Pretty big update today, dear readers.
It's been just over six months since the release of Seeing, my debut novel from Winter Goose Publishing. In the time it's been out, I've received many wonderful comments and reviews (it was even chosen by Erik Weibel, of www.thiskidreviewsbooks.com, as one of his Top Books of 2014), and am so incredibly thankful for the book's warm reception.
Long before the book even came out I was itching to discuss much of the ins and outs and whats and whys and hows. This is going beyond what I've already shared regarding the four years spent trying to get the book published. I'm talking about delving into the story itself and revealing the meaning behind some of the events in the book, discussing the characters, or why certain things happened, or didn't happen. A few threads in the plot were left open - as such happens in life, right? We don't always get closure to everything. But with the risk of these explanations spoiling the book for those wanting to read it and hadn't, I withheld. Also, finding the right platform to spew my guts on the novel was difficult. At book signings you tend to have a mix of those who've read your work and those who haven't and you don't want to expose too much of the story at these events. I'm also the type that loves leaving things to interpretation, but I also understand people wanting to know what the author was thinking when certain things were created, or what their interpretation of the events are.
So, I've been thinking of a way to satisfy those who've read Seeing and have questions. Enter podcasting. Seems everyone is doing it these days: authors, retired and active sports figures, celebrities, comedians, and probably Grumpy Cat even has his own podcast show. It's something I've recently become very interested in trying out - being that it's a popular, and relatively inexpensive promo tool that, at the same time, seems like a lot of fun - and I thought why not merge these two projects together?! Thing is: the final project depends on you, dear readers. Yes, you.
I have a few things penciled down, ready to talk about, but what I need is you, specifically your questions.
I've set up an email - questions@josephfalank.com
Simply shoot me your questions, your comments, your thoughts, anything you want to spout off about. Questions aren't limited to Seeing; you can ask about anything else regarding my writing, my life, etc. If I get a turnout that warrants setting aside time to record a podcast, or two, or three, then I'll be very happy to do it and put the podcasts up on my site and on iTunes for download.
I don't want to set a time limit on this. If you have questions or comments just send me an email. I'll put reminders up on my site, my Facebook, and my Twitter every so often and we'll see where this goes. Personally I hope to do the podcast, so let me hear from you!
If you want to be part of the upcoming podcast but haven't ordered your copy of Seeing, Amazon is having a wonderful sale (don't know how long it will last), but you can also get the book at Barnes & Noble, in both print and eBook versions.
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Friday, January 2, 2015
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
SEEING Named a Top Book of 2014!
Hope everyone is having a happy (and safe!) holiday season. A quick bit of awesome news to share with you before the date clicks over to the new year: Erik (of This Kid Reviews Books), who previously reviewed SEEING on his website, has just named SEEING as one of his Top Books of 2014 in a guest blog over at The Jennifer Diaries.
To check out the list of Erik's Top Books of 2014, click here.
See you all in 2015!
To check out the list of Erik's Top Books of 2014, click here.
See you all in 2015!
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Seeing eBook only $2.99 for December
I just learned from my publisher (Winter Goose) that for the month of December they are continuing their annual tradition of reducing their entire catalogue of eBooks to the low, low price of $2.99!
That means if you don't already own SEEING you can now for more than 50% off the usual digital price (it ranges between 6.99 and 7.99 depending where you shop)!
If you own a Nook, a Kindle, or have the app for either on your smartphone or tablet, this is a wonderful opportunity to explore many new authors and books and not break the bank doing so.
On Amazon and Barnes & Noble the eBook prices are already in effect. If you're a reader who must own a physical copy of a book, I have noticed that while the B&N listing of SEEING remains steady at $15.99, on Amazon the price has been dipping as part of their own sale.
On a personal note, I know I haven't updated much - with a newborn I've been using what precious writing time I have in a day on next year's novel - but I do have at least two other blogs I hope to get to before the year runs out: my digital Christmas card and a rundown of the books I read in 2014.
If for some reason I don't get back on with any updates for a bit, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and joyous new year!
See you soon.
That means if you don't already own SEEING you can now for more than 50% off the usual digital price (it ranges between 6.99 and 7.99 depending where you shop)!
If you own a Nook, a Kindle, or have the app for either on your smartphone or tablet, this is a wonderful opportunity to explore many new authors and books and not break the bank doing so.
On Amazon and Barnes & Noble the eBook prices are already in effect. If you're a reader who must own a physical copy of a book, I have noticed that while the B&N listing of SEEING remains steady at $15.99, on Amazon the price has been dipping as part of their own sale.
On a personal note, I know I haven't updated much - with a newborn I've been using what precious writing time I have in a day on next year's novel - but I do have at least two other blogs I hope to get to before the year runs out: my digital Christmas card and a rundown of the books I read in 2014.
If for some reason I don't get back on with any updates for a bit, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and joyous new year!
See you soon.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Seeing - Book Review By Erik (thiskidreviewsbooks.com)
As I've mentioned in previous posts, I'm forever grateful for the glowing adult reviews for SEEING. I was quite ecstatic, too, when I received news just recently that a young reader, user name Alyssakb99, from LitPick.com, also very much enjoyed my book.
But the one review I've been waiting for (and keeping my fingers crossed for) finally published this morning, and I am very excited to share it with you, my dear readers.
The review comes from Erik, the boy reader from www.thiskidreviewsbooks.com. I've included portions of Erik's text below.
You can check out Erik's full review of SEEING on his website.
Book Review - SEEING by Joseph Falank
Summary – 13 year-old Jake Sheppard has always been mocked in his class. After his father walked out on his mother and him, and his best friend became his tormentor, his life has been even harder. The fact that his grandfather, who has recently lost his wife, has come to live with them helps. His mom dating another guy doesn’t. Not in Jake’s mind.
What I Thought – This book is amazing. I like how Mr. Falank’s writing style shows the depth of the bond between Jake and his grandfather. Mr. Falank writes realistically. Even though this isn’t the typical action/adventure book I usually go crazy over, the book really left an impression on me. The story kept me reading. I finished it in one day. The story, even though is one of loss, is also one of hope. It is motivating, in a way.
For anyone who says small press publishers don’t produce good books – check out Seeing. It will change your mind in many ways.
I give “Seeing” five out of five bookworms!
But the one review I've been waiting for (and keeping my fingers crossed for) finally published this morning, and I am very excited to share it with you, my dear readers.
The review comes from Erik, the boy reader from www.thiskidreviewsbooks.com. I've included portions of Erik's text below.
You can check out Erik's full review of SEEING on his website.
Book Review - SEEING by Joseph Falank
Summary – 13 year-old Jake Sheppard has always been mocked in his class. After his father walked out on his mother and him, and his best friend became his tormentor, his life has been even harder. The fact that his grandfather, who has recently lost his wife, has come to live with them helps. His mom dating another guy doesn’t. Not in Jake’s mind.
What I Thought – This book is amazing. I like how Mr. Falank’s writing style shows the depth of the bond between Jake and his grandfather. Mr. Falank writes realistically. Even though this isn’t the typical action/adventure book I usually go crazy over, the book really left an impression on me. The story kept me reading. I finished it in one day. The story, even though is one of loss, is also one of hope. It is motivating, in a way.
For anyone who says small press publishers don’t produce good books – check out Seeing. It will change your mind in many ways.
I give “Seeing” five out of five bookworms!
Monday, October 27, 2014
How I Plan To Spend #NaNoWriMo 2014
With October coming to a close that can mean only one thing to writers: we're on the doorstep to National Novel Writing Month (affectionately known as NaNoWriMo).
I won't spend a lot of time describing the event that takes place throughout the month of November except to say, for those unaware, that the 30 day challenge is meant to encourage writers to put down as many words as they can (about 1,666 words per day to meet the assigned goal) - hopefully ending with at least 50,000 words toward the first draft of a novel.
Now every year I have the intention of participating in NaNoWriMo, but for the last few years at this time I've been in different stages of editing a novel I've already written earlier in the year. I suppose I shouldn't beat myself up too much considering I've already checked off the most important, and arguably hardest step - writing the first draft. Unfortunately I'm not the type of writer who can bench a big project for a whole month and start a new one from scratch (I do envy those that can) so I plan to spend the 30 days of November finishing the latest draft of the next novel that should be out roughly a year from now.
(And because I'm pretty comfortable with the current status of the next novel, I thought I'd share a little bit about it.)
Currently titled PICTURES, the next book tells the story of a widowed former artist who begins to see unusual changes in his life after meeting a mysterious woman.
The idea that sparked the novel is one I've had for a long time (one of the first I ever documented in my "idea journal"), and the decision to make it the next book came about a year ago when my wife and I were on a flight to Aruba. During the four-hour plane ride my wife devoured a pretty lengthy novel (David Baldacci's ONE SUMMER). I've never read the book but did check out a summary. My wife is drawn to the family drama/romance novels akin to authors like Baldacci and, one of her favorites, Jodi Picoult. Seeing how quickly she got through the book, I wanted to try my hand at telling such a story.
While it could be argued that SEEING is very much a family drama, I associate SEEING more with a coming-of-age tale, considering the progress of, and the lessons learned by, the young protagonist Jake Sheppard. PICTURES, my first "adult-themed" book, will very much play out in the family drama realm, with a bit more of the love story element at play.
Of course, right now, I'm still in the throes of editing (killing darlings), so it's impossible to predict just what categories PICTURES will fall into until it is finished.
I can also say that when I write, I write about things that terrify me. When writing PICTURES I tackled the subject of becoming - or perhaps never becoming - a dad.
Stay tuned.
And to all you writers preparing for NaNoWriMo -
Good luck!
I won't spend a lot of time describing the event that takes place throughout the month of November except to say, for those unaware, that the 30 day challenge is meant to encourage writers to put down as many words as they can (about 1,666 words per day to meet the assigned goal) - hopefully ending with at least 50,000 words toward the first draft of a novel.
Now every year I have the intention of participating in NaNoWriMo, but for the last few years at this time I've been in different stages of editing a novel I've already written earlier in the year. I suppose I shouldn't beat myself up too much considering I've already checked off the most important, and arguably hardest step - writing the first draft. Unfortunately I'm not the type of writer who can bench a big project for a whole month and start a new one from scratch (I do envy those that can) so I plan to spend the 30 days of November finishing the latest draft of the next novel that should be out roughly a year from now.
(And because I'm pretty comfortable with the current status of the next novel, I thought I'd share a little bit about it.)
Currently titled PICTURES, the next book tells the story of a widowed former artist who begins to see unusual changes in his life after meeting a mysterious woman.
The idea that sparked the novel is one I've had for a long time (one of the first I ever documented in my "idea journal"), and the decision to make it the next book came about a year ago when my wife and I were on a flight to Aruba. During the four-hour plane ride my wife devoured a pretty lengthy novel (David Baldacci's ONE SUMMER). I've never read the book but did check out a summary. My wife is drawn to the family drama/romance novels akin to authors like Baldacci and, one of her favorites, Jodi Picoult. Seeing how quickly she got through the book, I wanted to try my hand at telling such a story.
While it could be argued that SEEING is very much a family drama, I associate SEEING more with a coming-of-age tale, considering the progress of, and the lessons learned by, the young protagonist Jake Sheppard. PICTURES, my first "adult-themed" book, will very much play out in the family drama realm, with a bit more of the love story element at play.
Of course, right now, I'm still in the throes of editing (killing darlings), so it's impossible to predict just what categories PICTURES will fall into until it is finished.
I can also say that when I write, I write about things that terrify me. When writing PICTURES I tackled the subject of becoming - or perhaps never becoming - a dad.
Stay tuned.
And to all you writers preparing for NaNoWriMo -
Good luck!
Monday, October 20, 2014
Some New Reviews, A Giveaway, And A Baby!
A few weeks ago I participated in Six Minutes with an Author - an interview through the website www.LitPick.com. Today I am happy to share that a young reader from LitPick, age 15, under the username Alyssakb99, has reviewed SEEING.
A snippet:
"This book taught me a lot of how family can overcome hardships. I would definitely recommend this book to young adult readers; this is a well written story about family and hardships, and how to overcome trials."
Very awesome. While I'm ecstatic the book is reviewing well with adults, I'm so very happy the book is reaching its intended audience. Sometime this month I should be receiving a review from Erik at www.thiskidreviewsbooks.com - a review I've been looking forward to for quite sometime.
In other review news, I also just recently received my first professional review - this one from Kathryn Mattingly, author of BENJAMIN, who gave SEEING 5 stars, saying:
"Joseph Falank has a gift for well-penned prose that causes deep emotion - in his characters, and in his readers. Truth, discovery, and unexpected turns are what life is all about, and in this novel, young Jake's personal journey is a page-turner to be sure. This author paints some beautiful scenes with the brush of his pen and affects every emotion before the final page."
What I love most about Mattingly's review is the part about painting beautiful scenes. My goal when writing is to really try to visualize what is happening while reviewing the words on the page - it should play like a movie in your head as you read. If I feel there are too many fine details, too many specifics getting in the way and I'm losing that latch on the picture of it all, I begin fine tuning and "killing darlings." To read Mattingly comparing my words to visual art makes me feel satisfied that I accomplished what I set out for.
If you took part in the SEEING giveaway over at Goodreads, first, thank you! It amazed me to discover the giveaway ended last week with over 1,000 entries. Wow. Second, if I could, I would send all 1,075 of you signed copies. For the three winners, your copies are in the mail! Hope to hear from you to find out what you thought.
Finally tonight, just last Tuesday, at 7:15pm, my wife and I welcomed the arrival of our first child, our daughter Madelyn.
Some people say there is no such thing as love at first sight. People who believe that must never have had a child.
A snippet:
"This book taught me a lot of how family can overcome hardships. I would definitely recommend this book to young adult readers; this is a well written story about family and hardships, and how to overcome trials."
Very awesome. While I'm ecstatic the book is reviewing well with adults, I'm so very happy the book is reaching its intended audience. Sometime this month I should be receiving a review from Erik at www.thiskidreviewsbooks.com - a review I've been looking forward to for quite sometime.
In other review news, I also just recently received my first professional review - this one from Kathryn Mattingly, author of BENJAMIN, who gave SEEING 5 stars, saying:
"Joseph Falank has a gift for well-penned prose that causes deep emotion - in his characters, and in his readers. Truth, discovery, and unexpected turns are what life is all about, and in this novel, young Jake's personal journey is a page-turner to be sure. This author paints some beautiful scenes with the brush of his pen and affects every emotion before the final page."
What I love most about Mattingly's review is the part about painting beautiful scenes. My goal when writing is to really try to visualize what is happening while reviewing the words on the page - it should play like a movie in your head as you read. If I feel there are too many fine details, too many specifics getting in the way and I'm losing that latch on the picture of it all, I begin fine tuning and "killing darlings." To read Mattingly comparing my words to visual art makes me feel satisfied that I accomplished what I set out for.
If you took part in the SEEING giveaway over at Goodreads, first, thank you! It amazed me to discover the giveaway ended last week with over 1,000 entries. Wow. Second, if I could, I would send all 1,075 of you signed copies. For the three winners, your copies are in the mail! Hope to hear from you to find out what you thought.
Finally tonight, just last Tuesday, at 7:15pm, my wife and I welcomed the arrival of our first child, our daughter Madelyn.
Some people say there is no such thing as love at first sight. People who believe that must never have had a child.
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