OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME!

I have a very self-serving idea that some of my followers may actually volunteer for.  I am close to publishing my next book.  I have learned that after I publish a book, some people will actually read it.  If I know them, I always ask for HONEST feedback.  I have noticed certain trends in the feedback I have gotten for my first novel.  If I had known about some of the suggestions beforehand, I could have made adjustments and thus produced a better book.

So, where am I going with this?  It seems to me that if I reversed the process, maybe I could improve the book I am about to publish.  So I sez to myself, “Self, maybe some of your blogger friends would want to read your new book before it is published and give you their reaction.”

Yeah, I know, pretty nervy of me to think of such an idea.  But maybe there are some of you who would actually like to participate.  I can promise two things in return:  first, I will include you in the acknowledgment section of the book so you get credit for your work; and, second, I will ship you off a free, custom-autographed copy of the book once it is published.  The latter will be worth quite a bit in about 200 years when my bountiful collection of writings is finally recognized posthumously.

Here is what the book is about….see if you like it:  It’s the story of a young British boy named Harry Potter….uh-oh, wait, that’s not the right book.  Oh, here’s the right one:

Premise:  For many years a mailed letter that was undeliverable was forwarded to the Post Office’s Dead Letter Department.  Information on the envelope was damaged or simply illegible.  Dead Letter Department personnel were the only authorized people allowed to open a mailed letter, read it and attempt to determine to whom or from whom it was mailed.  DEAD LETTER is the title of my book.

The Plot:  Robert and Sandra have grown up together on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.  By high school, there is no question:  it is inevitable they will eventually marry.  The year is 1943 and the two are graduating from high school. World War II is raging and Robert, like most young men, is off to fight the evil forces.  While far away on the other side of the world, Robert writes a critical letter to Sandra.  Since all military mail had to be read by the commanding officers, Robert writes in “code” telling Sandra about a treasure he has left for her and includes clues to find it that only she will understand.  The letter’s envelope is eventually “injured” by enemy fire and it winds up in the military’s dead letter office.  Here a Navy Mail Clerk opens the letter and attempts to find out who wrote it or to whom it was sent.  Unable to do so, the letter would normally be destroyed.  But because the clerk is intrigued about the “treasure hunt” written about in the letter, he puts it in his pocket to study more on his own.  Years pass and the sailor’s son comes across the letter in his father’s papers after the latter has died.  The son takes up the cause and attempts to solve the mystery of the letter….some 40 years after it was written.  There is a double holy crap ending that hopefully will blow you apart and keep you from doing anything for at least an hour after you have finished the book. 

Okay, the deal is as stated above.  If you decide to join my club of readers, there is no obligation to like the book or even finish it and follow through with a brief, informal report back to me.  If you are “in” then let me know via the comment section at the bottom of this blog and I will send you the book file and await your hard-nosed critical review…or I’ll take nice reviews too.  Together we can win the Pulitizer!

 *****

Books by Marc Kuhn: THE POPE’S STONE, an historical novel that follows two descendants of a Virginia family who, despite living a century apart, share uncanny similarities in their lives; NEVER GOOSE A MOOSE, a collection of whimsical verse featuring thought-provoking “never-do’s” that children should beware of; and ABOUT A FARM, a children’s book about challenges we all face every day, regardless of where we live.  All three books are available at amazon.com and each has its own .com website under its title.

Intimate details about Marc Kuhn and other exhilarating stuff at marckuhn.com

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