Writers will find readers and make more money going it alone

Off topic sort-of

I was just reading the article about self-publishing and took some comfort in it. Working on the self-imposed deadline of April 15, tax day, has been grueling but THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR is a labor of love and outrage. While some will think of it as just too damn sad to want to read, they will discover how we ended up with the highest military suicide year on record, all the money spent on trying to "prevent" suicides ended up increasing them and how experts have stated clearly these programs do not work.

If you've been reading Wounded Times over the last couple of months, I've posted some of the outrageous things done and they got away with it while reporters have failed to give this any attention other than repeating what they have been told along with publicizing the wrong data. Shocking! Reporters not doing their jobs! As if that should be anything new to us paying attention to all of this all along and cringing with the email links to crap.

When the last week of March rolled around and Wounded Times broke the million views mark that proved something to me. All the research done on behalf of veterans and families means something. Keep in mind, veterans are only 7% of the population, so while this was shocking to some, they are my base. They are the people this work is geared to and so are my books. Books? Yes, since THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR is the followup to the FOR THE LOVE OF JACK, HIS WAR/MY BATTLE originally self-published in 2002 and re-released last year on Amazon. It hasn't gone up on Kindle yet since I plan on releasing both on April 15th there.

"The battle to save the lives of combat veterans is not lost and it is not new. 18 veterans and more than one active duty service member take their own lives each day. More attempt it. Kathie Costos is not just a Chaplain helping veterans and their families, not just a researcher, she lives with it everyday. Combat came home with her Vietnam veteran husband and they have been married for 28 years. She remembers what it was like to feel lost and alone. Everything you read in the news today about PTSD is in this book originally published in 2002 to serve as a guide to healing as well as a warning of what was coming for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans."

Barnes and Noble, while they are offering the For the Love of Jack for a huge amount of money even though it has not been for sale for many years, (still trying to figure out how they pulled that one off) still has a couple of reviews from 2003.

PTSD is sadly too common
Kathie's book was amazing. I have PTSD myself and could identify with both her husband and Kathie since I know what my husband has gone through dealing with me and can look back at the worst times. A very insightful account of a family torn apart by PTSD. Help keep the shelter open since proceeds go to help Veterans who are badly in need of help.

His War Her Battle Our Story
In Kathie Costos's groundbreaking new work, 'For the Love of Jack' she documents the life that thousands of families live everyday: living with a Vietnam Veteran who has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In the book, Costos describes the disorder and its effects on family and life through her own experiences. Although PTSD is a disorder that varies from individual to individual, anyone who has seen even the slightest of hints of it can relate to this book. Through the chapters the reader comes to know and love Jack along with his family and ultimately can relate back to veterans of all wars and their struggle with this disorder. Never before have I read anything quite like this. Costos's unique and insightful perspective allows the reader to realize the after effects of war on an individual and on a family that are all to often overlooked. She reminds the reader that, along with the Vietnam Veterans, the families too share in the pain and suffering and describes them eloquently as, 'America's Secret.' I think that anyone who read this book would immediately understand that Vietnam isn¿t just a war or a country but a day to day struggle that all too many families and friends of Vietnam Veterans along with the Veterans themselves continue to battle to this very moment. The subtitle of this piece is His War My Battle. As the proud daughter of a Vietnam Veteran, USMC 1968-1970 I can tell you that its not only His War and Her Battle but Our Story.

That is why this article matters.

Hugh Howey: Self-publishing is the future — and great for writers
Books have changed forever, and that's good. Writers will find readers and make more money going it alone, like me
BY HUGH HOWEY

Contrary to recent reports, I am not the story of self-publishing.

The story of self-publishing is Jan Strnad, a 62-year-old educator hoping to retire in four years. To do so is going to require supplemental income, which he is currently earning from his self-published novels. In 2012, Jan made $11,406.31 from his work. That’s more than double what he made from the same book in the six months it was available from Kensington, a major publisher. He has since released a second work and now makes around $2,000 a month, even though you’ve never heard of him.

Rachel Schurig has sold 100,000 e-books and made six figures last year. She is the story of self-publishing. Rick Gualtieri cleared over $25,000 in 2012 from his writing. He says it’s like getting a Christmas bonus every month. Amanda Brice is an intellectual property attorney for the federal government. In her spare time, she writes teen mysteries and adult romantic comedies. She averages $750 a month with her work.

Like Schurig, Robert J. Crane is quickly moving from midlist to A-list. When Robert shared his earnings with me late last year, his monthly income had gone from $110.29 in June to $13,000+ in November. He was making more in a month than many debut authors are likely to receive as an advance from a major publisher. And he still owned his rights. His earnings have only gone up since.

Right now you are probably thinking that these anecdotes of self-publishing success are the result of my having cherry-picked the winners. In fact, these stories appear in this exact order in my private message inbox over at Kindle Boards. The only sampling bias is that these writers responded to a thread I started titled: “The Self Published Authors I Want to Hear From.” I wanted to know how many forum members were making $100 to $500 a month. My suspicion was that it was more than any of us realized. Every response I received started with a variation of: “I’m actually making a lot more than that.” (click link for more)

I don't do this to write a best seller, not that I could no matter how hard I tried. I am a researcher of PTSD plus live with it everyday and have been helping veterans and their families since 1982. (Yes, I am that old now) When I was a young wife I had no clue what was going on with my husband and that is what started off this over 30 year quest to defeat Combat PTSD.

THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR, would not have had to be written if what we learned over the last 40 years was perfected instead of seeing billions being spent on what was already proven to be failures.

I don't want to get rich off these books but it would be nice for my charity, Pointman of Winter Park, to not lose a couple of thousand a year when I work an average of ten hours a day seven days a week.

Iraq veteran son worried about Dad having PTSD

I don't usually get involved in a "Dear Abby" type of exchange but this morning I was reading Dad, vet, showing signs of PTSD about a letter from an Iraq veteran. His Dad may have PTSD and the son is worried. He and his Dad saw combat but his brothers did not and they seem to not be able to understand what Combat PTSD is. The advice from "Dear Annie" was pretty lousy. She told him to get a VA referral and take the Dad to Yoga. At that point I had to jump in and leave this comment. I hope he reads it.

A VA referral will not work for someone that does not want to go there. Find a local Veterans Center instead where he can talk to other veterans. First explain to your Dad that PTSD only happens after a traumatic event and is not something that he caused. Too many think they are the problem instead of knowing it comes from his emotional strength. The more he can feel, the more he can feel pain. Yoga is great to help him reteach his body how to calm down again but without taking care of his mind and spirit he will not heal. It has to be all three, body, mind and spirit.

Folks PTSD has been studied for over 40 years and none of this is new but unfortunately too many still have the wrong idea of what it is and what caused it. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder literally means "after trauma" and that is the only way to "get it."

Florida Eden Winery turns away disabled Iraq veteran over his service dog

Wounded veteran claims he was turned away from business
WINK
Story Created: Apr 03, 2013

LEE COUNTY, Fla.- A combat-wounded veteran of the Iraq war is claiming he and his service dog were turned away from Eden Winery near Alva in Lee County. 27-year old Alex Brown says he is embarrassed and upset by what happened.

"Us veterans are a proud group. It is one thing to walk around as a combat wounded vet, and to have your service dog with you all the time. To have someone point that out, and dismiss you, well that can be embarrassing, especially in front of your family. I don't want anybody else to go through that," says Brown.

The Army veteran says he and some relatives went to Eden Winery on Tuesday afternoon of this week. Brown says he was getting his service dog, Skip, out of the car, when he heard the manager of the winery store.

"He was screaming, 'that dog is not coming in here, that dog cannot come in'," says Brown. "My cousin said, 'it's a service dog', and still he said, 'that dog is not coming in', and he shut the door."

The Brown party left the winery, and later in the evening, Alex posted his version of events on Facebook. Since then, hundreds of people have responded, mostly with very negative comments toward Eden Winery.
read more here

Arizona Veterans' Services director resigns

Unfortunately, this deplorable attitude is not just isolated to a few. I resigned from an organization over the very same comment made about females serving this country made in front of a group with no one but my husband speaking up against such a pathetic attitude toward women.

Arizona Veterans' Services director resigns
Lindsey Collom
Republic
AZ Cental
Wed Apr 3, 2013

The director of the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services abruptly resigned over his hiring of a former state legislator whose recent comments about female troops serving on the front lines have inflamed veterans groups.

A spokesman for Gov. Jan Brewer said Wednesday that Joey Strickland disobeyed a direct order when he hired former Rep. Terri Proud, R-Tucson, who was quoted this week as questioning a woman’s fitness for combat during menstruation.

Strickland’s office had hired Proud in March to start work this month as his female-veterans convention coordinator, an offer that was rescinded Wednesday.

Brewer’s spokesman, Matthew Benson, said Strickland had erred in hiring Proud after he “was given strict instructions not to.” Strickland, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, first inquired about hiring Proud about a year ago when she was still serving in the state Legislature, and he was told not to do so. Benson declined to give a reason for that instruction.

“He chose to hire this individual anyway and, unfortunately, that person’s judgment was on display this week with some exceptionally ill-chosen public remarks regarding women in the military,” Benson said. “Of all people, Colonel Strickland should understand what it means to disobey a direct order, and, unfortunately, that’s why we are where we are today.”
read more here

Thrown Into a Psych Ward for No Apparent Reason?

This story does not add up to the headline.

Do veterans get treated the way they should? Hell no! Do they wait and fight for the compensation and treatment they earned while serving? Yes and they shouldn't have to. The veteran says in the second interview that he had personal issues and left a message on his friends phone. That is what apparently caused this. The police did a "wellness check" and frankly they don't do that unless someone has called about someone they are worried about.

I've had to do it several times for veterans I was worried about. They don't just show up at a veteran's door.

This veteran says in the phone interview that he went to the VA for pain in his back and was told he would need to get evaluated by mental health and that makes sense since they are evaluating veterans for PTSD and TBI because most don't know they have either one. The pain medication he was asking for is probably addictive, so there is another reason. Plus you have to consider that we have a huge problem with veterans committing suicide.

There is no way for me to know for sure because all I can go by are the videos of this veteran being interviewed. If he left a message on his friend's machine starting the concern off, then people did what they were supposed to do. The only way the VA can take away gun rights is if the veteran is a danger to himself or others, or has a court ordered fiduciary because they cannot make rational decisions. This does not happen often.

Congress' answer to the veterans suicide epidemic was to take away guns because that is the preferred "means" of suicide however we have seen that attempt did nothing to reduce the suicide rate. By the way, this law was signed in 2008.

PROVISIONS OF THE JOSHUA OMVIG VETERANS SUICIDE PREVENTION ACT
The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act (the “Act”) mandates that VA create and implement a comprehensive program to address the mental health problems of all veterans.

Congress expressed particular concern for “the special needs of veterans suffering from PTSD and the special needs of elderly veterans who are at high risk for depression,” the veteran populations most likely to commit suicide.

The program has six major components, detailed in section 3 of the Act:

(1) education for VA staff;
(2) increased emphasis on mental health
assessments for veterans;
(3) designation of suicide prevention counselors;
(4) research on veterans’ mental health issues;
(5) provision of round-theclock
mental health care; and
(6) outreach and education for veterans and their families.

The VA also “may provide for other actions to reduce the incidence of suicide among veterans that the Secretary considers appropriate.”

Finally, Congress mandated that the VA report on the implementation status of the program, its estimated timeline for completion, the estimated costs of the program, and any additional actions deemed necessary to fully address veterans’ mental health issues.

If this veteran is upset by what happened then he needs to contact his friend because it is my guess the phone call set all of this off. He should thank him for caring that much about him because making that phone call is one of the hardest things a person does. They struggle with wondering if they are saving a life or ending a friendship. Then it dawns on them that if they don't make the call just in case their fears are justified, they would live with the guilt over not trying to save the life of someone they cared about.

Disabled Veteran David Schmecker: Thrown Into a Psych Ward for No Apparent Reason
by Renee Nal
April 03, 2013

David Schmecker, 50, is a disabled veteran with "no psychiatric history" who seemingly had his firearms confiscated and gun permit revoked in Connecticut for no apparent reason. It all started when he called the Veteran's Administration to get a follow-up appointment for a spinal injury.

George Hemminger of SurviveAndThriveTV interviewed the distraught Navy veteran who explained his story. Schmecker says that when the VA called back to schedule the appointment, he was informed that the appointment would entail a visit with a psychiatrist and a psychologist on top of his physical therapy and pain management session. As noted by Opposing Views, "It's not unusual for veterans to be asked to submit to a psychological evaluation when requesting pain medication due to the high rate of addiction." Regardless, Schmecker "refused" the mental health treatment, as he said the appointment was for a "spine injury." He indicates that after his refusal, "they never got back to me and they still haven't."
read more here