Veterans Donation Campaign Update

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

Given today’s tragic significance to our nation’s military, most specifically our selfless Special Operations community, I have decided to announce the results of the donation campaign surrounding the launch of my latest book, Black Flagged Vektor. Fictional, yet accurate renditions of service members, (particularly our Special Ops heroes) figure prominently in my novels, so I thought it only appropriate to split my target donation amount between two groups that best represent our nation’s finest.

Screen Shot 2013-08-06 at 11.15.27 AMI have donated $1000 to the Wounded Warriors Project and $1000 to the Navy SEAL Foundation (my military roots begin with the Naval Special Warfare community). Both of these amounts will be matched, bringing the total to $4000. This brings the total amount given to these (and other) worthy Veteran’s organizations to $11,000 over the past two years.

Screen Shot 2013-08-06 at 11.20.43 AMYour support of my books has made this possible, so please accept my sincerest and most enthusiastic THANK YOU! Spread the word, and lets continue to support dedicated, heroic men and women that TAKE THE FIGHT TO THE ENEMY.

Historical Background: Two years ago, on August 6th, 31 Special Operations service members were killed when their transport helicopter brought down by enemy fire. They were on their way to reinforce a unit of Army Rangers engaged in a brutal firefight nearby. Six years earlier, in late June, 19 Special Operations personnel were killed during Operation Red Wings, when a Quick Reaction Force helicopter was shot down during the rescue attempt of an overwhelmed SEAL patrol, killing all on board. Three of the four SEALs in the patrol were also killed that day.

Black Flagged Vektor live at Amazon

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

 

Black Flagged VektorI’m very excited to announce that Black Flagged Vektor is now available as an ebook at Amazon. The hardcopy version should be available by the end of the weekend (always takes me a little longer to put that together…sorry Greg).

DONATION CAMPAIGN NEWS!

As always, I will donate a significant portion of the initial proceeds to veteran’s charities.

For Black Flagged Vektor’s launch, I have decided to split the donation between The Wounded Warrior Project and the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Both organizations serve the unmet needs of veterans and their families, bringing the concept of “no man or woman left behind” to the often overlooked battle these families face even after they return from combat.

WE have raised $7000 for organizations like these over the course of the last three book launches. My goal is to donate $2000 and have that doubled by my company’s matching gifts program, raising the total to $11,000.

You can help the cause by spreading the word…and dare I say it…plunk down $4.97 for 420 pages of pure covert operations/political/espionage enjoyment!  Purchase Black Flagged Vektor Today

Memorial Day and upcoming veterans charity campaign

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

Memorial Day weighs heavily on the hearts of veterans and service members. We all know someone, or all too often, MANY…who have fallen in service of our nation. Memorial Day weighs even more heavily on the parents, spouses, children and family  of those same men and women. It’s a solemn day for them. A day in which most of us go about our business trying to enjoy the very same things the aforementioned can not fully embrace. They attend the barbecues,  picnics and parades, but someone is missing. Someone is always missing for them. Take a moment today, to quietly remember the fallen and their families.

I decided to start Memorial Day with two things.

First, I just donated $100 to producer Tracee Beebe’s film The Unremembered. She’s tackling a difficult subject affecting Vietnam Veterans, one of whom is her father. The Unremembered is a dedicated effort to bring attention to thousands of veterans that have been denied the benefits they deserve, and their friends died to preserve. Consider making a donation and bringing their plight into the open. Link to The Unremembered.

Second, I decided once again to coordinate a charity campaign with the launch of my next book, Black Flagged Vektor. Previous campaigns raised a total of $7000 for organizations like the DAV and Wounded Warriors Project. I will continue to support the Wounded Warriors Project with my upcoming launch. My goal for this charity campaign is $2000, which will yield $4000 through a corporate match.

As always, spread the word. 

The pictures below were taken during a recent trip to my alma mater, the United States Naval Academy. The first picture shows my son, Matthew, standing at the entrance to Memorial Hall. The second gives a more panoramic view of the space. Memorial Hall is dedicated to all of the Naval Academy graduates who have fallen in the line of duty. There are many.

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Wounded Warrior Project Donation Update

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

It has taken a SNOW DAY for me to finally catch up on a number of administrative tasks that have lingered since early January, one of the most important being the wrap up of the Donation Campaign surrounding the launch of Black Flagged Apex. Combined with an extremely successful promotion of the entire Black Flagged series, the launch exceeded all expectations. As a result, I have decided to double the donation amount achieved by previous book launches.

I just submitted a $1500 donation to The Wounded Warrior Project, which will be matched by my employer, yielding $3000. Everyone of you have contributed to the success of my books, and in turn, to the money donated to our nation’s heroes. CONGRATULATIONS and THANK YOU!

A special thank you goes out to Greg, Murray and Nancy for their generous individual contributions to the campaign. Your commitment to our veterans is inspiring to say the least!

Now, I need to turn my day’s efforts into preparing for a possible power failure. Weather officials have predicted up to 60mph winds, 24-30 inches of snow, and temperatures in the teens. FUN TIMES AHEAD!

Black Flagged Apex Donation Campaign…

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

UPDATE 12/23/12

The Donation Campaign is bringing out the best in everyone, and I feel better about NOT counting book sale numbers to determine the final amount. A good friend and reader has generously kicked off the campaign…ONCE AGAIN…with a $100 donation. Thank you, Greg. That immediately brings the total to $2100 (with match). I have commitments from others, which I haven’t counted, but suspect will bring the total to $2200.  The Black Flagged Series has contributed nearly $5000 to wounded veterans so far…I expect this to increase over the holidays. 

Thank you to everyone for a great start!

UPDATE 12/21/12:

Based on your votes, I will once again donate to the Wounded Warrior Project, an undeniably worthy cause. I’m taking a different approach to the donations this time. Instead of counting books and stressing myself out, I am starting at the $850 mark, which has been “our” contribution for each campaign over the past two book launches. At the end of January, I will decide whether to increase it. I very likely will. Any individual donations outside of book sales will be added to the $850 mark. Keep in mind that the total amount raised is matched by my employer.

GET THE WORD OUT! Buy Black Flagged Apex for Kindle

THANK YOU AGAIN for your support of a great cause

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11/20/12: You Decide!

Once again, I will be donating a portion of the proceeds from the initial sales of Black Flagged Apex to charity, but this time, I will take reader input regarding the charity. I have pre-selected three charities and included a poll to collect your votes. The combined total donated from my last two book launches was $3500, and all of this was sent to organizations that support wounded veterans (Disabled American Veterans-DAV and Wounded Warrior Project-WWP). Here are the choices. You can click on the links to see each charity’s homepage. Vote Below!

1. Continue with the Wounded Warrior Project – As a veteran, I can’t underscore the importance of supporting the shattered lives of the brave men and women wounded in combat.

2. Donate to Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) – In my first Black Flagged book, a police officer is rather brutally killed (unintentionally) by the main character. I took some heat from readers about that scene, which really drove home the gut reaction people have (even in fiction) to the death of a police officer.

3. Donate to Kids in Distressed Situations (KIDS) – Specifically the Hurricane Sandy relief effort. With the holidays around the corner, this charity looks after the needs of young children and teens affected by the storm, some of whom lost everything. If this charity is selected, I will make an early donation in time for the Christmas.

Please vote, and spread the word!

Update on Donation Campaign for Disabled Veterans

Posted on by Steven Konkoly

Alright, the final tally is in, and I just submitted a donation of $820 to the Disabled American Veterans organization through my employer, who will process the donation and MATCH IT! The final event in the campaign, a cocktail party/charity event last weekend, raised $300 alone. Many, many thanks for those that attended and supported the cause…and for the numerous bottles of wine, which completely derailed my plans to commence a pre-holiday health cleanse. Oh well, there is cause to celebrate.

Overall, the campaign has directed nearly $1700 to the DAV! Congratulations, and thank you on behalf of our nation’s growing number of disabled veterans. Your readership support and generosity inspired me to continue the campaign throughout all of November, catching a tail wind at the end of the month, when both of my books received a considerable boost from the “powers that be” at Amazon. This made a considerable difference on the overall amount.

Well, I need to get back to work on Book 2 in the Black Flagged series. I reached 10,000 words this morning, but still don’t have a formal plot to follow. It’s all in my head, and it needs to be organized immediately. Here’s what I have so far.

I need to transfer the ideas on this (it’s not blurry on purpose…my Blackberry sucks)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To THIS! I’m almost ready to do it.