I'm Back

Yes, I have been away for a while.  I needed to step back and give this whole blog thing some thought.  I also stepped away from social media for a bit.

Why?

Negativity.

It was one of those moments where I stepped backed and asked:  “Wow, dude, is this really who I am?”  No, not really.  I’m really not a social type person, but I am also not as negative as I sometimes come across.  Unfortunately, for me, when I spew out a blog post, the contents have a negative feel in a lot of cases.  I don’t much care for the perception it conveys.

But then, there are still things I just need to get off my chest.

This issue really seemed to take root when I noticed some of the feeds on my personal Facebook page actually turned me away from the authors of the posts.  I mean, who wants to purchase an item or service from someone whose posts are primarily complaints?  Those negative feeling posts led me to question who would buy my books, when I was doing close to the same thing.  Maybe not to the same extent, but darn near.

That’s when I stepped back and evaluated the purpose of this blog.  The Stray Scribe was brought into existence as a piece of my “Writer’s Platform”.  One of those annoying terms that basically means, I’m trying to get my name out there into the big wide world.  Through this blog, I wanted to show the journey of a budding writer.  

After looking back, I think I’ve done a fairly decent job of it.  On top of that, I hadn’t whined as much as I thought I had.  I was simply being hyper-sensitive due to outside influences.  I hope.

Anywho, I’m back.  I will continue to ramble nonsense, and maybe even throw in a gem you might agree with from time to time.

In other, more important, news; Requiter is available.

Amazon
Smashwords
iTunes
Diesel ebooks

I’m still waiting for Barnes and Noble to put it out, but I strongly encourage you to purchase a copy for your Nook from Smashwords.  Mark Coker continues to be an awesome advocate for the Indie world, and has earned every penny he makes from book sales.

Late Again

November 17 is the new release date for the second book in the Drums of Rallinwar series.

Three months later than I anticipated.

Why?

I’ll begin by stating this book was destined to be behind schedule without any outside influences.  The editing process is far more intense than it was for Blood of Two.  So much so, I would like to revisit Blood and put it through the same strainer.  I feel as though this book is better written and you, as the reader, will see that.  While some of the improvement can be attributed to my learning of the craft, most of the improvements are a result of my enhanced editing schedule.

To say this year has been eventful would be an understatement.  In May, three tornadoes tore through my life.  Friends and family lost their homes, and insignificant in comparison, we lost a good portion of our fence.  Not only did those three events take me away from the book physically, helping with the cleanup, but mentally I just couldn’t focus.  You can’t live in Oklahoma and not know somebody who has lost something to Mother Nature, but even then you can’t prepare for when it impacts your life.  That sh*t sticks with you, and the impact it had on me is minor in comparison.

Those three events (three days) set the book back 30-45 days.  Add in a few everyday squirrels and the August release day was not achievable if I wanted to put forth my best effort.

So where am I now?

In one of my earlier posts I outlined the editing process I set in place.  I am in the middle of steps 4 and 5 (of 7).  The initial copy edits for the first half of the book were completed a few weeks ago, and that portion of the book passed off to the evil editors.  One of those editors is done; the other two are about half way through.

I completed the checklist edits (step 3) for the second half of the book this last weekend and am now in the middle of the copy edits for that portion.  I hope to complete that part this weekend and then forward the second half of the book on to my editors.

Monday I expect to begin step 6 (appeasing the evil editors), and from what I have seen to this point, I will catch up with the editors (who are in step 5) rather soon.  When they finish up with part two of the book, and I complete my portion, I will make one last pass with the copy edits.

I am not sure where Lucky is with the cover art, but you can expect another beautiful cover that continues the theme begun with Blood of Two.  I also need to print off a map so that he can paint one up for me.

I’m excited to finish this project.  I will take a short (very short) break, and then drum up Book Three.  At the moment, it appears the series will be completed with the third book, which would basically make it the cliché fantasy trilogy.

Beyond that; I have the beginnings of a story about a man from Saimus’ home country.  It will likely be a stand-alone novel.

I am also still sitting on a short story I promised earlier (which I have the cover-art for), but I have been so focused on the book, it has just been gathering dust.  If there’s a chance before November 17, I will brush it up and publish it.

And of course, I still need a title for Book Two.

Anyway, that is where I’m at.  I apologize for the delay.  I let things interfere with my productivity and it will probably happen again.  Tis the life of a writer who has a day job.

Horseshoes and Four Leaf Clovers

I suppose at some point I should like write down blog topics so I don't find myself bereft of things to say for weeks at a time.  But, let's face it, I ain't too good at this whole talking to people thing.

The last little blurb was about my wonderful busy life, and I am looking forward to at least four more weeks of busy.  Of course, that is assuming I finish the book on time.

Unlike Blood of Two, editing this book has been intensive (and I do hope it shows).  Things have fallen to the wayside while I've concentrated on the book; Facebook, Twitter, workshop forums, industry news perusing, reading (I haven't read a book in two months), marketing, and my short stories.

It makes you wonder how successful author's have time for the talk show circuit.  Well, not really.  You have to figure they went through much the same at some point in their careers, but then they reached a point where they had money to farm some of this junk out.

At some point, an author becomes proficient in their writing and the rough draft isn't quite as rough as it once was, which makes the author's initial editing easier.  Some author's even claim their rough draft is what they forward to their editor's.

Success will often bring money.  The author reaches a point where they can hire editor's they trust to do the work I do now.  I'm not talking about these editor's you find online at some editor warehouse, where they go back and pull one down from a hook and hand off your manuscript.  I mean someone who works with the author with a genuine desire to see an end product that matches the author's intent.

I could probably do some digging and tell you exactly how many hours of my life could be saved if I had the money to buy me one of those.

Then there is the marketing.  First of all, I suck at it.  I couldn't sell a Goo-Goo Cluster half price to a group of starving junior high students stuck on a bus in middle of a snow storm.  I can't even begin to imagine what a professional could do for my sales.  Again, there comes a point in the author's life where the money comes available for such luxuries.

The laughable part of this, at least in the Indie world, this rambling post actually makes a silly little circle.  You can't have success without good marketing, you need a well-edited product to market, and you need money to hire an editor.  But, you don't get money without some semblance of success.

In a large way, it all boils down to luck.

There are many get-rich-quick schemes out there in the world of Independent authors, but those are reserved for the hacks that have little to no desire to put out quality.  Those of us who want to create a durable product, we have to stretch those get-rich-quick schemes out over several years.

And hope for a little luck.

So, I will continue on with my busy life and keep plugging away at editing.  And I am loving every minute of it.  I am learning my craft, and (hopefully) improving.  I'm still a couple of years away from completing the most popular get-rich-quick scheme and I continue to search for four leaf clovers.  Will I be reach in the end?  Who cares.  When it is all said and done, I will have written a story I can be proud of.

I suppose, in some pompous way, I think that is what separates me from some of the others.  I'm not here for the money.  I'm not here for the fame.  I am here because I have stories to share.  When a stranger sends me an e-mail, posts on my page, or tells me face to face that they enjoy my stories, then I have found something greater than the dollar bill.

In the Beginning

I suppose my latest theme on this blog has been opinions on writing.  Sometimes I feel a bit pretentious offering up these opinions, and someday I may find myself disagreeing with what I write today, but keep in mind these are just the mere opinions of an old man still perfecting his craft.

I was a part of an interesting discussion this week and it involved where to begin when writing a story.  In the writing world, we call this the Point of Attack.  In a world filled with expectations of instant gratification, Point of Attack is extremely important.  I guess it goes without saying (yet I'll say it anyway), it hasn't always been this way.

One of the traps that we fall into, as writers, is trying to emulate successful stories of the past, but when you do so with tunnel vision you may be setting yourself up for failure.  Would Moby Dick even make it to print in today's environment?  Would The Hobbit take so long to get off the ground?  In my opinion, no.

We are programmed to believe Moby Dick and The Hobbit are wonderful tales that must be read, so we suffer through what we would now consider shortcomings in an effort to find that wonderful tale.  If either tale was published, as they are, next week, they would fall off into obscurity.  Not because they are bad stories, but because they aren't written to match up with today's expectations.

So, as writers, we can't pick up a book written before our parents were born, copy the formula, and expect the same results.  No matter how good our tale may be.

Which brings me back to the Point of Attack.

Some people say you must engage the reader within the first five pages, others say the first five sentences, and they may both be right, so it behooves me, as a writer, to start the story off in an engaging manner.  We want to share with the readers every aspect of our characters.  We want them to see where they came from and why they are who they are today.  But, if we begin a story with the birth of our character, we may lose the reader in those first five pages and never get to share the growth of the character with them.

You can share all there is to share and still engage the reader.  Begin your story with some conflict, and sprinkle in the past along the way.  Probably not in flashbacks, as they are often overused, but a couple of sentences can say a lot.

"Ole Joe knows hospitals better than anyone in this room.  What with that cancer he had as a child."

You don't even know Joe, but your imagination just painted a picture of his childhood.

When I say to begin a story with conflict, don't take that to mean you must begin with an epic fantasy battle or the like.  A simple conflict will do.  Think about an opening chapter where Joe is panicking because he forgot to pay the water bill and it's cutoff day.  Zipping through traffic to get to the utilities office before noon.  Worried about his wife's reaction.  Hoping the check doesn't bounce.  This is real world situation that could very well connect with your reader.  They find themselves wanting to know if he gets the bill paid on time.  How much more mundane can you get?  But, this is conflict in the writing world.  And, as an added bonus, it is something the reader can connect with.

So when someone tells you to start the story at the beginning, keep in mind the beginning of the story may not be the beginning of your character's story.  If we did that, The Hobbit would have began "There once was a hobbit born in the Shire."

Pretentious Writing

I recently read a post on one of the writing forums where the individual was looking for a word to call his magic.  You see he didn't want to use the word "magic".  He felt what he used in his world was something different, grander, more far-reaching than such a simple term.  And, after reading the description, I could see his argument.  He presented a three sentence description of his magic and several of us offered up different words to use that might better represent what it was.

But, when it comes down to, his readers will call it magic.

I don't believe he was attempting to be pretentious by using another term, but the topic did bring to mind other works where the author's were being pretentious, whether they wanted to be or not.

League
Furlong
Cubit
Stone

Pop quiz.  What are the modern comparisons to those units of measurement?

Maybe you know the answer, maybe you don't.  I don't.  And quite honestly, if I am reading a fantasy novel that uses those terms, I will most likely not look them up.  Those terms are of no use to me in my daily life, so I will remain blissfully unaware for your entire novel.

Yes, those terms have a certain fantastical ring to them, but what good are they if they don't communicate the measurement you want.  Next time you see someone reading Lord of the Rings, ask them what the modern equivalent to a league is. You may just find I'm not the only one too lazy to look it up.

To me, it is like flipping open a Thesaurus and using a word for the sole sake of being different.  Instead of sounding different, you sound pretentious.  As in carpentry and mechanics, you use the best tool for the job.  In a lot of cases a simple hammer will do the trick.  No need in getting fancy.

I started to read a fantasy series that used made up terms for weight and distance.  At the back of book one was the all-to-common fantasy dictionary where it explained what those terms meant.  Why?  What is the purpose in using strange terms for measurements?  For immersion in your world?  Balderdash! (n. stupid or illogical talk)  If the reader has to flip to the back of the book, or look up the term online, you have just accomplished the opposite.  As a matter of fact, I never moved on to book two, because that was not the only area of pretentiousness in the prose.

We are story teller's.  We love to take the stories in our heads and share them with anybody who will listen.  It is as simple as that.  Don't try to make yourself seem more important than you are through pretentious writing.  Don't talk down to the reader.

A Question of Money

A common misconception I have heard/read on several occasions is that epic storylines (longer than the traditional trilogy) are all about the money.  You know, I could be a bit naive about this, but I will have to strongly disagree.

23 years and 14 books long, Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series was wrapped up last week.  For those who have read the books, we know the length of the story was in large part due to Jordan's penchant for foreshadowing.  Chapters of non-consequential scenes littered the series, but those scenes were used to set up things that often didn't happen until two or three books later.

Millions of people enjoyed his writing style.  Millions of people, not two or three friends at work, but millions of people around the world.  I enjoyed his style, my wife doesn't care for it.  His writing style and the breadth of the story contributed to the length of the series.  Did I mention that millions of people liked it?

Money was not the bottom line.

Jordan had a story to tell, and if he was anything like myself, he wasn't going to cut it short just to meet some arbitrary number of acceptable books.  Sure, there were ways to crop the story; cut down on the characters (which he had aplenty), don't tell the readers about the sub-plots that contribute to the final page, knock it off with the foreshadowing, etc.  Jordan stuck to his guns and told the story HE wanted to tell and the story the READERS wanted to read.

My Drums of Rallinwar story is being told in the same manner.  I am telling you the story that I want to tell, and I hope the you want to read.  Granted, my story isn't fourteen volumes.  My story may only last three books, or it may go four books, but there is no number that I am tied to.  The story will end when it chooses to end.  Money has absolutely no bearing on the length of the tale.  I have other stories to tell.

While I'm rambling on, keep in mind that some author's tire of their stories and want to wrap them up.  Some have wrapped them up despite the cries for more from their readers.  Aren't they losing money by not continuing the story?

Just because your world revolves around the money that other people make, does not mean that their world revolves around your desires.

Here you go, shameless plug:  BUY MY BOOK!  Blood of Two: Book One in the Drums of Rallinwar series.  Available where you buy your ebooks and you can even find it in paperback on Amazon (do a search for C. Hollis Gunter).  Buy it, rate it, review it, and if nothing else, I hope you enjoy it.  However long the series is.

Sometimes it just works

Since the release of Blood of Two in August, I have had conversations with readers (some friends/family, some not).  To my pleasant surprise, some elements of my story worked how I wanted them to.

When I created Tarimot, he was to be the comic relief, but he didn't agree.  He became more of the advisor to the group and not so much funny, though he does have his moments.  But, one of the things that I used to round him out was his speech pattern.  I actually have a file called Tarimots cadence that I revisit from time to time just to make sure I write his dialog correctly.  In my mind, this wasn't really a big thing, but many of the readers picked up on this and were complementary of it.  I was told by one reader that he felt like I could write a paragraph of Tarimot's dialog, and it would be apparent that he was the speaker without the use of a speaker attribute.  If I could pull this off with all of my characters, I would be ecstatic.

Blood of Two had its share of unexpected events, at least I hoped it did when I was writing them.  Again, I was happy to find out that they worked as I wanted.  One character was expected to go off the deep end, but most of the readers didn't expect the degree of the dive.  There were a couple of deaths in the book, and one in particular that made a reader or two really ticked at the author (mission accomplished).  I wanted to create characters that got the reader hooked, and for the most part I succeeded.

One death scene received the greatest complement I could hear.  The reader told me that the emotion and reactions of the characters around this one death was so spot on that he assumed that I had suffered the same loss.  I was so taken aback that I failed to tell him that I hadn't.

And finally, there was the end of the book.  I agonized over it for months.  It still bothers me from time to time.  It came across as so damned altruistic, but the readers liked it.  That's what counts in this business of sharing the imagination.

The point of this post?  I once read, in one of my many writing books, that if you are particularly proud of a scene, or phrase, get rid of it.  Balderdash.  If after a few edits, you are still proud of it, then it must be good.  I have several readers that will back me up on this one.

Sometimes, it just works.

Shameless plug:
Blood of Two (Drums of Rallinwar: Book One) is available at most e-book outlets.  Check it out at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Diesel, Smashwords, and other electronic retailers.  Buy it, rate it, review it.

One Month In

A month ago today I began my journey as an author and published Blood of Two.  I suppose a writer diving off into this adventure without their eyes wide open would be disappointed at this point, but the results are what I expected.

One month in, I am not a rich man, nor am I a famous author.  Neither of which was something that I expected.  Am I content?  No.  Am I discouraged?  No.  As far as sales are concerned, the book has met my expectations at this point.

This is part of writing a book that is the most challenging for myself; marketing.  I have never been adept at selling anything, including myself.  I think numerous failed job interviews serve as testimony to that statement.  So, this is another lesson that I need to learn.  Hey, I taught myself computer programming and have become quite proficient at it, I can teach myself to market my book.  I hope.

The most difficult part of marketing is convincing myself that time spent in that arena is part of my writing.  I spent two hours last night working on the marketing aspect, all the while pining that I should be working on the follow-up to Blood.  In essence, I was, as well as continuing my work on Blood of Two.

The one thing that I didn't expect when I published Blood of Two was the feedback.  Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have published the book if I didn't think it was worthy.  However, often what I think is good is not what other's think is good.  The feedback has blown me away.

I have read reader reviews of Blood that were critical of certain aspects as well as complimentary of the book.  And for the most part, I agreed.  I was also elated that people that I didn't know enjoyed the story.  My friends and family, of course, have been extremely encouraging, which is priceless.  But when a complete stranger praises my work, it seems to add credence to what I have been told by those close to me.  These comments give me drive to continue.  Hell, even the criticisms give me drive to carry on.

I am doing something that I enjoy and people appreciate what I am doing.  My gut tells me that the sales will eventually pick up, with a little help.  So, I am happy with the process so far.

One month in and I'm not concerned with the sales, my concern lies with completing book two.  In eleven months I hope to do a search for C. Hollis Gunter on Amazon and see two titles.  And I hope that it is received as well as Blood of Two.

Gatekeepers vs. Curators

So many things are on my mind while I eagerly await the final round of copy edits.  I've been working on formatting the book for e-readers.  Waiting for a camper to get in stock.  Looking ahead to a short vacation.  And reading a plethora of articles about the rise of indie authors, which I will soon be one.

As expected, when you read blogs, forums, news articles, press releases, etc., you see two sides of a story and the truth lies somewhere in between.  Reading from the viewpoint of the e-revolution, which includes indie authors and electronic book sellers, you get a celebratory feel.  Life is good.  Publish your book and hit the lottery.

There are a lot of success stories in the Indie world and it is the selling point for that side.  Though the reality isn't quite that rosey.

The viewpoint of traditional publishing is, as expected, all doom and gloom about independent publishing.  According to them, the average author sells 50 copies.  Since they can't seem to provide the reader with the source of that information, I tend to think they pull that number out of their head.

Like I said, somewhere in between these viewpoints lies the truth.  But the argument that intrigues me most is the one that the traditionalists use the most:  There are no gatekeepers in the Indie world, therefore the market is flooded with crap.

I can give them that point, but that is just one side of the argument.

In traditional publishing the path to paper is over-populated with these gatekeepers.  An author pens his story and his query and submits it to the first gatekeepers, the agents.  Stories of great author's that almost didn't get published because an agent wouldn't pick them up are all over the place.

Another gatekeeper is the publisher.  Stephen King was turned away by how many publishers?

I guess my point is that these traditional gatekeepers buy into a book based on what they think will sell, and they are often wrong.  Just as they will publish books that don't sell, they don't publish books that will sell.

As an indie author, I am circumventing the gatekeepers.  There is a way into the building that isn't guarded (yet), and folks like me are taking advantage of it.  We are going straight to the readers; the ones who care more about what they buy as opposed to what will sell.

The reader is the curator.  If readers don't like my books, they won't sell.  If my books are good, they will sell.  In one way, it's not that simple, but in another it really is that simple.

This method of publishing is a win for both parties involved.  The reader gets a book for a reasonable price and the author gets his stories off his desk and into the world.

Traditionalists don't like it, because it threatens their world, and in some cases their livelihood.  So when they paint the cover, it is dark and scary.

Indie's love it because it is cheap and easy.  So their painting is all butterflies and rainbows.

When the broth boils away, we are left with gatekeepers and curators and the reader's may end up deciding which is better.

Almost There

Currently, I am working on the (hopefully) final edit of my novel with only 37 days remaining until my self-imposed deadline.  This has been one heck of a ride, especially these last two months.

Many, many years ago this story took root in my imagination.  It took a few years more before I worked up the courage to put the story to paper, or computer screen.  On my way to that point I read several books about writing and even tossed in a class or two that helped me along the way.

I suppose what really kickstarted this journey was a creative writing class that I took in college.  I was encouraged by fellow students and the professor after a couple of short stories were critiqued in class.  The prologue to the book is actually based on a short I wrote for that class.

I began with several character sketches and shorts involving these characters.  It still amazes me how the characters took a life of their own as I wrote about them.  At the risk of sounding a bit off my rocker, the characters dictated to me how they responded to situations that I put them in.  Tarimot is one of those characters that I created who refused to fit the mold I had imagined.  He holds several of the traits that I gave him, but he refused to be the character that I wanted him to be.  He showed me who he was and though I didn't much care for it; he has become a better character than what I envisioned.

When I completed the second edit a couple of years ago, I began the search for a viable outlet.  In my research for agents, I found that my book was not likely going to get published in its current form.  You see, this story has always been a multiple book story.  It simply could not be compressed into a single novel, and believe me I tried.  After several failed attempts to end the story, yet leave it open for continuation, I gave up and began a stand alone book.

Condr is the main character of that book and the concept is another passion of mine.  I wanted to create a character that would return in other stand-alone novels in a serial type format.  The Adventures of sort of thing.  I suppose Indiana Jones would be the best example of the type of single story return characters.  As much as I wanted this to work out, my attention kept turning back to the original manuscript.

As documented in this blog, earlier this year I stumbled upon the catalyst for this new adventure.  Thus, in 37 days (or less) I will become an Independent Author.  In one sense, this is something that I never wanted to do.  I am, by default because of my age, of an old school frame of mind.  Self-publishing has always been the kiss of death for aspiring writers.  A lot has changed in the book world over the last few years.  The big six continue to charge too much for their e-books, which has opened the door wide for the independent author.  I know several Indie's who have been offered book deals after having pursued the independent route.  This was all but unheard of ten years ago.  So, no longer is the self-publishing route the kiss of death.  On the contrary, I believe it is fast becoming the norm and this belief, in my eyes, was substantiated by Terry Goodkind just a few weeks ago when he self-published his latest novel.

So, here I go.  In 37 days (or less), my writing career officially begins.  It has been a long ride of ups and downs, but I would buy a ticket for that ride again.  At this point, I am happy with manuscript's progress and I look forward to seeing what other's think of it.  But don't think that I will just sit back and wait; book two has already begun.

For now, I am almost there.

So, What Is It About?

So, what is this book about?  Sounds like a simple question in search of a simple answer.  Yeh, whatever.

I posted something on facebook a while back that actually sounded pretty darn good (if I say so myself), but it really wasn't a complete synopsis of the upcoming novel:

"Devon must help his mentor, the dwarf that raised him as his own, return to his fallen home, to die. Along the way Devon loses friends, finds out more about himself, and learns a surprising history behind his step-father. His life changes in unexpected ways, and in the end he braces for even more..."

I couldn't find the complete post (thank you Facebook), but you get the idea.  A young half-elf goes through the character arc, blah, blah, blah.

I suppose this is something that all authors have to face.  How do you write up a blurb that tells what the book is about and in turn, sells that book?  This portion of writing goes hand in hand with all the other aspects; it isn't as easy as it looks.  You have the idea, you know what you want to say, but you don't know how to say it.

So, again, what is this book about?

It is about a half-elf who faces some life-changing experiences.  It is about a dwarf who is going home to finish a job begun some forty years prior.  It is about an elf who comes face to face with his hatred.  It is about a prince who learns that his life has been built on a lie.  It is about another prince who has found that he has held himself back because of his inability to come to terms with a lost love.  It is about a princess who learns that people will lie to her to make her feel more secure.  It is about a kingdom built on hypocrisy.

It is about the ignorance of racism.

None of which will sell a book.  That initial facebook post may sell the book, but it also sells it short.  So, I basically have 45 days to drum up a paragraph that will sell the book AND give some idea about the many facets of this novel.  Again, nothing new.  All writers have to go through this.

I suppose the best practice is to know the answer to the question when somebody asks you what the book is about.  If you are writing a book; do you know the answer to that question?

Day Dreamer

I suppose it is true of most writers, but I dream of what could be.  I can't help it.  I know the reality of things.  I will likely work until a week after my death, at which time I will still be in debt up to my eyeballs, and my books will have sold 16 copies each.  A tad bit pessimistic, I know, but I do still live in the real world.

Despite all of that, I can't help but daydream about how well my first book will do.  Will it be a bestseller?  Nah, but in my dreams it sure as heck is.

So, for the six of you who actually read this blog:
This round of edits is complete up through chapter 17(of 33), which puts me beyond the halfway mark.  The feedback from my crew of editors has been priceless, and quite honestly, I can't wait to get going on the next round of edits.  There has been some valuable information shared with me, as well as some praise on a few elements of the book that I wanted to come across just right.

I am still very excited with this endeavor.  And last night I amplified that excitement ten-fold.  I decided it was time to practice formatting the book for e-readers.  I spent about an hour with the manuscript and the conversion software and loaded the book onto my wife's Kindle.

Pardon me a moment while I slip into textese.

OMFG!!

I can't explain the feeling I had when I saw my book title and C. Hollis Gunter as the author on the Kindle front screen.  I still get all silly feeling when I think about it.  As a matter of fact, my day dreaming just kicked it up a few notches.  I will probably pass out when I see it listed on the Amazon website this fall.

Until then, I will keep on day dreaming.

Declaration of Independence

In the not so distant past, self publishing was the kiss of death.  You would never reach a large audience, and the major publishing houses would shun you once you published your work.  That was the past.

I have done a substantial amount of research in recent weeks and found the e-publishing revolution in full swing.  Will I achieve such heights as King, Grisham, Martin, and others?  Not likely.  Will someone other than myself and my three editors read my work.  Heck yes.

Which has been my goal from the start.

I have a story that is screaming to be heard.  At no cost to me, I can throw it out there so people can read it.  Time will tell if it is worthy of reading.  Don't get me wrong, I would love to sell millions, but that is a dream at the back of my skull being held down by the strong hairy arm of reality.  What I think of my writing is irrelevant.  What you think is key.  I can only hope that you take as much joy in reading the story, as I took in writing.

Over the next three months, I will be using this blog, Facebook, and Twitter, to introduce the World of Nilrus.  Call it a miniature marketing campaign, which at this point will only be seen by friends and family (yes, I need to work on that too).  I won't be doing this on my own.  Teri, Lucky, and Athena are helping me on this journey (in some cases, pushing); without them this would not be happening.  It is my hope to show you the characters and the world they live in and maybe even strike that desire for you to read their story.

At the end of these three months, I will be an independent author.  The novel will be available at most of the e-book venues like Amazon.  You will be able to read my book on your Nook, Kindle, or one of the other e-readers available.  The ultimate judgement of success or failure will lie in the hands of the reader.