Stop Blaming the Cops !

As a writer, I spend a lot of time on social media, engaging with my fans, a number of whom are in law enforcement. Over the past week or so I have seen several videos, involving police officers, which have sent a cold chill through me.

For those of you who don’t know me, I spent over two decades in law enforcement; including twenty years with the NYPD. While I have a deep appreciation for the often thankless work that our law enforcement officers perform on a daily basis, that does not mean I am a biased cheerleader. I believe that we should always examine every issue through a clear lens.

Are there bad cops? Absolutely.

Should law enforcement be held to a higher standard? Absolutely.

But make no mistake about it, we don’t recruit officers from some mythical alien planet, where everyone is virtuous and never makes a mistake. We recruit from local communities, from among us, and if we are flawed as human beings this means those who we ask to protect and defend us are equally flawed. Theoretically, the background check is designed to weed out any problems, but too often we see that these checks become lax when politics enters the mix.

The authority entrusted to officers is immense. They have the power to take away your freedom and that is something that should not be treated lightly, but I’m often dismayed at how this is treated as a one-way street. Often the biggest critics of police officers are the ones who aggressively abuse their freedoms and push for confrontations.

Case in point: Charlottesville.

Regardless of what side of the fence you are on this issue, we have to agree that American’s have a First Amendment right to free speech. You may not agree with it, but you have to respect it. The reason is pretty clear: today you might not agree with their speech, but tomorrow they might not agree with yours. But disagreement was not on the hearts and minds of some in Charlottesville. By all accounts the ‘white supremacist’ contingent failed to materialize, but that wasn’t a problem for the Antifa folks. No they showed up ready for a fight and when they couldn’t find any ‘fascists’ to bash, they turned their anger toward the cops and journalists.  They were a riot looking for a reason.

This is part of a growing trend in America where people are being emboldened to act in any way they want without fear of any consequences.

Recently in New York City, the police were called to a location in the Bronx. As the officers were leaving the location, several males confronted them, cell phone cameras in hand, and began a profanity laced tirade against them. Even though they were committing a clear case of disorderly conduct, no action was taken by the officers.

Why?

Because police officers now work in an exaggerated environment of: damned if you do and damned if you don’t. Frankly, I have never seen it this bad before.

Politicians and pundits are actively supporting groups who call for the death of police officers. They even make excuses, citing the current president as being the source of all these issues. Apparently, for as enlightened as these folks claim to be, they are unaware that these groups and events predate the last election.

The reality is that they have been running roughshod over facts for a very long time.  Why you ask? Ratings and votes. I wish I could say it was something more profound, more enlightening, but it’s not. If you are interested, I wrote about this previously (Violence Based on a Lie) and I am sad to say nothing has changed.

The fact is that law enforcement in America is an illusion. The population of America is 320 million and there are less than a million law enforcement officers. You do the math.

The origins of policing in America are founded on the British model which contends that the powers to police are with the implicit consent of the public. That means we want to be safe and we want the police to perform this job. It’s the principal of community policing, but what happens when it is undermined?

That is what is happening today in America when politicians and journalists spread misinformation or just outright lies. Sadly, this mindset is also taking hold among police administrators, who fear a career ending political backlash if they don’t toe-the-line.

Imagine the message that is sent to the front-line officers when they perform their job exactly as they were trained, in accordance with the manual they were given, and yet when the public protests, they are made a scapegoat. Is it any wonder why more and more officers are taking a hands-off approach?  It’s a tough enough job to do when you know the agency has your back, but entirely different when you know that your bosses will sacrifice you to protect their careers. 

When we demonize and dehumanize law enforcement, we make it acceptable to do anything we want to them. They become the nameless, faceless representatives of evil repression. We don’t have to look any further than the assassination of NYPD police officers Ramos and Liu in 2014 to see what that looks like.

But when the cops are gone, who will protect us? And that question should send a cold chill through YOU.

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The WTC Cross

The World Trade Center Cross - by Anne Bybee, Copyright © 2001

When I was coming up with the design for the cover of, "Where Was God?" I wanted something powerful, something which would evoke the raw emotions that we felt in the aftermath of that horrific day, but also one that conveyed a sense of hope among the devastation. 

I think it is safe to say that all of us were aware of the World Trade Center Cross, the steel I-Beams that were sheared off at the joints, forming the shape of a metal crucifix. While doing research I stumbled upon an iconic photo that seemed to convey all of the elements that I was looking for.

After doing some serious internet sleuthing I was able to finally locate the photographer, Anne Bybee, who graciously gave me permission to use this extremely powerful photo for the cover of the book. I am deeply honored. 

Many have dismissed these 'crosses' as just the end result of metal fatigue, but to those of us who were there, they took on an entirely different meaning. They were hope, they were comfort, they were a reminder that we were never alone.

Andrew G. Nelson - Summer 2018 Update

Well, summer is in full swing and I thought that it would be a good idea to bring everyone up-to-date on what has been going on in my little literary world.

As those of you who receive my free newsletter are aware of, back in December 2017, I was diagnosed with cancer attributed to the 9/11 rescue & recovery effort after the terror attack at the World Trade Center. As a result, I had surgery this past June. Obviously, the lead-up and post-surgical recovery had a dramatic impact on my writing, but I am happy to say that I am back in the saddle again.

For fans of the James Maguire series I wanted to let you know that I have eight chapters already written for book five in the series. I had originally intended on a late summer / early fall release, but because of the above issue the timeline had to be adjusted. I’m now planning for a winter release and I thank you for your patience.

Another contributing factor was a book project that I had originally started in 2013.  This is something very close to my heart, since it deals with the 9/11 terror attack. I am proud to announce that I have completed this book and hope to release it within the next few weeks.

This book, titled: Where Was God? Is based upon my personal spiritual journey, as a 1st responder, to determine whether God was absent on September 11th. If you have ever wrestled with this feeling, or if you have even wondered if God is out there, then I think you will truly appreciate this book. Not only do I address the issue of where God was on 9/11, but I also use the investigative skills I honed, as an NYPD detective, to investigate the existence of God.

Back to School Special: Well, soon it will be that, ‘most wonderful time of the year.’ With the little urchins heading off to school, I can’t think of a better time to reward long-suffering parents, grandparents and even folks who just know someone with kids, with a great book deal. So from August 22nd through August 28th I will be running a Kindle Deal on my first book, Perfect Pawn. Beginning on the 22nd you can get it for only $0.99, but act early because the price will slowly increase over the course of the week. Perfect Pawn is a great book to have available in your e-reader for the Labor Day Weekend.

Once again, don’t forget to sign-up for my free NEWSLETTER.

The Labyrinthian World of (Fake) Book Reviews

I must admit that, as an author with nine books and two novellas under my belt, sometimes I feel like one of those poor souls, standing on the side of the road, holding up a sign that reads: Will Write for Reviews.

And just like in that scenario, most people just stare ahead, not wanting to make eye contact, as they wait for the light to change. I think that is the way it feels for many writers, pleading with their readers to just spare a minute of their time to give a review, but why is it so damn important?

Well, here is a shining example:

What you are looking at is ‘legalized’ cheating. This is just one of the many sites that will ‘help’ authors quickly obtain an unearned bestseller status for the right price.

To break it down: If you are a writer, with a bunch of disposable cash, you can legitimately buy your way onto the Amazon bestseller list. Admittedly, this is a pretty shady way of doing business, and something that is ‘frowned upon’ by Amazon, but it is technically not a violation of their policies. Ironically, they will allow authors to ‘buy reviews’ from strangers, but an earnest review left by someone they deem to be a family member will be immediately purged. Go figure.

Unfortunately, I don’t know that many self-published authors who have that kind of money lying around, so those looking to utilize this method are generally already successful enough to justify this expenditure or have a publisher willing to aggressively push a product.

Consider for a moment this little scenario:

I, like most authors I know, would kill for those numbers, but let’s dig a little deeper here for a moment. The author attributed to this amazing rank status has just ONE previously published book under their belt and that novel has clocked in exactly 39 reviews. However, their second book, which is the one represented in all those coveted #1 and #2 spots, has racked up an amazing 323 reviews, but it hasn’t even been released yet. Yes, you read that correctly; the author’s second book, which has taken the top spots on several lists, is not even available yet.  You do the math and see how that adds up.

I’d like to say this is an aberration, but it is not. Getting onto any bestseller list, especially if it is the New York Times or USA Today, is the goal of all authors. It is the literary world’s equivalent of the Super Bowl or World Series, but it is unfortunately very, very skewed and can be manipulated.

Take for instance the curious case of: Handbook for Mortals, written by Lani Sarem. This debut book emerged in early August 2017 and that very same month shot to #1 on the NYT Bestseller List, knocking off a well-established book that had previously held that spot. To say this was a considerable feat would be a gross understatement; especially considering this was not only Ms. Sarem’s first novel, but it was also the first novel from her publisher; which is exactly why it raised so many eyebrows.

So how did this happen?

Well, they apparently identified and exploited a weak link. According to the folks within the Young Adult genre, who immediately began investigating this issue, they found some serious inconsistences / anomalies within the book sales. After speaking to representatives from book stores, they concluded that someone had pre-arranged for large purchases of the book through various sellers they knew reported sales to the NYT.  Effectively, they purchased their way onto the NYT Best Seller List. The author / publisher denied this, but the NYT subsequently pulled the book from their list. Unfortunately, traditional publishing houses have been doing this for a very long time.

Sadly, this is the world that authors live in. For those of us who believe in the sanctity of the review process, we are faced with those who see no problem in fast-tracking their way to the top. Often we are told that other authors are not our competition, but the reality is that this is a naïve belief. Authors ARE in competition with one another for the readers in each genre, but it is a game that is made exponentially harder when the system is manipulated. That is why it is truly so important, for those of us who actually play by the rules, that our readers support our efforts.

A book review only takes a minute, but for that struggling, self-published author, it is like handing them a piece of gold. For those of us who still choose to do things the right way, instead of the easy way, it is probably the only recognition we will get, but maybe, just maybe, your review will be the one that propels our book to critical acclaim.

So what do you say? Roll the dice and reward your favorite author with a review!

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Book Signing Event – Barnes & Noble (Springfield, Illinois)

Hey folks, just a reminder that I will be taking part in a book-signing event at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore in Springfield, Illinois on Saturday, May 19th from 1pm to 3pm.

I’ve attended several of these events and I can tell you that the staff there does an incredible job in securing authors across a wide range of genres. If you are going to be in the area why not stop by and show your support. I’ll have several of my books on hand, which can all be signed. I’d ask that you share this information with any family or friends that enjoy reading.

Looking forward to meeting everyone and don’t forget to sign-up for my free NEWSLETTER.