Under the Amoral Bridge - Cover
What happens when an amoral fixer in corporate-controlled future Los Angeles acquires a career-ending video of the mayor days before the biggest election in the city’s history?
Independent author Gary Ballard introduces the world to Artemis Bridge in Under the Amoral Bridge (170 pp., tpb, $12.00, Ebook, $8), a taut cyberpunk thriller originally published in serial form on the author’s blog from January to August 2008. Ballard has written scathing commentary for various video gaming web sites since 2002, and has worked as a web site designer and internet marketer since 1995. Under the Amoral Bridge represents an exciting new business model for independent authors. The book is available in paperback on CreateSpace.com and Amazon.com, and the Ebook is sold on Smashwords.com.
The first novel in a series dubbed The Bridge Chronicles, this novel was first released in biweekly installments for free on the blog at http://amoralbridge.blogspot.com. Though the book is still available for free online, this attractive trade paperback collects the entire first novel with the addition of an unpublished short story starring the main character, Artemis Bridge. The second novel in the series, The Know Circuit, was published in twice weekly installments from February to August of 2009, and is scheduled for release in trade paperback and Ebook formats in February 2010.
“I want to give the reader as many options to experience my work as possible,” said the author when asked about this unique business model. “Sure, anyone can read the entire series for free online if they choose, but as an author, I’d like to be paid for my work. The site has ads to generate revenue from online readership. Reading a blog isn’t very comfortable for long-form works, though. If the reader wants a more tangible or portable format, they can purchase the trade or the ebook. Either way, I get reimbursed for my efforts and the reader gets a great read. This is the best way for authors to get paid for their work, especially those who might not sell mass market quantities because of niche subject matter or lack of mainstream press coverage.”
Gary Ballard works as an Interactive Art Director and Social Media Consultant at a top Southeastern regional marketing firm. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art from Belhaven College. A native Mississippian, Ballard currently lives in the suburbs of Jackson, Mississippi with his wife and three dogs. His work on the Bridge Chronicles continues with the third novel set for online release in February 2010 at http://amoralbridge.blogspot.com.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
