Vincent Zandri's Blog - Posts Tagged "stonegate-ink"

How do our dreams, especially vivid ones, help shape our waking lives? Check out the new "vox" here and find out:

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Cheers
Vin
www.vincentzandri.com


The Remains

Sounds like the title to a cheesy love story doesn't it. You know, writer comes to Italy to be alone and work on a new novel, and meets up with some ravishing Italian woman who is years younger, unbelievably drop-dead gorgeous, and can't speak a lick of English other than something like, "You rock!." So even if she's angry with you, she screams, "You rock, VEEENcent! You very very rock!" Something like that.

Ok, I'm not going to comment on whether or not I did actually meet the ravishing Italian woman (in other words, I'm not going to deny or confirm such an event took place). But I can tell you this: I came to Italy for a month to work on my new novel, which now has a title I'm going to stick to (unless you guys tell me to change it): Death by Moonlight.
Get the rest of the love story at the Vox: http://vincentzandri.blogspot.com/201...

The Remains
The Remains

I barely made it out of Europe the weather was so horrid. Torrential rains in Florence, snowstorms in Germany. Rain and wind in Philly, and in Albany, ex-wives and now, an ex-girlfriend. Gas is 50 cents more than when I left a month ago.

The indy bookstore at which
I'm supposed to sign first editions of The Remains tomorrow has decided to also book an ex-local news anchor who self-published a book about doing, well, the local news. I just went to the store and its full of posters for the ex-TV anchor.

Warning: Be careful being too vocal about becoming an ebook bestseller. Stay out of the press even when they beg you for interviews. Don't promote yourself. Be a nobody. Don't get reviewed. Don't sell. And by all means, avoid attributing much of your your success to the emergence of the new publishing model.

Why exactly did I leave Italy again?

For the rest of the story head to The Vincent Zandri Vox:
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I might not be the most religious or spiritual guy on the planet, and chances are, on any given Sunday you won't find me occupying a church pew. Fact is you're more likely to find me tipping a cold one in some dark juke joint with friends after my writing day is over. But every now and then I meet someone who has an almost spiritual affect on me. A spiritual affect so profound that it can alter the course of my life. Noted noir author and critic, Heath Lowrance, is one of those special people. It also turns out, he's one of those buds I'd be tipping one with in the dark bar, if only we lived in within close proximity of one another. What did Hemingway once say? "I'm going to be read by the low brows and praised by the high brows!" Heath is one of the rare individuals who can go mano e mano with the highbrows and fit in comfortably with the lows. So am I, I should hope...

...Get the rest of the scoop at The Vincent Zandri Vox

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Our last names both start with Z making David Zeltserman and I blood brothers in some native cultures far away from here. But geography alone wouldn't keep me from calling this exceptional talent my bro. He's also my brother at StoneGate Ink where he's just signed a deal for two books plus a special edition combo with yours truly. THE INNOCENT/DYING MEMORIES, should hit the cyber shelves soon. He's also a hero of sorts. I've been following his stuff for a long time now, and like my other heros Crumley and Parker, his terse style has somehow made it into my own work. There's nothing Dave hasn't achieved or will achieve in the world of hard-boiled fiction, and his pedigree reflects that success. He's won a Shamus Award, and an Ellery Queen Choice Award. His 'The Caretaker of Lorne Field" was shortlisted by ALA for best Books of 2010, and even NPR called his "Small Crimes" one of the best 5 crime novels of 2008. There's more but this intro is verging on going longer than Dave's piece.

So with that, I give you Dave Zeltserman:

....For the rest of the scoop head to The Vincent Zandri Vox....

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A lot of my peeps have been chiming in asking me what it feels like to be selling a whole bunch of Kindle E-Books these days on Amazon. Like thousands, per day. No kidding. That ain't no typo. Not bad numbers for a former construction worker. Go figure! (Me, shaking my head in disbelief, but also looking up to the heavens with gratitude!)

But the truth is, I'm not entirely sure how to feel about it. Currently I'm the number 4 overall bestselling Kindle and have been as high as number 3. Two of the three authors above me are propped up by major motion pictures (Hope I get a move produced one day!). Since the middle of March I have moved around 31,000 units of The Innocent, and Godchild, it's sequel is about to enter into the Top 100 books also.

But back to how I feel about it.

I feel great, naturally. Who wouldn't feel great. It's cool to be popular. I thought there might be some talk about the pricing, but the sale price of a buck is only temporary and my other books, like The Remains, that are priced at the normal $2.99 are selling in the low hundreds. Even the $9.00 Moonlight Falls has gained something like 200% in the rankings and is holding steady, if not slowly gaining more ground, which tells me a lot of my fans are willing to pay an extra few dollars for my brand of "quality" thriller and mystery (Thank you!!!).

So, the question still persists: How do I feel?
... Grab the rest of the scoop at The Vincent Zandri Vox

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The Innocent

I'm selling more books than Stephen King right now.
Ok....E-Books.
Kindle E-Books to be even more specific.
And I have been for about a month now since THE INNOCENT broke the Amazon Kindle TOP 100 and settled into the TOP 10 where it's been holding under the No. 5 spot for more than two weeks.

You with me here????

Believe me when I tell you, I am super proud of this accomplishment. So is my indie publisher, StoneGate Ink. But here's where it gets a little sticky for me. When I look at The New York Times Bestseller list for "E-Books," it lists the first two bestsellers, The Lincoln Lawyer, followed by Water for Elephants, but then it skips me and lists The Land of Painted Caves as next in line...far as I can tell, "Painted Caves" doesn't appear anywhere on the Amazon Top Ten.

What am I missing here?

....Get the rest of the scoop at The Vincent Zandri Vox:
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The Innocent

The Remains

I rarely...OK never...re-post a review of one of my books on my own blog site, simply because they get enough play over the cyber-waves on their own. But this review by Heath Lowrance on GODCHILD is different for several reasons. First off, Heath is not only a magnificent noir author in his own right (THE BASTARD HAND, New Pulp Press), he is a highly regarded, if not one of the most highly regarded, noir critics of his generation, so I can’t tell you what a good review from him means to me. Second, Heath knows me better more than any other reviewer, and he is able to comment on the condition I might have been in at the time I was writing a particular book, as he was able to do in the case of GODCHILD. Finally, GODCHILD is the "true" sequel to THE INNOCENT which has not only spent the past month in the Amazon Top 100 Kindle Books, it has spent two weeks of that in the Top Ten Amazon Kindle Books; one week of that in the Top 5. That said, I want readers and fans alike to know that GODCHILD is not just another Jack Marconi story. It is a “true” sequel in that it not only takes off from where THE INNOCENT ends, it offers answers to questions posed in the first book, the most significant of which is, who murdered Keeper’s wife?
...Get the rest of the story from The Vincent Zandri Vox!
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Godchild

This might qualify as one of the more unusual guest blogs you're ever going to read at the Vox or anywhere else for that matter. But it was the brainchild of Boise-based author, Bri Clark, who herself is one of those rare creatures who not only possess both brains and beauty, but her talent and sharp wit can reduce a more humble soul like myself to a wet pile of rags and bones. Her subject today is the first impression she brought away from our initial meeting in Boise last Fall for the first annual Boise Book Expo. Like Bri will point out in her piece, I had just signed with StoneHouse Ink and StoneGate Ink, and my books were selling OK, but nothing like they would a few months later when THE INNOCENT would land on the Top Ten Amazon Kindle E-Book Bestseller List, with GODCHILD and THE REMAINS following close on its tail. But I recall seeing this tall, strawberry blond drink-of-water who inquisitively inquired about the recent trade paper release of THE REMAINS. I believe I asked her to check me... I mean, it out, while at the same time trying to catch a glimpse of her "ring finger" which was sadly occupied with a wedding band. Hey, you can't blame a bachelor writer guy from New York for trying. But we did hit it off in every bit of that east happily meets west way,and have maintained a close friendship and mini-support group ever since. We're both writers, parents, dreamers, wise-asses, and restless individuals and I guess in a way that makes us soul mates. The Blond Bombshell of Boise, and the Bulldog Bachelor from New York. With that, I give you Bri Clark! ...
...Get the rest of the scoop from The Vincent Zandri Vox...:
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The Innocent

About a year ago I decided that I would be content with publishing the occasional novel, maybe selling a few copies here and there, gathering some good reviews, and that would be that. I'd continue with my freelance journalism, travel, maybe down the road teach at a creative writing program. But the thought of once more making a living as a fiction writer no longer seemed like reality.

Then my agent at the time, Janet Benrey, told me that she was working on a deal for me with Aaron Patterson of StoneHouse Ink. StoneHouse was an E-Book-first publisher who also published in trade paper, but only after the E-Books made a splash. I remember being not only skeptical about the whole thing, I also remember being sort of, well, pissed off. E-Books??? You kidding? Are E-Books even real?

In the end however, I agreed to give it a shot. My career was going nowhere anyway, so what could it hurt?...
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Godchild