February 28

Outside the Pages

In a publishing masterstroke (yeah, right) I decided to change the font color for the rear cover – to highlight the great review from the UK. A subtle change, but just makes a clearer division between the brief story outline and the review. I hope potential readers also enjoy the change.

February 8

$3.99 is nothing. I will order mine now!

I was having a meeting with a colleague over coffee earlier this week, when the conversation moved onto the subject of ‘reading’. I mentioned that I had just finished my first novel and that it was available on Kindle. My friend got out his phone and quickly looked it up.

“Only $US3.99! That’s nothing – I will order it now.”

I was surprised and delighted that he wanted to read 3 WISE MEN, and even more delighted that he found the price to be so reasonable. But, when I thought about it, it was about the same price as the coffee I had just ordered for him.

I hope you also enjoy reading 3 WISE MEN at less than 1.5c per page!

January 10

Author accepted as new member of International Thriller Writers

James Hayden has just been accepted as a new member of the International Thriller Writers (ITW), Inc. ITW was launched in 2004 by a group of writers who saw the need for a different kind of authors’ group – one dedicated to the celebration of the thriller genre. What emerged was a service organization founded by authors, for the benefit of authors, and run by authors.

ITW is truly “international” with more than four thousand members from around the world whose cumulative book sales total almost three billion copies. There will be more news soon about this great opportunity for James Hayden.

January 6

“I need painkillers and more rest.”

“My stupid head!” he thought. “I need painkillers and more rest.”

You would too, after going through what Jak did! No wonder his decision-making soon get blurred after his flight leaves Rome, heading for his meeting in Milan.

Italy is a rugged country, with a spine of mountains reaching out of The Alps like the arm of an octopus. These peaks – known as The Apennines – can play havoc with weather patterns over Italy – as Jak soon finds out.

Read more in 3 WISE MEN.

January 1

Could it be The Vatican?

“Who do you represent?” I asked him.
“That was a good question, Pierre. Did you find out?”
“He said it did not concern me. I asked him if it was the church.”

David was even more curious, “And?”

“The priest said I should ask no more questions, but that he represented sovereign monarchy—one who had absolute power. Well, it got me thinking. Who has that kind of unfettered control?”

David looked puzzled and asked,  “Who, indeed?”

“Yes, an absolute power who would not give up their secrets or allow anyone to steal or copy them. I wondered if he meant the Vatican, but was too scared to ask. Who else could it be? Then he told me to stop all my research in Florence. His exact words were, ‘Halt all investigations if you value your life.’”

The extract above is from 3 WISE MEN and suggests that other groups are also after Jak’s secret formula. But, who are these religious zealots? Does the priest indeed represent The Vatican – a state that has absolute power and doesn’t want it to be lost to meddling researchers like Jak and his friends? Read 3 WISE MEN to read more about this mysterious and unexpected meeting.

December 31

And those other names?

3 WISE MEN features real locations, real cafes, and real hotels , etc. in order to give authenticity to the novel. The plot is also plausible and based on a genuine ancient document.

The sense of place – places that reader have heard about or visited – was essential for me as a writer. In fact, one idea for the story was dropped – simply because it was a far-fetched possibility that our protagonist would be able to circumvent the security in place. I had checked it out carefully and realized that there was a slim chance of getting past the guards, but this was highly unlikely.

I hope the exotic locations and real places give 3 WISE MEN that touch of reality that I was looking for. Even the airline and train schedules needed to be correct. Some research took a while!

Finally, I was grateful to Galimard in Grasse for allowing me the rights to use their company name in 3 WISE MEN.

December 27

3 WISE MEN 2nd Edition is Launched!

3 WISE MEN is now available in a 2nd Edition-released for 2019. This new version has approximately 10 more pages. It has the same action-packed plot with a few typos fixed and more detail added in a few places; plus one more final chapter. At over 80,000 words, 3 WISE MEN continues to be a thriller that is ‘difficult to put down’ and has received rave reviews. Yours for just under a few cups of coffee, or less for the Kindle version. 3 WISE MEN, 2nd Edition, is available from Amazon at this link.

June 7

First copies of 3 WISE MEN hot off the Amazon Press!

What an exciting moment – to arrive back home and unwrap the draft copies of “3 WISE MEN.” After nearly 20 months of writing, research, travel, editing and copy-editing, proofing, re-doing the manuscript, etc. it is such a privilege and joy to feel the actual book! Someone asked me recently whether I had thought about giving up on finishing this novel and, to be honest, yes – at least once! However, I always wanted to share with others what I thought was an exciting and compelling plot. It was the power of the story – the unusual circumstances that faced the humble protagonist – that kept me going! For his sake (the hapless Jak), the story needed to run its intriguing course.

Thanks again for all who contributed to this moment!!! Perhaps writing a novel is a bit like child-birth, but three times as long and less painful? I am so thankful to Jan – my wife – and to my wonderful family who have endured the long period of gestation, and numerous revisions, that this novel went through. They now share in my overwhelming joy to see it in print. And, what a wonderful cover and layout too!

My advice to wannabee writers? Never write seeking fame or fortune – write because you just have to! And, don’t wait for a literary agent to snaffle your talent – or you could be waiting forever. For example, approx. 0.029 percent of authors get signed up with a literary agent – that is about 3 per 10,000! Not an encouraging statistic, but it reinforces the mantra of most literary agents – “We can’t take a risk on an unknown author.”

While I enjoyed working with an agent on a non-fiction book a few years ago, I would have to say that Literary agents are a dying breed who seem to have little faith that a new author will supply them with the breath of inspiration that they need to stay alive. So, believe in your story, write as best you can, and then improve it to the point where you know that you must self-publish with your head held high!

PS: You can find 3 WISE MEN in Kindle and paperback versions here at Amazon

Update: The local venue for the book launch is now chosen and will be held on July 19.