Check it out!

I have a writer friend (and blessed to call him a friend) who has put together a blog to help those seeking to be published. He made me a contributor . . . for now. Jump over and read all he has to say and then read my contribution before he decides to retract his offer to have me contribute. LOL

Here's the link.

Good stuff here to be sure.

Infatuated with this review!

I've been blessed with so many wonderful reviews in spite of not having the sort of following an established author would have that it's always exciting to get a review from an author who is established. Jon Guenther is just that and then some. I would elaborate but his newly designed I-hate-you-for-being-so-talented website at www.guenfire.com says it way better than I can. ;)

Okay, Sue so why so infatuated with this review?

Because Jon Guenther helped answer a lot of questions I had. See, I thought that if I simply waited a little longer, earned a few more grand reviews from high profile authors, sold a few more books that maybe those larger publishers and specifically CBA and ECPA affiliated publishers, since their audience seem to enjoy my work so much, would actually respond to my queries with something other than, "I'm sorry. You're not what we're looking for right now?"

So how did Jon answer your question?

Well, I'll tell you. This grand and established author's agent at the time, got him a book deal with the founding publisher of CBA itself, Moody Press. Wow! Now we're talking, right? Nope. Shortly before the book went to press, Moody called agent Jon's agent and backed out of the contract. No reason but they did let him keep his advance.

So Jon did what he had to do to keep his story alive. He self-published through Amazon's POD Create Space. So now instead of flooding every CBA/larger Christian Bookstore with the absolutely best book since The Shack (actually better) it sits relatively unnoticed in POD hell. I know, right?

So welcome to the ranks of the unsung writers Jon. Thank you for giving this relatively new author a reason to keep writing.

Oh yeah, that's why I'm infatuated with this review! ;) 

Soul Runner is about Christians under persecution. Some irony don't you think.

Soul Runner by Jon Guenther - My Review

And now my five-star review of Soul Runner that I recently posted on Amazon.

Look out William P. Young. Here comes Jon Guenther!, January 7, 2010 (Ridgeland, MS USA) - I was so excited to learn about Jon Guenther and was even more excited when he volunteered to send me a copy of his book. As a new writer, I don't have a lot of time to read though and I told Jon this. I explained that I'd read what I could in the carpool line at school. HA! I dare you to try to read this book in short spurts. I double-dog dare you. Can't be done. No way. I found it difficult to find a place to stop reading when I eventually had to. I finally just quit reading when not-too-much was going on. For instance at one point I left two characters in a fist fight with the outcome pending simply because the alternative was to not quit reading. LOL Heart pounding action to be sure. So wonderful to see more Christian Fiction like The Shack coming from self-published, non-affiliated Christian authors who know what they're doing. I'm so happy CBA affiliated Moody Press dumped this book instead of publishing it, backing out of the contract at the last minute. No exclusive work here. Just good, solid, heart-thumping, action-packed fiction from a very talented author. Soul Runner will keep you reading until the very end and then begging for more. And what do you know, there's more coming! I can't wait.

Added for Sue's Blog:

Jon is calling his work Christian Fiction but it isn't CBA Christian Fiction. It is therefore written with no particular market of Christian's in mind actually. This also means that his work wasn't edited for that specific market of Christians CBA was formed to create fiction for in 1950.

Also, since CBA affiliated Moody Press did break Jon's contract, Soul Runner won't automatically show up in exclusive affiliated bookstores such as Lifeway or Mardel's nor will his work show up in CBA affiliated Christian bookstores such as ChristianBook.com. I actually found it interesting to see Soul Runner on Christianbook.com as being published by Moody Press early on but as par for the course, it no longer shows up because Jon isn't CBA affiliated. I find that--interesting.

I will tell you this, if you let Soul Runner slip by because you don't see it in these bookstores, you've missed out on a fantastic read!

Jon Guenther - Soul Runner

Let the Adventure Begin.

The year is 1988. As a former Hasidic Jew raised in the Bronx, Dr. Bram Aronsfeld is no stranger to trouble.

Now the secret organization known as ARK is sending him into Communist-controlled Romania to rescue the beautiful Ileana Tarus, a Christian Gypsy woman who possesses information vital to ARK's intelligence operations. Spearheading the subjugation of her people is the evil Drago Profis, a despot backed by the current regime.

When Bram realizes it's not just Ileana but her whole village that need rescuing, the two will embark on a perilous adventure from which only their foolhardy courage and Almighty God can save them all!

ISBN-10:	1-448-68670-9
ISBN/EAN-13:	978-1-44868-670-4
Pages:	252
Genre:	Fiction / Action-Adventure
Publication Date:	September 1, 2009

About Jon Guenther:

Born and raised in the Chicago area, Jon Guenther wrote as a hobby until enlisting in the U.S. Army right out of high school. After completing military service, he took a number of odd jobs before embarking on a career as a firefighter and paramedic. Jon spent eight years in the emergency medical services field but slowly burned out on the long hours, low pay and time spent away from social activities.

In 2000, he left EMS and took a job as a computer help desk technician while attending college for a Bachelors of Science in information technology. He has served in that profession ever since and held positions as a software tester, technical writer, chief information officer, Web programmer and systems administrator.

His latest book, Soul Runner: A Novel of High Adventure, was under contract with a publisher but became the victim of the economic downturn. Jon then announced his plans to go forward with self-publication on his blog. The book is slated for release in September 2009.

Jon Guenther's background research on the topics of military tactics and anti-terrorism, coupled with his expertise in firearms and martial arts, lends authenticity to his action thrillers. He makes his home on a high desert ranch outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Follow up by Sue:

I've been asked on numerous occasions to cough up some authors of faith (for lack of a better label and excluding big names like John Grisham, Tolkien, etc . . .) who aren't affiliated with CBA or ECPA but appeal to this audience none-the-less. Honestly, I didn't expect them to fall out of the sky and hit me on the head but this one did. Go to Jon's website at www.guenfire.com and check out his credentials. On a most interesting note, his latest book Soul Runner actually drew interest from one of the founding publishers of CBA (Christian Booksellers Association,) Moody Press. The deal was nearly done when Moody suddenly backed out stating among other things that the story wasn't plausible. Of course this means it wasn't plausible for their very narrow and targeted market and so they backed out of the contract. Interestingly, Soul Runner shows up as being available through larger Christian bookstores because Moody had already started the promotional wheels a-turning. Rest assured, however, this non-affiliated and now self-published book will not be available through larger Christian Bookstores although I've heard that Mr. Guenther may have something going with Family Christian nationwide.

How cool would that be!

Family Christian however, seems to have been walking the affiliated line a little more carefully ever since Harper Collins picked up Zondervan. Zondervan used to own Family Christian stores and customers, after the takeover were concerned that Family Christian would carry Zondervan books now that Random House had bought them up (Zondervan stayed affiliated btw.) Would Family Christian carry books from a publisher owned by a company who also printed the Satanic Bible? At least some of the customers wanted to know and they raised a big stink about it. Yes life in the affiliated world can be tough I guess.

Do go check out Jon Guenther's site and while you're there you might glance over and read his blog . . . hmmmm . . . .