Status update, AKA "Where's that book?"

Yeah, I wrote a book. But where is it? Well, let's give you a status update on that and other stuff.

Since last time: got busy with a bunch of other stuff. Good stuff, productive stuff, but not stuff you need to (or probably want to) hear about.

The Babysitter (Working title) AKA The Book or Most Recent Book

First Draft: complete
Reader comments: received
Editing: Starting soon
Publication: Before end of 2015

This was the last thing I posted about. I've had some great feedback from my 'trusted circle' of early readers and I'm ready to start editing and revising. Once that's done, I'll start formatting for publication.

I'm aiming to publish this in two parts, probably. Bought together, both books will roughly equal the cost of Practice to Deceive (which went on sale originally at $8.99). Yes, each book will be shorter than PtD was, but this means their individual cost will be more in-line with usual Kindle pricing and arguably, I've got more chance at more sales.

I'm also hoping to do a paperback version of this, if I can. If that works out, I'll also go back and do a paperback version of Practice to Deceive as well, and of course, paperbacks going forward. Hint: the ebook version will still be cheapest.

Secret Book That's Secret (Umm, working title)

First draft: about 65% complete
Reader comments: in progress
Publication: Early 2016

I'm pretty sure I've never spoken about this. I don't want to spoil it, but it's probably not what you'd expect. It IS what you'd expect in that it's M2F masking... but I doubt you'll see it coming. There's a reason this has come together quick. Fingers crossed I want to finish the first draft this month.

Practice to Deceive sequel

First draft: about 25% complete
Publication: before end of 2016

The continuing adventures of Billy and friends, on the road to Comic-Con. Sequel to this, if you came in late. M2F masking, primarily, from the protagonist's PoV.

Back in 2013 I was ready to dive into this, but for various reasons I didn't. The good news on this one is that it's pretty tightly plotted all the way to the end (and I think it makes sense, which is a bonus) so I really just need to get the time and sit down and knock it out. That time, however, probably won't be available to me until early next year, and that's assuming I don't see any other major bumps. I won't forget about it though. There's way too much good stuff in this book to forget...

Anyway, that's that. I appreciate your ongoing patience and hope you stick with me. More stuff to come.

Practice to Deceive: now half-price

Last summer (which in my brain, means summer last year, not the summer that finished a couple of months ago) I published Practice to Deceive via Amazon and Gumroad.

To my surprise and continuing warm feelings, people bought the book. I got some really nice emails. Some very nice Amazon reviews. I felt glad that people were digging it, and it was very validating to see the small payments I'd get from Amazon and Gumroad.

I also felt, after a decent amount of research, that I priced the book fairly at $8.99. It had taken up the better part of 2013 in terms of my writing; it was over 400 'real' pages in length (almost 130,000 words) and frankly... $8.99 ain't a lot. A month of Netflix or World of WarCraft. I was worth that, right? I knew I wasn't going to get rich, but I felt that if you picked up my book in a bookshop and saw $8.99 on the back, it wouldn't break the bank.

A year and a bit later, I'm changing my tune. Tomorrow (or whenever Amazon catches up) I'm dropping the price to $3.99. (The price is actually already changed on Gumroad - which sells the PDF version, if you hate Kindle - to $4. Yes, I know it's one-whole-cent more. I like round numbers where it makes sense.)

Why? The short answer is: the wacky pricing models on the Kindle store. Basically, there's no real market for 'higher priced' books. In a store where the slimmest of pamphlets (seriously - I'm talking about 15 page books here) can be priced at $2, a book at $8.99 in the land of the blind is king. Or something. In other words, I'm just too expensive. The casual buyer will just pass the book by and go look for something cheap to get their rocks off to. Why risk it, right?

So, there you go. It's cheaper. If you ever wondered "Should I buy it?" you're now able to get a full novel, packed full of the sexy disguises, kinky masks and the hot sex I love to write... for about the price of a decent latte.

(And yeah, I'm not going to $2.99. I have some standards, dammit. I'm worth the extra buck!)

To everyone who bought Practice to Deceive to this point: I want to say a sincere and honest thank you. You're all amazing people who made me believe that yes, people would pay to read my work, and I really, really appreciate it. Feel free to lord it over the latecomers.

If for some reason you've never heard of the book, or me, or are wondering "Why the hell is he going on about book pricing?" then feel free to read a few excerpts here, and then forgo that latte for one day, and buy my book instead.

Where'd August go?

Gak! An entire month without an update. I'm truly sorry. The truth is, I just haven't had a heck of a lot to talk about. I spent some time away, spent some time doing other things, blah blah.

Here's the sort-of-good news: I've spent a decent amount of time plotting the sequel to Practice to Deceive, and I've even started writing. I'm not in the proper writing groove yet, but I'll get there, I imagine. I'm also noodling around on a few other things at the same time. Basically, I'm procrastinating a bit, trying to decide what I commit to next. It may be the sequel, it may be something else. I shall go where the muse takes me.

In the meantime, I'd encourage all of you to visit Kitty Mayer's new site, which went live a week or so ago. I've raved about it before. So far it looks like my suspicions are correct and that yes, there are people willing to pay for masking-related content (surprise!) so congrats again to Kitty. I have another suspicion that she's making a lot bigger profit than I am on Practice to Deceive - but ah well, not all of us can be female or have admirable figures!

At the same time over on YouTube Jasmine Moarly has returned, another 'genetic girl', who's picked up a CFX mask. I haven't got it in me to talk in this post about the advances in silicon based masks but suffice to say, they're getting better all the time. I think inside my lifetime... we could see some incredibly realistic masks. We'll see... and with that inspiring thought, here's Jasmine's latest video, where she 'pranks' her girlfriend (or maybe... pranks us).

Practice to Deceive - so what did you think?

Well, this weekend will mark about three or so weeks since I put Practice to Deceive live on Amazon and later, Gumroad. A heartfelt thank you to all of you who've put down money and actually rewarded me for writing the book - I deeply appreciate it. No, I'm not about to buy a house or a new car, but sales are sales, and every one is welcome!

That said, apart from a couple of Amazon reviews and the odd email... I haven't heard much from people about, well, whether they liked it or not. I'd love to know. And for a few reasons.

1) I'm a little torn on what to embark on next. I have an idea for a female-led masking book, maybe a serial, about a con artist/cat burglar who gets in way over her head. I also have plenty of ideas for a sequel to Practice to Deceive, as well as my half-finished other books. The question is... where to go next? Your reactions to Practice to Deceive might help guide that.

2) Whether I write the sequel next or not, I'd still love to know what you thought of the book; did it work for you? Was it exciting, arousing, thrilling, titillating - all of the above? Where did I mess up? Where did you desperately want more?

3) Last but not least... I really could do with those Amazon reviews! There is, quite frankly a lot of dross in the sub-sub-niche of transgender fiction, and I'd love to get noticed by some people there. I know, of course, that part of the trick is to publish more stuff (and I'm working on that) but in addition, a great review or two will help me stand out! So if possible - go ahead and review the book? Even just a few lines would be great.

If none of that works for you, I still want to hear your opinions! Get in touch, leave a comment, whatever - drop me a line. And again if you bought the book, thank you!

Practice to Deceive now available as a PDF

Last week I pushed Practice to Deceive to Amazon Kindle, and this week I'm expanding to PDF format via Gumroad.

PDF is a near-universal format these days, so if you have any reservations or concerns about buying the Amazon Kindle version, then this is a good alternative.

As a bonus, because Gumroad's terms are a little better than Amazon, I'm turning those savings over to you. A whole dollar saved! Yes, if $8.99 was just too rich for your blood... pick up Practice to Deceive at Gumroad for $8.

(Oh and sorry you don't get a cover embedded on that version. Had to compromise somewhere!)

Practice to Deceive (AKA Housesitting) now available on Amazon Kindle

I'm proud to say that my first masking novel, Practice to Deceive (known for a long time as Housesitting) is now available to buy for Amazon Kindle. Here's the cover art:

The book is available from just about every Amazon site - here's a few links:

Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.com - $8.99
Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.co.uk - £6.17*
Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.ca - CDN $8.99
Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.de - EUR 6,68
Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.fr - EUR 6,68
Buy Practice to Deceive at Amazon.co.jp - ￥ 800

You don't need to own a Kindle to read Practice to Deceive! You can download free Kindle reading apps for your PC, Mac, smartphone or tablet. (I proofread on my iPhone!) More details here. You can also download a free sample of the book (or read it online) to see if it's your kind of thing.

I will be looking into releasing the book on other platforms and formats, but for now, I just wanted to create this post to allow everyone to know the book was live and able to be bought. I hope you enjoy!

UPDATE: Practice to Deceive is now available as a PDF from Gumroad for $8. If you have any concerns or problems with the Kindle version, there's the (first) alternative!

* Sorry my fellow Englishmen, I tried to get the price to a round number but Amazon doesn't mention they add VAT to ebook prices after submission!

Housesitting is awaiting publication, and is now called...

... after much deliberation... the final name is...

Practice to Deceive

I just submitted the final 'manuscript' to Amazon Kindle Publishing. It should be live (and able to be bought) inside 12 hours or so. I'll check tomorrow, and assuming it all went well, I will update with an official BUY NOW post. However if you search for the title (or 'Ghostly Writer') you should find it. If you buy it before I make my post, I'll give you a virtual hug.

With a publication date of June 29th, I'm sure no-one's surprised when I said it was coming 'in June'  it ended up being practically the last day of June...!

BTW, I do intend to publish in other places so you have various options, but Kindle's probably the biggest marketplace so I thought I'd start there.

Feels weird to have done this! More tomorrow....

First novel (AKA Housesitting) out this week

I have my cover (well, almost), I have my title (well, almost) and I've done my due diligence. A little late in the month, I know, but Housesitting will be out to buy on Kindle this week - before the end of June.

More soon.

Edit: In case you missed it, the novel is now on-sale.

Practice to Deceive (AKA Housesitting) excerpt: dressing for success

Practice to Deceive (AKA Housesitting) tells the story of Billy, a young teenager who has an unusual obsession: he likes to cross dress... as his mother. When Billy is left alone for a week, a realistic mask and his uncanny disguise skills allow him to actually become his target - but even while exploring a double life, Billy is still a teenager with teenage responsibilities.

In this excerpt, having completed his transformation into Linda once more, Billy begins to dress for a meeting with Kate's parents.

Remember, by reading this excerpt you may spoil yourself for the final novel.

Practice to Deceive (AKA Housesitting) excerpt: fantasies at school

Housesitting (working title) tells the story of Billy, a young teenager who has an unusual obsession: he likes to cross dress... as his mother. When Billy is left alone for a week, a realistic mask and his uncanny disguise skills allow him to actually become his target - but even while exploring a double life, Billy is still a teenager with teenage responsibilities.

In this excerpt, Billy tries to keep his mind on the mundane realities of school life, when his fantastic other life is so much more distracting...

Remember, by reading this excerpt you may spoil yourself for the final novel.

Practice to Deceive (AKA Housesitting) excerpt: home from school to mask

Housesitting (working title) tells the story of Billy, a young teenager who has an unusual obsession: he likes to cross dress... as his mother. When Billy is left alone for a week, a realistic mask and his uncanny disguise skills allow him to actually become his target - but even while exploring a double life, Billy is still a teenager with teenage responsibilities.

In this excerpt, an excited Billy begins to transform himself from a teenage boy into a mature, older woman - his own mother. (This is just one of the transformation scenes in the book.)

Remember, by reading this excerpt you may spoil yourself for the final novel.