EBook Marketing for the Indie Author

For the past month I've promised and now I'm delivering a smorgasbord of marketing tips my fellow authors and I have utilized to find readers and sell eBooks.  Remember, these are just ideas and should in no way be misconstrued as a guarantee.  These authors have also graciously offered copies of one or more of their books for several lucky commenters, so stay tuned below to find out how to win.  Now onto the meat and potatoes!

Marketing your novel can be one of the most intimidating experiences for the self-published, independent author.  Without a marketing degree or industry contacts like the major publishers, the full brunt of the responsibility can feel like you’re swimming against the current in a turbulent storm.  Couple that with a lack of computer savvy in today’s wired world and you may feel like throwing up your hands and quitting before you even get out of the gate.

I’m here to tell you – DON’T QUIT!

Let me start by saying that I’ve been there.  The eBook universe was changing the publishing landscape on a daily basis by the time I finished my first novel.  After spending ample time querying, I decided self-publishing an eBook was for me.  The Internet was rife with self-publishing success stories, and the stigma associated with such was dissipating. 

So I built an online presence then realized the dream of publishing my first novel.  I basked in the joy for a while as I worked the social media components like most of the “how-to” books instruct.  I blogged, Facebook’ed, tweeted – you name it.  Sales were minimal.  Soon they were anemic.  What was I doing wrong?

Reality check time – nothing’s wrong.  The truth is the Internet has become flooded by other independent authors doing exactly the same things.  Once again the publishing world is in flux.  So what practical ways could I utilize to find actual readers out there? 

I still haven’t permanently found that sweet spot, but what I want to share with you in this article are specific things both my fellow indie authors and I have utilized to find readers in the virtual world of eBooks.

1.         Utilize established news outlets and bloggers

Recently I had a spate of sales through Amazon that caught me by surprise – over seventy eBooks in a twenty-four hour period, which was huge for me.  A friend had sent me a link to a news outlet that regularly highlights independent authors.  Figured there was little chance the commentator would pick little old me to highlight, but after debating over it for several months I finally decided it couldn’t hurt to at least try.  I sent a brief email outlining my book title, the synopsis, and the Amazon link for my novel Running into the Darkness and thanked him for considering my book.  A few weeks later, I was shocked to discover he’d chosen my book!

If you’d like to try this specific tactic, the site link is http://pjmedia.com/instapundit/.  Email Glenn at pundit@instapundit.com.  He gets many requests daily so there’s no guarantee he’ll post your book, but I believe one of the reasons he picked mine was because of the brevity of my email.  Just give the facts as mentioned above.  He’s an Amazon affiliate so avoid any other links. 

Since then, I’ve picked up some residual sales from word-of-mouth.  It also gave me the confidence to approach other news feed sites with a brief request.  There haven’t been any other takers as of yet, but I figure the only things the effort hurts are my wrists. :-)  No matter who you contact, remember you are a professional and act as such.  If they don’t respond, let it go and move on to the next contact.  Don’t keep hounding anyone.  Sometimes we all feel desperate, but never EVER act like it.  Keep in mind what your momma taught you – treat everyone with respect no matter what.

2.         Target your audience

Marketing takes a ton of work, so why not reduce that effort a little bit by utilizing a couple of specific tactics here.  With the Halloween season rapidly approaching, fellow indie author William Brian Johnson (http://fatherthunder.blogspot.com and www.ruminationofthunder.com) has a fun approach this time of year to marketing his horror novel Hell to Pay.  Brian explains that he “…found a group of like-minded writers that promote themselves over Halloween on a blog hop called the ‘Coffin Hop’.  We do guest blogs, giveaways, baskets and I’ve met some interesting folk.”  This example can be utilized for other seasons throughout the year: romance at Valentine’s, inspirational at Easter, Christmas…you get the picture.  With my political thriller, I even try to take advantage of the election season every other year.  Search the Internet for other authors and groups within your genre and work together to promote one another.  The old adage applies here…you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.

Another way to target your marketing efforts is to remember to utilize your genre identifiers.  Heidi Ruby Miller (http://heidirubymiller.blogspot.com), author of Greenshift and Ambassadora, explains it well.  “Use your Amazon tags wisely.  You only have two major categories and seven keyword categories.  Take advantage of both your general markets and niche markets so that you can optimize the search results for your book.  For instance, my latest novel Greenshift is listed in the broad main categories of Science Fiction and Space Opera, but I’ve included appropriate niche tags that are already popular like galactic empire, science fiction romance, futuristic, military science fiction, fantasy romance, science fiction adventure, and series.”  You’ll choose your two main categories when uploading your eBook on Amazon.  Once your book page is live, scroll down toward the bottom to input your seven keyword categories.  As Heidi said – choose wisely!

Nicole Loughan (www.littlespotforstories.com), author of novellas To Murder a Saint and All Saints’ Secrets, had another great idea for targeting your audience.  “Another thing I did that I think was helpful was getting Facebook announcements from my Alumni Association.  I went to Michigan State University, one of the largest universities in the country so I have a huge amount of alumni available to sell to.”

3.         Participate in a blog tour

Now first thing I’ll say here is that this is an investment in your writing career.  It is unlikely you will recoup the associated costs through your book sales during the actual tour.  However, it’s a great way to ramp up interest in your novel and accumulate needed book reviews over a short period of time.  Reviews help sales!

There are many blog tour companies out there.  A quick Internet search will offer plenty to choose from.  Some are al-la-carte while others charge an all-inclusive rate.  Some are a rip-off.  Others are so-so in what they offer.  Just do your homework.  The most expensive is not necessarily the best.  And if you’ve written a thriller, don’t choose a tour company that focuses on romance.  Yes, they’ll take your money just the same, but it will be money poorly spent.

If you’d like a recommendation to make it easier, I’ve participated in tours with Tribute Books (http://www.tribute-books.com/blog_tours.html) and highly recommend Nicole and the gang for their professionalism in communication and organization.  They gather the tour stops, create a website with all of the tour dates and stops displayed and a banner you can utilize to drum up interest on your own website/blog.  You choose whether you want stops for reviews, guest posts, interviews or even a mixture to keep it interesting throughout the month-long process.  They blog, Twitter, and Facebook your tour and ask you to do the same leading up to and during the tour.  You can even have a giveaway as part of your tour promotion.  There are several different packages to choose from, and they’re all reasonably priced.

4.         Give ‘em away

This may sound contradictory to what you hope to accomplish as a published author – I mean, you spent months and years working to create your masterpiece(s) and should be rewarded for your hard work.  But the reality is that in the whole publishing realm you are a virtual nobody at this point.  What you’re trying to do right now is get noticed, get your book into as many hands as possible, and garner reviews to help sell future books.  Forward thinking at work here, folks!

Smashwords (www.smashwords.com) is a site that allows you to publish your book in all eBook formats – if you’re not on it you need to be.  Once you’re published here you can also go in and create coupons on your books for percentage discounts up to 100%.  Just access the Coupon Manager from your dashboard, create the coupon, discount, and expiration date then send the code or use it to gift a copy to whomever you wish.  Best of all, this method doesn’t cost you a thing!

Rafflecopter (www.rafflecopter.com) is another site that is a great way to offer professional-looking giveaways.  The basic level is free and the next level costs just $7.99 per month.  You can build your giveaway by choosing the prize(s), the dates of the giveaway (I recommend 30 days), and even allow your entrants to Tweet about, like your Facebook page, or comment on your website/blog.  Once you’ve built your giveaway and expiration date, the site prepares a widget code that you post under HTML on your website/blog.  You can even provide the widget to others to post on their sites to help promote your giveaway.  Entrants simply click the box to login and enter for a chance to win whatever prize you’ve set. At the end of the giveaway period, you go into the site, click on choose a winner and send them an email with their prize.  The nice thing about this is that it collects the names and email addresses of the entrants so you can create a fan base to notify when you have new book releases.  However, avoid abusing this information by sending random emails – makes you nothing more than a spammer and nobody likes a bunch of spam filling their inbox.

GoodReads (www.goodreads.com) is a wonderful site that connects writers AND readers.  If you’ve not created your author profile here, do it as soon as you are finished reading this article (and remember to connect your books to your author page).  Readers can find your books and put them on their “to read” shelf.  You can let these potential readers know about your giveaways for your books when you have them.  Many GoodReads participants also leave reviews and comments on your novels and make recommendations to other GoodReads readers.  It’s a great way to help spread the word. 

But we were talking about giveaways here so let me offer you another of Nicole Loughan’s suggestions.  Even though the focus of this article is on eBook marketing, she had great results with a GoodReads giveaway of physical books at www.goodreads.com/giveaway.  Nicole says, “What you do is offer a physical giveaway of your book for a 30 day period of time and people sign up to win a free copy.  Between the two, more than 1,000 people signed up for the giveaway.  And 600 of them added me to their to read list.  Not that all of those people have purchased yet, that would be nice.  But a few definitely did.”

5.         Above all – ALWAYS present yourself as a professional

This should be understood, but you might be surprised what you’ll find out there in the indie world both in the material published and in author image.  As a reader, I make a point of trying to support fellow indie authors’ works.  But I’ve gotta tell you, sometimes it’s nigh impossible. 

Many times I’ve downloaded material to my Kindle and just about had a cow when within the first few pages there were so many basic punctuation and grammar errors or formatting disasters.  The storyline may be enticing and totally unique, but I never get that because I can’t get past all of the problems to even get into said storyline.  You aren’t doing yourself any favors if you rush to publish without taking the time to get your manuscript into the best shape possible. 

Gordon Kessler (http://gordonkessler.com), author of numerous novels and writing tools like Novel Writing Made Simple, offers some helpful guidelines in regard to getting your product into publishable shape:

a.       Give it a catchy title that fits your story’s genre

b.      Give it a professional, attractive cover design – when readers come across your novel, it’s the first thing they see, and that image needs to draw them in to take a closer look

c.       It should be professionally formatted – the way your book is laid out on the inside is incredibly important.  Since readers can sample your book on online bookseller sites, they’ll probably take a sneak peek at your story opening before they decide whether or not to buy

d.      Ensure your book description (synopsis) is every bit as enticing as your novel.  Think of it as a movie pitch to a producer.  Give them a great opening line (a hook), then pitch the story in movie-trailer fashion

Heidi Ruby Miller also offers this little tidbit of advice, “Keep writing and writing well.  The next book will sell the previous books, especially if they are part of a series or within the same genre.  But don’t hurry a product out to readers that isn’t your personal best – they notice.”

For a reasonable editing option, try a website called Grammarly (www.grammarly.com).  They offer an affordable online site to check your manuscript for grammar and punctuation errors.  Again, we’re talking an investment in your future as a published author.  Once you put something out there for public consumption, your abilities are on display for the world to see.  Grammarly is one way to help ensure that whatever you put out will be seen in the best possible light.

Make sure your image is consistent.  Utilize the same photo of yourself on your website/blog as well as all social media profiles.  And when you use social sites, do more than just constantly yammer about your own novels.  Most of us don’t like pushy salespeople that come across as the proverbial used car salesman – so don’t act like one yourself.  Use the opportunity to also talk about what you’re reading, promote other authors, your interests (besides books), or maybe an insight you’ve had.  Otherwise your followers will stop paying attention to your posts – you may even drop off of their radar completely.  Just keep your image open and friendly to your audience.  Perhaps then they’ll keep coming back for more – and that’s the ultimate goal when you’re trying to find that marketing niche.

So there you have it, dear readers!  As an author, when you’re marketing your books you’re actually marketing yourself.  Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there in new and interesting ways to find your audience.  William Brian Johnson even incorporates his novel sales into his storm photography booth at craft fairs, which I thought was pretty unique.  The more eyes that see your book and the more hands you can get it into will only help in the long run.

Let me end this article with a final word from Heidi Ruby Miller.  “Don’t panic.  The long tail is your friend.  There are millions of readers, which means you could see a jump in your sales at any time and for apparently no reason next month, next year, five years from now.  No more trying to sell yourself in just a two-week shelf window.”

Now get out there, write your best, and then find your readers!

 

EBook give away time!  William Brian Johnson is offering one copy of Hell to Pay, Heidi Ruby Miller one copy each of Ambassadora and Greenshift, Gordon A. Kessler one copy of Novel Writing Made Simple, Nicole Loughan one copy of To Murder a Saint, and me one copy of Running into the Darkness.  Leave a comment on this blog post (and a means to contact you like email in word form ex: dabalepublishing at att dot net) by October 31st, 2013 and be entered for the drawing of one of the six eBook prizes.  You will be contacted after said date if you are a winner.

A Scary Halloween Treat

On this, the eve of Halloween, I thought I'd take a bit of time away from edits of Piercing the Darkness to share a special post from a very special guest.  He's the author of numerous action and adventure books, mysteries and thrillers but what he has cooked up to share tonight is all-out, blood lust.  That's right - come one, come all and join the horror that is Gordon A. Kessler's Jezebel.

Gordon's Post:
I got the writing bug back in 1990 and started writing a comedy novel, until I found out that comedy wasn't selling unless you were an already established writer like Jay Cronley (Funny Farm, Screwballs).  I'd heard that horror was a closely related cousin to humor, so I started thinking I could take on the big boys like Stephen King and Dean Koontz.  Well, let me tell you, it was no easy task.

Sitting at the dining room table, I stared at the proverbial blank page I'd jammed into the old electric typewriter for several minutes, never coming up with even an opening line I liked.  I had no plot, no hero, no villain in mind, but I wanted words on paper.

About to give up, the family pet ferret came bounding around the corner from the living room.  "Jezebel," I said aloud, "ferret from Hell!"

A tiny ferret just wasn't threatening enough to center an entire horror thriller novel around, so I went back to work, trying to conjure up a larger, more frightening villain.  I think I came up with a really good one.

I'd been fascinated by how really sweet and timid the Great Danes I'd been around were, yet, how imposing and menacing they can look, and would be if any should ever "go bad".

So, I had my villain for a horror thriller called Jezebel - a huge, black Great Dane.  But making her the antagonist in the story was too easy.  How about making her the victim of someone seeking revenge - make her the sweet, benign dog that I knew most Great Danes to be, but have her and dozens, maybe even hundreds of other dogs forced into doing terrible things they don't want to do.  Now, I had a plot.

But I needed a good hero to deal with all these dog attacks and to get to the bottom of this wild story of revenge.  Who better to throw into the middle of a bunch of vicious dogs?  How about...the dog catcher!  How about the head dog catcher of a Midwestern city, who's going through a midlife crisis and being tempted by his seductive young and beautiful assistant?  Wow, I was about to have great fun writing this one!

Jezebel was my first novel.  I researched heavily and spent considerable effort in peopling it with deep, realistic characters that readers will feel like they know.  There are no superheroes in this book.  They have flaws, they are you and me.

I wrote Jezebel before I knew how to write.  Yet, it's a timeless story and may be my very best.  I guarantee it will frighten you!

For a sample of JEZEBEL, go to:  http://www.amazon.com/JEZEBEL-ebook/dp/B0053Y1JFI/

For a look at Gordon Kessler's other work, check out his blog at:  http://GordonKessler.com

Now Available - Knight's Big Easy

Dear readers!  My friend and fellow author, Gordon A. Kessler, just informed me that his newest book in the "Knight's Reports" series is finally live on Amazon for your Kindle. 

I had the pleasure of proofreading "Knight's Big Easy" prior to publication and can tell you that this story moves at such a rapid pace it will keep your old ticker pumping for the duration.  If you'd like to stay inside where it's cool instead of out in the heat and humidity, this novel will give you ample reason to do so - without getting bored.  Or if your penchant is more toward lazing by the pool, pick this up on your Kindle before you head to the water.

You'll be glad you did!

Knight’s Big Easy

Welcome to the Interview Kennel

Today I have the honor and pleasure of hosting a one of a kind canine.  Please join me in welcoming Jazzy Brass from Gordon A. Kessler's KNIGHT'S RANSOM.

DAB:  Welcome Jazzy Brass - Do you prefer Jazzy, JB, or good doggie?

JB:      Okay, so you want fact and fiction - Jazzy Brass is actually my story name - stage name, if you will.  My agent (GK) calls me Jazzy, but my real name is Jazmin.  I've been called Jazzy Blues, Jazzy Boots, Jazbo, sweetie, honey, hon, sweetheart and baby.  I don't care WHAT you call me, just call me - and have a treat in your hand if you really want to make points.

In "The E Z Knight Reports" series, E Z just calls me Jazzy or Jazzy Brass.

Jazzy's fine.

DAB:  Jazzy it is - what is your favorite kibble?

JB:      For real:  anything GK is eating.  For dog food, he used to give me Blue Buffalo, but now he gives me some pretty tasty Beneful, and I always get a spoonful or two of pumpkin every day.  He says it gives me fiber.  I lo-ove it!  Don't tell anyone, but on special nights we go to Starbucks and GK gets me a Puppy Latte (a dash of whipped cream in a cup) - yum!

          In character:  pretty much the same thing.  Living with E Z on a sailboat - we eat a lot of fish.  But when we eat out, I love chicken nuggets - and yes, Puppy Lattes, as well.

DAB:  So tell us a few interesting morsels about your master.

JB:      For real:  he's more of an agent/caretaker/confidant than a master.  He's kind of weird.  He likes to play ball, go to the dog park, go for walks and that sort of thing, but he loses focus very easily, and before I know it, he's back at his laptop, working on his latest novel.  That really gets boring.  He keeps telling me, "I gotta pay the bills, you know?  You do want to eat next week, right?"  I think we'd be better off if we just moved over to the dog park.  Bring my dog sofa, pitch a tent, and we'd be fixed - er, uh, set (I hate the word "fixed").

          In character:  E Z has done and seen about everything.  But as he gets older, he's not into the excitement and adventure as much.  He's become somewhat of a loner - which I don't mind a bit.  That means he and I spend more time together.  But his past and the people around him keep drawing him into the fray.  He's really a simple guy.  He likes sailing, snow skiing, and SCUBA.  He loves nature.  He likes Jimmy Buffet and Darius Rucker - he even plays the guitar and sings their songs.  He's really good.  I join in once in a while with a howl or two.

DAB:  How did the two of you meet and what prompted the meeting?

JB:      For real:  It's hard to remember those early days - after all, that was when I was ten-weeks old; over a year ago!  I guess I could be subconsciously blocking it out.  GK tells me that it was more of a rescue than an adoption.  He paid $300 for the honor (I think that's pretty cheap for a girl like me).  The couple who had me and my bros and sisters was smellier than any of us, and they had more fleas.  GK says he thinks they were living out of their crew-cab pickup with three other puppies besides me.  GK answered an ad in the paper about "golden retriever pups for sale" and met these folks about fifty miles away at a rural Casey's Junction convenience store.  The man actually gave us our shots while GK and his lady friend held us.

GK says when he saw me, it was love at first sight.  When I saw him, I saw a ticket out.  But I grew to love him pretty fast.

When he got me home, it took two baths to get rid of the fleas and the smell.

          In character:  you'll find out how we met in the next novel, KNIGHT'S BIG EASY - a prequel to KNIGHT'S RANSOM, due out at the end of April.  Without spoiling it, I'll tell you that's my debut.  Like many other folks, E Z saves my life.

DAB:  Who would you say is your master's favorite human in his first caper, KNIGHT'S RANSOM?

JB:      For real:  of course KNIGHT'S RANSOM wasn't the first caper GK wrote.  He's written about authorities tracking down criminals before.  JEZEBEL involves an animal control director solving a crime that takes the lives of dozens of people and even more dogs - spooky, if you ask me.  DEAD RECKONING involves a female NCIS agent (was written before the TV show - even before its predecessor, JAG) who goes undercover aboard a war ship to stop terrorists from killing thousands of Americans (yes, even written before 9/11, as well).

With KNIGHT'S RANSOM, GK's favorite has to be the protagonist, E Z Knight.  He easily identifies with E Z, because of similar backgrounds and interests.  Many of the character's experiences are actually drawn from GK's own (most of them embellished to the point of being supercharged, of course).

          In character:  E Z is really taken with Smokey Smith.  She's a widow as well as the lovely thirty-something proprietor of Smokey's Marina.  She and her son rabbit watch over me when E Z's out giving bad guys their comeuppances.  One little caveat here:  E Z is easily "taken" with many women, especially the beautiful ones.  His relationship with Smokey is platonic, and with E Z being the man he is, he has to find an outlet somewhere....  In KNIGHT'S RANSOM, E Z becomes very attracted to the young Russian beauty, Zoya, who's really smitten with him as well.  They go "off to the races" in more ways than one.

DAB:  Conversely then, who would you say is your master's least favorite human in this caper and why?

JB:      For real:  this being mostly a first-person narrative, GK wasn't able to get inside the antagonists heads, like he normally would.  That's fun stuff, he tells me.  But he loves all of his characters, even his bad ones.

          In character:  E Z sees the bad guys for their deeds:  bastards and sons-of-bitches (excuse my doggy language).  He'd probably tell you his least favorites are the Russian assassin, Karl (a.k.a. Kirill Diakov), as well as a former comrade gone really bad, Ramon Pena.  You'll find out more when you read KNIGHT'S RANSOM.  Of course there are a few despicable recurring characters in the series as well as some one-time-jerks in each of the episodes.

DAB:  Have you both ever been in a situation where you feared for your life or your human's?

JB:      For real:  not since I've been around him.  But he tells me a number of situations when his life was at risk.  He did a lot of crazy things, years ago - he's way calmed down now.  But in his younger days as a reckless teenager, a Recon Marine and member of Marine "Super Squad," parachuting, SCUBA diving, etc., etc., he sought more of life's risky adventures than its comforts.  He tells me about rescuing a friend from a cliff in Sardinia, parachute malfunctions, swimming with a shark, firing missiles, flame thrower mishaps, machine gun fire over his head, bar fights, and on and on.

          In character:  with E Z, it's pretty much the same, but ten times more.  There are whole weeks that go by when I'm concerned for his safety.  In KNIGHT'S RANSOM, our friends are attacked by some very bad people when E Z isn't there.  I try...well, you'll find out more when...yeah, you read the story.

Also, GK has fixed me up with my own four-page blog on his website at http://gordonkessler.com/Jazzy/.  There's a special subpage where you can actually view "Jazzy Brass's Missing Scenes" from the different episodes.  You'll find what was going on with me, in my point of view, while the storyline was following E Z in the novel.  It's going to be fun.

DAB:  With everything happening around your human, why do you stay with him?

JB:      For real:  Not much happens around ol' GK anymore - boring!  I guess I feel sorry for him.  I mean really...look at him - a face only a dog could love.  Any joking aside, he's my buddy.

          In character:  Are you kidding?  I'm as big of an adventure hound as E Z ever was.  E Z says he wants to lead a relaxed life and be left alone.  But you can tell when the dog poo hits the propeller; he's ready for action and enjoys kicking bad guys' tails!  Me too!

DAB:  Will we get to see the two of you together again?

JB:      For real:  all the dang time!  And I love it.

          In character:  I'm hoping to make it in at least a minor role in all of the series episodes.  Besides those, GK is considering a Noir spinoff with E Z's great grandfather, as well as a Western spinoff with E Z's direct ancestor five generations back.  I'm guessing both will have a dog - but golden retrievers weren't around in the Old West, so - I might have to play a bloodhound relative of mine...I don't know.

DAB:  Tell us one last thing about this first caper you find yourself in with your human.

JB:      In character:  this is one of the most action-packed, fast reads you'll find.  What starts out as a little story ends up at the Academy Awards on Oscar night.  The twists and turns will surprise you and yank you along one heck of a doggone thrill ride!  Have fun reading KNIGHT'S RANSOM, and please give me a whistle on my blog sometime!

Thanks so much for taking the time to visit with us Jazzy - so there you have it folks!  Pick up a copy of Gordon A. Kessler's KNIGHT'S RANSOM today for free on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Knights-Ransom-Knight-Reports-ebook/dp/B007F08MU8/.  Remember also to visit his blog at http://gordonkessler.com/ and check out the "Knight's Girls" and Jazzy's fabulous blog.  Remember to also check out the blurb for KNIGHT'S RANSOM below.  Fabulous read!

For E Z Knight, when it rains, it pours - and it seldom tastes anything like water.

In this first episode of "The E Z Knight Reports" a series, E Z has a million-dollar contract on his head and a whole boatload of hit men after his ass.  Even worse, a young Russian beauty has just handed him a photo of his six-year-old goddaughter wearing a vest wired with enough plastic explosives to bring down the Golden Gate Bridge.

Nowadays, all E Z wants is to be left alone.  He seeks an uncomplicated and safe life, living with his golden retriever, Jazzy Brass, on a sailboat in Southern California.  But his past won't cooperate.  When, only two minutes before his neighbor's sailboat blows up in front of him, he's handed a picture of his best friend's kidnapped daughter strapped with Semtex, he knows there'll be no peace today.  He's stared down death more times than he can remember, but death hasn't come to harvest someone this close to him since his wife was murdered six years ago.

E Z's former best friend, Jason Ryder, is up for an Oscar, and the man's newly divorced wife, actress Stella Hutchins, is E Z's very hot ex-girlfriend.  With their little girl in jeopardy, they must put on a facade of normalcy on the biggest night of their lives - that also could be their last.

A walk down the Academy Awards' Red Carpet is a new experience for an old Leatherneck, but former US Force Recon Marine, E Z Knight isn't shy.  He'd do anything to get his goddaughter back safely - be it by bullet or by bedroom - and he must have a little of both to get to the bottom of this one.

Teaming up with a spicy little Russian who carries a Mach 10, an old woman who flips him the bird every morning, and a couple of his old comrades-in-arms, E Z's bound to track down little Sophie Ryder's abductors, rescue her and get her home unharmed, and do away with some very nasty bastards, all in short order.  But, in the hours to come, a deadly old nemesis returns, and a new team of very lethal assassins strikes at his heart. 

E Z never liked killing, but he's good at it, and the next forty-eight hours are bound to be murder.