Coupon for free book

[plumboz]

Boomerang, my comic novel of international intrigue played out by characters operating way outside their comforts zones, has just reached Number Three on the Smashwords.com Best Seller List. And now I've got a coupon for MobileRead members to download it for free.

Smashwords supports multiple ebook formats, so it should work regardless of what you use to read your ebooks.

Here is what one reader on Amazon had to say about Boomerang.


From its great characters to its twisted plot, Boomerang is lots of fun. The humor and quirky characters are reminiscent of "The Big Lebowski" while the frenetic pacing brings to mind "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World." A missing boomerang is sought by a couple of down-on-their-luck jazz musicians, an albino assassin, two little old Australian ladies, the C.I.A. and a sexy cheerleader, not to mention the surviving members of a secret agency set up long ago by J. Edgar Hoover. The ensuing mayhem as they compete to recover the artifact, manages to be both amusing and exciting, not an easy thing for a writer to achieve. That said, I highly recommend this book. A great summer read!


I know, it's not summer anymore, but a fun read works regardless of the season!

Here's the link to Boomerang on Smashwords.

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/4167

And here's the coupon code: DL66H It's good through November 15, 2009

Thanks!
Alan

[Bilbo1967]

Alan, very kind.

Certainly looks like an interesting read and I've downloaded it and added it to my 'to be read' file.

Always good to have authors contributing to MR - especially those that give us free stuff

[plumboz]

Hi Bilbo, (great name, one of the best characters in all of literature),

I hope you enjoy Boomerang. The paperback has actually sold a little better in the UK than in the USA, which I'm not sure how to take, but since most of my favorite authors are Brits (Dickens, Wodehouse, Pratchett, Tolkien being but a few) I'm taking it as a supreme compliment!

Best,
Alan

P.S. I have been working very hard to make the files on Smashword as easy to read as possible, but I'm no computer nerd. So I would love to hear how it looks on whatever reading device you are using.

[zelda_pinwheel]

hi alan, bilbo said it very well, so i'll just second his thoughts and thank you again for the book, which looks like a great read ! i've added it to my list as well.

welcome to the forum ! we're always really happy to meet new authors, it's great to have you here. take a look around and jump into the discussion, you'll find we're a friendly bunch. and if you have any questions, we've also got some resident experts who can surely solve any problem you can come up with.

thanks again for the book ! you've named some of my favourite authors in your list there so i'm really looking forward to reading it if those are your influences.

[plumboz]

Zelda,

Thanks for the very nice welcome. I am a complete novice when it come to this ebook revolution, but I am trying to educate myself, and perhaps one day get an ebook device myself! As just about any Writer Who Also Has a Family and a Job That Actually Pays Money (not much) will tell you, the biggest challenge is finding the time to do all the things you have to do to promote your work and still have some time to do the by-golly writing!

So I will be stopping by when I can, mostly to try to further my education in all things ebook. If I've got a question, you can be sure I will ask.

Best,
Alan

[zelda_pinwheel]

don't worry about being a novice, alan, we all were one day. we're glad to have you here. i know how short days can be but please don't hesitate to stop by whenever you have a moment. there is plenty to learn here !

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by plumboz

Hi Bilbo, (great name, one of the best characters in all of literature),

I hope you enjoy Boomerang. The paperback has actually sold a little better in the UK than in the USA, which I'm not sure how to take, but since most of my favorite authors are Brits (Dickens, Wodehouse, Pratchett, Tolkien being but a few) I'm taking it as a supreme compliment!

Best,
Alan

P.S. I have been working very hard to make the files on Smashword as easy to read as possible, but I'm no computer nerd. So I would love to hear how it looks on whatever reading device you are using.

Thanks Alan.

I haven't read the book yet (obviously, having downloaded it about 15 minutes ago), but I have just flicked through it on my Sony PRS-505 in EPub format.

Looks OK, but I would just comment that there appear to be no page breaks between chapters etc - this doesn't really detract from the book, but at a first glance it's not ideal from my point of view Please don't take this as a criticism, really just trying to provide feedback on the formatting (not being an author myself and, more importantly, not having read the book yet, I wouldn't presume to comment on the writing!).

Wodehouse and Pratchett are two of my favourite authors. I'd also recommend Christopher Brookmyre as a contemporary British author. Amongst American authors, I think you'd have to go a long way to beat John Steinbeck and currently I thoroughly enjoy Carl Hiaasen's work.

[plumboz]

Thanks Bilbo,

I used the Style Guide provided by Smashwords. It emphasized that there should be no more than four or five "returns" between any blocks of text, including chapters. From my initial attempt at Kindle, which rendered great gobs of blank space, I took the Smashwords advice to heart!

I will certainly look into Brookmyre and I couldn't agree with you more about both Steinbeck and Hiaasen. My favorites by each are Travels with Charley and Nature Girl. I have performed in college and community productions of Of Mice and Men.

Alan

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by plumboz

Thanks Bilbo,

I used the Style Guide provided by Smashwords. It emphasized that there should be no more than four or five "returns" between any blocks of text, including chapters. From my initial attempt at Kindle, which rendered great gobs of blank space, I took the Smashwords advice to heart!

I will certainly look into Brookmyre and I couldn't agree with you more about both Steinbeck and Hiaasen. My favorites by each are Travels with Charley and Nature Girl. I have performed in college and community productions of Of Mice and Men.

Alan

Ah, OK, wasn't aware I was challenging Smashwords house style with my personal preferences. Just goes to show that you can't please all of the people all of the time

I think that The Grapes of Wrath is probably the best novel I have ever read, although if you want something a bit more light-hearted then I'd nominate Cannery Row or Tortilla Flat. Sick Puppy or Lucky You were probably my favourite Hiaasen reads.

[plumboz]

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

Ah, OK, wasn't aware I was challenging Smashwords house style with my personal preferences. Just goes to show that you can't please all of the people all of the time

Bilbo,

Don't think I'm not taking notes on this. I am sure that it is tough to make any book look great on all of the readers available now, but my goal is to make mine look as good and read as easily as I can possibly make it. So I appreciate your feedback.

Grapes of Wrath was kind of spoiled for me by being one of those Have To Read books in both high school and college. I can't think of just about any literary work that I was introduced to in that way that became a favorite. Personality flaw, I suppose!

If you like Hiaasen, have you read any of the Dortmunder novels by Donald E. Westlake? Don't Ask is, in my opinion a classic comic crime novel. The Dortmunder books are gentler than the Hiaasen's and don't have the environmental themes, they are just plain old fun.

Alan

[nomesque]

Ooooh - thanks! I've grabbed it.

And you're at #2 now

[plumboz]

Thank you, Nomesque. I hope you like it.

And thanks for the helpful hints. I will attend to them as soon as I can! Jobs, kids and the like tend to have their own time requirements!

Best,
Alan

[nomesque]

Originally Posted by plumboz

Thank you, Nomesque. I hope you like it.

And thanks for the helpful hints. I will attend to them as soon as I can! Jobs, kids and the like tend to have their own time requirements!

Boy, do I know THAT feeling... No worries, always happy to help out where I can.

[columbus]

for sharing your work Alan.

As always it is much appreciated

[animedude01]

Thanks for sharing Alan. I've added it to my TBR queue. I hope to get to it within this century