city now live in relative comfort and safety.

But Liam is fighting his own personal demons: The loss of his wife and unborn son. Rachel, his long lost love has suddenly arrived in the city. And a neighboring city-state is threatening war.

The people of Lagoon Hills are counting on Liam for their safety. Can he keep himself together and be the leader everyone wants him to be? Or will the people closest to him be the greatest threat of all?

I feel like it captures a lot of the essence of this book.

So what is the next step for this book? Well I am currently about 25% of the way through the second draft. I don’t waste time of creating a second draft. I mentioned before that I don’t find much use for a “cooling off period” and so I tend to dive right in.

Once completed with the second draft I will be asking for beta readers. If you are interested please let me know. Beta readers are a very important part of the writing process. All too ofter I have trouble finding Beta readers, and even more trouble getting them to respond in a timely manner. I am hoping to have it ready for Beta reading by the middle to end of the month. All of November I will be working on NaNoWriMo, but I would like to work on Beta edits for this book in December. I hope to get it to Tiffany in January and maybe see a release by March. Maybe… Anyway, if you want to Beta Read, please let me know, just make sure a November reading works for you.

Also I am looking for cover art. Either premade or custom made. So feel free to leave your artist suggestions too.

NaNoWriMo

I am going to make a first time honest effort to do NaNoWriMo this November. I already know what I am going to write and I am already working on the plot points in my head. I will be writing the sequel to Dissolution of Peace and I am excited to get this project started. I’ve talked before about why NaNoWriMo is so tough for me. But I really want to do it this year, so here is hoping I am up for the challenge. I know I am excited about it. I may actually have a title for the sequel too. But, I am not sure what to call this series. I need to give it a series name for the sake of my own sanity. I have been tossing around ideas for some time now. If you have some ideas, please let me know. You can probably expect some other NaNo updates as November comes along.

Author Features

I’ve had a few successful author feature posts over the last two months. I am really enjoying doing these. You should sign up if you’d like me to assist you in promoting your works. I have dates in November and December open for all of the feature types. You can find out more about those by going to the Author Feature page (under contact me).

Plasma Frequency Anthology

After so much work, the Plasma Frequency Anthology has been released and is available on Amazon for your Kindle or in Paperback. The cover art is amazing and was done by Laura Givens, who has done number of art works for our magazine. Please consider checking it out. The money raised from selling the anthology goes right back to the magazine.

On the topic of the magazine, Issue 8 released earlier this month. We made some major changes to Plasma Frequency after all the knowledge I picked up at WorldCon. We revamped the website, we revamped the magazine, and we changed how we distribute the magazine. Working with Amazon and Weightless Books should prove to be a good thing for our publication.

We are also looking for good people to help us with our magazine. Namely in the marketing and social media and in the need for additional readers. If you are interested, you can find out more on our website.

WorldCon 2014

I had such a blast at WorldCon this year that I really wanted to go to London. But, the deck has been stacked against me. The final straw was when I found out that LonCon 3 will take place right at the same time by kids start school. And 2014 will be my youngest first day of school ever. Somethings are more important than conventions, and family is one of those. So I won’t be going to London, unless something changes, but it is unlikely.

I will however be going to the NaSFIC in Detroit this year. I am excited about going to this and have already upgraded to an attending membership. I’ve also already submitted my participant ideas and suggestions. The odds of me being chosen to speak on any panels is probably slim, but I wanted to try. As many of my regular blog followers know, I have no problem sharing my opinion and giving tips and tricks that I learned along the way.

I wonder what other conventions would some of you suggest I attend? I am knew the convention scene and only really know of WorldCon/NaSFIC. I don’t really know of many others. What others are great for writers like myself? What about conventions that would be good for my to attend as an Editor for a magazine? Let me know what you suggest. I think I could get used to attending a few convention a year.

Other Events

What other events can you think of? When Dissolution of Peace is ready for the second edition, I plan to contact a few local book stores for a book signing. We have a small shop in downtown here. I think there are some other small town bookstores around. I don’t know how much interest a Barnes and Noble would have in me. Any suggestions on that? What other places might be a good spot for a book signing? As I release more books, (maybe I will even have four out by the time I go to Detroit) I hope to attend more signings and events. So I would love to hear your suggestions.

Narrowing Down my Ambitions

I wrote a post a little bit ago about getting focused on what I want. And besides being so busy with all the stuff above, I have tried to limit all the other distractions. There are people in my family who don’t seem to understand that I am working to a goal and therefore may spend a lot of time in my office. And I think next week I will write a blog on the difficulties of choosing a “hobby” as a career. That should be an interesting post. See you next week.

Listen to Your Critics

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-09-23 1 Comment

Wait, what? No I didn’t typo the title of this blog. I really do plan to talk about reasons you should listen to your critics. Sure there are countless blogs posts about all the reasons you should ignore your critics. I have even written one (or two). There are lots of great posts on how bad reviews and the critics of your work should be ignored. You can’t please everyone and you can’t win them all. But, after careful consideration, I am not sure that is really the best tip to provide authors, or any artist for that matter.

Working in the art industry, and we can’t forget that writing is an art, attracts all kinds of people. You have the people who love just about everything. You have the people who hate just about everything. Then you have the people who really don’t know what they like or hate. And finally you have the ones who know what they like and why they like it (and they usually know why they don’t like something too). One might argue that you can also attract the jealous artist. The one who wants to do what you do (and probably could) but they never bothered to really work at it.

In the past two years I have written a ton of book reviews. I realized that reviewing a book on Amazon and Goodreads really helped authors. Soon I was writing them for Plasma Frequency, and now I am writing them for my own blog. And in all those reviews, I used to feel guilty when I wrote something critical about a book. I felt like maybe I was being a jerk. And I knew how critical reviews bothered me sometimes. But I’ve realized that I am only sharing my opinion. Other readers, and the author, can take it or leave it. It is just my opinion, and I am but one reader.

But over the past few weeks, especially after all the inspiration I got from WorldCon, I have realized that perhaps I am thinking about reviews the wrong way. That ignoring the bad ones, and basking in the good ones, was not necessarily the best method.

First, we should get this out of the way. There is one review that you can always ignore. That is the review that just bashes your book to bash it. There is no logic to the reviews. That would be the “This book sucks because I said it sucks but I won’t tell you why it sucks” kind of review. Any blog reviewer worth your time won’t publish a review like that. But on Amazon and Goodreads you will see those from time to time. When I say you should ignore those reviews, I mean just that. Don’t bother with it. Don’t waste your time getting it removed or asking all your friends to vote the review as being not helpful. I just mean ignore it. It isn’t worth the time you put into it.

Recently I have seen an explosion in sales and reviews for Dissolution of Peace. I was lucky to sell five copies each month in the past six months. And I thought five was a great month. I also seemed stuck at 12 reviews for a long time. But now, I find myself looking at my 18th review on Amazon. And 28 text reviews on Goodreads, which is great in my opinion. I’ve also sold an average of 1.75 books per day (not counting my free promotion earlier this month).

So things are going well right? Yes, and no. There are some critical elements in these reviews.

I’m consistently seeing reviewers that love the story line of my book. There has been a sprinkle or two suggesting better character development, and another sprinkle or two that love the characters. There have been a few that hate the ending. There have been a few that love the ending. But one critical comment has been consistent. They don’t like the grammar and spelling. They seem to find errors that I didn’t catch.

Anyone who follows this blog knows that I am very self conciseness when it comes to grammar. So my first step in dealing with this was to follow the advise we see across the blogging world. I simply ignored it. In fact, anything critical, I ignored. Anything that people loved I relished in, I noted it for the sequel. I even bragged about it.

But that is a disservice. Not just to the reviewer, who took time to review the book (which we know many readers do not do), but it is also a disservice to yourself.

Every artist can grow. And listening to your readers is a great way to learn where you might want to focus your growth. It also tells you what you can fix to increase your sales. For example, I’ve hired a new editor to review and fix the mistakes in Dissolution of Peace that I simply can’t catch. Once she fixes those, I’ll update the book with a new version.

But grammar isn’t the only critique I have got. I am looking into how I develop my characters and the way I end my novels. I am looking into what it is that people really enjoy about the way I write stories. I’m listening to my readers, even the critics. Because that is how I will grow as a writer. That is how I will become better. And once you think you can’t get any better, you’ve become to arrogant and your readers will eventually notice there is no progression in your work and you will fade out.

So while critics are everywhere, they are also extremely helpful to the arts. You, as the artists, may not take all their tips. I am not saying you have to. But I am saying you should at least listen. You will benefit from that. If the majority of readers have a consistent complaint, I would suggest correcting that aspect of your writing. Either in your current book, or in future works in progress. For those more 50-50 splits, the choice is yours as an artist. It could be something to change, or it could be that your style is not their style.

But if you want reviewers, you have to listen to them. You can’t bash them and ignore them. You can’t accept only the good. You have to listen to your critics.

FREE eBOOKS!

Marketing

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-08-29 2 Comments

As I announced a few days ago, today my books are officially free on Amazon.com. Get a copy for your Kindle for free!

Both Volition Agent and Dissolution of Peace are 100% free for Kindle. Please pick up a copy and share the links with your friends. We can make these books top sellers! The are free until Labor Day so get your copies soon!

WorldCon Upcoming and Other News

Uncategorized

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-08-26 0 Comments

Last week I didn’t do my normal blog post, the one from the Monday before was very emotionally draining and I needed a break. I wasn’t surprised that post got little attention, even from my friends, but there is still something about laying it all out there that drains you. The good news is I am feeling much better. I wrote more on my work in progress, got a very good review on Dissolution of Peace (see below) and have been working hard to get ready for WorldCon.

WorldCon!

For those that don’t know about WorldCon, it is the World Science Fiction Convention. It is held annually and also is the host for the Hugo Awards. I’ve been trying to go to one for three years now. When I first learned about WorldCon, I tried to go to Renovation, but at the last minute I had to cancel. That was a shame because it was only about a four hour drive from my house. Chicago was just not going to happen, the cost was too much. But finally this year I get to go. Lone Star Con 3, in San Antonio looks like a ton of fun. But I made several mistakes that I will have to plan for next year (though I don’t think I will get to London, I hope to get to the North American Science Fiction Convention (takes place when WorldCon is not in North America).

First, I had no idea about the panels. That is to say, I knew that there were discussion panels to see. What I didn’t know was that I could ask to be on them. Second, I delayed to long to get back to them about a signing. Third, I couldn’t get a Dealer’s Table for Plasma Frequency. But, I think this actually works out better. I get to experience the convention, learn all there is to learn about it, and hopefully next year I will know better where I can help out.

I am beyond excited. I’ve got some business cards to hand out for the magazine, and I have some postcards to hand out during the event. The postcards are for my book and they are announcing a way to get both my books free. I’ll explain that more soon.

Whether you are a fan of my books, fan of Plasma Frequency, or a writer/artist looking to talk to me in person about getting your work in Plasma Frequency; I hope you will seek me out. I’d love to meet with writers, artists, and other professionals in the industry. If you see me there, please feel free to say Hello! If I have a moment I would be happy to talk to you. Also, I understand that you can leave a message for me on the Voodoo message board.

While I was not able to get involved in any of the panels as a panelist. I fully plan to attend a lot of convention activities. Below is a list of some of the activities I plan to attend. Of course, I may have to cancel some of these depending on what else I discover. But maybe I will see some of you at these. (Sorry if I butchered any of the panel names, I wrote them from my memory).

Thursday:

4pm Self Promotion

5pm Opening Ceremonies

9pm Best Practices for Booksellers

Friday:

4pm The Romance of Military SF

5pm How Magazines are Changing in a Digital World

8pm How to build a Book Campain

Saturday:

11am How to Write a Short Story

12pm Planning a Starship

2pm LSC3 Film Festival

4pm The shift for Print to Electronic

5pm Writing Combat

Sunday:

10am Mars and/or Bust

11am Should SF consider the Furture

1pm Crowdfunding

2pm Real Animals in a Fantasy World

5pm Extend your book into Social Media

8pm Hugo Awards

Monday:

10am Writing outside Genre

12pm Armed Society is a Polite Society

3pm Closing Ceremonies

The rest of the time I will be either moving around the convention to see the exhibits or out sightseeing in San Antonio. I plan to spend some time at the Riverwalk, the Tower of the Americas and the Alamo. When I get back, I plan to write a blog post all about my experiences there. I’ll also be on my Twitter and Facebook with updates of where I am and what I am seeing. I also will have an article in Issue 8 of Plasma Frequency all about the trip.

Get My Books Free!

Design by Mister Signs

In honor of my first WorldCon and because I can’t think of a better way to get the attention of a ton of Science Fiction readers, I have made Dissolution of Peace and Volition Agent free for Kindle from August 29th to September 2nd. Five full days to celebrate my books and WorldCon. I would really like to see my book make some “Top Seller” lists on Amazon. My readers did wonders with Dissolution of Peace on its first free day. So please spread the word that these books are going to be free on Amazon. The more people who know the better! Thank you!

New Dissolution of Peace Review!

Bookworm Babblings reviewed Dissolution of Peace today! They were very excited about this book and said some excellent things. It really brightened my mood. Please go give it a read, and leave a comment if you’d like.

Hope to see some of you at WorldCon! See you next week for my post about the trip!

What a Book Tour Journey!

by Richard Flores IV on 2013-05-13 0 Comments

So today is May 13th and that means the Dissolution of Peace blog tour is officially over. The folks over at Orangeberry book tours did an amazing job getting everyday filled with some type of post. There were a few of my followers that even signed up for a day. I was disappointed that none of the Book Reviews came threw, in the end they all wound up being book features. But other than that, the tour was a lot of fun. With the giveaway and the tour I gained some new blog, Facebook, and Twitter followers.

Truthfully, I didn’t sell many books on this tour. So in terms of getting a return on my investment, the tour was not even close to successful. But you can’t always measure these things in dollars and cents. And while I eventually want to write for a career, I never became a writer to make a ton of money. I will likely do a book tour again.

Don’t forget you have another week to enter the Giveaway and a chance to win a $50 Amazon Gift card. So go over the this page and enter to win. Don’t miss out on that chance. You can gain five more entries from checking out this blog, just enter “Orangeberry” as the pass code.

All my blog tour hosts were great, but I did have a few favorite stops. Here are a few of them for you to go back and read:

Here is my stop at Anya Breton’s Blog. I enjoyed my interview with Michael McDuffee on his blog. My guest post at KY Bunnies Blog was a topic I talk about a lot. You can find a excerpt of Dissolution of Peace on Gentleman Reads. Find out why I don’t use an outline on this post at Blog-A-Licious Authors. And last, find out ten things you didn’t know about me at Books are Magic. You can find a full list of all my tour stops here.

As I mentioned, Orangeberry did a great job filling the tour. They did so well, that there are lots of posts still to come. I will post those on Facebook and Twitter as they come along. Please check them out.

As a special thanks to everyone who followed along on the tour, I am going to post at excerpt of my next novel at 3pm pacific time! Other than five beta readers, no one has seen the first chapters of Volition Agent, I am excited to share it all with you! I’ve also never shared an excerpt before, so if this creates a buzz maybe I’ll have a few more sneak peaks. In either case, make sure you come back to see it (I might even add more entries to the giveaway). And if you haven’t yet you can purchase and review Dissolution of Peace on Amazon.