Category: Writing

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Help Wanted: Mounting Autograph Requests Call For Expansion

April 17, 2024|Authors, DSP Articles

Autograph requests in the Western genre are becoming more popular, and Charles Ray recently shared a very pleasant request he received from a reader who had recently finished a collaboration Charles had written with Harvey Wood called “Hell’s Fury.”

More of these requests have become commonplace as more and more readers turn to Western authors for their entertainment. This has occurred to the point that DSP has considered hiring a new assistant just to deal with this ever-increasing stack of reader requests.

If there’s an indication of popularity in a genre, then autograph requests and personal correspondence with readers are that indication. Judging by the time that is now spent corresponding with readers, Westerns are working their way back into the public’s heart.

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Fan mail

Writers write to be read, especially those who write in the western genre. The one thing western writers don’t think of, because they don’t get it, is fan mail. I do get the occasional email, one or two a year, from someone who got it off my blog or my Amazon author page–half of them complaining about something–but an actual fan letter . . . well, I’d say never–until now.

A reader in North Carolina, who is reading Hell Fury, a western I co-authored with Harvey Woods, sent me a nice fan letter along with two posters he’d made of characters in the story. One poster he wanted me to autograph and send back and the other was a thank-you gift. Now, that’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me, and my thanks and heart go out to him.

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Charles Ray Pens New Guidebook to Help Would-Be Western Authors

Charles Ray Pens New Guidebook To Help Would-Be Western Authors

April 11, 2024|Authors, DSP Articles

After years of the asking—Charles Ray has finally done it. He has penned his first writing guide for would-be Western authors with all the hints, tips and tricks a top selling Western author can come up with to help new writers on their writing journey.

With the Western going through something of a rebirth, it seemed to be just the right time for an author to put together a guide to writing Westerns for the modern audience. The guide is certainly not definitive and doesn’t promote itself as such—it is a starting place for those who are interested in riding down a trail that will lead them in front of a growing and vibrant new audience.

With more readers tuning back into the Western genre each and every day, it was inevitable that a guide such as ““How To Write Westerns For The Modern Reader” would be released—and we are proud that the first writing guide of its kind will be released by DSP and was penned by Charles Ray, a mainstay in the top one hundred bestseller list with his popular series, including “Jacob Blade: Vigilante,” “Caleb Johnson: Mountain Man” and “Rusty Rhodes.”

“This is a book we will be giving to all of our new signings,” DSP Chief Publicist Nick Wale explained when asked about the writing guide. “‘How To Write Westerns For The Modern Reader’ should help all authors get off on the right foot and write books that will connect almost immediately with our readership.”

“How To Write Westerns For The Modern Reader” will be released next week and will be available as a Kindle e-Book from Amazon.

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New series coming to DSP

DSP is always coming up with something new for readers. The next great project is one that I’m honored to be working on, an epic saga of Texas from the viewpoint of a family that settles there shortly after it becomes a republic.

Life of a Texan: A Family Story will follow a family thar moves from Missouri from generation to generation and is sure to please veteran western fans and newcomers alike.  The first books will be published in April 2024. Copies of the covers are shown below.

 

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AIA Publishing Name Change

On the 25th of April 2024, the hybrid publisher AIA Publishing (AIAP) is changing its name to Alkira Publishing because an American business is using the name AIA Publishing and has not stopped despite several requests to do so. Unfortunately, the other business using the name lacks integrity to the point that some are calling them a scam, and that’s not good for a business if people can’t differentiate them. Many emails from their clients and even a poor review on Google Business from someone AIAP never worked with indicate that there is confusion and that it’s beginning to affect AIAP’s reputation.

Added to that, the AI in AIA Publishing could be seen as being related to Artificial Intelligence, and that’s not at all relevant to a brand that prides itself on their real human care for their authors.

The word Alkira in the new name, Alkira Publishing, is an Australian Aboriginal word that means bright, sunny or happy place, and that describes Alkira Publishing well. The managing editor, Tahlia Newland, says that she thinks of their business as a happy refuge for authors trying to navigate the sometimes shark-infested waters of independent publishing.

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