The three newest developments in the life of this writer are:
1. A video of me reading an excerpt from Dogs of War is available on YouTube at https://youtu.be/HApxESefS2I. I purposely selected Chapter 14 from the book because it features dialogue involving 8 of the principal characters in the series. I created it in PowerPoint for Mac, added audio to the pptx file, then converted it to an MP4 file. From there, it was easy to upload it to my YouTube channel. Links appear on my FaceBook timeline and in a few locations on this website. I also posted it in my next Newsletter.
2. An audiobook version of the first book in the series, Sleeping Dogs: The Awakening, is in production. It’s scheduled for completion in mid-September. The voiceover artist/producer has a great baritone and nails the various accents and speech characteristics of the characters. His pacing also is excellent.
3. I’ve caught the eye of a literary agent following last month’s ThrillerFest in New York City. At her request, I’ve edited the total manuscript from 111,500 words to 107,500. She would like it to be beneath the 100,000 mark, but that would impair the storyline. I did the research and put together the table that follows below. My argument is that the top sellers in this genre average 146,000 words per book, and publishers are only too eager to publish them. The agent said she’ll read it and decide whether it qualifies as an exception to the 100,000 word cap. The good news in all of this is that she’s agreed to read it. From there, who knows where it may go.
AUTHOR BOOK PAGES TOTAL WORDS*
Daniel Silva House of Spies 544 176,936
Lee Child Night School 496 161,324
Ben Coes Trap the Devil 496 161,324
Brad Taylor Ring of Fire 448 145,712
Alex Berenson The Prisoner 432 140,508
David Baldacci End Game 416 135,304
Vince Flynn Enemy of the State 400 130,100
Brad Thor Use of Force 368 119,692
AVERAGE 450 146,363
J W Falbey The Dogs of War 329 107,867**
*Using 325 words per page, which is the average number of wpp in Dogs of War
**104,876 words exclusive of title page, TofC, Cast of Characters, description of previous books, and preview of next book. With those sections, the word total is 107,867.