I have an addi
ction.
I’ve been struggling with it for some time and never realized how serious the problem was until a friend brought it to my attention. After spending an entire weekend behind closed doors, indulging in my addiction, rarely eating, barely moving, not answering the phone and enjoying every single second of it, I finally had to admit it to myself. Like any addiction however, I really don’t WANT to fix the problem.
My addiction is to my Kindle.
It seems like only yesterday I was struggling with the whole idea of giving up my page-turning, hardcover-loving self, to become an ebook reader. How could I, as an author, go to the dark side and contribute to this new digital world where authors have fewer and fewer pages to sign? Could I really buy books that are stored in a tiny device I can hold in my hand instead of standing in neat little rows on my already over burdened book shelves? After owning my Kindle now, the answer to those questions is, HELLS TO THE YEAH!
I LOOOOOOVE my Kindle! I love that no matter how heavy a book is it doesn’t break my wrists to hold it up, to flip a page with the flick of my thumb. I love that if I read a series I enjoy, I can immediately download the next book in the series, never leaving my chair, never leaving my house. And I also love that my selections of books have now greatly expanded. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still in hot pursuit of a publisher that would make my mystery series a hardcover success anyone can find in a bookstore, but if I don’t find a publisher soon, my Kindle addiction makes me believe it won’t matter all that much. Like millions of writers out there who are bringing their work to the world without the publishing house gatekeepr, it is possible to find writing success in the self publishing world. Many of those authors owe their sucess to the Kindle.
I’m not the only addict! There are millions of us out there, millions who are downloading books with one click, sucking in new stories with ease and spending hours and hours absorbed in great writing. Yes, I’m addicted. And now there’s the Fire and the Kindle Touch. I’m pretty much toast.
M. L. Doyle has served in the U.S. Army at home and abroad for more than two decades as both a soldier and civilian. Mary is the author of The Desert Goddess series, an urban fantasy romp consisting of The Bonding Spell and The Bonding Blade. She has also penned The Master Sergeant Harper mystery series which has earned numerous awards including an IPPY, a Lyra Award and the Carrie McCray Literary Award. Mary is the co-author of two memoirs; A Promise Fulfilled; the story of a Wife and Mother, Soldier and General Officer (Jan. 201) and the memoir, I’m Still Standing: From Captive U.S. Soldier to Free Citizen—My Journey Home (Touchstone, 2010), which was nominated for an NAACP Image award. Mary's work has been published by The Goodman Project, The War Horse, The WWrite Blog and The Wrath-Bearing Tree, an online magazine for which she serves as a fiction editor. A Minneapolis, Minnesota native, Mary current lives in Baltimore. You can reach her at her website at mldoyleauthor.com.
2 comments on “I have an addiction”
Mary, why don't you put your Peacekeeper book out on kindle/Amazon ebooks and sell it yourself? I am not sure how it works, but I think you can do it yourself, and charge like 5$ for people to download it onto their kindles.
Susanne, Sorry I never responded to this comment. I've thought about it, but even if you self publish, there are costs associated with it. Finding good cover art. Paying for a talented line editor. Not to mention all the marketing associated with self publishing. My agent and I still haven't given up on the idea that I'll find a publisher. Crossing my fingers that I hear something positive very soon!