Free Book!

Starting today my second book Traveler is free on Kindle. But it's only through April 12th so don't delay!

Traveler

Free Book!

Starting today my first book Joshua is free on Kindle. But it's only through March 3rd so don't delay!

Joshua

My (sort of) new book

I have released a new revised version of my first novel Joshua. If you own it on Kindle you should be able to update your copy for free. I have also released a second version which has an alternate ending and short story that I wrote at the time but have never been seen until now.

Thanks!

Tribes Redo

Today I have released a revised edition of my third novel TRIBES. The book has been re-edited and has some storyline changes too. If you already own it on Kindle you can get a copy of the new version free. Just log on to your Amazon account, look under "Digital Downloads" and you should be able to update your copy to the new version. Thanks!

Publishing milestone

Yesterday my first book Joshua reached a publishing milestone - 10,000 copies sold!

9525 - Kindle
437 - Paperback
37 - Nook
1 - Smashwords

To celebrate, I am offering the Kindle version for free. This offer is only good today and tomorrow (8/15 - 8/16) - just click on the link at right. I also want to give a big THANK YOU to everyone that helped make this possible!

My first two books are free!

To celebrate the release of my third book I am giving away Kindle copies of my first two books for free! Today (1/23) Joshua is free, and tomorrow (1/24) Traveler will be. Just follow the links in my sidebar.

It's that time once more - my new book is here!

Yes, it's that time of year! Time for my third book! This one is a prequel to my first two. Read about an all new set of characters as they fight to survive in a harsh new world. If you enjoyed my other novels this is a must read! Check my sidebar for the link.

Joshua News

This is the day! My novel Joshua is now an audio book available from Podium Publishing and sold through Audible.com. The book is unabridged and running time is approximately eleven and a half hours. Two years ago I would have never dreamed this was possible and yet here it is. This is so cool!

Joshua News

I am very happy to announce that my novel Joshua will soon be available as an unabridged audio book from Podium Publishing and sold through Audible. Running time will be approximately 13 hours. It will be on sale starting 7/5/2013 but you can pre-order now and will not be charged until it is released. Please also note that it is possible the price might go up, I believe however that Amazon (that owns Audible) will honor the pre-order price.

Joshua news

Well, it has been one year since my first novel Joshua was published. To date it has sold 6,641 copies, several hundred more were borrowed from Amazon's lending library, and 24,783 given away free during a recent 5 day promotion!

On Kindle it went to the number one position in Men's Adventure category and the top ten in Action & Adventure. Now, after my recent promotion it is back in the charts again and currently has a 4.3 star rating (out of 5) on Amazon.

All in all, not bad for a story that nearly didn't get started.

I had the initial concept for Joshua several years ago. I thought it was a great idea but never really got past the "working on it in my head" stage. I never wrote anything, except for some websites and blogs, what did I know about writing fiction? I kicked the idea around awhile but it remained inside me, unfinished. I didn't think it could get worse but it did. Later on I found that my idea was similar to a very famous book, although somehow I had managed to never hear about it. At that point Joshua nearly died, I knew it would be considered by some a "rip-off" of it, or at least unfairly compared to it.

Eventually, in the summer of '10 I decided to just do it. I sat down at my computer one day and began. The idea I had in my head for so long had to come out. From the first I thought what I was writing was good, but what did I know? Maybe I was deluding myself. After a while I scrounged up enough courage to post it on my site as a serial. Honestly I was quite nervous; I didn't know what was going to happen. I was halfway expecting readers demand that I pull my story because it was stinking up the internetz.

But the opposite happened. Readers started telling me it was good. They said write more! Finally, with enough encouragement I thought that maybe this could eventually be a "real" book. I started working towards that goal.

Now here I am a year later. My second novel has just been published and I am about to start a third. All because of a simple little idea that kept nagging at my mind and some good people that encouraged me to finish it. Thanks.

That time has finally come ...

Yes, that time has come. My new novel is finally here! It's a thrilling tale of life after America. If you are a fan of apocalyptic fiction, if you enjoyed my first novel Joshua, this book is for you. It's not a direct sequel but is set in the same horrifying world.

You can go here and read the first chapter. If you like it I hope you will buy a copy. Currently it is available only in paperback and on Kindle. If you don't own a Kindle you can go here to get an app to read it from your PC. Amazon Prime members can even read it for free!

To celebrate I'm also giving away Joshua for free on Kindle! If you still haven't picked up a copy you no longer have an excuse. This promotion begins tomorrow and is only good until April 3rd. So don't delay!

PS - Those of you expecting complimentary paperback copies, I haven't forgotten about you. They are still being worked on and you should have your copy in a week or so.

2012 - Bittersweet

Another year is gone and 2012 was full of highs and lows for me. It started off bad when Dad passed away. I spent most of the earlier part of this year in a depressed haze. Looking back at my posts for 2012 I honestly don't remember making many of those in the first half of the year. It was a long dark tunnel but finally I saw some light about halfway through the summer. Obama's re-election was also a low point. I never was a Romney fan but even he was a preferable alternative to who we have in office. I had no delusions that Romney was going to save this country but I thought that maybe he could slow this train some before it came off the rails. I must admit that the election shook me up quite a bit. I just can't look at my country and its future, or American voters in general, in the same light again.

But 2012 had some bright spots too. My book being my personal one. I never thought my self-published novel would make me a millionaire. My only hope was that it would earn its money back, if it made a little profit that would be a pleasant surprise. To date my book sales has far surpassed all my expectations. I've sold over 5,000 copies to date. It also gave me a hope I didn't dare dream but now looks like it could be possible one day, being able to support myself doing the thing I love, writing. My book also introduced me to a new pastime for writers that I had no idea existed until I published my own, checking my Amazon book sales stats eleven-gazillion times each day!

For 2013 I have another book coming out. If it sells as well as my first book I might fulfill another dream I've had for a while, buying me some acreage out in the country somewhere.

Other than that I see 2013 as a continuation of 2012 for me, saving, paying off bills, and preparing for an unknown future. Just trying to hang on and praying the world does too. For all the readers of wilsonblog, I hope you reach your personal goals next year and have a great 2013!

Joshua News

My book Joshua has reached another milestone! A big THANK YOU to everyone that helped make it happen.

Joshua News - I'm # 1!

If I might be allowed to toot my own horn, this morning the Kindle version of Joshua went to the number 1 position in Men's Adventure! It was also at # 8 in Action Adventure and # 197 overall paid Kindle, that's out of approximately 1.6 million titles! No doubt the new sale price has sparked renewed interest in my book. I don't know how long this might last but it's a great feeling!

Joshua News

Today I released a new revised edition of my book Joshua. To celebrate I am offering the Kindle version for only .99 cents! This price is only good until 11/6/2012 so don't delay!

About this new "Revised" edition:

The main reason for this new revised version is because of the previous Kindle edition. Over the last seven months I have received a number of complaints about the first version, mostly concerning "missing words" but other problems too. Some reviewers simply thought I didn't proofread my material, which is far from the truth. I decided that this formatting issue was significant enough to warrant the time and expense of having it done again. Since I was doing it all over I also chose to address other issues as well. One common criticism I received was that many readers thought Joshua was too short. When originally writing it I thought the opposite, and in fact made several cuts to the original draft in an effort to shorten the book. That original material has now been put back in. There have been no substantial changes made to the story, but you will find several scenes have been extended. Since I was making changes I went ahead and re-edited the entire book once more. Those of you that have already read it will find this new version improved, and if you haven't read Joshua yet there is not a better time than right now!

10 Years

Ten years ago today I started my first website and became another voice shouting out from the void.

In the spring of 2002 I was attending a local technical college and took a class in web design. The instructor would give you different assignments to create some fictitious web pages. To pass the course you would have to post your homework on the real web where he could find and grade it. To do that you needed a web host. The teacher recommended Tripod and since it was free I set up an account there.

By the fall of that year the class was long over (got a B+ by the way) but I still had the account. Since it wasn't being used for school any longer I decided to use it to post some personal thoughts. At first it was just an outlet for my gun hobby, but in less than a year I started including stories on other interests I had, mostly movies and actors, but books and pop culture too. My website began as "Wilson's Gun Freedom Web Site" but went thru a few names in the next two years, finally becoming "J. Wilson's World" in 2004, which it remained until I closed it in March 2010. At that same time I also closed my Tripod blog (which I started in August '07) when I moved here looking for greener pastures. Over the years I've wrote a lot words on the web, thousands. I even wrote a novel, something I'm sure I wouldn't have done if it wasn't for the prior experience of writing for my various websites and blogs. From an innocuous 816 word opinion piece about the .38 Special to a 112,000+ word self-published novel, I didn't see that coming when I first posted ten years ago!

Here's my very first article along with my first try at gun photography, both were posted to the web at approximately 9:00 A.M. on 9/23/2002.

Cheap fun with the .38 special

Well what I'm referring to in this article is not the ammo itself, but guns chambered in the .38 special round. 38 ammunition is a little cheaper than most center fire ammo but it's not cheap enough to be considered a great bargain. The bargains I will be talking about are the bargains that can be picked up right now in the used handgun market.

There was a time when the 38 special ruled the handgun market. Most cops used 38's and when a civilian wanted a gun to defend themselves they usually picked the 38 too. Every major gun maker made a small, medium, or sometimes even a large frame 38 special. Some companies even made them in all frame sizes and could sell all that they made. From the 1920's to the early 1980's it was the golden age of the 38 special. The .357 Magnum encroached on the 38's market some starting in the 1950's but the 38 still ruled.

The demise of the 38 began in the mid 1980's when many police departments started changing over to the automatic pistol. Many civilian shooters also abandoned the 38 to go to automatics, it was felt that 6 rounds of 38 special just couldn't cut it anymore. If the cops weren't using the old antiquated 38 why should I? Many great old guns that used to be hard to keep on the shelf just were not selling in the new marketplace.

All of this history brings us to the current gun market, no one has made a large frame 38 in years and the new medium frame 38's are nearly gone too. The small frame 38's are still doing pretty well but even they are starting to lose ground to the new breed of small automatic pistols firing full power loads (9mm, 40 S&W etc.). What that leaves us is a large number of 38 special bargains floating around in the market place, many selling at very low prices. The small frame guns are holding their value the best, and the medium frame "snubbie" still sell for more than the 4 or 6 inch barrel counterparts.

The absolute best buy on the market is the medium frame 38 special with a 4 or 6 inch barrel. The Smith & Wesson model 10 (AKA Military & Police) fits this bill exactly (it is the most popular handgun in the world!) and can be picked up at bargain prices. I have seen model 10s as cheap as $100.00 (very rough finish but good mechanical condition). In my opinion this is also the very best gun you can have to defend yourself if you are the type of person who doesn't have a lot of experience with handguns or doesn't practice very much.

Just a quick look through the various pages of Auction Arms or Gunbroker and GunsAmerica have produced many old Smith & Wesson, Ruger and Colt 38s with a 4 inch barrel and in great shooting condition for under 250.00 with many under 200.00! If your primary interest is home defense or target shooting you can't go wrong with one of the 4 or 6 inch models.

My main interest in these guns are for use in carrying concealed, and while you can carry a 4 inch model concealed it is much easier with the 2 inch models. Snubbie models have held their value much better than their longer barrel brothers, and while they are more expensive than the longer barrel models they are still pretty cheap compared to the small automatics that are their main competition.

Smith and Wesson's classic Chief's Special (and other J frame models) can still be had for under 200.00 with the average for one in good used condition being around 250.00. For this price you get one of the smallest 38 revolvers ever made able to fire 5 rounds (including +P rounds in the steel frame models) as quick as you can pull the trigger in a package small enough to hide most anywhere on your person.

Another favorite is the Colt Detective Special, it is a little larger than the Smith and carries 6 rounds. The Colt prices are really starting to take off because of collectors but you can still find a good Detective model for under 300.00 if you look.

Ruger also makes several models old and new to choose from, including their great Speed and Service Six models. These are not the only makers of good 38's, there have been many fine 38's made by companies such as Taurus, Rossi, Charter Arms and several others, many great bargains can be had with these companies since these guns haven't really become part of the collectible market yet.

In summary, if you are looking for a good gun without breaking your wallet a used 38 just might be in your future.

Joshua news

Amazon Prime members can now read Joshua (on Kindle) for FREE! So what are you waiting for! Speaking of Amazon, if you have read my little opus I would appreciate it if you would post a review there. Or maybe you could just "Like" me!

Joshua addendum

For those interested my novel Joshua is now available on Nook.

Also there were some minor glitches in the Kindle version (mostly words in bold for some reason) that didn't show up until after I proofed it the first time. My apologies to those few that purchased a copy before the issue was discovered. If you bought my book on Kindle and it had problems please email me at the address in the side bar.

Joshua - On Sale Now!

It's been a long time coming but after numerous delays my novel Joshua is finally ready. For those expecting complementary copies you should receive them in just a few days! If you followed along with my first draft please note some story changes have been made, nothing major, but you probably want to start over from the beginning.

On my Joshua website I have posted the first five chapters of the book. If you like what you read I hope you will buy a copy. It is available in paperback and also on Kindle.

When I started this in July of 2010 it was just an interesting experiment. I had been writing (websites and blogs) for years but always wanted to try my hand at fiction. I had an idea that I thought would make a good story but never got around to putting it down. Finally I decided to just do it and with a few chapters completed knew I had to show it to others. I couldn't keep it to myself. Fortunately for my ego the large majority of responses were favorable. You early readers really encouraged me to finish it!

I've had a lot of fun working on this book and learned a great deal about writing and myself too. I finished a project I wasn't sure I could and (hopefully) created something that others might enjoy. That's all I really wanted, to do what I loved and at the same time entertain readers with my words. I hope that I did.

Now if you'll excuse me I have to get to work on my second novel!

Short stories

I have created a new page just for my short stories. It is in the same format as my novel page and should be easier on the eyes. I already added a newly edited version of my story Monument and more will be coming. Right now I'm concentrating on my book. When that's finished I have a few stories that will hopefully see the light of day starting in 2012.