Tee Morris

Writer, podcaster. and streamer

The Case of The Singing Sword

The End of a Beautiful Friendship: Lessons Learned from a Kickstarter

BB1_front_Aug108_wallWhat a ride! Over $11,500 raised, reaching 77% of the Billi Kickstarter. I even had three $500 backers and one $1000 backer.

Wow! Just… wow! Above and beyond what I expected.

Before people start pounding my Comments with all the things I did wrong, it might be better if I just share some popular thoughts people have already shared on this Kickstarter. It may seem hard to believe, but there was a plan here. Now is a good time and place to review the strategy behind what I did, how I did it, and why I’m okay with the way how all this played out over the weekend. [Read more…] about The End of a Beautiful Friendship: Lessons Learned from a Kickstarter

I Dream of Peter Dinklage: A Dwarf Detective Returns

This weekend was a productive one, started with Pip building a case (pardon the pun) for dusting off a manuscript that disappeared into the sunset back in 2009. It has been, of all of my works, the most requested of my works for a sequel.

It was a pretty intense conversation between Pip and myself…

PIP: Tee, I really want to get Billi out in a digital format.
ME: Okay.
PIP: *blink-blink* Um…okay….

Yeah, pretty gripping, I know.

So now, after two years of being out of print, Imagine That! Studios as part of EXPERIMENT 2012 brings you…

 

I did say last year that I believed I would return to this alternative Chicago where a dwarf detective would stand toe-to-toe with Al Capone, and now it is happening. The story is still the same. We just have the book in new formats now. Kindle? Nook? Kobo? Yeah, we got you covered.

Why now? I was asked by Myke Cole in a recent roundtable discussion on John Mireau’s Serving Worlds podcast when you know it’s time to release a title on your own. Could it have anything to do with this rakish gent? [Read more…] about I Dream of Peter Dinklage: A Dwarf Detective Returns

Going for Goodreads Gold…well, okay, how about Silver?

There’s a real two-edged sword when it comes to honors and awards. I remember reading about the “importance of awards” when reading titles about getting published, grabbing an agent’s attention, and even marketing a book once it is out there. Across the board: Awards and distinctions help sell books. At least that is what the pros I was reading were telling me.

For a while, though, I’ve been giving awards a sideways glance. yeah, they’re nice and all; but did The Case of the Singing Sword go gangbusters when it won a Parsec? No, not really. Picked up a few more listeners, sure, but it didn’t really give Billi a boost in print sales. So, yeah, awards — nice, and it was very cool going home with that trophy…but I can write without them.

Then Pip and I won the Airship Award for Best Steampunk Literature of 2011. Regardless of what it did for Phoenix Rising sales, I won’t lie to you — it felt good. Really good. I mean, coming-in-from-playing-in-the-snow-and-having-Cream-of-Tomato-soup-with-a-bagutte-side good.

Then, two days before heading out west to Blogworld and ComiKaze Expo, we received word from Goodreads that Phoenix Rising had been short listed for Best Science Fiction of 2011.

At first I was just happy with the nod, but then I took a closer look at the company we were keeping: [Read more…] about Going for Goodreads Gold…well, okay, how about Silver?

The Tough Choices (Part II: Concerning Dwarf Detectives and Swashbuckling Pirates)

Last week, you got the behind-the-scenes look at how a lot of work can go into books and how a publisher can change their minds without telling you. We also got a look at how I’ve been making some rookie flub-up’s and probably need to go back and listen to my own podcast on writing and what not to do. This week, Part II of “The Tough Choices” goes into the characters people know me for and the questions people have been asking me since 2005…

The Billibub Baddings Mysteries

“So, are you ever going to podcast Pitcher’s Pendant?”

Two of the best things a writer can ever hear about their work is:

  • I read it again, and it gets better every time.
  • Where’s the next book?

While my podcasting and Twitter books are the bigger financial successes, it is my print and podcast novels that people ask me about the most. In particular, when is the next one coming? I suppose that would make the novels from Dragon Moon Press artistic successes. [Read more…] about The Tough Choices (Part II: Concerning Dwarf Detectives and Swashbuckling Pirates)

The Dwarf Detective is on the iPhone, waiting for your call!

Hey, everyone!

New Singing Sword Cover

cover artwork by J.R. Blackwell

While you all know that the dwarf detective is one for the low-tech solutions like Beatrice and a good battle-axe, you may not know that the award-winning The Case of The Singing Sword: A Billibub Baddings Mystery is now available for the iPhone! Sure you can download Billi on the iPhone and iPod Touch in audio but now you can pick up a copy of Billi’s first big case as an iPhone application. Along with The Case of The Singing Sword, the Fey Trickster is also causing (double) trouble at the iTunes Store with Chasing the Bard also available for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Take a look and show the love. Let iPhone and iPod Touch users know that Double Trouble has now hit the iTunes Application store.

And yes, The Case of The Pitcher’s Pendant and Digital Magic are both en route. Stay tuned…