“The Story Of Rose,” my first e-book original came out last Monday, and it has been a fascinating, different and exciting experience for me. It was everything I had hoped and more. It was the best goodbye I could have imagined for Rose, far better than simply mourning her. First, the followers of Rose and this blog had a midnight digital launch party that went on all night. The book popped up on all sorts of online bestseller lists immediately and has stayed there. People seem to be liking it a lot. A true labor of love. Rose is always working for me. There were two days of technical problems not usually associated with book launches – which devices downloaded what. Loyal readers found ways of downloading this book on their computers, phones and tablets, trading information, supporting one another.
I had a great opening night talk at Battenkill Books about the future of e-books and that evening meant a lot to me.
Most of the early problems involved the enhanced edition, which sells for $3.99 and includes eight videos, and all those issues seem to have been resolved. Random House hoped that “The Story Of Rose” would lead into publication next month of a different kind of book – “Dancing Dogs,” my first short story collection to be published in paper and e-book form. And they were right. “Dancing Dogs” has been garnering some of the most powerful reviews any book of mine has ever received, and that is gratifying in so many different ways for me. I’ve never written short stories before, and I feel they are a natural medium for me. The book attempts to capture the emotional connection between people and their dogs in a non-judgmental way. One of the reviews pointed out that the stories are powerful without being sappy, and that there are few good short story collections about dogs and other animals for adults. “Dancing Dogs” has a story or two about cats and other animals also, but I won’t give that away.
You can pre-order “Dancing Dogs” or any of my new books – including “Lenore Finds A Friend,” out September 5 through Battenkill Books, an independent bookstore. I will sign and personalize them.
“The Story Of Rose” is a tribute to great creature she was. It was also a goodbye to her, a fitting one. I owe her that. I am also grateful to see the book is being sold for $2.99 because that means that anyone who wants to appreciate her can, for all time, beyond me, beyond my life. She will not only run in golden fields, but in ethereal world of the Internet, forever. Just what she deserved. I loved everything about this book. I hope you will also.