Scott Craven's Blog

I'm assembling a grassroots marketing campaign to get Dead Jed's word out to local teachers and school librarians. Hoping to soon score some Jed-branded posters, pens, magnets and such, dropping them off at schools with an offer to come out and speak to students -- for free! By the way, if anyone knows how to get a book listed with the Accelerated Reader program, I'd sure love to know.

While it's great to have your book just one click from new readers, I discovered the old-fashioned thrill of seeing your name shelved alphabetically.

Barnes and Noble recently stocked select Month9Books titles, including Dead Jed 2: Dawn of the Jed. I visited my local branch in Chandler, AZ and there it was. I mentioned it to the clerk, who said she could slap an "Autographed copy" sticker on it if I cared to sign it, which I already had even before she finished her sentence.

The single copy was filed under Teen Romance, though my tale of a middle-school zombie has few teens and even less romance (Jed still sticks his foot in his mouth -- even without detaching it -- when he talks to his girlfriend Anna). My half-full side told me the other 40 copies had already sold. And I told my half-empty side to shut up and enjoy it.

So I did. And I am. According to the BN website, the book also can be found at the Union Square store in NY. I imagine an end-cap with 50 copies.

Like the planet's other two billion books, Dead Jed 1-2 (with 3 coming in October) are available online. But it's nothing like seeing it in alphabetical order on a shelf.

Thank you, Barnes and Noble (and also to my local independent bookstore, Changing Hands in Tempe, a truly awesome retailer).

And my thanks to bookstores everywhere, independent and chain, that keep the bricks-and-mortar-and-shelves dream alive.

Dead Jed: Adventures of A Middle School Zombie

Dead Jed 2: Dawn of the Jed

I just finished the second round of edits for the third Dead Jed book. Or was it the third round of edits for the second book? No, I was right the first time.

My biggest worry at this point is making sure the Spanish within is correct. In the first draft, I depended on Google translate, which returned most of the necessary words in an awkward and ungrammatical way. Still, it was a start and allowed me to move on.

The key was sending the Spanish phrases to a friend of mine, who said of the original sentences, "Were you drunk on Mexican beer when you wrote these? Because if these phrases got behind the wheel at any time, they would be pulled over for DUI." He provided the necessary corrections, and I also rewrote a couple of English sentences to better match up with the translations. Funny how language works.

My agent had the brilliant idea of writing a few Dead Jed short stories, allowing people to test the middle-grade-zombie waters without investing in a book.

The challenge, of course, is to make sure any stories appeal to those who've never heard of Jed (the vast majority of readers) while meeting (what I hope are) the high expectations of people familiar with the undead 12-year-old.

I'm putting the finishing touches on the first one, in which Luke and Jed need to make some fast money for the latest tech gadget. There are formalities to figure out, but the hope is to have the story available for ebooks soon.

While it could be offered for free (my day job pays the bills, thank goodness), I'm thinking of charging 99 cents. I think a nominal investment encourages people to read, since they are more likely to delve into what they've paid for while ignoring all the free stories that may clog their ebooks.

I promise not to offer in-book purchases, like those annoying in-app purchases that wind up costing you far more than the "free" app is worth. So no, you won't have to pony up 20 cents for adverbs, or a buck for nouns. The ending will be included, rather than hitting a paywall demanding $2 to see how everything comes out.

If anyone has any ideas for further short-story subjects, please share. If I choose a plot, I'll send the winner an autographed copy of the Dead Jed book of his/her choice, and make them a character in that particular story.

Thanks for following.

I am fortunate to be a journalist by trade, with 35 years under my belt. I imagine my word count is somewhere in seven digits, and I am fortunate for each and every one of them.

Tough times have befallen the newspaper industry as it struggles to figure out how to make money in a digital world. My own newspaper, with a staff less than half the size it was just a decade ago, is reorganizing (again) to be a better fit for current reader needs.

As a result, I crafted my resume as I prepared to apply for a job on the new and improved organizational chart. After 30 years, I will go before a three-person panel in hopes of convincing them the last three decades were not a mistake, and that I still have a place in reporting.

I understand the changes, though it does not make the process any less difficult or stressful. I'll know in three weeks if I have a job offer, or if I am kindly told while my skills have value, they are no longer the best fit for the company.

Interesting times.

When I sat down more than five years ago to write a book for the first time, all I wanted to do was stick with it long enough to finish it. Writing a book is quite an accomplishment, right? How many people start one and never finish? I'm thinking, "Tons."

A friend of mine recently told me he's started doing some writing. His youngest just started school, so the stay-at-home dad now has five mornings free a week. Just one problem -- as much as he wants to write, he can't sit down for hours and dedicate himself to it.

Years ago I attended a lecture by author Ron Carlson, who then taught creative writing at Arizona State. I remember nothing of what he said except this -- "Before you sit down to write, dump a pile of dirt by your chair. Face the computer, hands on the keyboard. If you would rather clean that dirt than write, you're not ready. You have to get yourself to a place where that dirt can stay there for days, weeks."

The only way I was going to write a book was to ignore that metaphorical dirt. The only way that was going to happen was to adhere to a schedule.

Every Saturday and Sunday morning, after walking the dog and doing a few chores, I plopped myself in front of the computer and wrote. The deal I made for myself was this – writing to at least 2 p.m. and at least 500 words. Without fail I made that goal. Best weekend was around 4,000 words (when I finished the third book, plowing through the final scenes). Worst was just about 500. But every weekend I wrote without fail.

Another trick I used was to leave off at a point where the story's course was clear. I looked forward to the next bout of writing.

But there were many days I sat down having no idea where the plot was going. I filled time by surfing the web, toasting a couple cherry Pop Tarts, writing a few emails, and knowing all the while my self-imposed deadline loomed. So I started tapping stuff out. More often than not it was garbage, but about 300 words in everything started to make sense. I’d go back and rewrite the crap, and often I’d finish the day with 1,000 pretty halfway-decent words. Once that routine was established, I knew I wouldn’t feel very good if I skipped a day. So I didn’t.

I finished that book in six months. As I unnecessarily burned through ink to print it out, just to hold it in my hand, I felt an amazing sense of accomplishment.

For at least a week.

Then I thought, "Would anyone want to read this?"

That lead to a far different journey.