While I consider myself a decent and successful business person, hat literary side the creeps in every now and then, causing me to abandon all  he distractions in the wee hours of the night, so I can sit down and write something.   The last thing, a romantic mystery thriller, modern California Noir, was The Blood Orange.

I have been told there are some eight thousand plus authors on Facebook, so I am proud to be selected as number 50 in Ron’s list of 100 top Facebook authors.

You can find my other works listed, among other places, on this Amazon link….http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=basichis&x=0&y=0

Anyway, on that note…I just wanted to thank Ron Knight, Purveyor of Middle Room for including me this year on his list of 100 Top Authors on Facebook.   Ron contributes on a daily basis insights into the modern publishing world and the writers of today, their challenges and triumphs.     His website , Up Authors.com, and  his posting son Facebook are always entertaining and informative.  Here is the link….http://www.upauthors.com/blog

You can also check out the list on http://www.authorronknight.com/

The original cover was designed for G.P. Putnams Publishing by Ron Walotsky. Ron Ron Walotsky was a science fiction and fantasy artist who enjoyed a long and prolific career painting book and magazine covers, including Stephen King, Anne Rice,[2] Bruce Sterling, Roger Zelazny, Robert Silverberg and many others….This cover was in Ron’s earlier years. He was kind enough to sell me the original painting for the book cover. It still hangs in my living room. The digital eBook version of the Constant Travellers, is adorned by the original cover.

Minstrel’s Alley will be discounting its ebooks for the holiday season. The discount applies to all electronic publication editions, including Kindle, iPad, Barnes & Noble, Sony eReader, Smashwords, and Kobo.

We thought the holiday season would be a good time to introduce new readers to our books, ” said Minstrel’s Alley Publisher, M.J. Hammond. “People will be buying electronic reading devices for Christmas and other holidays.

“The Blood Orange, by Gordon Basichis, is our latest publication,” said Hammond. “The novel is a modern day take on the classic Los Angeles Noir Detective novels of Raymond Chandlder. As with his work, Los Angeles is a principal character in a modern day romantic mystery thriller that incorporates old California Bandit legends with contemporary intrigue. It’s a great story that would also be the perfect LA film.”

Hammond recommended The Guys Who Spied for China, also by Gordon Basichis. “It’s a roman a clef, based on Basichis’ experiences uncovering Chinese Espionage Networks in the United States,” she said. “It was a quarter-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards.”

For the complete story and the full public relations release… please go to this link.

“The Guys Who Spied for China,” is being published by Minstrel’s Alley, an independent publishing and media group.   This is the company’s first effort.   The book was also released as a trade paperback and is available through Amazon, Baker and Taylor and is available in bookstores around the country.

“We are very excited about the publication of “The Guys Who Spied for China,” said M.J. Hammond, publisher and president of Minstrel’s Alley.    We are excited to see the book listed on Kindle as we believe E-Publishing is the wave of the future.”

“The Guys Who Spied for China,” is our first published offering, so we naturally wish to oversee every stage of our marketing effort.  The novel should draw not only from spy freaks but from a wider, more literary readership as well.

“This roman a clef is a most unusual spy book as it breaks the mold for this genre.  It tells the story of what it is like to be suddenly thrust into the world of espionage.”

Hammond describes the book as quirky and authentic with touches of dark humor that will engage the reader.   “If you are looking for more than the basic mainstream spy book , you are in for a pleasant surprise.   This tells a much richer story.  This is a timely book, given the ongoing headlines about Chinese Espionage and the growing tensions again between the United States and China.”

Gordon Basichis is the author of two previous books, “The Constant Travellers,” and “Beautiful Bad Girl, The Vicki Morgan Story.”   He is the co-founder of Corra Group, a Los Angeles based company that conducts employment background checks and corporate research for companies throughout the United States and around the world.

M.J. Hammond is a former entertainment industry executive who founded Minstrel’s Alley to publish popular books not found in mainstream publishing.

“Mainstream publishing has its purpose,” said Hammond.  But the industry’s focus on celebrity and genre based books has left readers wanting.  We hope to help bring a sense of adventure back to books and publishing.”

Background: Minstrel’s Alley is a Los Angeles based independent publisher that seeks to bring adventure back into the publishing industry by publishing books that have popular appeal but with more complexity than the standard mainstream fare.   The new publishing group distributes its books through Amazon, Kindle, and assorted Internet outlets as well as through bookstores around the country.    You can view Minstrel’s Alley at www.minstrelsalley.com

Artist Cut of Tron starring Cheech and Chong.