Happy Holidays — Why not check out "Trouble at Christmas" for a festive short read!

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Just to remind you, my short Troubleshooter Novella "Trouble at Christmas" is still out there. Set right after the Troubleshooter ends, Paul returns home to Welcome, Montana, to visit his dad and old hometown friends. But of course, Troubles get into trouble constantly, and his father is no exception.

You can read it in different form or sizes, here are your options:

Alex Ames Pieces of Trouble Cover Front RGB Small 2016.jpg.jpg

Make my day option: Buy the short story in my Troubleshooter Novella collection "Pieces of Trouble", available online at almost every book and eBook outlet (among it Amazon, Google Play and Apple iBooks). It collects four short stories from the various life stages of the onehanded ex-spy Paul Trouble. Among it, of course, "Trouble at Christmas"

 

 

The support the artist option — "Trouble at Christmas" was the first novella. I just published it as a sort of promotional article as a stand-alone novella. You can buy it at Amazon.

 

 

 

 

The cheapskate version: head over to the online reading platform Wattpad. I have some stories published there to tease readership, among it the very short story "Trouble at Christmas". For free. Really. No strings attached. Like I wrote: the cheapskate version. 

Troubleseeker launch on its way...

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Listening to Bear's Den new single "Berlin" fairly loud, even though the house is dark is quiet, everyone else asleep. This is out of my hands now. Work is done. "Baby on the way, catch!" Pressed the "Publish" button, mere days before Amazon, Apple, Kobo, Barnes and Nobles will start carrying "Troubleseeker", the third (or fourth, depending how you count) installment from the Troubleshooter universe.

Always a good feeling, on the other hand a scary feeling, letting go of a story that consumed you for about half a year, many train rides, many late evenings. Your protagonists gather around you like ghosts, whispering their story to you, consuming your thoughts, inspiring you to write their story, their truth and your truth mix until the story is made of one thought, made of one truth. 

“THE MAN ON PAUL Trouble’s doorstep fell into his apartment with a solid thud, muttered something that could be widely interpreted as “far,” “harr,” or “argh,” and died. Paul stood in his PJs and stepped aside to avoid getting any blood on his bare feet. The dead guy’s hands, face, and back were sticky and dark with it, soiling Paul’s hardwood floor and the corridor’s carpet.
When the doorbell had rung, Paul had expected a neighbor asking for late-night assistance, not a film-noir situation. A quick inspection of the hallway and staircase confirmed that the bleeding had been heavy all up the stairs. Paul was sure he would get into trouble with his neighbors in the morning.”
— First sentence "Troubleseeker"

From the Writer's Desk

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Hi there, not much happening in Writer's land. I had to travel a lot all over the place for my company, which took me away from my Mac and my iPad for the last three weeks. Every night a new hotel room, a new conference center, and new faces. Kind of social overload for an introvert like me. But it all went well and actually was a lot of fun. This is how Bruce Springsteen or the Rolling Stones must feel when they are doing one show a day for months and months. And we remember Mick Jagger's advice to us road warriors:

What else is new? Kindle Scout for "Troubleseeker" did not pan out, unfortunately. Even though it got almost the same exposure as "Five for Forever", they decided not to take it into their portfolio. Which means that I'll need to do the final edit and publishing one of these days. Big question is whether I'll make it an Amazon exclusive and put it into KDP Select, or do a broader release. Decisions, decisions. The Troubleshooter series so far hadn't created much buzz in the past, so I'd like to try something new this time. Most likely I'll publish it broadly and run a campaign via Wattpad. Put up the first "Troubleshooter" novel up to Wattpad, and advertise books two  and three ("Troublemaker", "Troubleseeker", and 2.5 "Pieces of Trouble") heavily. Maybe that works better. The Calendar Moonstone story gave a lot of attention.

Which brings me to the planning for the next novel. My latest work in progress "Matchbreaker" is about in the middle. Many core pieces are in place, although I am not so happy about style yet. It is supposed to be a romantic comedy, but I tend to linger too much on the backdrop (Start-up scene New York) instead of the hilarious comedic and romantic situations of my three main characters. After that it will likely be either the next Calendar Moonstone Brilliant novel (working title: Brilliant Heist)  or a high speed ultra-violent thriller with the working title "Rattlesnakes". I might throw a coin...

 

Troubleseeker in Review for Kindle Scout Publishing

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The third Troubleshooter installment "Troubleseeker" is now through the month long public scouting period at Amazon's Kindle Scout program. It is a strange feeling to give your works out of your hand for a while, not thinking about it. The next book is in the works and I almost had pushed Troubleseeker out of my mind. But then the "It's over" email came in and I checked the stats for the scouting period. Look not as promising as the "Five for Forever" period.

The hours in hot & trending were about the same, but "Five" had more double the view numbers than Troubleseeker. I like the series tremendously, as it is a very versatile and creative universe for me. But the reception so far for the Troubleshooter books had been more than luke warm, and of course I need to ask myself "Will there be another step forward in the series?" Or do we call it quits and concentrate on other projects? I have ideas for at least three more Troubleshooter novels, so writing them is not a problem. But the positioning is an issue right now.

All right, let's see where Kindle Press's review will lead us. A few more days then I will know.