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| Welcome~ |
I am happy to announce that my literary novel "On The Ninth Day" has
been accepted for publication by Publish America. It is currently listed on Barnes and Noble's web site as well as on Amazon. You may order it online, ask for
it at your local bookstore, or order it through Publish America's web
site. Please refer to the links page. If you would like to purchase an
autographed copy, please send your request to me via email @ ricode99@hotmail.com |
| On The Ninth Day |
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| You are visiting the official website of author R.J. DeFilippo
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Some may come to call this work a kind of Gen-X love story, laced with the passions and urgings that brought it to fruition and the struggles and dark forces that sought to destroy it. Some may see it as the unyielding testament of a mother's love and the power of intercessory prayer--the kind of force that can move mountains. Still others may come to see it as an affirmation that one's circle of family and confidants and the love and counsel that they provide are as necessary as the air that one breathes. *As a "boomer" myself, I see it as all of these things within the framework of my generation's perspective. |
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It has been an interesting ride...this journey to the land of published novels and fullfilled dreams. Don't let anyone kid you...writing the book was the easy part...editing, tweeking and fine tuning it...until it's "just right"...and of course it never is...and then finding a publisher who will listen to how great you are...oy!...that's the difficult part. Let me tell you how it works. |
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You start by writing a query letter. Literary agents and publishers are very busy people. They have better things to do with their time than sitting around reading countless manuscripts...so you have to "sell" them on yours. The query is supposed to summarize your work in a simple paragraph. This was difficult for me. I'm better at turning 125 words into 85,000 than the other way around. If the query "grabs" them, then they will request the first three chapters...but hey!...my book starts to really heat up in chapter four...and wait until you read chapter seven...it's a "killer!"...but...anyhow...if they like the first three chapters, they will request the entire manuscript. You then pace the floors waiting for the rejection or acceptance. |
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Fortunately, Publish America liked my book. Why wouldn't they like it...it is a GREAT book! I could have told them that from the beginning! Seriously, they are wonderful people over at Publish America...very professional and easy to work with. I'm thinking about putting them in my Will. |
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This is the query that I sent to them: Overview of "On The Ninth Day", a literary novel by Dr. Richard J. DeFilippo. *Respected and charming physician, Antonio (Tony) Cipolla meets with longtime friend, psychiatrist Dr. Sean Dempsey and informs him that his storybook life is in shambles. His marriage is on the rocks, his beloved children have become alienated and his medical license and successful practice are in jeopardy. *Deceptive, self-serving and beautiful siren, Hanna McDowell enters his life through the front door of his midlife vulnerability. At the same time his wife Cathy re-encounters former lover and captivating attorney, Charlie Vantare. *Thus begins a complex and impulsive entanglement that leads Tony down a desperate path of poor judgment before he counts the costs and invests everything--with fates intervention--to regain his life. |
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Sounds like a "grabber" to me. *Although the characters in my book are
fictitious, I have many physician and dentist colleagues and have
witnessed firsthand the devastation that so-called midlife crisis
decisions can generate. *It never ceases to amaze how perceived desire
can blind intelligence and how only in hindsight can it be revealed
that everything they wanted was everything they had. *A diverse group
of acquaintances have read my manuscript. Their various backgrounds
range from: Honors College Professor of Writing, to Professor of
Medicine, to hospice physician, to retired newspaper editor, to several
general-population avid readers. They have all given it rave reviews.
*"They sit at the bar and put bread in my jar and say 'Man what are YOU
doing here?'"....Billy Joel...who by the way...has NOT read my
book...at least not yet!
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