So once again the stage of finding a cover for my book has been completed. This is an interesting process… I really look forward to being able to pay for custom artwork at some point in my work, but for now finding good pre-generated covers is just part of the process.
The artist I use (guy named James) is pretty consistent. Some of his covers are very, very not for me, but by that token I’m sure there are people out there who don’t like the covers I choose. And of course these aren’t a perfect fit, but I think most of them are pretty good!
Anyway, nice to have that step done… and I think that will be it! When I get that artwork in, I am going to put it on the book (which is edited and ready to go!), and then decide if I want to spend far too much on advertising for the holiday season for a very-not holiday related novel.
But this is good, since I want the novel out in 2020, and this looks like it will actually happen!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Good news for loyal readers!
Well, it’s official. Barring major calamity, I will be releasing a 3rd novel this year! Who said nothing good happened in 2020!?
All joking aside, the groundwork has been prepared, and the novel itself is in good shape. I am really proud of my first leap into YA, and lovingly refer to “The Queen of the A.I.s” as “How to Train Your Dragon meets The Matrix”. It’s funny! It’s touching! It’s got some great space battles, and a handful of awkward not-quite-kids doing some amazing things and maybe, just maybe, saving their entire planet in the process.
I think it will be nice to send this story out into the wild. And after I finish this, I get to start working on my next novel which will be… I don’t know! Ah, the joys of the unknown… I am actually really excited about getting to start an entirely new story from scratch. It’s been almost 7 months since I’ve done that! Far too long.
Anyway, I am already hunting for a cover, and there are some pretty strong contenders. Hopefully I can have one picked out for next week! Oh, and somehow find time to read “Anthony and Cleopatra” by Monday. Piece of cake, right? Right.
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
First Snowfall
“First” is a weird concept in many ways. I mean, this isn’t the first snowfall of 2020 (that would’ve happened back in January), and it’s certainly not the first snowfall in the winter of 2020 in any meaningful sense (the Canadian North has had snowfalls months ago, and the Antarctic likewise has had considerable accumulation, one would assume).
But for me, in my very localized geographic sense, yesterday was the first accumulation of snow in the winter of this year. And boy-howdy is it a doozy… about 30cm around my home. And as much as I hate going out into the snow (which I do, a lot), I do love staying inside and watching it snow, and appreciating what it does to the landscape. It’s beautiful.
Now, that stated, I can make that observation because I do, in fact, get to stay home today. And I will be spending most of today working on the next novel to come out in only a few weeks! No worries, folks, this isn’t something I threw together at the last minute, but a novel I’ve been sitting on for some time, waiting for the right moment to release it. I think “Holiday Season 2020” is the right moment.
So, I’m going to get back to that, with my continued wishes for everyone out there to stay safe and healthy… and heck, if you live someplace it is snowing, stay warm too!
Reward Reading
Well, I finished all my immediate book-related tasks this week, and as a reward I finally let myself read John Scalzi’s newest sci-fi novel, “The Last Emperox”.
It was, unsurprisingly, very, very good. Light as a feather, heavy as lead, with a plot twist you could see coming but that still was sublimely satisfying. “Inevitable but surprising”, I believe Mary Robinette-Kowal says about such plot devices. It was a joy to read.
One day I will write fiction that’s as good as his, but until then I shall continue to toil and improve and work at my craft such that I can make that statement true. Talent doesn’t just ‘manifest’, and you have to work at the things you want to be better at. I really want to be a better writer, and so… I write!
Anyway. No writing for me at the moment (a lot of reading, mostly King Lear at the moment, which is heavy to get through and even heavier to try and analyze), but I’ll be back at it this weekend when I have shorter work days (although, as is tradition, we’re starting to open earlier and stay open later… whee…). Who knows, maybe somebody with a shred of common sense in the government will shut Canada down again for a few weeks and I can get some writing done… I won’t count on it, but oh will I dream of it!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
No Rest for the Weary
Well, I released another novel out into the world. For the 10 of you who have purchased it already: thank you so much! I know money is tight for almost everyone these days, and spending a little bit of your recreation budget on me and my work means the world to me.
But, of course, as soon as the novel went live (and I frantically updated the cover art because ARGH), I had no time for relaxation or celebration… immediately on to the next novel! I actually have a short story I’d really like to get done before the end of the year, and I may actually have time for that in the coming day or two, but we’ll see.
And then I’m going to prep the next novel for publication so it’s ready to go by mid-December, and then I’m going to start writing a brand new novel! Yee! Getting a story started is always the most fun part! Getting introduced to the characters I’m excited about, and introducing the world/universe we’ll be playing around with. Makes me smile just to think about it!
Anyway, thank you again everyone who has purchased “Tintian and the Chimera’s Secret”, I hope you enjoy it! Please take a few moments to leave a 5-star review after you’ve read the book, since those reviews really, really help to get my work into new hands!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Argh... Typo on the cover!
See, this is why self-publishing sucks. In “real” publishing, there would be somebody else I could blame for the fact that I definitely sent a typo to the cover artist who then dutifully put that typo on the cover itself.
Oopsies!
I have contact the artist, and they are correcting my mistake, but that means a slight (additional) delay in getting the book out. But that’s okay! Eagle-eyed visitors to this here website may have even seen the offending cover and wondered at how such a mistake made it into the final artwork, and to them I can only say that I pour all my energy and effort into making the best story possible, and therefore little things like artwork assets and formatting sometimes don’t get the attention they deserve.
Anyway. I’ve pulled it off Amazon temporarily (it was up for a few hours), and I’ll push it back out as soon as I get the updated artwork, so hopefully by the end of this week at the latest!
In unrelated news, I also made a dead-tree format for Tintian Book 2 (The Mysterious Meteor), so for those of you out there who prefer real paper, that should be available for purchase through Amazon.com! Updated links on this here website, of course, that should take you straight there.
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
EPUB File "Fun"
Ah, converting books into EPUB file format. So much fun.
It’s really not. But it at least isn’t hard, it’s just time consuming and tedious. But it’s gotta get done if the book is going out, so I’m doing it.
Just to give you a quick idea, the first three steps are all Find/Replace commands in MS Word. Find all quotation marks (“) and replace with… quotation marks (“). Basically to make sure that the entire document’s quotes are left-quote and right-quote aligned properly. Then repeat that with single quotation marks, and then with ellipses (…). Fun!
But then you convert the whole thing into HTML, strip out all the formatting, and put that back in with code. That’s okay.
And then find and replace all the correctly aligned quotation marks (both single and double) with code. THAT’s the slow part. Faster now, but still slow.
That’s the part I’m working on today. Which is good, because it’s basically the last part! I don’t do any fancy-schmancy formatting stuff with my books (chapter flourishes or pictures or whatever). Maybe someday, but not for Tintian Book 3, at least. Oh, and I have to get another ISBN… just a self-reminder.
Anyway! Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Edits Done!
Well, that’s the lion’s share of the work for this novel done! Cover art is set, words are all where they’re supposed to be, and all I have to do is convert it into a format that can be uploaded to ye olde Amazon and then it will be available for sale!
Of course, when I say “all” that has to be done, I simplify. The process of converting documents into ebooks isn’t trivial, even in the rude and rough way that I do them. But hopefully I can finish that today (I have an essay to write for class first, but I have 5 hours to do most o that work before I can dive into finishing the novel).
So progress! Glorious, glorious progress. And I have decided that I will, indeed, self-publish one more novel this year, which should be out mid-December.
Anyway, lots to do, never enough time for it! Hope everyone out there is safe and healthy!
New Novel, This Month For Sure!
I really should be better at hitting deadlines. I’m usually pretty good about that sorta thing, honestly… I have an essay that’s due on Friday, for example, that I should have finished by the end of today. But this novel… it’s causing me some headaches, that’s for sure.
Regardless, the current plan is to finish it after my online classes today, and then push it along to the digital publishing sites on Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest. Means I missed my October deadline, but… such is life.
And, hey, with any luck I’m still expecting another novel out in December… one that I’ve had finished for a while now, and I think it’s one of my better ones, personally! Excited to get it out there!
After that one, though, I’ll “need” to write the next novel. And that’s great! It’s been far too long since I’ve had the chance to write something because it needs to be written, rather than edited or modified. So that’s cool!
Right, back to work for me! Hope everyone out there is safe and healthy!
Making My Bed
There was a “motivational” speech given a while back by a military man of some stripe (admiral? General? Somebody important in the USA) that stated the most important thing you can do to start your day is make your bed. It gives you a sense of accomplishment, it focuses you, and so on.
I can’t say I agree with him, but that stated, I rarely bother to make my bed because the moment my feet hit the floor I’m preparing to go running, getting coffee started, packing lunches… you know, the usual sorts of things that one does as a wage-monkey in a modern society.
That stated, today I have a new bed being delivered! In preparation, I disassembled my current bed (a loyal companion for almost 20 years), and it’s all packed away to be donated. And in an hour or two, some skilled gentlefolk will show up to quite literally make my bed! That feels a bit like progress, honestly.
Anyway. In other news, today is the day I get the novel edited, and then digital ready, slap the cover on it, and prepare to send it off into the wild. AND, exciting news, I am 98% sure I will have a third novel to release this year! That one will go live in December. Three for 2020, considering all this is pretty good, I think!
Right! Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
A Few days of "Peace"
Am I the only one that thinks of Tybalt’s speech any time they write the word “peace”?
”Peace? Peace. I hate the word, as I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee.”
Anyway! I have a few days off my other job so I can focus on THIS job and get all my editing done so I can send out my novel to you lovely, lovely people! Should be done by Wednesday (let’s make that concrete: WILL be done by Wednesday), and then live on the Amazon market probably Thursday night or Friday.
There, called it. Gettin’ it done!
Other than that, I have an essay to write for my Shakespeare class (no, I’m not studying Romeo and Juliet… that particular quote has always lived rent-free in my brain), a long walk to plan for tomorrow, and lots and lots of sleep.
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
I'll Edit! Eventually!
I think today I may actually get the chance to dive into the editing for the new novel… of course, I have said that before, but I really mean it this time! I have a little class work to finish up, a meeting with the prof to discuss my test results (I did okay, but not great, and I really thought I did great… but I don’t argue for grades, I just want to know how to do better next time!), and other than that just editing to do! I may actually get the novel finished this week and out before November! That would be keen.
Speaking of which: how is it almost November already! Where did October go!? Man, this year has completely messed with all sense of time for me.
Anyway. Nice to have a chance to get more writing work done, even if it’s not “writing” but just the work involved with writing. But that’s okay! All part of the process!
Hope everyone out there is safe and healthy!
Back to the Grindstone
So last week was a busy week. This week is going to be a busy week… next week? Busy week.
I am sensing a pattern here… and, tragically, I think it’s going to get much, much worse before it gets better. Working at a game store is kinda nice most of the time (current pandemic notwithstanding), but the holiday season is full on bonkers at the best of times.
Still! I have a little time to get the novel polished up and published, and that will be nice, and then time to dive into my studies, essays, and exams before the worst of it hits, so all in all I can’t really complain aside from a general lack of time. But that’s been true now for years.
Just finishing up reading Henry IV Part 1 for class today, and then I have guitar practice in about 2 hours… which leaves me about 2 hours to get some editing done! I’d better get to that!
Hope everyone out there is staying healthy and safe!
Short Week!
Hey folks! Meant to write over the weekend but it was Canadian Thanksgiving, and so that slipped away in a blur of food, chores, and writing, and then I almost didn’t write today because editing!
So, it’s been busy! I suppose that’s a good thing? A good problem to have, one might say.
Anyway, stuff is moving along at a healthy clip, and we’re approaching the holiday season with the velocity and impulse of a freight train… going to be running out of days off real, real quick very soon. And nobody knows what the holidays are going to look like this year, so even that’s up in the air.
Anyway! Just wanted to stick my head in, wave at everyone, and then get back to work. More updates very soon! Hope to have the novel out… oh, end of next week? Before November, at the very least!
Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy!
Edits Returned!
My lovely editor has sent back my novel with some lovely words of encouragement and a whole slew of recommendations. I’ll be diving into those this weekend (a holiday weekend for us in Canada, although it doesn’t actually result in me having additional days off this year). So with any luck you should be able to find the novel available on Amazon in the next two weeks or so!
Other than that, not a lot to share. Week off of school next week (although I have to read the next play we’ll be studying in that time… shouldn’t be too hard, since I managed Richard III in about two days. Lots of reading aloud. For whatever reason, speaking Shakespeare has been the only way I’ve ever successfully been able to absorb it.
Oh! And Scalzi’s new book, The Last Emperox! I’ve been waiting for that one for a few weeks, but I’m going to try and hold off until after the edits are done. And then probably jump straight into it and be reminded about how fantastic a writer he is (and how good I hope to be someday!).
So! Exciting times! Until the weekend, going to try and finish my short story for White Noise (and do another interview for them tonight! That’ll be fun!). Busy busy busy!
Hope everyone out there is staying healthy and safe!
Slowing Down
Well, it’s nice to see that I’m not the only creative getting my butt kicked by this pandemic (and the soon-to-hit second wave that’s already upon us). My editor is still working on the novel, hence why it didn’t release in September (not her fault at all, by the by, since it did take me an extra two months more than I expected to finish writing it!).
Still, this leaves me with some extra time, which is good because I have a test coming up this week (Richard III), and my secondary job is maintaining its breakneck pace. And, of course, probably no time off between now and the end of the holiday season unless we hit lockdown again.
I’m already dreaming up the next novel, which is dangerous (since I’m technically not done the novel I’m working at until I get it back and it goes live), but it’s still nice to think about.
Oh! And new weird business news: I’ve been occasionally hitting my daily dollar limit for advertising through Amazon. That’s unusual (for me). Now, I have a pretty low daily limit due to the strict financial constraints I have (which is a fancy way of saying “I have no money”), but up until a few months ago my ads were never shown, period. Now they’re showing up often enough that Amazon gets to charge me for them occasionally, and that feels kinda like a success. Hopefully it leads to a few more book sales, and I can funnel that back into more ads!
Anyhoo, hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Where Did September Go?
I know it’s been said by many people (myself included) before, but man does this pandemic mess with the sense of time passing. Part of me still thinks it’s April or May, aside from the fact that I am no longer in self-isolation (tragically).
But another part of me is stunned that September just disappeared. Where did the month go!? I suppose I can’t complain… I sent off my next novel for editing, I had an ad air on a podcast I really like and that’s caused a spike in book sales, and I have a short story that’s already been purchased that I just have to finish writing!
Which is what I am going to get back to as soon as I finish this.
Other than that, not a lot happening, other than the slow decay of the Western World. I’m worried about the election to the south, as any sane Canadian would be. But there’s nothing I can do about it, so it’s like watching a train wreck in slow motion. Still, it causes me a great deal of stress and anxiety, but I don’t think I’m unique in any way there.
Lastly, my Shakespeare course has well and truly begun. We’re on Week 3, our last week studying Richard III before moving on to the next play (I want to say one of the Henry IVs?), and it’s been relatively interesting. I still don’t really understand the universal fascination with Shakespeare’s work… but that’s okay. I respect it, I suppose, and I hope to one day get a little bit of the longevity his work seems to hold onto.
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Good Work Takes Time
My (incredible, talented, fantastic) editor still has my most recent novel. This is definitely okay… it certainly took me longer to get to her than I expected, and the pandemic has had impacts on all creative work in myriad and frustrating ways.
Still, that means the novel may not actually drop by the end of this month. I remain optimistic, but a big piece of that is going to be how much I have to change, and how far-reaching those edits may, or may not, be. Let us say I remain cautiously optimistic.
In other news, I have started my next course for my English degree: Shakespeare Tragedies and Histories (or vice versa… same course whichever order you put them in), and we have started with the play Richard III. It’s an interesting one, and the opening soliloquy is certainly captivating. The big thing for me is that there’s no real “hero”. The protagonist is a horrible, selfish, evil man, and continues on his course without remorse or second-thought the entire play. And yet this is considered one of the most compelling characters in all of Shakespeare’s work… Richard has more lines than any other character Shakespeare wrote save one (Hamlet).
We’ve only just begun to really dig into the story, but I am looking forward to getting to grips with this kind of narrative. I usually struggle with stories that don’t have a happy end (this one does, arguably) or moral, “good” characters to follow (this one most certainly does not). We’ll see how it goes!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
Short Stories Are Hard!
I am constantly surprised by how difficult I find short fiction. Longer fiction has its own challenges, no question, but those are challenges that, for whatever reason, I seem better able to handle.
Short fiction is all about conservation and efficiency. That’s not to say you can’t (or shouldn’t) use more descriptive language, of course, but everything has to serve a specific purpose… every word has to be properly accounted for. Longer fiction can be more forgiving here, and I tend to gravitate towards the ability to use extra words for extra precision: saying “a dirty hut” is fine for a short story, but in longer fiction I can really nail down what I mean by both “dirty” and “hut”.
Anyway. This is one of those writer-things that I suspect nobody really cares about aside from other writers. People don’t really want to know how you make the sausage, and all that. That’s fine!
Today I’m going to watch the lectures I was supposed to have last week, but were both cancelled due to external circumstances. I have never liked online learning… I tried to take an editing course through a Toronto college, and I did okay for the first semester but completely crumpled at the second semester. There’s two reasons for that:
1. I’m not a great editor. Great editors require very, very patient attention to extreme detail, and I am the opposite to that statement in almost every respect when it comes to writing, and
2. I don’t learn very well without feedback. I need to ask questions, even stupid ones, so that my brain can sort through the information into a system that makes sense to me. Online learning is about providing alternatives, not about providing instantaneous feedback, but I’m hopeful that Laurier, the university I am attending currently, will have the resources to have actual human feedback to my writing.
Besides, I’m studying Shakespeare for the first time in… gosh… 22 years. I’m going to need all the help I can get.
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!
My Ad Aired!
I think I mentioned a few months ago that I paid for a commercial ad with a podcast I really like (“The Greatest Generation”, a podcast originally about Star Trek The Next Generation, but has now moved on to DS9… and will probably soon be making the jump to Voyager).
This Monday it finally aired! It was fantastic to hear the hosts read my copy out, and they seemed to appreciate my sense of humour and one of the hosts (Ben) even talked about how he loved the cover of “Caitlyn Morcos, Interplanetary Marshal Service”! I got happy shivers at that. The other host (Adam) slightly mispronounced the book title (“Marcos” instead of “Morcos”), but who cares!? They did a great job, and it was fantastic to hear.
Book sales have picked up immediately as a result, and I’m hoping that this will continue to result in a few more sales over time as people listen to the episode on their own time. It wasn’t a financial success by any means (yet), but that’s okay… I was mostly doing it to support a podcast I love, and to hopefully let more people know about my work that will eventually see more of my books in people’s hands (or e-readers, I suppose).
Ooh, speaking of which, after I get “Tintian and the Chimera’s Secret” out into the world, the next task is to make a dead-tree format of Caitlyn Morcos. Ah, always more plans, never enough time.
Right! That’s some fantastic news from me that made me happy… now back to work! Stories to write and all that!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!