Indie Finalist

The Dead Guy was a finalist for an Indie Award! Well, it won GOLD for the IPPY Award, but there's no cool award certificate for that.

Reviews for The Dead Guy

Here are some reviews on The Dead Guy:


From BCF Book Reviews:
The car on the front cover says it all: “The Dead Guy” is a fast-paced action thriller, throwing you roughly in the passenger seat of Jack Thigpen’s Explorer and speeding you on a timed race around Detroit. Feeling a bit like Gone In Sixty Seconds with just a dash of Tarantino, this quirky yet serious novel will even make you laugh out loud, as it tracks down a crime ring that gets deeper and larger by the mile. Crafted with knowledge and detail that gives the novel immense realism, absolutely anything seems possible.


From The Book Connection:

This book is a roller coaster ride of action, intrigue, and mystery. Just when you think Jack has it figured out, something throws a monkey wrench into his theory and things are no longer as they seem. The reader will unconciously be biting off fingernails as he follows Jack from car dealerships to body shops to riverboats.

If this book hasn't won any awards yet, it should!

Riveting, intense, and action-packed, The Dead Guy by Doug Hewitt keeps you hanging on the edge of your seat and turning the pages.

Fear in Mystery Novels

Today I have a guest post on the Dark Phantom website. I wrote a little post (an article, really) titled “Writing a Murder Mystery and Using Fear.”

I suppose with my background of writing horror stories, using fear in mystery novels comes naturally! But, read my post to see what I have to say. There've been a few comments already on the posting.

Visit:

Dark Phantom

And as a last thought on using fear ...,
Boo!

Doug Hewitt


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/
or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

Time in on the virtual blog tour

Tomorrow starts week 2 of my virtual blog tour. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's stop, which will feature a book review of The Dead Guy.

Visit the Literary Menagerie tomorrow to see how the review goes. This reviewer pulls no stops! If she doesn't like the book, she'll say so. Where's the drum roll?

Stay tuned as mystery author Doug Hewitt tours the internet with his novel The Dead Guy.

Doug Hewitt


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/
or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

Time out on the virtual blog tour

The first week of my virtual blog tour for The Dead Guy has ended. It's been a lot of fun, and The Dead Guy has seen a jump in the Amazon rankings. It's embarrassing to say how much it jumped because that would give you an inkling as to what the ranking was before this week. Anyway, the has been nice for a mystery author to see comments from real readers who enjoyed the book, calling it everything from a good mystery read to a great mystery read.

I've got a few days before my next stop. Until then, happy reading!


Doug Hewitt


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/
or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

Next Stop for Mystery Author Doug Hewitt

I had a great post over at Book Marketing Buzz. So far, there have been seven comments. There is general agreement about The Dead Guy--it has a great cover!

Tomorrow, I appear on Fictionary. I have a post titled "Why write a novel? What's in it for me?"

I think it has some great insights into the mind of a mystery writer, so be sure to check it out!

See ya on the blogging trail ...

Doug Hewitt


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/
or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

Mystery Author Doug Hewitt at Book Marketing Buzz

The virtual book tour continues!

For anyone trying to promote a book, I have a guest blog tomorrow at the Book Marketing Buzz website. The title of the blog is Three Strategies to Promote Your Book. It's my first guest post, so I appreciate the opportunity.

To see what I have to say about promotion, go to:

Book Marketing Buzz

See what mystery author Doug Hewitt is doing to promote The Dead Guy!


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/

or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

Mystery Author Doug Hewitt Interviews Jack Thigpen

I enjoyed my virtual tour stops today, and it just keeps getting better. One of the promotional ideas I had was to have an interview with my main character in The Dead Guy, Jack Thigpen. Let's face it; I didn't really give Jack a fair shake, giving him a fatal, untreatable disease in Chapter 1.

And so what would Jack have to say to me?

Read my interview with Jack Thigpen, and see what he has to say to mystery author Doug Hewitt.

It's here at:
The Plot


To find out more about me, visit my blogging website:
http://twohewitts.blogspot.com/

My home website:
www.HewittsBooks.com/

My Parenting blog:
http://parentwrites.blogspot.com/

or to find out how to get scholarships and learn about scholarship search engines, read my eBook: Free College Funds at:
www.FreeFundsForCollege.com

February 3rd Virtual Book Tour Stops for The Dead Guy and mystery author Doug Hewitt

Today's virtual tour stops were great, but tomorrow's are even better!

You can read a wonderfully insightful review of my mystery novel The Dead Guy at:
Roxi's Random Ramblings.

And there's an excerpt from The Dead Guy (with some of my personal comments) at:
The Plot.

And of course, as a mystery author, I would like to invite everyone to visit these websites, learn a bit more about what makes an author tick, and get hooked!

Doug Hewitt
www.HewittsBooks.com
www.TwoHewitts.blogspot.com

Mystery Author Doug Hewitt interviewed at American Chronicle

Mystery Author Doug Hewitt interviewed at American Chronicle
My February virtual blog tour started today. I get interviewed by bloggers and book reviewers all across the Internet.
Today’s interview has some interesting questions about how I became a mystery author and how I came to write The Dead Guy, a Motown Mystery Novel

Check out my personal story at:
American Chronicle

Virtual Blog Tour Stops

I received the list of my virtual blog tour stops. It's quite a list for February! I''ll be touring the country (and overseas!) from the comfort of my own home. What a great way for a new mystery author to get around. By the way, this is all for The Dead Guy, my Motown Mystery Novel.

Feb. 2 – American Chronicle (interview) http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/88775
Book Pleasures (book review) http://www.bookpleasures.com/websitepublisher/articles/285/1/Review-The-Dead-Guy--/Page1.html
Feb. 3 – Roxi’s Random Ramblings (book review) http://roxisrandomramblings.blogspot.com/2009/01/dead-guy-doug-hewitt.html
The Plot (book spotlight) www.theplotline.wordpress.com
Feb. 4 – The Plot (character interview) www.theplotline.wordpress.com
Feb. 5 – Blogcritics (interview) www.blogcritics.org
Feb. 6 - Fictionary (guest post) www.cballan.wordpress.com
Feb. 9 – Literary Menagerie (book review) www.literarymenagerie.blogspot.com
The Dark Phantom (guest post) www.thedarkphantom.wordpress.com
Feb. 10 – As the Pages Turn (book trivia) www.asthepagesturn.wordpress.com
Divine Caroline (interview) www.divinecaroline.com
Feb. 11 – Blog Talk Radio with Kim Smith (podcast) www.blogtalkradio.com/kims
The Book Stacks (guest post) www.thebookstacks.com
Feb. 12 – A Bookworm Reads (book excerpt) www.abookwormsdiary.blogspot.com
BCF Reviews (book review) http://bcfreviews.wordpress.com/2009/01/24/the-dead-guy-by-doug-hewitt/
Feb. 13 – Café of Dreams (guest post) www.cafeofdreams.blogspot.com
Feb. 16 – Book Marketing Buzz (guest post) www.bookmarketingbuzz.com
Feb. 17 – – Beyond the Books (interview) www.beyondthebooks.wordpress.com
Feb. 18 – Popin’s Lair (guest post) www.proudbookworm.blogspot.com (Asli)
The Book Rack (book review) www.thebookrack.wordpress.com
Feb. 19 – The Writer’s Life (guest post) www.thewriterslife.blogspot.com
Feb. 20 – The Library at the End of the Universe (book review) www.bookwormsballroom.blogspot.com
The Book Connection (guest post) www.thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com
Feb. 23 – The Real Hollywood (interview) www.valleygirlmusings.blogspot.com
Feb. 24 – A Cup of Coffee and a Good Book (book review and book giveaway of review copy) www.jennifersbookreviews.blogspot.com
Feb. 25 – The Writer’s Life (interview) www.thewriterslife.blogspot.com
Feb. 26 – Cindy’s Love of Books (book review) http://www.cindysloveofbooks.blogspot.com/
Feb. 27 – Fiction Scribe (interview) www.fictionscribe.com


By the way, while you read The Dead Guy, if you have kids getting ready to go to college, check out our eBook, Free College Funds at www.FreeFundsForCollege.com.

A Review of The Dead Guy by Doug Hewitt

Sometimes it's nice to be an author.

Yes, it's hard work. There's no guarantee of getting published. And when you do get published, the number of books sold almost never knocks one's socks off.

But then an author can get a positively glowing review. And, not only is it glowing, this reviewer gets the connection between me and my admiration for Tarantino movies. I didn't even consciously put in any connections, but now that she mentions it in the review, I can see the influence.

Yes, The Dead Guy is a great mystery read. It's a Motown mystery novel. To read the review, go to Roxie's Random Ramblings.

Sleuthfest

Robin and I are heading to the Sleuthfest convention next month!

This is a convention for mystery writers. And so, because my latest novel, The Dead Guy, is a mystery novel, we figured we'd go! Plus, it will be in February and held in Florida. That's a good reason to go, too!

We would like to invite anyone who is going to look us up!

See you in Florida!

Doug and Robin

Latest Promotional Tips

Here are a few tips I learned about promotion.

These are all related to Internet promotion. The traditional route is booksignings, appearances at book festivals, and readings at libraries, but for now I'm focused on the Internet.

One of the things I've been advised to do is blog often. (Hence, this blog!) Keep a list of keywords saved in Notepad so you can copy and paste into your blog. This saves you time in having to come up with new ones every time, and it will help your Google ranking.

Another thing is to mention your novel, such as The Dead Guy, in the blog. Again, this helps search engines find you and your product. And it helps to link the name of your novel to a place where people can buy it!

The Dead Guy, Doug Hewitt, mystery novel, mystery author, good mystery read

Press Releases V1

I might be coming up with updates on my opinion of free press release services, hence the "V1" in the blog title, but I would like to share my opinion of the ones that have released (online) the press releases I've put out there so far. This is valuable in getting your SEO (future blog topic) optimization and rising to the top of the search engines.

The two services I've had good fortune with so far are "i news wire" and "free press release."

I'll plug their logos below. Click on the logos to visit their sites.









Press releases are great if you have any news regarding your book. For example, I'm preparing one to announce my upcoming virtual blog tour. I've signed up with Dorothy Thompson, founder of Pump Up Your Book Promotion. She's done a wonderful job so far, and the virtual tour doesn't begin until February 1!

(posted by Doug)
The Dead Guy, Doug Hewitt, mystery novel, mystery author, good mystery read

Radio Blogs

Okay, so I've been adding the Two Hewitts blog feed to as many blog directories as I can find. Many of these require reciprocal links. That's why you'll see a lot of blog-this and blog-that icons on the right-hand side of the Two Hewitts blog. In all of these blog directories, I make sure to list The Dead Guy as a link.

It doesn't take up much space, I suppose, and the objective is to spread the word, so I'm thinking it's worth the effort. I did put in a tracker in this blog, and I noticed we got some hits from states other than North Carolina (Michigan, where are you?). So, maybe it's like a little snowball, just starting its descent down a hill. How much frozen precipitation will we gather? Stay tuned!

And be sure to check out our home site, HewittsBooks.

You can open a free PDF file of Chapter 1 of The Dead Guy! Read the chapter and see if you get hooked. Why not? (It's a short chapter!)

Oh, I almost forgot. The title of this blog is about radio blogs. I just came across an opportunity to host an Internet radio show. Hmmm. I like the idea, but I've got so many blog directories to submit to! This comes under the "maybe later" category.

Many thanks!

Doug



The Dead Guy, Doug Hewitt, mystery novel, mystery author, good mystery read

Technorati and Me

One activity we've been advised to do to promote a new book is to set up an account with Technorati. Technorati is a service that tracks keywords and tags, which is important when trying to rise up to the top on Google searches.

We've done that, and now we're trying to put html code with tags into our blog posts.

Will it work? We sure hope so, but we'll report asap when we learn anything.

By the way, this is our first post with the aforementioned tag html codes, so in a way this is a test.

Make sure, if you like to read a good mystery novel, to pick up Doug's book The Dead Guy. It's a Motown murder mystery, set in Detroit. Check out the amazon reviews.

~ Doug

The Dead Guy, Doug Hewitt, mystery novel, mystery author, good mystery read

Book Tour, Virtual

For promoting The Dead Guy, my mystery novel set in Detroit, I'm kicking off a book tour on February 1. This is a virtual book tour, and I'll be posting on various blogs around the Internet. I'll also be getting interviewed, and I'll be talking about the promotion process, especially as it relates to mystery novels.

For now, I'm going to learn about autoresponders and develop a mailing list. I'll be giving more details on this mailing list about the secrets I've learned about book promotion.

Stay tuned!

Doug
www.HewittsBooks.com
Watch Mr. Potato Heads Portray a Scene from The Dead Guy