Trade

[hassata]

Hi guys:

 

I've just finished a book I've been working on for a while now. I consider the ED forums one of my regular hangouts, and feel I've gotten to know some of you through your posts over the years. I felt this would be the best place to test the waters, and hope this won't be considered spam.

 

It's a quick read and is free to Amazon Prime members, $2.99 for everyone else. I hope you give it a go, and if you like it, tell your friends. Otherwise, keep it to yourselves :D.

 

P.S. Needless to say, there is a shout out to the Warthog :).

 

Kindle

Tumblr

Twitter

 

Edit:

Amazon Germany

Amazon France

Amazon Spain

Amazon Italy

 

Author’s Note

 

"This story takes place in an alternate universe very much like our own. Many of the passages are however based upon actual events. As is often the case in fiction, these seem the most implausible and contrived. A random few amongst them:

 

Brown-brown is a gunpowder and cocaine cocktail that is sometimes sewn under the skin of child soldiers in Sierra Leone; initiates into the Lord’s Resistance Army reportedly wear coats made from the skin of their first kill; a crack-cocaine syndicate espousing Five-Percenter ideology ran rampant through Queens in the eighties;

 

a Central American death squad reportedly worshiped Tony Montana;

 

Nuclear targeting data stolen by Jonathan Pollard was reportedly exchanged by Israel for Russian exit visas;

 

A friendly fire incident resulting from a re-set GPS unit almost killed Hamid Karzai;

 

A squad of three Chechens dressed in black successfully assaulted a fortified Northern Alliance position without firing a single bullet. This incident is recounted in Gary Shroen’s, First In: An Insider’s Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan. Details from Shroen’s account (such as the helicopter’s unofficial and creative tail number as well as the team’s predilection for Cipro pills and Tabasco sauce) are used to lend color to the relevant passages; are used to lend color to the relevant passages;

 

RAF leaflet and US Aid drops have resulted in the death and injury of several Afghans;

 

The rebel advance through the minefield is based upon an incident from the Second Chechen War. Footage exists of subsequent amputations without benefit of anesthesia. The surgeon involved, Khassan Baiev, wrote a searing memoir titled, The Oath: A Surgeon Under Fire;

 

The recollections immediately prior to the minefield incident are based upon the 1996 battle for Grozny;

 

There are claims that the Mexican government has in the past auctioned off rights to transact in illegal drugs within its borders; Amado Fuentes, known as Lord of the Skies, reportedly had no issues with loosing a plane per shipment of large consignments of cocaine; and

 

A video or audio recording of children being sexually assaulted in a US-run facility reportedly exists, and was amongst the items successfully suppressed by the Bush Administration in the wake of Abu Ghraib.

 

The Epigraph is from a standard English translation of, To a Mouse, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest with the Plough, by Robert Burns. John le Carré, author of many a field manual, commented on renting policies as they relate to Arabs. Elmore Leonard wrote about ‘hanging’ in a firefight.

 

The attorneys I had the privilege of working with are amongst the most professional and conscientious, and bear no resemblance to the characters depicted in this novel."

Edited January 13, 2012 by hassata

[monotwix]

I would love to read the book when I get the time but I’m worried about the information scope which could interfere with my emotions.:crazy:

[cichlidfan]

It looks like the kind of thing I would read so I picked it up. Prime members can only borrow for free so I contributed to the cause and paid for it.

 

I will definately let you know what I think but I applaud your courage in publishing regardless of what I might end up thnking of the book.

[hassata]

I’m worried about the information scope which could interfere with my emotions.:crazy:

 

But only in a good way, promise.

 

I contributed to the cause and paid for it

 

Thanks man, really means a lot.

 

I applaud your courage in publishing regardless of what I might end up thnking of the book.

 

I applaud your courage in springing for it :D. Please post back-all comments welcome, and I value your input. I sincerely hope you enjoy it, and keep in mind a lot of it is tongue in cheek (especially re the A-10 pilot. You'll see lol).

[cichlidfan]

I am sure you are better writer than my current read.

 

The translated autobiography of Manfred Von Richtofen. It is interesting but he is certainly no wordsmith.;)

[manfrez01]

wow!!!

I must to read this, sound very interesting to me.

[hassata]

Can't give reps guys, but really appreciate the support.

[hassata]

Many thanks to everyone who has bought/will buy the book. Off to a great start! Below is the A-10 excerpt. Just keep in mind this isn't a techno-thriller, there's a bit of satire going on, and these 300 words are pretty much all that relates to aviation. Head over to Tumblr for another excerpt, and if you feel like supporting the cause, here you go: Trade!

 

Edit: anyone who is reading or has read the book, feel free to post your thoughts, reviews (good/bad) or anything else related.

 

 

"The XO got the nod and had Mudman rolling inside of twenty. No wingman, no flight plan, and no clearance, not even from the tower, the XO was that good.

 

Mudman makes sure to squirt a little into the piddle pack before stepping. Below twelve thousand on his way to twenty-two five, he likes to fire up a Menthol and the Piddle Pack is the ashtray.

 

How the hell had he gotten so lucky? He’d wanted to fly bad enough to give up the drugs. Turns out the two weren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, party time in the Air Force was fully funded. Temazepam for the hypnotic, Zolpidem for the straight-eight, Zaleplon for the quickie. And speed, lots. All in all, a pretty wonderful world for a reformed club kid turned fighter pilot.

 

An hour later, teeth grinding, synapses popping, Mudman is at the Initial. Time to play the piccolo. He powers up the two D’s, flips the Master Arm, then uncages. Mudman drops to nape of the earth for the run across the border. Three minutes, forty seconds later, he pops up and rolls for acquisition. Level now, he begins to slew. Left to right, up, right to left. Mudman is where he’s supposed to be, but the briefed target is small and he’s basically looking through a straw.

 

He needn’t have worried. Ten seconds into the extended run-in, the Maverick’s IR optics pick up an ungodly signature. Hell are those sand-monkeys doing down there anyway, he wonders, though not for long.

 

Mudman narrows the field of view, ground stabilizes, then slews a hair and gets his lock. This was going to be a strictly one-pass affair. Mudman starts the chaff-flare program, wills the range caret down, pickles, then immediately re-acquires and pickles for one more.

 

Mudman breaks one-eighty for home, he’s that confident."

Edited January 5, 2012 by hassata

[leafer]

How did you publish your own writing? I'm in the process of turning one of my scripts to a novel.

[EtherealN]

leafer: https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/help

 

Not sure if that's the option hassata used, but there's one way to self-publish. What you basically need is bank accounts in the relevant sales regions, and possibly some paperwork for the US tax services (to claim youir tax money to avoid getting taxed both in the US and in your own country). You get to decide on your price (within some guidelines), and there are plans giving you either 35% or 70% on sales revenue (region-dependent).

[leafer]

EtherealN, ready or not I'm going to give you a man-hug. Thank you!

[hassata]

Exactly as EtherealN said. It's extremely easy, and just blows the traditional route (find an agent, find a publisher, get cents on a book sold for $15+) out of the water. Even after taxes, you get about a third of the price. After much research, I decided the best price to generate sales and revenue was 2.99, although many advise pricing at .99 to sell and get your name out there. I chose 70% and also opted into letting Prime members borrow the book for free (you get a share of the pice each month depending on copies lent, but you have to give amazon exclusivity for 3 months. No biggie, as they will be responsible for upwards of 95% if not more of your sales). There's other fun stuff, including designing a cover and putting together a Twitter and Blog presence. In short, no money down for doing something you love. Very easy and straight forward, just go by the FAQ EtherealN posted.

 

Also, I highly, highly, highly recommend you write using this software: Scrivener. Apart from being a tremendous tool, it allows you to export to Kindle format and the press of a button (something that would otherwise take a long time and much trial and error).

 

Good luck, and I look forward to reading it!

 

God bless Google, Wikipedia, and Amazon :D.

[leafer]

From what I've read, anything beats traditional route. I kept reading that getting an agent or anyone in the movie business for that matter to read your script is next to impossible for a unpublished writer, and I'm guessing it's the same for a writer trying to land a book deal.

 

This is great, hassata. I was all set to blog my stuff for people to read for free but this is better. Thanks for the information and I'll definitely check out yours.

 

:thumbup:

[hassata]

From what I've read, anything beats traditional route. I kept reading that getting an agent or anyone in the movie business for that matter to read your script is next to impossible for a unpublished writer, and I'm guessing it's the same for a writer trying to land a book deal.

 

Pretty much winning the lottery, and just outdated. I think it's comparable to brick and mortar record stores-remember those? You're better off putting together a song on your computer and uploading to iTunes as compared with a record company advancing you some party money than shafting you on the backend as was the custom. Books are headed that way, I believe.

 

I was all set to blog my stuff for people to read for free but this is better.

 

Even after you publish, I think it's still a good idea to blog some of the good stuff for free ("Freemium") to generate interest.

 

Thanks for the information and I'll definitely check out yours.

 

Thanks-please post your thoughts/reviews in this thread and hopefully get some of the other members to take the plunge. Each early purchase counts to get visibility and move the book up the ranks. So come on guys, please pitch in with either a free rental or $2.99!

[hassata]

I am trying to hit fifty sales this week. To try and encourage those on the fence, I will send a free copy to anyone here who is a quick read and would be willing to post a review for the other members. First in with the PM.

 

Again, thanks for all the support guys.

[leafer]

Try posting at http://absolutewrite.com/forums/.

[hassata]

Thanks-that looks good!

[leafer]

Yeap. You can post the first ten pages to be critiqued. Beware of grmmar gods though. :D

[hassata]

Hi guys. Things are moving. I received a like and a re-blog from the tumblr blogs below, which are the fiction 'hubs.' I don't now how tumblr fiction found me, as I hadn't tagged anything yet, nor did I have any followers. This has generated more interest and sales! I want to ask again, if any of you are on the fence, or have any interest in a good yarn, or want to support a fellow simmer, please purchase or borrow as soon as you can. Early sales boost rankings dis-proportionately

 

It's a good story and a quick read and you will (I hope) thoroughly enjoy it. And it's the price of a cup of coffee (or even free for Prime Members).

 

Thanks all!

 

http://tumblrfiction.tumblr.com/post/15429369574/ingress

http://velvetblory.co.uk/

[AlphaOneSix]

This incident is recounted in Gary Shroen’s, First In: An Insider’s Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan. Details from Shroen’s account (such as the helicopter tail number and a predilection for Cipro pills and Tabasco sauce) are used to lend color to the relevant passages;

 

The tail number of that aircraft (91101) was not official in any way, one of the flight mechanics just painted it on the aircraft as a tribute/reminder. Not trying to derail or anything, but it seemed as though it might be perceived as some kind of random coincidence, which it wasn't. Sorry for the interruption. ;)

[hassata]

That's absolutely right. Fixed on the blog and will be in the next revision to the book.

 

Edit: The book has gone from 298.9 thousand to 92.8 thousand in rank. If anyone here has finished it, please rate it and leave a blurb (good or bad) on Amazon. Thanks!

Edited January 9, 2012 by hassata

[hassata]

Up to 80K! Anyone who bought it, please leave a review-it really helps with sales. And for those who haven't, please give it a shot.

 

Thanks!

[hassata]

First review up. Wasn't me-I Swear :D.

 

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Trade (Kindle Edition)

 

Highly recommended. Excellently written with an amazing grasp of the facts and what really goes on in the shadowy world of intelligence. Many a time I had to remind myself that this is only fiction. It is so real that you will question whether you are reading history or fiction. When is the movie coming out??

[Jona33]

First review up. Wasn't me-I Swear :D.

 

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Trade (Kindle Edition)

 

Highly recommended. Excellently written with an amazing grasp of the facts and what really goes on in the shadowy world of intelligence. Many a time I had to remind myself that this is only fiction. It is so real that you will question whether you are reading history or fiction. When is the movie coming out??

 

That's a good review. Nice work with getting up to 80K as well. :D

[hassata]

Yeah-never thought I'd be happy being 79,999th runner up lol.