The Tierno Times – Issue 1 – Author At Large

Hello and welcome to the inner world of my mind, always an entertaining place.??How can I say that, you ask???And who the heck am I???Well, at this point I guess you could say that I’m a bit of an expert on crafting words, stories, and phrases; a wordsmith of epic proportions with over 30 (rather thick) novels under my belt.??But more of that later, right now it’s Tip Time.

Writing tip, that is.??You see, besides my own stuff I also ghostwrite, so between the two writing and storytelling is pretty much everything that I do.??As such, I’ve picked up a trick or three about writing in general and ghostwriting in particular.??Let’s start with the ghosting.??Here then are my top Ten (okay, so 11) tips for all you ghostwriters out there.

1)??There is no such thing as a “simple editing” job.??If it was, then the client would be hitting up one of his friends instead of hiring you.

2)??Don’t be afraid to charge your worth.??After all, this might be the only gig you get for the next three months.

3)??If the client asks why you charge so much for just the one job if it’s only going to take you just three weeks to finish, remind them that one 3-week job could have to pay your bills for the next three months.

4)??Just because you find this sort of thing easy to do does NOT mean it is easy for anyone ELSE to do.??You spent a lot of time and effort figuring out how to be that proficient.??Just look at the plumber:??$60/hr because for HIM it’s a snap, but for YOU a nightmare.

5)???No matter how much they study, there are many people that just cannot write.??You’re special, so act like it.

6)??If your client consists of a team of two or more partners each of which will be a co-author and you’re supposed to report to all three… RUN!!!??The job is not worth the pain and aggravation.

7)??Unfortunately, the best you can sometimes do for a client is to advise them the one time, then if they want to go ahead and have you write the worst thing since Vogon poetry at least you’ve warned them.

8)??Get a payment UP FRONT.??50% is preferable, but get something before you lift a finger to start working.

9)??Some projects will be fun and interesting, while others will be “just a paycheck”; make sure you get paid either way.

10)??If a client offers you a percentage of future profits instead of cash up front, be firm and insist on the cash.??No matter how good a book you write, or what big plans the client says he has in the works and his solid contacts, there is absolutely zero guarantee that his book will go anywhere.

11)??Don’t forget your own dreams while putting to pen someone else’s.??Remember this is only to keep your wallet full while you figure out how to get your own Big Novel finished and selling.

And speaking of my own dreams, here’s a little peek into some of mine…

*“Cyberdawn: Beginnings”

The first in a 5-book series, a mix of Dark Fantasy, Cyberpunk, and probably the single most paranoid conspiracy plot you will ever read.??To Wit…

Earth is entering a new age of peace.??No weapons, countries ready to put down their armies, every home benefiting from megacorp generosity, but if you’re Black Jack Hannigan this sounds a bit like fattening up the calf before the slaughter.

He’s seen them, creatures straight out of mythology.??Winged tigers, ghouls, werewolves, they all exist; all part of the same millennia-old conspiracy.??The “People” are manipulating our society, readying us for sacrifice to their Masters unless Black Jack and his friends can bring their schemes to light.

Black Jack will soon discover he is not the only one that has run afoul of these creatures and their conspiracy, and soon he and his team are combining efforts to crack the mystery and not fall under the People's control.??An investigation that will take them on the road to an ancient site long buried in New Mexico and the heart of the People's goals.

It will take a new generation of weapons being developed by the icy Dr. Rebecca Winter to protect a defenseless world against these creatures, and even then it’s a race.??For once the People have opened the Eye of the Apocalypse it’s all over.??The Masters will consume our world, just as they have countless others before us.

Check it out at https://www.maldene.com/cyberdawn

*“Maldene”

Everyone loves a great fantasy epic, especially one where the first book alone has been compared to “The Hobbit meets The Odyssey”.??And did I say epic???Thirteen full novels!??Here’s the back-of-book from the first one:

Maldene is a world of magic and science, wizards and dragons; but home also to an incredible secret.??One jealously guarded by History’s most villainous being: Miro.??For centuries his presence has been plaguing the nightmares of gods and men; the world is in his thrall, there is no one willing to face him.

Or perhaps there is.??The young wizard Sabu, and his elven friend Eldar, lead their companions on a journey to seek a destiny foretold them by a blind gold-skinned gypsy.??Fighting a three-hundred foot dragon will be but the beginning of this quest, as they journey the globe in search of answers to the mystery of Miro’s villainy, and uncover the world’s long-buried secrets.??For they are destined to lead a new battle against this most ancient of evils, to gather all beneath the banner of a mysterious King and face the unfaceable.

There is just one problem:??Miro is?counting?on their success.

Then once you finish that, the second one is also out, “Maldene II: Mysteries of Olde”.??I’m just getting started here.??Check out both at https://www.maldene.com

*Inspector Flaatphut:??“Project Looking Glass” and “The U.M.I. Corp Connection”

So what does a novelist do in his spare time???Between the big epics???Why, write himself some shorter tongue-in-cheek stuff about a detective in a future world where a few of our four-footed friends have been uplifted into two-legged sentience.??A world of megaplexes, flying cars, and about as many bad turns as good for our intrepid hero Inspector Henry Flaatphut.??He gets the job done, but any time he’s in town the insurance rates go up.??Check his first two stories out at https://www.maldene.com/inspector-flaatphut

Well, that’s all for now.??Stay tuned for next time when I’ll see if it’s possible to write and balance a checkbook at the same time.