Chris Swinney Rereleases Gray Ghost

Life is full of ups and downs. Early on in my career in law enforcement I’d say I was a glass half empty kind of guy. However, working the streets and becoming a homicide and narcotics detective made me appreciate just how fortunate I am. Eventually, I’d become a glass half full kind of guy. This move helped me at work, with friends, and made my family life even more enjoyable. I was on a high. I’d taken a plunge into the writing world with this new-found enthusiasm and made a decent splash. My first novel, Gray Ghost, ended up on the Amazon best sellers list for crime fiction and mystery in Kindle and paperback. It wasn’t until I woke up one day to see my book was no longer available on Amazon that I almost slipped into the glass half empty routine.

Friends, family, fans, and determination helped me find another contract for my novel. Sure I was bummed about what had happened, but there was some work left to be done with the novel and moving along from the previous publisher turned out to be a blessing.

I’d gathered 59 reviews on Amazon for my book, 49 of which are five-star reviews. However, critics still noted editing errors and pointed them out (thank you!). In addition, readers had questions about some of the characters and I listened. So, with a new look on things, I re-tooled Gray Ghost, adding nearly 6000 words. The minor edits were taken addressed too. I’m proud of the first release, and even more excited for the second release.

Fans and readers will quickly notice the cover is vastly different from the original. Without going into too many details, I’ll just say it needed to be done. I asked my artistic friend Keith Westra (Natureboydesigns.com), if he’d take a crack at the cover. What he came up with is fantastic. Keith’s already been commissioned to do the cover for the second book in the Bill Dix series, Collectors. Readers can expect Collectors out sometime mid-2014. New for this release will also be an Audio edition and a Hardcover edition! I’m super excited about this, as I see audio being “the next big thing” in the writing world. Weird huh, “audio” taking over “writing.”

My approach to writing is making fiction as real as it possibly can be. If I don’t know about something, I research it, interview people who would know about it, and carefully write it into my novels. The majority of what I write about are things I’ve actually lived through. It’s experiences public would never know about or get the chance to learn without reading my novels. I’ve always been a natural storyteller and this ability comes through in my work. I hope some of you will take the opportunity to read my work and provide me further feedback so I can improve. If you’ve already read Gray Ghost, the additional 6000 words will certainly shock you!

Gray Ghost audio book: http://www.amazon.com/Gray-Ghost/dp/B00ISCWC94/ref=tmm_aud_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1395920748&sr=1-1

Blog: http://www.clswinney.wordpress.com

Twitter: @clswinney

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/grayghostotp