April Fool’s and Viral Pranks Rule - my novel’s coming soon

I’ll be straight up with you this April Fool’s Day, I love a good prank.

I’m not saying that I dupe my co-workers or friends. That ceases being cute at a certain age and strays into jerk territory. I love viral pranks, the endless reel of YouTube slapstick featuring such classics as shackling the sleeping drunk, the shove into the pool, and the paintball gun ambush.

While enjoying all this hilarity I wonder, what is possessing these kids (and immature adults) to universally declare themselves assholes by starting in these prank videos? Would any decent employer hire them after this?

The thing is, it doesn’t matter. Not to them. Posting their pranks online is their validation. All the clicks, likes, retweets and comments fill the void that seeks acceptance. When I was a kid, I did stupid things to get attention in class because I didn't know how to socialize like a normal person. This was before everyone had an outlet to reach billions of eyeballs.

That leads me to my new book, which - and this is no joke - is coming out soon. Famous After Death will be released by Silver Leaf Books by June 1.

What happens when a viral prank goes too far? In Famous After Death, three Miami teenagers hang a blowup doll off an overpass hoping to film cars slamming into it. They didn’t think a police office would fall for their trap with disastrous results. The opportunity to post the video online is too tantalizing for them to pass up.

Famous After Death explores what motives the teenagers to seek viral fame with increasingly violent pranks. The difference between these teens and most online pranksters is they are clever enough to stay off camera and post anonymously.

You can see the Famous After Death page at Silver Leaf Books now. The cover isn’t quite finalized, but the image you see there is the one I’m going with, thanks to El Cesana.

I’m shifting into publicity mode, so stay tuned for some articles, events and, just maybe, another offering on YouTube. I’ll try not to hurt anyone.

My 2014 plans: Book signing, new novel release, big sequel brewing

After reaching so many milestones last year both professionally and personally, I have more groundbreaking writing planned for 2014.

First up, I’m doing a book signing at the renowned Books & Books in Coral Gables on Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. I’ll read a chapter from Mute – I have one in mind but I’m open to suggestions – and then talk about how the story of my novel is a metaphor for my life. The discussion really moved the people who heard it at the Miami Book Fair so I suggest you hear it live.

If you can’t be there in person, Books & Books will stream it online. Go here for more information about the free event.

This fall Silver Leaf Books will release my second novel, Famous After Death, in print and e-book. My publisher already posted a landing page for my novel. How do you like the cover photo? It’s by the same photographer from Mute, El Cesana in Australia. The font for the title will probably change, but I feel the photo captures the shocking nature of the story.

I’m glad there weren't camera phones and YouTube when I was a teenager because a lot of the stupid things I did probably would have been shared, to maximum embarrassment. I’m lucky some of those stunts didn’t go so bad that people got hurt. But what if…

In Famous After Death, three Miami teenagers figure: Everything else has gone viral so why not murder?

This is fast-paced thriller set in South Florida (mostly Miami). The teenagers do terrible things for attention as the trials of their childhoods drove them to dehumanize their victims, and make them famous by posting their deaths online.

Most teenagers who glamorize their violence online are too stupid to hide their identities, but this trio is clever, and they have help from a mysterious hacker with an ax to grind against the police officer tracking them down.

Besides all this, what else could I possibly have cooking? Well, another novel of course. Mute is just itching for a sequel and I’m hard at work on the first draft. I can’t say how long it will take to finish and, especially, to edit. That’s the hard part.

I’ll say this, though. It’ll have more science fiction than the first novel, and more romance. Yet, other parts are pure horror. 

I call it…

Silenced

All set for my Miami Book Fair presentation

One week away from my presentation at the Miami Book Fair International and I’m itching to go.

This speech will be more emotional than anything I’ve ever done. Yes, I’ve spoken to large groups before. Usually the focus is journalism, social media or tips on writing. This time it’ll be personal.

It’s been difficult to talk openly about why I chose the themes in my novel Mute. There are things in my life that I couldn’t talk about for many years. I couldn’t bear even thinking about them. Yet, they fueled the emotions in my writing. 

No more secrets. I’m telling my story. 

Join me at the Miami Book Fair and I’ll tell you how this science fiction murder mystery is a metaphor for my life. Why was the mute girl who needs saving? What is the symbolism behind animals infected with purple tumors? 

Sunday, Nov. 24, Miami-Dade College Wolfson Campus(downtown), Building 8, Room 8303 (Third floor) with fellow authors JacintoPires and Preston Allen.

Time to get physical: Mute’s coming out in print

For over a year I’ve told anyone who would listen that ebooks are the future and so I’m fine with my novel Mute being available only on Kindle. Well, sometimes you’ve got to go back to your roots to go forward.

I’m pleased to announce that Silver Leaf Books is putting Mute into print. That’s right, you’ll actually be able to hold my novel in your hands and flip through the pages – if you enjoy that sort of thing better than a tablet or laptop. I still read books both ways and I’m glad that readers will have the opportunity to enjoy my story however they are most comfortable.

The targeted release date for the print edition is in May. It will be print on demand (POD), so when you order it online a copy will be printed and mailed to you. Book stores will be able to order it through Ingram. I’m hoping to place it in Florida book stores, and do as many signings as I can. Given that I didn’t want to mark all over people’s tablets, there’s really been nothing for me to sign so far. I’d love to hold a live reading. Given the solid turnout at my event at the University of Miami Alumni Center last week, I believe I can draw (as they say in pro wrestling).

Thanks to everyone who’s supported me in this journey, especially my family for enduring my obsession with writing. I look forward to introducing you to another of my darling stories later this year – Famous After Death. A draft of the first six chapters are on Authonomy now.

Mute jumps off the page as artistic audio

Book trailers, ah yes, they have been done before. It would have been fun to see some actors try to play out a scene in Mute, but that’s not what I’m really offering to readers. You can’t download a Mute movie, so I’m not going to tease people with one. I wanted to make a video that showcased what is available: A dramatic novel. So I enlisted the help of some friends.

And now, here is the “artistic audio” presentation of Chapter 24 from Mute.

(If that didn't play for you, just see it on YouTube.)

This started when Celia Coulombe, who formerly worked at the Business Journal with me, told me how much she loved audio books and wanted to be a reader. So I sent her one of my favorite chapters and asked her to give it a shot. Celia did a tremendous job.

I realized that it would be hard for me to post the audio online by itself, but I could make it into a video. First, I enlisted the help of El Cesana, who took the cover photo for Mute. She told me I could select some photos from her gallery. What a treasure trove indeed.

I’ll have more to say about El Ces later, as this Australian photographer has an amazing story.

The presentation needed a depth of emotion that could only be captured by amazing artwork, and Hilda Vazquez certainly provided that. The Fort Lauderdale artist (and Business Journal graphic artist) let me use some images from her Facebook fan page.

I also used FreeDigitalPhotos.net to grab some stock photos, such as the fire, the gun and the binoculars. 

There you have it. Four creative souls collaborated to give everyone a sample of what Mute’s all about. If you want to read the rest of the story, you know where to go.

My favorite books from emerging authors

I’ve been using Authonomy, a website by HarperCollins that writer’s utilize  to trade feedback, since 2009 and I’ve commented on over 500 books. Not all of them are brilliant and, often, I do my best to help aspiring writers improve their novels. Occasionally though, I find some real gems. 

Authonomy has given me a free look at some of the best emerging authors, and now I want to share their brilliance. 

So consider this my thanks to the 460-plus people who have commented my novel Mute. Many of you provided tips and corrections that made it possible for me to find a publisher. I’m thrilled that Silver Leaf Books is releasing my novel on Kindle. 

I hope to see many of these novels “go pro” as well. Here are some of my favorite novels on Authonomy (in alphabetical order – because I couldn’t rank them at gunpoint):

The Awakening: Dawn of Destruction – By Cara Goldthrope

Freshly winning a spot for review by HarperCollins, this fantasy novel has great drama and a strong heroine. The author really captured the emotions of her characters.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/42681/the-awakening-dawn-of-destruction/

Bait  - By Ian Walkley

An exciting crime thriller set down under. As you might guess from the title, undercover detective Kasey Bates must place herself in great danger to catch the bad guys.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/37681/bait/

Behind the Hood – By Marita A. Hansen

New Zealand has a gang problem? I thought it had a sheep problem? This novel does a tremendous job showing the violence, drugs, ethnic tension and bullying in South Auckland. It made it to the HarperCollins desk.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/26613/behind-the-hood/

Between – By Cyndi Tefft

Yes, I do enjoy a good fantasy romance from time to time, especially with a unique storyline. Poor Lindsey Water met an untimely death, but she’s also about to meet the man of her dreams as she’s escorted to heaven by an 18^th century Scottish highlander.  Strange as it seems, this premise works splendidly. 

http://www.authonomy.com/books/17874/between/

Blue Diamonds ­– By Tonia Marlowe

She told him no, but this former military man won’t take no for an answer. There’s a lot of excitement as the woman tries to fend off the badass psycho guy. It made the HarperCollins desk and, while they passed on it, I feel it deserves to be published.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/27447/blue-diamonds/

Conflicts of Interest – By Bob Steele

This novel has been up for a while and it made the HarperCollins desk, and the story has stuck with me. David’s business partner is murdered after a trip to Russia and his life quickly unravels. It has some slick business corruption angles, which I certainly can appreciate being a business reporter. This guy writes like a professional.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/13680/conflicts-of-interest/

The Ghost Writer – By B.J. Winters

This novel, which made the HarperCollins desk, is about a writer who finds a mysterious manuscript at his bedside and realizes that it could help him prevent a murder. The writing here is fantastic.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/10721/the-ghost-writer/

The Good and Bad – By Marshall Dotson

Demons, rock stars, vampires, sword play. In other words, great campy fun!

http://www.authonomy.com/books/43098/the-good-and-bad/

The Immortality Game – By Ted Cross

This is a strong science fiction thriller that reminded me of the Battlestar Galactica spinoff Caprica because it involves downloading a person onto a computer chip. It has fast-paced action and puts the characters in terrible danger. My heart was racing.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/33347/the-immortality-game/

The Magic Door Knob  - T.D. Holland

This is one of my favorite children’s/young adult novels on here. It’s about a magic doorknob (duh) that takes Ricky to other worlds. It has such a great pace that it’s hard to put it down at the end of a chapter.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/40220/the-magic-door-knob/  

Misery’s Fire – By Kim Jewell

A well-written story about a high school student waking up in hell, literally. It has cracking dialog and it’s good fun.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/20484/misery-s-fire/

The Raven and the Wolf – By Athena Lyso

Another great fantasy, this time with a loyal officer being unjustly banished from the kingdom after a tense meeting with the king. Engle befriends an orphan in the wilderness and sets out for redemption. The great plot carries this one along.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/19947/the-raven-and-the-wolf/

The Roswell Protocols – By Allan Burd

If Roswell is in the title, you can guess what this is about. It’s one of the better alien invasion stories I’ve read on here. It looks at a spaceship crash from many points of view, from the general public to the military.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/31510/the-roswell-protocols/

The Rufino Bloodfang Saga: Leap of Faith – By Jason Baird

This might be the most overlooked novel on my list (I’m one of two comments at the moment), but don’t miss out on it! It’s one of the most original vampire novels I’ve ever read. Rufino is a midget vampire with a Mohawk. He’s not all that successful as a lady’s man, or a fighter really, and it’s funny to watch a vampire who’s not as tough as he thinks. Then he falls in love with a tall, beautiful druid. Of course she hates the little bugger, but she needs him for a quest. Can the little vampire win the lovely druid’s heart? Oh, and the mini vampire bites a monkey – ha ha ha!

http://www.authonomy.com/books/44417/the-rufino-bloodfang-saga-leap-of-faith/

Sage Courage – By Heather McLoud

Leila flees a tragic past for Wyoming and winds up landing a job watching somebody’s kids in a house way in the middle of nowhere. But these aren’t normal kids…The mystery really gripped me and the tension level was super high.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/40845/sage-courage/

Secrets We Keep  - By Gail Cleare

Simply put: This one deserves to be published. It’s a family drama thriller about two sisters who discover that their mother, now ill, has been leading a secret life.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/37947/secrets-we-keep/

To Set a Mouse Running – By Robert Lawrence

This type of plot is fairly familiar - a man’s family is killed in an IRA bombing and he is going to great lengths to bring the killers to justice. It’s the way this story is written that makes it so powerful. In order for this to work, the author had to make the deaths have real emotional impact. He certainly accomplished that.

http://www.authonomy.com/books/43385/to-set-a-mouse-running/

So that’s my list. I’ll consider writing another post if I come across some more truly special books.

Until then, just keep in mind that the release of my novel Mute is right around the corner.

Lifting the curtain on my next novel - Famous After Death

I did it! I completed the first draft of my next novel, Famous After Death.

I still have Mute coming out in 2012 with Silver Leaf Books. I will take that baby through the editing process with my publisher and then we’ll announce the launch date. I haven’t been sitting on my hands all this time. I’ve been writing another intense story.

Famous After Death is a white knuckle thriller that takes murder viral. The storyline has been gathering inside my head for years as I imagined how the trouble I saw kids get into growing up would play out with this recent development of instant online videos. 

The theme can best be summed up by a 2010 column in the Miami Herald by Leonard Pitts. In describing bullying and prank videos posted on YouTube, he said: “There is always some video going around whose calculated effect is nothing more or less than humiliation on a global scale. Technology, it seems, has unleashed an ugliness in us.”  

In Famous After Death, three Miami-Dade teenagers take out their angst over their troubled family lives by setting up a roadside prank for an online video only to see a police officer drive to his death because of their trick. Chris Crawford, a high school dropout whose father ran off to start a modeling agency, and Kelso Stokes, an underachieving skater and son of a famous motocross rider, pressure Jorge Casanegra to post the video online anonymously. Given that his only friends are the horror movie action figures in his room, Jorge chooses to seek notoriety through murder videos to impress his new pals and attract a gothic girl he has a crush on. With an overwhelming number of hits on their video, the teens press on with more viral murders. But they aren’t doing it alone. Jorge solicits help from “Sir Black Market,” who runs a bootleg software website. Soon enough, Jorge’s mentor insists that they strike back at the police officers that are investigating them.

Clyde Deauville pursues online sexual predators with the vigor of his Born Again Christian faith as a “cyber cop” for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He helps Miami-Dade detective Olga “OC” Cohen track the viral killers after her ex-fiancé becomes their first victim. With each new murder, OC becomes more vengeful and self-destructive while Clyde grows increasingly frustrated that the online audience is reveling in the bloodshed. When the teens realize that Clyde and OC are closing in, things turn personal.

In the end, someone will be famous for the wrong reasons. 

This novel won’t see the light of day until it’s thoroughly edited. I’m going to let it sit for a while – let the fruit ripen on the vine – and then dig in with an open mind. At some point, I might post part of it on Authonomy and request feedback from the generous readers/authors on there. 

I hope you don’t mind the wait. Trust me; this one will be well worth it.