Posts by JeffT

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

JeffT

Side note - since when does a publisher give a random former JW elder an “advance”? Advances are given to celebrities or prominent people for their memoirs.

Advances aren't just for celebrities. Unless you're dealing with a really small Indie publisher an advance of some sort is typical. Five hundred dollars would be a big advance for a first time author. Lloyd's big problem with publishing "The Reluctant Apostate" is that the thing is 200,000 words/800 pages long. The publishers know that NOBODY wants to wade through that to learn the story of some guy stuck in goofy cult.

Edited to add, I just looked up industry standards. A typical memoir runs 60,000 to 80,000 words.

So to people who say "but his videos help so much jw to get out of the cult" I say OH HELL NO!

It's been pointed out before, and his worth mentioning again, a person who is watching anti-watchtower You Tubes is already on their way out, even if they don't know it. My wife and I left the WTBS years before the internet became a thing. The information has always been out there, you just needed the nerve to go look at it.

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

JeffT

why did Evans soar to prominence?

Was he ever important anywhere other than his own mind?

I first noticed him (and dismissed him almost immediately) with the flap over AAWA and the outing of many PIMO's who didn't want to be outed. And then there was the fake signature on the incorporating paperwork for that entity. Then we had his attempt to gain control of "Crisis of Conscience."

I'm not impressed at all with his videos, they are bloated and rarely contain much in the way of new information. I have not read all of "The Reluctant Apostate," what I have read screams "unprofessional" A 200,000 word memoir? Somebody call an editor.

Maybe I'm alone on this, I never thought of him as some sort of leader. He doesn't bring anything to the table that can't be found elsewhere Ray Franz comes to mind immediately, by virtue of his place in the Watchtower organization. Evans was no where near that level within the organization. When I was in the process of leaving I read several academic works including those by Walter Martin, and Anthony Hoekema come to mind. To the best of my knowledge Lloyd Evans doesn't have any academic credentials.

I don't know why I should listen to this guy.

1

My latest novel

by JeffT in

jw
friends

i have started posting my latest work “the children of aquarius,” an urban fantasy, on amazon’s kindle vella program.

i expect to publish about one episode per week.

the first three episodes will be free.

JeffT

I have started posting my latest work “The Children of Aquarius,” an Urban Fantasy, on Amazon’s Kindle Vella program. I expect to publish about one episode per week. The first three episodes will be free.

Until the start of the 1965 school year three teenagers – Julius “Whitman” Whitman, Cliff Williams, and Lilith Barrett – were outcasts. They existed without friends; the objects of ridicule and bullying by their peers, and derision from their teachers. Then they discover they have supernatural talents.

They find themselves suddenly able to move objects by telekinesis and make people see things that aren’t there; or not see things that are. Where did these talents come from? Why were they selected to harbor supernatural powers? What are they supposed to do with their new-found powers? Or are they freaks?

Drawn together by the new status they set out to find the answers to their questions. Their investigation will lead them to wicked enemies and enigmatic allies. Are the universe and human society more complex than anyone ever imagined?

Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJ9KXQKF

Follow me on Twitter at JeffThomasBooks.

Note: I’m posting this here because the parents of one of my lead characters are hard-core JW’s.

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

JeffT

I agree with Vintage, the elders are getting hung out to dry. I have no doubt the big boys will not think twice about leaving the little people dangling in wind.

3

I hate amazon!

by vienne in

amazon keeps grabbing profits from my mom and b's books.

one came off amazon.

one is still there but to make a minimum amount the price has gone up significantly.

JeffT

Folks on reddit (in selfpub) are saying that Amazon had some kind of computer glitch. They are trying to fix the problem.

3

I hate amazon!

by vienne in

amazon keeps grabbing profits from my mom and b's books.

one came off amazon.

one is still there but to make a minimum amount the price has gone up significantly.

JeffT

I have self-published several books on Amazon, and I'm about to serialize another one. Three sold reasonably well, two not so much. Enough is right, the author sets the price. There is a minimum price to compensate Amazon for the price of printing the book.

I don't understand what you think is unfair about the process. Writing is a tough way to make money all publishers are going to take a cut from the profits, they need to make a living, too.

15

Next time a jw says "the end is sooo close now"

by nowwhat? in

say this.

with what's going on the world does it look like they are going to proclaim peace and security anytime soon?!

or was the organization wrong again about the end times?.

JeffT

I knew a JW, I think MS, not elder who sold his farm in 1974 and moved to "where the need is greater." He had two small children but figured the farm sale would keep them going. Hey they only had a year or two, right? He ended up going broke and had a nervous breakdown. As far as I know he ended up trying to live and raise a family on disability from social security.

I'm about to self-publish another book

by JeffT in

jw
friends

i'm about to begin posting a contemporary/urban fantasy on kindle vella.

(for those who don’t know vella, it is set up to publish one episode at a time.

the first chapter is free.

JeffT

I'm about to begin posting a contemporary/urban fantasy on Kindle Vella. (For those who don’t know Vella, it is set up to publish one episode at a time. The first chapter is free. After that, you buy tokens to continue). I have several completed chapters, and plan to publish the first chapter this week. My published works include an alternate history trilogy and a mystery/suspense novel set in a religious cult.

My newest book, “The Children of Aquarius,” follows three teenagers living in a Seattle suburb circa 1965 who suddenly develop paranormal powers. As the story progresses, they make remarkable discoveries about themselves and the world they live in.

I'm posting this here because one of the teenagers is PIMO being raised by hardcore JW parents.

Follow me on Twitter at JeffThomasBooks.

24

'In Search of Christian Freedom'

by riblah in

i cross-posted this on reddit:.

i would love to have a hard copy of this book.

does anyone know about how to go about persuading the person who has the rights to print a batch?.

JeffT

Biahi

Hang on to them, and when you do sell take them to a rare book seller and find out what they're worth. I looked last night, copies of "In Search of Christian Freedom" are going for $200-300.

24

'In Search of Christian Freedom'

by riblah in

i cross-posted this on reddit:.

i would love to have a hard copy of this book.

does anyone know about how to go about persuading the person who has the rights to print a batch?.

JeffT

From the publishers view, there probably isn't much market for it. I know from experience that selling something (in my case a novel) about cults isn't easy. However, what might be commercially viable would be to have the copyright holder put up on something like Amazon's Kindle or Barnes and Noble's nook. The only thing needed would be a digital copy of the book to submit to the publisher. The book could sell as low as $3 or $4 a copy.