I Wanna Be a Paperback Writer

   Okay, you have read this blog long enough to know that this title is a bold lie. You have also read this blog long enough to know that I use song lyrics in my titles to make myself look cool. While it is true that I am an advocate for e-reading and inexpensive ebooks, I have always maintained that there are circumstances where physical books are preferable. There are also times when the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
   Rather, in my case, the needs of the very few outweigh the stubbornness of the author. My book, Kind of Like Life features one of my cousins as the beautiful cover model. Because of this, I created a physical copy so that family members could have something to show off and brag over. On that level, the physical book became a display piece, a work of art.
   But doing this also opened another door. With a physical book, I was able to run a giveaway on Goodreads, which, by the way, is still open until the 12th of November. Anyone with a Goodreads account may enter to win one of five copies.
   Self-publishing a paperback is hard work. Formatting takes a lot of time and as an indie writing genre fiction, sales of ebooks are by far steadier and more frequent. Because of this, my first series, The Eyes of The Sun will never be physically published unless a small press approaches me with an offer. However, going forward, I will have both physical and digital copies of all my future books.
   Why? Because I want to have the option of offering a low cost digital story that anyone can get wrapped up in at any time. But I also want to have a piece of art available for those who appreciate aesthetics. Which is exactly what my zombie apocalypse novella, Going Green has to offer.
   At 23,000 words, roughly 85 pages, Going Green is a flimsy excuse for a book. I would have had a pretty hard time convincing anyone to pay even production costs, let alone turn a profit. So instead, I hired an artist and added a bunch of silliness to the back of the book and can now present you with an artistic novelty item that is the perfect under $10 gift for the office weirdo or that one oddball cousin.
   One of the items I added was a zombie themed crossword puzzle. The answers, as well as additional zombie information, will be posted to a dedicated page on this blog this weekend. But that isn't even the best part. Serendipity is the word I use to describe how this all came about. 

   I came up with the ridiculous idea to publish Going Green in print while walking to the grocery store one night. By the time I got home, I had an idea of what I wanted, so I contacted an artist by the name of Ben Boyce.
   Ben had previously mentioned interest in book illustrating, but I was worried that the concept of a satirical zombie story might be off putting. Apparently not, because I cannot begin to tell you what an amazing job he did at turning my words into pictures. You will simply have to see for yourself. For more of Ben's work, visit his website or Facebook page. To see a glimpse of the book, check out the Look Inside feature (once it becomes available) on Going Green. Thanks to Ben, I now have yet another work that becomes a work of art.
   I'm still team ebook, don't get me wrong. I still champion the progress of the science fiction age. But if physical books are still what the people want, you better be dang sure I am going to make the prettiest books I can.