Cameron Bane

Apropos of nothing, my wife and I were watching the local news one night when the main camera at the studio croaked, just as dead as Julius Caesar. It was a tense (for the station), but funny (for the viewers) ninety or so seconds until they got the auxiliary camera powered up. You just never know what's going to happen on live TV.

Which brings me to this: I was a broadcasting major, and wa-a-a-ay back in the day I ran camera for a KET series on Kentucky law enforcement.

So first day of the shoot we had this state trooper captain who looked like Paul Bunyon’s bigger and less humorous brother sitting there, droning on about last year’s highway fatality stats when blam, a fill light exploded, showering him with molten quartz. Thankfully he was wearing his Smokey hat, and so most of the hellish stuff missed his skin (it did burn some deep holes in his uniform, though).

Needless to say, he was Not Amused.

All that to say, I hope my TV appearances--when I get them--go off smoothly. *G* Read More 

Okay, next step in the countdown to August: comps, otherwise known as "comparable titles."

What that means is the distributor for Sheaf House is asking for other apocalyptic thrillers similar in style to Heading Home, if not exact content.

This can get a bit tricky, as creative types tend to feel their work is unique, or at least puts a unique spin on an oft-visited subject. I do; every writer worth their salt does.

But the marketplace truth is more stark: the ones whose job it is to get books onto store shelves want to know going in the competition they're up against. You really can't blame them; they've been tasked to try to get the right books on the right shelves in the right stores with the right readership, with the net result being enough units are moved to make everyone happy.

So what the heck; I did some digging, and gave 'em some comps.

I still think Heading Home is unique, though. Danged if I don't. *G* Read More 

... so said the bullfrog. Hard to believe it's been a month since my last addition here. I hope to do better with that; a countdown fits the bill nicely.

Here's what I mean. As of today, it's six months until my apocalypse-with-a-twist thriller Heading Home is released upon an unsuspecting world (much like Godzilla, or Paris Hilton). As each milestone of the book is hit, I plan to post it here.

Okay, first. The cover is already up for your perusal, both on the homepage of the site and on the "works" page. The designer nailed it, I think. She incorporated the novel's main themes, the consequences, the ticking clock, and the Vietnam backstory, in one picture ... neat trick, that.

And I know I've already said this, but if you're curious about the writing itself just click "works", then the book's title, and you can read the first chapter of it for free (the same goes for all my novels). In this case it's the first two chapters (I wanted to make sure you're good and hooked; generous sod, ain't I? *G*).

Next milestone: as of two weeks ago, the endorser copies have gone out. This is always a bit of a sweaty time, wondering if your peers will like the thing enough to put their names to it. Hope so. We'll see.

Next up (and this will be a few more weeks down the road), hard copies will be going to the review sites (Publisher's Weekly, The Library Journal, a bunch of others). In other words, sweaty palms, part deux.

But as I said, that's a little ways off.

I thank you for making this journey with me. Read More