Todd Keisling

Good afternoon, folks.

Today I’m writing to offer a proposition.  If there is anyone out there with a good camera, who knows how to use it, and lives in the vicinity of a subway station, please email me.  Serious inquiries only.

Please pass this one along.

Thanks,

TK

. . . even my edits have edits.

TK

Apologies are in order.  I wanted to post here last weekend immediately following the end of the ALT 2.0 Kickstarter campaign.  Unfortunately I was rather exhausted, and so I chose to take the weekend off.

Other things came up after that and, well, here we are.

Word Machines #3:

After a two-week delay, it’s now available, and features the lovely, intimidating Roxane Gay.  She is a powerful writer, and it’s an honor to feature her here.  Go read it.

And if you’re new here, you can catch up on the previous features here.

I’m taking a hiatus from the feature next month as I’ve some commitments to reach, but it will return in October.  Stay tuned.

Kickstarter Recap

I’m not going to go into detail here, because I’m planning to write a lengthy post about the entire project once everything is finished.  For now, however, we have work to do.  Phase one is over.  We have the funds, tools, and talent.  Many, many thanks to everyone who supported this venture.  Without you, ALT’s future (and my writing career) would be at a stand-still.  I also want to thank everyone here who put up with my incessant promoting over those 65 days.  I know it grew tiring (I got tired of it after a while, to be honest), but it had to be done.  Fortunately we’re funded, and can move on to the next objective.  Which just happens to be–

ALT 2.0

Edits have begun.  Not the little proofreading edits I did several months ago, but the intensive, cut-whole-sections-out-and-cry-about-it sort of edits.  The Kickstarter campaign made this possible and, if you’re one of the backers to said project, be on the lookout for an update this weekend (probably tonight) that will include scans of the actual pages, complete with comments and witty banter between Amelia, my editor, and myself.

The first chapter of ALT’s first edition was a little over 8k words.  It’s now just a little over 6k.  There are going to be changes made to improve the story’s flow.  My chapters have always run long, which can be a drain on the average reader.  We’re going to fix that now.  There will be minor details that change.  The company where Donovan works, for example, along with the nature of its business, has changed. Telemarketing for the purpose of selling long distance service doesn’t really make sense in 2010.

Those of you who hate me for what happened to Mr. Precious Paws in the first edition will be happy to know the paper shredder scene is a thing of the past.  You will not be happy to know the cat still dies.  Sorry.  I’m still an evil bastard.

At the moment I’ve finished my revisions of the first chapter, and am planning to dive into chapter 2 this weekend.  So far we’re on schedule.  As I told my backers late last week, I’m aiming for a late October release.

Tease

Thursday night I took a very important step.  I can’t talk about it now, but I will in the coming months.  It’s exciting.

I think that’s all for now, folks.  Now I’m off to bury myself with edits.

TK

In last month’s Word Machines feature I wrote about an independent author by the name of Henry Baum.  He wrote a book called THE AMERICAN BOOK OF THE DEAD which I highly recommend.  Today I’m happy to announce that he’s serializing its sequel, aptly subtitled Part Two, on Scribd.  The introduction (which is brutally honest, I might add) along with the first three chapters are available on Scribd.  Go check it out, or just read through the embedded viewer here:

The American Book of the Dead Part II

All right, folks. After an exhilarating two months, we are now in the home stretch of the ALT 2.0 Kickstarter project.  There are now 4 days left.  We hit our pledge goal two weeks ago, at which point I set a new goal of $2500.  If  we can hit $2500, anyone who pledges $15 will not only receive a copy of ALT’s second, revised edition, but a plushy Cretin made by my wonderful wife, Erica.

$15. A copy of ALT in print, a digital copy in the format of your choice, and a plushy Cretin to sit on your shoulder while you read.  That’s what I call a “deal.”  So, if you want in on the goods and have been putting it off all this time (lookin’ at you, Hoss), now is the time.

I promise a real update following the craziness of the week.  The next Word Machines feature is also in the works.

Stay tuned.

TK

At 3:51 PM this afternoon, the ALT 2.0 project over at Kickstarter reached its goal of $2000 in pledges.  We are officially 100% funded, folks.  The second edition of A LIFE TRANSPARENT is going to see the light of day.

Now, we’ve still 18 days left to go, and there are Cretins up for grabs. If we can hit $2500 in pledges before August 13th, everyone who pledges $15 will not only get a copy of ALT, but also a plushy Cretin to call their own.

I’ll be announcing more post-goal rewards very soon. If you haven’t pledged yet, drop a few bucks into the hat.  I’m grateful for whatever you can give, even if it’s just the time you take to pass it along to others.

Seriously, folks, thank you so much for your support.  I will not let you down.

TK

Want one? Here’s how you can get one. As these are handmade by none other than my wonderful wife, they will be extremely limited. The only way you can get one is if the Kickstarter project for ALT 2.0 exceeds its goal and hits $2.5k in pledges, and if you’ve also pledged at least $15 to the project.

There are exactly three weeks left until deadline, and we’re $340 shy of hitting the goal. Let’s push this thing well past the finish line.

As always, thank you for your continued support!

Best,

TK

A long time ago I read the introduction to a Dean Koontz collection called Strange Highways.  In that introduction, he mentioned his editor sending back a draft of an unnamed novel-in-progress with instructions to increase the word count. My memory is fuzzy (I was a teenager at the time), but I recall the request called for an additional 100k words or so.  The whole thing was written tongue-in-cheek, which won’t strike anyone as odd if they’re familiar with Dean’s quirky sense of humor, and forever impressed upon me the correlation between large books and doorstops.

So, every time I think of “appropriate novel length,” I think of writing a doorstop.  A massive brick of paper strong enough to hold open a door.

When I printed THE LIMINAL MAN, I didn’t really think about its size. The first draft is single-spaced, after all. Last night, while taking these photos of the first draft (complete with Erica’s tabs and notes), I realized that when I finally double-space it to send off to the most amazing editor on the planet, it’s not only going to cost me an arm and a leg in shipping, but it will also take a full ream of paper.

I’d like to think that, in some way, I’ve made Dean Koontz proud.

# # #

In other news, the Kickstarter project for ALT 2.0 is now over 80%. We’ve got a little over 3 weeks left to go, so if you’re thinking about pledging, now is the time. Who knows? There may even be some incentive for you to help put us over the 100% mark (not-so-subtle hint). Watch this space in the coming days.

TK

Evening, folks. I just received a definitive time for a live Q&A event on self-publishing so I can go ahead and mention it here.

Where: deviantART, in the #getLIT channel. You have to be a member to participate, but membership is free. Here’s where you can sign up.

When: Friday, July 16th, at 7 PM EST.

I’ll be answering questions alongside Denise L. Meyer, author of Jon.com and Fellowship of Psys, and Steve Smith, admin and staff writer for 365tomorrows. You can read more about it here.

Make it if you can. I’m sure it will run at least a couple of hours, and I’ve set aside the entire evening for your questions. I’ll keep answering if you keep asking. Deal?

Hope to see you folks there!

TK

Happy Saturday, folks. I have some things to cover, but I’ll get the updates out of the way first.

Updates

• The latest Word Machines feature is now live, featuring author and independent advocate Henry Baum. It’s a great interview, and his novel THE AMERICAN BOOK OF THE DEAD is very good. I recommend you read both.
• The Kickstarter Project to fund ALT 2.0 stands at $1135 in pledges with 34 days left to go. I think we’re doing great. So far I’ve posted 6 updates detailing the “story behind the story,” along with some scans of my journal notes, and even an “extended” cut of my story THEY WOULD JUDGE HIS TRESPASSES which was published over at 365tomorrows. If you’ve pledged, I thank you, and ask that you please spread the word. If you haven’t, all it takes is $5, and you’ll get access to these posts along with a digital copy of the book. And hey, if you’re not interested, pay it forward and pass along the link. Thanks!
• I signed up to become an affiliate of {indie}pendent books. There’s a link over on the sidebar. The folks who run the site are hardworking people, they love books, and they think independently published works have value. Follow the link there on the side, take a look at what they have, and get yourself something. When you do, this site will get a few pennies in return. Those pennies will go toward paying for hosting costs. So, to recap: Click link, buy book, keep both sites alive. Repeat. You might even see ALT there one day. Who knows?

ALT 2.0

Between some awesome feedback and a not-so-awesome two-star Amazon review suggesting the book be 100 pages longer (not happening), I decided to take a much closer look to the manuscript as we cruise closer to the Kickstarter ending date.  One of the criticisms the book has received is that the first edition draft begins much to slow, but that, once it gets going, it really gets going well. Problem is, I wrote that first chapter to serve as an establishing shot. Most important characters are introduced right there.

So . . . I started brainstorming. I decided that the book’s pacing might improve if things are incorporated much sooner. But, as I’ve been told to take a couple of weeks away from anything ALT or TLM related (per the direction of friends and my wife and my editor), I’m left to my own devices, and so I turn to you folks. If you’ve read ALT, and I suspect some of you have, what would you change? What would you do differently? I know a lot of you are writers, too. Give me your opinions. Don’t worry about hurting my feelings or anything. Let’s be honest here. Let me know in the comments.

A Funny Thing Happened

I was going to write about this much sooner, but I was in the midst of pushing the project and finishing TLM’s first draft, so I didn’t have much time to do so. I also wanted to let some dust settle lest the eye of Sauron still be upon me.

As you know, my relationship with a certain POD printer sort of fell through at the worst possible time. In the aftermath of an article I wrote about it, said POD printer contacted me wanting to discuss it, and hoping to do damage control. And I, being one to vent my grievances, decided to indulge them. I went through a play-by-play of what was wrong with it, and asked if they have any sort of quality control whatsoever, because what I received never should have left their printer. I should also mention that, when they reached out to me, they misspelled my name, despite my name being a huge part of my email address (and yes, they used my contact email here from the site).

I could let the misspelling slide. I’m no stranger to it. Keisling is a weird name, and people mess it up all the time. So I didn’t mention anything about it. “Just a typo,” I thought. I waited a few days to send my response because I wanted to let myself cool off. I was still rather pissed about the whole thing, and wanted to take a look at the email with a level head before hitting “send.” I did so, and the next day I received a response.

They misspelled my name again, claimed they have “active” quality control procedures in place, then went on to tell me that they would be refunding me the cost the proof, and had shipped me a mailer so that I could send back the copy. They wanted to “investigate.” Three things happened in that email that royally pissed me off. For starters, they misspelled my name again. I work in a business environment. The least someone can do is get a person’s name right. Not doing so shows a lack of professionalism. The second thing that got under my skin was the refund. You’re probably saying, “Why bitch about it? You’re getting your money back.” I acknowledge that. However, I did not ask for it, nor was the purpose of my emails, or the article, or even the project, to obtain a refund. It cost them to produce the proof. Fine. I paid them for their time and service. I understand why they felt the need to provide a refund for the sake of customer service, but doing so without my consent was rather annoying. And finally, expecting me to send it back to them without asking also irked me. I’d no intention of sending it to them. It’s the only proof of their mistake. I’m not about to send it back to them.

I should mention that, around the time of this email, I started receiving phone calls at my residence from them. They did not leave messages. It was rather creepy.

So I didn’t wait a day this time. I sent this email (and I’ve redacted revealing material–sorry):

Dear –

I appreciate the offer, but I do not wish for a refund.  Please keep your money.  I have no intention of returning the book, and will keep what I paid for.  I will, however, provide you with the product ID on the inside of the book: [REDACTED]

Though I doubt someone at [REDACTED]  is truly unable to remove the files, I will respect your claim and your company’s policies on the matter.  However, I do wish for my account to be closed.

I should also point out that, for the last two days, someone from [REDACTED] has called my home without leaving a message.  I would like this to stop.

Finally, while I’m sure you mean well, your inability to correctly spell my last name across two consecutive emails does not help your claim of quality control.

I will now consider this matter closed.

Kind regards,

Todd Keisling

Yeah. I was rather angry. I sent that and stewed on it for the rest of the day. The following morning, a funny thing happened. First I received a notice that I had a new Twitter follower. When I opened said notice, I discovered that the person with whom I’d been exchanging emails was now following me. I went to her account page, saw that she’d just opened it, and that I was the only person she followed. Not cool. At this point I was feeling rather creeped out by the whole thing.  They were stalking me like an ex-girlfriend. Very weird.

A few minutes later I checked back and saw her account was closed.  Fortunately I kept the Twitter email (with a “lol” label). And then, about an hour after all that, I got an email from the supposed “VP” of the company (research indicates that he was only a manager as of six months ago, which would make for a very fast climb of the corporate ladder), written in legalese and citing termination of the agreement I signed when opening my account with them.

This was all a few weeks ago. It made for an exciting week, alongside ALT 2.0 being the featured project on Kickstarter, and I wanted to tell you all, but there were other, more pressing matters at hand. I hope it provided you a good laugh. I’m still chuckling about it.

Next time I’ll post some shots of the TLM manuscript. For now I have errands to run. Enjoy your weekend, folks.

TK