Greece is the Word

I'll soon be flying off to the birthplace of democracy, a perplexing word in these disjointed times around the world. 

It's also a place known for ancient ruins, great storytellers, deep thinkers, artistic expression, and much more—Athens, Greece.


Greece always seemed like a magical place to me while growing up in Kentucky, with its pristine beaches splashed by the deep blue crystal waters of the Mediterranean, Aegean and Ionian seas, rugged and hilly landscape, and whitewashed homes.

I enjoyed reading Greek mythology as a child, and later, The Odyssey in high school. And there were movies such as Jason and the Argonauts, Zorba the Greek, Never On Sunday, Shirley Valentine, and recently, Mamma Mia! The Movie and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.  My favorite James Bond flick, For Your Eyes Only, had scenes from Greece.

And now I'll get to see and experience first-hand this ancient and enchanting nation with my wife and other adventurous and curious travelers. 

In addition to Athens, we'll visit places such as Delphi, Corfu, Kalambaka, and Nauplia.
  

Greece flag

Among the sites we'll see along the rocky way are the Acropolis (home of the Parthenon, Temple of Athena, Nike, and Erechthelon), the Temple of Apollo, the Old Royal Palace, Achillion Palace, Church of St. Spyridon, Temple of Zeus, and various monasteries, museums, and landmarks. 

For the past several months I've been devouring a lot of materials about this historic country—from the Internet, travel guides, DVDs, and travel programs on television. I've tried learning a few Greek words but I'm not sure how effective I'll be in communicating with my Southern twang. 

Check back in a few weeks and I'll have a few posts about the trip along with photographs from various locales.

μέχρι την επόμενη ορά ...

New Novel on Pre-Order

Between now and April 30, readers of my John Ross Boomer Lit series can pre-order the electronic version of New Horizons.

New Horizons is the third novel in the coming-of-old-age series from Wings ePress involving retired newspaper sports editor John Ross.  It's available on Amazon by clicking here. A print edition will be available on May 1.

I'm excited because this is the first time one of my novels has been offered on pre-order. It makes marketing and promotion a bit easier, especially for someone who struggles with that aspect of being an author in the 21st century.

The new novel primarily focuses on John and Sally's long overdue vacation to Budapest, Hungary. They encounter all kinds of folks that turn the 10-day trip into an adventure they never expected as they experience more than sightseeing.

And even though they're five thousand miles from Kentucky, events pop up that keep their minds on happenings back home involving their son, daughter, and Sally's mother. Along the way, they also make a few discoveries about themselves and their relationship in the beautiful city by the Danube River.

In addition to New Horizons being available on pre-order, the first two books will be on sale in electronic versions for 99 cents leading up to the release date. And to my knowledge, this is the first time these novels have been discounted for a limited time. 

Old Ways and New Days, the first in the series, can be downloaded until April 21, and Darkness Beyond the Light, the second, from April 21-28. For those who prefer print, they can be purchased but without a discount. That's out of my control.

I plan to have a few more announcements in the coming weeks so stay tuned by following my blog (see the "follow" button in the right column).

Until the next time . . .  

Pre-Release Book Promotions

The third book in my John Ross Boomer Lit series, New Horizons, will be released May 1 by Wings ePress.

One of the promotions is to provide readers an opportunity to purchase the first two books, Old Ways and New Days and Darkness Beyond the Light, at discounted ebook prices. 

Beginning Sunday, April 14, Old Ways and New Days can be downloaded for one week at the amazingly low price of 99 cents. Hard to believe, isn't it?

But wait! The following Sunday, April 21, Darkness Beyond the Light, will be available for the astonishingly low price of 99 cents for one week. Have you lifted yourself off the floor yet?


Silliness aside, my novels have never been priced this low. As part of the promotion, it's a great way to introduce discriminating readers to the series—especially baby boomers. And maybe their children and grandchildren who are curious as to what makes the old folks tick. 

For those who aren't familiar with the series, it's about the trials and tribulations and the joys and jubilations of John Ross after his retirement as a sports editor of a Kentucky newspaper. 

It's a coming-of-old-age series that deals with family, friendships, health, and redefining one's purpose while moving into that final phase of life.    

As mentioned, New Horizons is the third book in the series. It's about a wild and wacky trip to Budapest, Hungary. I'm currently working on the fourth installment and know what the fifth book is going to address.

New Horizons, like my other novels, will be available in electronic and print. More about that later.

Until the next time . . .

P.S. If you read the books, please leave a rating and/or review. It would be much appreciated.

Rock and Roll Heaven

I finally made it to rock 'n' roll heaven.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 

After waiting quite a few years, my wife and I made the pilgrimage to Cleveland to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, located in an imposing glass pyramid on the banks of Lake Erie. 

The Moody Blues exhibit

I've wanted to visit the Rock Hall for a long time but must confess that I vowed that not to make the trek until my favorite band, The Moody Blues, was inducted. It was long overdue, but it finally happened in 2018. 


While on a trip to New England last fall, listening to a SiriusXM Radio oldies channel, I learned that the exhibits for the 2018 inductees would be removed and replaced by the new members in March. I had planned to drive to Cleveland after hearing the news but decided against it because of inclement weather. So we visited on a sunny, but cold day in late February. 

Elvis is King!

The Rock Hall is definitely worth the visit (and senior rockers get a discount). It can be a daylong activity taking in all the floors—if you've got the energy. We spent about 3.5 hours, and plan to return someday. It's also handicap accessible, and furthermore, it's easy to find the place and there's plenty of parking (I was told Tuesday is the least-crowded day and that's when we made the drive from our old Kentucky home).

The Beatles display

There are six levels to the building, starting with the roots of rock on the ground floor and rock TV on the top. As you take in every floor, you'll see artifacts of rock legends, short films such as the history of American Bandstand and the Power of Rock Experience, where I discovered Prince was an electrifying guitarist, a room of pinball machines (remember Pinball Wizard?), and much more.  

For more information on the exhibits, click here. You can also order tickets on the website and view a calendar of upcoming events to help plan your visit.

As Mick Jagger and Keith Richard wrote in 1974, "I know it's only rock and roll, but I like it, yes, I do..."

Until the next time . . . 

Vlog: What is boomer lit?

My second vlog is about boomer lit. More precisely, what is boomer lit?

The simple definition is that boomer lit deals with people who are classified as baby boomers—those born between 1946 and 1964. There are more than 75 million of us in the United States. 

My last two novels, Old Ways and New Days and Darkness Beyond the Light, fall under the boomer lit genre, as well as the third, New Horizons, that will be released May 1.

I've always felt my first four novels were boomer lit as well but didn't fit that category because there wasn't that particular label at the time for books.  

A few boomer movies I've enjoyed are The Big Chill, Return of the Secaucus Seven, and The Deer Hunter. 

Many of us grew up reading classic coming-of-age novels such as J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye and S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders.

To carry that further, boomer lit novels could be called coming-of-old-age novels, that milestone in which people move into the third and final act of life. 

Here's the vlog for your viewing pleasure:

Until the next time . . .  

Introducing My New Vlog and/or Podcast

I'm not sure how effective this will be or how long it will last, but I've started a short vlog or podcast. I'm really not sure what to call the format.

Checking on the Internet, the definition of a vlog is "a blog that features mostly videos rather than text or images."

And a podcast is "a digital audio or video file or recording, usually part of a themed series, that can be downloaded from a website to a media player or computer."

I've thought about doing a vlog for quite a while but put it off because I wanted it to complement what I do here. I am a writer, remember, and this is what I do best (at least I hope so). I also have novel, New Horizons, that will be released on May 1 so I'm trying to maximize the promotion. 

I subscribe to Joanna Penn's blog and have admired her work in marketing and promoting books. And she does a great job with her podcasts. 

Her podcast on growing readership through podcasting, featuring Paul Sating, probably tipped me over the edge into this new adventure. I even purchased his ebook so I guess the podcast worked on me. By the way, I highly recommend subscribing to Joanna's blog/podcasts.

I plan to keep my podcasts short and sweet. In addition to my journey as a writer, I'll also have posts about my travels, music and book recommendations, and other interests. I hope to keep them to 60 seconds but that may prove to be difficult. And I'll try to refrain from being political since there's more than enough of that stuff on the World Wide Web.

So here's the first podcast. Please feel free to subscribe to my YouTube Channel as well although I plan to do dual posts here. You might consider clicking the "follow" button in the right margin of this blog to keep current with my posts.  

Until the next time . . .

New Novel Update

I've read the galley proof of my latest novel, New Horizons, and submitted an errata sheet to my editor. It's now out of my hands until the book's May 1 release date.

New Horizons, published by Wings ePress, is the third book in the John Ross Boomer Lit series. This time John and Sally Ross encounter happiness, headaches, and heartaches on an international trip to Budapest, Hungary.  

Back to the galley.

The corrections, as well as a few additions, were minor in that they don't require any major revisions that would delay publication of the novel. Everything is moving along at a smooth and manageable pace.

As with other writers, it bothers me when I see any kind of error after publication. And no doubt there a typo will appear in the final product. It happens to all authors, on every level—major and small publishing houses and those who are self-published. That's not an excuse; it's the reality of publishing. 

And it's not only authors and editors to find them. Eagle-eye and casual readers spot them as well. And it's the readers we want to satisfy, in the final product (print or ebook) and the story.

Between now and publication date (did I mention May 1?), I'll continue working on the marketing and promotion of New Horizons. Check back here for updates. It's easier if you simply click the "follow" button in the right margin. 

By the way, Wings is celebrating its 17th year in publishing so check out the wide variety of books from its talented stable of authors from around the world.

Until the next time . . .