Walter H. Hopgood's Blog

Today's the launch of my new book, Migration: Knowledge!  I'm really happy with the book, and am sitting back anxiously, hoping to hear good things from readers.  So if you're interested, head over to Amazon and pick it up!

For the first three months, Migration: Knowledge will be available only on Amazon.com.  You can pick it up through Amazon for $1.99, or you can read it for free through Kindle Unlimited.  After an initial period, the book will become available worldwide on other platforms.

Here's the blurb:

So it's been a while since I posted, and lots have happened. First of all, I've released an audiobook for Migration: Beginnings, so please give it a listen! And for people who are interested in getting a look at what the characters from the series look like, click here to see an artistic rendition of Rhys, Jason, and their co-horts.

Oh, yeah, and the sequel, called Migration: Knowledge comes out on Tuesday, October 1st! More on that soon!

So the sequel to Migration: Beginnings is finally at a stage where I can send it to beta readers. The only thing is, I’m so small time that I don’t have a following like more prolific authors do. It took a couple of years to get the sequel finished, and even before then, the original book was published in 2016, then rewritten from scratch and republished in 2018. Yes, I’m a wee bit slow – but I’m working on it!

The new book, Migration: Knowledge, is ready to go, with the exception of a final edit by a professional editor (which is scheduled for mid next month) and currently there’s no cover art. Hopefully that will be resolved asap as well.

If you’re interested, ping me! Message me online (Twitter, my website, etc) and I can get you a copy!

Migration: Beginnings has been re-released! The long overdue task of completely rewriting from scratch, as well as including updates that brings it into alignment with the principals of the awesome book, ‘Take Off Your Pants’ is complete. So the newly edited book, along with the gorgeous new book cover, is live at the online bookstore of your choosing.

Additionally, if you have the Kindle version, or one from Smashwords, iTunes, B&N or the like, updated manuscripts have been sent out to these entities. The updated version should be downloaded to your device, along with the gorgeous new cover!

Okay, so when I first got to publishing, I had no idea what I was doing. Then I got a few pointers from people, read some books, etc. And now I still have no idea what I'm doing, but at least I think my writing has gotten better!

As such, Migration: Beginnings was rewritten from scratch for two reasons. First, many people like me who tend to read in present tense can read either present tense or past tense without issue. But people who prefer past tense typically (at least from the feedback others have given me) detest present tense written books.

I know, right? Who knew?

But beyond the entire rewrite, I also went through the principals of Take Off Your Pants by Libbie Hawker and realized that hey - Migration wasn't ready. So after the rewrite, I then went back and added in stuff that Hawker extolls in her book. And I think it's made all the difference.

So now that that's done, I have one last read-through before I'm done. But I'd also like to get other's feedback as well. So if you're interested in a pre-release copy of the Migration: Beginnings rewrite, drop me a note and I'll be happy to get you one as long as you promise to send me feedback.

So many people like and use the Kindle format, either on a Kindle reader itself or within the Kindle app.  I tend to read that way, because it can keep track of your progress in a book, sync with Goodreads, among other things.  But the thing for me is, it doesn't sync between devices - at least not for books that you don't get from Amazon.  And if you take part in ARC (advance reading copies) programs or downloads from Instafreebies or the like, then that book stays on the device you downloaded it to and doesn't get shared with your other devices.

Which is why I'm happy to announce that Migration: Beginnings is now available on not just Kindle, but iBooks, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and even libraries starting Tuesday, March 7th!  The book is live in many of these bookstores, but get delivered to Kobo and libraries starting tomorrow.  And as a special for libraries, I've made the books free.  So if you're interested in reading from your local library (many of which take advantage of the Overdrive reading app), you should be able to download a copy and read it from your libraries starting soon.

Hope this makes people's Mondays just a bit better!

edit: There's now a 25% off coupon good for Migration: Beginnings over at Smashwords. Follow this link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/704954 and then apply coupon YP66G when prompted. Coupon good through March 31st!

Originally posted to my personal blog at: https://www.walterwrites.com/2017/03/06/not-a-fan-of-the-kindle-thats-okay/

Oh man... So when I wrote 'Migration: Beginnings', all I had was the whiteboard (which I told you about in the first Vlog that I produced), and my notes that I typed up and kept in a Microsoft Word document. And that's all I really needed. Why? Because it was so fresh in my head, that I never doubted a thing.

And then I finished the book, read quite a lot, and have written other stuff since then that's not related to Migration. So when I went to write out something about Rhys, the lead character from Migration, I suddenly had to know what college he went to - where he got his undergrad work, and where he got his PhD. (Turns out that it was Boston College for the undergrad, and University of California, Berkeley for his PhD - if you were curious). I used to know these items in great detail, even though they weren't a part of the book. It was still something that was in my head.

That's why you should always start a book with not only an outline, but a character biography. Just a single page that tells you everything you need to know about the person. And I've started doing them now, in anticipation of continuing the sequel to Migration: Beginnings. Like for instance, Jason is the middle child of three, was voted his high school's class clown, and went to the University of Washingon. Whereas Captain Clarice Franks is bisexual, was born in Germany but on a US Military base, and has wanted to fly ever since her father took her up in his private plane when she was barely out of diapers.

Proper preparation, y'all!

Originally posted on my personal blog.

Trying something new; here's my very first video blog, introducing myself a bit, as well as a bit about my writing process.

Since embedding here on Goodreads doesn't seem to work, head over to view is over here to view it: https://www.walterwrites.com/2017/02/26/video-log-1-introductions/

We get the inspiration to write from all sorts of places. One such place for me is a Livejournal community called "Get Your Words Out." Any kind of inspiration is a good thing, right?

So someone prompted me with an image of two women sitting on a windowsill. I gazed at the image the first day it was assigned to me - and felt nothing. It just hadn't grabbed my attention at all.

And then this morning, as the airplane hurtled us at a few hundred miles per hour at 35,000 feet above the earth, it came to me; a beautiful little scene between Rhys and Jason from Migration: Beginnings. Only it's set years before, when they were just a new couple taking their first vacation together.

If you're interested, please head over to my blog to write the snippet. The link is located at this link: https://www.walterwrites.com/2017/02/20/ficlet-from-migration-verse-an-italian-afternoon/

And while you're there, if you'd like to sign up for my newsletter, that would be great.

This ficlet will probably end up in a prequel to Migration: Beginnings, which I plan on releasing prior to the next book in the series, Migration: Knowledge.

There's something to be said about writing, in that it's not something you can just automatically sit down and do.  Okay, so there are some people that can do it, but not everyone.  If it's your sole job, and sole source of income, then yes - maybe you can absolutely do that.  But for the rest of us, it's quite a different process.  I've been thinking since my last post about what gets me to write - what inspires me.  And a lot of the times besides reading, it's movies that really get my imagination going.

Being named Walter, a favorite movie growing up was Danny Kay's 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty' from 1947.  It was something I could watch as a kid, and enjoy a laugh.  Danny Kay always captured the viewer's imagination, so this role endeared him to many, myself included.

I was quite wary when I heard they were going to remake the movie, because typically remakes are soulless, corporate cookie-cutter patterns for maximizing profit.  Many in the entertainment community have strayed away from the thought of entertainment and stayed in the realm of maximizing profit.  That's why there may be good movies here and there, but not behind every curtain.  A movie is supposed to capture your imagination.  Inspire you.  Make you look at the world differently.  But today, many movies are the exact opposite; just a 120-minute diversion from the mundanity of life.

That's what made Ben Stiller's 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty' so very, very different.  You saw Stiller's portrayal of Mitty as someone like yourself (or at least I did), sitting in a sterile environment, wanting something, but never taking a chance.  I won't give away the movie (though it's been out nearly four years; if you haven't seen it, you should!), but I want to say the setting of Life Magazine was perfect.  Walter Mitty worked at Life, but he wasn't experiencing life - until he finally took the chance.

For me, the quote that originally came from Thurber's short story and then adapted for the movie is the epitome of what it is to be alive - what it is to not just live life but to experience it.

To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life.

Beautiful.  Just beautiful!  Not to mention inspiring!

Originally posted at my blog.