Independent Authors and the Treasures They Share

I am taking a break from writing for a few days to allow my characters to stew in their creative juices. So, how does a writer take a day off? I read. I have my favorite mainstream authors that I like to keep up with, Tess Gerritsen, James Patterson, Nicholas Sparks (don’t laugh), but I find my tastes have been turning more to the unknowns in the literary world.

I notice that I am becoming a big supporter of independent writers more often since becoming one myself, but not from the sense of camaraderie, you would expect. Some independent authors, like me, are nearly broke but continue to write because we love doing it. However, the simple fact is, these independent authors are putting out some quality material.

I know what you are thinking. “Independent authors” When I first heard the term, I thought about those “art” films you see on IFC or Sundance channels. You know the kind that win film festival awards but bore the daylights out of you. Then I thought about Kevin Smith. There is an indie filmmaker who does not really fit into what I expect from indie films. By the way, anyone who has anything bad to say about the guy or his work will get an immediate throat punch from me.

But back to indie authors. I picked up my first indie book called Version 2.0 less than a year ago. Yes. I only got it because one of my closest friends wrote it and I got to see it before it was published, but it was great. The story was intuitive, entertaining and gave new life to a subgenre that I almost gave up on. From there, it was an avalanche of indie books one right after another. I read about zombies, immortals, lycanthropes (werewolves and such), witches and demons. I had a few angst-ridden books sneak in on me that I normally would not have given a second look at in Barnes & Nobles and they were great.

I have read about murders, love, dreams and poetry. POETRY! ME!! I read them and I have loved them. I have even read erotica Fifty Shades and every other color. I can now honestly tell you that while the stories I have read do not titillate me, I have read some erotic stories that have better plots than many movies put out by major studios. What interests me most about these stories is not the content. True the content is more often than not stellar, but the most interesting fact about the stories is the fact that the authors are still unknown. These are some A-List stories but it kills me that unless something positive happens, very few people will get the chance to find out how great they are.

Here is the best part about indie authors: No matter what you like, fantasy, science fiction, romance, mystery, horror, biography, technical manuals to the TRS-80 home computing system, there is an independent author who has the book for you. Nevertheless, that is the problem. They are independent, often self-published. They have no way of marketing their books, so there is little chance of you hearing about them.

So what are you going to do? How are you going to find these great books by unknown writers? Easy. Just look on Amazon, Smashwords, and Goodreads or do a Google search for independent authors. Search on Facebook. Check the independent author review pages, I frequent Real Reviews for IndieAuthors (https://www.facebook.com/realindiereview). No matter how you find them, check them out. Most, like me, are desperate for notice and put their books on sale for 99¢ of have free giveaways on Amazon.

If you love to read and are on a budget, indie books might just satisfy your need to escape into a good story. If you are still not sure where to find what you want, ask me. I have become quite an expert in finding the good stuff and, not to toot my own horn, I have garnered a lot of friends and acquaintances in the world of indie writers. So until my next post or my next article in Bloid News, check out the works of some great writers. And, Happy Reading.