The decline of blogging.

Due to the gradual but continuous decline of blogging as a means of communicating with readers, and the rise of more immediate means such as Twitter and Facebook, I'm going to cease posting here as of today.

I know that I said this at about the same time last year, and then found myself re-starting the blog to closely monitor my growth as both an independent author as well as trade published. However, as the digital age grips publishing more closely so the more important it becomes to utilise only those means that are highly effective at reaching an audience. Although my blog receives at least 1,000 hits per month, it's never really certain how many of those hits are from interested readers and how many are "robots" and "spiders" sent out by data-gathering companies.

My interest is speaking directly to readers, and for that purpose my Facebook Fan Page and Twitter account are by far the most direct means that I know of. In addition, these days it's considered wise for an author not to spread themselves too thinly across the Internet, and instead focus on one or two effective sites on which to be found.

You can find me there at the following;

Facebook

Twitter

I may arrange a web-site specific blog in the future to share my thoughts, rather than here. Either way, my website is where you can find me:

Dean Crawford Books

Cheers  :)

"RETALIATOR"! Atlantia Series Book 2 is published!

It's here! "Retaliator" is available at Amazon in the UK here:

Amazon UK

And in the USA here:

Amazon USA


The book is at a promotional launch price for a week or two, so grab it while it's cheap!

RETALIATOR!!

I'm delighted to announce the soon-to-be-launched sequel to my Sci-Fi novel "Survivor"! I'm hard at work on the edits after having a family holiday ( hence why I haven't posted here for some time ) and am hoping to publish "Retaliator" in early June.

The first volume has hit the Number 1 spot in multiple categories on the UK Amazon Kindle store and has received no less than 10 five-star reviews. This is hugely exciting for me as an author because the second volume following the debut so closely will literally double my visibility on the store.

Here's the cover artwork! I'll post a further pre-launch update as soon as I'm ready!

Holo Sapiens Promotion - Free!

My Science-Fiction novel Holo Sapiens is to be free for five days, from April 25th to April 29th as part of an Amazon promotion.

Here's the story blurb;

“I’m glad my life came to an end. That was when it really began.”

In the near future, a horrific pandemic known as The Falling has decimated mankind, leaving just a few cities standing. In a desperate bid to prevent the extinction of our race, technology has given rise to an entirely new species: Holo Sapiens.

Those fortunate enough to be able to afford it can be resurrected after death as holographic projections immune to disease, hunger and time itself. But as the human survivors of The Falling make their last defiant attempt to find a cure before the last cities fall and political power is passed to the holosaps, the discovery of a “kill-switch” that could see Holo Sapiens consigned to history changes the world. As the prospect of war looms between the living and the “after-living”, it is down to one woman to find the kill-switch before mankind and Holo Sapiens attempt to erase each other from existence...

Which side of the afterlife will you be on?

Grab a copy while it costs you nothing!

Amazon US

Amazon UK

"SURVIVOR" is now available at a promotional price!

The debut in my new Science-Fiction series, Survivor, is now available across all Amazon stores! Very excited to see how this new venture develops as I release more in the series, the first time I've committed to a long-running serial via self-publishing.

You can get the book at the links below:

SURVIVOR ( UK )

SURVIVOR ( USA )

I hope all of my readers enjoy this new novel, and I'm really looking forward to writing more in the series.

"Atlantia" - the Survivor series

I often get asked by other authors, and aspiring authors, just how much time and effort I put into my novels: how far I will go to give them the best chance of success? The answer can't be made just in terms of how many hours I spend writing, as there is so much else to do when writing both traditionally contracted novels and self-published independent titles.

With my latest new series I went further than ever before - working full-time, plus evenings and weekends is the norm for me, but I've now ventured into the realms of 3-D design and developed a fully realised "battleship" model for use on the covers of my Survivor series.

I've never done this before, but it proved easier than I thought and with a few hours' practice I was able to begin building the model. The program, for those interested, is a freeware package called Google SketchUp. Textures were designed by me also. Here's a couple of shots of the model itself, and then the final artwork for the novel, which will be published on April 2nd, 2014.

Who ever said that writing was easy? :)

Amazon's Kindle Big Deal Promotion!

I'm delighted to report that Eden has been selected for a major Kindle promotion running on Amazon.com from March 14th! It will be discounted to $1.99, which couldn't have happened at a better time.

If you're a fan of my books in the USA, keep an eye open for the price reduction and grab a bargain while it lasts!  :)

EDEN