Thanks for asking!!! It will be available on preorder for my newsletter subscribers for 99 cents (ebook) and $8.99 (paperback) from Oct. 23-29. Then it will go up to $3.99 and $10.99, still absurdly cheap but the way of the world these days. 😀 I will send out a reminder around Oct. 21 or so. As for trimming, I've finally reached a point where I allow myself to write a sloppy first draft that tends to be quite wordy. And then I cut, cut, cut during the revision process. This is working well for me, though I know others do it the opposite way. All's well that ends well, regardless.
It's amazing how individual writing processes are. It's taken me a very long time to learn that I can't just shove my creativity through someone else's golden method. It's far more like adventurous cooking, take a little bit here, add a little bit of that. And hopefully what comes out is enjoyable!
I'll keep an eye out for book 2 and finish off my current series so there's a waiting slot for it!
Literature and more visual forms of art have much in common. They both value getting the words and the images in the best shape they can be before they get released into the world. That's certainly the approach I take with what I write.
Thank you for the comment David, I agree getting your words into the best shape possible is always the goal. I tend to have to balance that with "good enough" otherwise nothing I write will see the light of day.
How do you know when a piece of yours is "good enough"?
I was a designer in a previous career. I designed the covers of events and special sections for a major newspaper. And you're right, most often the simpler the better. The same goes when I write. The first draft of book 2 started out around 107K. But my final revision is only 87K. And it's much, much better.
Thanks for asking!!! It will be available on preorder for my newsletter subscribers for 99 cents (ebook) and $8.99 (paperback) from Oct. 23-29. Then it will go up to $3.99 and $10.99, still absurdly cheap but the way of the world these days. 😀 I will send out a reminder around Oct. 21 or so. As for trimming, I've finally reached a point where I allow myself to write a sloppy first draft that tends to be quite wordy. And then I cut, cut, cut during the revision process. This is working well for me, though I know others do it the opposite way. All's well that ends well, regardless.
It's amazing how individual writing processes are. It's taken me a very long time to learn that I can't just shove my creativity through someone else's golden method. It's far more like adventurous cooking, take a little bit here, add a little bit of that. And hopefully what comes out is enjoyable!
I'll keep an eye out for book 2 and finish off my current series so there's a waiting slot for it!
Literature and more visual forms of art have much in common. They both value getting the words and the images in the best shape they can be before they get released into the world. That's certainly the approach I take with what I write.
Thank you for the comment David, I agree getting your words into the best shape possible is always the goal. I tend to have to balance that with "good enough" otherwise nothing I write will see the light of day.
How do you know when a piece of yours is "good enough"?
I was a designer in a previous career. I designed the covers of events and special sections for a major newspaper. And you're right, most often the simpler the better. The same goes when I write. The first draft of book 2 started out around 107K. But my final revision is only 87K. And it's much, much better.
Oh a fellow designer - welcome! :)
You had me at Book 2 is in Final Revisions, don't forget to ping me when it's out. I'm eagerly awaiting more adventures with Blue.
How did you go about trimming it down so much? I often find my first drafts are too lean and I have to add to them.