THIRTEEN THINGS ABOUT ROB PREEEEEEEEECE!
13 things about Rob Preece (my wrist thanks him for writing 'em)
1. Rob is the only guy he knows who actually met his wife by attending Romance Writers of America meetings (he met author Karen Leabo/Kara Lennox at a Dallas Area Romance Authors (DARA) meeting). Karen wouldn't read his books for the first year because she thought they might suck and she'd have to dump him. He, on the other hand, was smart enough to know that a guy who dates a woman who writes romance has the closest thing to a user manual. He read all of her books for Silhouette, Harlequin, Bantam and BooksForABuck.com.
2. Before becoming a writer, Rob worked as a government economist and high-tech product manager. He didn't realize that not all authors earn as much as Stephen King, J.K. Rowling or Nora Roberts. He's since learned, but the lesson hasn't taken yet--he's still convinced that his turn is coming.
3. When he's not writing, Rob is fighting. He's a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and also studies fencing and other martial arts. What most people don't know is that he grew interested in the martial arts because his sisters beat him up when he was a kid.
4. Rob was born in Pontiac, Michigan, but grew up in Los Angeles, California. Somehow, though, he ended up moving east--spending ten years in Maryland and Virginia before moving to Dallas, Texas. He is certain he's not the only Texan who doesn't hate people because of their race, creed, color, or sexual orientation. Sometimes, though, he thinks he's just the only Texan who votes who feels that way.
5. Rob runs electronic publishing house BooksForABuck.com which has published a wonderful fantasy novel by Kate Rothwell called Last of the Mind Travelers. Rob thinks BooksForABuck.com is a great place to buy affordable electronic fiction and says you should check it out. When he got his new cell phone, the first thing Rob did was to figure out how to get eBooks on it.
6. Rob writes as Rob Preece when writing paranormal/science fiction/fantasy, as Robyn Anders when writing straight romance, and as Amy Eastlake when writing mystery and romantic suspense. Most of the time his alter-egos get along, but I think they're all secretly afraid of Amy, especially mad since the 2005 Golden Heart Finalist certificate had Rob's name, not Amy's on it. (Amy says you can read "Eye of the Storm" at BooksForABuck.com. Only $3.99)
7. Rob has two dysfunctional pets--a cockatiel (Da Vinci) who yanks out his feathers when he wants attention and a cat (Chloe) who jumps onto the bed at 3:00 AM every morning wanting to talk.
8. Rob is working on an urban fantasy about a fallen god. He's represented by agent Caren Johnson. He's sold to Torrid Romance, AfterBurnSF, the Dark Romance Group, and especially to BooksForABuck.com.
9. Although he gave a workshop on 'quitting your day job' at the 2007 Romance Writers of America meeting, he hasn't quite figured out how to quit his day job with just the money he makes writing. So, he supplements his income teaching bridge at the local community college. Bridge is a great game and bridge players are great readers. I recommend this to everyone (especially those who want to pay him to teach them).
10. It normally takes Rob at least three drinks to admit he started reading romance because there was this one romance with a heroine on the cover with truly outstanding assets. He scoured that entire novel for explanations (how did she walk, did they need their own passports when she got within a few miles of the border, that kind of thing) before learning the tragic truth that book covers don't have a lot to do with what's inside. (Without the drinks it's a long involved story about a train ride through Europe, no English language books and... well you know that kind of story)
11. Rob is a top reviewer on Amazon and reviews books with BooksForABuck.com as well. If you're interested in romance, mystery/thriller, science fiction or fantasy, BooksForABuck.com is a great place to look both for affordable eBooks, but also for reviews of books from virtually all publishers. Rob couldn't not read books--and he persuaded himself he wasn't wasting time, he was working, as long as he wrote reviews. He really doesn't want you to tell him he's confused and he is just wasting his time reading.
12. Rob started BooksForABuck.com because he figured there were other readers out there who were as cheap as he, who didn't like to pay $12.99 or whatever for a paperback. So, he decided to charge a buck. But you have to act quick--the $1 pricing only lasts for a month per book.
13. Reading right now--right now, Rob is dividing is time between reading submissions and finishing the latest (last? sigh!) Harry Potter book. It isn't his favorite, but it's definitely keeping him reading.
1. Rob is the only guy he knows who actually met his wife by attending Romance Writers of America meetings (he met author Karen Leabo/Kara Lennox at a Dallas Area Romance Authors (DARA) meeting). Karen wouldn't read his books for the first year because she thought they might suck and she'd have to dump him. He, on the other hand, was smart enough to know that a guy who dates a woman who writes romance has the closest thing to a user manual. He read all of her books for Silhouette, Harlequin, Bantam and BooksForABuck.com.
2. Before becoming a writer, Rob worked as a government economist and high-tech product manager. He didn't realize that not all authors earn as much as Stephen King, J.K. Rowling or Nora Roberts. He's since learned, but the lesson hasn't taken yet--he's still convinced that his turn is coming.
3. When he's not writing, Rob is fighting. He's a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and also studies fencing and other martial arts. What most people don't know is that he grew interested in the martial arts because his sisters beat him up when he was a kid.
4. Rob was born in Pontiac, Michigan, but grew up in Los Angeles, California. Somehow, though, he ended up moving east--spending ten years in Maryland and Virginia before moving to Dallas, Texas. He is certain he's not the only Texan who doesn't hate people because of their race, creed, color, or sexual orientation. Sometimes, though, he thinks he's just the only Texan who votes who feels that way.
5. Rob runs electronic publishing house BooksForABuck.com which has published a wonderful fantasy novel by Kate Rothwell called Last of the Mind Travelers. Rob thinks BooksForABuck.com is a great place to buy affordable electronic fiction and says you should check it out. When he got his new cell phone, the first thing Rob did was to figure out how to get eBooks on it.
6. Rob writes as Rob Preece when writing paranormal/science fiction/fantasy, as Robyn Anders when writing straight romance, and as Amy Eastlake when writing mystery and romantic suspense. Most of the time his alter-egos get along, but I think they're all secretly afraid of Amy, especially mad since the 2005 Golden Heart Finalist certificate had Rob's name, not Amy's on it. (Amy says you can read "Eye of the Storm" at BooksForABuck.com. Only $3.99)
7. Rob has two dysfunctional pets--a cockatiel (Da Vinci) who yanks out his feathers when he wants attention and a cat (Chloe) who jumps onto the bed at 3:00 AM every morning wanting to talk.
8. Rob is working on an urban fantasy about a fallen god. He's represented by agent Caren Johnson. He's sold to Torrid Romance, AfterBurnSF, the Dark Romance Group, and especially to BooksForABuck.com.
9. Although he gave a workshop on 'quitting your day job' at the 2007 Romance Writers of America meeting, he hasn't quite figured out how to quit his day job with just the money he makes writing. So, he supplements his income teaching bridge at the local community college. Bridge is a great game and bridge players are great readers. I recommend this to everyone (especially those who want to pay him to teach them).
10. It normally takes Rob at least three drinks to admit he started reading romance because there was this one romance with a heroine on the cover with truly outstanding assets. He scoured that entire novel for explanations (how did she walk, did they need their own passports when she got within a few miles of the border, that kind of thing) before learning the tragic truth that book covers don't have a lot to do with what's inside. (Without the drinks it's a long involved story about a train ride through Europe, no English language books and... well you know that kind of story)
11. Rob is a top reviewer on Amazon and reviews books with BooksForABuck.com as well. If you're interested in romance, mystery/thriller, science fiction or fantasy, BooksForABuck.com is a great place to look both for affordable eBooks, but also for reviews of books from virtually all publishers. Rob couldn't not read books--and he persuaded himself he wasn't wasting time, he was working, as long as he wrote reviews. He really doesn't want you to tell him he's confused and he is just wasting his time reading.
12. Rob started BooksForABuck.com because he figured there were other readers out there who were as cheap as he, who didn't like to pay $12.99 or whatever for a paperback. So, he decided to charge a buck. But you have to act quick--the $1 pricing only lasts for a month per book.
13. Reading right now--right now, Rob is dividing is time between reading submissions and finishing the latest (last? sigh!) Harry Potter book. It isn't his favorite, but it's definitely keeping him reading.
I did a thirteen to brag on my kidlets. One day, they'll appreciate my writing time, because it allows them the freedom to find their inner creativity -- unfettered by annoyances like play dates and trips to the park.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea!
ReplyDeleteRob sounds like a pretty cool guy.
Thanks for covering me, Kate. I'm linking from my blog. Hope it brings in lots of traffic.
ReplyDelete(By the way, buy Kate's book, THE LAST MIND TRAVELER here: www.booksforabuck.com/sfpages/sf_05/last_mindtraveler.html
Rob