Please enjoy this “Shelfie” as it represents twenty years of writing (although not twenty years of being published). It does look like I am going to need a bigger set of bookshelves. 🙂
Categories: shelf life
Posts Tagged: books
Longtime followers know that I select a charity to support each year and I usually drag you all into the fundraising. This year is personal. For too many of my friends are currently fighting breast cancer or have fought breast cancer in recent years. For that reason, my 2018 charity selection is The Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Here’s where you come in. If you buy a book from my website bookstore, during the month of May, I’ll donate the value of your order to charity–dollar for dollar. Not only will you be giving to charity but you’ll be getting a book out of it. So don’t miss your chance to run me up.
Not everything is listed on the bookstore so if you’re looking for translated titles, out of print titles, hardbacks of the Aidy Westlake series and audiobooks, let me know. I can do a few MYSTERY BOXES. If you’re ordering out of the USA, please contact me first so I can quote shipping costs. Thanks.
I hope you’ll pick up a book or two for you, a friend or even an enemy. And even if you don’t buy a book, please share this post. Thanks.
Categories: shelf life
Hey, I have a job for you. SAVING GRACE is out and I need your help with a simple five-step assignment.
1. The first rule is Buy the Book. I know it’s a given, but if you want to keep your favorite writers in business, you have to buy a book.
2. The second rule is to borrow the book from the public library (and I bet you thought I was going with the ‘buy the book thing’ again). Library book sales are good for the writer. They provide a backbone of sales that can make or break a writer’s next contract. Even if you’ve bought the book, still go and borrow it from the library and if the library doesn’t have it, request it. This helps not only the writer, but also the libraries. Increased demand ensures libraries stay open.
3. The third rule of reader’s club is to write a review. It doesn’t have to be an in-depth critical analysis or high school book report. Just a few sentences giving a title the thumb’s up is good, then put it up on Amazon, Barnesandnoble.com, etc. Share your thoughts on sites like Goodreads.com and Shelfari. Goodreads lets you recommend your favorite books to your fellow readers. Public opinion really carries weight and the information on these sites get used by other sites.
4. The fourth rule is to tell a friend. Word of mouth is gold. If you like the book, tell someone about it. It’s not a national secret.
5. The fifth and final rule is to buy another book. Don’t be one those people who say “yeah, I read a book once.” It won’t hurt to do it again and writers will thank you for it.
In all seriousness, I don’t I think readers don’t know the power they wield and how it can help their favorite writers. Here are five simple things readers can do to help me and any writer you love. We all need our stories and without storytellers, we can’t have our stories. And don’t forget, if you’re going to start with someone, start with me. 🙂
Categories: new book shelf life
It’s that time of year, so if you’re looking to give a book for Christmas and you’re going to make it one of mine, bless your heart. If you want to get a book autographed or personalized to that special someone (even if that special someone is you) go to my bookshop. Remember that my next book, SAVING GRACE is due out in the New Year but I should have copies ahead of time so you can be first on the block to read it.
Alternatively, I can mail out a bookplate or sign ebooks via Authorgraph.com. Just email me with your requests and I’ll do my best to make it happen. All the details are on the bookshop.
Categories: Uncategorized
Longtime followers know that I donate to/fundraise for various charities each year and I usually drag you all in too. I want to do something for the relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and Irma. The worst of the storms may have passed but the devastation hasn’t.
Here’s where you come in. If you buy a book from my website bookstore, I’ll donate the value of your order to charity–dollar for dollar. Not only will you be giving to charity but you’ll be getting a book out of it. So don’t miss your chance to run me up.
Not everything is listed on the bookstore so if you’re looking for translated titles, out of print titles, hardbacks of the Aidy Westlake series and audiobook editions, let me know. I can do a few MYSTERY BOXES. If you’re ordering out of the USA, please contact me first so I can quote shipping costs. Thanks.
I hope you’ll pick up a book or two for you, a friend or even an enemy. And even if you don’t get a book, please share this post. Thanks.
Categories: shelf life
Longtime followers know that I donate to/fundraise for various charities each year and I usually drag you all in too. If you buy a book from my website bookstore, I’ll donate the value of your order to charity–dollar for dollar. So don’t miss your chance to run me up. I can do a few MYSTERY BOXES. I’m thinking of donating to MEALS ON WHEELS this year.
Not everything is listed on the bookstore so if you’re looking for translated titles, out of print titles, hardbacks of the Aidy Westlake series and audiobook editions, let me know. If you’re ordering out of the USA, please contact me first so I can quote shipping costs. Thanks.
I hope you’ll pick up a book or two for you, a friend or even an enemy. And even if you don’t get a book, please share this post. Thanks.
Categories: shelf life
I crossed a very special milestone last week. I’ve sold 1,000,000 books since 2011!! Nothing quiet feels like selling your first million copies.
Actually I crossed this milestone about a year ago, but that number included a sales promotion. I wanted this milestone to be indisputable. To ensure that I’ve crossed the million mark, I haven’t included the promotional sales and sales where I don’t have the royalty statements or the royalty statements were a bit fuzzy. Excluding sales from all these books is quite a tidy figure so I can categorically say without a shadow of a doubt I have sold one million books.
I am proud and a humbled by this achievement. It seems crazy to be able to say this. So if you are partly responsible for this having bought a book of mine, I am forever in your debt. Thank you.
Categories: shelf life
Being an author used to mean living in the dark times. It could take almost a year before I saw a sales statement for a particular book. But thanks to improved technology, I know how many books I’m selling in real time (not quite but pretty close) and more importantly, I know WHO is buying my books (drone technology…don’t be afraid). And that’s where I got a little shock. Canadians don’t really buy my books. I sell more books in Germany than I have in Canada and I don’t get that. We have so much in common! We aren’t afraid to use the letter U in words like colour, valour, etc. We both celebrate Boxing Day. I know that Saskatchewan is a province and not a sound Canadians make when they sneeze. Frankly, we are pretty much family. So what’s going on, Canada?
Rather than turn my back on my Canadian family, I want to do something about the situation. I know there are some Canadians out there who read my ramblings on a regular basis, so I turn to you, my friends to the north, for help and advice. Simply put, what should I do to change the situation? How do I become more enticing to Canadians? Who should be reviewing my books? Who should I be blackmailing? Let me know.
I know I have Canadian readers out there, so I do have a task for you. I want you to go up to a fellow Canadian—it can be a friend or family member or even a complete stranger—and say, “Have you read Simon Wood? No, well you should. I suggest you read (insert favourite title here).”
Now this may sound a little culty, but that’s okay. Cults aren’t all bad…I don’t think. Let’s not worry about that for now and focus on the important part—and that’s finding a Canadian readership. Look, I have faith in my Canadians and together we can do it. You don’t want the Germans to beat you on this score, do you?
Categories: shelf life
In recent years I’ve been really lucky. Several of my books have been embraced my readers and really taken off. And that’s been fantastic. However, not every book has done as equally as well. A few remain undiscovered. So this is a little tough to accept as every one of them is a beloved child…even if it’s a redheaded stepchild. Now I know not every book will do as well as others. Any number of reasons can hold a book back from storyline to style. So I get it. It’s not personal. That said I think people are missing out on some of my books, so I’d like to shine a light on four of my books that I think are worth your time and consideration.
WE ALL FALL DOWN: Hayden Duke is a young man on the fast track. He’s just signed on with Marin Design Engineering to work on a very high-level project. But before Hayden started, one of MDE’s employee’s committed suicide. And he’s not the only one. Is it the pressure? Or is there some other connection? Has Hayden Duke just put himself on the fast track to an early death?
THE SCRUBS: Jeter, the notorious serial killer with a sixth sense, holds court inside London’s Wormwood Scrubs Prison. He’s the focus of the “North Wing Project.” Under the influence of a hallucinogen, Jeter can create an alternative world known as “The Rift” containing the souls of his victims.
Pardons are on offer to inmates who’ll enter The Rift. Michael Keeler has nothing to lose and little to live for. He’s sent into The Rift to learn the identity of Jeter’s last victim.
ROAD RASH: James Straley might think his life is cursed, but it doesn’t compare to what lies ahead of him on life’s highway. He’s on the run with the proceeds of a botched bank robbery. It’s all he has. His crew is dead and his getaway car just died on him. He’s on foot with the cash when he comes across a two-car pileup. There’s no saving the drivers, but he can save himself and steals one of the wrecked cars. But he boosts the wrong set of wheels. Within an hour of driving off, he develops a rash that eats away at his flesh. No doctor can help him–only the car’s original owner. If Straley wants his skin back, he must journey on the road to redemption, which ends in the heart of Central America.
WORKING STIFFS: In this collection of short stories, the workplace is a dangerous place. The unscrupulous are primed and ready to take advantage of the innocent and naïve. A slight indiscretion can cost the employee everything. A new position can turn a person into someone they are not. Those at the top can be toppled and those at the bottom can be crushed.
Until now, Vincent’s father has kept one side of the business a secret from his son. Vincent is about to learn the family business. On the most important day of his career, Sam’s world will unravel when he helps a woman in distress. Todd has failed in every job he’s undertaken, but that changes when he backs into a drug dealer’s car. Now he’s in hock with organized crime and can only get himself out from under if he works for them to pay off his debt. Kenneth Casper is ailing and so is his business empire. His shareholders circle like vultures. Casper pins all his hopes on a Peruvian shaman with a miracle cure.
I hope you’ll check out these books. You won’t be disappointed.
Categories: shelf life
As keener followers will know, I lost my longhaired dachshund and sidekick, Royston, two weeks ago. It’s been a hard loss to take. He was one in a million. I want to mark his passing by doing something special. In his last weeks, he needed a lot of treatment. Luckily, we’ve been able to afford to keep up with the bills but not everyone can. I couldn’t save Royston but I can save someone else. So, in Royston’s honor, anyone who buys a book or download from my Bookshop this week, I will donate 100% of the proceeds to Best Friends Animals Sanctuary. If there’s an out of print title/hardback or any audio book you’re looking, drop me a note, as I may have one hidden away. For the more adventurous among you, you might be interested in one of my famous Mystery Book Boxes. Whatever you want, just let me know. My goal is to raise $500. Whatever the shortfall, I will make up the difference. If I exceed the goal, then I will match whatever is raised dollar for dollar.
Whether you’re a first time reader of mine or you’re looking for a gift for a friend, I hope you’ll take part and help me support a great charity.
Feel to share this post this post online. I’d really like to send Royston off in style. Thanks.
Categories: shelf life
