Random occurrences. They never cease to amaze me.
I finished my fourth novel in the summer of 2018. It had taken me almost two years to write it. More than double any of my previous novels. By then, I was desperate to get the damn thing in the pipeline.
BUT . . . something held me back. My Muse. She was telling me the story wasn’t right. I tried to put my finger on what it was, but couldn’t. So, I rewrote the story. It was my constant companion for the next two months.
Some of you are probably too young to recall the movie An Affair to Remember, starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend you check it out on Turner Classic Movies. It’s said to be the most romantic movie of all time. A real tear-jerker.
What, you ask, does a Cary Grant film have to do with my novel being awarded a Silver Medal by the prestigious Military Writers Society of America a week ago? Well for me it was, indeed, an affair to remember (and, since I choked up when the award was announced, I guess you could also say it was a real tear-jerker). Continue reading
Many people think that writing a book is all about having a good story or hook, but the reality is you are in the book writing “business.” Here are five things that you should do while you are writing the book that can help your “book business” once you finish. Continue reading
Where else can you take an 1880s Train Ride through the Black Hills of South Dakota …
For the past three months, my third novel, The Custer Conspiracy, has been circulating among the NY Literati looking for an agent. To date, I have received five requests to see the entire manuscript seeded between thirty-three outright rejections.
Even though I think The Custer Conspiracy is worthy of a mainstream publishing house, I’m not surprised at the level of disinterest. I understand the book business pretty well (I think), and can appreciate the pressures the agent class is under when trying to select books the ordinary reader (you and me) will be allowed to read. Continue reading
Dennis Koller, Author 