If you’re thinking of getting any of my books for the holidays, it couldn’t be easier. I’ve got you covered, even for autographed books!
I’ve been recommending this essay for years to every writer I know. And it’s free to read online…
I compiled a list of fun facts about this brilliant mathematician after reading two biographies. The oddest little things stayed with me, and here they are…
The popularity of the 2023 movie Oppenheimer has brought national attention once again to the Manhattan Project. My wife, who wrote a book about the subject, routinely gets emails from fans asking how they can find out definitively if a family member worked on the project during wartime. Here’s her response…
I hate to interrupt what is no doubt an amazing holiday weekend for you. Just a quick reminder that we at Casa D’Agnese-Kiernan are running two specials this week.
The first ends today. The special Nook $2.99 ebook price for Signing Their Lives Away ends today, so grab it while you can. Carpe that freaking diem.
Quick reminder: Signing Their Lives Away tells the stories of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence. I think it pairs nicely with summer, frosty brews, a slab of ribs, a beach umbrella, and a red-white-and-blue muumuu. Get your patriot on.
Meanwhile—if you need another reminder: Denise’s book is still on sale for $3.99 through the end of May. Yay.
Yes, I am trying to post here more often. Thank you for noticing. If you want to sign up for my newsletter and claim your free ebook, go here. Thanks!
Our publisher just let us know that our bestselling book, Signing Their Lives Away, is on sale. The special Nook ebook price is $2.99, so if you’ve been meaning to check it out, now is the time.
The deal is supposed to start tomorrow, but I just checked, and the new price is up as of TODAY, May 20th. The deal i supposed to run through Memorial Day weekend, and end late on 5/27. If you are traveling or have plans for the holiday weekend, don’t take a chance. Carpe that freaking diem.
Quick reminder: Signing Their Lives Away tells the stories of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence. I think it pairs nicely with summer, frosty brews, a slab of ribs, a beach umbrella, and a red-white-and-blue muumuu. Get your patriot on.
Meanwhile—if you need another reminder: Denise’s book is still on sale for $3.99 through the end of May. Yay.
Yes, I am trying to post here more often. Thank you for noticing. If you want to sign up for my newsletter and claim your free ebook, go here. Thanks!
Simon & Schuster just let us know that my wife’s New York Times Bestselling book, The Girls of Atomic City, is on sale. The special Kindle ebook price is $3.99, so if you’ve been meaning to check it out, now is the time.
I just checked, and the new price is up as of today. I’m not sure when the deal ends, but the price will be good though the month of May. But don’t take a chance. Carpe that freaking diem if you’re at all interested.
Quick reminder: The Girls of Atomic City is the true story of the WWII-era young women who worked on the atomic bomb without their knowledge. The book hit multiple bestseller lists upon release, and author Denise Kiernan appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Find out more at Denise’s website.
So Denise has been having a great time on her book tour. The first week of her paperback saw it hit three major lists: the New York Times Bestseller list for paperback nonfiction, the NPR Bestseller list, and the Indie Bestseller list (which is compiled by Indiebound with data from independent bookstores).
All totally huge, and great to see. But the icing on the cake came just last night when Denise’s book was a question on Jeopardy. The category was Recent Nonfiction. It was the $1,600 clue in that night’s round of Double Jeopardy. The “answer,” of course, was: “What is Oak Ridge?” Needless to say, the Oak Ridgers we heard from were over the moon.
* * *
What’s up with me?
* I have a ghostwriting proposal out to editors; it seems to have been greeted with crickets, although, strangely, we did get a great offer from Audible. We kinda need the print book before we can license the audiobook, but hey—it’s a brave new world of publishing, right? So why rule out a direct-to-audio release? Stay tuned.
* Still in production on two self-pubbed books of mine.
* I’m reading a beautiful literary fiction book called The Man Who Walked Away, by Maud Casey. It’s based on the true story of Jean-Albert Dadas, a 19th-century Frenchman who had an uncontrollable compulsion to leave home and walk all over Europe. He’d “awake” from his wanderings to find himself in strange cities, with no idea how he got there. Casey’s language is just breathtaking. Worth a look.
Has it been a year yet? Just a quick note to say that my wife’s book, The Girls of Atomic City, is out in paperback and audiobook today. She’s still on her tour, hitting the east coast today after a few weeks in the west.
image
Denise Kiernan at the American Physical Society Conference, Denver.
Here are the remaining dates as they stand:
Tuesday, March 11, 2014, 7:00 PM
South Hadley, MA
Odyssey Books, 9 College Street
***
Thursday, March 13, 2014, 7:30 PM
Fredericksburg, VA
Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
1301 College Avenue
*Ticketed Event
***
Tuesday, March 18, 2014, Noon
Oak Ridge, TN
Oak Ridge High School
1450 Oak Ridge Turnpike
*Ticketed Event
***
Friday and Saturday, March 21 - 22, 2014, 2:00 PM
Charlottesville, VA
***
Monday, March 24, 2014, 7:00 PM
Austin, TX
603 N Lamar Boulevard
***
Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 7:00 PM
Houston, TX
2421 Bissonnet Street
***
Wednesday, March 26, 2014, 3:00 PM
Oxford, MS
Oxford Conference for the Book
Journalism Panel moderated by Curtis Wilkie
Overby Center at the University of Mississippi
555 Grove Loop, Suite 247
***
Tuesday, April 1, 2014, 7:00 PM
Ann Arbor, MI
2513 Jackson Ave. (in Westgate Shopping Center)
***
Wednesday, April 2, 7:00 PM
Cincinnati, OH
2692 Madison Road
***
Monday, April 7, 2014, 7:00 PM
Naperville, IL
123 W. Jefferson Avenue
***
Tuesday, April 8, 2014, 6:00 PM
Wichita, KS
4701 E. Douglas Avenue
***
Thursday and Friday, April 10 - 11, 2014
Boone and Hudson, NC
Caldwell Community College
Details forthcoming
Yes, I am trying to post here more often. Thank you for noticing. If you want to sign up for my newsletter and claim your free ebook, go here.
My Paperbacks Are Out!
Took me long enough, but paperback copies are finally available of my three fiction titles. For now, you can snag them via my Amazon page. If you buy a paperback via Amazon, you’ll get the ebook for free.
If you’d rather not deal with Amazon, or you don’t want a paperback, well, have I got a celebratory deal for you:
I can offer you a free e-book of any of these titles. Snag the correct file for your device via my Smashwords page, using one or all of these coupons, which expire April 1, 2014. You’ll need to enter the coupon codes when you checkout, then download the file that’s right for your e-reader. And don’t forget: A mobi or epub file will work with whatever reading device you have, whether a Kindle, Nook, iPad, or Kobo. If you don’t have a device at all, you can still read ‘em with the right app on your computer. Ask me if you need help.
Arm of Darkness (short stories): CM87N
The Mesmerist (novel): MJ34Q
Jersey Heat (novel): KH57T
I’m told that these paperbacks will migrate eventually to Ingram and thus be available to indie bookstores. I have no experience in that arena, but I’m curious to see if that actually happens.
If you’d like a signed copy of any of these titles, just contact me via my website, and we’ll make shipping and payment arrangements as soon as my first shipment comes in.
My thanks to those of you who reviewed these books in the past. A belated thank-you gift is on its way.
* * *
Other news: Denise is on the road for three weeks doing talks and conferences, and I’m home alone listening to the creaks of a settling house. Her paperback and audio book are out March 11. If you think you’d like a signed copy of either of these, contact our local bookstore, Malaprop’s, by phone and they’ll take of you.
Coming soon: paperbacks!
This never happens, but it just did. The postman came by with a proof copy of my book, The Mesmerist, and UPS dropped off copies of Denise’s paperback as well.
As usual, I have no idea when my book will be available, but paperbacks of The Girls of Atomic City will hit stores March 11. Which gives me a chance to post Denise’s tour schedule. It’s subject to change, of course, but you can always double-check the dates, times, and places on the official Girls of Atomic City website.
Monday, February 24, 2014
New York, NY
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
*Event Closed
***
Saturday, March 1, 2014, 9:15 AM
Long Beach, CA
Long Beach Festival of Authors
Long Beach Convention Center, 110 Pine Ave.
***
Monday, March 3, 2014, 11:15 AM
Denver, CO
American Physical Society - Annual Meeting
Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th Street
*Registration Required
***
Tuesday, March 11, 2014, 7:00 PM
South Hadley, MA
Odyssey Books, 9 College Street
***
Thursday, March 13, 2014, 7:30 PM
Fredericksburg, VA
Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
1301 College Avenue
*Ticketed Event
***
Tuesday, March 18, 2014, Noon
Oak Ridge, TN
Oak Ridge High School
1450 Oak Ridge Turnpike
*Ticketed Event
***
Friday and Saturday, March 21 - 22, 2014, 2:00 PM
Charlottesville, VA
***
Monday, March 24, 2014, 7:00 PM
Austin, TX
603 N Lamar Boulevard
***
Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 7:00 PM
Houston, TX
2421 Bissonnet Street
***
Wednesday, March 26, 2014, 3:00 PM
Oxford, MS
Oxford Conference for the Book
Journalism Panel moderated by Curtis Wilkie
Overby Center at the University of Mississippi
555 Grove Loop, Suite 247
***
Tuesday, April 1, 2014, 7:00 PM
Ann Arbor, MI
2513 Jackson Ave. (in Westgate Shopping Center)
***
Wednesday, April 2, 7:00 PM
Cincinnati, OH
2692 Madison Road
***
Monday, April 7, 2014, 7:00 PM
Naperville, IL
123 W. Jefferson Avenue
***
Tuesday, April 8, 2014, 6:00 PM
Wichita, KS
4701 E. Douglas Avenue
***
Thursday and Friday, April 10 - 11, 2014
Boone and Hudson, NC
Caldwell Community College
Details forthcoming
Every year at this time I take a look back at my productivity and try to make sense of it. I’ve done this for two years running (see 2012 & 2011). Typically I flip through my daily calendar to capture some of the highlights but I’m on the road for a few days and don’t have that book with me. Kind of don’t need it.
NOVELS: This year was all about writing TIMoNY, a historical fantasy that’s been in my head for a while. It’s a big book, clocking in at 120K+ words, involving a lot of research. In hindsight, this was not the right year for me to tackle such a thing, but when do we ever get to choose what life slings at us? The first draft took only two months, but those weren’t consecutive days. I lost a lot of time accompanying Denise, my wife, on her book tour in spring and summer. I’m tweaking and polishing the book this month, and intend to share with my agent first. If she thinks it’s worth submitting to publishers, I’ll go that route before self-pubbing. I completed another novel, The Marshal of the Borgo, in January 2013, but didn’t do much with it all year because I was too consumed by TIMoNY to do anything about Borgo. I hope to do those edits and have Borgo proofed and pubbed by spring. I also started a second book in the Mesmerist series. This year I hope to write two novellas featuring those characters. If nothing else, TIMoNY convinced me I should be writing shorter books.
PRINT EDITIONS: In 2013 I taught myself how to do interior book design, and hope to issue paperbacks of all my current self-pub books by spring. I should be issuing paperbacks when I pub the ebooks to eliminate the hassle, but for a long time I feared the learning curve associated with doing print books.
SHORT STORIES: Check me. Last year I said I would not devote so much time to short stories, but I broke that rule in 2013. Granted, the four stories which appeared this year—one in Plots With Guns, and three in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine—were all submitted in 2012. In 2013 AHMM bought two more of my shorts as well; they’ll be pubbed in 2014. Writing shorts is a great break from travel, writing big books, and family responsibilities. But if I’m honest with myself I have to admit that I’m flattered to be paid something for my fiction. And right now, when so little of my self-pubbed fiction is selling, I crave that validation as a sign that I’m doing something right. So if yeah, there will be more shorts this year, if only to serve as an ego-boost. I plan to release the AHMM shorts as ebooks when the terms of their contract expire.
SELF-PUB: Speaking of which, this year I earned a little less from my self-pubbed books than I did last year. About $315 total, as compared with $330 last year. Most of that was from sales of my nonfiction book, The Scientist and the Sociopath. That means I still have not broken even on this three-years-running experiment, but I don’t care. I know the market has changed substantially but I remain optimistic about self-pubbing. In 2013 I continued to resist the idea of serious marketing, and I think I’m justified in holding back. My feeling is that I should have at least two or three books in a series up before I make a move to promote beyond announcing my releases here and in my Twitter feed. If only I could figure out why I keep writing the first books of various new series over and over again.
GHOSTWRITING: This is how I really earn my living, so I can’t walk away from this. (Yet.) Two of my ghosted books came out in 2013: Blind Spot, a nonfiction science book written with Dr. Gordon Rugg, and another deep-ghost title written for a guy in the sports-entertainment field. The sports figure dude’s fans are not traditional book buyers. They don’t walk into bookstores often, if ever. They don’t shop on Amazon either. But they do buy his hardcover at full price at sporting events because they perceive it as a collectible. Dr. Rugg’s book is doing well among academic libraries and ebook buyers who snag anything dealing with the realm of computer science. A book Denise ghosted for a veteran actress also pubbed in 2013. I’ve already lined up one paying project for 2014. Won’t know if I can talk about it until I see the contract.
ATOMIC: The big story in our household in 2013 was the success of Denise’s book, The Girls of Atomic City. It hit the NYT Bestseller list multiple times. Denise is gearing up for another tour in March when the ebook and audiobook pub. I won’t be going on as many trips with her this time around, and thus hope to maintain a fairly steady workflow.
FRIENDS & FAMILY: When Denise’s book hit the bestseller list, some friends here in town threw her a party. “It feels good to know that it can happen to someone you know,” one of them said. I feel the same way, and 2013 saw two friends hit lists. Robert Swartwood became a USA Today bestseller with his book The Serial-Killer’s Wife. Susan Kushner Resnick, a friend from my college days, hit the New York Times Bestseller list for her nonfiction book, You Saved Me, Too.
In 2013 my parents sold their home in New Jersey and moved west to California, leaving me a Jersey orphan. I no longer have a place to crash when I’m in the New York City area, but they will be happier living among their grandkids in warmer climes.
In 2013, we lost more friends. One was Bill Wilcox, a nonagenarian historian Denise befriended during the writing of Atomic. He was a good man with a fine mind, and I’ll miss him.
So yeah, 2013: good things, sad things. Like every year that ever was. As I said earlier: When do we ever get to choose what life slings at us?
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