Okay. So last time I promised some reflection on the trials and tribbles I went through while writing my first book. Now I keep my flaring promises, so here you go:

THE DIRTY LEARNING EXPERIENCE

OR

FIVE THINGS RON DISCOVERED WHILE WRITING A BOOK THAT NO ONE ASKED FOR

I forgot what written text looks like!

No, seriously. I’ve been primarily an audiobook guy since 2013 or so when a coworker by the name of Mott Matter turned me on to the format after I had more or less taken a pause from traditional reading to focus on updating our first house, making our first child, and all that fun grown up stuff. So you can imagine my surprise when I sat down to put those first couple of sentences down on the proverbial paper and nothing looked right. It was like reading a foreign language written by myself. I've always been a decent writer, but I hadn't tackled fiction since high school. I had to step back and do a little old fashioned research to get myself going. Weird right?

Your first draft sucks!

Your second draft sucks. Your third draft? It sucks, too. The whole damn thing sucks. So you rewrite… and you revise… and you second guess yourself. Then eventually, you feel like you have a finished product. So you upload that beast onto Amazon and feel like you really accomplished something. Then… you skim through it out of curiosity and find all shorts of def that makes you unhappy. But you learn, you streamline your process, and you deal with a never-ending urge to go back and rewrite the first 100 pages of your first book—to work on a better hook. Now, I just gotta find the time. Speaking of...

Time!

So much flaring time goes into writing a book. I work full time and I have a family that I love dearly. Work-family balance is one of the most important things in the world to me. But then I go and add this additional obligation on my plate. Where do I fit it in? I cancelled “me time.” Any spare moment I had was laser focused on my project. Break at work? Write. Lunch time? Write. On the toilet? Write. Kids are finally in bed and the wife is reading one of her weird alien erotica stories? Write. I invested a lot of really late nights into my project, and it took its toll. By the end, I was dog tired, boss. Dog tired. But once I could see that light at the end of the tunnel? Like skating on butter with pancake shoes.

It can be done!

At the beginning, it seems like you have this unclimbable mountain of words in front of you. You’ve set your goal for that 80,000 word summit. You've plotted your course through the crags ahead. Then you reach out for that first hold—that first step towards the top—and you start. You spend an hour—two hours climbing, then you check your progress and see you’re only fifteen feet off the damn ground. You feel like it's gonna take forever to get there, but you buckle down and keep going. That distance behind you? It starts to grow. And before you know it, you've learned how to fly and you’re hovering 50,000 words above the peak. 

The rewards!

Sol, does it feel good to accomplish something, especially a monumental task like writing a book. There’s a reason a lot of authors start doing their thing in middle age. Their kids are grown up. They’re more comfortable and established in their career. They have more time. I did it at 33 with two young kids at home, and it felt great to set that example for them. There are other rewards, too. The positive reviews. The negative, yet helpful feedback. Someone saying that womb broom was the funniest name for the male appendage they had ever heard. Being a part of the “club.” Chatting with some of your favorite authors as a peer—some of the very people that inspired you to do the thing in the first place. Just don’t make it weird by accidentally trying to place an international video call in the middle of night where they live, and follow it up with a second one because you’re a raybrain and have no idea how your flaring phone works. Don’t do that. I did that. 

So there. I did it. I hope you’re happy. I’m not. Um, not because of having to write that or anything. It's the weather. I know I live in Michigan, but it’s nearly flaring May and it’s snowing outside! This def sucks!

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THE DIRTY PROMO SECTION

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READ OF THE FORTNIGHT I

Combat Origin: A Dystopian Gamelit Adventure 

by Misty Zaugg

In her world, single combat decides everything.

It's her sixteenth birthday and Kiriai has a big decision to make. Will she fight for her dream to battle in the arena? Or buckle under her grandfather’s pressure to become a healer?

Her best friend Eigo is an outcast from his scrounger family. On a recent expedition into the wastelands, he found a peculiar birthday gift for Kiriai—an AI trainer from a centuries-old, martial arts game. Could it give her the advantage she needs? Will Kiriai win the fight that decides her future?

An impossible deadline, a persuasive mentor, and her own family all stand in Kiriai’s way. If she loses, she’ll be consigned to a mundane life, but more importantly, banned from the arena forever. Kiriai can't let that happen.

Combat Origin is the first book in the World of Combat, young adult, dystopia series. If you like strong heroines, gamelit and a good brawl, buy a copy today.

GET YOUR 99c SERIES STARTER HERE

* * *

READ OF THE FORTNIGHT II

Phantom Land 

by Andy Briggs

NIGHTMARES CAN'T BE CAGED...

Ghosts, wraiths, phantoms… science has just proved they are real animals from another dimension. So what better way to exploit the discovery…?

Las Vegas’ new glittering jewel is a zoo with a difference. Come face-to-face with specters; watch phantoms soar through their enclosures; or dare to walk through the banshee tunnels. The world of the supernatural has been contained so you can confront your darkest fears…

It’s a popular attraction – until a radical group of animal extremists try to liberate the beasts during the unveiling of the new star exhibit: An Angel of Death… and hell is unleashed.

Lowly zookeeper, Wes Talasky becomes the last line of defense. Forced to face his darkest fears so he can save the children of the woman he loves…

Blending science and horror into a rip-roaring adventure!

CHECK IT OUT HERE

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If it’s not too much trouble, please take a moment to leave a review or rating of my work at one of the links below. Hearing a few nice words, seeing a new rating pop up, or finding out that someone actually got a laugh out of one of my stupid jokes makes me glow like I’ve been lit with the fires of Sol. Plus, in a world obsessed with stars and algorithms, every little bit of exposure helps.

-Ron-

The Mercurian Endeavor

Slab Steele and the Venusian Exchange

Slab Steele and the Outer Rim Job

***

"Clever girl…"

https://www.ronstarkebooks.com

https://www.facebook.com/RonStarkeBooks

ronstarkebooks@gmail.com

Haven’t got your copy of Slab Steele and the Venusian Exchange yet? What are you waiting for? Available now on Amazon and Audible.

Itching for more Slab Steele? You can buy the sequel, Slab Steele and the Outer Rim Job, today.

Okay, so you’re looking for a freebie. Go ahead and grab The Mercurian Endeavor then.