Posts Tagged ‘YouTube’

Updates on What I’m Doing

Posted: April 24, 2024 in Living and Life, Progress Report, Writing
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So, it’s been more than a week since my last post. And I have some things I wanted to talk to you about. Problem is, none of them are enough for a blog post on their own, so I’m doing an updates post. Because let’s face it, those have worked before! Anyway, here’s what I’ve been up to lately:

I’m Writing about a 3D Printer from Hell

You know how after the Great Editing, all I wanted to do was work on some new stories and not edit for a while? Well, I’ve been doing just that, and have so far written one short story, one novelette, and two novellas. Only the short story has been edited and is being shopped around, while the rest are waiting on their second drafts.

The current project is what I hope will be a novella about a 3D printer from Hell. Most likely, it’s going to end up a novel and I’ll be like, “Rami, what did you do?” But if it ends up being that long, so be it. I’m going to care more about the quality of the words instead of the quantity of the word count (though that is important).

Anywho, right now this project, which doesn’t have a title yet, is still early in the first draft. I’m trying to work on it every opportunity I get, and I hope to get further along before too much time passes. After that, I plan on working on a few more (hopefully much shorter) tales. And after that? Well, I think I’ll go through editing all these stories and then finding some of them homes.

Ongoing projects

So, before you ask: yes, I am still planning on getting back to my mummy novel Crawler. It’s just that I wanted to work on a bunch of other stuff and not commit to another huge project for a while. Granted, that might have blown up in my face, with the 3D printer story possibly going the same route as The Pure World Comes (God, I was so naive to think that would be a novelette). But I still plan to get back to it before the end of the year and finish the first draft.

In the meantime, I’m also putting together two new collections. Yes, you read that right: two new collections. All I can say about them is that one will be made up entirely of novellas, and the other will be made up entirely of novelettes. How many in each, and which stories will be in it, I’ll let you know when the projects are a lot further along. But let me be clear: I am working on these, and will update you when it’s appropriate to do so.

Finally, I’ve also started research on a new essay. Won’t say what it is yet, but it’s going to be horror focused, and it’s also going to revolve around one of my favorite things. Like everything else, I’ll keep you updated on any developments.

Important anniversaries are coming up!

So, I realized yesterday that three of my books have anniversaries coming up and these are going to be important ones. First, The Pure World Comes will be celebrating its second anniversary since being released in paperback and ebook on May 10, 2024. Feels like it’s been out a lot longer, but yeah, I counted to be sure. Two years.

Then, Snake will celebrate ten years since release on June 10, 2024. Yeah, the big one-oh. Kind of snuck up on me, didn’t it?

And finally, on June 20, 2024, Rose will celebrate five year since it was first released. I know, I know. Hard to believe, right? It amazes me too that that book came out just before the pandemic!

With all these anniversaries, I’ll be doing something to celebrate each, so be sure to stick around. And if you haven’t read those books…well, if you need some reading material right now, go check those three out. They’re scary and awesome, if I do say so myself. You can check them out using my Book Links and Excerpts page, which is linked to the button below.

Book Links & Excerpts

Anything else?

Well, I’ve been busy with HWA Ohio stuff. As a chapter, we’re really growing and getting noticed in all the right ways, so as Chapter Coordinator, I’ve been busy with that and making sure we all get more exposure and readers. With any luck, some of us may even be able to take our careers to brand new heights.

Also got some events I’ll be going to soon, which I am looking forward to (see my last post about those). Hope you’re looking forward to and maybe stopping by some of those as well.

I’ve been putting up a lot of stuff on my YouTube channel, including some writing advice videos I’m proud of. Definitely check those out and consider subscribing to my channel.

And…that’s about it. I mean, I could talk about work stuff, or the fact that it’s Passover, but I don’t feel like it. Also, it’s getting late, and I have to go into the office tomorrow, so might as well stop here.

Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares. I hope whatever you’re doing, it’s working out well for you.

Random Things Before the Year Ends

Posted: December 29, 2023 in Living and Life
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If you haven’t noticed, the year is ending soon. And there are some things I’ve been wanting to talk or share with you (especially if you’re not on my other social media) before the year ends. The problem is, I didn’t think any of them on their own were worth putting out a blog post for. However, then I had a thought: why not just combine all the random topics into one big post?

As you can see from the presence of this post, I went through on that dangerous idea, so let’s get to it and talk about random topics.

SWORDS

Every little boy dreams of having a sword at some point in their life. To slay the dragon, to fight the evil king, to reap the souls of the good and the damned as the Carnival of the Judges goes into full swing in the city center–oh wait, that last one is just me. But the point stands. And recently, I was able to make that dream come true.

Pretty cool, huh? A friend of mine is downsizing for a move, and he posted on Facebook to see if anyone wanted them. The price was too good, so I bought them. They arrived way earlier than expected, and so I got them hung up in my office on Christmas Eve. According to my friend, he bought them in Spain when he was there as a teenager many years ago. The top sword is an arming sword, and the bottom is a side sword.

Both are awesome, and either one would make an excellent deterrent for burglars and stalkers.

Anyway, my inner child is now very happy. And I promise my friend that I’d take good care of them, so that’s what I’ll do. I look forward to many years with them on my wall.

BANNER

Back in 2021, when I attended my first ParaPsyCon, my dad and stepmom stopped by to see how I was doing, and while there, they noticed another horror author who had a vertical banner behind his booth broadcasting what he wrote. My dad asked me, “Think you’ll get one of those?” I responded, “Someday.”

Someday is today. Thanks to the grant I got earlier this year, I was able to pay for some new author photos, which I then used to design a banner (this was after lots of concept testing that I did in one of my Facebook groups). I then bought the banner and the frame for it. I absolutely love it. And I have a feeling it’s going to help me find and connect with more readers at the events I’ll be attending in 2024. Including ParaPsyCon.

HOW TO BUILD A WRITING HABIT

I wanted to try something different with my YouTube channel, maybe see if doing so would help me to connect with more readers, writers, and horror fans. At the same time, I’ve been wanting to talk about the habits of building a writing habit for some time now. Like a TED talk or at a convention, if anyone would actually let me speak at one of those (given that it’s me, you understand the caution).

So, I thought I would combine the two and put out a video on YouTube talking about building a writing habit. It’s something I hadn’t tried before and I thought people might find it helpful. Who knows? Maybe it’ll help me connect with more writers, readers and horror fans. At the very least, it’s had more views than other videos I’ve posted, so I guess that’s a good sign. Maybe I’ll try a video like this again when I have the chance/inspiration.

But tell me, do you think this is a good video? Did what I discuss make sense or seem helpful? Any feedback you have would be helpful, so don’t hesitate to leave a comment.

OWLS ARE AWESOME

You probably didn’t see this one coming, did you?

For quite some time, I’ve been obsessed with owls. It started when I found this YouTube channel where a nature artist/filmmaker films the daily activities of the owls and other animals living around his British country home. Watching these owls sleep, raise their broods, and occasionally get into scrapes with each other made me fall in love with and then go down a rabbit hole of learning about owls.

And it’s not hard to see why. They fly with wings that don’t produce any noise, they pick up sounds and sights we’re wholly ignorant of (especially at night), and they can be the most loving partners and parents among birds you’ll ever see. No kidding, watch some of that YouTube channel’s videos. It’ll melt your heart and make you believe in love again. All this in these tiny, compact bodies with sharp beaks and talons that can take out both prey and predators. And which predate on each other if the circumstances are right (or wrong).

It’s kind of no wonder I’m obsessed now and want an owl to live near me. For now though, I’ll settle for writing about them. With any luck, I’ll have a great owl-themed story done some time next month. And who knows? If it gets published, you might become obsessed, too. Wouldn’t that be a hoot?

TALKING WITH MY OLD HEADMASTER

Not too long ago, my dad sent me an article from the Jerusalem Post. Someone I used to go to school with had had an article published in the Post, detailing how he, a reservist in Israel fighting in the current war in Gaza, left the battlefield to be at the birth of his son in Jerusalem. It was incredibly beautiful to read, and all I wanted to do was to give his dad, who used to be the headmaster at the school we attended, my sincere congratulations.

Earlier this week, I actually managed to talk with my headmaster. It was a blast from the past, to say the least. I don’t think I’ve seen this guy since I was eighteen. I used to stop by his office to tell him dumb jokes and even phone pranked him a couple of times (don’t worry, he thought it was hysterical as long as he wasn’t in a meeting). And yet we laughed and talked like not even a day had passed since I graduated. I found out how his family is doing (they’re all in Israel right now for the new grandchild) and he found out what I’m doing and how my family is.

I hope he and his family continue to do well and that his son stays safe. These are scary times, but talking with him reminded me that we can still find reasons to smile in the worst of times. At least, that’s how I see it.

GREETING 2024

I don’t know what your New Year’s plans are, but I know what mine are: order pizza, open a bottle of wine, and watch some movies. And when the stroke of midnight occurs, I’m not going to welcome 2024. I’m going to roar at it. Let it know that whatever it throws at me, I won’t let it bog me down or ruin me. Instead, I’ll fight on and give it something to reckon with. Maybe 2024 will be so intimidated, it’ll give me a great year out of fear.

Sounds silly, I know, but so are a lot of traditions and beliefs I could name. And with an election year just around the corner, we’ll need all the luck we could use.

So, if you like, roar with me at midnight on December 31st. We’ll show 2024 who’s boss.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. As I said, I wanted to get this all out before the end of the year. If you made it to the end of the post, thanks for reading. And if I don’t catch you before December 31st at 11:59 PM, I wish you all a Happy New Year and pleasant nightmares.

“Hannah and Other Stories:” Three Months Since Release

Posted: December 23, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
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As my publisher said to me earlier this week, “They grow up so fast.”

It’s been exactly three months since my latest book and latest collection, Hannah and Other Stories, was released (and the anniversary even falls on a Saturday!). If you’re unaware, the collection contains seven tales that feature ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things. It’s the product of a lot of hard work over two years between me and my publisher.

And in the three months since I’ve released it, I’ve been hard at work to ensure it reaches as many readers as possible. Just the other day, I was on a podcast talking about it (should be out next week, I’ll post a link to my social media when it comes out). It hasn’t been easy getting people to read it, partly due to the fact that the book’s still currently available only in ebook, and partly due to the plethora of other writers out there with millions of other books out there. And I’m my own marketing team, so it’s all on me to get people interested.

Still, there have been results. I’ve gotten some reviews and those who’ve read the book have been mostly positive. Just check out this review my friend Allen Huntsman, AKA Death Ground Reviews, left on his YouTube channel about Hannah.

Some things he didn’t care for, but mostly good. And I have to agree: if you want to see if my work is right for you, this book might be a good start. Especially if you enjoy carnivorous horses.

And representation. I try to represent plenty of different kinds of characters and from what I hear, the results have been well received. Then again, when you write about communities you’re familiar with because you’re part of them, it’s probably going to turn out better.

Anyway, it’s been hard work, and I’m hoping that all this work will lead to good things for Hannah. Hopefully a paperback and maybe even an audio book. Maybe someone will figure out whom the character of Hannah is based on. Yes, the character of Hannah is based on a real person. If you guess who it is, I will name a character after you and you will not be dissatisfied with the results.

And if you are at all interested in reading the collection, I’ll leave links below. Like I said, it’s currently only available in ebook, but hopefully a paperback and maybe even an audio book aren’t too far away, so supporting the ebook is a good way to help. And if you decide to read the ebook, I hope you’ll leave a review letting me, and other readers, know what you think.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ve got a big day ahead of me. Until next time, good night, pleasant nightmares, and if I don’t catch you before Monday, a Merry Christmas to all who celebrate.

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
Kobo
Wook

Hannah and Other Stories: All the Excerpt Videos

Posted: October 10, 2023 in Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
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If you weren’t aware, I have a YouTube channel (which you can find here). And over the past several weeks and months, I’ve been uploading videos of me reading from Hannah and Other Stories. And as of earlier this week, I’ve uploaded videos from each story in the collection. And since everyone here doesn’t subscribe to my YouTube channel (a crying shame, I know), I thought I would post all those videos here on the blog for you to see. In the order they were uploaded, too.

First, we have “What Errour Awoke,” which is probably my favorite story to read from:

I know the angle for this one was weird. First video trying to be atmospheric and all that. We had improvement with the next video, which was directly from “Hannah:”

And with the “Queen Alice” video, I got special stands for my candles. They rock!

After that, I went with “The Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah,” which is the closest to extreme horror Hannah gets.

And then we get to the carnivorous horses. You know, “Fuseli’s Horses?” That’s a popular story in the collection.

Then we have The Red Bursts.

And finally, we have “Poor, Unfortunate Souls,” which has a similar camera angle as the first video. Totally not intentional, but in a weird way, it was kind of like going full circle.

Well, I hope you enjoyed those. I know they’re not much, but I do these videos so that you may possibly show interest in the collection. And in that spirit, I’ll be posting links below. If you’re interested, please check out Hannah and Other Stories and let me know what you think. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and doing so helps other readers decide whether to check out the book.

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Store
Kobo
Wook

Also, if you could subscribe to my YouTube channel, I would appreciate it. The stuff I post isn’t like the top YouTubers, but often they’re stuff I love or want to share it. And occasionally I even get ghosts on camera! So check it out.

And if you could, I’m trying to up my rank in the Face of Horror contest, so if you could vote for me, I would appreciate it. Who knows? I may even win. Thanks!

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I swear, I’ll do some non-Hannah or Face of Horror posts in the near future. Hopefully, you all aren’t annoyed with all this promotional stuff. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

“Hannah and Other Stories:” Only One Month Till Release!!!

Posted: August 23, 2023 in Progress Report, Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
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Run for your lives! Light a magic candle! Pray to the Great Old Ones to be left alone! Hannah and Other Stories releases in just one month!

As you’re probably aware, Hannah and Other Stories is my new collection of short stories which is releasing on September 23rd, 2023. This collection contains seven original tales, featuring tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things. My publisher, BSC Publishing Group, and I have been working on this book for two years, so we’re very excited for people to read it. Hell, I’m kind of hoping it becomes one of the most talked about books for the Halloween season this year.

At the very least, I want to get the book in paperback. Right now, it’s only available in ebook, but if it does well, it’ll get a paperback. Maybe even an audio book.

With that in mind, we’re also doing everything we can to get people interested in the book and in maybe preordering a copy. On my end, I’ve been posting YouTube videos where I read sections from the book. A couple of the videos I’ve done are below.

Not bad, right? I tried to create an atmosphere to go with the stories, and I plan to do the stories I haven’t covered before it releases.

And BSC has been doing some amazing excerpts as well, only they’ve been posting these beautiful graphics that they do in-house! I absolutely love them. Here’s some of the most recent.

Pretty awesome, right? And you can see all the excerpts BSC has made on Hannah‘s personal page on this blog.

Anyway, I’m super excited for people to read it. These stories are all beloved to me in each their own way. What Errour Awoke is a story that not only allowed me to tap into my love of cosmic horror, but helped me to deal with world events that were causing me anxiety at the time of writing. Hannah and Queen Alice were both fun to write, with the former being inspired by a ghost story that’s always fascinated me, and the latter being an interesting mashup of Alice in Wonderland with Slender Man. The Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah was a story where I experimented with extreme horror and splatterpunk that I hadn’t done before, while Poor, Unfortunate Souls made for a heartfelt story of acceptance and hardship in the midst of the Paris catacombs. The Red Bursts gave me an unexpected story of finding faith in dark situations, and Fuseli’s Horses allowed me to have fun with a new monster while also playing with some teenage drama.

I can’t wait to see what people think when they read them.

And if any of this has made you want to read Hannah and Other Stories, I’ll include the links to preorder it below. That’s right, “links.” As of this past weekend, Hannah and Other Stories is available to preorder from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other retailers, including a few international ones. I’ll include links for all the shops below, and I’ll be sure to update future posts as BSC lets me more stores are carrying the book.

And if you like what you read this September, please be sure to leave a review online somewhere. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps me and other readers in the long run.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll be sure to post more updates as we get closer to the release date. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Site
Kobo
Wook

Galactic Terrors is Live Tonight!!!

Posted: August 10, 2023 in Writing
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So if you saw my last post, I’m going to be guest starring on Galactic Terrors, a live webshow/podcast run by Carol Gyzander and James Chambers of the HWA NY chapter. In addition, I’ll be joined by Teel James Glenn and Lara Frater. We’ll all be reading from work we have coming out either soon or just recently released.

Anyway, if you’re planning on joining us, you can watch it live at 8 PM EST either on Facebook or YouTube. I’ll be including links below. And if you do join us, be sure to stay for the whole thing. Not only will the other authors be reading (and who knows? You may really want to check out what they’re reading from after you’ve heard them read it), but we’ll all be doing a Q&A session after the readings are wrapped up. You’ll definitely want to stay for that. Especially if you have questions of your own.

Anyway, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll see you later this evening. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

Galactic Terrors – YouTube
Galactic Terrors – Facebook

The Review That Shook Me

Posted: July 26, 2023 in Novel, Review, Scary Stuff, Writing
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How many of you follow booktubers?

If you don’t know what those are, they’re YouTubers who mostly review books. There’s a whole bunch of them devoted to horror. I’ve been following one for a while now. Pax Panic. She was funny, she was enthusiastic, she loved horror and you could tell that, even though her channel was small, it would grow.

I say “was” because she passed earlier this year. Some time ago, she announced she had cancer and was undergoing treatment. I, and the rest of her following, rallied around her, offered her our support. I think there might have been a fundraiser for medical costs, but I’m not sure. Anyway, she went through treatment, and we hoped that was the end of it. But we soon learned that the treatment didn’t take, and she posted that she only had a few months to live.

Obviously, we were upset. We kept watching her and supporting her.

And then a few months ago, her husband posted that she’d passed. And just writing it, I’m feeling a little teary. I don’t get teary-eyed often, but I feel like crying just typing this. She was an amazing person, and it fucking sucks that she had to die so young.

Anyway, her husband said that she recorded a bunch of videos prior to her treatment and death, and that he would be uploading them in her memory. Which I and her other followers appreciated.

And today, a video was uploaded to her channel, a video with reviews of multiple books. One of the books was The Pure World Comes. My Gothic horror novel.

I’ve posted the video below. If you want to watch just her review, it’s from 3:12 to 5:52.

Followers of Fear, I was not expecting this. I sent her a review copy of The Pure World Comes a while ago, and she left a review on Goodreads, and I thought that was that. I never expected that she would include it in a video, let alone one after her death. And she delivered it full of such love for the story and for the concept and how I played with both the Gothic elements and the Victorian elements and the scientific elements.

I appreciate all my reviews (except for ones like the one from a troll who wanted to make fun of me over something in my biography). But this one had me shook emotionally. It was so sweet and unexpected and it really hit me emotionally. These videos always make me feel a little sad, because Pax is no longer with us, but this one…it just amplified both my sadness and my gratitude. Hands down, one of the best reviews I’ve ever received for one of my stories.

Pax, wherever you are, thank you. This meant so much to me. I miss you, and I hope that right now, you’re reading all the scary stories you can dream of.

If you’re at all interested, I highly recommend checking out Pax’s channel and her other videos. She left a lot of material and there’s probably going to be more in the weeks and months to come. It’ll be heartbreaking, but it’ll be worth watching.

And if you’re at all interested in checking out The Pure World Comes after watching Pax’s review, I’ll include links before. For those unfamiliar, it’s a Gothic horror story about a maid in Victorian England who goes to work for a mad scientist. As Pax said, it’s got Gothic with Frankenstein mixed into it.

And if you like what you read, please leave a review online. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps me and other readers as well.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m still kind of shook, but I’m taking it in stride. I’ll also be heading to bed soon. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

The Pure World Comes: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, Goodreads, Audible, Chirp, BingeBooks, LIbro.Fm, Storytel, Palace Marketplace, Hoopla, Vivlio, Smashwords, Thalia, Scribd, Spotify

“Hannah and Other Stories:” Two Months Till Release!!!

Posted: July 23, 2023 in Progress Report, Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
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Did you know that we’re only a hundred days away from Halloween? It’s true. And I can’t think of any way to celebrate the opening of spooky season than preordering what will surely be one of the best horror releases of 2023.

Okay, terrible opening aside, it is both 100 days away from Halloween and two months till the release of Hannah and Other Stories. For those of you who don’t know (I’m sure there are a few of you out there), Hannah and Other Stories is my new collection of short stories. It’s being released on September 23rd by BSC Publishing Group and features tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things.

And I am so excited for people to read these stories. The seven stories are all plenty fun and strange and unique, which is what I love. The title story, “Hannah,” is about a pair of ghost hunters who get more than they bargain for when they investigate a haunted school. The one that follows it, “Queen Alice,” combines Alice in Wonderland with Slenderman, which I’m sure would intrigue many of you. The story “What Errour Awoke” combines classic English literature, cosmic horror and some of the biggest events of the past few years into an epic tale of magic and horror. “Fuseli’s Horses” contains those carnivorous horses I mentioned, and come on! Don’t you want to know how that works?

Plus, half of the stories contain LGBT characters and “What Errour Awoke” deals with a lot of the conspiracy bullshit we’ve been dealing with these past few years, so I’m sure someone’s going to try to get it banned from a library or school at some point. I’m sure more people will want to read it just for that.

But back on track. I’m so excited for people to read these stories, and I’m doing all I can to get people interested in preordering copies. It hasn’t been easy (see my recent post on marketing), but I feel I’m making headway. For example, I’ve posted some videos on my YouTube channel, and they’ve gotten some attention. Below are some of the ones I think really help with the sell.

If you watched all those videos, or even just one, thank you. That helps immensely.

I’m also releasing tons of excerpts, some of which are below. And I’m appearing on podcasts soon. Plus, with the eARC almost ready, that will mean I can do a lot that will surely heighten Hannah‘s profile, not the least of which will be the eARC readers, some of whom are very well known in horror, may help spread the good word about it.

Hopefully by September 23rd, there will be plenty of buzz for Hannah.

In the meantime, I’ll leave a button down below. If you click it, you’ll be taken to the preorder page for Hannah. I hope you do and you decide to preorder a copy. Every copy helps immensely. And I know it’s only going to be in ebook at first, but if Hannah does well, a paperback version isn’t out of the question. Maybe even an audio book.

So if you’re at all interested, preorder a copy. And be sure to talk about Hannah on your social media. The more people talking about Hannah, the likelier it is to be ordered and read and reviewed. All that will help this book be as successful as possible.

Anyway, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I look forward to Hannah‘s release and what you think of it. Until next time, good night, pleasant nightmares, and–look out! There’s a carnivorous horse behind you!

Click to preorder Hannah and Other Stories

EXCERPTS FROM HANNAH AND OTHER STORIES

Updates on What I’m Doing

Posted: July 11, 2023 in Living and Life, Progress Report, Writing
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It’s that time again. I have a lot going on, so I thought I would list it now right now. Besides, it’s a good excuse to slip in some reminders about things.

So, without further ado, here’s what’s going on in my crazy life. Enjoy!

Hannah and Other Stories
As you are no doubt aware, my new collection Hannah and Other Stories is on its way. It contains tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things, and it’ll be out on September 23rd, while currently available for preorder.

Before we get there, however, there’s a bit more work to do. BSC Publishing Group will be sending me the notes for the last draft any day now, at which point I will quickly edit it. We will then send out the eARCs to the ARC readers, who will hopefully read it and provide some helpful blurbs and reviews that will make people want to read Hannah more.

In addition, I’m doing everything I can to make sure this book is successful. I’ve already been booked for a couple of podcasts and shows, some of which I will list below, and I’ll likely be scheduled for more once the eARC is ready. I’m also posting short videos on my YouTube channel about the inspiration behind some of the stories in Hannah, as well as a candlelit reading of an excerpt from one of the stories. I plan to post more videos and excerpts as time allows.

With any luck, these and more avenues I’m pursuing will allow Hannah and Other Stories to be successful once it’s released. It would be amazing if that were to happen.

Speaking of which, if you would like to preorder a copy of Hannah, you can do so here. And you can read an excerpt here. I hope you check them out, because it’s a fucking great collection. Not something horror fans will want to miss.

The Quiet Game: Five Tales to Chill Your Bones
As I’ve said before, The Quiet Game, my first collection and first published book, will pass its ten-year release anniversary next Monday, July 17th, 2023. Obviously, I plan to do a blog post and a YouTube video, as well as other social media posts, to mark the occasion. I’m even doing a giveaway: if you preorder a copy of Hannah and email me letting me know you did before Friday the 14th, you could win a signed copy of The Quiet Game.

My email is ramiungar@ramiungarthewriter.com. I’ll hopefully announce the winner on the 17th. I hope you all take a chance to enter.

Short Fiction
I’ve some good news on this front. I recently wrote a weird fiction short story that I think has potential. And very soon, I’ll be writing a grimdark story for an anthology. I was actually invited to submit a story to this anthology, so I’m very excited to start on the story. And once it’s done, I plan to have it edited and submitted as soon as possible. Same with the weird fiction story.

After that, I have a bunch of short stories, novelettes, and novellas to work on. I want to finish rewriting the ending of “They Sleep Within the Rock,” AKA the story where I put neo-Nazis through hell. I also have to edit “It Changes You,” AKA the Backrooms story before shopping it around, and rewrite/heavily edit “The Underground Kings” and “Forever Young,” two short stories I think have a bunch of potential.

All of them, I feel, have a chance of being published somewhere. And after they’re worked on…

Crawler
For those of you who are unaware, Crawler is a mummy novel I started writing last year. I got about seven or eight chapters in, but then stuff with Hannah started to heat up, and I had to put it on the back burner. And then I took it off the burner and onto a trivet. I’d like to get it back on the stove again by the end of the year. It may not be the biggest new thing in horror, but I would like to get it done.

Fingers crossed that happens.

Upcoming Events
Here are some of the things I’ve got going on in the near future that I think you may be interested in. Hell, maybe you’ll have an opportunity to stop by for some of them:

  • This coming weekend, Saturday, July 15 and Sunday, July 16, I’ll be joining HWA Ohio at the Columbus Book Festival in downtown Columbus. It’s an amazing festival to support local authors, organizations and groups. If any of you are in Columbus this weekend, please feel free to stop by. There’s entertainment for all ages, and I would love to see you.
  • The weekend afterwards, on July 22 and July 23, I’ll be at the Dayton Convention Center in Dayton, OH for the Gem City Comic Con. I’ll be selling books and reading Tarot cards there, so please stop by if you can. I believe if you go to their website, you should still be able to get tickets.
  • On August 10, I’ll be joining some members of the New York HWA chapter for their podcast, Galactic Terrors. It’ll be broadcast live on Facebook and YouTube before becoming available as a podcast. I’ll be reading from Hannah and maybe answering some questions from those listening in. Further details, such as links and who else will be on the show, will be provided as we get closer. I’ll be sure to post those details as soon as we get them, so hopefully you can attend.
  • On September 9 and 10, I’ll be with HWA Ohio at Mystics & Marvels at the Franklin County Fairgrounds in Hilliard, Ohio. At this event last year, HWA Ohio really cleaned up, and I almost sold out! I’m looking forward to returning this year, and I hope more people come by. Including you!

And there will be more events as time goes on, especially with Hannah releasing in September. I’ll be sure to let you know about them as soon as they’re confirmed!

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. If anything else comes up, or there’s something I really want to talk about, I’ll be sure to let you know on this or any of my other platforms (which now includes the Threads app as rami_ungar_writer). Until then, however, good night and pleasant nightmares!

Marketing is No Walk in the Park

Posted: July 6, 2023 in Reflections, Writing
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A little dramatic, but it sums up the feelings of many writers towards marketing very well.

Writers–especially those aiming to make writing their full-time job someday–have it rough. Not only do we have to figure out how to write stories, how to edit them, and how to get them published, but we have to figure out the marketing angle so people actually read our work once we publish it. And that part can be trickier than even putting two sentences together.

I might have mentioned, but in the wake of Hannah coming out in less than three months, and on the advice of my publishing company, I’ve changed my marketing strategy for new books coming out. Prior, it was something along the lines of “get the mentions out there, but don’t inundate. You don’t want to annoy people.” Now, it’s closer to “Inundate! Inundate! Inundate!”

Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration. I’m definitely increasing the number of ads and mentions I put out on my social media. I’m also doing a giveaway (more on that below), telling as many people in person I can, putting out more Hannah-themed YouTube videos (BTW, check out my channel), and reaching out to as many BookTube channels and podcasts as possible.

I’m also trying, per my publisher’s advice, to show how excited and enthusiastic I am for this book and for people to read it. You know, as opposed to sounding like, “Buy! Buy! Buy!”

And I am. Enthusiastic and excited, that is. I’m so glad that this book and these stories are coming out! I’m so looking forward to hearing what people are going to say what the ebook is out, and the possibility of a paperback and even an audio book if the ebook does well! I can’t wait to hear if the stories give people nightmares, and taking photos of people who have copies of the book (I’m hoping I can get some with their e-readers if it takes a while to get to paperback status)! And I’m looking forward to celebrating with friends and family when the book comes out.

But with posts nearly every day, especially on Facebook and Twitter, I can’t help but feel that I’m spamming the platforms. And it’s hard to tell on which platforms I’m having any sort of success. You can tell on most of them how many people see your posts, as well as how many people like, comment, and share them, but clicking on links or getting sales is almost impossible to tell.

Some days, it’s easy to feel like I’m shouting into the void of cyberspace and somehow isolating myself further, rather than bringing people closer to me. Let alone potential readers.

Still, I got to try. And while I’m trying, I’m trying to increase my enthusiasm and my love for these stories to the people seeing my posts. With any luck, something will pan out and more people will want to read the book. And that would make me happiest of all.

That being said, if anyone has any advice to help me get this book to readers, I’m all ears. Every little bit helps. Thanks in advance!

Speaking of Hannah, there’s still some time between now and the 14th. If you would like to win a signed copy of my first collection, The Quiet Game: Five Tales to Chill Your Bones, all you need to do is preorder a copy of Hannah and Other Stories. And if you then send me proof of your preorder at ramiungar@ramiungarthewriter.com, you’ll be entered to win said copy. The winner will be announced on the 17th.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

Hannah and Other Stories Preorder Link

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