The Polls Are In (once you vote)

At Endever Publishing we are dedicated to brining success to our authors. But in the book industry, success equals readers. So, logically, we are dedicated to bringing readers to our authors.

In order to bring readers along, we must have something that pleases them, that entices.

Let me say this as unconventionally as I can:

As a book publisher we we want to lure and seduce you into giving us your hard-earned money in exchange for a night (or several) of pure, unadulterated entertainment. (No, we don’t publish those kinds of books.)

And  the books we have lined up for you…we firmly believe they will not disappoint. We are working-class citizens like yourself. We know how difficult and time-consuming it is to earn your money, and how much harder it is to part with it. But we also know that sometimes, good quality entertainment can be priceless.

But we want to know who we’re selling to. We want to get to know you as our potential readers. Consider this post a restaurant of your choice. You’re seated at the table. We’re here to serve you an entertainment value. And, since presidential polls are all the rave right now (of which I declined to watch last night’s debate because I figure I’d rather work since both candidates are gong to end up taxing me through the nose anyway…plus, circus side shows bother me), I have posted a couple of polls for you to indulge in.

These are your menu options. I’m not guaranteeing we have everything in stock, but I want to know from you, going forward, what you look for in a trusted entertainment company, one that Endever strives to be.

 

Thanks for your time in voting. This will help us gauge how to best serve you, as readers, going forward. If we think of more questions, we’ll ask and we trust you’ll answer!

This Post Breaks All the Rules

Socially speaking, I’m not allowed to write this post.

Even the business world would frown on me.

Because we’re supposed to only present our best selves, right? And as a business owner, I’m supposed to give the impression that I’ve got it all under control.

To a degree, these are good rules. Personally, I don’t like it when people show up to work and start crying about their broken marriage. But I don’t hold it against them. I don’t tell them to stop. I just ignore them if I don’t want to hear it.

So if you don’t want to hear it, I suggest you stop reading now. Because I’m about to unleash as a father, a husband, a middle-class citizen, an aspiring bestselling author, and a brand-new business owner.

This post breaks all the rules. I trust you’ll forgive me.

I’m mad. No, I’m perpetually pissed off. My wife sees it, my kids see it, and I wake up and go to sleep each day feeling it.

Today I had to take our foster son to the doctor to get staples removed from his head. A quick two-minute procedure. But since Kentucky passed a new law mandating that foster parents have to get consent from the kids’ social workers before a doctor can do anything, they have to get permission from the already-hard-to-reach social workers. We were at the doctor this morning for almost an hour. No response. We called and called. I ended up having to reschedule and leave with the staples still in his head so I wouldn’t be late for work.

Because, you know, being a law-abiding, working middle-class citizen is no different than grade school. Can’t be tardy! (My particular day job is actually good in this regard compared to others’, but you get my point.)

Which is half the reason I’ve started my own business. I’m tired of being told when to show up to work and when I’m allowed to go on vacation. That is, if my insurance hasn’t robbed me as blind as the previous month.  I’m tired of getting permission to be sick.

I hate that the foster care system is crap deteriorating to shit that even makes the bacteria sick, never getting better, always getting worse.

I hate the state giving drug-addicts every chance under the sun (and then years-worth-of-chances after that) to get their kids back only for them to likely be abused and neglected even more, just so the faceless assholes running our government can come out looking like the good guys. All the while we foster parents are trying to do a good thing for these kids and we’re treated worse than the felons!

I can’t do a single thing about it and that really pisses me off!!!

I hate that running a business and writing a book takes nearly all the risk and energy in the world. And it’s driven by pure fear. I hate that no hours in a day is not just a cliche saying. It’s really, really, really, really true. And that sucks so bad.

I’m terrified that I’m going to fail. I’m terrified that you’re all going to read my book and hate it. (I’m not so terrified that you’re going to hate the other authors’ books because they’ve got more talent than I have in one of my graying hairs.) But the bigger fear is that you’re not going to buy our books. You’ll like the pages and posts and share the excerpts, but come book release, you’ll shrug it off.

I’m terrified that my kids won’t discover their passions until late in life, like me. And they’ll be stuck clocking in at a job they don’t care for making money for someone they don’t even know.

I’m terrified that my wife and I will just be done with each other. I’m terrified that I really can’t change. I hate that I love my kids so much and that one day they’re not going to care. I hate that I can’t take care of babies. I make them cry. My rapid heart-rate and boiling blood freaks them out.

I hate that I don’t know how to raise my kids.

Just on my way to work this morning (I made it on time, no thanks to the foster care system), blasted the music and just screamed. I’m sick of working my ass off and being robbed nearly half of my paycheck by our insurance. If you don’t know that money is only going to fatten corporate wallets, then you need to do your homework. (Where do you think your premiums are going if you still have to pay extreme medical bills?) And that doesn’t account for taxes.

I’m sick of the hardest working people getting paid nickels and dimes and the comfortable corner-office inhabitants getting perks and hiring maids to dust out their Ferraris.

I can go on. And believe me, each day I do. But I’m not going to be another one of those bloggers who pretends everything is great and that my life is all peaches and flowers. I’m a human being with real issues and real problems and real effed up emotions.

I’m a terrible husband at best.

I’m a paranoid and angry father.

I’m a terrible writer.

I’m a terrified business owner.

I’m completely unraveled.

You’re all going to comment and say things like, “It’s okay, we feel your pain,” or “You’re a great writer! I’ve been following you for years!”

Don’t.

In fact, you’re as messed up and in as bad of a situation as I am. Gripe. Just let it out. Writing this didn’t fix anything, and honestly, it didn’t make me feel better. But at least I’m not lying or presenting a false image. Because this is who I am. This is how I feel.

And I’m really sorry, but I’m going to keep trying my hardest. Because I’m just. That. Stupid.

Two New Books for YA and Paranormal Fans!

As promised, here are the covers to Endever’s first two publications! Feel free to read through the synopsis’s of each book, admire the designs, and mark your calendars for the release dates. All credit on these beautiful covers goes to Kyle Richardson of Born on the Frontier fame. Enjoy!

Adelle is the center of this upcoming young adult book, These Great Affects by Andrew Toy. Adelle and Trill meet in an unconventional way. They also are forced to say goodbye too soon, even before they have a chance to kiss, hug, or even hold hands. When Trill’s life is cut unexpectedly short, Adelle begins to believe that love just isn’t for her. But she has second thoughts when Trill comes back to visit her as a ghost, and at first it seems they’ve been given a second chance. But soon they realize the awful truth: will she really have to say goodbye to him again? Spoiler alert: This is not a love story. This is a loved story, about the past-tense love. A love that really, doesn’t last very long, but goes farther than can be imagined. 

These Great Affects will be released on October 20, 2016.

 

A Deathly Compromise by Coral Rivera: Meet Death — Dee, for short — the queen of the underworld incarnated into the form of a young woman who has taken up residence in a Portland hospital. With a killer attitude and a playlist to match, she spirits away the souls of the dying for their journey to the great beyond. The only problem? She’s been housed in the same host body for centuries, and she’s growing restless waiting for the next great disaster to strike. Enter Aria, a precocious young patient who challenges her perception of humanity, and Lux, a handsome stranger with an advanced form of cancer. Soon Dee finds herself locked in the struggle of her “life.” Will she follow the path that the Book of Fortune has set aside? Or will she go against the Fates and begin to write her own destiny, compromising her heart in the process?

A Deathly Compromise will be released on October 27, 2016.

Tweet which title(s) you’re most looking forward to, to @EndeverPubStuds: #TheseGreatAffects or #ADeathlyCompromise

For every ten Facebook shares or Twitter mentions we’ll release passages from these books!

Love the cover designs as much as we do? Visit Kyle Richardson at Born on the Frontier. I recommend checking out his site even for some fun browsing. He has also been a real pleasure to work with these past few weeks, a great asset if you’re looking for creative talent. 

Two New Books For YA and Paranormal Fans!

As promised, here are the covers to Endever’s first two publications! Feel free to read through the synopsis’s of each book, admire the designs, and mark your calendars for the release dates. All credit on these beautiful covers goes to Kyle Richardson of Born on the Frontier fame. Enjoy!

Adelle is the center of this upcoming young adult book, These Great Affects by Andrew Toy. Adelle and Trill meet in an unconventional way. They also are forced to say goodbye too soon, even before they have a chance to kiss, hug, or even hold hands. When Trill’s life is cut unexpectedly short, Adelle begins to believe that love just isn’t for her. But she has second thoughts when Trill comes back to visit her as a ghost, and at first it seems they’ve been given a second chance. But soon they realize the awful truth: will she really have to say goodbye to him again? Spoiler alert: This is not a love story. This is a loved story, about the past-tense love. A love that really, doesn’t last very long, but goes farther than can be imagined. 

These Great Affects will be released on October 20, 2016.

 

A Deathly Compromise by Coral Rivera: Meet Death — Dee, for short — the queen of the underworld incarnated into the form of a young woman who has taken up residence in a Portland hospital. With a killer attitude and a playlist to match, she spirits away the souls of the dying for their journey to the great beyond. The only problem? She’s been housed in the same host body for centuries, and she’s growing restless waiting for the next great disaster to strike. Enter Aria, a precocious young patient who challenges her perception of humanity, and Lux, a handsome stranger with an advanced form of cancer. Soon Dee finds herself locked in the struggle of her “life.” Will she follow the path that the Book of Fortune has set aside? Or will she go against the Fates and begin to write her own destiny, compromising her heart in the process?

A Deathly Compromise will be released on October 27, 2016.

Tweet which title(s) you’re most looking forward to, to @EndeverPubStuds: #TheseGreatAffects or #ADeathlyCompromise

For every ten Facebook shares or Twitter mentions we’ll release passages from these books!

Love the cover designs as much as we do? Visit Kyle Richardson at Born on the Frontier. I recommend checking out his site even for some fun browsing. He has also been a real pleasure to work with these past few weeks, a great asset if you’re looking for creative talent. 

Writers Have Been Believing This Lie for Decades…

Editing. It’s often seen as the summit of the mountain after a long, tumultuous climb, complete with hand-cramps and carpal tunnel.

I have a different picture in my head. Writing, as hard as it is, is more like the packing and driving toward the first day of your climb. Writing is gathering all of your equipment, literally dotting your I’s and crossing your T’s, all the busy work. None of it’s in order, and half the time you don’t even know what the hell you’re writing. You’re just…writing.

But then you reach the last page, your last paragraph, your last word. You think you’re done. The world tells you, “You did it!” You get all sorts of accolades, you’re blinded by the paparazzi, and angels blow on trumpets as the opposite sex throws themselves at you.

But that’s a bunch of bull. I finished my YA novel back in February and I’ve been working on it nonstop ever since. Heck, I’m still editing a book I finished back in 2012.

Don’t. Be. Fooled. Editing is the first step up the towering mountain.

Both of my books look very different from their first drafts. Eighty-percent of both manuscripts look vastly different from their first-draft counterparts.

Andrew Stanton, of Pixar fame, describes editing as molding a lump of clay. Unless you’re Charles Dickens, your first draft is absolute crap and it’s a long way from being where it needs to be.

It may be what you envisioned, but oftentimes what you envision and what the world wants are two very different things. If you want to be a successful writer, you must come to terms with the ice-cold fact that at some point, it must not be your book. 

It’s fine to allow your first draft to tickle your fancies and be all you wanted, but if you want to bring your vision from bad (if we’re being honest here) to great, you must be willing to let go of it and please the masses.

That. Is what editing is all about.

That’s why I hand my manuscript to trusted people and reviewers. I need to know if I’m still heading toward the summit or if I’m free-falling in a hypo-thermal state of oblivion.

Editing, my friends, is a beast. Editing is only the beginning. But keep at it, because that’s the only way you’ll surprise yourself with what you have in you. There may be an unexpected plot twist ahead.

Release Dates and Cover Reveals Soon!

time concept, selective phocus point, special toned photo f/x

We’ve been busy at Endever Publishing Studios, and I’m proud to announce that we have not one, but two books that will be released before Halloween. We’re working out the release date details, and the covers for these two books are coming along swimmingly!

The first book is written by yours truly. It’s a young adult novel about a girl who falls in love with a boy…after he dies. These Great Affects is a heartbreaking story about love cut short and how one brave adolescent overcomes her pain.

The next book is written by Coral Rivera. Her debut novel, A Deathly Compromise, is about a sassy, music-loving Angel of Death who frequents a hospital in Oregon, just waiting to guide the next victims into the after life…

I can’t give the release dates yet, but I can assure you these two books will be out just in time for Halloween.

Can’t wait to share more with you as we have lots of fun promo opportunities planned leading up to the releases! I’d also suggest following Endever on Twitter to be kept most up-to-date! (@EndeverPubStuds)

Which book are you looking forward to the most? #TheseGreatAffects or #ADeathlyCompromise ?

 

Naivety = Awesomeness (How do you pronounce “Naivety” anyway?)

The great Steve Martin, in his book, Born Standing Up, defines naivete: “That fabulous quality that keeps you from knowing just how unsuited you are for what you are about to do.”

With that logic, every person who’s ever done anything great is undeniably, unequivocally naive.

If we were all aware of how hard something was going to be before we embarked in projects or work, I believe very little would get done.

Think about it. Doctors are like, “Eight-thousand years of college?” No sweat. But what they don’t account for before enrolling for their first $2 million class is the tedious lectures, the endless research, the nerve-jarring tests. Not to mention no money, no food, no sleep. College has its perks, but we forget how much dehydrated noodles can make us gag after the thirtieth consecutive cup.

“Let’s make a movie!” Easy. But first you’ve got to scrounge up the money for filming equipment, put out ads for crew members and actors to work for cheap (or for nothing at all), not to mention the hundreds of takes, waiting for the traffic to die, the weather to clear, the dog to stop barking. . . And the grueling editing hasn’t even begun.

Writing a book? Easy. Just tappity-tappity on the keyboard and off to New York you go! (I’d hate to be the one to break it to that naive amateur that you’re lucky if you sell six copies even after less than fourteen rewrites – of course when I broke that news to myself after years of writing, I wanted to kill myself.

My wife says, “You don’t know when to quit, do you?” I take that as a compliment. No, I don’t know how to quit because I’m too naive to believe I can fail. Even though I probably will. But who knows.

Steve Martin failed as a comedian for eight years before he achieved even a modicum of success. And then he had to refine everything he ever knew.

But it’s a gamble. And the odds are in no one’s favor. For every gazillion stand-up hopefuls, there’s only one Steve Martin. For every gazillion-billion-trillion writer (because, let’s face it, who’s not?), there’s only one J.K. Rowling.

How’s that for a drop of inspiration? No? Not good?

Try this: Nativity makes the world go round. So help me keep spinning it.