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Just wanted to point out that Nanci Kalanta from Horrorworld.org responded to this entry in comment numbers six and seven.
Mr. Dagstine, it seems, is now part of Horrorworld.org, with his own forum board.
Hey folks, just wanted to let you know that I’ve now got my own thread on the extremely popular HORRORWORLD.ORG website (www.horrorworld.org).
[. . .]
HORROR WORLD Independent Authors: http://www.horrorworld.org/independent.htm
HORROR WORLD Lawrence R. Dagstine page: http://horrorworld.org/v-web/bulletin/bb/viewforum.php?f=110
In truth, I wish Mr. Dagstine luck with that. Somehow, I doubt much will come of it. If you look at the forum boards for the independent and “mass market” horror authors, they’re basically dead.
I recognize quite a few of the names I see (Burke, Frank, Hawkes, Knight, Koehler, Lukac, Urbancik, etc.) from the indie boards alone, and a handful more from the “mass market” boards. Most have very little activity. Some of these authors have commented on Rusty at one time or another: Knight, Koehler, Frank, Dagstine, and Enck, for sure. One or two people comment here anonymously, which is their prerogative; I assume they are also authors, but I could be wrong.
As I see it, the main purpose the individual author boards serve is to announce upcoming novels and short stories, or chats. Ms. Hawkes used it to announce “The Charmed Sword of Isgor,” which I happened to find by accident when I logged onto Fictionwise to buy Mark Orr’s Howling in the Park. I bought both, and enjoyed both very much. Mr. Orr doesn’t have a forum at Horrorworld.org; I read his announcement about it on his blog.
I guess my main point is that any author who expects much to come of having a board there may be disappointed.
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“I guess my main point is that any author who expects much to come of having a board there may be disappointed.”
Or a board anywhere for that matter. Rarely are message boards successful. Its all about promotion just like anything else.
“Hey folks, just wanted to let you know that I’ve now got my own thread on the extremely popular HORRORWORLD.ORG website”
I wish people (in general) would stop trying to make something appear huge and popular when it really isn’t or at least not as much as they say it is.
I suspect it’s the “let me bask in the reflected glow” ideology at work.
I dunno. I’ve seen the Permuted Press threads for their authors to be fairly popular. Not all of the authors, but there are a few success stories. The chats are usually full too.
It seems that it depends on the site, and the personality of the individual authors. If you are more active and friendly toward the fans that post in your thread it seems that it builds a sense of loyalty that translates into more word of mouth promotion of your book.
But I’ve seen many other sites try to recreate the same dynamic with little to no success. I think this does depend on the amount of promotion one does to get the word out about themselves and their work.
Permuted Press does seem a lot livelier than HorrorWorld. I noticed that a few months ago when Kody Boye first appeared on my radar.
I suppose most authors don’t have a heck of a lot of time to devote to board-hopping, and stick with the one or two that generate the most traffic.
Why can’t you just let him enjoy be a Horrorworld.org message board owner?!?!
🙂
The success of any author message board is based on the author’s participation.
I grant boards to authors upon their request and verification that they are truly published in either the mass market or specialty press. I don’t actively seek out authors – the seek out me.
There are several boards, one of the most popular being Jack Ketchum’s and Graham Masterton’s, have quite a bit of traffic because the authors themselves contribute to its success.
The Justice Wilbanks board was extremely slow in the beginning but they’ve turned it into a nice little community by actively participating in its success.
The new Apex Digest board, only about 2 weeks old, has gotten quite a bit of traffic as a new board.
Again, it is incumbent upon the authors to make their boards a success. I give them a spam-free, monitored board in which to do so.
I don’t expect that Horror World’s message boards to be as popular as Shocklines but, since the message boards were the original intent of the site, I don’t see any reason to remove them.
Horror World offers a lot to fans and authors alike – The Pod of Horror, free fiction, free reviews, links and many other “extras”.
With over 10,000 unique hits a month, I don’t feel that any part of the site is “unpopular” Of the sites dedicated to horror, Horror World is the only one that focuses on authors and the written word.
We are not just about the message boards.
Nanci Kalanta
Editor
Horror World
The paragraph in italics was directed towards this comment
“I wish people (in general) would stop trying to make something appear huge and popular when it really isn’t or at least not as much as they say it is.”
I certainly meant no disrespect to Ms. Kalanta or Horrorworld.org in general. Velmonturna’s comment to which Ms. Kalanta took exception, as I read it, was more directed at Mr. Dagstine’s rather large ego than at Horror World per se. Maybe Mr. Dagstine can make it work for him, and gain a participatory following.
The average guest or member can’t see traffic numbers for either gross hits or unique visitors. All we can see is when the author’s board was started, how many entries there are in it, and how many replies there are. If a board is three years old, has five or six entries from the author, and few, if any, replies, I can understand why the author might get tired of hearing crickets, and cease participating. That’s no reflection on the staff of Horror World; it’s just the way the internet works.
That having been said, I looked at perhaps half of the boards that exist there, and may well have missed a few that actually do get a lot of participation. I’m not in the habit of participating in forum boards myself, but will look or comment upon rare occasion, if something is brought to my attention.
Regardless of how Ms. Kalanta came to be aware of this blog, she has every right to comment on it and make her point of view known. Obviously I approved her comment (moderation is only necessary the first time someone “new” comments). I encourage discussion and a variety opinions, as long as the comments don’t start to resemble a flame war between third parties.
My policy is to approve all comments that aren’t: 1) spam that Akismet missed, or 2) notices from sites that harvest words out of context, such as camera from “Halloween on Camera,” and post about the entry on a camera review site.
Wow, I don’t see what the big deal about a personal board is. At the same time, I “was” wondering where all these hits on my own blog the past two days came from. If it wasn’t for Horror world, I probably wouldn’t know who authors such as Janrae Frank, Brian Knight, Eric Enck, and many others were. I probably wouldn’t have purchased work by Wrath James White and many other talents as well. Yes, Horror World is where I noticed them “first”, believe it or not.
I don’t think my being there has anything to do with ego if I am there in “support” of horror as a fictional “form”, not just promoting my own work. Do you know what I mean? When a new publication featuring myself comes out, I always give the magazine a plug with the other authors. I didn’t think my little publication-parenting blog was so popular nowadays. Gee, thanks.
But I DO have personal threads on other forums. I “already” have my “own” threads at Silverthought Press (award-winning Independent publisher of specfic) and Whispers of Wickedness (big in the uk) for some years now. I’m “also” a member of the horror review team for Whispers.
I already have a following, Rusty, thank you. Like hate comments or hate mail.. I also get fan mail for almost two years now. I also network with other authors and editors too. And no, I’m not talking about Nick Pacione here. So please do not twist it.
I really don’t know what to say about this blog post though… I wish I had more free time to answer it in-depth. I guess thank you for thinking of me??? 🙁
Lawrence
Hi, Horror World…
My reply wasn’t targeting at you thats what the “in general” was for.
“I don’t see what the big deal about a personal board is.”
Neither do I, Larry. But, if it’s not a big deal to you, why give it three links? It seems a bit excessive, but that’s just MHO.
FWIW, The Rusty Nail carries no weight within the horror writing community of which I’m aware. If you know otherwise, well, damn — I’m flattered.
On a completely unrelated note:
http://community.livejournal.com/internetscourt/3901.html
I give all webpages, magazines, threads, etc. the most links available or possible for viewers who visit and who might have an interest in learning more about it. A TON of other authors on places such as Blogger or Livejournal give the same kind of plugs as myself, and they too support links for viewers. If I had all night I could validate this with a couple of hundred sf, fantasy, and horror authors.
For example, you’ll also notice THIS in that blog post of mine: “There’s a slew of other great authors there as well, from the Small Press to the Mass Market to Bram Stoker winners/nominees, and up-and-comers in-between.”
By clicking on my page someone might happen upon…um.. say Janrae Frank, Karen Koehler, Angeline Hawkes or Kealan Patrick Burke and say, “oh wow, they’re there too. I like their work…let me click on them! Let me look them up!”
Well, you get the gist of the rest.
Oh, that was fantastic, Chaos!
“By clicking on my page someone might happen upon…um.. say Janrae Frank, Karen Koehler, Angeline Hawkes or Kealan Patrick Burke and say, “oh wow, they’re there too.”
Really, Larry? I only see P.S. Gifford and Matt Cowan replying to your entries. You have no links on your board to any of the people that you just cited. How would anyone find them by going to your forum? And how does your comment disprove my theory about your wanting a board there to bolster your reputation by association? If anything, it bolsters my theory.
By clicking on the INDEPENDENT AUTHORS link. You just contradicted yourself twice now, in terms of your theory, too, you do realize that???? 🙁
Are you really that bored, Rusty? Or just fresh out of Nick Pacione news? Wow.
The links “you” said to be “excessive” promotes three separate entities of the same forum, the forum being Horror World, correct? I’m going to write this with “emphasis” so even Steppin Fetchit can understand it, then I’m off to bed. You’re just looking at the “third” link and imagining that link no. 3 reflects the top two and some thing like LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME (lol), or something supposedly weird and egotistical about me along those lines. Don’t worry, this is a computer perception thing. Okay, baby steps…are you with me? Good. I’ll start my explanation nice and slow. I understand the confusion, after all this is a digital construct and we can’t see each other’s facial gestures and stuff to actually get a grip on what each other is thinking when we write something in a blog.
Now obviously, the blog heading is me, but that introduces it for the triple plug in the first place, so here goes…
1) Link one is Horror World’s main site for blog viewers to see what it is about; click on link no. 1 you get Horror World; a plug for them.
2) Link two shows ALL the indepedent authors as a WHOLE, also for viewers, and they can click on whoever from there on. Easier access.
3) Third link is the Lawrence plug; the Lawrence forum. Not the top two. Only part of the same “blog entry”.
4) Rusty Nail’s theory; flushed down the toilet about two entries ago.
I’m sorry, but it wasn’t anything more than that. In your mind, did you hope or imagine it was, or want all three to be based on your theory? I’m sorry if you were eluded.
Sigh.
Good Night, Rusty
“The links “you” said to be “excessive” promotes three separate entities of the same forum, the forum being Horror World, correct? I’m going to write this with “emphasis” so even Steppin Fetchit can understand it, then I’m off to bed. You’re just looking at the “third” link and imagining that link no. 3 reflects the top two and some thing like LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME (lol), or something supposedly weird and egotistical about me along those lines.”
Actually, I’m not. If Nanci wasn’t worried about my one-off blog entry, she wouldn’t have commented. If you weren’t worried about it, neither would you have done so. There is such a thing as logic; it might serve you well you to use it.
And that was just “illogical” what you just said. You do realize that? What you’re saying, in effect, is that you fed us bait like a psychiatrist or something and we were test fish who went in to get it. You tested us. That’s sick… I wonder… do you have a life beyond the rusty nail or sam young or eikomorinawa and all these other names; yes, I know them all. Do you go outdoors? Is your life all about internet… study?
However…
If Ms./Mrs. Kalanta is reading this and she would like me to remove some of the links or edit the promotional aspects of the blog entry itself, reducing links or words, whatever it may be, please feel free to email me and I will do it.
Lawrence
But Larry, I’m too damn stupid and illogical to trap you and Ms. Kalanta into saying things that make you look even more moronic than I. It’s that damn 404 Logic III course in college that fucked me over for good. Screwed up all common sense I used to have. 😉
wtf is with all the ‘quoteseses,’ my precious?
“Are you really that bored, Rusty? Or just fresh out of Nick Pacione news? Wow.”
It went from a page that stalks Nick to a site that kisses authors asses in the hopes of gaining friends. I’m afraid we have to give this victory to Pacione.
Larry — “Quotatious,” darling . . . this site still tracks the whereabouts of Nicky. You are incidental. I read what I want to read. Don’t put too much weight on any of it, lest you fall through the floor.
His sense of self importance transcends his grasp of common good manners and sense. in other words he’s self obsessed and dense with wits of lead and nose of fred.
Ya know, Dagstine, I posted that warning note you sent me and I saved it on myspace where I received it from you. In light of the fact that there were no dangerous or incriminating accusations and statements from Pacione in the actual book, (which you said you had read and hence the warning you sent me), you look more and more like the usual horror community drama queen.
Dear Ms. Frank,
perhaps you have been blinded by your good friend Sam Young/Rusty Nail’s analytical shenanigans of luring and baiting me into a pissed off state when it comes to my persona in general. You have not met me in person, and I can understand this quick assumption along with many others.
I think much of the current fascination over me leads back to the Pacione debacle. Doesn’t most of it?
Yes, I have read things, emails, and such concerning the Pacione book which Nick was going to put in the book but probably coded it instead out of common sense of a lawsuit. I have read a lot MORE, which I find very discerning. To the point where it brought a tear to my eye.
But it was the OTHER who told me to send you that email and take some of the heat off Pacione…
…I don’t think anyone will ever guess who the OTHER was.
But as for my manners and common sense…please don’t question them. As I write this to you, I write this entire entry in a polite manner, just so you know… you will never meet another man in person who is a sweetheart willing to go the distance for others over myself.
I have, and still do, volunteer my time at children’s hospitals for kids with epilepsy (the epilepsy institute).
Any money I make from my writing I don’t, and never, keep. I give to my family and will always.. it’s there’s to do as they wish.
I’m a blood donor, I’m part of the MS walkathon. I also talk to people with various physical disabilities over the internet when I can and give them support.
9 out of 10 people call me a hero in that respect. Well, except on the Rusty Nail I suppose. I support all aspects of genre and cross-promote or will use my own time to promote another writer’s work. Yes, I would support you separate from myself, did you know that?
Why? Because I like to give unto others, not receive. I’ve worked at this for 11 years. You don’t see me boasting any big awards, do you? No, short story credits… just that.
I’ve lived a very interesting life, Ms. Frank. As I reflect, “mine” would make an interesting autobiography, not Pacione’s. The people I’ve met, the people I’ve been with, the lifestyle I’ve led outside of genre writing. You had to be there.
You may believe what you will, Ms. Frank, and I say this in the nicest way. Because it is everybody’s right to assume. But if I knew you on a friendlier basis, lived closer to you, talked more frequently, and you say… happened to need a kidney transplant. Well, if I was a perfect match, it would be yours.
God bless you, Ms. Frank.
Lawrence R. Dagstine
Dagstine has a board? Next thing you know, they’ll be giving one to Pacione or Philbin…
Umm, nice “good guy badge” there.
Dr Mr Dagstine
you are a blowhard.
supposed to read “Dear Mr Dagstine”
Dagstine, patron saint of bullshit.
I do not understand all the warped, misguided hostility. Seems that Mr. Dagstine has reached a nice level of success. I googled him and found this thread- so you are all enabling his future book sales.
Beryl
Well, Beryl, you haven’t found the threads in which Mr. Dagstine has started flame wars with my readers. He’s a mere side show . . . an obnoxious egotist (and a very poor writer) who flings around false accusations as if they were fact the second they pop into his head.
Anyway, if you think this blog is about Dagstine, then you need to return to your research and get a bigger picture.