My novel WE, THE WATCHED is featured on the Bargain eBooks blog. The blog showcases eBooks that cost less than $5.00. Definitely a great place to get recommendations for good reading as the eBook revolution gets under way.
Click here to read the entry on WE, THE WATCHED.
P.S. I promise my next blog post won’t be about the novel. Probably.
Leave a CommentI entered WE, THE WATCHED for Amazon.com’s annual Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA) for unpublished and self-published novels. The grand prize is a publishing contract with Penguin, including a $15,000 advance. So, yeah, wish me luck.
If telecommunications law is more your thing, you may be interested to know I recently moderated a panel about the new Congress and a potential rewrite of the Telecom Act. The panel included executives from USTelecom, NTCA, CompTel and Qwest. While I’m not sure I like seeing myself on tape, I’ve included the video of the full event below. Enjoy…or at least learn.
Broadband Breakfast: Will Congress Reopen the 1996 Telecommunications Act? from Broadband Breakfast on Vimeo.
Leave a CommentPraise for my novel continues to come in! Recently, I got this message from an English teacher who lives in Bolivia. To her, my portrayal of the government in WE, THE WATCHED hit almost too close to home.
I loved it. The Cold War, secrets kept by the government from the people who elect the government officials from the bottom up, and the ability to access people’s files, calls and computers makes the story believable. Here, in Bolivia, where I’ve lived for the last 30 years, it’s now illegal to use the word “indio” or to say anything against the president of the republic. It’s punishable by arrest and jail. Members of the Press who write in his contra, and politicians who stand up against his injustices, are also jailed.
–M.R.M., English teacher at a bilingual private school in South America
You can buy WE, THE WATCHED for your Kindle, Nook or other eReader from Smashwords.
Leave a CommentWork continues on the sequel to WE, THE WATCHED.
I just downloaded the Windows beta of a writing program called Scrivener. If you’re a Mac user you may have heard of it already. Up until now I had been writing the novel in MS Word, but Scrivener is already making things easier. My old system was having three separate Word documents: 1) an outline 2) the novel itself and 3) bits and pieces I cut from the novel but felt bad about deleting forever. But this program combines all of that into one working project so that I can easily navigate between scenes and chapters, move them around if I decide Chapter 8 should come before Chapter 7, and take snapshots of passages I decide to cut (just in case).
This is especially handy because, not to brag, but the novel I’m writing has a lot going going on. It alternates perspectives between two characters: Seven and…well, let’s just say it’s someone pretty important from his past (read WE, THE WATCHED and you can probably guess who). And while the new novel takes place after the events of my first book, there’s a healthy dose of flashback, too.
So I’m juggling a lot of concepts, story lines and characters. And trying to write it in a way that won’t alienate those who haven’t read the first book (Speaking of which, what are you waiting for?). It’s only been a couple days, but Scrivener’s already helping me stay focused. And it’s only in beta.
Leave a CommentI’m excited to say that online magazine The American Chronicle just published a rather flattering review of my novel We, The Watched.
There’s action, romance, and social commentary woven into a brilliant story with an amazing plot twist near the end. It’s science fiction in the way that Orwell’s1984 or Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury dystopian novels are considered science fiction. In fact, I see shades and shadows of both works in We, The Watched. The writing is nearly on par with these geniuses of the written word. Mr. Bender isn’t quite there yet, but is closing in fast on the masters. Since this is his first published novel, that’s an auspicious start. It’s highly likely that given a bit more time and experience, the novice shall surpass the masters.
The American Chronicle 10/18/2010
Reviewer David Broughton also interviewed me for the story. Check out the full review at http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/193118
For a free sample of We, The Watched and more information, please visit wethewatched.com. You can buy the eBook at Smashwords.
Leave a Comment