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Thursday, November 5, 2015

The Author Speaks: A Difficult Decision...



Every writer, dreams about the moment your latest work is about to be unleashed.  You've worked long and hard for it and the day has finally come.  You've shed blood (preferably not someone else's), sweat  (and boy didn't you look hot at that moment), and more than a few tears (I'm not even going to try and make a joke on this one, I know damn well I've shed more than few in frustration, or because I wrote a section that moved me enough to shed them).  So you're all set and ready for your book's release, but in the back of your mind you have to keep asking "Is my work truly ready to be released?" 

Is it?

In my case the answer was a resounding "NOT EVEN CLOSE!"



So, as a result of this fact, I've decided not to release "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home" until September/October of next year.

How and why did this happen?  The answer is simple.  In spite of my best efforts I could not give my project the full attention and care it needs to be ready.  For those who don't already know, I am currently attending university over in Monterey, California.  I've been studying Business Administration, with a focus on Marketing as my goal.  However, there have been ever increasing demands by my classes which makes giving any attention to my writing, almost impossible at this point and time.  In fact, I'm only third of the way through the 2nd draft of the book.  

Furthermore, I still have to have that draft edited and cleaned up before I can try to locate beta-readers to give me feedback.  Originally, I had hoped to have the book already in their hands at this point, but it didn't happen.  And I';m certainly not going to ask people to sign up at this point, not with the holidays coming hard and fast on us all.  Most folks will have family gatherings to plan for, travel itineraries to arrange and a host of cooking and decorating jobs to do.

Finally, there's still one last thing I like to do before declaring a book ready to be released and that is to read it aloud with someone who is a good listener and can hear where there might be an issue with the writing.  This takes a long time to do in my case, because I do it via Skype with my editor.  Even after she's gone over the drafts I've sent and everything looks right, she and I like to read it out loud to each other to make sure everything it reads correctly if someone was doing an audio recording of the work.  
  

An idea that sounded great in my head, or a turn of phrase that both of us thought was really cool, may not come across the same way as planned, which is why we do this.  I know a lot of authors read their works out loud and although it takes time it is TOTALLY worth it.

Why am I so picky about this?  Simple, I released my first novel "The Bridge" too quickly (and had to do subsequent re-releases after a number of errors were discovered).  It was an amateur mistake to make, and even though I was forgiven for it (because, I WAS an amateur at the time) I felt I let myself and lot of others down.  So  I made it my policy to not release a book that has not been thoroughly vetted.  I want people to get their monies worth and be able to enjoy a really nice finished product.

So when do I feel is a good time to release one of my works?  Three to six months after I've got it FULLY finished.  In this case, I still haven't even settled on a final cover design.  Plus I still haven't reached the stage where I've got a 'Proof-copy' to look over and see how the book looks in printed form.  

So I came to the decision that I had to hit THE button...




Mind you, I do have plans for publishing the novelette that appeared on this blog last December.  This will be the first time the story will be in book form, and I know it is ready to go.  I also will be starting another winter-themed tale here on this blog as well.  Without giving too much away, I can assure you all that we'll be seeing some familiar faces you've come to know and love not only from this blog but from my other books "The Bridge" and "The Ship".


My plans for having something published in December at this point is to possibly release a novelette that appeared on one of my other blogs called: "The Vampyre Blogs - Private Edition".  It appeared in six installments, but has never been released as a whole book.  It's a holiday piece that takes place fifteen years before the events in "The Bridge" and involves several characters from that novel, along with my vampyre Nathan.  If I do release that novelette, I will make it available in ALL e-book formats: Kindle, Nook, Sony, Apple, etc.  I might also do a printed version, but I'll want to see what kind of demand there is for it first.

I apologize for disappointing anyone with the delayed release, but not having the time to make sure the book is as good as it can be is crucial to me.  I don't like to skimp or rush things.  I want "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home" to be in the best shape possible so all of you can enjoy the story to its fullest.

And now I'd like to thank you all for all of your support and hope you continue to come and enjoy the stories Nathan and his 'extended family' have to share with you all.  Take care and God bless.



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