Friday, December 14, 2012

SFF Saturday 12-15-2012

Something on the serious side for this week's offering.  As many of you already know, 5 years ago this week I lost my younger brother when he took his own life.  I miss him everyday, in some way big or small, and would love to spare everyone the pain my family has gone through.  And, so, today's post is about Prisoner 1138's despair at being isolated for the rest of his life without any human interaction at all.  He has books (e-books, of course), shelter, food, and potable water. He doesn't have a sister's teasing, a mother's hugs, a nephews giggles at being swung in the air.  His friends and family will never again see his face contort with laughter or despair, or hear his voice signing quietly as he works.

(For guaranteed lighter fare, please visit http://scififansat.blogspot.com/ )

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Entry 5

I control the lights in my cell; I find this a remarkable gift, since it would be an easy sadism to toy with my circadian rhythms.  I decide when I rise, when I sleep, and even, through the small button and chute on the wall, when I eat.  I am quickly finding, however, that the deferred sadism of my jailers is more than offset by the masochism of despair.  I've nowhere to be, no one to see, no one depending on me, and no one for me to depend upon.  I can lie in the darkness, never rising from the bed and my own tortured musings, and no one will care or even remark upon it.  Oh, they will note when I die, through their insidious monitoring program, but they do not care if I perish and probably relish the idea of me simply ceasing to exist of my own volition.

I could do it, of course, and easily at that--and I've thought of it, ceaselessly for days on end. I've considered painful ways, quick ways, dramatic ways, ways in which I die and make a final statement for the entire world to witness.

But I don't do it, because the only possession I have left is my life and I will not let them, or the despair, win.

My prisoner designation is 1138, but my name is Abraham bin Navi and everyday I struggle out of the darkness.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Sales Update March 20-October 31

The witty T.M. Hunter, creator of the awesome Aston West series, recently updated his sales data and provided the boot-to-the-butt I needed to update my own data. (Be sure to check out all of Hunter's works-- I have reviewed several.)  I wish more Indie authors would be as up front about their sales; we have nothing to hide and everything to gain from honest comparisons.


March 20-October 31st sales of "Dremiks"

Kindle: 88 copies (March - May average: 19/month ) (June-October average: 6/month)

Kindle UK: 2 copies

Nook: 17 copies (10 copies in March)

Paperback: 15 copies

Total sales: 122

The Nook and Kindle version of the book are currently priced at $4.99.  I raised it ( from $3.99) to this price point after seeing the other "Top 5 Finalists, Best Indie Book of 2012" listed at $4.99.  I honestly have not seen any noticeable difference in sales after raising or lowering the price.  I'm still mulling the idea of lowering the international price to see if I can garner a few more sales that way.

I currently have ads running on Goodreads and Facebook.  Both sites have a "pay-per-click" system.

I made an original ad-buy, in April, on Goodreads for $60 and still have not used all of that sum.  As of this posting, 216 people have added the book on Goodreads, with 19 ratings and 12 reviews.

Facebook allows me to turn on or off my add and pay-per-click as I go. I have it set for $8/day maximum with a $0.75/click threshold.  The book's Facebook page currently has 202 likes.  Obviously, more people have "liked" the FB page than have purchased the book.  I have seen no evidence that increased page traffic = more sales, and therefore have spent less than $100 on FB advertising since March.

Amazon has been helpfully sending out email "suggestions" to sci-fi readers.  These emails are based on what customers who bought "Dremiks" also purchased (associations), the "Likes" that users enter, and search "tags".  Amazon.com's "Dremiks" listing has 37 likes, 8 reviews (5 stars!), and 24 users who have agreed with some or all of the "tags"

The Amazon.co.uk page has 2 likes, no reviews, and only 1 person who has tagged the book.  Obviously I need more UK friends and readers!

Goals for the next three months: find ways to target Nook and international customers, finish the sequel, and determine the "sweet spot" for Kindle pricing.

Fellow authors: feel free to leave comments with links to your own posts about sales and advertising.

Friday, November 9, 2012

SFF Saturday 11-10-12

Welcome back to my submissions for Science-fiction, Fantasy, Saturday.  Please visit the main site to read more snippets from the worlds of fantasy and science fiction.

Back to prisoner 1138....

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Entry 4

I've decided to start a basic cardiovascular regime.  The altered gravity of the moon is still not quite Earth-like and can, over the long-term, lead to muscle degeneration.  Miners and scientists assigned up here are required to participate in regular physical exercise in order to stave off these effects.  In a stunning example of "We don't care if he withers away", the powers that banished me here didn't bother installing exercise equipment in my cell.  Depriving me of food (such that it is) and water would have been cruel and unusual punishment, but stuffing me in a box and letting my muscles slowly turn to jello--that's just the tough life of a political prisoner!

Once a day, I run six laps around the perimeter of my cell(incidentally, I measured this for the first time just yesterday--it's a spacious 24x24 foot space), do 20 sit-ups and 10 pushups.  Who knows, after a couple of years of this, I might lose my scrawny scientist physique.  Yeah, right.

I am prisoner 1138, but my name is Abraham bin Navi

Friday, October 26, 2012

SFF Saturday 10-27-2012

I sincerely hope y'all are taking my weekly advice and discovering all of the talent available at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday.  Fellow SFFSaturday authors, please forgive my delay in commenting on your works.  I'm in the process of moving from San Francisco to Seattle.  My internet connections are spotty, at best. Only the wonders of "scheduling" blog posts allow me to get these entries up with any regularity.

Another week, another entry from prisoner 1138.  And, yes, fellow geeks will recognize that number as a quiet homage to the worlds of George Lucas.

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Entry 3

The food here sucks.  I know, not a very original complaint, from a prisoner especially, but it's been on my mind.  Yesterday I screamed "THIS TASTES LIKE DIRT" at my cell wall.  The acoustics in here are quite fascinating and served to distract me from the dirt-food.  All of our years of technological advances, and we still cannot make protein bars taste like anything except dirt flavored cardboard. My diet consists of a vitamin-protein bar, and instant oatmeal (lukewarm) for breakfast, a protein bar for lunch, and (shocking!) a protein bar for dinner.  Of course I get three bottles of water a day.  I should be grateful for food--even that which is delivered via a wall chute with mechanical regularity--given the mass starvations on Earth. But, damn it, even a few wormy apples would be better than this crap.

I am prisoner 1138, but my name is Abraham bin Navi

Friday, October 19, 2012

SFF Saturday 10-20-2012

For more about Prisoner 1138, read here.
For many more forays (by very intelligent people) into the weird, the fantastical, and the universe at large, visit the main SFF Saturday page.

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Entry 2

I'm wondering if writing these notes to my future self makes sense.  If I've lost my sanity, and my soul, to such an extent that I need typed words to remind me what is real, will I actually be able to comprehend the words?  Maybe I should call these "Letters FOR my sanity".  Talking to someone, or writing to someone--even my future self-- is all I really have to do.  I could make longer entries, but the tablet battery life is very short.  I spend three hours running in circles just to recharge it after 15 minutes of power. They didn't approve my requisition for paper and pencil, so I'm stuck with this crappy tablet.  Should count my blessings, meager that they be, and be thankful that I'm not left etching each word into the metal walls. I miss my gadgets, damn it.

I am prisoner 1138, but my name is Abraham bin Navi

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Friday, October 12, 2012

SFF Saturday 10-13-2012

For more information about my new project for SFFSaturday, please read here.  Please, also, be sure to read all of the other entries for this week by visiting http://scififansat.blogspot.com/2012/10/sffs-13102012.html .  Pay special attention to the work of Sue Ann Bowling whose serialized "Jarn's Journal" made me realize that such a concept could be successful.

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Entry 1

I cannot date these entries. I have no idea how many days I’ve been here or what day it is. Lunar orbit is counter-intuitive to my human brain and I never really paid attention in astronomy classes. In the end it does not matter how long I’ve been here, for there is no calendar-set end-date to my captivity. I’m here until I die. Or until the dumbasses on Earth kill each other off. In which case, I’d probably starve to death or asphyxiate inside this damned prison. I should investigate operational systems more closely—plan for Armageddon contingencies. This is my first letter to my future-self, a reminder of my sanity before the isolation and alien nature of my incarceration take the last bit of my soul.

My prisoner designation is 1138, but my name is Abraham bin Navi.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

The Story Before the Story

As if I have no clue about “what’s at stake.” Like I somehow forgot the war that raged during my entire childhood and killed four hundred million people.


The Hudson would carry her forty member crew and one hundred fifty colonists on a seven month journey to Dremiks—a Saturn-sized planet
orbiting the sun Santalas. Santalas, its system of six planets, and its corner of the universe had been unknown twenty-five years before.

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These brief lines from the first two pages of "Dremiks" offer  the succinct backstory of the novel. Humanity has been at war--as it always is-- and has nearly destroyed itself once again.  Aliens need help from humans and offer technology in exchange for that help.  They also broker a peace.  In their naivete, the Dremikians believe that human beings will move past pettiness and genocide once presented with a uniting cause beyond the solar system.  The story of "Dremiks" explores the challenges human's face in trying to overcome the harsh Universe and our own brutal natures.


Before the Hudson's journey, though, there was a war.  Admiral O'Connell rose to power during that war, dragging his motherless daughter along on his quest for prestige.  Four hundred million people died during Maggie's childhood as a direct result of the war.  Many more died from so called "natural causes".  Alliances and countries tumbled at the same time that an alien race made first contact.  There is a story here that needs to be told.


This is why my weekly offerings for Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday will now take the form of snippets serializing the backstory of "Dremiks". Each week, readers will get a ten sentence look at the journal of a man imprisoned for following his conscience.  He gets to be caustic, sarcastic, despondent, and insightful because no one cares what he writes.  He's been sent to Lunar colony to die.


He is prisoner 1138.  His journal is our cautionary tale.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Coping

I am, quite simply, overwhelmed with the amount of "author work" I have on my plate.

--I have an 11 book backlog of reviews to write.  I sincerely want to write thoughtful, insightful, reviews of these books.  I just cannot find the time to sit down at the computer and do it.

--I have 4 half finished books on my Kindle and several more waiting to be started.  At least once every day I think about sitting down and reading for a few hours to finish one of these books.  It never seems to happen.

--Lilly's story, which was supposed to be published by Christmas, doesn't even have a title.  I have several plot points outlined in my head, but woefully little on paper

-- I cannot remember to sign-up for, and then post for, Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday. I've been equally bad about reading all the wonderful work presented each week.  Work, I might add, posted by people I consider honored colleagues.

I have a rash of excuses for why each of these  situations exists, but the excuses really don't matter in the end.  I've got to adjust priorities and complete at least some of these tasks.  I can, after all, afford to miss a few meals and a couple nights (months) of  sleep.

Friday, September 28, 2012

SFF Saturday 9/28/2012

I've been absent from Science-fiction/Fantasy Saturday for far too long.  I wish I could claim that my absence was due to frantic typing of a nearly finished manuscript.  Alas, I've had little time for writing.

Don't forget that, even when I'm not around for these wonderful Saturday samples, there are many other great authors sharing their work.  Please be sure to read, comment, and buy their books!

This week's snippet is once again a sample from "Lilly's Story" (very poor working title). Regular readers (possessing of astounding memories) will recall that Lilly Diaz has traveled from Earth to Rhiadan Sanctuary Station via a Dremikian ship.  It was a miserable journey, and she's quite happy to have reached the station.  Well, she was....

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"Damn it, Dwax, I've told you not to let humans rush through these locks!  How many times have I told you?"

"But Honored--"

"Shut it!  If you weren't going to relay the safety information, what the hell was the point in having you great her?  You were supposed to be saving me time!  Instead, I have to rush down here, leaving the Kigvans waiting, and--ah, hello there ma'am."

Lilly blinked up at the human male leaning over her.  Disoriented was too mild a term to describe how she felt.  It took her another minute before she remembered passing out at the feet of Ambassador Dwax.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Author Interview: Patrick Stutzman

I met sci-fi author Patrick Stutzman through my participation in Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday. He released his first novel, "Alone on the Edge" in February of this year. On September 14th, Patrick released the sequel, "Alone in Paradise", which continues the story of Anna Foster.  He has been busy touring blogs and review sites, giving readers a taste of what they will find inside this latest chapter of Anna's adventures.  Today, Patrick was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.  He will also give away a FREE Kindle copy of "Alone in Paradise" to one lucky poster in the comments--so be sure to leave your thoughts!

1. "Alone in Paradise" is a sequel to "Alone on the Edge". Did you always have a sequel planned or did the good reviews of the first book prompt you to writing this one?

To be honest, I had already written Paradise even before publishing Edge. So, I guess you might say that a sequel was always planned. I just couldn’t stop writing after I finished the first one.

2. Is Anna based on a woman in your life, or is she a conglomeration of interesting traits?

I have an extensive history with roleplaying games, so creating characters out of thin air is something I can do with ease. With Anna, she is not wholly based on one person but has elements of a number of people, myself included. She also has a bit of my wife, my editor, and a particular person whose physical appearance Anna mirrors as well. I discovered that the last connection being more than physical was a lucky coincidence.

3. Who does your cover art? Can you talk about about the process involved in finding a cover artist?

My covers are created by the talented artists at Tomomi Ink. I was EXTREMELY lucky in that I mentioned my need for an artist to a friend, not knowing that she worked for the company. From there, a deal was struck, and I have been blessed ever since. Before that conversation, I had an idea on what to do and began looking at various artists that I know through gaming channels as well as locally. I asked them to draft a picture of what I wanted for the cover, and I would determine which one was the best. Before I made the arrangement with Tomomi Ink, the artists that I approached did not produce anything for me to consider, which proved to be rather frustrating.

4. What do you want readers to take away from this part of Anna's story?

When I originally wrote the story, I was merely continuing the adventures Anna experienced without a thought on any particular message beyond an entertaining read. As I look over it again, I realize that a good portion of the last part of the book deals with a real issue that plagues a percentage of women as well as a recent trend among some authors. Without going into details (don’t want to create any spoilers), I want readers to understand that I wish to help raise awareness about this particular issue. I am not glorifying it. Far from it, in fact! I try to paint a realistic picture of it in all its ugliness. Needless to say, this part of Anna’s story takes a dark turn, and I am now giving readers a fair warning.

5. Can readers expect another book about Anna?

At this time, I am halfway through writing the third book in the series titled Alone in the Crowd with a tentative release date in March 2013. Ideas for a fourth novel have recently surfaced, but I need to flesh those out before embarking on that leg of Anna’s journey.

6. What inspired you as a male author to write about a female protagonist?

I’ll be honest. I love women and am truly fascinated by the fairer gender, every part of them. Evidence of this is clear by my willing choice to portray female characters more often than male characters in the roleplaying games I play. (And just to set the record straight, I am straight and confident in my sexuality.) A natural extension of that desire as an author is to create like characters in my books. It’s fun for me to create a realistic female character to whom others can relate and about whom they enjoy reading. (Can you tell that I hate dangling participles?)
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Questions or thoughts?  Be sure to leave a coment!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

KBR "Best Indie Books of 2012" Finalist

Not long after I released Dremiks, I stumbled upon The Kindle Book Review.  They had several advertising options, offered reviews of indie books, and were taking submissions for a contest.  I didn't have the money for the advertising, and didn't yet meet their requirements for review requests, but I took a chance and entered the contest.

In July, Jeff Bennington and his talented review team picked as semi-finalists 25 books from each category.  Since that day, The Kindle Book Review has been faithfully Tweeting, Facebook posting, and reviewing the books chosen to be semi-finalists.

August 2nd, my husband broke his leg in three places, playing Ultimate Frisbee, of all things. On Friday, August 31st, Paragon Studios closed it's doors, laying off the entire staff, including my husband, a talented game producer with eleven years experience in the industry.  The very next day, September 1st, I stopped to check my email before I went to run errands and got another shock:

"Dremiks", my first published novel, had made the Top 5 Finalists in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy category.

I was--AM-- blown away by this honor.  The other books in the finals are great reads by very talented authors.  I encourage you to follow the links in this post and then buy every single one of the books that made the semi-finals and finals.

For all of you who have purchased "Dremiks", recommended it to your friends, and reviewed it: Thank you.


Friday, August 24, 2012

SFF Saturday 8-25-2012

This week's submission for Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday is an excerpt from "Dremiks".  I invented a card game for my characters to play and spent a large amount of time figuring out the rules of the game.  This snippet has been modified from the published version of "Dremiks" in order to meet the requirements for SFF Saturdays (10 sentences or less).


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The four officers were playing spay-ya bushki, a popular card game in university dorms and military barracks all over Earth. The name was a bastardization of the Russian phrase “grandmother’s tears”. The rule set had evolved over the years, and, as was common with every game, each group of players added their own quirks. Played with one hundred four cards from two distinct decks, spay-ya was a bizarre combination of bridge and poker. Each player was initially dealt three cards. They had to bet before looking at those “hole” cards. The bets hovered a foot above the table to each player’s right side, projected by small keycards that recorded wagers and money won or lost.

Swede flipped two cards face up from the top of the deck; these cards became the high and low trumps. Because a spay-ya deck had eight suites, there were several possible designated trump suites and numbers. A skilled player combined card counting, strategic thinking, and a great deal of luck in his game play.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

The Dreaded 2 Star Review

Readers often comment on bulletin boards and in reviews posted on popular sites like Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Goodreads that they disregard the glowing 5 star reviews of new authors obviously written by family and friends. I’ve read several comments where a reader states that he or she looks only at the 2 and 3 star reviews to get a true feel for the book. I’m not sure I entirely agree with this policy, but if that behavior is widespread, it should help a new author to have a few critical reviews. So, I suppose “Dremiks” has officially “arrived” because I’ve finally received a 2 star review.

The reviewer was not malicious and did not state anything that indicated that he had picked up “Dremiks” thinking it a genre different than science-fiction space-opera. In fact, he seems to have sought out the book specifically because he likes the genre. Therefore, I cannot just roll my eyes and ignore his comments. I may not agree with his analysis, but it is a fact of life that not all readers are going to like my book—or any book. There are people who adore “The Great Gatsby”. I’d rather gnaw off my own arms than read it again. This particular reader didn’t like my story development and felt the ending was rushed. That’s his opinion and he’s entitled to it. Obviously if I receive hundreds of such reviews then I have serious issues and need to reconsider my writing style. One such review will not, I hope, doom my first book to the dustbin of hideous literature.

Finally, a complete stranger bought my book, read it, and took the time to write a detailed review of why he disliked it. That’s a pretty big moment in an author’s life, even if it hurts just a bit.

Friday, August 17, 2012

SFF Saturday 8-18-2012

Several of the other authors participating in SFF Saturday are having book giveaways and contests right now.  Please take the time to read their snippets and then sign up for your chance to win free copies of their expanded works.  The snippets are just teasers for the really good stuff!

This is another snippet from what will, hopefully, be the third book in the Dremiks series. Last week's snippet hinted that the burgeoning relationship between Maggie and Brett had somehow gone awry.  Here's another teaser of things to come:
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“You have personal reasons for this journey, sir.”

Brett stopped walking and looked up to stare coldly at the engineer. “Oh, it’s very personal, Swede, and I do not deceive myself otherwise. This is the best chance I’ve had in two years to bring my brother to justice.”

“And her?”

Brett had the good grace to break off his stare and glance away. He gingerly touched his slightly swollen lip. “She’s a lose end that has been left flapping in the breeze for too long. She’s been running the known universe all this time trying her damndest to get herself killed and give me--and you--grey hairs. It’s time O’Connell stopped running.”

Thursday, August 16, 2012

SpecFicPick interview

I've been very fortunate to come across some really nice, professional, and passionate people in the writing, publishing, and marketing fields.  One such person is Michael K. Rose.  He has a website that highlights speculative fiction.  You'll see a link on the side-bar of this blog to "SpecFicPick".  I encourage all of my readers to subscribe to that site so that you won't miss any of the fantastic books and authors featured there.

Speaking of which, I was interviewed for "SpecFicPick".  You can read the interview here: http://specficpick.blogspot.com/2012/08/interview-cassandra-davis.html

Friday, August 10, 2012

SFF Saturday 8-11-2012

Go read the really great authors who post every week at  http://scififansat.blogspot.com/ !

This is from the first chapter to the third book in the "Dremiks" series.  I hope you like it.

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Cassandra Ruger walked into her examining room to find Maggie had stripped down to a tight fitting tank top and was gently prodding an open slash down her right bicep. The doctor gasped, “Maggie this really isn’t the best time--how did you do that to yourself?”

“What do you mean not the best time? And I didn’t do it to myself, obviously. It bloody well hurts and I don’t want it to get infected.” Maggie looked over her shoulder to see her friend, then paled from her bloody arm all the way to the tip of her bright red hair.

Commodore of the Fleet, Brett Hill, stood in the doorway between Dr. Ruger’s office and the examining room. He was staring at her with the same frank, assessing, look he'd used the last time they'd seen each other. His eyes paused on the gaping wound, traveled to her barely clad chest, and then up to her face. “Good afternoon, Commander."

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Review: "The Fallen Angel"

With so many wonderful novels out there priced below $5.00 for the e-book version, I have to be very familiar with the quality of an author’s work before shelling out $12.99 (or more) for an ebook. That said, I spend more than $20 that going to see a movie with my husband, so why shouldn’t I pay $10 or so for a book? That’s fodder for another post, though.

Daniel Silva’s “The Fallen Angel” is the latest in his Gabriel Allon series. I’ve read all of his previous books and genuinely enjoyed each one. So, I was familiar with Mr. Silva’s writing style, attention to detail, and engaging characters and therefore willing to pay a bit more for an ebook. “Fallen Angel” did not disappoint.

Ebook formatting: 5 stars
The Kindle version was well formatted with navigation links, a table of contents, and appropriate paragraph spacing. You might think, “Well duh, it’s from a major publisher- of COURSE it’s done correctly”. Oh, if only that held true.

Editing: 5 stars
Professionally edited (of course) and not by someone who is just phoning it in. Of course Mr. Silva is an established, successful, author with a successful journalist for a wife, so he knows his craft and practices it with professionalism.

Plot: 4 stars
The book starts off with a murder mystery and morphs into an international crisis (of course). The murder mystery felt a bit contrived to me, but was intriguing enough to catch and hold my attention and I truly felt for the twin sister of the murdered woman. The crisis in Jerusalem was the stuff of nightmares and uncomfortably realistic. That’s Silva’s genius, though. “The Rembrandt Affair” was very prescient regarding Iranian nuclear enrichment and international efforts to sabotage that process. Since I unabashedly agree with the political views of Silva’s books, I had no trouble with the pedantic passages on Middle Eastern strife and Biblical history.

Character development: 3 stars
This area constitutes my biggest complaint with “The Fallen Angel”. Gabriel Allon’s wife, Chiara is such a flat character that I honestly wonder sometimes if she’s not just a painting Gabriel is trying to restore. We get so much insight into so many of the repeating characters in this series, including His Holiness the (fictional) Pope, Eli Lavon, and Adrian Carter, that the lack of development for Chiara is very noticeable. Mr. Silva has proven time and again that he can write female characters with amazing depth. I wish he would spend some time fleshing out the second Mrs. Allon.

Summary: 4 stars
“The Fallen Angel” delivers a fast paced spy thriller with a murder mystery as bonus content. This is a thinking man’s, or woman’s, book. If you if you like your storylines bland and non-controversial, find something else to read. You cannot read "The Fallen Angel" without worrying about the future of Israel and the escalation of global religious warfare.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Crafting in Guild Wars 2

Switching hats here from sci-fi and fantasy author to gamer-geek-girl.  Here are my thoughts on crafting in Guild Wars 2, the new MMO from ArenaNet to be released on August 28th. (August 25th if you pre-purchase)

I very much enjoy crafting in GW2. I don't know that any game will ever approach the economy that Pirates of the Burning Sea had in place, but Guild Wars 2 at least makes the crafting process interesting and worth your time.

1. Gathering nodes are unique to the character. All players see wood, vegetables/herbs, and ore but the items are unique spawns so that you cannot "steal" another player's node. During the beta weekends, nodes respawned every 24 hours. It remains to be seen if this timer will hold true in the live game, (UPDATE: nodes respawn at varying times depending on world bonuses) but given the size of the world available for exploration, I don't see that as a problem.

2. Every player can "gather". There are three gathering tools which take up slots on your character inventory ( meaning they don't have to stay in your bags and thus don't take up bag space) All players can carry each of the three tools simultaneously. You do not even have to have a crafting skill learned to gather. Players also earn exp for gathering, so I highly recommend spending a few copper on gathering tools, equipping them, and gathering every node you see. Even if you will not use the materials yourself, you can sell them or send to guildies who are crafting AND you'll be making exp in the process.

3. Basic crafting recipes can be a bit costly for a player who is below level 5, but crafting merchants also supply materials which you can buy with "karma" points that are earned out in the world doing public events.

4. You can "discover" new recipes by adding different combinations of materials to the "discovery" pane. For those who like puzzles, like me, this is a fun distraction.

5. Crafting materials you gather can be automatically transported to your bank via the "deposit collectibles" function. Basically, you right click on an item and chose the "deposit collectible" option. The item zips through the ether into your bank and is ready to be withdrawn next time you are at the bank OR a crafting station. The collectibles tab of your bank is separate from your general bank space, so, again, you don't have to worry about crafting mats sucking up inventory or bank space.

6. I toyed with leatherworking during BW1 (beta weekend 1) but my main crafting focus through all three beta weekends and the stress tests was cooking. I discovered many recipes with unique little bonuses like "+10% downed health" or "+5 health on killing blow of an enemy player"

7. During BW2 I leveled from 11-19 doing nothing but gathering and crafting. That exp rate will probably not hold true in the live game, but even if it is half of what it was during that weekend, you're still talking about a chunk of levels in less than 3 continuous hours of game play.


I STRONGLY recommend players pick up gathering tools from the low level merchants they will encounter in their starting areas. Gather the materials you come across, reap the benefits of the easy exp, and send the materials to guildies you know are crafting.

UPDATE:  Here's a link to my guide for Cooking in Guild Wars 2 and here is a link to my Recipe Book: Novice

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Character Wars

I very much want to finish the first draft of Lilly's story before the end of August.  My kids go back to school on the 22nd and Guild Wars 2 starts on the 25th, so I'll be super busy and distracted after that day.  I'm having difficulty focusing, however, because a certain long suffering Roman and a mysterious female Briton keep invading my thoughts.  While they are an entertaining pair, they do NOT belong on a futuristic far-flung space station.

Pesky characters....

Friday, July 27, 2012

SFF Saturday 7-28-2012

Please don't forget that many of the folks participating in Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday have books in print.  If you read their snippets and enjoy their work, go buy a book!

My offering this week comes from "Lilly's story" (I so need to think of a title) and immediately follows this previous snippet.

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“Shit!”  She screamed the expletive involuntarily.  The small screens showing the energy signatures and visible light pictures from outside the hull had depixelated once the Dremikian craft popped out of the jump conduit—and promptly filled with the intimidating mass of a very large ship.  “What the hell is that thing?”
“Human female, state your name and the purpose for your travels,” droned a decidedly non-human voice from the communications relay.
“Uh, Federal....er...Lilly Diaz. I’m the new security chief for Rhiadan Sanctuary.”
“You affirm that you are a passenger aboard this vessel of your own free will and are under no duress or encumbrance?”
      Well that’s kind of a loaded question; what are these things, the inter-galactic lawyers? She blinked as the realization came to her that she was, in fact, speaking to the only force of law in this part of the Universe.  Just great--big, scary, Kigvans in big, scary, ships.

Monday, July 23, 2012

100!

As of Saturday, July 21, "Dremiks" has sold 100 copies worldwide. (The novel launched on March 20, 2012*)  While this is certainly not "bestseller" range, I am over-joyed that 100 people like my book enough to purchase a copy.

Thank-you friends, family, and fans!

I leave you with a celebratory dance: http://www.webhamster.com/

*edited to correct silly date typo

Guild Wars 2

Where was I all weekend?  Why did I miss SFF Saturday (again)?  Well, I'm a geek girl at heart and, thus, a gamer.  I spent my weekend playing Guild Wars 2.  I'll have more about my gaming habits at a later date, but I wanted to share this beautiful screenshot:


Tuesday, July 17, 2012

"An Alien in a Crate"

I grew up with expressions like "Don't buy a pig in a poke".  For those not up on Southern American colloquialisms, that means "Don't purchase a pig in a sack" or, "sight unseen".

Consumers of books needn't buy a book without knowing what they will get. Amazon and Barnes & Noble have "Look Inside" or "Read Instantly" preview functions.  Many indie and self-published authors also offer samples of their work, either on their blogs or through book sites.

On both Amazon and Barnes & Noble, you can read the first two chapters of "Dremiks", for free, right on your web browser. You can also browse through samples and snippets at then end of this post.

Don't buy an alien in a crate--take a minute to learn about Dremikians and their human saviors by reading the available free samples. And don't worry, I work hard to make sure the plot twists of the book remained unspoiled!

Flight aerobatics
“The thing is, you’re emotionally stunted.”
“How’s the jaw, sir?”
Engineers vs pilots vs robots
Chapter 8 via FrontRowLit  

Friday, July 13, 2012

SFF Saturday 7-14-2012

For SFF Saturday this week I've posted a snippet from my work-in-progress, Lilly's story.  Be sure to read all the great entries from other authors at : http://scififansat.blogspot.com/2012/07/sffs-14072012.html

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Painfully pitched squeals from a sensor board jerked Lilly from her thoughts. Her Dremikian pilots began chirping and twittering to each other so rapidly that Lilly lost track of their conversation.  The first two times this had happened she’d nearly soiled her pants.  This time, she just rolled her eyes and tried to block out the obnoxious alarms.
Worst pilots ever.  Lilly had been on precisely two space flights before this trip, and neither of those had included a jump, but she felt confident in her assessment.  The two aliens were alarmists who were constantly surprised by such mundane things as the end of a pre-determined jump conduit.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Please Format Your Ebook Correctly!


One of my pet peeves when reading a book on my Kindle is finding that the chapter hyperlinks do not exist or work properly. Worse, I often find that books don’t have a working link to their Table of Contents and have blank pages where none are needed. Then there are the truly regrettable offerings that have poor paragraph spacing, odd font changes, or incorrect typographical characters.

Formatting an ebook is not hard. Yes it takes time. Yes it can be frustrating when, as an author, you realize that you have to learn yet another skill-set in order to self-publish your work. News flash: self-publishing means doing, by yourself, all the work of a publisher. Traditional publishers pay editors, copy-editors, marketing professionals, cover artists, and ebook formatters out of that huge chunk they take from your royalties. You can either pay people to do all of those tasks for you, or learn how to do them all yourself. Actually, scratch that. DON’T edit your own work, or proofread it, or do your own cover art (unless you are also a gifted artist). Ebook formatting, however, you CAN do by yourself.

I did it, and here’s how:

Go to this link (don’t worry it opens in another window) and read Guido Henkel’s excellent nine part series on how to format an ebook. Yes, I said nine parts. Take an hour of your day and read what he wrote, in its entirety. Then, read it again and take notes. This is not hard material. If you can put together adjectives, nouns, and verbs and take a reader of those words to another time or place, then you can string together an html search string.

Mr. Henkel uses a program called TextMate to edit his html document. He also mentions a program called Jedit. I tried Jedit and it made my head hurt. I have the great honor to be friends with a brilliant computer nerd. I asked her what I should use for html editing, and then cried (through text messaging) until she agreed to help me through the process. (You can find Mrs. Maples information on the “Links” page of my webpage. If all of this gets too overwhelming, send her an email. She might take pity on you, for a price.) On her recommendation, I now use an html editor called Html-Kit.

Now that you’ve read through Henkel’s nine part saga, flipped out, calmed down, downloaded a text editor, griped about all the damn trouble you’re going through, and calmed the frack down—again--, follow Henkel’s instructions starting in Part VI.

Yes this process will take time. I had expert help and it still took me the better part of two days to correctly format a .mobi and .epub version of my book. Please, though, don’t wimp out, give up, and just throw up a word document onto Kindle Direct Publishing. You are doing yourself and your potential readers a huge disservice.

If you get stuck, send me a note through my “Request Information” form, on Twitter, or on Facebook. Friends don’t let friends publish broken ebooks.

Friday, July 6, 2012

Science-Fiction/Fantasy Saturday 7-7-2012

Welcome back to another 10 sentence snippet for SFF Saturday.  I hope long-time readers will find this blog version easier to read and comment upon.  If you've already read "Dremiks", this week's offering will be very familiar*; so, please feel free to read lots of new material from the other great authors at : http://scififansat.blogspot.com/2012/07/sffs-07072012.html
If you haven't read "Dremiks", what are you waiting for?

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Maggie crouched underneath the panel system of the pilots’ flight simulator, her curses varying in volume from whispers to loud tirades. She was aware of, and further infuriated by, Swede’s lack of concern over her ire. To both the women present, Swede’s only visible emotion was amusement. Maggie crab-walked from underneath the panel. She had to twist at her waist to raise her shoulders past the seat edge and then twist again to stand fully upright.

“From a medical stand-point, Maggie, the human body really isn’t designed to contort that way.”

The commander rolled her shoulders to work out a kink, then shot a withering look at her roommate as she collapsed into the mock-up pilot’s chair. “Well, the engineers who designed this piece of crap didn’t have human physical limitations in mind—as usual.”

Swede placed a screwdriver in her out-stretched hand. “In all fairness, ma’am, the same engineers who designed this also designed a robot to fix it.”


* Snippet varies from the published version of "Dremiks" in order to meet the 10 sentence limitation of SFF Saturday.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Coming this Christmas: Lilly's story

She never wanted to be out here, in the void and blackness, one of the few, the "alien". She hates her job and every aspect of her life. All she wants is her good name back...

Lilly Diaz is a former Federal Intelligence Officer and recent inmate of the Europa Prison Dome. She's been sent to far reaches of the universe in a last ditch effort to ferret-out human sedition and, if she's lucky, prove her innocence.

You can read a few snippets from the first draft of Lilly's story (a currently untitled, novella-length, sequel to "Dremiks") here and here.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Blog Changes

I started using Blogger/Blogspot way back in 2005, so I'm very comfortable with the interface and services offered.  When I started my "author blog" last October, Blogger was a logical choice.  In March of this year, though, I decided I wanted a more robust website with my own domain.  I started working with the hosting services provided by Intuit.com.

I have been 80% satisfied with how my site is working.  Feel free to check it out at www.cassandradavis-author.com (You can also click on the "Home" link at the top of this page)

The part of the site I was never happy with, however, was the imbedded blog feature.  The Intuit Sitebuilder service lets you add a blog to your site.  Honestly, though, this is barely more than an automated script for a text box.  Their blog service does not offer an archiving or post labeling system, has the most obnoxious "Captcha" word verification for comments I've ever seen, and it is incredibly hard to add pictures to your posts.  Adding the ability for readers to add my blog to an RSS feed required almost an hour of tinkering and editing.  Furthermore, there's no built-in html editor for the site.  If you want to tweak your page's html code, you have to recreate the code in your own editor and reload the files.

As an author, my blog is my gateway to my fans and my fans are my customers.  I cannot have customers frustrated by their inability to comment on a post, easily read an entry (I often had an issue with competing scroll bars for long blog posts), or find posts on a similar topic. The "Archives" section you see on the old blog?  I had to create those links myself, and update them whenever I had the chance.  That's time out of my day I could have spent writing a new novel.

After months of trying to find a work-around for these myriad problems, I finally gave up.  This blogger.com site will once again be my blog.  Visitors to my website who click on the navigation bar link "Blog" will be directed here.  If you wish to go back to my site, simply use any of the page buttons above (Home, Reviews, Blog, Links, Old Blog). And, I really hope you do go back to the site, because I work hard to provide informational links, new reviews of "Dremiks", and updates on my writing.

All of my old content will remain live and accessible.  I left the old blog "up" because there are several link-backs to those posts on marketing materials and other authors' sites.  All new content, however, will be posted here.  There is a link to the old blog above (Old Blog) and also on my site's "Links" page.

Yes I'm taking a risk that I might lost a few customers through the confusion of a different domain name for my blog, and the movement to a new (old) site.  However, I felt this was a risk I had to take to preserve my sanity and grow my fan base.  I'll let you, my readers, decide which of those two is more important.

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Author Interviews

This post is a list of back-links to the author interviews I posted on my old blog.  All of that content is still "live" and available for readers.  This list includes wonderful and award-winning authors.  Please get to know them and their work.

Elias Anderson
Ashley Barron
Wayne Basta
J.C. Cassels
Connie M. Huddleston
Shelli Johnson
Walter E. Wilson

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Review: Prometheus

I went to see Prometheus knowing that it was Ridley Scott’s creation and had an “Alien” tie-in.  Beyond that, I’d stayed away from critical reviews and accompanying spoilers.

THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS.  YOU’VE BEEN WARNED.

The cinematography was fabulous.  From the opening sequence until the final, startling, minute of the movie, there was a sense of scope and majesty.  I should note that although this is a “space movie”, the setting is primarily an alien planet and the inside of a human ship.  That’s important, because this wasn’t an “alien centric” movie.

That’s right: despite the fact that the passengers of the Prometheus are on a mission to find and question an alien life form, this movie is ultimately a human drama with aliens thrown in for dramatic juxtapositions.  Prometheus is a creation myth—or all creation myths, jumbled together in Wikipedia form and thrown onto the big screen—any way you look at it.

The characterizations were a little weak—but that actually makes the movie work.  Again, this is a story about humanity’s past, present and future.  Stereotypical characters are easier for an audience to relate to.  Thoughts of “I know how she feels” and “Yeah I’ve had a witchy boss just like Vickers” draw the viewer in and make him/her emotionally invested in the storyline.

That’s not to say I didn’t have issues with several character story points.  Fifield was well played by Sean Harris, but can we have a redheaded character who isn’t bat-crap insane? Also, the writers made a point of telling us that Dr. Elisabeth Shaw was infertile, only to have her conceive almost immediately.  Granted it was no ordinary pregnancy, but come on—a scientist who says she’s infertile isn’t basing that off a hunch.  She was obviously able to ovulate, her tubes were open enough to have the egg be fertilized and then move to her uterus to implant.  Exactly which part of her reproductive system WASN’T working?

That leads me to the most gut-wrenching (pun most definitely intended) part of the movie.  In a film filled with visceral (heh) imagery, the scene of Shaw’s self-induced, barely-medicated, caesarean section made every single woman in the audience writhe in pain.  Just...damn.

I really enjoyed Prometheus.  It didn’t offer anything particularly new, (The concept that life here began out there is not exactly original.) but the action keeps the audience engaged (or writhing).  A sci-fi fan will see the ending coming, as the foreshadowing is a bit heavy handed, but the finale still comes as a kick in the head.

Game over, man, game over.