For the past two years, I have participated in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA) contest. It is a free contest open to fiction writers of multiple genres -- General, YA, SF/F/H, Romance, Mystery/Thriller -- with the grand prize being cash and a publishing contract. I have never progressed very far in the contest (and honestly, I don't expect that I ever will ... at least not with The Stewards of Reed), but I have discovered something arguably better than the grand prize -- I have discovered a community of fellow authors all struggling to get their books out into the world.
Several interesting discussions are raised in the ABNA forums. When the lists of those contestants moving forward in the contest were posted a few weeks ago, it did not take long for folks to start commenting on the titles -- which ones they liked, which ones they didn't. I suspect if my name/title had been on those lists (it wasn't, I was cut at the "pitch" stage ... again <sigh>) folks would not be particularly keen on my title. Truth is, I'm not either.
When I originally devised the title, I was reacting to the frustration of not being able to easily tell the order of books in a series (e.g., Game of Thrones). I figured if I specifically included the series name and volume number in the title, I would save people that frustration. I see now that this was probably unnecessary, and that I am left with a rather long, cumbersome title. If I could go back, I'd probably rename the books as follows: The Steward's Sign; The Dungeons of Cetahl; and The Order of the Ancients. Oh well. Lesson learned.
As I mentioned in a previous post, the drama surrounding the publication of The Dungons of Cetahl drained me -- so much so that I have not written anything in over a month. But the time has come for me to start working in earnest on the third (last?) awkwardly-titled book: The Stewards of Reed, Volume 3: The Order of the Ancients.
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Thick Skin
There was a time when I would fret over a slowdown in sales, over a returned book, over a not-so-great review. And while I cannot deny these things still sting, I no longer torture myself with them.
I suppose I could argue that my skin has become thicker in the last year, but I think the reality of it is that I've been able to better distance myself emotionally from my books. Looking back, I think I so wanted my first book to be a rousing success to prove to myself (and others) that I am still worthy. Being laid off from a company in which I had invested more than a decade of my life hurt me more than I had been willing to admit. Having my book "fail" meant that I was truly a failure.
Time has given me a new perspective, however. The rational side of me has finally wrestled the emotional side into submission. The truth is, it is all subjective. Anyone who has created anything -- whether it be a book, a piece of art, a song/album, a building design, a recipe, etc -- opens themselves up for critique by others. Some people will love your creation, some people will hate it. Even people considered "masters" in their field have their detractors.
I have only just embarked upon this world of published writing, and I have a long way to go. The only thing I can do is write more, publish, learn, and write some more. And so I shall.
I suppose I could argue that my skin has become thicker in the last year, but I think the reality of it is that I've been able to better distance myself emotionally from my books. Looking back, I think I so wanted my first book to be a rousing success to prove to myself (and others) that I am still worthy. Being laid off from a company in which I had invested more than a decade of my life hurt me more than I had been willing to admit. Having my book "fail" meant that I was truly a failure.
Time has given me a new perspective, however. The rational side of me has finally wrestled the emotional side into submission. The truth is, it is all subjective. Anyone who has created anything -- whether it be a book, a piece of art, a song/album, a building design, a recipe, etc -- opens themselves up for critique by others. Some people will love your creation, some people will hate it. Even people considered "masters" in their field have their detractors.
I have only just embarked upon this world of published writing, and I have a long way to go. The only thing I can do is write more, publish, learn, and write some more. And so I shall.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
At Last
It is finally done. Two months later than I had wanted it to be, mind you, but at least it is done. I am proud (relieved) to present to you The Stewards of Reed, Volume 2: The Dungeons of Cetahl, now available for purchase at Amazon:
www.amazon.com/dp/B00IS45QB8
When I published the first book in the series, I remember how excited I was to finally get it out there. I was amazed at how many people -- people I didn't know -- purchased it before I even announced that it was for sale.
This time around, I am not so excited. With all the drama surrounding its publication, I feel more drained than anything. I am proud of the book, but I also know that I took certain liberties that may not be well received. Yes, I am speaking of the dual timelines. I tried -- I really did -- I tried to find a different font or some other way to subtly remind the reader that the events in certain scenes are taking place in the past ... but nothing worked to my satisfaction.
In the end, I opted to add an introductory scene where Lady Dinah reflects upon her dead mother (and the secrets that she learned from her mother's journals) to set the stage, and I removed one scene where one of the characters from the historic timeline was alive in present-day. Only time will tell if it is enough ...
www.amazon.com/dp/B00IS45QB8When I published the first book in the series, I remember how excited I was to finally get it out there. I was amazed at how many people -- people I didn't know -- purchased it before I even announced that it was for sale.
This time around, I am not so excited. With all the drama surrounding its publication, I feel more drained than anything. I am proud of the book, but I also know that I took certain liberties that may not be well received. Yes, I am speaking of the dual timelines. I tried -- I really did -- I tried to find a different font or some other way to subtly remind the reader that the events in certain scenes are taking place in the past ... but nothing worked to my satisfaction.
In the end, I opted to add an introductory scene where Lady Dinah reflects upon her dead mother (and the secrets that she learned from her mother's journals) to set the stage, and I removed one scene where one of the characters from the historic timeline was alive in present-day. Only time will tell if it is enough ...
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