Stages of Success

A brief song of priase and frustration:

I have finished the latest draft of my novel. The ghosts have spoken, and turned my way of telling their story around somewhat. So be it. They have their own way of doing things, and sometimes I feel I am only the conduit. What has happened is that all the material I have been amassing for Ghost Music turns out not to fit together. Instead there are several stories that need their own, independent, voice. I therefore wound up working on just one story arc. Oddly, and perhaps perfectly (who knows?) that particular story is too long for one volume, so I have decided to make it two, and it is just Volume One that I have finished. I know exactly where Volume Two will begin and end, which is a comfort, but first Volume One must be readied.

So now I have to go back through the manuscript page by page, word by word. I have to make sure the timelines and story liines are consustent, that the facts are all accurate (except where fiction allows me to play with them), and that everything makes sense. Then I will have to proof it again, trimming excess and repetition out, before giving it over to my editor in chief, Diane. After that, probably another run-through, then formatting for Kindle and CreateSpace, unless I can sell the idea to a "real" publisher in the meantime. Which means queries, proposals, sample chapters, and lots and lots of leg work.

Writing is easy. Re-writing is hard. Selling is impossible.

On that note comes the success and the frustration. I have placed three short stories wirh an online magazine called Black Heart Magazine, and all three will appear in their September 28 issue. All three are flash fiction, under 400 words. One contains less than 12! And Clever is going to publish me again, date uncertain, with a story about our trip to Yellowstone. Meanwhile, sales of my novel Amber Waves have stalled (not that there was much action to begin with) and I have no real idea as to how to make people aware of the book. So the frustration comes from being in print and still being unread.

I am working on it. But the axiom does not apply: if you write it, they will read. It ain't necessarily so.

Editors Are Fine

I am sitting here, listening to massively large raindrops pelt my roof while the sky over the lake remains blue, confident that words will come. They always do -- I am never without words for long.

I just sold an article to the online magazine "Clever" because the editor saw potential in the article I originally submitted, and suggested to redirect my focus. She liked the result. I like the fact that an editor will take the time to encourage and suggest.

So thank you, Dianne.

Can't be gloom and doom all the time. Once in awhile you just have to smile.

a day without sunshine

Yesterday was an odd day in one respect: I never went online, not once, not no way, not no how. I never even looked at my computer. I was just a bit too busy with real life stuff. And yet, I cannot really call it a day without sunshine: Diane and I got to spend the better part of the entire day doing real life stuff together, and we had fun doing it.

And yet, that means I did not write yesterday. Strictly speaking, I write every day even when I don't write, because I can compose in my head ore refine something I have already written. I rely on notes to help me remember but I find really good stuff (good in my opinion, at least) sticks with me or comes back once I find a pen.

And today I summarized my novel's basic premise for a tie-in on Helium. I was told a long time ago that a good writer can summarize his book in 25 words or less; more than that and he may not have a clear idea of what it is he is writing. I am proud to report -- despite how many words I have spent to get HERE -- that I did it in seventeen words! 17! AMBER WAVES summed up like this: "about people, often mistaken as gods, who do not die, coping in a world where people do."

Cool, huh?

They're interesting people, the residents of AMBER WAVES. I might go back sometime.

Download Kindle Titles on Your PC

Great news for all of you who want my book but don't have Kindle! Or just for anyone who wants a Kindle edition of any book . . .

My dear daughter Beth found out that Amazon Kindle offers a free app that you can download onto your PC or cell phone/Blackberry/whatever. Then you can order and download any book you want. To sweeten the deal you get three books free -- three public domain books like Treasure Island.

I did not know you don't have to have a Kindle to download a Kindle edition. So, in an act of shameless self-promotion, if you have a PC you have no reason to avoid what I sincerely believe is a ripping good yarn -- mine!

So, on my seventh day as a novelist I have learned that the availability of my book is far greater than I had imagined. Now I have to wait for you all to discover "Amber Waves." You won't be disappointed.

Big News

It has been awhile since I have written, so long that my followers few have disappeared. That's okay, for a while I disappeared. Even now I am not sure how much I am coming back at the moment, but I have an announcement for what it is worth, and I feel a degree of pride not just in what I have done but in the fact that I found the strength to do it.

I published. My novel, Amber Waves, is available exclusively on Amazon Kindle. It is the story of a man who cannot die, living in a world filled with people who can. It is fast paced and funny and entertaining and makes a few good points along the way, and introduces you to several amazing characters, a few of them historical. All in 300 poages, at $2.99!

Do I sound like a proud parent? If you want a delightful summer read, please check it out! And thanks.