Rock the VOTE: If You Please

I have been voting for a couple years now in the Preditors & Editors Readers Poll and this is the first year that I have been nominated.

And though you may be quite tired of hearing about it, I sure wouldn't mind some clicking,and email confirmation thereafter/voting in support of my Space Eldritchness.
My story is in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy short story category and a couple of my friends are in the horror category, also the antho is in the running...so...

To vote for "Gods in Darkness" go Here and for anthologies you can vote for Space Eldritch here,
AND to vote for my friends,
Bruce Durham and his tale "Colony" from Rogues in Hell or D.J. Butler's "Arise Thou Niarlat From Thy Rest" also from Space Eldritch go here since both are in the short horror category.

Amazon's Author Ranking Mean's...?

I have to laugh. Authors/Artists by nature are moody bastards and I am a Cancer which only increases that moodiness. And now Amazon has instituted a new author ranking system so that it not only tracks your books ever-fluctuating rhythm of sales, it will track you and all of your books combined to evaluate your ranking.

I and most other writers I know of, have gone through bouts of constantly scanning Amazon to see how are sales are. I finally broke free of the habit after a few months and only occasionally look now-(granted once I start self-publishing with Lost Realms Press, I am sure I will check more often because I will be getting paid more frequently than the current situation.)

I look once in awhile now and shrug, oh I sold a few more I'm in the top 40,000. No big whoop.

I had a friend last night post on facebook that Stephen King was/is #1 in the Horror ranking and my friend Michael Brent Collings was #88. Hey good for him, I thought/posted/liked. I had no concern for myself on this, guessing I was far too lowly for any such ranking.

Then I got the email in the morning telling me I was #547 in Horror. That's not too shabby if you consider how many people are writing horror these days. I was surprised because while I write horror stories I don't consider myself a horror writer, but then what is the next thing coming down the pike? Space Eldritch is  Sci-Fi/Horror so I suppose I'll embrace that rank after all.

Checking the stats tonight, I found some ever changing numbers and guidelines for what I do (according to Amazon)

In Contemporary Fiction (do I even write that?) I was as high as #5,077 but am now #9,573

In Action & Adventure (this is what I would say I write) I was #1,685 but am now #3,441

In Fantasy I was #1,792 but have dropped to #3,721

and In Horror I was as high as #497 but have dropped to #665

Does any of this matter?

NO

If I was actually the 497th best selling horror writer on Amazon, I think I wouldn't still be worrying about the day job, even the 665th and I think I would quit and be writing full time. But these numbers only take into account my name paired with all of my books, anthologies etc. Heroes of the Fallen which is decidedly not a horror novel is selling at least a copy or two a week and thus drives up my overall numbers. I don't believe I rank even 665th in the Mormon authors category for which I am not even listed.

I probably ought not to even look at these rankings again for all the good they do...But, I probably will come October 29th when Space Eldritch is released and me and the crew seriously book bomb the hell out of it. Maybe I'll break the top 100 that day and can list myself as "Best-Selling Author"!

*** UPDATE!!!
We did make it #2 in Science Fiction/Space Opera and #10 in Horror!

Rogues in Hell

Rogues in Hell created by Janet Morris, edited by Janet and Chris Morris, with the diabolical assistance of their damnedest writers

Into the rich shared world milieu of Morris's  In Hell series we are given glimpses into a number of adventures and cruel double-crosses.

One thing I particularly enjoyed was the varied and wild assortment in this rogues gallery, there were quite a few individuals I guess I never expected to see in Hell, among them Mary Shelley, Ben Franklin, Solomon, Wyatt Earp, Frank Hopkins, Bat Masterson, and T.E. Lawrence. Some others I have to admit to not being too surprised about as residents of the netherworld.

Ragnarok and Roll by Larry Atchley, Jr. for example had Anton LaVey (who I don't think is even dead yet) paired with the Red Baron and a pack of Vikings on a hunt for the Spear of Longinus.

Colony by Bruce Durham is among my favorite of the collection and made me smile in that he reminds us a goodly number of friendly Canadians are lingering (see tortured) in Hell as well. They are looking for a mysterious island and led by a very mad Samuel de Champlain (that killed me). Durham joins us with General James Wolfe and things never go as planned. Great tale.

The Miraculous Roadside Attraction by Jack William Finley is another favorite. Elliot Ness finds out why he is in Hell.

Hell Road Truckers by Michael H. Hanson has Odysseus (who I had never before pictured as belong in Hades) taking the dangerous Tartarosian road with Hell's frieght. Meanwhile Achilles and Hektor continue to duel. I never would have guessed Hektor deserved to be there. Very entertaining.

If Necessary by Bradley H. Sinor is an excellent ride with one my of my favorite writers Hunter S. Thompson, Richard Burton (the magnificent explorer [neither of whom I think deserve this fate]) and Lillian Hellman of whom I am rather neutral on and Caligula who definitely deserves it all along in a maddening road trip.

Overall a great eclectic collection sure to please the reader looking for new vistas on the damned.

Gratitude

I have to remind myself (or have my wife do it) that I am published and to STOP getting bugged that my book isn't out there on the best-seller lists.

I always told friends that I would write EVEN IF I knew it would never be published-well, LO and Behold I did get published and even have a contract for multiple volumes in the series...SO I am beyond what some doubtful friends said-"Oh there isn't a market for what you do."

Guess what?

There IS.

There is a market for what I do and for what near anyone does-there is varying degrees and certainly the marketing/advertising helps but if I stop and think about it I should be damn grateful.
I have accomplished what I set out to do.
I started writing these particular adventure stories for fun back in early 2004-about six years later they are available for anyone who wants to get them.

I used to imagine if they were an underground hit I would be very pleased-veritable modern day pulps-hey I'm awesome. I haven't sold a million copies yet-BUT-if 99% of all the feedback I am getting back is positive--people like what I do. And they aren't even reading it with a flashlight under the covers like I first envisioned.

I have also been reminded by a friend to remind all of you to nominate HEROES OF THE FALLEN, for the Whitney Awards, I am eligible for 2010
Whitney nominations here. Thanks

p.s.s.
I just discovered Heroes of the Fallen is now an e-book for the kindle too (for those so technologically inclined) get it here.