Rambling Thoughts After the First Round of Edits

 I know, there's a proper name for this phase of my editing process, but I'll leave that to the academics; I'm a writer.

Yesterday morning I set aside my red pen and orange and yellow highlighters.  What was left behind?  A manuscript littered with notes, mark-outs, circles, and, of course, highlighted passages.  The manuscript is a first rate mess and I can't wait to clean it up.

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I think a lot of people like to utilize YouTube for a little help with projects like changing out ball joints on a 2016 Subaru Forester, or how to change the battery in a 2019 Indian Roadmaster.  I also like to use it to stay focused while maybe picking up on a few things here and there.

Part of my daily writing routine is to watch a random Booktuber.  Sometimes the video is a complete miss, other times there are little nuggets of golden information, lessons to tuck away into my writing toolbox, and even, like this morning, I stumble on a creator worth following (Ginger's Creative Corner).

The most disappointing of those are the one's that exist for only one purpose; to sell you their product.  Don't get me wrong, I think all of us are here in the online atmosphere to sell something.  (Buy my books!)  The part that turns me away is when these creators pitch a thought process that is wrapped around a middle of the video hard sell of a product that will help the viewer with the very thing they are discussing. It happens in a way that screams they are interested in helping you, if you choose to buy their stuff!

I see this a lot from the freelance editing community.  They present themselves as your peers in the writing community, yet in reality, they view themselves as above you and if you want to improve, you must hire them to edit your pathetic attempt at a story.  There is typically an element of discouragement.  A lot of times you catch it in the titles, "Your Cover Design is Wrong!".  (that one coming from a publisher wanting to sell his services)

Some of it is phishing for that sweet spot within the algorithm that drives traffic.  We all know, two things sell, sex and negativity, and writing just isn't sexy (to most, at least).  So, telling the writer how bad they are in the title and even in the content of the video, brings viewers.  It also discourages new writers, whether that is the intention of the creator is left for another discussion.

I take issue with this approach (obviously). Why brow beat authors with a title like "7 Cringey MISTAKES Writers Make With MALE Characters".  The title immediately implies that you, the writer, are writing cringeworthy characters.  And really, the tone of the video does kind of reflect this (at least the short bit I watched).  The purpose of the video is made clear, five minutes in, with a forty-five second sales pitch.  Can't the title and overall tone of the video be more like what the video creator is pushing the hard sell on "How to Write Realistic Men and Women".  

I feel the writing community, overall, should be encouraging, and in some cases, a little more humble.  My way of doing things is, well, my way of doing things.  It works for me, and I'm more than willing to share, but I'm not going to tell you that what you're doing is wrong.

Writing is full of guide wires that can be pushed a bit here and there, and if you bend that guide wire with intent, the result just may be golden.

I Don't Get It

Sometimes I feel like I need to start a post with a disclaimer, and I guess this is one of those posts.  If you are one of these people, don’t take this post as an attack, because I honestly (as the title says) don’t get it.

I have a great friend in Lucky Dunbar, who has done the artwork for my stories and I hope he can continue to do so for as long as I need artwork for my stories.  BTW, visit his Facebook Page at LuckyArt.  But, as he continues to work his craft, he will be busy with other projects and I can’t expect to always be number one on his list.  So, I’ve been perusing DeviantART and finding other artists that I could use in the event Lucky just doesn’t have the time to get something done.

In my journey’s I have found a handful of artists that do some great work and their style fits what I am looking for.  For the most part, they aren’t too expensive.  If I want a character art, it costs X.  If I want a character and a background it is X.  If I want multiple characters, etc.  One artist has even gone so far as to show examples of what you would get for so much money, with the explanation that more complexity equals more money.  Very customer friendly, and since they only have certain times when they are available for commission work, I can assume business is good for these artists.

Then there is the, what I consider, not-so-customer-friendly artists.  You almost get the feeling that if you have to ask how much, then it’s too expensive for you.   

Now, let me make something clear, for those of you who are not familiar with DeviantART.  This is not a site for well known artists.  You won’t find Vellejo, Parkinson, Bell, or Kinkade hawking their wares (okay, that would be odd for a couple of them since their dead…bad examples, but you get it).  The artists found on that site are talented people who haven’t had the exposure.  Some want to be the next big thing, while others are happy with their niche in life.

So here we get to the part I don’t understand.  What is it about pricing your artwork that needs to be a secret?  Is it too complex for you to give the potential customer an idea of what they would spend if they worked with you?  Why do you shun the apparent model that other artists follow with their pricing structure?  Or, is it a case of “if you have to ask…”?

Look, I know there is some reasoning behind it.  You have a reason for not disclosing your pricing structure, assuming you have one.  But I have no clue as to what that reason could be.

Here is how it looks.  And don’t take this as an attack.  I am simply saying this is how it looks to your average customer with no training in business101.

You overvalue your work.

I am the average customer and that is how I see it.  I don’t see your art as better than the others.  In most cases, your artwork is on par with other people who are more than happy to provide pricing information.  Any guesses on which artist I will go to?

As I said, I don’t understand.  Perhaps you don’t overvalue your work, but because I don’t understand why you want to hide your pricing structure, that is how I see it.  Not only is that how I see it; that is how the average customer sees it.  The sentence “If you have to ask, it’s too much.” can be read from two different perspectives.

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.

Life is Good

In a matter of hours, my wife and I will be breaking away on a motorcycle adventure.

The house will be left in the care of our adult children, work will be left behind, cell phones will be playing our favorite music, and we won't have a care.

This is our first vacation without children.  As much as I would like to have them all along (work got in their way), I am looking forward to spending a couple of weeks with the woman I am still in love with.

We have seven days to make a 22 hour drive to Walt Disney World.  If something catches our eyes on the way down, we have plenty of time to stop and gawk.  We'll be exploring a couple of National Forest's, combing a few beaches, and finding every opportunity to enjoy the moment.

At Disney, we will be celebrating our 25th anniversary.  Twenty-Five years and that woman still gives me that funny feeling in the pit of my stomach.  There is no other person in this world that I would rather spend my life with and this adventure, in many ways, reflects our life-long relationship.

Life is Good.

I'll be back later this month.

BTW.  I am just a few chapters shy of completing the rough draft for book two.  After that, the extensive editing process begins.  I really feel that my writing has improved since Blood of Two.  So much so, that I feel the need to go back and edit that book again.  If time allows, I may just do it.  One of the beauties of the e-book.

Life is good.

The Most Intelligent Orc in the World

This title has been available for a week or so, but I was waiting until it hit most of the markets before I announced it.  As opposed to giving daily updates on its availability.

It's a freebie, and another installment in my Tales From Nilrus project.  Princess Elanya is in this story again, as well as Malik, Prince Eldric, Qa'Veck, and General Grunsch.  I enjoyed writing it, and I hope you enjoy reading it.

Here are a few links:

Smashwords

Barnes and Noble

iTunes

Diesel eBookstore

KOBO

Sony eBookstore - this link is to my author page as they do not have this story yet.

Progress on book two for the Drums of Rallinwar series is going well.  I hope to complete the brain purge (rough draft) within the next couple of weeks.  Full bore editing will begin in June, with a target publishing date somewhere in September.

Know What to Expect

When I jumped into the world of becoming and Indie author, I pretty much knew what to expect.  Or, I suppose, more of what NOT to expect.

I was not going to become an overnight success.
I was not going to make millions on my one title.
I was not going to grab the attention of a major publisher.
I was not going to let any of this slow me down.

It is really quite amazing to see how many of my peers expect the opposite.  I know of one author (and have read of many more like her) who published her book and expected it to sell in blockbuster numbers.  One of the problems was that the extent of her energy ended when she published the book.

Several weeks passed and her sales were non-existent.  She vented on her personal Facebook account about how people she thought were friends had obviously not supported her by purchasing her book.  That vent was the first time many of her friends even knew she had written a book.

Never mind the quality of work.  If you do not expend energy on marketing, you lose.  Unfortunately, there are a million ways to lose on marketing.

Research, research, research, research.  Before you publish and after you publish, research.  One marketing path may work for one author and fail for another.  A lot of it is a gamble, so you have to decide which avenue is worth the gamble for you.

I recently ran an advertisement on Goodreads.com because of the success stories I had seen about it.  It is relatively inexpensive, and it reaches my target audience.  I have sold books because of this campaign.  Not a lot.  I still have my day job, but through that campaign, I was able to reach more people.  My audience has grown, and I only spent the money I felt I could afford to lose.

The Leaf Pendant was released as a freebie.  Yes, it is another story, but it is also another marketing tool.  And this one cost me nothing.  That short story has garnered sales and increased the size of my audience.  I have broadened my exposure.

I didn't expect the world to know C. Hollis Gunter when I published Blood of Two, I did expect to have to tell the world who I was.  Nobody will open up their web browser and google your name if they don't know your name.  So, tell me, why do you expect instant sales of millions and an invite to Oprah?

I hesitate to call marketing work, because I have seen work (from a distance) and that ain't it.  Marketing takes time.  Time that could be spent writing your next masterpiece.  Your next masterpiece won't matter any more than your first if you don't spend some of that time to spread the word.

If you write, and that is all you want to expend your energy on, then know what to expect.

Looking Back

2012 is winding down and instead of waiting around for its grand exit, I figured I would take a look back at the year now.  And what a year it was.

In January I was sitting on a completed rough draft of Blood of Two feeling a bit discouraged.  I had shelved the manuscript because it was the first of many in that story line, which is not an easy sell for a first time author.  Don't take that wrong; I don't walk away from difficulty, but from what I understood it was such a hard sell that it would be counter-productive.  So, Blood was shelved and work was underway on a stand alone novel .

Progress on Condr (the stand-alone novel) was labored, which is why I felt discouraged.  It is, without a doubt, a story that will get written, but it now sits on the shelf where Blood of Two once resided.

In May I purchased a cheap book for my Kindle.  The story was engaging, though the prose was littered with errors.  Even some of the phrases used had no business in a fantasy setting.  I was quite surprised to find that the author was an Indie.  No publisher had gotten their hands on the manuscript (and it showed), but it was selling.  Thus began my travels down a road that has really changed my life.

I began in earnest to edit Blood of Two, with a little help from my friends.  A breath of life had permeated my writing and the obsession has yet to subside.  In August I published Blood of Two and in September I began its follow-up.

Sales have been as expected, which is honestly unimpressive to the outsider looking in.  For those in the industry, which I am now a part of, my sales are considered average.  Again, sales of Blood of Two are going as expected.  I have sold more books than I have friends, and have gotten positive feedback from people that I have never met.  All things considered, life is good.

Since Blood of Two went on sale my writing life has been divided between actual writing, marketing research, and marketing.  Busy is the word.  I work, then I come home and write.  Life is good and life is different.

As 2012 winds down I find that I am now a writer.  I am a published author.  Strangers have seen what bounces around in my head and they approve.  On one hand this is surreal, on the other I can't help but think 'It's about damn time'.

As I move into 2013 my goals circulate through the veins of writing.  I have a short story about Celeste that I intend on releasing as a freebie.  I have two others about Princess Elanya, one of them a bit more light-hearted than most of my writing, and another story about Jaron Senith's nephew, Alik, who is shaping up to become a player in the Drums of Rallinwar storyline.  And, of course, the follow-up to Blood of Two is in the works.

Looking back, 2012 wasn't busy at all.  At least not compared to 2013.

25 Words

When I sit back and look at my latest predicament, I just have to laugh.
I have written a book, several short stories, and have been plugging away at another book, so one would assume that words are not difficult for me to string together.  One would be wrong.  The most difficult part of writing, for myself, is coming up with the synopsis, the blurbs, and the tag lines.  Somewhere in this pile of blog posts, I fretted over the synopsis.  Now, I have spent weeks trying to come up with 25 simple words.

After quite a bit of research, I have come across an inexpensive, yet productive, method to market my book.  All I have to do is come up with 25 words to put on the ad.  Simple enough.  It will come to me in due time, I am sure, but what a mess this is.  I have a document open on my laptop where I have typed random lines of text in reference to Blood of Two.  I leave whatever I type and read over the lines from time to time to see if anything strikes a chord.  Nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.  %$@#

It's funny; it really is.  I know the book and what it is about; hell, I wrote the dang thing.  But for some redonkulous reason, I just can't come up with a good tagline.  It's like the guy who can build a hot rod from the ground up, but can't figure out how to put gas in it.

Shameless plug:
Blood of Two by C. Hollis Gunter.  Find it on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Deisel, Kobo, Smashwords, or other e-book outlets.  Simple instructions:  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.

If You Read it, Review it

An honest review is as good as gold.

The world of independent publishing is populated with get-rich-quick schemers.  Formulae are being developed and some claim they have found perfection in theirs.  Write a book, e-publish it, market it through social networking, purchase online reviews, write another within six months, rinse and repeat.  By book number 3 (or five depending on who you believe), you will be able to quit your day job.

Did you catch that little piece about purchasing online reviews?  They are available for purchase, and not just for books.  And do you really think someone is going to pay for a review that is not a positive review?

I will say it now:  If you purchase a review for your book, you are NOT an author.

This practice does not bode well for the serious writer.  As a reader, if I surf around on an online retailer and find a 99 cent book that has a plethora of 5 star reviews and that book sucks, I will be wary of the next 99 cent book with a five star rating.  Eventually, if I get bitten enough, I will view all 99 cent books as useless crap.  Which, by the way, I do.

I like to support my fellow independent authors, so I have purchased quite a few titles written by them.  I have come across quite a few gems, but I have also found books that should have been left on a hard drive that was about to crash.  Almost every one of the hack jobs that I have read had nothing but positive reviews.

If every review for your title is an honest review, you will NOT have an overall five star rating.  Somewhere in that list of reviews, someone will give it less than five stars.  It is a fact of life.  People's taste in fiction is different.  What one person loves about your book, another will absolutely hate about it.  In the world of the internet, people are not afraid to tell you how they feel.

Don't believe me?  Check out the reviews for some of the classics on Amazon.  Take a gander at George R. R. Martin's reviews for his latest book, and everything this man touches lately is gold.

Bottom line:  The industry needs honest reviews.  Whether you liked the book or not, your review can be helpful to the author.  Maybe you disliked an element that the author thought they pulled off well, and you pointing it out brings to light a way for them to improve.  Maybe the book is just crap and readers need to be warned off of it.  Write the review.  Be honest.  Be tactful.  If you are hateful, or attack the author, the review will likely be ignored.  Have I said it yet?  BE HONEST!  I mean this whole-heartedly.  If you don't like my book I want to know why, and I believe most true author's should be like this.

If you read it, review it.

And I mean it.

Anybody want a peanut?

Vacation is Over

Blood of Two was published some three weeks ago and I took some time off from writing.  Last week I took off from my real job.  Today; I am back.  Back and excited for what is to come.
This evening I will dive back into book two and the thoughts churning through my mind have me anxious to put them in print.  The people in my head have been quite active these past few weeks.

A large part of my excitement is the feedback I have received from Blood of Two.  To be honest, I didn't expect much, but a couple of reviews on Amazon, and some comments from people I know have been more than encouraging.  Sales have been what I expected, being a debut novel and I can feel this train gathering momentum as it chugs away from the station.

My target date for book two is August of 2013.  I would love to have it out sooner, but I am not going to force the process.  For myself, there are a lot of steps in the process of making a publishable novel and to skip those steps would be to create a substandard work.  I will not push out a book that isn't ready for the reader.

One thing that kept coming back to me these last three weeks:  I am a writer.  Of all the things that I have been labeled throughout my life, this title has its own special feeling.  It is something that I have wanted to be for a long, long time.  I am a husband, a father, a brother, a son, and soon to be a grandfather, all of which have significant meaning and a special place in my life, but now, I am also a writer.  My brother is a photographer, my son a musician, and me, well, I am a writer.  Damn that feels good.

Vacation is over.  Time for me to get back to being a writer.

Lessons Learned

Now that the dust has settled on my start into this e-publishing adventure, I thought it might help others if I shared a few of the things that I have learned through this process.  By no means am I an expert now.  I think it's safe to say that I know just enough to get the job done.  I still have a lot to learn, but here is what I have learned to this point.

There are several resources available to the new author, and the more you read the more prepared you can be.  One of the first things you have to remember in the world of e-readers is:  What you see is not what you get.  By this I mean that your manuscript, as it appears in MSWord, is not as it appears on a Kindle, Nook, or the plethora of other mechanisms.  You have to take that wonderful manuscript and butcher it up to make it look good.

The best place to start is BEFORE you begin your manuscript.  Unfortunately, most of us don't know this until we have spent many long hours on our manuscript.  So, be prepared to spend hours doctoring up your work.  Be patient.  Don't skip any steps in the process, it will only prolong the process.

Save your original manuscript and modify a copy of it for the conversion process.  This way, you always have the original to fall back on.

A good starting point is to read David Dalglish's blog entry on this subject.  It is a good quick-and-dirty look at prepping your manuscript, but it is not the end all.  There are aspects of the journey that he doesn't cover, but I would consider this a must read.  Especially for those of you who are not on friendly terms with your computer.

Amazon Kindle

Step one is to download a free copy of Building Your Book for Kindle.  Give it a read at work, during your breaks of course.  Then open up your manuscript and just follow the instructions in the book.  Again, don't skip any steps in the process (especially the table of contents part...).
Amazon actually makes this whole thing fairly simple.  Once you have finished following the process that the book spells out, you will have an html file ready to upload to Amazon.  The most challenging part for me was formating the book cover correctly.

Smashwords

Download the free copy of the Smashwords Style Guide.  Just like with Amazon, follow the instructions in the guide, and do not skip any steps.
Smashwords is bit more demanding than Amazon.  This is because of the premium outlets like Apple and Barnes and Noble.  Your electronic book has to be formatted properly before they will send it on to other outlets.  Keep in mind, the 'meatgrinder' at Smashwords will not catch some formatting errors.  So even though your book may be approved by the software, issues can still exist.
When I uploaded my book the first time, I saw that text on the left hand side was cut off on Apple devices, and the map in my book would not show, yet the 'meatgrinder' accepted the book.  When the book completed the second step of the process (real people taking a look at it), I was instructed to fix these things.  Without a doubt I lost some sales here, because before the book made it to the second part of this process several people had already viewed the sample and most likely written it off because of formatting errors.
Again, do not skip any steps outlined in the style guide and you can avoid losing sales.  Take your time going through all this.  I know, you're ready to get your book out there, but getting in a rush will cost you.

Createspace

So you spend several hours working on your manuscript formatting it in silly ways to translate to the multitude of e-readers.  You head is stuck in the what-you-see-is-not-what-you-get mode.  Go eat a sandwich, watch TV, mow the lawn, whatever you need to do to get out of that mode.  Because when it comes to creating the print version with Createspace, what you see IS what you get.

Quite frankly, the print version of Blood of Two is embarrassing.  I love the cover, but the inner content looks cheap.  It looks cheap because I failed to make it look like a standard book.  Set up your word processor to reflect the print size of your book.  In my case it was 6x9.  Once you do that, grab a book off your shelf and see what you can do to make your document emulate that professionally published book.  What you see on your computer screen is what you will see on the printed page.

Again, take your time.  You want your book to look its best.  Take no shortcuts.  You took months to write your book, take a few hours to present your book at its best.  Do not make the same mistake I made.

I know there isn't much here, but the main thing to remember is patience.  Don't think that you will go home on a Tuesday night and be published by the time you head to bed.  While it is very possible that will happen, you can't jog into the process with that attitude.  Take your time to do it right.  It doesn't matter if you've written a masterpiece if people can't read it.

Drums of Rallinwar Book One: Blood of Two

It's here!

I know I've been a bit quiet for the last week or so, but it has been with good reason.  Blood of Two is now a published book.  It has been a stress filled weekend with manipulating the manuscript to meet the different requirements of the varied electronic formats, but book one is now behind me.

The book is available at Amazon.

And it is also available on Smashwords.  This site has it available under multiple formats: Kindle, epub, rtf, pdf, lrf, pdb, and txt.

The print version should be available on Amazon sometime this week.  Sometime over the next couple of weeks it will also be available at other electronic outlets such as Barnes and Noble, iBooks, etc.

If you read it and enjoy it (my ultimate goal), please take the time to give it an honest review at whatever outlet you purchased it from, and spread the word.  Recommend it to a friend, or enemy for that matter...

Honestly, because of the route I have chosen, word of mouth is important to this book's success.

I hope you enjoy Blood of Two, and I look forward to bringing you many more books.

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.

Coming Soon

People keep asking me if I am excited.  The simple answer is:  No.  I am anxious.

Just how will this book do?  I don't expect to sell more than a few copies, but those few who purchase it; how will it be perceived by them?  Friends, family, I mean no offense, but you are supposed to tell me you like it, even if you don't.  So, if you tell me it is good, by default I won't believe you.  Now, if you tell me you didn't like it, then I just might believe you.  However, if a complete stranger likes my book, then maybe I have hit on something.

Kind of weird when you think about it.  This is one of those few cases where someone would trust a stranger over family or a friend.

No, I am not excited about the impending release.  I am nervous as I could possibly be (translated to southernese:  Nervous as all get out).  I have spent a considerable amount of time (just ask my neglected wife) on this book, and it is an awful thought that it could just plain suck.  Nervous, nervous as can be.

Anyway, the book will be released in electronic and print format sometime between now and August 31.  I do hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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.

Is It Greed?

I'm torn, and I know that part of my thinking is due to the fact that I really don't much care for this particular author as a person.  We have never met, but through his interviews and such there is this pompous air about him.  Who knows, if we met I would probably like the guy.

A very successful author (and I do mean very) recently released a book through self-publishing means.  This is a good thing for him, because now he will make the money that he has earned through his success by cutting out the major publishers take.  This also highlights the relevance of the young e-reader in the book world.  Overall this is a good thing for him, for myself and the countless other independents out there, and for the customer.

Through traditional channels, this book would have been north of $15 for an electronic copy.  By bypassing the publisher, this book is available for $8.99.  And this is where I am torn.

While the price point for most Indie's is between $.99 and $5.00, this $9 price seems a bit extreme.  Publishing an electronic book can cost nothing.  Granted, this author probably spent some decent coin on marketing and editing, because he can, in the grand scheme of things that cost is likely negligible.

This book will probably sell close to a million copies because of his track record.  With Amazon, the author pulls in up to 70% of sale.  This author stands to make close to 6 million on this one release.  Divide that in half and it is still a significant amount.  So, is he charging too much?  It is less than what the publisher would charge, so the customer is still getting a decent deal.

Maybe it is the perfect price.  The customer gets a decent deal and the author hits the lottery.

Maybe I'm just jealous?

I don't know that I could charge more than $5 for a book, I think especially if I sold millions.  For myself, $5 is a fair price to ask.  Anything more just seems greedy.  I could be wrong, maybe he has spent millions in promoting this new book.  I just don't know.  I tend to like the path of providing the customer with a quality product at a fair price that benefits both myself and the reader.  Nine bucks just doesn't do it for me.

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.

The Growth of Independence

Jump into the way-back machine, okay, maybe not so way-back.

Books in electronic format have been around for a bit, but really, the Kindle really brought the written word into the modern age.  Resistance was there, and I was one of them.  I like the feel, the smell, the look of a printed book in my hand.  Not to mention the aesthetics of a physical representation of my purchase.  Regardless of my resistance, e-readers are everywhere, and more and more people are embracing this technology on a daily basis.  The traditional publishing houses still resist.

When Amazon brought us the Kindle, they warned that those $5 books wouldn't last; the publisher's were already resisting then.  Today, when you shop for a new e-book on Amazon, you will see one line; "the price was set by the publisher".  Is this their way of saying "we tried to tell them it was too much"?

Without getting into the whole argument about why, or whether the price is justified, let me just say that in most cases the paperback is cheaper than the electronic version.

But, this is a good thing.  Because of the arrogance of the Big 6, readers have found some quality independent authors.  If you scan some of Kindle's top selling lists, you will see they are skewed more toward the indie's.  Writers are finding out that they can do just as well, and in some cases better, on their own as if they had signed a big contract .

How long will this go on?  Seems to me that is up to the big publishing houses.  As long as they try to sell their books at the prices they are trying to sell them at now, readers will gravitate towards the independents.

Personally, I think the big houses should charge more.

I Have A ... Goal

For many years I have had a story in my head, at some point the howling of the characters forced my hand and I began to put this story on the page.  It is a big story; maybe not as big as The Wheel of Time series, and probably not as short as the fantasy standard trilogy.  Regardless, that first book was not a stand alone story, no matter how hard I tried to make it so.

And that is where this new journey began.  You see, getting Book One of many published through traditional means is improbable, at best, for an unpublished writer.  I didn't find this out until Book One had been through a couple of edits.  I was discouraged when this knowledge came to light, but I set aside that passion and began a new, stand alone, book.  Unfortunately, my heart was still with the characters and story line of Book One, which left the new project hollow and, at times, stagnant.

During one of these periods of no writing, I did a lot of reading.  I sought out newer fantasy novels by authors that I was not familiar with.  I wanted to see what was selling in the market.  I wanted to see if some of my ideas could sell.  This led me to the inspiration behind my change of path; David Dalglish.

David is an independent author, as in not tied to one of the big publishing houses.  And from what I can tell, he has been quite successful.  His books are well done and I highly recommend you read them.  They do have a few (very few really) editing issues, mispelled words, wrong words, etc. and a handful of phrases that just don't fit in a fantasy setting, but altogether well written.

I bring up the editing and phrases, not to bash Mr. Dalglish, but to bring up a point.  This was something that I feared with my own writing.  How could I publish something that had not been through the "process"; the process where an agent sends the manuscript back to me several times, and then an editor at the publisher takes a few pokes at it?  That process refines a somewhat rough work and results in the printed book that you purchase at the store.  David has shown me that it doesn't have to be perfect (or near perfect) to sell.

With all that rambling, I guess the bottom line is that David Dalglish has inspired me to pursue the once forbidden path of self-publishing.  I have imposed a deadline on myself and I have thirty-three chapters to edit, three of which will be a complete re-write.

My goal?  Publish my book in September of this year.  My dream?  That people enjoy it.