October Publishing Update
According to my calendar, it’s officially fall. Fall isn’t my favorite of the four seasons, but it has its perks. The cooler weather is a refreshing change. October is a beautiful month in Florida. All the sun with less of the heat. There’s a light breeze blowing from the lake across the street and the humidity drops. I’ll be here for another two weeks as I continue to help my dad transition after the death of my mother, then it’s back to El Paso and business as usual.
That’s not to say “business” has been left by the wayside this last month. The kids and I have been doing plenty of traditional Florida pastimes to keep ourselves busy, but I’ve also managed to keep up with my writing. My goal for September was to finish developmental edits on the first third of my book. On October 1, I met that goal. So far I’ve added 7,000 words and four chapters. If you remember from my last letter, I’m taking the novel from a Middle Grade story (age range 10-14) to a Young Adult story (age range 12-17). By default, Young Adult books are longer than Middle Grade, so part of the hold up with my edits is drafting brand new material as I transition this book from one age category to another.
With edits as my main focus, my marketing campaign has received less attention. The current challenge has been finalizing material for my book cover which my publisher will send to our cover designer. Look forward to updates and a cover release in the near future. I’m so excited for it to come so I can share it with you. For so long, my story has been type on a page, but we are months away from it being a published book. Eeek! These are exciting times, people.
My publisher has been busy with two September releases and more in the line-up. You can stay connected with all the publishing updates on that front by following the INtense Publications page on Facebook or @INtensepub on Twitter. Very soon these media outlets will be featuring yours truly.
What’s next? My goal for October is to finish developmental edits for the entire manuscript. This may seem ambitious, but as it’s the first third of the book that does the heavy lifting, the hardest work is behind me (I hope). Editing should proceed at a much faster rate from here on out. Once edits are done, the manuscript will go back and forth between me and my editor as we finalize the material, then the countdown to Release Day begins!
I am currently reading THE BOOK THIEF by Markus Zusak. This thrilling novel set in 1940’s Germany has a unique narrator and a main character that breaks your heart. It’s a longer book, but I should be finished with it before I leave for Texas.
How about you? What are your fall plans/goals?
