Book Reviews, Self-Publishing Book Review of the Week, Uncategorized, weekly self published book review

Tuesday Book Review: “Highway Odyssey”

Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.
When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review:

highway odyssey alexander flint

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Highway Odyssey

by Alexander Flint

ISBN: 9781432766696

Synopsis*:

Highway Odyssey began in the summer of 1978 with a man and his seven year old son. They drove from New York to Colorado in search of adventure. The man soon realized that he was searching, not for adventure, but for his identity. Having recently been separated from his wife of fifteen years and having five kids together, the man was emotionally overwhelmed by the change in his status.

What was originally planned to be a short visit with old friends turned into an understanding of his responsibility in his position as a single father.

Flint found matters of interest among the culturally diverse families he stayed with and many interesting characters along the way. These events led him to understand the struggle with the self doubts that originated with his rejection from his fifteen year marriage.

Backpacking to the high altitude snow fields of the Grand Teton Mountains in Wyoming, turned into an event that made his seven year old son a candidate for the Guiness Book of World Records. This occurred with the challenge of climbing over a closed pass, without any technical gear, on to Hurricane Pass.

Highway Odyssey covering a period that reaches well back into the nineteenth century and the lives of his ancestors, is based on thoughts drawn into his memory as he drove thousands of miles across highways. Such was his enjoyment, that Flint continued this marathon trek over twenty four consecutive summers. Sitting behind the wheel of his custom van in 1978, Flint begins the examination of his identity.

From rodeo riding, motorcycle touring, competing in hundred mile bicycle road races, pedaling on single track mountain trails with his fat tire bike to ghost towns and overnight horseback trips on the isolated Colorado Trail, Flint found his nirvana.

Through the close connection with his children, the deaths of friends and his parents, this man comes to realize the priorities in his life..

 * courtesy of Amazon.com

Featured Review

“Highway Odyssey” by Alexander Flint is the story of a man attempting to discover himself. The year was 1978 and he found himself a single father after his recent divorce. He started traveling with his seven year old son. Together they made adventures: back packing across the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. The trek was not without dangers; they did not posses practical gear but managed to conquer Hurricane Pass. Alex recounts who they visited. He shares old friends and new ones. The descriptions of the places and people bring them to life. I felt as if I were looking at them myself. He expresses the cultural difference between families and embraces it. To some degree this is a travel journal, yet it is so much more. This book offers great insight. “Highway Odyssey” is a fascinating read through two decades of a man’s life. The reader looks through a window at his marriage, is privy to his emotions and watches as the metamorphosis of his being takes place. He faced his self doubts and overcame them. By reaching back into the past of his ancestors, Flint found himself and became a responsible single parent. For twenty four years Flint continued to travel and seek adventures.

I love this book. Flint discovered what some never do…what is most important in life. I found this book easy to read and it held my attention. It is much more than this man’s travel journal; it is the search for identity. I envy his free spirit and ability to face the challenges of life and overcome them. I find this book inspiring.

– reviewed by Rita G. for Readers’ Favorite

More Reviews

Those of us in the family who know and love “cousin Alex” have always considered him a Renaissance man ; loving single dad of 5, Grandpa, Marine Corps officer, teacher , gymnastics coach, fitness enthusiast, runner, hiker ,adventurer, martial artist and writer. In Alex Flint’s new book “Highway Odyssey”, he takes you along on his own personal journey with him, a journey of body ,mind and spirit.And he tells it warts and all, not ever attempting to smooth over the rough edges, which has always been his style.The chapters of his yearly treks to the Rockies and Grand Tetons were beautiful. You feel as if you were standing next to him, taking in this indescribable beauty. And the stories of his travel companion, his 7 year old son were priceless. I also enjoyed the stories of his, and my, quirky, eclectic, talented and most of all, loving family. He indeed paints a lovely family portrait which brought back tender memories for me. Alex is brave enough to take the pain head-on also. His stories of heartbreak of divorce from his wife and a disruption of the status quo with the loves of his life, his children, were heart wrenching as was the retelling of the excruciating pain of watching the demise and passing of his beloved parents, my much loved aunt and uncle. Alex has always been a guy to not only take on challenges, but be the point man and make sure that all with him not only get thru but come out the better for it. Years ago , I was invited to make that grand journey to the Tetons and Rockies with him, and I foolishly declined thinking I had more important things to do . I regret my error of lack of foresight to this day! Thankfully, I have a second chance now with this book . I strongly recommend you jump on the back of Alex’s Harley or into his van “Darth Vader” and take this 260 page odyssey. You won’t regret it.

 – reviewed on Amazon by Stephen R. Zimmermann

It was wonderful to read this book and relive all the great memories of traveling with my father. I remember sitting around the campfire with the Canhams and hearing Stu proclaim “we’re making memories”. As a child I wasn’t sure what he meant, as an adult I know exactly what he was talking about. The precious times we spend with family and friends is what life is all about. As the author’s son, this book holds special meaning to me, but it’s a book everyone can enjoy. We could all relate and appreciate remembering meaningful people and experiences. It’s a great read.

– reviewed on Amazon by Alex and Shalini

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Thanks for reading!  Keep up with the latest in the world of indie and self-published books by watching this space!

Self Publishing Advisor

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news from the self publishing world, self publishing news, Self-Publishing, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing News: 6.25.2018 – Publishing Trends Roundup

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And now for the news!

Some highlights from this month in the world of self-publishing, specifically regarding publishing trends within the publishing industry, and their implications for all authors!

We’ve written occasionally about the happy synchronicity between self-publishing and genre fiction, but this article more or less proves it: while traditional sales in some of these genres, here specifically science fiction and fantasy, actual sales may have actually doubled when those crunching the numbers include information from indie and self-publishing sources. The difficulty, of course, is that many of these companies (here’s looking at your KDX service, Amazon!) refuse to give up information, or at least to do so reliably. Still, from the information available Adam Rowe of Forbes is able to speculate, drawing upon Nielson reports among others, that while “Indie-published authors may be just 48% of the SF&F market (and their unit prices average just $3.20 compared to traditional publishers’ ebook average of $8.04), but these authors are likely still earning the majority of the profits.” This is good news for self-publishing authors, Rowe writes, but may not be the kind of boost or reminder that traditional publishers need to invest in these genres in which authors are jumping ship. The authors are, in part, jumping ship because they weren’t being invested in; they have good reasons to leave the traditional route, just as much as they have good reasons to choose an indie route. At some point, are the Big Five going to reach a tipping point where they simply discontinue their science fiction and fantasy (as well as other genre fiction) imprints? Because that would be a loss to us all.

Speaking of science fiction, did you know that the history of zines is inextricably tied up with this genre? As Claire Williamson of the Japan Times Culture column writes,

“The Comet” is widely acknowledged to be the first zine — first published in 1930 by the Science Correspondence Club in Chicago — and its release heralded the beginning of a decades-long trend of fan-produced science fiction zines. By the 1970s and ’80s, zine culture was decidedly punk; in the 1990s it centered on the feminist “riot grrrl” movement. Nowadays zines often combine elements of both text and design, running the gamut from in-depth, research-based publications to pocket-sized collections of personal doodles, and encompassing myriad topics.

Zines are also, of course, tied up with self-publishing. Writes Williamson, “From the modern ukiyo-e prints of the Edo Period (1603-1868) to contemporary dōjinshi (self-published) fan comics, there has always been an outlet in Japan for artistic self-publishing.” It may have begun in the Edo period, but “The mid-2000s, for instance, heralded the rise of keitai shōsetsu (cell phone novels), which were written in sparse, colloquial Japanese — ideal for drafting or reading on cramped cell phone screens — and appealed to the masses. Meanwhile, nijisōsaku (derivative works) that draw on copyrighted characters have historically been protected from lawsuits to allow the growth of the parent work’s fanbase and encourage budding artistic talent.” As Williamson points out, in such a historical context, self-publishing as we know it today makes for a natural fit. Williamson unpacks the rich story of zines and self-publishing in modern Japan, as well as several of its current players, making this a must-read article. The article may be of local interest, but its implications are global.

Not familiar with The Kissing Booth? That’s alright; until two weeks ago, no one else had either. This made-for-and-by-Netflix teenage drama has risen to through the ranks of most-watched films online in its brief time in the world, and is forcing entertainment companies to re-evaluate where they find their source material. Because The Kissing Booth? Yeah, that was self-published. We’ve written about Wattpad, the blogging and self-publishing site so popular with teens, before on this blog–but it’s worth point out again that self-publishing doesn’t ever look like any one thing. It’s microbloggers like Rupi Kaur who use Instagram to find an audience. It’s fanfiction and lengthier bloggers like those who use Wattpad, LinkedIn, and Tumblr to find their audiences. It’s authors writing full-length novels and publishing them through companies like Amazon and Outskirts Press. It’s zine makers making and distributing their work by hand or through the Internet. It’s indie comic creators and game designers pushing the envelope of what’s considered self-publishable material, as well as musicians and artists and so, so many more. Now that companies like Netflix are literally banking on self-publishing authors and other creators, it’s only a matter of time before we see an explosion and diversification of the base definition of self-publishing, and before that list is multiplied by a factor of ten. If you’re a self-publishing author or creator reading this blog, you’re in the right place at the right time. We can’t wait to see what happens next.

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As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry.This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.

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elizabeth speaks, in your corner, Uncategorized

In Your Corner: More on Podcasts (Part IV)

A month ago, I started a series on podcasting for self-publishing authors. For more explanations of why podcasting is an important tool for authors, check out the second post in this series, and for my reflections on the nitty-gritty of recording and editing those podcasts check out the third post in this series. This week, I’m back to complete the series with some final thoughts on podcasts and how they relate to self-publishing.

professional microphone

We are not the first blog to point out a connection between self-publishing and podcasting. Even a cursory Google search for the terms “self-publishing” and “podcast” together turns up thousands of relevant hits, including podcasts from self-publishing companies (e.g. the “story studio” Sterling & Stone), podcasts wherein the podcaster interviews famous and/or successful self-publishing authors (e.g. the Self-Publishing School), podcasts by self-publishing authors themselves (e.g. Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula and the Self-Publishing Authors podcast). These are just a few examples of the podcasts themselves, but there are also plenty of blogs who have put together lists of the top ten or so self-publishing related podcasts for you to peruse (we’re particular fans of Kindlepreneur’s list, as it mostly lines up with our own experience and has great rules for inclusion).

The downside of these lists, including our own mentions? You might become convinced that podcasting as a self-publishing author can or ought to only look one way, and that’s to say you might feel pressured to talk about the process of publishing and marketing your book, which may or may not be your comfort zone. Especially if you’re a self-publishing author just getting into the industry and you don’t feel as though you’ve got this polished life to offer up in thirty-minute chunks every month, podcasting the way that the podcasts on these lists do may feel preemptive.

The fact of the matter is, a podcast can look like whatever you want it to look like. And you don’t have to “have it all put together” (in your life or in respect to your publishing experience) in order to get started; many of the best podcasts today started with several extremely messy, experimental episodes as their creators worked out what they wanted the podcasts to be. You can use your podcast to read excerpts. You can use it to talk about your experience as it happens, warts and all. You can use it to talk about other self-published books, or engage with other self-publishing authors. Keeping a seed planted at the back of your mind that the podcast is another extension of your marketing strategy, do all the things you want to do and don’t wait to get started! That’s always the hardest part, isn’t it?

We hope you do decide to experiment with podcasting, and if you do, we’d love to boost your voice. Pop a link to your podcast in our comments, and we’ll happily make a mention on our blog!

You are not alone. ♣︎

Elizabeth

ABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 20 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Director of Sales and Marketing for Outskirts Press. The Sales and Marketing departments are composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.

 

Book Reviews, Self-Publishing Book Review of the Week, Uncategorized, weekly self published book review

Tuesday Book Review: “The Paymaster”

Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.
When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review:

the paymaster adeed dawisha

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1st Place Winner in the 2018 Reader’s Favorite Awards Mystery Category

The Paymaster

by Adeed Dawisha

ISBN: 9781478783152

Synopsis*:

George Haddad is a deeply conflicted man. A doyen of Washington’s high society, he is also a life-long member of a terrorist organization. George resolves his inner conflict when he discloses secret information to Tessa Barnard, a young television reporter, who soon finds herself treading a treacherous path of intrigue and deception involving murder, abductions, and brutal assaults. Someone is determined to silence her. Is it foreign terrorists, or does the danger emanate from somewhere much closer to home? Meanwhile, George Haddad himself becomes the object of the boundless cruelty of his organization’s star assassin, and he has to make a fateful decision that could cost him his life. He knows the odds are heavily stacked against him. A tightly written and intricately plotted novel, with many twists and unanticipated revelations, The Paymaster is hard to put down.

 * courtesy of Amazon.com

Featured Review

The Paymaster is an exciting exploration of terrorism and counterterrorism, a twenty-first-century thriller done right.

Adeed Dawisha’s fast-paced novel The Paymaster unites a former nationalist and an ambitious journalist to take aim at one of the modern world’s biggest problems—terrorism.

George Haddad is a veteran of a nationalist terror organization, a former idealist who spent his young life sipping black tea in bombed-out warehouses in the Middle East. Now, with a mansion and a family in Virginia, Haddad has grown bored, tired, and despondent. He seeks to combat his ennui by aligning himself with Tessa Barnard, an aspiring investigative journalist who is stuck in West Virginia.

The initial purpose of their meeting is to expose Emilio Luciani, a man posing as an Italian but who is really a Hezbollah terrorist, Nizar Saleh. Haddad wants Barnard to unmask the man while he is in a secret meeting with the CIA, but one murder throws the entire scheme off of the rails.

The Paymaster is a quintessentially modern thriller set in some unexpected places. Besides the usual milieu of Washington, DC, the East Coast megalopolis, and the jet-set spots of Europe, the story also touches down in frozen Chicago, small-city West Virginia, and during the heady days of the 1979 Iranian revolution. It is an entertaining journey, the main thrust of which is that the worlds of terrorism and counterterrorism are far more entwined than most people think.

Although he is a scholar who specializes in the troublesome politics of the Middle East, Dawisha does not write like a pedantic professor. Indeed, The Paymaster moves at a quick clip, with concise, utilitarian language far outpacing fancy linguistic displays.

Characters are believable, though Barnard conforms to a certain stereotype. She is almost amoral, a careerist who seems mostly driven by a desire to get the heck out West Virginia. Although she certainly grows in maturity as the novel progresses, she is not as artfully drawn as the conflicted Haddad.

If Haddad is emblematic of real terrorists, or of terrorists who have lived long past their prime, then your average bomb maker or cell functionary is a lot more conflicted than news reports would suggest. Haddad and Barnard make for an exciting team, while the expert assassin hired by Haddad’s former comrades makes for a threatening adversary.

The Paymaster is an exciting exploration of terrorism and counterterrorism, with the daily monotony of both captured in between cinematic shootouts and cat-and-mouse games. This is a twenty-first-century thriller done right.

– reviewed by Benjamin Welton for Foreword Reviews

More Reviews

“The Paymaster” by Adeed Dawisha is an exciting and electric mystery/thriller that submerges readers deeply into the plot and leaves them guessing until the very end.

The story begins with George Haddad, a wealthy man of deep political influence in Washington DC, who is actually a member of the Revolutionary People’s Front, a Middle Eastern terrorist organization.  Attending a budget meeting of said organization, Haddad’s mind was not in the meeting as he was preoccupied with other matters: not being late to his daughter’s Christmas’s show, and making ‘the call” to Tessa Barnard. This call would finally put an end to his life of conflict by sharing the secret information he knows with the T.V. reporter. But instead of realizing peace of mind for himself, divulging the secret information puts Tessa in mortal danger and makes him a target within his organization.  Efforts to keep this information under wraps set the tone for this thrilling, intricate adventure.

Adeed Dawisha created a well written thriller with simple, engaging dialogue, and a fast-paced integrated plot that flows beautifully, keeping readers from putting it down. As much as I like to brag on how I always am able to figure out plots, I must admit, this one did have few surprises for me. Dawisha truly knows how to master pace and plot in a way which unravels unexpectedly. His characters are not just genuine, the way he built them with dialogue and description made them come alive in my mind. Dawisha also features impeccable writing skills within the action scenes as I could picture things happening vividly in my mind as clear as having it play on a screen in front of me.

I can’t recommend enough “The Paymaster” by Adeed Dawisha. It is an awesome five-star read. A thrilling and intriguing page turner that made me jump from my seat more than once. I will definitely look out for more work from this author!

 – reviewed by Michel Violante for Reader Views

This spicey thriller with multiple surprises includes characters drawn from the FBI, the CIA and television journalism, covering and uncovering international secrets and dirty deals with shady organizations from abroad. Murder, sex, betrayal, vengeance, redemption — even confirmation hearings — this fast-paced story has plenty of human interest. Lots of fun!

– reviewed on Amazon by Stephen Nimis

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Thanks for reading!  Keep up with the latest in the world of indie and self-published books by watching this space!

Self Publishing Advisor

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news from the self publishing world, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing News: 6.18.2018 – New Releases!

june

And now for the news!

Some highlights from this month in the world of self-publishing, specifically new releases written by self-publishing authors and published by independent presses! Today we’ll be featuring brand-new releases in the Outskirts Press Bookstore!

If you’re anything like us, every now and again you just really need a good and powerful historical mystery to set its hooks and draw you in, and Daniel K. Edmondson’s new novel, The Parchment, is exactly what the doctor ordered! A pastor with more than 40 years of experience, Edmondson knows more than a little about life and how the human mind works, and he brings that knowledge to this book. Steeped in biblical archaeology, The Parchment follows the intrepid James and Anne down a path which leads to both religious epiphany and historical revelation as they uncover the mysteries of an ancient library, one hard-won clue at a time. For readers of both Dan Brown and Frank Peretti, but with a voice and a style all of its own, The Parchment is sure to remind all of us why books like these and films like National Treasure remain the bedrock of many people’s love of history.

Life was different way back when, wasn’t it? If you’ve spent much time in the American public school system, you’ll already be more than aware how tightly budgeted the average child’s time is, and how little of that time is given over to play. Well, other sources have dedicated a great deal of time arguing for more play and freedom from sociological, psychological, and developmental perspectives, but until now it has been rare to find nonfiction narratives for the kids themselves which point to an alternate way of doing things. In My Nana Was a Free-Range Kid, author and illustrator (and all-around Rennaissance woman) Nancy Peek Youndahl lays out the story of her grandmother, “an outrageously mischievous child that was left to her own devices” and who grew up running “free range” in North Carolina during the 1940s and 1950s. Part biography, part entertaining story, and part argument for more freedom and more play during a child’s formative early years, this book covers a lot of ground and does so with grace.

With its eye-catching cover, Titanus’ Rage is sure to be a popular pick with lovers of science fiction and fantasy, but this latest book from author Miles Monahan has a lot going on under the surface to delight readers of any genre: biting prose, interesting characters, and a crisis of galactic proportions to avert. The first installment of what will hopefully be a long-lived series, Titanus’ Rage proves once and for all that genre does not define or limit a book, but rather opens doors for comparison and connection. Here is a book to satisfy even the most hungry of space-shenanigan lovers!

spa-news

As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry.This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.

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