Announcement, Announcement, Announcement!

I'm bringing a new feature to this blog. I don't often pander for social media shares and re-blogs, but tomorrow is the day. Not this post, tomorrow's post. Do what you will with this one, it's just the announcement.

The best way to explain it is by telling you how it went down.

***

I got to the writing cabin Monday, and determined to add new words to The Yak Guy Project. I parked the gyrocoper in the basement, and stomped upstairs. Lisa, my robotic assistant, was nowhere to be found.

I typed away, and at least she'd made coffee before she went shopping. My thought process was interrupted by the sound of heavy equipment. When I looked outside, I saw a tree topple in the forest.

The meadow looked safe enough, not a mammoth in sight, so I walked down to see what the commotion might be.

Lisa was back-dragging the bucket of the tractor we used in Will O' the Wisp. it looked like she'd made some sort of building pad. When she saw me she climbed down, grinning from ear to ear.

“What the hell's going on here? I didn't authorize any construction.”

“You're going to love it. You wrote the short story about the radio station, right?”

“Yeah, so.”

“I get to keep the swag from all my artwork projects with Sean Harrington. I'm having the old Airstream delivered here.”

“Why? Isn't the cabin big enough for you?”

“The cabin's great. This is your next big adventure.” She made a very Vanna White style gesture at the building pad.

“Yeah… I don't get it.”

“Lisa Burton Radio. Isn't it cool.”

“No, not really.”

Then this happened:

“Look here. You made me the spokesmodel for Entertaining Stories, and all that goes with it. I've worked really hard to live up to my role, and this is a good idea. What's that stupid saying you've been uttering, 'If you run with the herd, you get what the herd gets?' This idea steps away from the herd, it's unique.”

I tried to calm down. I don't think she'd ever get violent, but she's a lot stronger than I am. “What exactly is Lisa Burton Radio?”

“That's a better attitude.” She placed her hands on her hips. “I can interview characters from various stories on my show. My spots have gotten really popular, and maybe some authors would like to book their characters on my show.”

“So we would invite characters to my writing cabin, my sanctuary?”

“No. It's a call in show. They can be from anywhere, and still call in. I found a few old story elements in the basement, and after I hook them up, they can call from the future, the past, or Hell itself if they want.”

“Creepy.”

“It's not creepy. Characters carry the story, and you know it. Characters can sell the story too. Maybe people would like to hear from them outside the covers of their books.”

“So are we going to sit around and wait for people to contact us?”

“Hardly, I'm stacking the deck to make sure we get off the ground. I already contacted some of your friends, and they're all on-board for this.”

“Huh, maybe it isn't such a bad idea after all. I mean if other authors think it's a good idea–“

“It's a great idea. Now I have to string wire up to that peak.” She pointed off to the nearest mountain. “That's where the antenna will go.”

“Who's doing all that work?”

“I am. I can carry a roll of wire like you can carry a roll of toilet paper. I'm not edible, so I'm not worried about the wildlife.”

“Why Lisa Burton Radio? It should have a fancy name, like Character Promo Radio.”

“That's terrible. It's Lisa Burton Radio for SEO purposes. Maybe you can get some search engines to pick up the show. Then it benefits you as well as the other authors.”

“What do you need me to do?”

“That's the beauty of this. I'll take care of it and you can just write.” She turned back to her building pad. “In fact why don't you go do some writing right now. The old trailer will be here this afternoon, and I want to have the place ready for it.”

“Fine, but don't think I'm not putting this in my blog.”

***

There you have it. The veil is off my super secret project, and there are some really fun guests lined up. In order to make this work, I need people to share it across social media. Tomorrow is the first broadcast, and we'll take all the tweets, shares, reblogs, and whatever else we can get.

Maybe your character will appear one day, and all that support will be for you. it could be a fun stop on a blog tour too.

I'm off to work on the project myself. I probably need a new page, and a new category so authors can find their old promos easily.

Tommorow, big support tomorrow, please.