Interview with Sgt. Betsy Brantner Smith (National Police Association)

I had the absolute pleasure of being interviewed by retired sergeant, Betsy Brantner Smith, for the podcast she does for the National Police Association.

Some of you might be familiar with Betsy, as she has appeared on a number of news shows, including Newsmax, and Fox.

Despite some minor technical glitches (rural internet being what it is), we managed to have a great time. Betsy is an awesome interviewer and we touched on a number of topics, including my career with the NYPD, my transition to author, and the state of policing.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Click on the photo below or the link provided at the botom.

or CLICK HERE: https://www.thefirsttv.com/watch/npa-report-andrew-g-nelson

New Book: James Maguire Origin Story

Those of you who familiar with the James Maguire series will know that before he joined the NYPD he was a US Navy SEAL. I have had an idea sitting on the backburner for a few years and decided that I would pursue it and have enjoyed writing this new story.

This story centers around Maguire’s time in the SEAL teams and has him being sent to Mexico on a clandestine operation. I don’t want to give too many details away, so I’ll just attach an image and let your imagination run with it.

The book is about 80% complete and I hope to have it available shortly. I’ll update you on the progress as it gets closer to publication.

Once again, that you for your continued support.

If you are interested in learning more about my books, please check out my Amazon Page

Alex Taylor: The Killing Game (Cover Reveal)

Well, I know you guys have been more than patient with me and I promise that the end truly is near this time. The Killing Game, the fourth book in the Alex Taylor series, is about to be released.

The hardest part in this journey has been the fact that there was such a long pause from the start of the book, back in January 2021, to its completion. Not to make excuses, but a large part of 2021 involved extensive repairs on a home we were selling. The constant start / stop in the writing process gave the book a choppy feeling that I was ultimately unhappy with. So I set out to re-write it and I have finally achieved a book that I am pleased to release.

The Killing Game finds Alex being called in to assist the Concord Police Department in their investigation of a series of murders: Six women, all from different walks of life, found dead over a ten-month period, with no other clues except the manner in which they were killed. As she pursues the killer, Alex must juggle personal issues at home and overcome the political pressure that threatens to derail the investigation before it gets started. Can she convince the locals to follow the evidence, and avoid a seventh victim, or will they succumb to the bureaucratic roadblocks in order to save their careers?

The Killing Game by Andrew G. Nelson

Are you on BookBub?

Curious to know which of my followers is on BookBub. If you are, I would appreciate it if you would add me to your following list. It’s another platform that I use to notify readers of new books and also give book reviews.

You can find me by clicking on this link: Andrew G. Nelson BookBub Page

Thank you.

The Life of an Indie Author - Tales from the Writing Trenches

Back in 2013, when I completed my first novel: PERFECT PAWN, I remember sitting there smiling or a moment and then the realization hit me: Now What? It seems funny to me now, as I look back on those dark times, but for me that was the moment when the creative rubber truly hit the literary road.

As I sit here formatting the print version for my soon to be released COLD CASE anthology, I realize a lot of you might be in the same ballpark I was in 2013. Despair not, you've got this. 

When your book is complete (it really isn't) you're left with two choices: Pursue a traditional publishing course or opt for the indie road. If you choose indie, you have a helluva road in front of you, because you will have to embrace the roles normally filled by the staff at publishing houses. So what does this mean? Well, here is what you can expect to do: 

1. Write Book

2. Edit Book (Then edit it again, and edit it again after you get reader feedback)

3. Format Interior Book (At least 2 versions: Print & eBook)

4. Design Cover Graphic (Both full-size and thumbnail)

5. Secure ISBN numbers

6. Submit to Publishing Platforms

7. Design Social Media Engagement

8. Advertising

Still want to be an author? Good. 

These might seem like monumental hurdles to overcome, but I assure you they are not. Having just released my fifteenth book I can tell you that you can learn these skills. Are they easy? No. You might master one area and feel like you are slogging through quicksand for the others. But each book will become easier if you commit yourself to listening and learning. I think every indie author owes it to their craft to help others. I’m a firm believer in the old adage: A rising tide raises all boats.

Of the eight things I listed above (you might have more), the most important are 1-4 and 8. To me the first four are crucial, because if you do not have a solid book, nothing else matters. Obviously your writing is paramount, but without an attractive cover most books will get passed over. Too many authors take a pass on this, opting to use templates and are left wondering why their books get no traction. You only get one chance to pull a reader in and the cover does it. If your book uses a stock template cover, readers may be less inclined to take a risk.

Once you’ve overcome that hurdle, and you have piqued the curiosity of the potential reader, you have another one to consider. When a reader looks inside the book, they expect yours to look EXACTLY like every other book they read, meaning it should be formatted like existing books. Open a book from a well-published author and copy that interior. You might think that edgy font looks cool, but have you ever considered that some readers have reading issues. Clear fonts should be the standard. It’s a book and should not be as difficult to read as ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.  

The other important thing is advertising, and I cannot stress this enough. It sounds counterintuitive, but if you want to make money, you have to spend money. I know that is hard for someone on a limited budget, but it is the truth. Don’t believe me? Here is a graph for my debut novel. I think you can figure out exactly when I started aggressively advertising. This is also the part where I humbly admit my wife was right when she advised me to advertise sooner.

Now, should you do this right away? I don’t know. Personally, I would save this one until you have 2 or even 3 books under your belt, because advertising will correlate to sales over your entire span of works. Readers are much more eager to try a new author if they have several books they can read after the first one hooks them. 

I hope this helps you to understand where to go next. These are the areas that I have identified, but you might have others. The important thing is to keep writing and embrace your craft.

I hope you enjoyed this post.