My preliminary license from Sony arrived via email yesterday...and upon reviewing it, what they're looking for is $100 (representing their 50% share)---for every 500 copies of the book that are printed And I've been told that, should the book become popular, the number might change.
Assuming the other party wants an equal share (another $100---and if they demand more, I'd have to match it with what I pay Sony), I'd end up paying about 40 cents per each copy sold, just to have four or five lines of "Dolores" quoted during one of the later chapters in the book.
It's not too late for me to back out...and I might have to do just that Too bad, really, as I like the song...but I can use Duke Ellington's superb "Take the 'A' Train" for nothing---it's an instrumental...
It's certainly been a learning experience.
That's a bummer. I love the sequence as written and it would be a shame to lose the quotes, but YIKES that contract seems a little grabby. I have confidence that you can cook the scene up with slightly different flavors that won't break the bank. Who would have guessed that a corporation like Sony would be so concerned with making money, and care so little about artistic concerns ? :v
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Could you re-write the scene so that the name of the song is mentioned, but sans the quotes?
Yeah, and I might do that...but at the very least, I'll mention the song in an earlier chapter, where I cite the titles of a handful of songs on the Hit Parade when Pearl Harbor was attacked...if I can't use the lyrics to Dolores, I really like the idea of having Ellington's 'A' Train playing during the shootout in question. It's all about ironic juxtaposition...plus it's the song the Rolling Stones played a recording of to open their concert, back in 1981, when I saw them play a soccer stadium in Madrid B-) ...so there's a bit of nostagia at play there for me as well
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
At this point it sounds like Mr. Ellington has moved up and is gaining on the inside track!
With regret. At this point, I'm afraid I'm on Sony's radar---at least I can be reasonably confident I'll sell their legal department a copy of the book! If I were to keep the song in---and simply describe that Bing Crosby croons about the kisses of Dolores---I might be unintentionally inviting, at the very least, a threatening letter. And I don't want to go there. As much as I love the song, I don't want to be married to it, and owing child support in perpetuity
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
At this point it sounds like Mr. Ellington has moved up and is gaining on the inside track!
With regret. At this point, I'm afraid I'm on Sony's radar---at least I can be reasonably confident I'll sell their legal department a copy of the book! If I were to keep the song in---and simply describe that Bing Crosby croons about the kisses of Dolores---I might be unintentionally inviting, at the very least, a threatening letter. And I don't want to go there. As much as I love the song, I don't want to be married to it, and owing child support in perpetuity
You can't copywrite a title (you can trademark one, though) so you're probably safe mentioning the title as a subject. It would be a nice and neat way to 'stick it' to Sony :v
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited February 2010
I'm going to be at that point in the final rewrite very soon, DH...you might have talked me into it :v I'll see what I can conjure up...what I'm in love with, in all honesty, is the notion of Bing Crosby singing over a vicious gunfight )
Meanwhile, I'll be sending this photo to you shortly, along with my bio (such as it is! ;% ), for the back cover:
Again with the irony---a story set in Miami Beach, with the writer trapped in a Midwestern snowstorm )
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Well, I think my wife and I have solved the problem...we've written a song! ) Or, to be precise, enough bits of the lyrics of a song to get us by. Now Mr. Crosby will be crooning the (utterly fictional) Hit Parade favourite, Doris Mae B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Fleeting moment of excitement...Oscar Jade now turns up on a google search Very cool...however, distressing to learn that 'Blood & Ashes' is also the 2nd album release by some hip hop act I've never heard of Can't win 'em all...
In order to completely cover my a$$ with Sony, I've taken "Dolores" off the website. Now, when you click 'Play', (if it works! ) you'll hear Duke Ellington's brilliant "Take the 'A' Train" B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,709MI6 Agent
Fleeting moment of excitement...Oscar Jade now turns up on a google search Very cool...however, distressing to learn that 'Blood & Ashes' is also the 2nd album release by some hip hop act I've never heard of Can't win 'em all...
In order to completely cover my a$$ with Sony, I've taken "Dolores" off the website. Now, when you click 'Play', (if it works! ) you'll hear Duke Ellington's brilliant "Take the 'A' Train" B-)
Works for me. Sound great!
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
Good to hear you've solved the matter of the "song extortion plot".....
Now if you are going to put a picture of yourself on the back cover of your novel, you have to get out of the snow into a dark smokey room, then through swirls of cigarette smoke have your picture taken wearing a fedora ..... you know - get a little Fleming or Chandler mystic going ...
...if you are going to put a picture of yourself on the back cover of your novel, you have to get out of the snow into a dark smokey room, then through swirls of cigarette smoke have your picture taken wearing a fedora ..... you know - get a little Fleming or Chandler mystic going ...
Maybe for the next one! I've got a good idea along those lines...hopefully I'll have a budget for a pro photographer for that one, LOL ;%
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Finished my developmental rewrite today! Thank God. Now it's on to the editor, for final spelling, punctuation, etc fixes...
How do I not drink to excess tonight? Good question...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Well, the book's been emailed to my editor in Montreal for the 'line edit'---punctuation, grammar, spelling, etc...hopefully just a few small fixes after that and then it's off to the publisher for production
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,709MI6 Agent
Good to hear Loeff. Good luck to you. When can we expect the world wide tour of book signings and hitting the late night talk shows to plug your book?
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited March 2010
Haha...well, I'm certainly going to try to get on radio shows---local first, and then hopefully branching out into syndicated nationwide programs. I'd love to do a book tour...but to do that, I'm going to need to sell books---it's a paradox. I'm certainly going to do book signings locally, and hope to build a foundation of sales that will push outward...if I can make it to Chicago, say, and have a nice run there, I can afford to take the road show farther from my home base...but first I've got to make it beyond Springfield Illinois It's going to be a genuine challenge, because I'm really rather introverted in real life ;%
The thing about publishing independently is that the author carries pretty much the full burden of marketing and public relations---though I'll have a marketing coach, posters, business cards, book markers, etc....There will be a press release, I'm pretty sure...I'm networking on Facebook, and might run an ad there when the book comes out. I'm going to send promotional copies to TV (it's worth gambling a few copies!), and try to get Oscar Jade out there anyway I can. What I'll ultimately need is positive word of mouth. If I can sell a few on the East or West coast, or the UK (!), and they like it...maybe they'll tell two friends...and so on...(prayer to God)...I've no illusion that it'll be a million seller---that never happens in situations like mine---but if I can sell a few thousand...
Maybe even an Oscar Jade T-Shirt...who knows!? )
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Haha...well, I'm certainly going to try to get on radio shows---local first, and then hopefully branching out into syndicated nationwide programs.
Loeff, I can certainly promise you local radio in the West of Scotland.... ) At least two stations! (Woo-hoo!)
I'll remember you said that :v ) Good excuse to go abroad...if it ever gets to that point, there'll have to be an AJB Party {[]
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited March 2010
Begging your pardon, but here's a preview of what's going into the back of the book when it hits the presses:
Author’s Note & Acknowledgments
“I think you should write an old-fashioned private eye story.”
It was the summer of 2007, and my father and I were sitting in my parents’ family room, as we sometimes do late on a Sunday morning. My father is a fan of the classic-style mystery novels, and had just finished reading I, The Jury, by the great Mickey Spillane. He observed: “They don’t write books like that anymore…and people still want to read them.”
The moment is burned permanently into my memory, since—although I didn’t realize it at the time—it was the moment that Oscar Jade was born, and the book you’re now holding in your hands is the direct result of that particular moment in time.
I took the advice to heart and slept on it, feeling like a tee-leaguer contemplating a run at the majors, but when I woke up the next morning, I suddenly realized I was about to write a private detective mystery—and it would be an intentionally “retro” affair, taking place back in the time when some of these great stories were first conceived and written by giants like Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. It was a time before DNA experts, cell phones and Internet databases—when a gumshoe’s toolbox was limited to shifty street contacts, his skills and his nerve…and, when the time came, the gun in his hand.
Choosing the period was the easy part. Next came the more difficult decision of where my hero would ply his trade. Hammett’s Sam Spade had San Francisco, Spillane’s Mike Hammer owned New York City, and Chandler’s Phillip Marlowe haunted the expanse of Golden Age Los Angeles. Keeping this in mind, and looking at a map of the United States, there was clearly a territorial opportunity in the Southeast.
Researching the history of the area provided an epiphany: at the beginning of World War Two, Miami Beach was on the cusp of a new age of expansion. The massive influx of military personnel (taking advantage of the tropical climate, and the ability to train year-round), along with the presence of gangsters, industrialists and movie stars—all of whom made the beach their personal playground—provides an arena of infinite possibilities. The fact that my father had been born in Florida, and had lived a fair portion of his young childhood on Aviation Avenue in Coral Gables, was the deciding factor. It will be news to anyone outside my immediate family that my dad (born in February, 1939) actually has a cameo appearance in Chapter One of Blood & Ashes, along with his three older brothers, his older sister and my grandmother, who turn up as bathers on the beach in front of the Pelican Bar & Grill.
Once I was in the midst of it, I soon realized that I had grabbed a tiger by the tail, and all I could do was hold on. Things got more violent than I’d foreseen, but that’s what happens when you’re just an observer, in over your head and just trying to stay alive…
As much care as possible has been taken in preserving the accuracy of Miami Beach in December of 1941: the overall geography has been replicated based upon maps of the era, to include street names and the general layout of various neighborhoods. That being said, real estate development has been relentless over the past seventy years. The Miami Beach of 1941 (to say nothing about South Florida as a whole) is long gone, and some artistic license has admittedly been taken to serve the story being told. Aside from Hialeah Park, virtually all businesses and buildings depicted herein are figments of my imagination, and any resemblance to actual businesses and buildings is strictly unintentional. The events depicted as occurring in and around Miami Beach on Friday, December 12th, 1941, never actually did—and, to the best of my knowledge, Bing Crosby never recorded a song entitled “Doris Mae”…but he should have…
Specifically, I am aware that the Drake Building has existed at the corner of Ocean Drive and 15th Street, in Miami Beach, since the 1930s—therefore, the Pelican Bar & Grill exists only in my mind and on these pages, and I hope that we might all continue to “pretend.”
If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank a few of the many people without whom this book would never have been written. First of all, my parents: Tom and Janice Loeffelholz, who have been unceasing in their love, support and belief in me, and my sister, Lori Kish…
My brother Michael, upon whom Oscar Jade’s physical appearance is partly based, and whose assistance in naming my hero was instrumental…
My lovely and long-suffering wife Cindy, who has been by my side since 1986, when we sat in a rented Ford Mustang behind George Ranks’ bar and talked about my dreams of being a writer…
My sons Ian and Alec, without whom my life would be unimaginable…
Joe Hackett, my sixth grade teacher, who once wrote the words to the Beatles’ Hey Jude on the classroom blackboard, and opened my mind to unlimited possibilities…
Ian Fleming, who came along around the same time and showed me just how electrifying the printed word can be...
Erin Stropes, my editor, whose thoughtful and tireless work has helped me realize who Oscar Jade actually is…
Mike Williams, who helped me arrive at the title Blood & Ashes…
Daren Hatfield, for his brilliant cover art…
The moderators and members of ajb007.co.uk, whose friendship and encouragement have been invaluable (and without whom I’d never have met Mike Williams or Daren Hatfield)…
And, finally but perhaps most importantly, you the reader—since Oscar Jade can’t really exist, unless and until his exploits are enjoyed by others. Thank you for being there. I plan to do everything I can to keep you interested.
There’s a lot about Oscar Jade I don’t know yet: exactly where he’s been, or where he’s going. He’s a moody and tight-lipped fellow, and doesn’t respond well to persistent questioning. Recently, he’s threatened to punch me in the mouth if I keep bothering him. All I can do is keep an eye on him, and follow him wherever he goes. He always manages to surprise me, and I trust he will continue to do so.
There’s only one thing that I can be reasonably sure about.
Oscar Jade Will Return.
- M.L.
Springfield, Illinois, April 2010
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Shoot, Loeffs! You were looking for a synopsis for the back? I say drop that idea and run the few first paragraphs of this! It lands enough punch to really want the reader to jump in and see what Oscar Jade is all about!
Just knowing that you truly have a heart for the story and the genre goes a long way in my opinion. So often I'll pick up a book from a first time author and the blurb on the back feels like it's trying way too hard to impress me with the author's cleverness. But your novel has something those lack and that's 'soul'
Wow, steady Leoffs. Blurb jackets should be short and punchy. Too much of this can put the potential buyers off - like Gwyneth Paltrow at the oscars... Let the story do the talking. A great cover jacket, a punchy first page and you're away. I was later told buy a publisher that I used the aknowledgements far too much for my novel, and it was a 1/4 of this. Besides, people like an air of mystery about the author.
Everything else you're doing looks great, and I can't wait to get myself a copy of this when it's out. Best of luck!
Amazon #1 Bestselling Author. If you enjoy crime, espionage, action and fast-moving thrillers follow this link:
Wow, steady Leoffs. Blurb jackets should be short and punchy. Too much of this can put the potential buyers off - like Gwyneth Paltrow at the oscars... Let the story do the talking. A great cover jacket, a punchy first page and you're away. I was later told buy a publisher that I used the aknowledgements far too much for my novel, and it was a 1/4 of this. Besides, people like an air of mystery about the author.
Everything else you're doing looks great, and I can't wait to get myself a copy of this when it's out. Best of luck!
I appreciate what you're saying---but this won't be the back cover, which will have either a one-paragraph 'bullet' synopsis, or perhaps just a salient one-paragraph excerpt from the text, and a short paragraph bio of me with a photo. My intent is to put what's above inside the book, after the end of the story, more like the credits following a movie...or the DVD extras...
Your point about maintaining a bit of mystique is well taken, though; food for thought. One thing I intend to put in my bio, rather for a laugh, is the fact that I was rated an expert marksman with a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver...which is the truth! B-)
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Congrats Loeff. {[] Remember and sell the movie rights!
Thanks John...I'm going to bloody well try! I've got a producer buddy (who optioned my WWI script Born To Fly in '08, only to have it languish on the shelf) who's going to shop the book around LA for me...
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
Here's my bio for the back cover:
Mark Loeffelholz was once rated an expert marksman with a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver. Several careers later, he has written poetry, political satire, short stories, motion picture screenplays and novels. In 2008, his screenplay Born To Fly was optioned in Hollywood. He lives in Springfield, Illinois, with his wife and two sons.
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Comments
That's a bummer. I love the sequence as written and it would be a shame to lose the quotes, but YIKES that contract seems a little grabby.
Yeah, and I might do that...but at the very least, I'll mention the song in an earlier chapter, where I cite the titles of a handful of songs on the Hit Parade when Pearl Harbor was attacked...if I can't use the lyrics to Dolores, I really like the idea of having Ellington's 'A' Train playing during the shootout in question. It's all about ironic juxtaposition...plus it's the song the Rolling Stones played a recording of to open their concert, back in 1981, when I saw them play a soccer stadium in Madrid B-) ...so there's a bit of nostagia at play there for me as well
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
With regret. At this point, I'm afraid I'm on Sony's radar---at least I can be reasonably confident I'll sell their legal department a copy of the book!
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
You can't copywrite a title (you can trademark one, though) so you're probably safe mentioning the title as a subject. It would be a nice and neat way to 'stick it' to Sony :v
Meanwhile, I'll be sending this photo to you shortly, along with my bio (such as it is! ;% ), for the back cover:
Again with the irony---a story set in Miami Beach, with the writer trapped in a Midwestern snowstorm
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
In order to completely cover my a$$ with Sony, I've taken "Dolores" off the website. Now, when you click 'Play', (if it works!
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Works for me. Sound great!
Now if you are going to put a picture of yourself on the back cover of your novel, you have to get out of the snow into a dark smokey room, then through swirls of cigarette smoke have your picture taken wearing a fedora ..... you know - get a little Fleming or Chandler mystic going ...
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
mountainburdphotography.wordpress.com
Maybe for the next one! I've got a good idea along those lines...hopefully I'll have a budget for a pro photographer for that one, LOL ;%
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
How do I not drink to excess tonight? Good question...
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
-{
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
The thing about publishing independently is that the author carries pretty much the full burden of marketing and public relations---though I'll have a marketing coach, posters, business cards, book markers, etc....There will be a press release, I'm pretty sure...I'm networking on Facebook, and might run an ad there when the book comes out. I'm going to send promotional copies to TV (it's worth gambling a few copies!), and try to get Oscar Jade out there anyway I can. What I'll ultimately need is positive word of mouth. If I can sell a few on the East or West coast, or the UK (!), and they like it...maybe they'll tell two friends...and so on...(prayer to God)...I've no illusion that it'll be a million seller---that never happens in situations like mine---but if I can sell a few thousand...
Maybe even an Oscar Jade T-Shirt...who knows!?
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
Loeff, I can certainly promise you local radio in the West of Scotland....
I'll remember you said that :v
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Author’s Note & Acknowledgments
“I think you should write an old-fashioned private eye story.”
It was the summer of 2007, and my father and I were sitting in my parents’ family room, as we sometimes do late on a Sunday morning. My father is a fan of the classic-style mystery novels, and had just finished reading I, The Jury, by the great Mickey Spillane. He observed: “They don’t write books like that anymore…and people still want to read them.”
The moment is burned permanently into my memory, since—although I didn’t realize it at the time—it was the moment that Oscar Jade was born, and the book you’re now holding in your hands is the direct result of that particular moment in time.
I took the advice to heart and slept on it, feeling like a tee-leaguer contemplating a run at the majors, but when I woke up the next morning, I suddenly realized I was about to write a private detective mystery—and it would be an intentionally “retro” affair, taking place back in the time when some of these great stories were first conceived and written by giants like Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. It was a time before DNA experts, cell phones and Internet databases—when a gumshoe’s toolbox was limited to shifty street contacts, his skills and his nerve…and, when the time came, the gun in his hand.
Choosing the period was the easy part. Next came the more difficult decision of where my hero would ply his trade. Hammett’s Sam Spade had San Francisco, Spillane’s Mike Hammer owned New York City, and Chandler’s Phillip Marlowe haunted the expanse of Golden Age Los Angeles. Keeping this in mind, and looking at a map of the United States, there was clearly a territorial opportunity in the Southeast.
Researching the history of the area provided an epiphany: at the beginning of World War Two, Miami Beach was on the cusp of a new age of expansion. The massive influx of military personnel (taking advantage of the tropical climate, and the ability to train year-round), along with the presence of gangsters, industrialists and movie stars—all of whom made the beach their personal playground—provides an arena of infinite possibilities. The fact that my father had been born in Florida, and had lived a fair portion of his young childhood on Aviation Avenue in Coral Gables, was the deciding factor. It will be news to anyone outside my immediate family that my dad (born in February, 1939) actually has a cameo appearance in Chapter One of Blood & Ashes, along with his three older brothers, his older sister and my grandmother, who turn up as bathers on the beach in front of the Pelican Bar & Grill.
Once I was in the midst of it, I soon realized that I had grabbed a tiger by the tail, and all I could do was hold on. Things got more violent than I’d foreseen, but that’s what happens when you’re just an observer, in over your head and just trying to stay alive…
As much care as possible has been taken in preserving the accuracy of Miami Beach in December of 1941: the overall geography has been replicated based upon maps of the era, to include street names and the general layout of various neighborhoods. That being said, real estate development has been relentless over the past seventy years. The Miami Beach of 1941 (to say nothing about South Florida as a whole) is long gone, and some artistic license has admittedly been taken to serve the story being told. Aside from Hialeah Park, virtually all businesses and buildings depicted herein are figments of my imagination, and any resemblance to actual businesses and buildings is strictly unintentional. The events depicted as occurring in and around Miami Beach on Friday, December 12th, 1941, never actually did—and, to the best of my knowledge, Bing Crosby never recorded a song entitled “Doris Mae”…but he should have…
Specifically, I am aware that the Drake Building has existed at the corner of Ocean Drive and 15th Street, in Miami Beach, since the 1930s—therefore, the Pelican Bar & Grill exists only in my mind and on these pages, and I hope that we might all continue to “pretend.”
If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank a few of the many people without whom this book would never have been written. First of all, my parents: Tom and Janice Loeffelholz, who have been unceasing in their love, support and belief in me, and my sister, Lori Kish…
My brother Michael, upon whom Oscar Jade’s physical appearance is partly based, and whose assistance in naming my hero was instrumental…
My lovely and long-suffering wife Cindy, who has been by my side since 1986, when we sat in a rented Ford Mustang behind George Ranks’ bar and talked about my dreams of being a writer…
My sons Ian and Alec, without whom my life would be unimaginable…
Joe Hackett, my sixth grade teacher, who once wrote the words to the Beatles’ Hey Jude on the classroom blackboard, and opened my mind to unlimited possibilities…
Ian Fleming, who came along around the same time and showed me just how electrifying the printed word can be...
Erin Stropes, my editor, whose thoughtful and tireless work has helped me realize who Oscar Jade actually is…
Mike Williams, who helped me arrive at the title Blood & Ashes…
Daren Hatfield, for his brilliant cover art…
The moderators and members of ajb007.co.uk, whose friendship and encouragement have been invaluable (and without whom I’d never have met Mike Williams or Daren Hatfield)…
And, finally but perhaps most importantly, you the reader—since Oscar Jade can’t really exist, unless and until his exploits are enjoyed by others. Thank you for being there. I plan to do everything I can to keep you interested.
There’s a lot about Oscar Jade I don’t know yet: exactly where he’s been, or where he’s going. He’s a moody and tight-lipped fellow, and doesn’t respond well to persistent questioning. Recently, he’s threatened to punch me in the mouth if I keep bothering him. All I can do is keep an eye on him, and follow him wherever he goes. He always manages to surprise me, and I trust he will continue to do so.
There’s only one thing that I can be reasonably sure about.
Oscar Jade Will Return.
- M.L.
Springfield, Illinois, April 2010
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Bond’s Beretta
The Handguns of Ian Fleming's James Bond
Just knowing that you truly have a heart for the story and the genre goes a long way in my opinion. So often I'll pick up a book from a first time author and the blurb on the back feels like it's trying way too hard to impress me with the author's cleverness. But your novel has something those lack and that's 'soul'
(thanks for the kind words, BTW)
Everything else you're doing looks great, and I can't wait to get myself a copy of this when it's out. Best of luck!
http://apbateman.com
I appreciate what you're saying---but this won't be the back cover, which will have either a one-paragraph 'bullet' synopsis, or perhaps just a salient one-paragraph excerpt from the text, and a short paragraph bio of me with a photo. My intent is to put what's above inside the book, after the end of the story, more like the credits following a movie...or the DVD extras...
Your point about maintaining a bit of mystique is well taken, though; food for thought. One thing I intend to put in my bio, rather for a laugh, is the fact that I was rated an expert marksman with a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver...which is the truth! B-)
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Thanks John...I'm going to bloody well try! I've got a producer buddy (who optioned my WWI script Born To Fly in '08, only to have it languish on the shelf) who's going to shop the book around LA for me...
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Mark Loeffelholz was once rated an expert marksman with a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver. Several careers later, he has written poetry, political satire, short stories, motion picture screenplays and novels. In 2008, his screenplay Born To Fly was optioned in Hollywood. He lives in Springfield, Illinois, with his wife and two sons.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Am pissed, someon'es leaving do today. Pm me Loeffs and resons will biring a msile to ou r face.
Roger Moore 1927-2017