Category: 1

Here it is - the first review of DoW from the review copies I sent out. And it's a pretty durn goodun' if I do say so myself. Feel free to click on the link below to read it!

http://readersfavorite.com/cat-71.htm?review=3983

The Rift Book 3 finally has a name...sort of

03/16/2011

4 Comments

That's right, fair readers! After much deliberation with my writerly cohorts in the IAM and Kindleboarders, I've finally come up with a couple solid titles for the 3rd book. I feel they definitely capture the feel of the story, the dark and sinister places it goes. To say I'm happy with them - and relieved I've at least got an idea now - would be an understatement.

So what are these titles, you ask? Well here they are.

1 - SPRING IS FOR SAVAGES

2 - THE SAVAGE SPRING

So I'm just curious what all you who live in my hard drive think of these. Which would you choose? Do you think I need to work on it some more? Right now I'm leaning towards #2, but that can change. Please, feel free to let me know.

Also, I took a break from my updates for The Gauntlet this past weekend. I'll be sure to have a new update posted this coming Sunday, however.

Peace!

RJD

4 Comments

The unfortunate part of going it alone...

02/05/2011

There are a great many advantages to self-publishing, as long as you're willing to put in a ton of work and are able to develop a vast amount of patience. However, once you obtain even the slightest morsel of success, you end up developing a certain mindset that can quite literally cause mind-numbing obsession. And this mindset is...

(drumroll)

Doubt.

The sales of our books have skyrocketed (comparatively) of late. For the last week or so, we've been selling right around 40 a day. But on this particular Saturday, things have ground to a halt. Our sales rankings are climbing higher and higher, and along with that goes my level of panic. I have a great fear that one day everyone will look at my work and say, "Oh, that's right, he's no good," and everything I thought I've built will crumble. It's a dangerous thought process to have. I've been checking the KDP feed obsessively and pulling my hair out trying to figure out HOW OH HOW I will get everything on track. My stress levels are through the roof.

The thing is, deep down I understand that this is nothing but a hiccup, that if I simply take a deep breath and forget about the immediacy of success, everything will even out. We've put out a damn good product, after all, and I've always lived by the theory that the cream rises. And we're that cream. But this doesn't stop the fear, doesn't stop the self-doubt from infiltrating my every waking thought.

I've wondered recently if this is something that will ever leave me. I've wondered how I'd feel if (hell no-when!) I ever reach Amanda Hocking or JA Konrath levels of success. Will the doubt leave then? Will I finally be able to settle down and not constantly wonder if the next book will finally be the one that sends me down the eternal shitter where all failed authors land? Will I stop looking at my life with a soul-crushing fear of failure?

Somehow I doubt it. And there's that word again.

It keeps cropping back up.

Damn.

RJD

Experiment: The Video Review

01/05/2011

For anyone who hasn't known, I, Robert Duperre, have been maintaining a review blog (Journal of Always Reviews) since this past July. I've read a great many fantastic books over the last six or so months, and it's been a pleasure to dive in and see what kind of obscure meanings I can gleam from the text. In truth, this does as much to improve my own writing as it does to help the authors who've created some fantastic, imaginative worlds.

Recently, after perusing Youtube and seeing the varying video game and movie reviews done through the venue of video, I became obsessed with creating a video review of my own, for a book, no less. I decided to choose (author of The Trylle Trilogy and My Blood Approves) Amanda Hocking's Hollowland - firstly because it's in a genre I love (horror), and secondly, it's just a fantastic book.

Here's the video:

So enjoy, folks, and then go pick up the book. Along the way, you might want to also pick up one of ours.

:-)

Peace!

RJD

Updates...

01/01/2011

So 2011 is here at last. Time for some updates!

It turns out the full release of Dead of Winter will only be delayed for a month. Jesse is hard at work on the illustrations, and we'll be getting together the 15th of January to put it all together.

Also, for some even better news, the prices of both books will be dropping. I've decided that I didn't use my space appropriately last time. We will be changing the format of the first book (along with DoW) in order to drop the page count, which in turn will drop the price. Look for both to be in the $10 to $13 range. Condensing makes them that much more affordable...not to mention appearing more professional. Which they are, by the way.

As a final note, after the release of the final DoW version, we'll be hard at work constructing the print for The Gate: 13 Dark and Odd Tales. This one should come in the $5 to $6 range - a small and affordable book of shorts.

So we'll be seeing you soon, folks. Remember to post reviews on Amazon or Goodreads whenever you finish a book. We need your support. There wouldn't be an us without you.

Peace,

RJD

"Dead of Winter" is here! Sort of...

12/27/2010

Well, for anyone who's been waiting for book two of The Rift to be released, your wait is over! In a way, anyhow.

As of right now, Dead of Winter is live on Amazon for the Kindle. I know, I know, the print book is supposed to be available, too, but we've run into a couple snags along the way. It won't be too long, however. We're looking right now at the second week of January for the release.

That being said, anyone who wants to pick up Dead of Winter can simply click here to find the Amazon product page. As I've said many times, this is my favorite book in the series, and I'm quite happy with the way it turned out.

I hope you will be, as well.

I'll now leave you with an image of the cover - which will change slightly, because the font is a little, well, weak.

It's a fantastic piece of art, folks. And the interior illustrations are going to be just as good.

Peace.

- RJD

Buy Dead of Winter for the Kindle:

Updates

11/05/2010

Here is where we stand right now when it pertains to the two separate projects we have going on right now:

#1 - Dead Of Winter

Yes, the final round of edits for the second book of The Rift are now finished! The manuscript has been sent off to our first editor to look over. When it comes back, it will be sent to yet another editor. By the time it comes back to us complete, it should be a pretty spit-and-polished final product - unlike the many versions of The Fall in which the mistakes we (I) made cost me a ton of money and will not be repeated.

Jesse is also hard at work putting together the cover and interior illustrations. When he's finished, we'll be putting it all together, producing the paperback and hardcover, and then it's up to me to format and upload a version for the Kindle, Nook, and iPad. Yes, it's still a lot of work to do, and many more sleepless nights. But in the end, it's all worth it. This is going to be a fantastic book, better than the first, and will hopefully please those looking forward to following the exploits of Josh, Kyra, Colin, and a host of new and interesting characters. And yes, our release date is still tentatively scheduled for around December 15th.

#2 - The Gate: 13 Dark and Odd Tales

This is a special - and now collaborative - project. I have collected nine of my best short stories, and gathered contributions from a few great writers I know - David Dalglish, Mercedes Yardley, David McAfee, and Daniel Pyle. These shorts will all be gathered in this 50,000 word tome. It will be released at first for the Kindle only, again with Jesse's artwork adorning the cover. Then, after we put finishing touches on Dead of Winter, we will go about creating a digest-sized paperback, complete with sketches from the fabulous artist himself based on the stories included.

There are a wide range of tales in here, everything from straight horror to science fiction to slipstream. It's quite exciting for me, and all the stories (even mine) are good. Look out for this to be released by the middle or end of this month. Here is the table of contents in the order I have them right now:

1 - The Gate
2 - Sullivan Street
3 - Container of Sorrows (Mercedes M. Yardley)
4 - The Sins of the Father
5 - Blight (Daniel Pyle)
6 - Feeding the Passion
7 - Dispatch #337
8 - Exhibit A (David McAfee)
9 - The Bandits of Yaddo
10 - I Spy
11 - Kitty in the Cellar (David Dalglish)
12 - Perfect Blue Buildings
13 - Empty Spaces

That's all I have for now, folks! Check back later for more.

Been on a roll recently...

10/11/2010

2 Comments

I apologize to anyone who frequents this blog for my overall lack of updates. It's been a busy last couple months, and honestly, whenever I sit down to write up a post, my mind goes blank. I think I'm using up all my abilities finishing up book two and trying like hell to figure out this marketing game.

As far as the second installment of The Rift goes, it's coming along quite nicely. I have two more chapters to go in the third round of rewrites. Then, it's off to my editors while Jesse cranks out his contributions. Then it's the (dreaded) act of putting everything together, going over proofs, and finally releasing it live, which as I said should be some time in December. I'm looking forward to this greatly, as Dead of Winter is my favorite installment of the series. It'll be here soon, folks.

In other news, I plan on releasing a compilation of short stories this coming November tentatively titled He Is The Gate and 8 Other Odd Tales. Hopefully, this will be a nice addition to our catalog (seeing as Jesse's artwork will once again adorn the cover, and that image is the subject of the title piece). I just have to decide whether I want to go with simply a Kindle release or go full-out with a digest version, as well.

Also, sales have picked up immensely this month - digitally, that is. We've been averaging two sales a day for the month. Print book? Not so much, but that's okay. We never planned on making our money through paperbacks, anyway, though it'd be nice. The plan from here on out is, once the other books get out there, to start perhaps a blog tour with Pump Your Books or maybe a local signing tour. I'm not sure about that. It's still a ways away right now, so there's time.

One last thing: Very soon, after we finish up Dead of Winter, I'm thinking of running a contest, either here on the site or at kindleboards.com. The subject of this contest? The title of book three. Right now, it's working title is The Rites of Spring. I'm not too hot on that. This has been, honestly, the most difficult book to name. It's also the strangest one in the series. It's all...well, you know what? I'll leave that for when I run the contest.

Well, that's all for today. And just a reminder, drop by Amanda Hocking's Zombiepalooza before October 28th. Post a comment beneath the article for a chance to win a paperback of The Fall, signed by both Jesse and myself.

Zombiepalooza: Robert Duperre article - Facing the Beast

Or, if you wish to buy a book after seeing this, check out my author page on Amazon.

Peace, folks.

RJD

2 Comments

Plodding Along

06/23/2010

Well, summer's officially here, and we at TRO have been busy, as usual, with our usual creative riffraff - though, as expected given the relaxing atmosphere of hot weather and beach time, it's a bit slower than before.

As for book news, The Fall is still, as we are, plodding along. Sales have slowed to a virtual crawl, and our advertising campaign, though boosting our site views, garnered a single sale. Oh well. You live and you learn. Also, reviews have been slow to come in. In other words, none have. Just a reminder to anyone who's bought the book - we NEED reviews, even if it's a simple two-line statement with a rating attached. That way, folks who click on the link get an idea as to what people think. It's important. So please, if you can find the time...

In other happenings, Dead of Winter is slowly rounding into form. We've come up with a tentative release date, though I will not announce that date as of this time to alleviate pressure on us, and the final round of edits is creeping toward the finish line. I'm truly excited about this book. The pacing is so much better than the first, and the story, while solemn, is picking up steam. I can't wait to get it out there, if for no other reason than to show potential readers that when we say we're creating a series, we're not blowing smoke up your asses.

That's it for now. If you stumble upon this site, please feel free to check out the book and, hell, buy it if the mood so strikes you.

Peace.

- RJD