The novel is published.
It is a good feeling to see it available on Amazon as an e-book. I think the price is fabulous value, too.
Why do I think the price is good value? Because, whatever people think, there was an awful lot of hard work and heartache went into writing that story.
Make no mistake, anyone who writes any story has invested an awful lot of time and effort into getting that book from it’s inception in the mind out into a market place.
I know that Ray Owen, who has written a marvellous book called ‘The Hole’ (http://amzn.to/HlTL2o), put his soul into it. He consulted with trusted authors, he had several people read it for him but the primary effort went into the construction of the idea that he had in his mind; the building of that first germ of an idea into a framework that could be read, understood and enjoyed by other people.
Almost certainly the finished product bore scant resemblance to that first concept.
“The Adepts” originally started out during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait where the ‘hero’ was standing surveying the burning oilfields. His eyes were following the drift of black, acrid smoke up into the heavens while his mind was searching for a reason and remembering the futility that he had witnessed in the past on other Worlds at other times.
Then it was changed so that it started in Malaysia, in the jungle up in the Cameron Highlands – a place of beauty.
Now it starts on another World. It starts with instant death in a massive detonation.
Editor has last word.
The story that we write with tender, loving care, ends up in tatters because someone else reads it with a more judicious eye.
I have mentioned this before. The frustration at seeing your beloved work, that appeared so perfect, being re-arranged.
Yes, it is better now.
We who write find it hard to see flaws in our ‘children’. We spend so much time thinking and pondering and considering the plot and direction that we wish to go towards that we just cannot see the way that others will read it.
Quite often the words that we see in our heads and place carefully on the ‘paper’ – yes, all right, ‘screen’ now! Will be interpreted differently by the reader.
The tone and emotion that we, in our heads, place into the text, is not there for the reader. They may get a completely different context in which, to them, it will make no sense.
This is the value of honest and analytical reading by an editor.
We don’t like it but it is worth it.
Herein lies the problem with self-publishing.
I am not against self-publishing – I applaud the effort it takes and the optimism involved, but... this is a big ‘but’, if self-publishers do not get a suitable reader to critique and edit their stories then they are, almost by necessity, going to be flawed.
I am most definitely not saying that mine are perfect (although they are damn fine!) but that self-publishers need to be extra careful so that they put a quality product out on to the market.
Getting your Mum or girlfriend to read and proofread is just not good enough. They will tell you that ‘this is awesome’, or words to that effect.
I, as a general rule, proofread everything at least thirty times before handing it over to someone who always finds countless ‘faults’!!
But the novel is out there in the wild ready to be judged by the readership. My part is done.
As an author I have put in the hours, I have sweated over the keyboard and storylines. I have made notes so that the characters remain ‘in character’ and their friends are the same throughout and their enemies die appropriately in the place where they were supposed to be.
Time scales have been studied to ensure that the sequences are correct and nobody ends up with curly, blonde hair when they started out with straight, black hair.
“Book 2” is now going through the ‘process’ so the sweating starts all over again and “Book 3” is on my screen and the toil starts afresh before that one goes off into the Editor’s den!
Then to start “Book 4” and the first “Ruthermore Heidigens” novel and the sequel to “Deep Space Squadron” that will be included with the prequel and start as one package.
Now you see why I think the price is good value. Now you see why it is such a good feeling to see it ‘out there’.
Besides all that, it’s a bloody good story, too!
