Konrath, J.A. - DRACULAS (A Novel of Terror)

I thought you did a great job with him, and I liked that he wasn’t thinking bible-verses but rather Dickens at the end. He’s a minister, sure, but he’s not a tee-totaler, not a holier than thou type of guy, and I think that showed that. It was a very nice scene, Paul, so I’m happy to let that be the end of him.

Blake

• • •

but he’s not a tee-totaler, not a holier than thou type of guy

I’d gathered that from earlier passages and so I went with it. I think it’s refreshing (even for this devout agnostic) to see a Christian minister portrayed as a straight arrow rather than a hypocrite. I’m really sick of books with lech preachers.

Paul

• • •

Me too, I wound up liking the guy quite a bit…brave as hell in the face of fear despite nothing for the entire book (until the end) with which to defend himself.

Blake

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Clay on the roof…is loaded. Very short, very Clay.

Paul

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Just to keep you guys looped in on what’s happening marketing-wise, I emailed a big list of bloggers/media people I know and who Joe knows, forwarding the press release and a letter. Response has been solid so far, with about 25% requesting the manuscript to review. We also put out the word on Joe’s blog and offered people the chance to have a free review copy of Draculas on Oct. 1, if they promised to review it on their blogs, Facebook, Amazon, and tweet it. Joe also has a lot of Goodreads friends, like 1200 of them. I’ve given a friend of mine access and she’s emailing them one by one (it’s the only way) to solicit additional reviews and coverage since many of them have blogs.

Already, we have over 120 people promising reviews, all to launch on 10/18, the day before it releases, and then all those review go up on Amazon on the release date. We’re also adding an annex to my website which will be a dedicated draculas web page. I’ll shoot you all the link when that goes live. Plus, we’ve got some interview requests which I’ll share shortly, we’re doing Diabolical Radio 10/6, and hopefully Joe’s going to write a column in the HuffPo around the release date. If you’re interested, the email that’s been going out to the “troops” is at the end of this email. Jeff, Paul, if either of you have any big ideas, please share. Otherwise, I think we’re in excellent shape.

from J.A. Konrath: DRACULAS — Advance Reading Copies!

Dear_____:

If you haven’t been on my blog for the last few days, I’ve got a new ebook experiment going on.

Earlier this year, I asked three fellow writers if they wanted to collaborate on a horror novel. I’ve worked with each of them before (F. Paul Wilson, Jeff Strand, and Blake Crouch) and they’re all consummate professionals.

The result of our efforts, DRACULAS - A Novel of Terror, will be released on Kindle, October 19.

Now we’re attempting to generate some buzz prior to the launch, by treating this like a traditional release rather than an indie release. That means we’re looking for a few good reviewers.

Do you want a free advance reading copy of DRACULAS?

Here’s what you do…

Send an email to draculasthebook@gmail.com and confirm that:

1. You will post a review of DRACULAS by October 18 on Good Reads, your blog or website (if you have one), along with a link to Amazon’s pre-order page (which will be provided to you along with the book and press release.)

2. You will post that same review to Amazon’s DRACULAS page when the book is officially launched on October 19.

3. Make sure to include your name and the web-address of your website or blog (if any), which may be linked to from my blog when the book goes live in the Kindle store.

Your email address will of course be kept confidential, and anyone who writes a review, good or bad, will be thanked in the acknowledgments of a future edition of DRACULAS.

We anticipate having a final manuscript of the book ready to email on or before October 1.

IF YOU DON’T HAVE A BLOG OR WEBSITE…

No problem. We’re going to have a dedicated DRACULAS website page. Write a review, email it to draculasthebook@gmail.com, and we’ll post it there. Then you can link to your review via Twitter and Facebook, if you use them.

Thanks in advance for helping us spread the word! And please make sure to email draculasthebook@gmail.com, under the heading GOOD READS REQUEST. DO NOT EMAIL ME DIRECTLY - we want to make sure your email is read, not lost in my huge stack of unanswered emails.

Thanks in advance for helping us to spread the word!”

Blake

• • •

Great scenes. Paul, Joe, I’ve incorporated yours into Draculas 4.1. Joe, I tweaked yours just to sync up the helicopter leaving (it’s already flying away by the time Jenny reaches Randall). Here’s what’s left before we write the last two scenes (Shanna and Moorecook). I’m waiting to start those until I see what Paul does with Clayton, and I’d like us all to have input into the end.

Randall

[JEFF WRITES: Randall’s transformation. Draculas break through, and as a full blooded dracula, with a chainsaw, he kills a few dozen.]

Jenny

[JOE WRITES: Second to last scene with Jenny. Randall dead. She’s all alone. Draculas are running up the stairs again, will be there soon. A helicopter is coming. Jenny thinks the TV helicopter has returned, looks up, but it’s an Army helicopter. BUT DON’T EXPLAIN WHAT THE CHOPPER IS DOING YET.

Jenny

[JOE WRITES: She feels the building shake, hears Adam’s detonation. She looks up, sees the soldiers lug something out of the chopper, and it lands with a big thud on the helipad and cracks the cement and then the chopper pulls quickly away. - but no explosion yet.

Jenny

[JOE WRITES: Super short, like two or three sentence scene where Jenny approaches the huge shaped charge that has landed on the helipad.]

Clayton

[PAUL WRITES : After Adam’s detonation, Clayton Theel goes back down for his Tauras, instead of running out to safety when he could’ve made it) and big, big boom.]

Joe and I talked just now, and here’s what we’re thinking in terms of finishing, because the deadline for getting this book to reviewers is fast-approaching:

Wednesday, 9/22: Paul, Jeff, Joe write and finish above scenes

Thursday, 9/23: All complete the last two scenes and finish novel

Friday, 9/24: Finalize all bonus content, and off to Jeff for his final review.

Saturday, 9/25: Jeff goes through book, incorporating any changes

Sunday, 9/26: Jeff goes through book, incorporating any changes

Monday, 9/27: Paul goes through book, incorporating any changes

Tuesday, 9/28: Paul goes through book, incorporating any changes

Wednesday, 9/29: Joe goes through book, incorporating any changes

Thursday, 9/30: Blake goes through book, incorporating any changes

Friday, 10/1: Blake goes through book, incorporating any changes

Saturday, 10/2: Joe formats book first thing…off to my proofreader

Sunday, 10/3: Return of proofed book (hopefully not too late), update any bonus content, make absolute last changes, etc.

Monday, 10/4: Joe sends the book to Rob Siders for Kindle formatting, I send the book in 3 formats in an email blast to the troops.

Sound okay? In particular, let me know if the proposed 2-day review periods for you, Jeff and Paul, will work with your schedules.