Neglected!

Alas, I've been neglecting the old blog of late. It was not intentional. 

For a few years it was my intention to post here as often as I could as a way to spur me to work on my fiction writing every day. It worked in that way for a few years when I needed it as a crutch for that kind of thing. Then, after I left the Postal Service I got out of the habit of posting on the blog very much and went to other online access points to keep in touch with other people.

For the past couple of years, especially, I tended to steer clear of my blogging activities. When I was working the low-level management job I was often too busy or too stressed to come to the old desktop and create an announcement or essay to post here. Over the past couple of decades I had seen blogs that I once frequented vanish completely as the creators of them went mainly to Facebook to stay in touch with other creators or their fans. Facebook seems to have taken quite a toll on blogging.

At any rate, here I am.

Since November of 2019 I have been busy getting my back-list of novels into print. That has been foremost in my creative efforts. Plus I decided to self-publish my latest novel which has been somewhat of a chore. I have never been---to put it mildly---a fan of self-publishing. In fact, I did everything to steer clear of it since Amazon made it oh-so easy for anyone and everyone to go that route. But...I find myself walking that road.

Getting my next back-list novel out has been foremost in my efforts. That one is WORKING CLASS HERO: The Autobiography of a Super-Hero. I renegotiated the audiobook contract with Beacon Audiobooks, so that has been taken care of. But I haven't landed cover art that satisfies me for getting the novel back into print. Add to this the fact that a traditional publisher has expressed some interest in the project and I find myself in something of a holding pattern. If the situation is right, I may send that book to a new publisher and not do it myself. Handling everything---cover art, editing, layouts, formatting, publishing, advertising, promotions---is frankly a pain in the ass. I'd rather just be a writer. I have never been a salesman and frankly that job does not interest me the way it does some people.

In between working on the books, I have been taking advantage of being retired to go hiking and to take trips with Carole to go camping and sightseeing here and there.

So. Life in retirement is proving to be a lot of fun, but also almost as busy as my life as a working stiff punching clocks five days a week.

I'm sitting in my office now trying to decide which of my back-list novels to release next. Should I go forward with WORKING CLASS HERO? Get THE CRAG back to the light of day? Will WITHERING make the cut first? Or maybe THE NEW ECOLOGY OF DEATH? Or something else?

It's a conundrum. In the meantime, here are pretty pictures of places I've been and things I've seen in the past few weeks.

Oh, yeah! Before I forget! Buy my new audiobook of FOUR FROM MANGROVE! Narrated by the extremely talented Bruce Berlow! High fantasy as good as it gets!

FOUR FROM MANGROVE.

Amicalola Falls.

The shoe tree outside of Wasali-Yi Inn where Appalachian Trail backpackers toss their worn-out boots.

Yours truly with a huge poplar tree at Amicalola Falls.

Lower portion of Helton Creek Falls.

View from the top of Blood Mountain.

The Blood Mountain Shelter.

Upper Helton Creek Falls.

Carole at our campsite at Vogel State Park.

We two at Helton Creek Falls.

I had the summit all to myself at Blood Mountain! Unheard of!

Lottery contraption. They used these when they stole the Cherokee Nation lands from the indigenous people and gave it all away to white folk.

The real deal. Not a fake.

Gold coins minted at the old Dahlonega Mint (closed at the start of the War Between the States).

WORKING CLASS HERO, the audio book!

Just a reminder that the audio version of WORKING CLASS HERO is out from Beacon Audio. Available from Amazon. com, Audible.com, Beacon Audio, and other sources.

Buy your copy HERE!

"WORKING CLASS HERO is James Robert Smith's best novel since the Hollywood-optioned THE FLOCK.

James expertly weaves blue collar superhero sensibilities into our modern world. The characterization is outstanding, and the world building is first rate as always.

The concept of regulated super heroes working for the government, and non-regulated super heroes as "outlaws" is a lot of fun. This juxtaposition allows for some fine entertainment and thrilling scenarios.

I was highly entertained by this novel, and the sensitive depiction of Bill B. Billy is an alpha 2.0, with a powerful level of self-awareness, a rare thing in a super hero tale. Mostly we get the brawn or snark in super hero books or films. We get much more in Working Class Hero.

James twists and turns the reader through heroes, villains, and various agencies, resulting in a gripping read and a very satisfying conclusion.

Highly recommended." -- Pine Marten

"I went in to Working Class Hero by James Robert Smith with an open mind, not sure what to expect from a writer who I mostly associated with horror novels. I was very surprised to have read a thoughtful, exciting real-world look at super-heroes (hypers) and how their newly acquitted powers changes and disrupts their ordinary lives. Billy B is our hero, a working class laborer, not unlike the writer, who finds himself gifted with new abilities and the responsibilities that they bring. The book was full of exciting, colorful characters who have their own agendas and own problems. Well written, an exciting trip inside the mind of a man who has now become a super man." -- Mark Masztal

"Working Class Hero sucked me in right from the beginning, and I couldn't put it down. The author leads us down a rabbit hole into a present day reality, populated by super-powered humans that is both a nostalgic nod to Golden Age comics, and also a tip of the hat to the darker realism of Alan Moore/Frank Miller comics. WCH also offers a unique world all it's own, in which some humans have accidentally developed an assortment of super abilities over the course of the last 20 years, and no one quite understands why or how. In response to this phenomenon, the government created a task force to regulate super powered humans, and people generally fall into two categories: those who register their powers and do service for the government, and those who illegally avoid the required service and become outlaws. The book implies there are others who try to lead normal lives and stay under the radar, and a lot of complex social controls have developed to monitor and try to locate and punish any 'illegal hypers'.

This book follows the superhero Billy B, who was once a blue collar loading dock worker before developing super strength, speed, and toughness (as well as an envy for Hypers who can fly, since he is only capable of high jumping)! He's a refined redneck, self-educated through his love for books, who possesses innate intelligence and sensitivity for people and their struggles. He's also a rough-around-the-edges tough guy.

It would be a disservice to give away a single spoiler for this book, but what struck me most is how I was taken by the hand and drawn immediately into the world of this character, as his own world began spinning out of control. The story world blended so realistically into present society that I was taken seamlessly from my mundane existence and transformed easily into the hero of an alternate reality chock full of depth, excitement, and complexity. The reader slips into Billy B's character like our own private superhero costume, living inside his head and feeling his thoughts, emotions and experiences as he's drawn deeper into the world gone mad around him. It's hard to know which entity is more sinister--the government agency he works for or the villains who've begun working together in an effort to sabotage certain elements of society. The dynamics between the various heroes and villains and agencies come to life and swirl together into a character driven narrative which makes it hard to put the book down. Mounting tension and rich characters carry us onward as the mysteries unfold and the excitement continues, and the author never fails to deliver on the promises of the book. An exciting, thought provoking read which paves the way for a really fun story world which I hope to see many more entries in." -- Matt Damon.

WORKING CLASS HERO: The Autobiography of Billy B. by James Robert Smith.

The Audible Version is Out!

The audio edition of WORKING CLASS HERO is out. I haven't heard it yet, but I hope to remedy that by the end of the day.

You can buy it here, on Amazon.

WORKING CLASS HERO, by James Robert Smith.