In The Demon's Head: To All Who Survived The Myans

In The Demon’s Head #72:To All Who Survived The Myans

December 27, 2012

Merry Belated Christmas all and I hope that your season was filled with cheer and excitement as you spent time with the ones that you loved. I myself didn’t do a whole lot I spent some time with my Dad, Grandma and some other family as well as my wonderful Fiancé Liz. You read that right yours truly is now engaged.  I’ll talk more about this at some point in the future but for right now let’s jump into this edition of In The Demon’s Head before it becomes one of those stupid sappy Christmas letters that you really don’t want to read.

Future of The Blackout Series

Don’t be worried this isn’t an announcement that sees the Blackout Series never come to light. Quite the contrary this an announcement marking the release of the first story in the Blackout Series entitled “Life After Dark” has finished its first hard edits and I will be putting them in here within the next couple of days, shipping it off to my editor and starting on the hard edits for story 2 which is “Six Feet Under” The first story will be available directly for download from my website, through Smashwords, possibly Amazon, and WattPad. I haven’t settled on an exact date yet but unlike I previously had hoped the story will be available either Late January or Early-Mid February but I plan on no later than that.

Website Updates

I said this in my last post from earlier this month and still haven’t done it yet but I do fully intent to make one of my projects at the first of the year revamping my website. There’s two reasons for this especially now, first being that I’ve done a lot of studying about how websites should work and a good way to build an author website and while my is barebones what it should be it’s nothing like it should be and that’s a problem that I fully intend to correct at the first of the year.

Other Projects to Kick off 2013

Since we survived the Myan doomsday prophecy from December 21, 2012 it means that I can start planning for what comes heading into 2013 and I’ve established how I will fill the bulk of the first half of the year, I will be writing, revising, and preparing a novel with a yet unknown title centered around the plotline for the poem “Viral” that I released earlier this year. I’m going to take this in a different direction and try to land an agent and get the book traditionally published. I think that the plot is strong enough and as long as I can shape the characters I should have no problem.

The year is ending on a high note. I started this full time journey back in February and since I’ve done a lot of good things and I’ve taken a number of steps in the right direction so I’m very confident heading into 2013 that I will only go further in the right direction. This will likely be the last post that I publish this year but I’d like to say many thanks to everyone who has liked the stuff I’ve done so far and expect much more coming in 2013. Everyone have a Happy New Year and I’ll see you on the other side of the Ball Drop for 2013.  

In The Demon's Head: Writing After Dark

In The Demon's Head #52: Writing After Dark

August 18, 2012

Hello everyone I hope ya'll are enjoying your weekend. I would have had this up earlier but it's been a long few days. Friday I was functioning on almost no sleep and then today I was at work until noon so needless to say I went back to bed as soon as I got home. But I'm up now and I figure no better time then now to have up the latest “In The Demon's Head”

Let's move into the brunt of this weeks general update, first off I'm very pleased at this point for a number of reasons the first of which being that this week I began My new short story series project, I don't have a title for it yet but the first story has a working title of “Life After Dark” which is kind of why I incorporated the title of this blog entry the way I did.

For me the week has been full of writing things which as I'm sure most of you who have read this blog on a regular basis can attest to that this isn't always the case. First I began writing “Life After Dark” which will be the first short story in an unnamed series and I'm happy to announce that it will be given away free of charge when it's released later this year.

All you'll have to do to receive this story is to sign up for the mailing list. With the mailing list you'll get free updates, mailings when they begin, and you'll get other stuff when you sign up. I'm very excited about that going forward, so please sign up for the Email list.

Plus another good news update is that hopefully we'll see “More Than Memories” have the finished 2^nd draft within the next month. My entire vision is to have this book ready to roll out by October. Also, this month's free writing is currently being worked on with some illustration by the wonderful Zeus, and I'm hoping that it will be available on the website and WattPad no later then Monday. The new piece is called “Mind Of Madness” I'd love your feedback.

Finally, another awesome thing is that I came up with another awesome idea while at work. I can't say that they keep pouring out like water but I'm coming up slowly with enough stuff to keep me busy for at least the next year or longer. It's a very great feeling.

In all honesty, I'm sorry that this edition of “In The Demon's Head” is not only late but also a little short but I'd like to take a moment and say thanks to everyone whose been reading this blog for the last six months. As I said once before I'm very excited about everything moving forward. I'd like to take this chance to offer an open invitation to anyone who would like to ask me any question at all. I'd like to start answering at least one or two a week so if you have any questions about process, or about anything writing wise please send me any question via email.

Finally, I'd like to also say that you can subscribe to the blog via your email address by putting it in the box up to the right. And you can join any of my social media circles by going here and picking your poison of chocie Beyond that there's not a lot more to add so enjoy your weekend, I'll be back on Tuesday with another edition of “In The Demon's Head” Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

In The Demon's Head: Promo Techniques- Websites

In The Demon's Head #45: Promotional Techniques- Websites

July 28, 2012

Hola everyone, today's the final and second biggest piece to the promotional puzzle, building yourself a website. If you missed the post on Blogging, Advertising, and Social Media, then be sure to check them out. For so many building a website is a daunting task, especially If you've never done it before and that is completely understandable. I've been building websites since I was 15 so I”m used to them but for someone whose never decided to build one setting one up can be almost impossible. For those of you all I can say is hire someone, hey I'm available if your looking for someone super affordable and quick. Take a look at my website and if you like what you see drop me a line here. But if you want to know then why building a website is an investment that is important then I've got some news for you.

For those of you who do know how to build a website and can do it pretty simple then I don't have to explain to you why it's important to have a website. But you may be wondering where to start and what's the most cost effective route and in fact I've found a very good hosting site that allows for you to develop a professional website and give it a professional looking url for free so you could essentially develop a website for free. I look to answer those and a couple more that you may have here in today's post so lets not waste any more time.

Why Do I need a Website?

A website is more or less your home on the internet. It can house everything that is vital for your fan base and your readers to know in one specific location. You can give your fans a schedule of events that you'll be attending, you can sell e-books of your for full profit, You are in control of your home. You can build it from the ground up.

Websites are also something that gives you a space to showcase your work, your thoughts, all the news about a coming release, Interviews, Book Reviews and other things. Your website is your calling card and in today's world you never want to be stuck without your calling card and in terms of websites it's the best type of calling card available.

Where Would I start?

This question truly depends on you and your ability at building your own site. If you can build your own website then by all means get to work, it's better to have the bare bones of a website then not have a website at all. That was my biggest holding back was that I didn't think I'd be able to keep a website fresh enough for people to want to look at but I've managed to do pretty well so far and for that I'm very proud of myself.

If your on the other hand and don't know how to go about it then save up some money or if you already have the money available then hire someone to set up a website for yourself. You can host them through Weebly, everything you need for a writing website you can pretty much get for free so everything in that regard is perfectly fine. You also have an unlimited number of pages and storage space which makes Weebly a great web hoster compared to some of the others out there (Trust me on this one, I've used most of the free ones that are available and so far hands down Weebly is the best bet)

I think the two most important things to have on a website is your bio and a bit about yourself or the site on the home page as well as links to your works, be them free like some of the poems that I have up and available, or to the works that you sell. These are the bread and butter of any writing site and having the bare bones of one without having these is almost pointless.

Update Regularly

This doesn't mean update daily as so many people seem to believe, I was one of those at first but I've learned that it's not necessary however, updating regularly in necessary. You want to freshen up your website with news, videos, podcast, or something so be sure to update the website on a regular basis.

Now these don't have to be on a schedule so much like your blogging traits. If you touch a fan they will bookmark a website and check it every so often. It's that way with a lot of writers, they're website might not change for a couple weeks on end but you never know when someone might stumble across what you have set up and check out the content and that is a great thing. Once you've reached a fan, if you've done it right they'll stay a fan for a long time.

In Conclusion...

Websites are the future, In fact I'm going so far as to believe that Websites will eventually replace almost every form of media that we have currently including TV and Radio. You need to get yours set up and ready to go as soon as possible because the sooner that you have everything set up and ready then the better off you'll be should a Traditional Publisher feel the urge to want to come looking for your calling card.

As with every technique that we've covered in this series if you've built a website or have a story about a website experience with a company or someone that wasn't so great then please share it in the comments section below.

You can check out my website for some ideas of a way to set yours up and what you may want to include. Keep in mind my website is far from the best one out there but considering the funding budget I had and what I worked with I think it turned out spectacular.

We'll be back tomorrow to wrap everything together and close up our first blogging series together. Until the next time you go through the gates of hell into the demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

In The Demon's Head: E-Books: Future or Fad

In The Demon's Head #34: E-Books: Future or Fad

June 19, 2012

Hello everyone as always it's a nice enjoyable Tuesday night. It's been a good day and a rather productive one I must say. I didn't get nearly the list done that I had originally planned but I can't complain, I signed on for a new place and get to move in a couple of weeks, I have an application in to start training to be a C.N.A and will likely do that until I can get the writing off the ground. I can't complain the pay won't be horrible and the class can't be that bad. Either way that's enough of the general hoopla that's going on with me, let's move onto today's edition of “In The Demon's Head” discussing E-Books.

Unless you've been living under a rock then you know what an E-Book is, I don't think I need to explain to you what they are so let's move onto the question that I'd like to address today, are E-books the Future or just a passing Fad? Let's take a look at some facts below.

E-Books are cheap to make, in some cases for independent authors they are free with the right know how. What's great about this is that they're so easy and affordable so the profit margin on an E-book is so much higher then that of a print book.

We are in complete control. What's great about this especially for independent authors is that our books are always available. We can market them either on Amazon or Barns and Noble or on our websites, we can decide on cover images, release dates, everything from top to bottom we're in control of. It gives us as authors, a lot more control over our career.

E-Books are also far more portable. You can get books either on the I-Pad, Barns and Noble Nook, and the Amazon Kindle as well as a number of other generic E-Readers that are out on the Market now. You can carry hundreds of books on one device which weighs less then that of a paper-back novel.

Now I've given some great information as to what an E-book is and how they are very beneficial however, what does this mean for the publishing industry? Will E-Books stay around or will they slowly fade into the sunlight, given statistics of the last 10 years and understanding people like I do I'd have to think that E-Books are not only NOT a Fad, they could eventually completely replace Paper bound books. I know this is a broad call but it is possible.

So in my eyes, I think it would be a great idea to start learning as much about publishing E-Books as you can if your an aspiring author, the more you learn about the publishing industry and the parts of it then you will be further ahead then your competitor. I'd love to hear your comments about E-Books and your experiences in the section below.

Join me this Friday for a new general update where I will cover some of the new edits that I have been able to do for More Then Memories. Also, as always I do two updates a week, If you like what I do then I'd love you to donate using the button on the top of the page. You can also subscribe to the post by putting your Email Address into the box on the top right hand corner. Finally you can connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus.

Until next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the Demon's Head I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

In The Demon's Head: The Friday Roller

In The Demon's Head #32: The Friday Roller

June 15, 2012

Hola everyone, it's Friday and I'm willing to bet by the time you'll read this your weekend is already underway or will be underway soon. I just wanted to take some time before I jumped into the thick of this Friday's edition of "In The Demon's Head" to say thanks to all the loyal readers I have on this blog. I will keep writing for you and keep building. I can't think you guys enough.

This week has been a very interesting one to say the least. First off, I've been doing quite a bit of editing. I've dropped one complete story from the collection, it's something that I felt was far overdo and needed done. It has vastly improved the overall quality of the collection surprisingly. I will be hopefully working my way toward wrapping up editing by the middle of the month and I will be sending it off to my editor for completed editing then I will be sending it off to agents in hopes of having someone pick it up. Speaking of the future, I got another idea late last night that I feel with some good tweaking could turn out to be a great novel down the road. Stay tuned to find out more about that.

Also, I'd like to let everyone know that I have started writing the June piece of the month. I'm not sure how long it will be but I expect to have it finished and posted sometime by next week. The general note of this new piece, which is a poem is about the world through a Writer's eyes, hints the title “Writer's Eyes” I'm not sure of it quite yet but I believe that it will end up being a very good piece and it will be a very nice piece that include in the monthly collection.

Also, and this one is something that still isn't concrete but I may be starting a website soon. I'm not 100 percent sure exactly what the site would feature and how it would all work but If I do begin to build a website and set it all up I will likely begin to build it before the end of the month. For sure it would feature the pieces of the month, A blog calendar, contact page, and a few other things but I'm still not sure if It's a good idea. In fact, let me ask you, my readers do you think I should build a website, even if there's not a whole lot of content at first.

Finally, I'd like to first remind everyone to join me this Sunday for a special edition of In The Demon's Head where I will be interviewing fellow author Mr. Roland Clarke. Then I'll be back on Tuesday talking about E-books. Also, there's a donate button up above, if you like what I do then I'd love any kind of donation you can offer. Also you can subscribe to the blog by dropping your email in the box above and to the right. Thanks for taking the time to read this blog twice a week and as always...

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head. I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface. You can also connect with me to learn more by visiting me on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus.

In The Demon's Head: Rejection Frustration

In The Demon's Head #31: Rejection Frustration

June 12, 2012

Hello everyone It's new release Tuesday. I hope everyone is doing well on this great Tuesday Morning. I've talked about a lot of different things since I started writing this blog back in February and as the blog calender shows, I'll be writing about a lot more things, including a platform building series for later this year, however I thought I'd take some time to talk about something that every single writer has no doubt experienced, Rejection.

If your like me if you receive a letter that tells you that your story or poem hasn't been accepted for publication a number of things run through your head. Regret, doubt, in some cases, fear can creep into your head. It makes you wonder if your good enough to be able to get something published. For me my first rejection drove me crazy, It made me think that I wasn't good enough.

I eventually came to my senses and started working on the book I'm working on now “More Then Memories” But as I worked on the book over the last six months, the thoughts and doubts came creeping back into my head. In fact it wasn't me that snapped me out of the horrible thought process that I was in, it was my girlfriend Liz.

Now That I've began editing the entire collection it's made me realize why I was rejected from the git-go. After going through the collection I've edited out a lot of excess stuff that wasn't needed and I was able to expand it other places and expanded throughout. It made me realize that editing is something that is going to be needed if I ever expect to make a living as a writer.

So what does this have to do with rejection you ask? It's very simple, it's a challenge that I want you to take. Find a piece, almost any piece that you've sent in and had rejected. Then I want you to edit it to the best of your ability and then go back through and look at all the marks and stuff that you've put down. Finally, actually edit the work and compare the two side by side, read the unedited version, then read the edit and I'm willing to bet that you will see how much better the edited version is.

Now I understand that none of this will help you get your rejections down but it could help you deal with the rejections, or stop them if you put in the effort and time to edit everything. It's something that I've learned will vastly improve your writing and how good your writing's final product can be.

That about does it for me and this edition of “In The Demon's Head” First, I'd like to ask you to join me this Sunday for a special edition of “In The Demon's Head” where I will interview Mr. Roland Clarke. Also, there's a donate button at the top of the blog and if you like what I do then I'd love for you to donate a little bit of extra cash my way. Finally, you can subscribe to the blog by putting in your email in the upper right hand side of the blog and have it delivered directly to your email. Finally you can follow the blog as well.

Until the next time that you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the Demon's Head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

Also, you can connect with me on your favorite social media website, either on Facebook, Twitter, or Google Plus.

In The Demon's Head: The Untold Fear and Hatred of Editing

In The Demon's Head #30: The Untold Fear and Hatred of Editing

June 8, 2012

Hello everyone and welcome again to another edition of “In The Demon's Head” Today as I usually do on Thursday night's I was looking for exactly how or what I was going to talk about on today's blog because let's face it just hearing some updates about what I've been up too can get boring especially when yours truly isn't living all that interesting to begin with.

But the more I thought about and the more I did it I realized that I wanted to talk to you today about the process of editing. Now I'm willing to bet that most everyone that reads this is either a writer who reads or a reader who writes or wants to. One of the biggest challenges an author faces is to edit his or her work and for most that seems to be a daunting task.

My favorite Author Mr. Stephen King gave a quote once about editing, I love this quote not so much because it came from him but because it sums up how most people feel about editing in general. It goes “When your story is ready for the rewrite cut it to the bone, get rid of every bit of excess fat. To some this is like murdering children but it has to be done.”

When I began editing this past Monday that's what I expected from my writing as well but that's not at all what I got. Instead beginning editing made me realize that it's one of my favorite parts of the writing process. It reunited me with characters I hadn't seen in quite some time in cases because some of the pieces in “More Then Memories” are a bit old but when I got to reunite with them, relearn what made them tick, and help improve it, it made the editing so much easier for me and it gave me a chance to clean everything up and make my writing stronger which is something that I really enjoy.

For me editing is just a way of reinventing yourself and regardless of whatever it is your doing the day you stop learning is the day that whatever it is your doing no longer becomes fun anymore.

Editing also opens a lot of doors to take your writings to a level that you never knew was there. You realize in some cases there's not a lot of information, in some cases there's too many words and just overall you can take a 7.1 manuscript on a 10 scale and bump it up to a 8.7 just by rereading and editing. To me it's amazing at just how much you can miss while your writing.

So now it's your turn if your afraid to edit, stare it in the face and do it. You'll feel great about it and you'll learn from it. If you've had editing horror stories I'd love to hear from you. Drop your stories in the comments section below.

Also as always there's a way to subscribe to the blog in the upper right hand corner you can put in your email and you'll get the blog sent directly to your email. Also, there's a Wattpad app you can use to become a fan of me on Wattpad, as well as share buttons for you to share the posts on your favorite social media website.

Finally there's a paypal button if you feel the urge to donate for the writings that I do. If not that's fine but plugging these things is how we get the word out so I wanted to make sure that you were aware they were there.

That will do it for me and this edition of “In The Demon's Head” join me again this Tuesday when I talk about something that all writers have faced, Rejection Frustration. Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the Demon's Head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

You can connect with me on your social media networks across the web on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus. And Email Me here

In The Demon's Head: Facebook Help

In The Demon's Head #29: Facebook Help

June 6, 2012

Hello everyone I realize it's Wednesday my apologizes about the lateness. I should have had this up yesterday but I wasn't home and able to write it so I had to wait til tonight. Either way today's edition of “In The Demon's Head” is another special edition that will highlight a good way on how to help build your platform. Last week we talked about twitter and how to gather followers and some of the basic features of how it works, today I want to talk about the biggest Social Media site on the planet, Facebook.

Facebook is a huge social media website that connects people from around the world. It's been used to build campaigns for social outreach like the infamous Kony 2012 campaign. It's been used to help raise money for things like the March of Dimes, Ronald McDonald House Charities, The American Cancer Society the list goes on and on. It's also been used to help launch careers of musicians, video directors, screen writers alike. But how, as an author do you use Facebook to take your name to new heights? I'm here to at least try to answer that question.

Facebook consist of finding friends, making request, leaving status updates and liking things. While an established friend base is very useful to help launch your platform it isn't completely necessary. There are two very good ideas that will help you build a platform on Facebook. The first one is to create a Fan Page. The process is very simple, you go to a page that you currently like and click create page and follow the instructions. Facebook pages grow in popularity as they get likes, we've all seen the different types of pages on Facebook and imagine yours being on that list.

You post status on your Facebook Page wall the same that you post status on your Facebook personal page. It's best to keep your writing page filled with business style statuses, share your personal information on the personal page and share your writing stuff on the writing page. Pictures are the same way. Facebook pages work with the same basic principal as accounting for business, Keep your personal accounts separate from your business one.

It's also very good to populate your Facebook writing page and give it the type of style

that you give your writing. I have pictures on my Facebook Wall of my 1^st draft mainly, I have some cover shots of pictures that were designed by a friend of mine and a few other things.

Finally two good things to remember when you have a writing Facebook page. Make the cover and profile pictures on these pages relevant, Headshots, cover art, things of that nature. Second, it's also a good idea if you can afford it to advertise on Facebook. You can pick the amount you pay as well as length of the campaign and number of ads. I've learned a lot about advertising and I have to say it's one of the most cost effective and most user friendly and controlled ways to get the word out about your writing. I spent 40 bucks over the course of a month and nearly doubled the amount of likes that I had on my Facebook Page.

All these things together can help you build a platform that will give you some leverage as you set out to sell your works of fiction. Also, in case your on the fence about beginning a platform let me tell you, it's never too early because these things don't build overnight you'll need to start as soon as possible.

That's about all I've got for today, Join me again Friday as I give you an update on the editing process of recently completely “More then Memories” Then next Tuesday as I talk about something that I'm sure every writer has faced, “Rejection Frustration” If you have any questions about this topic please feel free to send me a message on Facebook or by sending me an email by clicking here.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

You can also connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus.

In The Demon's Head: The End of a Long Road

In The Demon's Head #28: The End of a Long Road

June 1, 2012

Hello everyone and welcome to the beginning of another weekend and as always that means another great edition of “In The Demon's Head” with yours truly. I hope everyone's Memorial Day weekend went well last weekend mine was very long and hot as I'm sure a lot of yours were as well. On top of that I'm hoping that this weekend will provide with you with as much fun.

I for one am very excited to see this weekend finally arrive. It's something I've been working toward since Last December, perhaps before that but I'd center it really around Christmas time last year. The idea to give my lovely girlfriend Liz a Christmas Present started spinning, and the first ever collection of poems that were seen by another person was made. Called “The Light Behind The Bridge” I was excited and she enjoyed it, she said I should think about maybe taking it bigger and that's what I thought about, but sadly I knew there was a lot more then what I had given her in a publishable collection so I set to work.

Now here we are five months later on the cusp of Summer 2012, and I have completed the first draft of “More Then Memories” I'm very excited to say that it's 195 pages of Poems and short stories. It's something that I'm very proud of and after a weekend away from writing I'm going to start editing it on Monday and hopefully it will be ready for agent eyes by the middle of July but that's a time table based around a number of factors.

Also last Sunday was very beneficial to me, I was able to complete the entire Blog Calendar for 2012 save for I think 2 dates. Speaking of this blog calendar, I'd like to remind you that I'm looking for another author interview for June so if anyone is interested either send me a message on Facebook, Twitter, or via email by clicking here.

On top of the blog calendar I came up with another possible novel idea that I might implement down the road. I've also grown pretty thoughtful to the fact of another poetry collection, depending on the fate of this one. We'll just have to wait and see. All in all it's been a very good week and I look forward to beginning editing soon. I really would like to thank everyone that will be a part of this process and I'd like to say thanks to anyone in advance for everything.

That's pretty much it for this week's general update. As always there's the donate button at the top, if you enjoy what I do here I'd love you to drop just a little extra cash in there. Also if your interested in the interview spotlight for the month of June you can send me an email by clicking here. Also if you put your email address in the box above you'll have In The Demon's Head sent to you directly every time on publication day.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the Demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

You can connect with me on:

Facebook

Twitter

Google Plus

In The Demon's Head: Twitter FAQ

In The Demon's Head #27: Twitter FAQ

May 29, 2012

Hello everyone, we're up to number 27 for In The Demon's Head. We've been together now for 3 months and I have to say that it's been a very fun three months. I've learned a lot about myself, a lot about writing, and a lot about the career path that I'm so very much wanting to follow. I thought I'd take this chance to give some information on 2 of the biggest platform builders out there today, Facebook and Twitter, so Today and next Tuesday I will be giving some basic info on both of these sites.

Before I get to that, I'd like to thank Miss Jennifer Chow, the first of my interviews for nominating me for the versatile blogger award. I'm not completely sure what it all means but I feel honored that I was nominated for such an award. Again, thanks Miss Chow all then thanks in the world.

Either way onto today's edition, Twitter FAQ.

Twitter was launched in 2006 and circles around a simple system that allows it's users to “tweet” in 140 characters or less. It gives people a chance to microsize their thoughts and share them with their followers. That's how Twitter works. Instead of friends, You have Followers, these people are the people that will see your tweets when you post them. When it comes to twitter, the more followers you have the bigger and better fanbase that you would have as an author.

Also, another good way to connect is to become a follower. Also, the way twitter works is if you follow a certain type of people, the recommendations will show you people of that same type. For me, I follow Wrestlers, Wrestling Personalities, and Writing types. I've gotten it narrowed down to where that's all it recommends to me now which makes me picking and choosing people who I want to get in contact with so much easier.

The other three features are the favorited and re-tweet function which allow you to favorite tweets and re-tweet some of your favorite tweets from people you follow. Then you can also reply to the tweet which allows you to, in 140 characters respond to certain tweets.

On top of those you also have a direct messaging feature that is common in every type of social media website that has come and gone in the last decade, and finally instead of website url's like most have you can be mentioned by using the @ sign, for me it's @krobwritings and you start conversations using #, these are things you'll have to experiment with and learn how to use.

All in all, Twitter is a great place to help you begin building a fan base. It gives you a chance to interact with your fans, and share different conversation starters. Twitter is a great micro conversation piece so if you haven't done so yet, visit www.twitter.com, set up a profile and get tweeting. If you have any stories about your Twitter encounters share them in the comments below.

Join me again Friday for our weekly update, it will be a big one as it will have news concerning the 1^st draft of “More Then Memories” and then next Tuesday I will be back again to cover some basics of Facebook. If you like what I do don't forget to sign up to have “In The Demon's Head” sent directly to your email by putting your email in the box above. Also, there's a donate button at the top of the blog that I put in place to anyone who may be up for helping me earn a little money doing what I love, writing.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

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In The Demon's Head: Nearing The Homestretch

In The Demon's Head #26: Nearing the Home Stretch

May 25, 2012

Hello everyone and welcome to another weekend on the horizon. This week is very special for me as it marks the end of May which means I am approaching the deadline to have my first ever book “More Then Memories” finished. I've put a lot of man hours into the stuff that's going into this collection and I'm proud of everything that will go into it. I don't have an Official first draft page count yet because there's still some yet that I'd like to add but I'm really aiming for something like 200 pages. Seeing as next Friday is the 1^st of June you will likely be the first to find out the final page count.

Speaking of being on track for finishing up the book, before I started this blog post I just wrapped up writing on the first draft of one of the stories for “More Then Memories” it's called “2210 Maple St.” without a doubt it's one of my favorite short stories that I've ever written and had a nice twist at the end if I do say so myself.

In reality there's not a lot more that's going on yet. I'm really excited and anxious to begin the editing of the book and if I have my way we should be able to get through the entire editing process by the end of June, then I will be able to get a few read copies around which would be very nice. After taking In the feedback from those I will do one final edit with my good friend Mrs. Dee Dee Everett. Then it's onto shopping the manuscript to some agents, if they don't bite I will attempt to get some small market publishers to see if they would be interested. If at last those attempts fail then I will likely self publish this work. In the meantime though I will be hard at work on “Happy” so it's going to be a busy second half of the year for me.

I hope you guys are ready for the ride, I know I am. As always, you can subscribe to the blog by following it, or dropping your email address In the box above and you will get the fresh post sent directly to your email. Also, there's share buttons for your favorite social media I'd love it if you shared this blog on one of your accounts. Also there's a WattPad app above, I will have some more pieces up there as soon as the artwork gets in for them but until then hit the app and become a fan and vote for “Viral” the piece that is available up there right now. Finally, there's a donate button, I'd love it if you hit it up and dropped a little change or whatever you can spare. Kinda think of it like dropping a dollar in the hat of the street musicians any help would be wonderful.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

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In The Demon's Head: The Beauty Of Your Own Platform

In The Demon's Head #25 : The Beauty Of Your Own Platform

May 22, 2012

Hello everyone and welcome to this late edition of “In The Demon's Head” I'll be honest today's issue is a LOT later then normal because me being the short sighted tunnel vision fool that I am, forgot it was Tuesday. I'm very excited to announce first off that I am over 500 views for the blog which excites me. I plan on starting next month and trying to see how many hits I get in a month. Second, Liz found a new app that is call Wattpad and I'm now officially a member of WattPad and Red Room. I intend to have all of the pieces I currently have available up on both of these sites by the end of the night. Last I'd like to once again thank Jennifer Chow for her interview with me that went live this past Sunday you can check that out here.

Now all of the things I've listed above add together to help make what's becoming my platform. Add that to Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and I'm slowly turning the wheels to help me take my writing career and launch it to high levels. But as it stands I know there are some people out there that don't really understand what a platform is, how it works, and why they need one I was in your shoes one time, so I'm here today to kind of explain these things and why it's always smarter to start on one long before you need it.

What is a Platform?

A Platform is basically just as it's name suggest, a way to launch your career. Musicians, Comics, Writers, almost every type of entertainment field out there these days requires you to have a platform, which is to say that you are required to already have established a fan base before people will even take a look at you. It didn't always used to be this way but with technology and Social Media on fire it's becoming more and more critical to have a platform in place when chasing a dream.

How Do They Work?

Platforms are basic diving boards in one way or another. As a writer they can make a major difference depending on what avenue you decide to take your career. If you decide to self publish, a strong and defined platform can give you a leg up on the competition. If you have 5000 Facebook Page likes, and a the same number of Twitter followers, that gives you 10,000 possible potential customers. If you decide to go the traditional route this gives you a potential customers as well only this time your not handling the entire process but it shows that your have a way of getting people to buy which can lead to larger advances and better book deals.

Why It's Smarter to Start Before You Need One

I've been writing for quite a while and for the longest time I never realized that I needed a platform for my writing. I started working with a group on Facebook and while it didn't seem to work out that well for me in all honesty because the group settings got stupid, I started a page and a twitter page that I use to this day. I have also began using different ways to promote my writing including WattPad and Red Room as I said earlier. It's a great feeling to help promote everything that I'm doing. Why I say that you want to work on your Platform before you need it is because it doesn't form overnight, so start building and promoting now. Never think it's too early.

Platforming is a challenge that everyone needs to improve their writing career. So as I'd like to say, promote and platform early and often.

Thanks everyone, that will do it for this Tuesday's edition of “In The Demon's Head” Sign up in the box above with your email to have new issues sent directly to your inbox. You can also sign up via your favorite reader, and you can share the blog or post on your favorite social media sites with the new tools above. Finally, there's a paypal donate button on the top left. If you like what I'd do I'd love any kinda of donation that you might want to throw my way.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demon's head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.

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In The Demon's Head: Special Interview with Jennifer Chow

In The Demons' Head #24: Interview with Jennifer Chow

May 20, 2012

Hello everyone, I hope your all are doing well and welcome to the first interview for “In The Demons' Head” I hope you guys enjoy reading this interview as much as I enjoyed giving it and if you're interested in reaching out to a new audience you can check below for the details on how to get a chance for an interview. Let's get to the first Interview with author Miss Jennifer Chow.

Me- Hello Miss Chow, First I'd like to thank you for taking time out of your busy day to talk with me. First, It's my Understanding you have a blog, what's the name of that blog and what exactly is it centered around?

Jennifer- You're welcome. My blog is under my name, Jennifer Chow. The subtitle is: an Asian-American writer exploring life through Chinese sayings. The web address is:http://www.jenniferjchow.blogspot.com/ it's a blog that takes Chinese expressions (currently Cantonese ones), provides a bit of history about them, and ties the phrases into my daily life. Many of my posts will tie into my writing life, but sometimes I explore other areas of my background as well.

Me- That's definitely a very unique spin on a number of different things, what made you settle on that specific topic?

Jennifer- Well, I've always been interested in collecting sayings (I used to collect a lot of fortune cookie slips; actually I still have a couple taped to my writing journals.) Then in college, I took a course and a required textbook detailed Cantonese expressions. It helped me take a look into my heritage. I found it very fascinating and wanted to pass that on to the general public.

Me- Speaking of your blog, What days do you post on or are they set in stone?

Jennifer- I try to post once a week, usually on Mondays. Sometimes I'll post more often though, and the day isn't set in stone.

Me- Are there other writing type things that you do other then your blog?

Jennifer- I've always been interested in writing, even from an early age. I went through a poetry phrase, but now I'm settling into short stories and long-form fiction. I'm currently working on a novel.

Me- Care to give us an idea of what your novel is about?

Jennifer- The novel that I'm finishing revisions on is about a woman who discovers her mother's closely guarded secret--that she escaped a brutal massacre in Taiwan, which left her widowed and pregnant--and it changes a lifetime of perceptions surrounding her emotionally distant mother and challenges her to confront her troubled relationship with her pre-teen daughter. I'm also working on the first draft of a cozy mystery novel.

Me- What are your plans for the book?

Jennifer- I'm looking for a literary agent. I know there's a lot of discussion among writers about traditional publishing versus self-publishing. I'd like to go the conventional route.

Me- You're talking about Fiction writing, I'm willing to assume as most writers are your an avid reader is that right?

Jennifer- That's correct.

Me- What are some of your favorite authors?

Jennifer- My favorite Asian-American authors are Lisa See, Amy Tan, and Jean Kwok. Beyond that, I like women's fiction writers, such as Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Weiner.

Me- What about them pulls you to them?

Jennifer- Well, for the Asian-American literature, I like learning more about my culture. (Lisa See's work also displays a lot of historical research, which I find fascinating.) Women's fiction pulls me in because I can relate to the characters and relationships. Jodi Picoult does a great job also of addressing social issues, which I admire.

Me- From What you told me it looks like you have a fascination with historical fiction is that a accurate guess?

Jennifer-I do enjoy a lot of historical fiction. For example, I really liked Sara Gruen's "Water for Elephants" and Paula McLain's "The Paris Wife." On the other hand, I like light reads as well. And I actually will read about any genre except for horror.

Me- What are your 5 year goals for your writing career?

Jennifer- I'm hoping to get a literary agent and publish a novel. In the meantime, I'd also like to have some of my short stories in print. Also, I'm interested in continuing to hone my craft, taking courses and attending conferences.

Me- If you could meet one writer, living or dead who would it be and what would you say.

Jennifer- I think it would be Emily Dickinson, because I fell in love with the language through her poems. Plus, I would want to affirm her writing, since she didn't get the recognition she deserved during her lifetime.

Me- Okay, is there anything else you'd like to add in case we didn't get a chance to cover?

Jennifer- I think that's about it. I do have a Facebook Fan page:https://www.facebook.com/JenJChow

Alright everyone, first off I'd like to thank everyone for reading this interview and thanks to Miss Chow for taking the time to give me such a wonderful interview. If you've enjoyed this reading this like I've enjoyed having Miss Chow on for the interview I insist you also do like I did and like her Facebook Page.

If your interested or know someone that would be interested in being interviewed for this piece which I”ll do once a month click here and drop me a line.

Until the next time you want to take a trip through the gates of hell and into the demons' head, I'm Kyle Robinson wishing you a safe trip back to the surface.