Author's Log: Stardate 06022011

It was time.

I needed to change the direction of my personal blog, "The World According to g." I started 'TWAg' when I first created my www.GerarddeMarigny.com website. That was exactly one year, to the day, before I released _The Watchman of Ephraim_. Back then, the blog's purpose was to introduce myself to the online community. Writers should be defined by their written works, so before I published _TWOE_, I really had no identity - I was just a bloke talking about this or that.

Yet, "The World According to g" became more over time. I realized it WAS one of my written works ... just, instead of a novel, it was an ongoing dialogue. Once I realized that, I began to allow my blogs to reveal different aspects of me - from my past (growing up in Ridgewood), to my humor (funny experiences of mine), to my personal battles (with weight and manic depression), to my personal losses (the death of my friend and former bandmate, Walt Woodward III and friend/neighbor Danny Afflitto).

Gradually, my audience grew, from a few dozen to a few hundred and now, to a few thousand readers every time I post. I started making acquaintance with some great people from all over the world - people that enjoy my writing and let me know they do. That inspired me so much and made me feel comfortable publishing something more intimate ... some of my poetry in the blog.

All in all, "The World According to g" served its purposes - it helped me learn the disciplines of becoming a professional writer, by forcing me to write at regular intervals; it helped me expand my scope of writing - from commentary to critique and from humor to inspirational; and it also introduced me to the world, or at least a tiny slice of it. Yet, once I published _TWOE_ back in January, I knew "The World ..." had run its course.

It was time.

Yesterday, I put "The World According to g" to bed and started in a whole new direction with my blog. In a nutshell, I want my personal blog to reflect my passion - that is - self-publishing my written works!

I'm very proud to count myself part of an amazing group of people. The people that make up the self-publishing industry in the 2010's are the pioneers of the industry. Writers and publishers like Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Joe Konrath and Barry Eisler are to me, the Founding Fathers  ... or even better ... they're the Founding Brothers & Sisters of the Self-Publishing Revolution. They are the ones that inspire the rest of us. They are the ones that teach the rest of us ... and they are the ones that lead us by example, in the front lines of every battle and with machetes in hand, cutting the new paths through the New World of Publishing's jungles.

There are others - mysterious individuals like 'PassiveGuy,' an IP attorney who for his own reasons, decided to publish a fantastic blog called "The Passive Voice" where he breaks down  the legal side of the SELFPUB revolution. While he does, he exposes the vipers, leeches and maggots (read: certain publishers and agents) in the NWoP jungles.

These Founding Brothers & Sisters have taken it upon themselves for little to no money to guide us, to inspire us, and to keep us safe on our journey. I owe them all a lot. We all owe them a lot! As I've mentioned many times, if it weren't for Sensei Dean Wesley Smith, I wouldn't be published ... period!

There's more to the SELFPUBBER community though. I've learned almost as much from the many, varied self-published authors who leave their comments to the Founding Brother & Sister's posts. I'm greatly inspired by their passion for their craft, their art and for the SELFPUB industry. They ... you ... are my brothers and sisters, heading west into the NWoP frontier!

I'm so proud to be part of this revolution in literary publishing, proud and excited! How do I see myself ... well, I'm a fiction writer, ya know. So, of course I dramatize. (grin) I see myself as a Patriot to the SELFPUB cause. A year ago, I would have been looked at as a rebel but no more. Each day, self-published authors are winning battles on every front in the publishing industry - in terms of distribution, in terms of sales and marketing and in terms of ... terms, that is contract terms, royalty terms, rights terms and the like.

I was so inspired by the help that the Founding Brothers and Sisters gave me that I felt compelled to pay it forward. I wanted to pick up my musket (keyboard) and join the front lines, fighting the SELFPUBBER fight for more respect and for quality standards (something I intend on championing in the future) and in any other way that I can further the cause.

That's what I want my new blog to be ... my little part in this massive literary revolution. With my novels and books I intend on achieving success as a SELFPUBBER, a self-published writer and with my blog, I hope to inspire, edify and entertain other SELFPUBBERS, my family of the trade.

What better place to do that then a PUB! Hey, I'm an old musician, I spent and continue to spend the better times of my life in pubs. I might have learned as much in pubs about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as I have in school ... so why not name my new blog, "SELFPUBBER'S PUB?"

Yesterday, that's exactly what I did! Ladies and gents, SELFPUBBER brothers and sisters ... introducing SELFPUBBER'S PUB! (click on the link and you'll walk in the door)

Drop by, read, smile, laugh and learn ... leave a comment or question ... and oh yeah, tips are always welcome - copper coins in the wooden box at the end of the bar or advice on a better way to SELFPUB! And don't forget to come back, ya hear!

Back to writing ...

End transmission

(Please feel free to leave comments – your comments can be as helpful as anything I write for others. I hope this series turns out to be less my talking at you and more – a group of like-minded storytellers that self-publish or intend to. Peace & God Bless!)