NEWS ARCHIVE
Richard Stilman release week
So now that the dust has settled, how did launch week go? If you were following on Twitter or Facebook, you'll know that it turned out to be very exciting.
You've been downloading The Sixth Richard Stilman in droves and you seem to be enjoying it. It'll stay free here and there's already another Leo Self Mystery being written as we speak.
The real success story of the week was the two-day free giveaway of The Ultimate Dreamer. It was downloaded in nine countries around the world including, for the first time, Australia, India and Mexico, and performed very well in the Amazon charts. In Japan it reached #18 in the Humour chart and was #17 in the Italian Fantasy chart. The book's first Indian downloads propelled it to #7 in the Fantasy chart and #387 in the overall free Kindle chart (which is much better than it sounds considering the number of books available and the size of the country). German downloads saw it reach #32 in the Fantasy chart and #7 in Humour. Its first appearance in Australia made a respectable #264 in the overall chart, #18 in Fantasy and #4 in Humour. In the UK it reached #492 in the overall chart, #4 in Sword & Sorcery and #3 in Contemporary Fantasy. By far the highest number of downloads was in the US, where the book climbed to a remarkable #109 overall, #3 in Gene-ral Humour and #2 in Sword & Sorcery. Canadian readers took it to #129 overall and #2 in Fantasy. Finally, in Mexico it made #158 overall and, from its first ever downloads in that country, reached #1 in the Fantasy, Horror & Science Fiction chart. All of this meant that, in just two days, The Ultimate Dreamer quadrupled its previous readership! That's an incredible performance and way beyond any expectations.
The surprise story of the week was the free giveaway of Death Us Do Part. This was the first time I'd given it away and I wasn't sure how it would go as most people don't read plays unless they're taking literature courses, or theatre companies looking for some-thing to perform. As expected, the numbers weren't anywhere near those of The Ultimate Dreamer but it did increase its readership elevenfold. More than that, it made some impressive chart showings of its own, reaching a respectable #77 in the US Drama and Plays and #22 in Theatre, #59 in the UK Drama & Plays, #8 in Canada's Theatre chart and #6 in the German Performing Arts chart.
Thanks to everyone who retweeted, shared links or spread the word by any other means. And thanks to everyone who down-loaded and read any of my books this week. If you're here for the first time then I hope you've enjoyed what you've seen enough to check out my other works and stick around waiting for the next one. There's plenty more to come, including the second Leo Self Mystery, the sequel to The Ultimate Dreamer (The Light Beneath the Waves), my third novel (it's about cats) and my contributions to Dene Kernohan's Columbo fan book.
You've been downloading The Sixth Richard Stilman in droves and you seem to be enjoying it. It'll stay free here and there's already another Leo Self Mystery being written as we speak.
The real success story of the week was the two-day free giveaway of The Ultimate Dreamer. It was downloaded in nine countries around the world including, for the first time, Australia, India and Mexico, and performed very well in the Amazon charts. In Japan it reached #18 in the Humour chart and was #17 in the Italian Fantasy chart. The book's first Indian downloads propelled it to #7 in the Fantasy chart and #387 in the overall free Kindle chart (which is much better than it sounds considering the number of books available and the size of the country). German downloads saw it reach #32 in the Fantasy chart and #7 in Humour. Its first appearance in Australia made a respectable #264 in the overall chart, #18 in Fantasy and #4 in Humour. In the UK it reached #492 in the overall chart, #4 in Sword & Sorcery and #3 in Contemporary Fantasy. By far the highest number of downloads was in the US, where the book climbed to a remarkable #109 overall, #3 in Gene-ral Humour and #2 in Sword & Sorcery. Canadian readers took it to #129 overall and #2 in Fantasy. Finally, in Mexico it made #158 overall and, from its first ever downloads in that country, reached #1 in the Fantasy, Horror & Science Fiction chart. All of this meant that, in just two days, The Ultimate Dreamer quadrupled its previous readership! That's an incredible performance and way beyond any expectations.
The surprise story of the week was the free giveaway of Death Us Do Part. This was the first time I'd given it away and I wasn't sure how it would go as most people don't read plays unless they're taking literature courses, or theatre companies looking for some-thing to perform. As expected, the numbers weren't anywhere near those of The Ultimate Dreamer but it did increase its readership elevenfold. More than that, it made some impressive chart showings of its own, reaching a respectable #77 in the US Drama and Plays and #22 in Theatre, #59 in the UK Drama & Plays, #8 in Canada's Theatre chart and #6 in the German Performing Arts chart.
Thanks to everyone who retweeted, shared links or spread the word by any other means. And thanks to everyone who down-loaded and read any of my books this week. If you're here for the first time then I hope you've enjoyed what you've seen enough to check out my other works and stick around waiting for the next one. There's plenty more to come, including the second Leo Self Mystery, the sequel to The Ultimate Dreamer (The Light Beneath the Waves), my third novel (it's about cats) and my contributions to Dene Kernohan's Columbo fan book.
The Sixth Richard Stilman now available
The Sixth Richard Stilman, the first Leo Self mystery, is now available free in the Downloads section. There's a Kindle edition, an epub edition for all other eBook read-ers and also a pdf edition.
The eBook is completely free as a thank you to everyone who's supported me. Please tell everyone you can so that as many people as possible read it. But I'd be grateful if you don't just pass the files on to other people. Instead give them the link so they'll come here and download it for themselves. (If, on the other hand, you know some-one who won't go to the effort of coming here, just give them the book: the most important thing is that it gets read.)
Also tell them that the Kindle editions of my novel, The Ultimate Dreamer, will be free on Amazon on Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th July; and then the Kindle edition of my play, Death Us Do Part, will be free on Amazon on Thursday 10th and Friday 11th July.
This is the first time we've tried anything like this so there are bound to be teething troubles. Please report any problems (or tips) to me here, on Twitter or on Facebook and everyone can help each other out.
I'll be around all week to hear your opinions, answer questions or just chat about any of my writing. I'll also be posting a few bits and bobs relating to the new story as the week goes on.
Most of all, enjoy the story. And thanks for reading it.
The eBook is completely free as a thank you to everyone who's supported me. Please tell everyone you can so that as many people as possible read it. But I'd be grateful if you don't just pass the files on to other people. Instead give them the link so they'll come here and download it for themselves. (If, on the other hand, you know some-one who won't go to the effort of coming here, just give them the book: the most important thing is that it gets read.)
Also tell them that the Kindle editions of my novel, The Ultimate Dreamer, will be free on Amazon on Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th July; and then the Kindle edition of my play, Death Us Do Part, will be free on Amazon on Thursday 10th and Friday 11th July.
This is the first time we've tried anything like this so there are bound to be teething troubles. Please report any problems (or tips) to me here, on Twitter or on Facebook and everyone can help each other out.
I'll be around all week to hear your opinions, answer questions or just chat about any of my writing. I'll also be posting a few bits and bobs relating to the new story as the week goes on.
Most of all, enjoy the story. And thanks for reading it.
More information on The Sixth Richard Stilman release
I can now confirm details of the free Kindle giveaways during The Sixth Richard Stilman launch week. The short story itself will be released on 8th July. On the same day, my novel The Ultimate Dreamer will be available free from Amazon for two days. On the following two days, my play Death Us Do Part will be free. Remember, the free giveaways are Kindle editions only. So the important dates are as follows:
8th July - The Sixth Richard Stilman released
8th-9th July - The Ultimate Dreamer free giveaway
10th-11th July - Death Us Do Part free giveaway
Please tell everyone and share the news on your social media sites. This is the first time I've done a giveaway for Death Us Do Part, and plays don't usually sell much beyond theatre companies and literature classes so it'll be interesting to see how it does.
I'll be adding links to free e-reader software for those who don't have e-readers. If you have a PC, laptop, Mac, tablet or mobile phone you should be able to read all three using one of the previewers.
8th July - The Sixth Richard Stilman released
8th-9th July - The Ultimate Dreamer free giveaway
10th-11th July - Death Us Do Part free giveaway
Please tell everyone and share the news on your social media sites. This is the first time I've done a giveaway for Death Us Do Part, and plays don't usually sell much beyond theatre companies and literature classes so it'll be interesting to see how it does.
I'll be adding links to free e-reader software for those who don't have e-readers. If you have a PC, laptop, Mac, tablet or mobile phone you should be able to read all three using one of the previewers.
The Sixth Richard Stilman to be released 8th July
My new short story, The Sixth Richard Stilman, will be available free and exclusively on my website from 8th July. You won't be able to get it on Amazon or anywhere else and it won't cost you a penny. It's a thank you to everyone who's supported me this far. It's too short to release in paperback but, as usual, there will be a Kindle edition and this time it'll also be available for all other eBook readers. For those who don't have an eBook reader, there'll be the option of a pdf version or a free eBook previewer that you can use on your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone.
The story is a contemporary crime mystery starring my new private detective character Leo Self and his assistant Karen Aspen, who also narrates, and it'll be the first in an ongoing series of Leo Self mysteries, all to be released here for free.
During launch week there'll be free giveaways of The Ultimate Dreamer and Death Us Do Part, as well as a few other exclusives, and watch out over the coming weeks for gradual changes to the website.
And yes, that is an origami penguin being menaced by its own shadow. We like to think of it as penguin noir.
The story is a contemporary crime mystery starring my new private detective character Leo Self and his assistant Karen Aspen, who also narrates, and it'll be the first in an ongoing series of Leo Self mysteries, all to be released here for free.
During launch week there'll be free giveaways of The Ultimate Dreamer and Death Us Do Part, as well as a few other exclusives, and watch out over the coming weeks for gradual changes to the website.
And yes, that is an origami penguin being menaced by its own shadow. We like to think of it as penguin noir.
Death Us Do Part out now
Death Us Do Part is now available to buy worldwide from Amazon in paperback and for Kindle. You can also order the paperback from Createspace. The Amazon UK link is below. Links for other countries and Createspace are on the Twitter feed.
Death Us Do Part is now available to buy worldwide from Amazon in paperback and for Kindle. You can also order the paperback from Createspace. The Amazon UK link is below. Links for other countries and Createspace are on the Twitter feed.
Death Us Do Part will be published on Friday 7th February
It will be available for Kindle and in paperback. I'll post links nearer the time.
For the two days immediately before the release - Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th February - the Kindle edition of The Ultimate Dreamer will be available to download free from Amazon. Again I'll post links nearer the time.
I'll be posting reminders over the coming weeks but please start sharing this now via social media, email, internet forums, word of mouth etc. On Twitter you can use the hashtags #DeathUsDoPart and #UltimateDreamer. Spread the word!
It will be available for Kindle and in paperback. I'll post links nearer the time.
For the two days immediately before the release - Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th February - the Kindle edition of The Ultimate Dreamer will be available to download free from Amazon. Again I'll post links nearer the time.
I'll be posting reminders over the coming weeks but please start sharing this now via social media, email, internet forums, word of mouth etc. On Twitter you can use the hashtags #DeathUsDoPart and #UltimateDreamer. Spread the word!
And here's the back cover
As promised, here's the cover for Death Us Do Part. The image is another collaboration with Phil Scary (we came up with the design between us, he photographed the fire, I did the rest) and we rather like it. Hope you do too.
Death Us Do Part cover to be unveiled on New Year's Day
I know it's been a bit quiet here lately but I've been busy writing and finally have something to show for it. The play Death Us Do Part will be published soon and, to whet your appetites, the cover will be unveiled on New Year's Day. The publication date will be announced as soon as possible after that.
I know it's been a bit quiet here lately but I've been busy writing and finally have something to show for it. The play Death Us Do Part will be published soon and, to whet your appetites, the cover will be unveiled on New Year's Day. The publication date will be announced as soon as possible after that.
Buy one get one free. Sort of.
Thanks to Amazon's new Kindle MatchBook feature, if you buy The Ultimate Dreamer in paperback, you'll now get a free Kindle download too. Expect the same for future releases.
Big in Japan
A second free Kindle giveaway of The Ultimate Dreamer proved to be a huge success. We weren't sure if lightning would strike twice but this one was even better than the first. Despite being a day shorter, there were almost as many downloads, which means that the average number of downloads per day increased by half. The book performed strongly in the free Kindle charts of several countries. It made a respectable #63 in Canada's fantasy chart but its real successes were in the humour charts, where it reached #24 in the US, #17 in the UK, #4 in Germany and an incredible #1 in Japan! We could never have expected that. As a thanks to everyone who helped or took part, click here to read an exclusive preview of the sequel!
The Ultimate Dreamer to be translated into German
A German language edition of The Ultimate Dreamer is being prepared at this very moment by native German speaker Jochen Friedrichs and his team. It's too early to say when it'll be available but Jochen has already reached Kharesh two days early and is making fast progress. The English language edition has already attracted readers in Germany, so soon they'll be able to read it in their own language, which will hopefully bring in more German readers. The German title will be Der Meisterträumer.
Competition winner
The signed copy of The Ultimate Dreamer has been won by Michele Brine (better known to some of you as Wessexy Witch). We loved all the entries, particularly the variety, and it was a difficult choice but Stuart and Phil Scary eventually picked Michele's picture because, as well as being a great - and quite big - dragon and obviously having taken a whole school class a lot of time and effort, it just made them smile. Thanks to everyone who entered and congratulations to Michele - and her class (who we're sure she'll be sharing her prize with).
A message from Stuart about the price increase
Anyone looking at the Amazon ebook listing for The Ultimate Dreamer will notice that, in the wake of the free give-away, the price has gone up from 99p to £2.99 (or comparable prices in other territories). I thought I'd better explain before the papers are full of headlines about my greed. It could happen! First, this isn't about profit - although it's true that I'll make more from each sale. But at this stage, money is way down the list of priorities below establishing an audience. And, believe it or not, a price increase could help with that. The ebook originally went on sale at the lowest possible price. This was because I knew that, to begin with, my audience would be people who know me or people who know people who know me. So selling for next to nothing encouraged them to buy. But, thanks to the giveaway, the book has now reached a global audience of people who don't know me. It's still a relatively small audience but hopefully now it'll expand as they tell their friends about it. But when people don't know you, 99p is actually an off-putting price. It makes the book look cheap and they might not buy. £2.99 is still a low price but at least looks like it might be worth the money. Ebooks priced at 99p don't really sell any more but ones priced at £2.99 do so hopefully a more professional-looking price will encourage potential new readers to buy and expand my audience. We'll see if it works.
The free give away was a huge success
The three day free Kindle giveaway has brought in hundreds of new readers worldwide from Canada and the US to Germany and the first readers in Japan. The Ultimate Dreamer reached #21 on the Amazon free Kindle store Humour chart in the UK and #40 in the US. Big thanks to everyone who took part.
Correction to paperback availability
Contrary to the information given below, it turns out that the paperback is available in all Amazon territories after all. Apologies for the confusion.
Paperback available on Amazon, first review and free ebook giveaway
The paperback edition of The Ultimate Dreamer is now available on Amazon UK and Amazon US and should appear on Amazon Europe soon. (Unfortunately it's not available in other Amazon territories - sorry to our Canadian customers but it's beyond our control.) As well as updated copyright information and thanks (see if your name is mentioned!), the paperback corrects some formatting problems, has the correct title page and an improved layout. The actual novel text is unchanged. This effectively makes it a second edition and so the Kindle version has been updated too. (For some reason the previews still show the old version but trust us, the new one looks much better).
Anyone who bought the first edition and would like to upgrade to the improved second edition can do so for free - as can everyone else because, from 13th-15th May*, the ebook will available absolutely FREE from Amazon. On those three days anyone downloading the Kindle edition won't have to pay a penny. Please tell everyone you know about the free giveaway as hopefully lots of people who might not have bought the book will take the opportunity of a freebie, helping it to reach more readers.
The competiton to win a signed paperback is still open and runs until 12th May.
Finally, the first review of The Ultimate Dreamer has appeared on Amazon from someone called Juju078, who called it "Brilliant" and gave it 5 stars. We're not sure who Juju078 is but thanks for such a glowing review.
*That's midnight to midnight US Pacific time. The exact times and dates will vary depending on your time zone. In the UK the giveaway should run from approximately 8am-8am 13th-16th May.
Anyone who bought the first edition and would like to upgrade to the improved second edition can do so for free - as can everyone else because, from 13th-15th May*, the ebook will available absolutely FREE from Amazon. On those three days anyone downloading the Kindle edition won't have to pay a penny. Please tell everyone you know about the free giveaway as hopefully lots of people who might not have bought the book will take the opportunity of a freebie, helping it to reach more readers.
The competiton to win a signed paperback is still open and runs until 12th May.
Finally, the first review of The Ultimate Dreamer has appeared on Amazon from someone called Juju078, who called it "Brilliant" and gave it 5 stars. We're not sure who Juju078 is but thanks for such a glowing review.
*That's midnight to midnight US Pacific time. The exact times and dates will vary depending on your time zone. In the UK the giveaway should run from approximately 8am-8am 13th-16th May.
The Ultimate Dreamer released in paperback
The Ultimate Dreamer was released in paperback today and is available to buy in the US from Create-space here. It will appear on Amazon sites worldwide in a few days and then be made available for distribution to other US outlets a few weeks after that. We'll let you know when the Amazon links go live and anywhere else that stocks the book. (NB despite what the Createspace listing says, this is technically the second edition as there are some layout changes from the currently available ebook version. More on that soon.)
Stuart on Goodreads
Stuart's Goodreads Author Profile is now active. There's also a button on this website's Ultimate Dreamer page to add the book to your Goodreads shelf and and a widget yo read any reviews posted there or to write one yourself.
Ultimate Dreamer on Goodreads
The Ultimate Dreamer is now listed on Goodreads. If you're a member there then please review it, re-commend it, start discussions and do anaything else you can to help it reach a wider audience. I'll be making use of their Author Programme to publicise it too.
Win a signed book
The Ultimate Dreamer will soon be available in paperback and we'll be giving away a signed copy.
Click here for details of our competition.
Click here for details of our competition.
The Ultimate Dreamer out now
The Ultimate Dreamer is now available to buy as an ebook for Kindle. Click the button to buy it now.
If you don't have a Kindle, you can still read it by downloading the free Kindle app for PC, Mac, tablet or smartphone. Click here to get the app.
If you don't have a Kindle, you can still read it by downloading the free Kindle app for PC, Mac, tablet or smartphone. Click here to get the app.