One of My Greatest Joys

**This article initially appeared last week on the Authors Speak.  I realize staunch readers will argue the point.  That is due to server issues, Blogger being down, and non-functioning website.  So, excuse the tense, the delay, and the promo for this weekend's Authors Speak Live.  You can still podcast the interview with Agranoff by following the same link.  Cheers!

Besides blurbing, reviewing, promoting, and writing books - all of which certainly achieve a certain affection from my soul - one of my other greatest joys is getting to know authors and then blurbing, reviewing, and promoting them. In fact, some authors stroll on the Authors Speak in a flash and fade into the shadows. They'll always come back time and time again, always sure to support and aide the cause, but it's not as personal. Those authors who stay in touch, consistently update - those are the little joys in life. Those are the authors I admire the most. Those are the authors who have that engagement that sells books. I love - absolutely adore - getting an email update from an author friend. It adds rays of sunshine into an otherwise dreary landscape.

Take David Agranoff, for instance.

This is a virtuoso writer who warrants attention. Not only is he talented, creative, and sure to appeal to your most dark and twisted desires, David stays in touch with his fanbase, his supporters, and his perenially-budding literary family. BOOM! Before you know it, the kid's got another book on the shelves - Hunting the Moon Tribe - and I'm a HUGE fan. This may be due to the fact that I read it a year ago, back before his last book, Vegan Revolution...with Zombies, dropped. When Vegan Revolution dropped, I was elated. Surely this would build that great big fanbase that awaited the release of something else. Hunting the Moon Tribe is just in time to quench the essential Agranoff-drought.

I adore David Agranoff (and I accept that it sounds that I've got some bromantical issues surrounding the man). It's not just his literary cred that I admire. No, staying in touch with the man, I've garnered a pretty significant look at his personal life. You've got to admire the drive to maintain a straight-edge and vegan lifestyle (no small task). You've got to admire the community work the man does. You've got to admire an author who sets up a kung fu movie trailer party in downtown Portland. Seriously? I wish I had an ounce of the time, the drive, and the creativity that Agranoff has.

Still, I feel that I am - as Aladdin would say - part of his world. His fan engagement is unparalleled. It may sing like a love song, but it's one hundred percent deserved. Little joys in life - you should hold them tightly. And one of the single greatest joys I know of, is receiving personal emails from a working author. I'm not talking about that form crap that the big boys blast out to hundreds of people at a time like spam. No, I mean a genuine thank-you, a genuine, personal message.

Now, if you haven't guessed it yet, Agranoff will be on for thirty minutes this Saturday at 12pm EST in the return to the Authors Speak Live. We always love chatting with the kid. We'll certainly strike a dialogue about kung fu, vampires, and Hunting the Moon Tribe. Who knows, we may even brainwash a few of you in the process.
Your homework until then:

•Order the book. Just follow the link below and grab a really great book.

•Look for Agranoff on facebook and "like" him.

•Google search the boy and find his tremendous blog.

Until then, mark your favorites with this link for Saturday: www.blogtalkradio.com/theauthorsspeakcom...
...and keep reading.