well..after 9 years..i'm an author.

[bigchillcar]

dang..too many to thank individually already.. you can't imagine..it was 4 years of rigorous research and writing..but not sure i'd have even hobbled along this far if i hadn't done it.

it began within days of quitting an air ambulance company because of severe depression and anxiety issues that just..would..not..go..away. i'd been sucking it up and sucking it up to be able to retain my medical, after all this was the career that meant so damn, damn much to me. pilots understand..it gets in your blood..then to have to walk away..right in your prime..wow. lucky me.

anyway, i was forced to see a doctor and as my friends, with whom i've confided here know, it's been a ***** ever since. how bad i'd prefer not to make a huge mention of publicly..i've been embarrassed a bit in the past with expressing too much openness. privately, i've shared with and been written to by so many of you who have struggled with, though usually not as serious, something similar to this effect. anyway, enough about that..i just wanted to say that the book is not, nor was it ever intended really, to be any kind of commercial success, but i had a story that developed out of my despair, and over four years, came to love the people in the story, kind of like i love you guys here..they took on life. for those who want to write, i encourage you to begin..it is a really nice feeling to see it on the web..and the joy's in hearing the feedback from those who have read it and enjoyed the distraction. i was asked and 144k words is like 700-typed pages the way it was written in ms word.

so, no plans for a 'paper book'..and don't know anythign about lulu really. if a publisher broke my door down, i'd probably relent, but unlikely in a sci-fi genre..and there are so many great books already..so many talented writers..

i think i was asked what a kindle is? i don't actually have one, but it's a device that allows one to download an e-book and read it on a dedicated hand held device. if you don't have a kindle, but do have a pc or an iphone, amazon has a free app that you download to your computer called 'kindle for pc', etc. it's link for pc is here:

amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311

thanks for the interest in this..and especially your kindness and words of support. i'm sorry i'm not around much anymore. i'd hug all of ya'll, but ya'll might not want that..

[Seahawk]

What a good Dude you are.

[VincentVega]

Congrats, excellent work. I'll buy a copy, some one want to loan me a Kindle?

[tangerine911S]

Does amazon have a Kindle app for Mac? The description has me hooked. I definately want a copy. Congrats!

[ckissick]

Congratulations on your accomplishment. It must be very gratifying. Stephen King said he considers any writer a success when they get paid enough for a book to pay an electric bill.

How do you go about getting an e-book on Amazon? I'm currently trying to find an agent for a novel I just finished. If that doesn't pan out, I suppose I'll have to go the Lulu and/or Amazon e-book route. BTW, my book is a futuristic action thriller with a hint of sci-fi.

Everyone who's read loved it. My nephew read it in one sitting, and a couple friends read it twice, back to back. No agents have read it, though. They are the hardest people to please on the planet.

[jorian]

Hats off to you Ryan. I think there are a lot of closet writers and wanna-be authors around here, myself included. Not too many see it through to publication though.

[bigchillcar]

thanks, paul..the dude abides.. brian: amazon is working on a 'kindle for mac'..should come pretty soon. the link i posted somewhere above takes you to the free app for pc, and maybe the iphone app as well. charlie..well, by king's definition then i've got a way to go to accomplish that in royalties! first there's like, vodka money, the gas money, then grocery money, then i guess it jumps to electric bill level. i'm looking like a vodka guy to date..

[Halm]

Congrats Ryan! And good to see you on the board again.

[scottmandue]

Congratulations Ryan!

I have purchased a low cost new computer, installed MS word on it, and it sits in the extra bedroom waiting for me to write something with it.

Apparently when I get home from work I would rather sit with a glass of Zinfandel and watch NCIS than become a prolific writer.

[911boost]

Hey Ryan, good to see you back. I know what you are going through and how tough it is. Glad you can log onto PP every once in a while.

Sorry to hear about the car, hope you have some luck selling it.

Bill

[bigchillcar]

scott, just get anything down, even a page. i started with no idea where i was going..just started telling a story with no clear plan. eventually the ideas flowed in and i had to start making outlines in order to sequence the weaving of storylines..weaving great storylines is the fun part..makes the book become a page turner. make yourself sit for even half an hour, which is little time..but know you'll get up after half an hour. eventually you'll find you want more time..then you're hooked, self-motivated..and on your way.

i've had luck with selling the car, just bad. people aren't getting loan approvals like they used to, car sales are depressed, especially those considered more 'weekender'. no worries..i have the title and keep it garaged. it will sell when the right person comes along. down the road i have an interest in something even earlier than my prior '74.

and guys, i really do appreciate the kind words. it's exciting to hear feedback from people who read it...that's my real compensation.

[bigchillcar]

if interested in what it's about, here's the product descrip straight off the amazon page:

Product Description
Parallel worlds exist. This is the wondrous prediction of quantum mechanics. But what are the enigmatic implications should parallels abruptly, inexplicably coincide...somehow focalize...by an action of Man? How would these hidden worlds be experienced? To what limit should the nature and scope of Man's responsibilities to his own world extend...as well as to those unseen?

Answers are as complex as infinite. Could harnessing collosal energies haphazardly effect disorienting, 'unbounded communication' with other discrete universes? And differentiated through empire-time, could the answers to many of Man's long unaswered mysteries await discovery in other interwoven, near-parallel worlds?

An epic with sixty unique science tutorials challenges contemporary Man's notions of reality, even as his own distant future simultaneously still rockets along an endless journey in seek of absolute truth. Might even his exponential leaps toward enlightenment finally reconcile faith with reason...and answer his ultimate questions, which ask 'what is existence...how and why are we here?'

amazon.com/All-That-Seen-Unseen-ebook/dp/B002Z13LGM

[cgarr]

Call me stupid put I have no idea what these download books are all about, I asked my wife about this Kindle thing, she said, "yea I have been checking them out!" What the heck are they? She said they are around 200 bucks and she did not think you could just download them books to your computer? is this true or can I download it to my PC? I would really like this book but really not another electronic gizmo, well unless I really have too.....

[911Rob]

Congrats once again Ryan.

A Kindle is to books what an iPod is to music.

Gotta love the new technology and ya gotta hand it to Amazon for piggybacking Apples moves to the future!

A hand held electronic gadjet that you hold and turn pages just like a book, you can currently download over 350,000 books and thousands of mags in under a minute. This is gonna rock......... How do you say good-bye library?

Cheers,

[hcariss]

Great to see that someone has the strength to follow their dream ! Inspiring.

[bigchillcar]

craig - i posted a link on amazon where you may download a free application called 'kindle for pc' that allows you to download to computer if you don't have a kindle. they also have it free for the iphone and soon for the mac:

amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311

rob...thanks for showing the kindle!

[bigchillcar]

dang..more good news, actually. i'll bet many of you can relate with being lucky to just have a job today. after watching a business die on the vine, and isolating from home, i got a job a last week doing outside business development for a law firm, company car so i don't have to put miles on my rides. i'm out of the effin' house! i would have almost done this for free..thought i was gonna lose my mind. maybe i should start a thread about being grateful to be back at work in the 'normal world'. maybe i'll start feeling like my old self again sooner..what a blessing.

[Rot 911]

Congratulations Ryan on both the book and the new job!

[bigchillcar]

thanks, kurt! don't know if you saw where i'd logged in after a long while and posted on the death of your dog. i said i owe you a call, and haven't forgotten..need to catch up..been a long time.

[Joeaksa]

Ryan,

Know what you are feeling. Got the call three weeks ago and am now back with my old employer here in town. Start full time in mid-January and on cloud nine right now.

Congrats and hope that things keep moving in the right direction!

Joe A