Jeff Haws

Independent author

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Goodreads Giveaway Contest

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gift-548286_1280

So, if you’re curious about this “Killing the Immortals” book you’ve been hearing about and would like to have a shot at winning a free copy, I’m gonna give lots of you that shot. I’ve talked about Goodreads before here, and I definitely recommend joining if you enjoy reading, for all the reasons I detail in the linked blog post. And, in case you didn’t know, I’ve got one more reason: Free books. More specifically, a shot at a free copy of “Killing the Immortals” with my giveaway. Uh-huh. That’s right. And it’s coming soon. [Read more…] about Goodreads Giveaway Contest

Release Date for “Killing the Immortals”

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Celebrate

It’s been a long road to here, but the end is within sight. I can announce today that the Release Date for “Killing the Immortals” will be July 31. That’s when you’ll see it on Amazon for the first time, and can purchase it for yourself, and buy it as a gift for everyone you know, along with lots of people you don’t know. I mean, who doesn’t want a book they’ve never heard of by some random guy they don’t know? You’re sold, aren’t you? Yeah, that’s what I thought. [Read more…] about Release Date for “Killing the Immortals”

Excerpt from my short story: “The Slingshot”

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Slingshot

In the midst of writing “Killing the Immortals” and getting that behemoth edited and ready for publication, I’ve had to allow a few much shorter pieces to gather a bit of dust. And, frankly, that’s fine. Getting some distance from the process of writing them helps by making it easier to look at them with fresh eyes.

It’s actually funny revisiting them after all these months; it’s like I didn’t even write them. I don’t really remember typing the words, so it’s pretty much like reading someone else’s story. I’ve been trying to iron out some wrinkles, catch typos, and get these ready to send to an editor for a deeper look. After that, I’m not sure, but I definitely want to get a final manuscript complete so they’re ready to go when I decide what I want to do with them.

One of those short stories is called “The Slingshot.” On the surface, it’s about a terrible accident happening, and how a family deals with it. Theme-wise, it’s about the relationship of two brothers, and how it can transcend some very difficult circumstances. The first chapter is below. I’d love to hear your thoughts, in the comments here, on Twitter, Facebook, or come knock on my door. Ya know, whatever. [Read more…] about Excerpt from my short story: “The Slingshot”

Speaking at the Decatur Book Festival

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Decatur Book Festival

For those of you who have been to the Decatur Book Festival, you know it’s basically Shangri-La for book lovers. It’s one of the best such festivals in the country, and it’s arguably the best when it comes to giving young and self-published authors a chance to get exposure for their work.

On that note, I’d like to announce that I’ll be speaking at this year’s festival, in the Emerging Writers tent, and I’ll also be doing a book signing for “Killing the Immortals,” my first novel. My speaking/signing spots will be either Sept. 3 or 4. I’ll provide an update on that when I know more, but I got it fairly early, so hopefully it’ll come that Saturday morning. I’m not going to be picky, though. [Read more…] about Speaking at the Decatur Book Festival

My Next Short(er) Story

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New story

After finishing up the rough draft of my first story, “Killing the Immortals,” a few weeks ago, I needed to kill some time while I got a bit of space from it. If you can help it, you never want to edit something you just wrote. It’s hard to catch all your stupid mistakes when you’re that close to it.

But I didn’t want to just sit here watching Netflix while it collected a bit of dust. So I immediately dove into writing a shorter piece that I could put in my bank for doing something with later. The working title for it is “Tomorrow’s News Today,” and it’s about a journalist who accidentally discovers that anything he writes will happen exactly as he wrote it. If someone compared it to a Twilight Zone episode, I’d be pretty damn pleased. Hell, let’s be honest, I’ll be happy if anyone is just willing to read it, especially if they pay to do so. But I’d definitely love to have people see a little Rod Serling there.

What I’ll do with it, I’m not quite sure. There are a few options: 1) Release it as a stand-alone work, probably charging $1.99 or $2.99 as a regular list price; 2) Keep writing these shorter pieces and package 4-5 of them into a collection that I release as a novel-length book that sells for $4.99 or so; 3) Keep it in my back pocket for potential entry into a contest or submission to go into an anthology when a publisher is looking for stories; 4) Give it away for free on my site, potentially for people to sign up for an email list I’ll be building soon. And, keep in mind, these aren’t mutually exclusive. I could, over time, do all four if I choose.

In the meantime, here’s a little tease to the story. Below, you can read the first few paragraphs of the rough draft, so you can get a look at the beginning, and the mood of the story: [Read more…] about My Next Short(er) Story