Just Books

Megan' Marketing writer Owen Jones

Megan's Market, sometimes referred to as Megan's Marketplace, is a part of the literary blog Megan Publishing Services, the main interest of which is books. Many, if not most of its visitors are readers and writers. However, even readers and writers need and want other things to get by in life.

Megan’s Market.

The site admin currently only sells books written by the Welsh writer Owen Jones, but we intend to sell other items as well. Items such as pens, diaries, bookmarks, reading lights, tablets etc.

However, if you want to take advantage of our tardiness and sell these items before us, please do so 

The system is completely automated. You can set up your account, enter your items for sale along with photo, description and price and post it. Any applicable fees can be paid at the same time.

We will be offering discounts and free ads from time to time, so either sign up to our free newsletter or come back often.

Promotion.

Promotion of your items on Megan's Market is simple. We post all new posts automatically to our membership, which stands at 103,000 at the time of writing. Megan Publishing Services also receives about 3,000 pageviews per day. Furthermore, all merchants will receive the URL of their product's webpage, and, there are social media buttons on every page too.

Self-promotion is a doddle in Megan's Market! Not only that, but admin actively promotes the site every day with Search Engine Optimisation and the writing of fresh content in the form of relevant article at least five times a week.

What type of things can I sell?

That is pretty much up to the vendor. As I have said, this is a literary blog, but even readers and writers need shoes, want pretty things and take holidays. So we are leaving the doors open, at least for the time being.

Finally, if you want something special like site-wide banner advertising, then that is possible too. So are long-term advertising contracts and guest articles.

Just drop me an email to Megan's Market and tell me what you have in mind.

PLR article ebooks

You've probably heard about writing PLR articles before, but do you know what a PLR article really is? In this article, we'll explain everything you need to know how to create and use hem. What is PLR (Private Label Rights)? It's when an author sells his/her content for someone else to use his own name. This allows the writer to earn money for writing, and the user of the article to obtain content quickly without doing much work.

What is a PLR Article?

A private label rights article is a type of content that was not written by the person claiming to be its author. These articles are usually sold as a package deal where the buyer gets access to the original content plus additional bonus material. This bonus material could be extra content.

Why Do People Buy Them?

There are several reasons why people buy PLR articles. One reason is because they're looking for new ways to promote their business. Another reason is because they want to build an email list. Yet another reason is because they want more exposure for themselves or an event.

How Can I Create My Own PLR Article?

If you want to write your own PLR articles, there's no one right way to go about doing so. However, there are some things you should keep in mind when writing your own PLR articles. If you are writing speculatively, you will probably want to stick to common issues. However, if you have a niche area of expertise then you may want to stick to that. Many writers of PLR are hired to write an article on a specific topic, which could mean the author doing a lot of research.

How Much Should I Charge For A PLR Article?

There are two main ways to make money with PLR articles. One is by selling them as is (i.e., not edited for a very specific purpose), and the other is by editing them to suit a particular niche or slant. The first method is cheaper for the author, since it takes less time. you’ll need to immerse yourself in your niche, and then you will find out what the average price of articles in your niche is.

As a guideline, I would say that non everyone can write persuasively, and not everyone is capable of targeted research. Therefore, you should be looking for at least minimum wage plus. Plus what? 25%? 50%? 100%? Only you can work that out, sorry.

Where Can I Find PLR Articles?

If you're looking for free PLR articles, there are plenty of places online where you can find them, although you will find most of them quite useless. However, if you want to use a fresh, meaningful PLR article, then, you'll have to pay for it.

We have ebooks of 12-18 targeted, niche PLR articles on 125 niche subjects, just look in title bar above.

Uses for PLR

Foreign Translations

You can now read foreign translations of novels by the Welsh writer Owen Jones in thirty-seven languages. Full details are on this blog

There are now several companies offering to facilitate the creation of foreign translations. This could be paper documents, website even novels. In fact, it has never been easier easier to read novels by authors from different countries and cultures. For example, the Welsh writer Owen Jones has books in thirty-seven languages. So, it is easy to imagine that most people in the world have access this Welsh writer's work.

The Foreign Translations of Books by Owen Jones.

Owen Jones has been the main instigator of the translation of his books, because he is a self-published, or indie-published author. This obviously means that he has no agent or traditional publishing house to organise this sort of work for him.

"It takes a lot of time to find apposite narrators and translators", he say, "and then to work with them suggesting translations and explaining difficult sentences. Naturally, that detracts from the time spent writing. It is the balance that each indie-author has to work out for him- or herself. The choice is between more books, or a wider readership? It's a toss-up. However, it was an easy decision for me because I have always travelled, and speak seven or eight languages. I wanted my International friends to be able to read my books, if they want to…" he adds with a smile.

Which books by Owen Jones have been translated.

Owen Jones published his first novel Behind The Smile - The Story of Lek, A Bar Girl in Pattaya, in 2012. It was an immediate hit with the visitors to, and expats in Pattaya, Thailand. It is 112,000 words long, which has an effect on the willingness of translators' to take it on. Jones works with narrator and translator colleagues who will accept a share of the sales revenues as payment. It is known as royalty share. Typically, the author receives 15-30% of the revenue, and the translator 60-70% with the intermediary taking 10%. It means that colleagues are less likely to take a risk on a large book, in case they have chosen unwisely.

Who translated the books?

The native-speaker narrators and translators of each language in the agency carry out the work on the books. Then the author and the collaborator work together to preserve as much of the meaning of the original text as possible.

Where can I find out more about these books in non-English languages?

If you would like to learn more about these books in other languages, you can start on this blog, Megan Publishing Services. The title bar (at the top of the blog page) contains many links to the various books, foreign translations and in English... even non-English audiobooks!

Are the foreign translations more expensive?

No, at least not necessarily. The author and the agency then choose a single, global price, which means that a book could cost, say $4.99 (+ taxes) in every country. However, $4.99 could be cheap in, say, Norway, but expensive in Somalia. So, it can work out more expensive, but then the people who want to read literature in foreign translations tend to have better jobs, so maybe that isn't that important.

Dead Centre - what is it?

What is Dead Centre? Most people will think of it as ‘the bull’s eye’ or centre of a target, or a shot that hits it. However, in the context of his book, the Welsh writer Owen Jones uses the term in three ways:

* as in bull’s eye above* to refer to the point where a killing took place, or the location of maximum fatalities* to refer to The Dead Centre Agency, which is a secret organisation that is responsible for the wave of extreme terrorism that's sweeping the world. In different contexts, the term has been used in reference to terrorist attacks since at least the 1980s.

What is Dead Centre? Did it really exist?

The Dead Centre Agency, as used by Jones, is fictional, as far as he knows. In acts of terrorism, especially in the past, terrorists would attack targets such as shopping malls, train stations, and airports. These were places where large numbers of people gathered, making them easy targets. However, the author envisioned a scenario where terrorism could be a business opportunity.

He foresaw an organisation that found willing volunteer suicide bombers in order to carry out terrorist attacks on areas with little or no security. The client would choose the target, and The Dead Centre Agency would do the rest. Even to the point of paying the bomber's or participant's family his fee after the conclusion of the attack.

Could such an organisation really exist?

They say that the FBI has identified a terrorist group called “Dead Centre". Apparently, it was formed in 2009 and its members are believed to be responsible for several recent terror attacks. The group’s name comes from the fact that it uses tactics similar to those used by the IRA during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. However, the author is not aware that that that group operated to order as Jones writes in his work of fiction.

Surely crime on this scale could not happen in real life?

This type of terrorism is very different from other forms of terrorism because it does not involve any kind of political agenda. Instead, it involves random acts of violence carried out by individuals who are paid to commit suicide… and they do it because they have a terminal illness.. Furthermore, these people do not represent any particular religion or ideology, so they are very difficult to trace.

Although it is a form of terrorism, killing innocent people is not the objective. The client sets the purpose of the attack, and it is usually financial gain or revenge.

Did the owners of The Dead Centre Agency have a guilty conscience?

There was no evidence that the owners of The Dead Centre Agency had any sort of guilty conscience. In fact, they were quite proud of what they were doing to help the terminally ill provide for their families. They believed that they were doing something good for society.

Is there a sequel to Dead Centre?

At least seven police forces around the world and the SAS sought the leaders of the agency high and low. However, in Dead Centre 2, they are located by MI6, and offered a very special mission by an extremely important client.

"I can say no more", said the Welsh writer with a smile.

What is the likelihood that such an organisation could really be out there?

Click here to read more about Dead Centre by Owen Jones

Books translated into Russian

If you are looking for books translated into Russian, you've come to the right place! We have a number of acclaimed novels by Owen Jones available. These books were first written in English, but were selected and translated into Russian by professional Russian translators. They are from various genres as the Welsh author does not have a favourite, although many of the novels reflect his Welsh background and belief in a life after death, in which the living and ‘the dead’ can communicate. His books are usually set in either his native Wales, his beloved Spain, or the country where he now lives, Thailand.

This is the list of books translated into Russian available as I am writing this blog post.

Books by Welsh Writer Owen Jones translated into Russian

Behind The Smile - «Что скрывает улыбка»

Behind The Smile is a series of seven novels on the life of Lek, a bar girl in Pattaya. This fictional biography isset in Pattaya, Thailand, which is probably Asia’s hottest holiday destination. It is world-famous for its nightlife and bar girls. Jones has had a twenty-year association with the city, and knows it very well. The girls in a bar that he came to know very well asked him to write their story. In fact, it is based on the stories that the girls of this bar told him. Daddy’s Hobby, the first novel in the series, was his first book, and remains his best-seller. A high percentage of the British and American male visitors to Pattaya will have read, or at least heard of, this series.

Behind The Smile is available in nine languages. Dasha Elsova translated the Russian edition.

The Ghouls of Calle Goya - Упыри c улицы Гойя

The Ghouls of Calle Goya is a fantasy horror thriller that is based on a true story that befell the author and his wife while living in Fuengirola, Spain. Locations for the story are in Norway, Britain, Spain and Thailand, and it tells the story of how a newly-wed couple fall foul of an international secret society while on their honeymoon in Fuengirola. As in most of Jones’ realistic novels, the street names and places actually exist.

The Ghouls of Calle Goya is available in eleven languages. Nattyasam translated the Russian edition.

Fate Twister – Судьбоносец

Fate Twister is a fantasy coming-of-age story, and tells the story of the early life of Wayne Gamm, who was born into a family of witches in the mountains of north Wales near Dolgellau. That is, most people would call it a fantasy or a supernatural fantasy, but Jones believes that everything that he writes about in this novel are possible, and in fact, are reality for millions of people around the world today.

“The word ‘witch’ still carries the mostly pejorative meaning that was attached to it by the Catholic church in the Middle Ages. Witch Hunts, torture and murder were the results. Furthermore, Hollywood perpetuates an absurd image of witches and warlocks”, he says. “My mother was a self-proclaimed White Witch, and my father said that her mother was an old witch too!” he says only half jokingly. “My parents did not bring my brothers and me up to think that this was at all unusual”.

Fate Twister reflects those opinions, as do several of Jones’ other novels.

Fate Twister is available in five languages. Natalija Cvetkova translated the Russian edition.

The Psychic Megan Series - Экстрасенс Меган Сериал

The Psychic Megan Series is a series of twenty-four novelettes in English. However, only a few of them have been translated into Russian. It tells the story of a young,

Welsh novelist Owen Jones

The most prolific Welsh writer you've never heard of!

Welsh novelist, Owen Jones, was born in Barry, South Wales in 1954. He wrote over 175 books, many of which were set in his native country. His works include the series: The Psychic Megan Series, Behind The Smile, Tiger Lily of Bangkok, Annwn-Heaven, and Dead Centre.

Who is this Welsh Novelist with 1,000 Books?

Jones attended infant, junior, and comprehensive schools in his home town. Then he left for Portsmouth, where he studied Russian Language and Soviet History. It was the sixth language that he learned to fluency before he was twenty-four. After Portsmouth, he moved to The Netherlands for nine years and learned Dutch. In 2004, he moved to Thailand, and started writing his first book, which he published in 2012. It was Daddy’s Hobby the first book in the series Behind The Smile: The Story of Lek, A Bar Girl in Pattaya. The second volume, An Exciting Future arrived in the same year. That's 225,000 words worth!

Where did he come from?

Jones' parents were avid readers and Spiritualists. He read many of the hundreds of books in the house, and loved writing essays and stories at school. He always received good marks for his literary efforts. However, he gave up English Language as soon as possible in favour of foreign languages. When he did start writing seriously, he was in his fifties, and had to teach himself how to write grammatically, and publish his books.

When did he start writing?

Our Welsh novelist started writing in school, and never really stopped. In school and university, he wrote essays, stories and a dissertation. However, after full-time education, he worked as a translator abroad, and wrote many letters home and to friends. There was no Internet or email then!

What were his influences?

His father was a Spiritualist healer, and so was his maternal grandmother, who actually founded a Spiritualist Church in his town. In fact, it is still going today. Jones has always taken Spiritualism very seriously. He calls it a Western form of Buddhism, and tries to live his life according to its beliefs. This is reflected in most of the stories he writes, but not all. The Psychic Megan Series partially reflects his mother’s life story, but it incorporates Spiritualism in the main too. The Annwn - Heaven Series is similar in that it is concerned with Spiritualist/Buddhist beliefs.

What's this Welsh writer's best work?

As with all writers, you pays your money and takes your choice with this Welsh novelist. There are 175 books to choose from, and they have been translated and narrated to make 1,000 books! Owen Jones himself is non-committal. “I forget about some of the stories’ details sometimes, but when I am working with a translator or narrator, I fall in love with the book all over again!”

Daddy's Hobby - The Story of Lek, A Bar Girl in Pattaya

Sister blog: The Amiable Dragon

Pattaya Beach Road: photo by Fernanda Araujo on Pexels.com

Pattaya's Most Famous Street?

Pattaya Beach Road is one of the most famous streets in Thailand. It is located on the eastern side of Pattaya Bay and The Gulf of Thailand.

Pattaya Beach Road

ป้ายบนพัทยาคมวินสตีเฟนต์ (Pattaya Beach Road in Thai) is a street in Pattaya, Chonburi Province, Thailand. The street runs along the shoreline of Pattaya Bay. It is famous for its many bars, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. In fact, the road has been dubbed "Pattaya's most famous street" since it was built in the 1970s. However, Walking Street might fairly lay claim to that title too. In recent years, the area has become more popular with tourists than locals. Many people visit the area because of its golden sand and peaceful sea views, although also for its nightlife, shopping, and entertainment options.

However, some residents complain about noise pollution, litter, and crime.

Pattaya’s Strip

The road has many nicknames, depending on where the visitor has come from. It has been known as "Pattaya's Main Street" since it was first built. It is also called “First Road”, "The Strip", "The Avenue", and "The Boulevard". Nevertheless, most people refer to it as "Pattaya Beach Road" or simply "Beach Road". The road runs along the beach front for about 3.5 km from near The Dolphin Roundabout in the north to Walking Street in the south. This is the place where tourists come to enjoy the nightlife and shopping. There are plenty of bars, restaurants, clubs, and shops along the road. This is the area to investigate if you are looking for a hotel near a beach in Pattaya.

Why Is This Street So Popular?

Many people visit Pattaya because of its beautiful beaches. However, there are also other reasons why Beach Road is so popular. One reason is that it has a lot of entertainment options. While the area is ‘perfectly’ safe during daylight hours, the actual beach, and even the beach-side pavement is a no-go area at night. It has a reputation for male prostitution after dark and many men have experienced problems there.

Behind The Smile on Pattaya Beach Road

Behind The Smile volume 1

The Welsh author Owen Jones has written a very popular seven-part series called ‘Behind The Smile – The Story of Lek, A Bar Girl in Pattaya’, which features a bar just off Pattaya Beach Road and the girls who work in it. Many visitors praise the story for being true to life, and several Pattaya bar girls have thanked the author for portraying them honestly.

Click the link below to find out more about the series.

Paperback/Hardback Ebook Audiobook

Welsh AuthorOwen Jones

Welsh author, Owen Jones, was born in Barry, Wales in August 1954 to an industrious, working-class family. He had four brother, three of which remain alive on Earth. To distinguish him from other Welsh authors with the same name alive or deceased, his middle name is Ceri (Keri).

Early Life of Owen Jones.

Welsh author Owen Jones went to Colcot Primary School, High Street Junior School, and then Barry Comprehensive School. He joined ‘The Comp’ in 1965, the first year it was open. His year’s school intake would later be referred to as ‘First Year Comp’. He was chosen to sit for the Oxford entry examination in 1971. However, he passed it over because his girlfriend was going to Portsmouth Polytechnic. He also studied there – Russian Language and Soviet Studies – and his replacement for the exam went to Oxford.

After finishing his degree, he moved to s’Hertogenbosch (Den Bosch) in The Netherlands for nine years. Then he worked for his father with his brothers for thirteen years. In 2004, he moved to Thailand with his Thai wife. He is still there now, living in her remote rice-farming village in the north.

The Welsh Author Emerges.

Owen began creating websites to pay the bills at first. However, they needed a lot of fresh content to keep them high in the search engine rankings. In 2011, he realised that he had 145 websites and had written 1,200,000 words that year to support them. After a few beers one night, it dawned on him that he was writing the equivalent of ten largish novels a year to support websites that would crumble after his death. He had always enjoyed writing, and had started a book in 2004, when he first arrived in Thailand. He resolved to finish the novel.

Owen Jones’ Books.

He published Daddy’s Hobby, the first volume in the series Behind The Smile: The Story Of Lek, A Bar Girl in Pattaya in April 2012 – eight years after he had started it. However, volume two, An Exciting Future, appeared six months later, and Maya – Illusion, volume three, three months after that.

Within seven years, he had written fifty-two novels. These included twenty-three novelettes called The Psychic Megan Series, which is based on ideas that he had learned from his Spiritualist family, and set in Barry. Meanwhile, Behind The Smile has grown to seven volumes comprising 720,000 words. He finds it difficult to stick to one genre, he says. Although most of his books involve some supernatural or paranormal content.

However, even that is not the full story. He has written a military drama mini-series called Dead Centre, which is about a new form of terrorism barely contemplated because it is so awful.

Prolific Welsh Author’s Future.

I asked him why he has not sought representation in the traditional publishing industry. He replies that he had made several half-hearted attempts to attract interest from literary agents five or six years ago, but he gave up, because so few of them replied. I also asked whether he might try to become a traditionally-published Welsh author again. He replied “Maybe”, but didn’t look at all enthusiastic. “I think that The Psychic Megan Series might be ‘quite easy’ to sell. However, writing to these people and waiting months for a reply is such a mind-numbingly boring slog!”

In my opinion, the 68 years old Welsh author from Barry, Owen Jones, has never really cared whether he goes down the traditional route of well-known authors or not. He is quite happy sitting in his quiet, remote Thai village organising the translation and narration of his existing books, and writing the occasional new one.

Owen Jones ,

Alien House

Is there an Alien House near you? How could you find out whether you have extraterrestrial  spacemen for neighbours? People tend to fall into two camps. Some are quite worried about having visitors from Outer Space, and others relish the idea of meeting extraterrestrials. It is presumed that, if there are extraterrestrial spacemen (and spacewomen) living here on Earth, then they must be living in an off-worlder abode… hidden in full view.

Sightings of Alien Neighbours.

People report having seen visitors from Outer Space in hundreds of places around the world. Many of these are genuine reports from people who are convinced that they have experienced real extraterrestrial contact. However, there are many reported sightings that are obviously just hoaxes too. Still, people have reported seeing strange lights in the sky, and even hearing sounds that they believe could only have come from ET 's or their UFO's.

Check with local law enforcement agencies.

This might sound daft, but if you think you might have seen aliens or something unusual, contact your local police station. They will, or might (depending on your luck), investigate the situation and get back to you. However, if you feel that you have discovered ET neighbours, then you might be better off contacting the government, or plain-clothes police officers. 

It is unlikely that you have discovered an off-worlders' dwelling just because it looks dilapidated, old, abandoned or unused. Equally, I doubt that aliens would want to draw attention to themselves. For example, by employing overly futuristic designs built into the architecture of their homes. I'm sure that if ET's are living on Earth in an extraterrestrial abode, then it will appear quite normal. On the other hand, it may be large enough to have substantial grounds for landing their craft in. An old mansion or colonial house in the country, for example. Somewhere off the beaten track, perhaps shielded from casual view by natural woods or hills.

Call your local news station.

If you fancy becoming a local celebrity (or thought of as a nutter), you could report that you think you saw something strange in your neighbourhood to your local radio station. They might investigate and report back to you. You could also try to corroborate your suspicions online or by talking to local residents.

Alien House - a fantasy novel.

Welsh writer, Owen Jones, has written a fantasy novel about just such a dwelling. He has sited it not far outside his home town of Barry, South Wales. In the story, Michael, the central character, believes that he might be going mad, when his Alter Ego, Ralph, tries to persuade him that his new-found friends are spacemen and spacewomen, who live only a few miles away in an alien house. Eventually, his innermost thoughts worry him so much that he asks them outright.

If you want to find out what happens next in this fantasy novel by Owen Jones, please click this link:

Alien House - https://bit.ly/Alien_House-Eng-TT

Behind The Smile

Behind The Smile – but what else could be lingering there? A genuine smile is often contagious... it makes people feel good about themselves. However, is there something else behind the smile like sadness, deceit, or even danger? Have you ever wondered why someone smiles when they're happy, but frowns when they're sad? The answer lies in the coding of our brains, and some people have learned how to use smiling to affect us on this neurological level for their own purposes. Astute people can usually read warning signs, but that doesn’t always work.

Is it really just a smile?

If you're wondering why some people seem to have an easy time smiling while others struggle with it, here are some things to consider:

1. People who smile often tend to have a positive outlook on life. They see the glass as half full rather than half empty.

2. Smiles are contagious. So when you smile, you're likely to make other people react in the same way.

3. Smiling releases endorphins into our brains. Endorphins are natural painkillers that help reduce stress and improve mood.

What could be lingering behind the smile?

Smiling is one of the easiest ways to make others feel better about themselves. In fact, research shows that a smile can actually affect the brain's reward system, making us happier than we would otherwise be. However, not everyone smiles at every appropriate situation. Some people smile in order to hide what they don’t want you to see. Think of the magicians and their distraction techniques, or the shopkeeper with the happy face, or the con-artist trying to sell you a pup.

Are You Smiling Because You're Happy or Sad?

If you find yourself smiling when you aren't feeling happy, then you might be suffering from a condition called "smile disorder". This is a common problem among children and teens, but adults also sometimes develop this condition. Smiling is an automatic response to positive emotions. People who suffer from these disorders often have trouble controlling their facial muscles, so that they appear to be smiling even though they're not. They may also have difficulty recognizing other people's smiles because they don't feel as genuine.

Behind The Smile – The Story of Lek, A Bar Girl In Pattaya

The theme of what can be behind a smile is central to Welsh writer Owen Jones’ epic series about a bar girl in Pattaya. Lek had been a happy child and adolescent growing up in a peaceful, not-poor, rice-farming village in northern Thailand. She had expected nothing more out of life than all the other girls born there for generations. That is, to work on the family smallholding, get married have children, work some more and then to retire to look after the grandchildren. So, had it been for hundreds of years.

However, Lek’s father had borrowed money from the bank – a new phenomenon, that he hadn’t completely understood. When he died suddenly from diabetes, the family was told to pay up or get out. It had been a shock, because they hadn’t known about the loan.

There had been only one solution. Lek, as the eldest child of four, had had to go to Pattaya to work in a bar. She missed her family tremendously, but worked in the bar smiling at the punters. However, she was there for ten long years, and all that time, there was something else going on behind the smile.

You can read Owen Jones’ fascinatingly poignant series here:

Behind The Smile: The Story of Lek,