Prevent Deployment Boredom with Operation eBook Drop

For those indie authors looking to do a small service to help out some of our troops in harm's way, there's a way to send our servicemen free eBooks through Operation eBook Drop. This program was founded by an author and veteran, Edward Patterson, and Mark Coker of Smashwords helps out as well. The way it works is you issue a free coupon on your Smashwords account for your latest masterpiece, and then you send the coupon and link to your self-published eBook to a mailing list of military members and family members that Edward Patterson has compiled.Write to Ed to gain access to the mailing list, and there's about 180 addresses on the distribution with plenty of room for more. If you use Gmail, you can BCC up to 500 contacts, so you don't need anything fancy to email this many people on one shot.

This is a great program, because I was in Iraq for a year in the bygone days of 2007-2008, when eBooks were virtually unheard of. Being a Green Zone fobbit, the Groundhog Day phenomenon, where every day is exactly the same, began setting in about month 2 (with 10 months left to go). Lucky for me I was able to order print books from Amazon, but some of our troops living on combat outposts might not have that luxury. Therefore, an eReader stocked with eBooks is a great thing to bring to war to stave off boredom and the mid-deployment blues. With no alcohol, serious restrictions on co-mingling with the opposite sex, and having to work 14-hour days, reading is a great activity for active duty personnel to keep sane (at least I felt so, and YMMV).

A big concern is that internet connections in war zones can be atrocious, despite the US government shelling out millions to contractors to provide this service for the troops. I'm not sure if speeds have improved in the last 4 years, but when I was in Iraq, it was virtually impossible to download anything over 1MB. Therefore, you may want to consider not sending that 8MB eBook full of high-res pictures.

Hit or Miss Internet Connection (me in Iraq - 2007)

So, head on over to the Operation eBook Drop website and write to Ed for the email list. It's an easy thing to do. Hopefully, some of the big publishing houses will consider providing a similar service to our troops.

Prevent Deployment Boredom with Operation eBook Drop

The Lack of Culture Devoted to the Military Experience

Abandoned American Embassy - Baghdad

It's difficult to explain what it is like to be a veteran of the modern wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. There is currently a massive divide between military and civilian society in America, and going from the military world of big bases and routine deployments to the real world is like stepping onto another planet. Having spent over two years out of the military and over three years from being in Iraq, it's almost as if my time in the Navy was in a past life. I can still recall what being on a submarine is like: the smell of diesel, people pissed off at the stress and lack of sleep, the zombie-like mentality. However, the person I was back then is practically a stranger to me now. There is a bit of a language barrier between my Thai wife and myself, but even if there wasn't, I could never explain to her about what being in the Navy was like.

I believe a reason for not being able to comprehend my former life is the serious lack of popular culture that discusses the military experience. It can be challenging to reflect on your own experience if no one else is trying to do the same. No man is an island and all that.  Most of the media establishment tends to focus on veterans who have been traumatized by war, and even then, it was more prominent during the Bush era for political reasons. This is an important matter to discuss, but where are the interesting stories about life in the military (no, Stealth does not count)? Hopefully, more veterans will continue using the GI Bill to finish off film school and MFAs, and we will begin to see an emerging trend in mass media similar to what was seen in the great movies following Vietnam (e.g. Platoon, Hamburger Hill, etc.)

Of course, there are a few exceptions. David Bellavia has a great book on Fallujah in 2004. Also, I just finished with Chris Brownfield's book My Nuclear Family, which was an interesting exploration of life as junior officer on a boat in Iraq (I had a much more humble opinion of myself than he does). However, there aren't enough, and hopefully that trend will change over time.

The Lack of Culture Devoted to the Military Experience

Short Story for Sale - The Bunker below Believers' Palace

Now Available at Amazon.com Barnes & Noble and Smashwords

Lieutenant Nixon is a bitter, frustrated naval officer serving his time as a staff weenie in the International Zone. Bored with the monotony of war, he ventures to a secret bunker below one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces with a quirky German named Hans. Crawling down to the depths of the destroyed structure, he finds more than he bargained for.

The Bunker below Believers’ Palace is a 3,400-word (~15-page) short story about the mystery behind Saddhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifam’s toppled dictatorship.

The actual bunker is a real place that was constructed for Saddam and his goons by a German firm in the 1980s. The palace really did get nailed with JDAMs in 2003

Photo Credit Miserable Donuts

This is my first attempt at self-publishing, so hit me with your best shot. I find that the nastier the criticism tends to be the most helpful. My brother did the editing, and I was able to get the eBook formatted pretty quickly with the tutorials I made for MOBI and EPUB conversion along with getting a Word document to pass the Smashwords Meatgrinder.

But enough with the nerd talk, just read my damn story. If you're hurting for dough and need that $0.99 to buy clothes hangers or whatever, shoot me an email and I'll hit you up with a free PDF.

Short Story for Sale - The Bunker below Believers' Palace

First Novella Cover - America Goes On

My little brother is finishing up editing my first novella, America Goes On, which is a story about a Marine travelling across the country in his truck after a stint in Iraq. I actually wrote this three years ago when I returned from Iraq as social commentary on American society, but after looking at it a few months ago, I realized the writing was total shit. After some much needed re-working, it will hopefully be released shortly and generate some interest.

Most of the books and movies I have seen or read about Iraq veterans have been horrendous, characters that are completely absurd stereotypes and borderline offensive. We have a long way to go if we want to have the same cultural impact that the post-Vietnam Vietnam movies and books had, like Tim O' Brien. The only good piece of fiction I've ever found about Iraq is Senator's Son, not surprisingly written by a someone who actually served there.

Seeing how no one's going to buy a book without a cover, I decided to whip something up in Powerpoint.

Terrible

After sobering up and realizing that I never really advanced in my artistic ability beyond fingerpainting in kindergarten, I decided to contract out the job. Convincing a Thai colleague of mine to do the job for 1,500THB (about $US50), she tried her first ebook cover and this is what she came up with.

Much Better

The story has a very cynical and depressing outlook on modern America, so I felt the bizarro cover does the tale justice. I'm very happy with her first attempt, and I hope to develop a long-term business relationship with her. Much cheaper than rates in the West, where ebook covers often cost $300-$500. The downside is she does not speak any English. Do you know the Thai for "Please create an ebook cover with an American desert setting that forebodes doom and despair during a young Marine's travels"? Me neither.
 
For those patriots who refuse to work with artisans in developing countries in Southeast Asia, the always on-point Lindsay Buroker has some recommendations on where to find good rates for ebook cover (about $US100). Before huffing at the prices, remember that ebook covers are an investment, not just throwing money away on booze and candy.

First Novella Cover - America Goes On