My new book “Conditions” is about to be released in a few weeks’ time.
As I’m thinking of drumming up some publicity for it this morning I suddenly remembered with shock a meeting with Joe Dunthorpe, author of “Submarine”, at my local book store, two years ago. He mentioned in his talk that his real life mother was getting fed up with his readers, many of whom believed that she was like the mother character in his book. A comparison she seemed to find un-flattering.
Now my book is about two brothers with a difficult relationship and since I do have a real life brother I’ll put it on record that the book has nothing to do with me and my brother.
Maybe a good moment to talk about what the book is about and to shed light on the origins and sources of my characters, how I write and create them.
The idea for “Conditions“ originated from a funeral I once attended that stayed with me for a very long time. I tried to imagine where the hostility that I experienced there had come from. I envisaged two estranged brothers as the cause and gave them supporting figures that I thought would suit them. This is where it became fiction.
What I hope to capture in my books is the essence of some of the people I have met in my life. Catherine, Tony, Sarah, Ruth, Clare, Anna, Rose, Charles, Martha, Elaine, Edgar and Simon each have become an imprint of people that I have met over the course of my life. Usually not people I was very close with because if I knew them well it would leave me with little ‘artistic freedom’. I am much more fascinated with the people whom I met briefly, who left a fleeting but lingering impression on me yet who also leave me the opportunity to fill in the gaps with my imagination. A stranger sitting next to me on a train, a person in the queue ahead of me…
As I write my stories I can see some of these people in the eye of my mind at a bar in a sunny location and remember their face, their pain, their weaknesses and their strengths. Suddenly one of those images will take over the character of Catherine or Martha or Simon and become part of the dynamic writing process. From then onwards they dictate what happens or what has happened to them.
I’ve met people with mental health issues, been to mental hospitals as visitor, I’ve known quite a few people with drinking and co-dependency issues, marital problems and dependent relatives … I had plenty of inspiration from life. Some issues I’ve encountered only once, others time and time again. “Conditions” is about some topics that left their mark on me with characters that grew with me over the numerous rewrites from first draft in 2008 to publication in 2014.
I hope you enjoy reading the book as much as I enjoyed writing it and I hope the characters come as close to you as they have to me.
Where are you from: Born in Southern Germany, now living in rural Britain
A little about your self `ie your education Family life etc
I did my A-levels at an old-fashioned grammar school in Bavaria, moved to Hamburg to become a librarian and ended up in London working for the British Film Institute and British Airways.
I come from a large family and now have three labradoodles as child substitutes with my partner.
Fiona: Tell us your latest news?
My new book “Conditions” will be out on October 16th. It is a contemporary novel about friends, family, mental health and a funeral. I published three historical novels but after my last novel, “Time To Let Go” (a book about Alzheimer’s), was surprisingly popular I decided to follow with another contemporary book.
My new novel “Conditions” (available on Amazon for pre-order) contains a character with mental health issues. Although this is a prominent part of the story I’ve kept it deliberately vague in the book for several reasons:
I didn’t want the story to be about one specific illness or condition and thereby reduce the character to a stereotype.
I am also not a health care professional or bonafide expert on the subject. The condition is part of the story and serves a wider purpose and message. I didn’t want to enter a lengthy discussion about medication, care facilities etc., lecture you or write a guide book. I mean to entertain and hope maybe to stimulate a thought process in my readers.
However, the character is based on several people with one and the same condition. Although I did some further research to make him consistent and believable I regard this aspect as almost secondary to the novel as a whole.
There are more issues being discussed in the book and my main character Charles is difficult for many reasons. His story is meant as a reminder to us all to embrace all aspects of a person and try to adapt so that we can live with what is challenging to us, whether it is part of a medical problem or not.
It’s okay to be different. I embrace the weird, the eccentric. I love oddball characters and have done so all of my life. It hasn’t always made my life and my friendships easy but it has kept things interesting and diverse.
As a quote from the book goes: “Each and every one of us has their own weirdness, it’s just that it’s more obvious with some people than others.”
And another: “Madness is a completely undervalued quality and I don’t understand why people should hide it to conform to some boring version of themselves.”
It’s still a little while before the book will become available commercially but the first readers of Advance Review Copies have already left their views on Goodreads:
“Author Christoph Fischer has done it again with his latest book, Conditions. As the reader has come to expect from him, the story is excellent, the dialogue snappy, cast of characters wholly believable, the pages turning at a rate of knots.
What Christoph Fischer also does so well is to not shy away from writing of difficult subjects, and delving into humanity. For this, he is to be applauded, for handing such subjects with amazing gentleness and insight doubly so. Conditions is just as well done, and tugs at the heart strings just as much as the beautiful tale, Time To Let Go.
Conditions follows two estranged brothers, Tony and Charles, who are brought into each others orbits again after the death of their mother. Fear, resentment, prejudice and a money-grabbing wife make for a gripping, intriguing tale, never mind the fact that Charles struggles with mental health issues and is generally not believed.
Charles’ friends are equally well written, their conversations throwing light on things that he says have happened, all the while reacting to his changes in mood.
I found Conditions extremely touching, and without wishing to let cats out of various bags, I loved how the author gave Charles his dignity.
Another fabulous tale from Christoph Fischer, in fact I really hope there might be a sequel having been offered such a tantalising glimpse into Tony and Charles’ lives.”
*****
“Christoph Fischer has done it again, in his great tale, Conditions. A writer of great warmth and depth, Fischer draws the reader in from the first sentence, where the rhythmic bleep of the life support machine sounds like a countdown. The reader is drawn into that hospital room and tension builds with the introduction of characters. The chapters move along like a journey through life, a clever ride through all and what it is to be human. On the backdrop of a funeral, two estranged brothers come together in what is sure to take the reader on an emotional rollercoaster. The challenge of a good writer is to elicit those emotions in the reader and Fischer does not disappoint as he describes in brilliant dialogue and scenes conflicts over material things, mental suffering, prejudices, and the anxiety over all that funeral setting engender and give rise to. A quick read that embraces a couple of weeks, with the characters developing to resemble family the reader can relate with; the tough guy with the soft interior, the odd ball that is difficult to be around, all the flavors and shades inhabited by the rest of us out here. Conditions is a book not to be missed.”
Paulette Mahurin author of The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap
MANY THANKS!
If any of you feel tempted into reading the novel and don’t want to wait, please leave a comment and I’d be happy to supply you with a pdf of the book while it is being checked and proof read one last time.
“Mister Darcy’s Dogs” by Barbara Silkstone is a lovely homage to Jane Austen’s work and characters. It uses the best elements of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and transfers them into a contemporary London, a world of lingering sense of class society, dog shows, fox hunting and dress shopping. This is Silkstone and Austen at their best, a great combination of two talents, written with wit, humour and charm. At the heart is the project to get Mr Darcy’s dogs to like his love interest, gossip columnist Caroline Bingley, a difficult undertaking for dog psychologist Lizzie Bennet since the dogs seem good judges of character. We are served great adaptations of the original characters. The plot uses some elements of the original story but has enough new stuff added to make it an interesting and surprising read, while giving us what we came for: chemistry, back and forth between the couple and colourful supporting characters. Throw in iPhones, Versace and Lady Gaga and you have an inspired and entertaining novel. Very enjoyable and highly recommended.
Today I have the pleasure to announce the long awaited release of Paulette Mahurin’s new book: “His name was Ben”.
I absolutely loved Paulette’s first book “The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap”. She responded to my positive review, I featured her with an interview and we have become good friends since, not least because of our shared love for dogs. The proceeds of Paulette’s books go to a no kill shelter in California (Link).
Now to the book: It is a beautifully written, bitter-sweet love story between two cancer patients, Ben and Sara, and really also between them and her Rottweiler dog Tazzie. Sara, a nurse practitioner, develops an aggressive type of breast cancer, first detected by said dog, Tazzie. The story of her diagnosis and the initial treatment is full of raw emotion and written with great empathy and with amazing medical knowledge. We also learn about her family background and the issues that have made Sara’s life not the happiest until now. Blessed with good insurance and access to a top oncologist she enters a special research programme that trials a new treatment for cancer. The drug works and increases her libido, which is why she eventually asks out a handsome fellow cancer patient named Ben. Once the two of them embark on their untimely love affair they help each other heal and work through their personal issues: Ben’s alcoholic parents; Sara’s unhappy childhood with a controlling and critical mother, a schizophrenic brother and her divorce from ex-husband Henry. Mahurin has chosen her characters very well and given them so much more than just bad things like cancer. Ben and Sara are both highly evolved and reflective people who have the ability to work through their problems, speak honestly with each other and develop at last a proper relationship in their life based on solid foundations – it was moving to read about it. The other characters in the book are equally interesting and get enough coverage to add extra colour to the often humorous and certainly inspiring novel in front of you; be it Sara’s mother, the cancer doctor or the friends – not to forget the lovely Rottweiler Tazzie. Against the biggest of obstacles a couple can face, the positive message is that it is never too late to start living. The hope that patients have attached to miracle cures and new treatment means nothing when time is only spent on the clock but does not translate into moments of shared love and happiness. Be there breakthrough studies or not, never give up on living. Amidst so much understandably tragic and miserable cancer stories here is a book that shows positive role models to look up to and to keep in mind when the unspeakable happens to you. I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
All profits from The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap are going to animal rescue, the first and only no-kill animal shelter in Ventura County, CA (Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center).
From the time I was ten year old, I’ve loved to write. While in college I wrote two award winning short stories. This encouraged me to continue to write, and write I did but never completed any of my novels due to other responsibilities: education, jobs, family, etc. After attending and receiving a Master’s Degree in the Nurse Practitioner Program at UCLA, I went to work in the second busiest emergency room in Los Angeles county. I saw and learned about things that haunted me, until bit by a tick and diagnosed with Lyme Disease (which went to my heart valves, brain, and muscular skeletal system) knocked me down and afforded me time to write and release the memories onto pages before me. I wrote, and wrote, and released what was stored inside, which finally gave way to a story that was to change my life, The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap. When I began to feel better, I joined a writing class, in Ojai, CA, where I live. The teacher, Deb Norton (screenwrite/playwrite of The Whole Banana) had us do an exercise involving a photo. We were to write a 10 minute mystery. The photo I picked was of two women huddled close together in clothing that looked circa turn of the twentieth century. I made them a Lesbian couple trying to avoid being found out. In my research, I came across Oscar Wilde’s imprisonment. Britain had recently changed it’s laws to make homosexual activity, a man having sex with another man, a criminal offense resulting in a two year hard labor prison sentence. The combination of the photo from that writing class and Oscar Wilde’s imprisonment were the seeds that started the story, six years in the making. For those six years, I studied Wilde, the history of Lesbians, western settlement in the United States, and I opened to what it must have been like to live in fear of being persecuted because of the nature of one’s existence, that can no more be changed than the color of grass. As I wrote, I saw myself in the characters who I dialogued with, related with as if we were friends today, and in doing this I learned that external factors may change (the environment, technology, family relating, etc.) but the nature of the human condition and how we manifest remains the same. There will always be stories to tell, to write, to read, to appreciate, because we invest in literature from our humanness, our emotional composition, and we relate to the imagery created with narrative and dialogue that suit our preferences. We are drawn in, over and over and over again, to similar story lines, themes, sequels, because of this human experience–that in sitting down before a book or ebook, we are transcended out of our ordinary lives to magical places that written words create, no matter how similar or repetitive the story, because,after all, we are all living, breathing, stories.
Thank you for arriving at my page. I hope you read and enjoy my story. And, if you buy my book thank you from my heart for contributing to the energy to save the life of a dog.
The proof copy of my new novel Conditions has arrived today. Bringing us closer to the planned publication of October 16th
My dear friend and talented designer Daz Smith has come up with this great cover, based on a key scene in the book.
CONDITIONS – the blurb:
When Charles and Tony’s mother dies the estranged brothers must struggle to pick up the pieces, particularly so given that one of them is mentally challenged and the other bitter about his place within the family.
The conflict is drawn out over materialistic issues, but there are other underlying problems which go to the heart of what it means to be part of a family which, in one way or another. has cast one aside.
Prejudice, misconceptions and the human condition in all forms feature in this contemporary drama revolving around a group of people who attend the subsequent funeral at the British South Coast.
Meet flamboyant gardener Charles, loner Simon, selfless psychic Elaine, narcissistic body-builder Edgar, Martha and her version of unconditional love and many others as they try to deal with the event and its aftermath.
The book is on Goodreads for now, publication planned for mid-October 2014
The first review is in, too:
“Christoph Fischer has done it again, in his great tale, Conditions. A writer of great warmth and depth, Fischer draws the reader in from the first sentence, where the rhythmic bleep of the life support machine sounds like a countdown. The reader is drawn into that hospital room and tension builds with the introduction of characters. The chapters move along like a journey through life, a clever ride through all and what it is to be human. On the backdrop of a funeral, two estranged brothers come together in what is sure to take the reader on an emotional rollercoaster. The challenge of a good writer is to elicit those emotions in the reader and Fischer does not disappoint as he describes in brilliant dialogue and scenes conflicts over material things, mental suffering, prejudices, and the anxiety over all that funeral setting engender and give rise to. A quick read that embraces a couple of weeks, with the characters developing to resemble family the reader can relate with; the tough guy with the soft interior, the odd ball that is difficult to be around, all the flavors and shades inhabited by the rest of us out here. Conditions is a book not to be missed.” Paulette Mahurin author of “The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap” and “His name was Ben“, released this week.
“Conditions” will be a strange and special occurence for me. I am going back to the very first book I’ve ever written. Five years ago I was working on a training manual when I decided to experiment with writing fiction. The planned short story grew quickly and when it reached 36 pages and showed no sign of ending I abandoned the course and continued writing. I put it aside and wrote my other novels.“Conditions” had a lot of the typical errors that a first book can have and I never was sure if I would ever be able to publish it. Ever so often I returned to it and made changes and improvements. The book underwent plenty of re-writes and edits but now I feel it might resonate well with some of those readers who liked “Time To Let Go”.
I used to go to a lot of funerals when I was in my teens and might have developed a morbid fascination at the dynamics and processes involved. I also loved “Six Feet Under”, a TV series set in a funeral home.
I grew up as a bibliophile in a very macho and sports orientated environment and always bonded more with the odd characters and outsiders rather than the prom queens and sports heroes. Over the years I have met and befriended many other “misfits”. In this respect the novel is probably the most personal book to me. The events and characters are all a figment of my imagination. Re-telling something that has happened already has never had an appeal to me as a writer.
I imagine Tony somewhat hardened boxer type with a light gentle touch and Charles like Alan Cummings, Johnny Depp or even Benedict Cumberbatch in some of their more eccentric roles. The story has been likened to The Breakfast Club – I don’t know if that’s true as I have not seen that one yet. I am toying with a sequel for this book already since it all takes place only in the space of two weeks. I hope to have the book ready for publication in October 2014.
Silka Fontein was a typical rich little girl until she disappeared 15 years ago, right after her high school graduation after party. What happened to her? No one knows where she went to or why she had left so suddenly. Now, after all these years she returns home, different and completely changed, with secrets so deadly that everyone’s lives are in danger!
She reunites with Taber Blake, her childhood friend turned quintessential playboy. As they fight their unexpected attraction for one another, a series of action packed events have them fighting for their lives. It is then that Taber’s own lethal secrets are exposed in the process. Will their attraction be enough to survive the truth?
My review: “Capital D” by ash stone is a fast paced and gripping action packed thriller about two beautiful people of the opposite sex who have not seen each other since their high school days. Now they are hugely attracted to each other and while Silka and Taber try to get closer to each other a sudden kidnapping attempts leads them into the middle of a complex web of crime. What appeared at first a romantic chick lit novel about Silka and her troubled relationship with her mother turned quickly and surprisingly into a fascinating spy thriller with great action and suspense. I read the PG version so the erotic contents of the romance were played down, but the chemistry between the two main characters is still very believable and one of the strong points of this novel. The story about rich and beautiful people, daring and powerful gangsters and heroes, this is an explosive and rewarding read.
This mish-mash of action, adventure, comedy, romance, mystery, suspense and drama is spy thrilling, spine chilling read bound to keep you begging for more! Available in an Adult or PG rated version, you will have no reason not escape into their world and hearts.
When Ash Stone (pen name) was born she was cute, cuddly and blue! Fortunately by the time the journalists arrived to take photos her, she was no longer blue. She made headlines in the local papers for being the only Christmas baby to be born that day in Aliwal North (South Africa). That’s right! She is was born on Christmas Day 1974. Before you say “Aw Shame” and break out the tissues, please know that Ash is a Christmas Diva! She always gets her two presents or else!
She is the second eldest of four daughters to a mother who was an accountant. Her father was a high ranking police officer in the old Apartheid regime, meaning he sat behind a desk and drank tea all day. They moved around a lot whenever her father was promoted to a bigger desk with better tea. As a result Ash did not have many friends and found her escape in books.
Ash’s first writing experience was when she had to write an essay to Toyota South Africa, in order to be chosen for their Toyota Edulink Program. She wrote a very detailed and motivational essay about how she was going to be the Managing Director of Toyota one day. After they undoubtedly had a good chuckle, Ash was chosen as the the only girl to represent all the Afrikaans schools in her province. She went on to be chosen for the Toyota Junior Achievement Programme and became the Managing Director of the company they had set up. The company made a profit and naturally Ash was tickled pink! Ash was chosen to remain in the Toyota Edulink Program for a total of three years. Whilst in her final year at school she also joined another program and studied Journalism and Drama at the Westville University.
After graduating high school, Ash went to study Business and Marketing Management as inspired by her father who had left the police force long ago and started his own property investment firm. Being a typical rebel, rather than joining the corporate world afterwards, Ash became a vegetarian hippie instead and went into a gardening/ nursery business with her mom. The irony of a vegetarian plant lover is still lost on her to this day.
Even though Ash never became the Managing Director of Toyota South Africa, she had enjoyed success in every aspect of her life. She is an award winning Horticulturist and won another award for a display when she represented South Africa in the 2000 Amsterdam Hortifair.
Among her many occupations, Ash was more notedly the Purchasing Manager for McDonald’s Asia, Pacific, Middle East and Africa region. These days she is not a high flying corporate Exec or a vegetarian hippie, but internal sales at a local Mining supplier during the day. At night, she runs her own blog tour company, is an Admin of the Author Association ASMSG, a Guild Reviewer, a book blogger and self confessed Facebook addict.
She lives in Alberton with her childhood-friend-turned-husband and their two sons where she enjoys breaking all the rules with her writing. The eternal rebel loves to connect with her fans (or “Stoneys!” as she calls them). So, go on you rebel you!
Consult the Author’s website for the PG rated version or to download the format for your eReader if it is not available in the digital bookstores below:
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On her way to work, she noticed a very glamorous looking coffee place. How convenient, she thought as she entered and stood in line. In front of her there was a queue of about seven people. They all looked like young corporate types and portrayed the impatience and self-importance typical of their generation. Part of her was glad to be back in civilization. The last time she had been here, she had spent a night with her parents en route to the new job. There was no time for ‘meets and greets’ or any reunions back then.
“You’re not stalking me, are you?” Behind her Tay managed to surprise her yet again, but it only took a breath for her to regain her composure.
“Hardly, I work across the street, so that leaves the stalking title to you,” she replied slowly and calmly without looking at him.
She could feel the enjoyment emanating from him as his warm, minty breath caressed her cheek. His fragrance turned her on. He was leaning into her making every follicle in her body respond. There was an electric chemistry she felt just by his presence. It delighted her and excited her like nothing before.
“I’ve gotten my morning coffee here every day before work for the last ten years,” he responded way too pleased with himself.
“Good thing we are not dogs, or we’d be marking our territories right now,” she quipped back with a smile on her face.
Amused by her response, he offered his solution.
“Or we could start a new tradition and have coffee together every day before work.”
“Next!!” A shout came from behind the counter. A young lady with way too much make up on stood there waiting for Silka’s order.
“I’ll have a regular coffee, please,” Silka pointed to the menu.
“And I shall have a Latte along with that,” Tay duly informed the clerk and threw a bill of an impressive denomination on the counter as he positioned himself next to Silka.
After she gave them their coffees, he took Silka by the hand. “Please sit and have your coffee with me?” he implored her with a look of anticipation normally seen on a kid about to receive his birthday present.
He wore a dark suit and blue collar shirt with a matching tie. His tidy hair, clean shaven face and that suit made him look like a million bucks. Bloody hell he was Godly. He was by far the most striking man she had ever seen. His looks made her heart contract, let alone her uterus.
“Five minutes!” She raised her eyebrows sternly, but then smiled. She followed him to a table in the far corner. Taber pulled out a chair for her. She took a seat and leaned back with her coffee in one hand.
Sitting opposite her around the very small, square table he couldn’t help but stare at her. How had he not recognized her? How had he never noticed how stunningly beautiful she was? More importantly where had she been? His mind flooded with questions. What had happened to her in the last fifteen years? Who had happened to her most of all? She had a maturity about her which was way beyond her youthful looks.
She sat looking at him, gently sipping her coffee, smiling slightly and slowly blinking. She had always been confident, but he had never thought of that confidence as being sexy. To him her confidence was arrogance when he was young. Since he had become an adult he realized how wrong he had been. The caliber of women he dated was far from confident, trusting or loyal. They were insecure, jealous, whiney, clingy little girls that loved him only as long as his credit cards were at their disposal.
Which reminded him: “How did you get Amber so spot on? She was highly impressed with you.”
Silka gave a huge grin.
“I had my fair share of gold diggers. Amber will be anything and everything you want her to be, until the day you marry her. That is when you will see her true colors.” She suddenly realized that this was nothing new to him, although he looked as if he had just discovered a turd in his coffee. He leaned back in his chair.
“What have you been up to all these years?” he asked boldly.
“Why don’t you tell me about your side first?” she requested looking as if she could melt a polar ice cap.
“Fine. Graduated high school, obviously, fulfilled other obligations, spent a gap year traveling the world, finished university and then went to work for my dad. Spill it!” he shot a challenging look back at her as he turned the tables.
“Love to, but I am running late for work,” she said glancing at her watch. He paused for a second.
“Very well,” he smiled smoothly. As they stood up, he followed her towards the door. “Same time tomorrow?” he asked.
“Only if I get the next round. Thank you for the coffee.”
“Not a problem,” he said as they stepped onto the pavement. For a moment they stood there staring at each other. She smiled suddenly, and turned to cross the road.
“Bye, Tay.”
“Bye, Silly,” he yelled back. Sure enough he stood there watching her glide into the building across the street.
Climbing into the back of his chauffeur driven car, Taber wondered if she had taken offense at the mention of the name he used to pull out of the box regularly to rile her up. It got her every time.
Silka used to hate being called Silly. She hadn’t heard that name in ages. It used to make her angry, but hearing it out of his gorgeous mouth today made her smile. His mouth was all she could think of as she headed out the elevator, into the parking garage, and drove out to the place she really worked at, in the outskirts of town, in a car that was not really hers, no less.
“Song of the Manatee: Children of Quaezar” by S. Rose is a beautiful fantasy novel that concludes her first book in the series, “Song of the Manatee: Aria of Light”. It is an Aria of love for nature in a futuristic battle of good versus evil. Aliens, a time portal, interference with the future and nature are some of the main themes in this often philosophical and moral tale about man’s relationship with the earth and its treasures. Nobody can deny the dangers that humans bring to Earth and to other species and Rose has created an intelligent and fascinating fantasy story that reflects on those dangers. This being the second book of two makes it hard for me to tell you too much about the exact plot without giving away what happens in book one, in case you haven’t read it, yet. Although it is possible to follow the story of book two on its own, I would recommend reading both in order, just for pleasure and entertainment value. The setting is still largely the Florida of 2199, a world completely ruled by a central government through highly evolved technological control, a world with some positive and some not so great advancement. Palaeontologist Michael Black and his family were suspicious to the authorities for many reasons. Michael was involved in underwater research and suddenly disappeared, as did his daughter Swan, leaving the mother of the family now under tough investigation by the ruthless authorities, personified by some very nasty characters. Fortunately it isn’t all bleak because there are some other storylines with wonderful new and old out-worldly figures in this book; the encounters with them (Neb and Moon) I found particularly enjoyable. Those scenes and creatures were written with such obvious love and amazing originality – Rose has a great imagination and skilfully translates her inspired visions onto the pages. The author tells the story of a cast of humans and other beings who have more respect and care for the Earth and who fight to rescue what they can in an evolved and clever plot of time-line logic. The Black family is a loving, intelligent and conscientious unit with great values and vision for the future of the Earth. As in book one, the story shines through its winning combination of responsible ecological thinking, humanitarian values and beautiful magic within the context of a well written futuristic and science fiction story. Great characterisation and ornate scene setting contribute to the quality of the novel which uses a skilful blend of traditional sci-fi tools with magical fantasy writing.
There are heart felt moments, inspiring scenes and entertaining ones. A thoughtful and inspired modern fairy tale that is truly moving. Highly recommended.
From the author: “For me, Science Fiction/Fantasy can be summed up in one word: Imagine!
I hope you will enjoy reading my first science fiction book as much as I enjoyed writing it!”
Song of the Manatee: Aria of Light is book one of a two part saga that will take you around the cosmic block, back in time to Earth’s early Eocene and far into its future, across galaxies and alternate dimensions of time.
In 2199, sixteen year-old Swan Black lives in an ideal society. Every need is supplied by the ostensibly benevolent Central Government, which strives to encircle and protect the Citizens–with a few notable exceptions. As far as most Citizens are concerned, Swan Black shouldn’t have been born.
Being an albino fated her to scorn and ostracism in a society where sensible couples conceive in vitro and select only perfect embryos.
She might have led a lonely existence if not for her devoted father, Michael Black, a brilliant paleontologist and exceptionally kindhearted man. He undertakes Swan’s education onboard his science vessel; by age sixteen she has become a capable research partner.
Under the control of their dictatorial Central Government, Dr. Black has been researching the evolution of the extinct Florida Manatee. Father and daughter are close to an astonishing discovery-when the unthinkable happens.
Only Swan saw the unidentified spacecraft materialize directly above the forbidden springs where her father was cave-diving, then vanish without a trace-along with Michael Black!
Unknown to Dr. Black, the covert objective of his research was to ensure man’s dominion over earth- by derailing the evolution of an infinitely peaceful, intelligent species. To the detriment of the planet, he unwittingly succeeded.
Swan must travel the rivers of time to find her father and reset the universe, so that the blessed meek shall truly inherit the Earth
Since I mentioned that my sales seem related to my Twitter activity, I’ve been asked several times to write about my experience with Twitter, so here goes. I cannot claim to have studied Twitter and admittedly my Twitter knowledge can still be hit and miss, but these are my anecdotal views.
My main message upfront: It can be hard work but I found it very worthwhile and an important marketing tool.
Reluctantly, I joined twitter about 18 months ago and had humble beginnings. Like an enthusiastic lapdog, I immediately followed everyone who was remotely book related and soon the number of people I was following was 2000. However, Twitter has an in-built barrier and you need to have 1800 people following you before you can follow your 2001st, 2002nd etc. Twitter account.
Thanks to some friendly help from an author in the know, I learned that justunfollow.com (free software) helps you here. It gives you a list of people who you are following but who are not following you back. You can drop these people and find new accounts to follow, some of whom might actually follow you back. You repeat this process until you have a better following/followers ratio and can move forward past that 2000 barrier.
[After you break through the 2000 barrier you need to keep a +/- 10% ratio, i.e. 1800/2000 – 1890/2100 etc. so you are never quite home free]
Initially, I followed people who said avid reader, reviewer and bookworm, in their profile title or description. I also preferred private accounts rather than companies, and I checked out similar authors and began following their followers. The rationale being that if these people are interested in the genre and the type of books I write, then they might want to follow me. I do this on a daily basis and it takes about 5-10 minutes
.
To avoid Twitter’s suspension of accounts that show ‘aggressive following behaviour’, I follow less than 200 new accounts each day. Twitter is vague on their policy and some of my friends seem not to be affected whereas others get suspended for it really quickly. Information on the matter is muddy and the stories I have heard are often contradictory, so, after having been suspended twice for ‘aggressive following behaviour’, I am keeping a ‘lower profile’. Twitter now sells a service to ‘promote’ your account to gain followers, so we know why they are being ‘difficult’.
Every few days I use justunfollow.com to drop the accounts that did not show interest in following me back. It is useful not to do that daily since not every person is on Twitter every day and if you drop them too soon you might miss out on some good followers/future readers who would follow you back eventually.
I began to retweet other author’s tweets to make personal friends on Twitter rather than just gain an impressive number of followers. People get notifications that someone retweeted their tweet and some of them go to your profile to return the favour. Depending on how many followers they have, that can mean that your tweet is tweeted to a very large number of followers. Tweet teams are very good for this. A group of twitter accounts unite and share each other’s tweets in a reciprocal system. You have to tweet usually one of their tweets that day and all of them will tweet one of yours. This way you share each other’s followers, multiplying the potential of recipients for your messages. Some participants in the tweet teams have 100 000+ followers, so despite the leg work it takes to send out all the tweets in a team it can be a very worthwhile task.
After I joined a few of these tweet teams my sales multiplied by a factor of ten. Admittedly, the sales were not great before I joined but they are pretty constant since.
The tweets you send are up to you but I have found pictures (be very careful with copyright!) and short statements seem to be most effective. Listing reviews and the high numbers of your 5* ratings may not impress a fellow tweeter (and potential reader) as much as you might think, but concise text that indicates what your book is about and why it is good, – imo- will create interest.
E.g. I write about WW2 in one of my books, Slovakia and survival. By using the keywords with a hashtag, i.e.
#ww2 #Slovakia #survival etc you might connect to readers who are searching for books with that subject and are doing a twitter search with that hashtag.
#Alzheimer’s #family #drama
As a reader I myself have picked books I heard about in tweets that indicated what the books were about. They used hashtags or easily identifiable information such as:
#Jersey and the #ChannelIslands during #WW2
#transvestite lover of the King #Asia
#Cinderella story with a #horror twist
Additionally, tweeting about others will improve your ‘street cred’ and likeability, and usually pays dividends. As a writer you are more interesting if you don’t just talk about or advertise yourself, but engage in discussion; if you are a reader, and which author doesn’t read, then you get additional kudos. When I tweeted the blog post I had written about my cover designer, I had one of the highest re-tweet count and unprecedented activity on that blog post, plus a little surge in sales for the book concerned, too. Besides, it feels good to be part of a community.
I schedule tweets about me and my friends weeks ahead with the commercial version of hootsuite (about $10 a month. You can schedule tweets with the free version or with tweetdeck but with the free versions you can’t bulkload your tweets and have more manual work to do for that).
I also programme roundteam (free) to pick up tweets of a certain type (users of a certain hashtag, #ww2 for example. I do that to get noticed by other tweeters and to entice some of them to return the favour);
I also manually interact on Twitter by picking random tweets for re-tweeting from accounts I would like to connect with.
The more followers you have, the more likely are people going to follow you back, so the initial hard work will pay dividends later.
Since I achieved 10,000 followers, my success in getting people to follow me back really picked up. I joined more tweet teams and so my daily ‘audience’ had reached solid regular figures. I estimate that through the tweet teams my tweets reach several 100,000 additional tweeters and potential readers.
When I had a free giveaway of my books, I tweeted regularly about it in all the tweet teams and re-tweeted tweets from accounts that seemed interested in free books and giveaways: the results were beyond what I had expected
I use tweepi, a program with free and premium versions, to help me
* follow someone’s followers, * to unfollow people * and to follow those accounts that found and followed me on their own accord. Those you do not want to lose, because they might unfollow you if you don’t return the favour.
Finally, some general points.
Don’t expect immediate results. People need to read about you several times before they really notice you and are prepared to buy your book.
My sales are significantly higher on days that I tweet and participate in tweet teams.
Don’t take things personally. Because of automation tools some people unfollow you without a personal reason for it.
Pin a tweet onto your home page. When people come to your twitter profile to reciprocate they are looking for one of your tweets. If you have pinned one they can use that instead of browsing through your feed which might be full tweets that you are tweeting for others.
Don’t use the same url (i.e. link address) for a link as this may be flagged as spam by Twitter. Hootsuite and Google have url shorteners, which also help reduce the number of characters for those links in your tweet.
It’s still a little while before the book will become available commercially but the first readers of Advance Review Copies have already left their views on 
