Spreading the Self-Pub Love with Robert Germaux

In the spirit of “a rising tide lifts all boats,” this year for Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week I wanted to give some Self-Published authors a chance to spread some love (while also indulging in a bit of self-promotion, I mean, c’mon, it’s hard out here…)

Sort of…this technically doesn’t fit the mold for this series, but Bob’s always so generous with his time, I’m going to ignore the infraction. 🙂 Also, as a Jeremy Barnes reader, I want to try to gin up some interest in this.

An Elevator Pitch for Something You Love
Okay, if you’re reading this, that means HC decided to include me in this year’s celebration of self-published authors, and for that, I thank him, because as I told him, I absolutely would have understood not being included. Why? Because I don’t have any self-published works to recommend (not recent ones, anyway), which is, well, really embarrassing for this self-published author. What I realized was that for several months now, I’ve been reading works by established authors who have traditional publishers. For instance, some time ago, I came across an early Myron Bolitar book that I had somehow missed. I immediately downloaded the book and read it, which led me to going back and rereading some of the other books in the series, which led me to reading some of Harlan Coben’s standalones. Along with all of that, I read and greatly enjoyed Christa Comes Out of Her Shell (thanks for the recommendation, HC!), which led me to reading some of Abbi Waxman’s other books, especially Adult Assembly Required, which I’ll be finishing over the next few days. And then, I promise to go the self-published route for a good stretch. I mean, it’s not as though I don’t have easy access to a treasure trove of information about great books by indie writers right here on the Irresponsible Reader’s blog.

My Elevator Pitch by Robert Germaux

I’m currently working on my sixth, and so far untitled, Jeremy Barnes mystery. On the day before he’s due to depart on a trip to Hawaii, JB meets with Owen Collier, a dapper guy in his fifties, who tells JB he’s being blackmailed. He won’t tell JB why he’s being blackmailed, just that “no one was hurt, not really” and that it involves something he did when he was much younger, something that would be personally embarrassing if it was made public. He tells JB he’s willing to pay the blackmailer and wants JB to handle that process. JB refuses, saying the blackmailer will just keep coming back for more, that Collier will become the blackmailer’s personal ATM. He advises Collier to contact the police. Collier thanks JB and says he’ll consider his advice. Two weeks later, JB returns from Hawaii and learns that Evan Collier’s situation has taken a sudden and deadly turn. Collier’s widow contacts JB to ask him to find out why her husband was being blackmailed and who killed him. As JB gets further and further into Evan Collier’s life, he realizes there was much more going on than a simple blackmail scheme. His investigation takes him back to Collier’s college days and a group that called themselves the Sterling Six, a group that JB suspects is hip-deep in whatever happened all those years ago. But none of the Six appears willing to cooperate with JB’s investigation, leaving him no choice but to begin looking into their lives, a decision that ultimately leads to dangerous confrontations and a twist that he never expected.

About this Author
Hi everyone. I’m Bob Germaux, former high school English teacher, current indie writer, and long-time lover of all things book-related and Pittsburgh Pirates-related. (In 1960, as a fourteen-year-old, I was at Forbes Field with my dad when Maz hit the home run heard ‘round the world. Yeah, I’m old. Do the math.) Over the past ten years, I’ve published thirteen books, a rather eclectic group that includes seven mysteries, four collections of houmorous essays (my Grammar Sex Collection), one modern romance (The Backup Husband) and my favorite, Love Stories, a semi-biographical novel based on my wife’s experiences during the six weeks she spent in Europe when she was seventeen. I don’t have a website, which might explain why I haven’t gotten rich yet, or maybe I’m just not a good writer. Okay, it’s gotta be the website thing. At any rate, you can check out my books at my Amazon Author Page, and even download free samples. If you decide to buy a book or two (or thirteen), they’re ridiculously cheap. (Maybe that’s why I’m not rich yet.)

Image by Monika from Pixabay
The 2024 Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week Logo was made by Witty and Sarcastic Book Club