We now have a Facebook page for the book Three Hundred Zeroes. Mosey on over and become a friend if you’re into things “Facebook .”
Also, for those of you that haven’t gotten a copy of the book yet, you can look at a good portion of the first chapter at amazon.com. Just go there and click on the books cover and it gives you a choice of looking at the front cover, back cover, first chapter and so on. This is a really nice feature if you’re curious about what the book looks like inside. Enjoy
Just a quick note to tell you that this blog has been added to Sarasota Speaks , a local blog feed service in Sarasota, Florida.
I’m curious. I don’t have a PayPal account set up on the web site, or here, for book orders. If I did, I might be able to arrange to ship signed copies of the book. I’m not certain why, but readers really do seem to like author signed books. Should I look into this; anyone feel strongly about such things? Please do send me a message, or you can leave a comment here.
A PayPal account would add to my personal workload since I would have to sign each book and ship it, but I really don’t mind if readers relish such things. I can currently ship anyone that wants a book and sign it. I haven’t formally set anything up, at least not yet, but if someone sends a check or money order for $20.00 to cover the book price (taxes, in Florida) and shipping, I’ll gladly do it. If there is a specific message you would like me to write in the book (maybe it is a gift for someone?), then explicitly tell me what to write, otherwise, it will just be my author’s signature. The $20.00 rate covers shipping at book rate, which so far seems to be about as fast as Priority USPS shipping. I suspect in the busier holiday seasons that may not be the case. If there is interest in USPS Priority Shipping, then the total price will be $22.00. See the sidebar on the right for address information.
There are about 300 copies in print now, maybe more, I’m not certain. If you’ve read the book, please do leave a comment here. I really do appreciate knowing how the book is being received, as any author would.
If you’re an Amazon.com customer (purchased from them in the last 18 months) it is really helpful if you leave an honest book review on their site for the book. We authors live and die by the rankings the book receives on Amazon .
If you scroll down the page for a book on amazon.com , there are some interesting statics there. One is the Amazon.com sales rank: # x,xxx. This figure compares how well a book is doing compared to all other book titles on Amazon , which is something like a formidable 3.5 million titles! They arrive at this number with a fancy mathematical algorithm, but it is primarily based on daily sales and reviews given to the book.
Another area of interest is the, “Tags Customers Associate with this Product.” The first 15 “Tags” are generated by the author (unless they chose to do fewer) and the rest are created by you the customer. You can add tags to any book. Tags are merely subjects and topics that relate to what the book is about. Some readers have added tags such as “Inspirational” and “endurance,” they felt this applied to this book.
You can also “vote” on the tags that already exist. You can click an empty box and add a vote OR if you have already clicked a tag, you can click it again and subtract your vote. If you click on the tag description link itself, it will take you to a page dedicated to that tag topic and you can see other books or products related to that tag. This is a feature that just doesn’t exist in walking around a book store.
Feel free to comment on some of the topics I’ve raised here. That is what blogs are about and if I can answer questions, fire away.
Dennis, “K1” Blanchard
Today I had the pleasure of going to the Kings Point Radio Club in Sun City Center, Florida. It was an emotional experience for me because it was arranged by a friend that I had not seen in maybe thirty years. Mike Iacovazzi, ham radio call letters, W1RDF. Mike was an early mentor of mine.
I grew up in Connecticut and when I was a languishing young “tweenager,” my Mom got tired of me hanging around the house and dropped me off at the local ham radio club, W1DHT, and drove off. I was drawn to it like a moth to light and became a member.
Mike, along with a few others was one of the older men that took me and several other young people under his wing and showed us the marvels of electronics and communications. Back in 1963 he gave me my very first transistor. Today, that is no big deal, but at that time transistors were like gold and handled like a nuclear device. They were delicate and susceptible to damage.
As the years passed and we all pursued our lives we eventually lost contact. I often thought of Mike and the others that played such a large role in my life and it’s trajectory. Recently one of us initiated an email and with the advent of my book, he invited me up for a club meeting and book signing. I took my Appalachian Trail photo show to his radio club and spent a good part of the day there.
Ham radio doesn’t play a large role in my book, but it has played a major role in my life and that came about because of guys like Mike.
All I can say is, “Thanks Mike,” you’re one of my heroes!
PS: received this today from a Kings Point member: “I’m not an avid reader but I must say your book has kept me glued to it.
I’m 2/3 done and started reading Monday evening the day I met you at
King’s Point Radio Club . I liked it so well I have told other friends
and Radio operators and ordered another one for my nephew who has been
hiking AT in sections” Bob, N1ZK.
Dennis “K1YPP” Blanchard