thoughts

It’s been a full year since #SunsetsOfTulum hit shelves!

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I can’t believe that it’s been a full year since Sunsets of Tulum hit stores everywhere and while I can say I’m a bit miffed that the Nobel Prize committee chose Bob Dylan over me for the Nobel Prize in Literature, well, I can’t say I’m too surprised.

Things have been quiet here on the blog mainly because they’ve been so busy in other arenas of life.  Summer was only partway over when I landed a new gig for Lonely Planet updating their new guide to Japan…so most of August and part of September I was on the road, eating sushi, drinking sake, and exploring Kyuushuu, one of my favorite parts of Japan.

And…

Coincidentally…

Kyuushuu is also the setting for my new novel, titled The Vasemaker’s Daughter, which is 200 very rough pages in and shaping up to be deeper and (is it possible?) darker than Sunsets was.   I’ve decided my third novel will be where I branch out into the almost happy realm.  Why not, right?

I will try to post some photos of the Japan trip here because they’re so beautiful.  But you can also find them on my Facebook page.  Or my Instagram feed.

If you’re in the Cape/Mass/New England area and have time, come say “hi” to me at the New Bedford Book Festival, where I’ll be selling and signing copies of Sunsets of Tulum for everyone who wants one.  Hope to see you there!

Banned from Facebook Ads and Amazon Ads…what’s a poor novelist to do?

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Okay World, I’m not sure whether to be honored or appalled: Sunsets of Tulum, despite what everyone has said is a tasteful, beautiful, and very perfect-for-the-book cover…has been banned for both Facebook and Amazon ads. Yes, you guessed it: for violating the nudity/obscenity clauses.

“Just change the cover,” said a helpful email-center person in (probably) Bangalore.

Well, the problem is I really LIKE the cover. And I think if someone gets an ad that doesn’t have it, it’s a bit deceptive, right? Here’s the cover:

sunsets-cover.jpg
Is this worthy of being a banned book?

So my question to the world is what’s the best course of action at this point? Do I try to get the word out elsewhere? Tell the publisher that I want to change the cover? Or just dig my heels in and say “This is a great book, the world will find it, and the prudes don’t have to read it if they don’t want to.” Thoughts?

If you like it…why not order a signed copy? You never know, it might be worth something somday! :-)