Can writing make you Schizophrenic?

I started a project in historical fiction and it went very well, so well that I started thinking of other subjects even though I had not completed the first project (it’s a trilogy and I am working on the second novel). I am contemplative by nature so this is not a problem, my mind occupies itself with all kinds of imaginings, except that something has taken hold and refuses to let go.

In fact this little germ has proven so tenacious that I even started writing a couple of thousand words about it the other day. It was not much, just a few opening lines to see how things went…they went well! In fact it went so well that I opened up a project book and started developing characters, themes, plot lines, etc.

The next day I started to feel a bit guilty because I still have the first project to complete so, as if in a fit of penitence I drafted up two scenes to write into my historical fiction story. They worked really well too, so I felt much better.

Of course that was not the end of the matter, I soon found myself thinking about my new story and the ideas started coming thick and fast! I have read a couple of works on alternative history, William Gibson’s The Difference Engine’ for example (which he co-authored with Bruce Sterling of course) and I quite like the idea of bending reality a little to create something new; this is where the new story was heading. My imagination was quickly filling up with all kinds of possibilities for this new project, but was I losing touch with my Saxon epic?

Jumping from one time period to another can be quite tiring. I have a friend who cannot read two books at the same time if they are the same genre but different time periods, they claim that it gives them a kind of mental jet-lag! Strangely, they do not seem to be alone, I’ve read similar comments from people on the internet who state that if reading more than one book they like them to be as different as possible, so one might be a horror story and another might be historical fiction and the third might be a non-fiction book. It seems a common enough trait in reading.

I suppose that in a creative fashion this might also be a problem for a writer with two projects on the go at the same time, dashing from the 11^th century to a period some 900 years later where everything is different in so many ways?

I definitely want to complete both stories! The first one must come to completion because I have spent so long on it already, what with the research into a period that I did not know all that well when I started, and because the first novel has been reasonably well received. The second one is just so different and touches on a subject matter that has always fascinated me the way some people are fascinated by fire.

The commonsense path would seem to be that I divide my time up between the two of them, similar to what I would do when reading several books. Of course I often found that I had barely enough time to write the first book, what with work and family commitments, so how do I manage two? Well, fortunately the second instalment already has some 72,000 words written so I can say that it is well on its way to completion, hopefully to be published next year, this gives me some room to manoeuvre with regards to the new story. Time management is the key!

In some ways this might actually prove a saving grace in that there will be clear lines of distinction between the two projects, a bit like an actor appearing in two different roles on the same day. With a little preparation I should hopefully be able to switch comfortably from Saxons fighting Vikings to a subject much darker and more disturbing without losing my grasp on who I am at the same time!

In the Shadow of a Darker Project

I am writing a trilogy of historical fiction novels concerning 1066 but I find my mind turning to something much darker.

It seems that everyone expects me to continue in historical fiction after I finish my third novel but this project that currently exists only in my mind would be very difficult to squeeze into that genre. I don’t want to talk too much about it yet, what author does, but it is very different in every way from The Sorrow Song Trilogy.

True, it is set in a particular historical time, Britain in the 1930’s, but it is a very different Britain from that recorded in the history books, I suppose an ‘alternative history’ might cover it as a label but then it is so much more as well.

I am not setting out to write an alternative history, that is not the main attraction, it is just that the main subject kind of requires a slight alteration to the fabric of British history in order for the story to be told.

Curiously I have the subject of the book very strongly in my mind but other things are developing very slowly. I am not concerned as I still have two books to write before I can begin serious work on this project, but certain themes are already beginning to surface and a rather interesting notion has occurred to me that adds an extra dimension, perhaps a lighter one, to the very dark subject matter.

There are lots of other ideas scribbled down in my virtual jotter but this one has made the strongest impression upon me so far, I think that it is going to be something of a journey for me as it touches on personal experiences that are quite raw and although the subject often repels most people I find it fascinating in a way that others might not consider healthy.

Insertions do not have to be painful!

I suppose it depends what type of writer you are, whether you are a planner who gets everything sorted well before the creative writing starts or if you are more like me, someone who prefers to get the heart of the story onto the page and then go back and sort things out a bit?

There are pro’s and con’s to both systems, of course, it really comes down to a personal choice rather than one being right and one being wrong; it really is whatever works for you!

That said there are times when I wish that I took the more structured approach as I think that it might just save me a bit of time and work in the long run.

I am working on volume two of The Sorrow Song Trilogy and I have about 72,000 words written. There’s a dynamic relationship between two major characters that needs developing to bring a bit more excitement and drama to the narrative whilst the story heads towards an almighty climax.

Now when I was writing the 72,000 words I knew that I would have to go back and develop certain points, events and characters. It is not so much a problem as a need to insert a passage with a little consideration, perception and skill.

When I reviewed the draft manuscript I saw an opportunity to insert an episode that would build up the tension and make the reader (hopefully) care about one of the characters in particular. It also gives this character, her name is Mildryth by the way, a chance to prove her strength of character in dealing with a very dangerous situation instigated by a man who has already been revealed to a murderer and thief.

As this is historical fiction I have to be aware of the chronology of events in both a historical sense and with regards to the chronology of the plot, which all means that finding the opportune moment to introduce this new episode is crucial. It has to fit seamlessly, a fact all good writers understand, into what has already been written, which is where the consideration comes in.

To achieve this I picked a likely spot in the manuscript, marked it, and then read every chapter leading up to it. This gave me a fresh memory of what I had written and confirmed that I had picked the right moment in the story to insert the new work.

Again, because of my preferred style, this was not a one shot deal. I wrote the piece quickly to try and get all the excitement down on the page. Then I rewrote it almost immediately, only this time conscious of the material already written earlier in the novel, the historical background and the fact that female ninjas did not exist in 11^th century England!

Next came the proof reading, spell checking, the enriching of the cultural background and the editing to rid the piece of any pretence of being a historical essay; I sometimes find that my urge to retain a degree of historical integrity can lead me into writing in a very dry and academic style; something that must be amended at all costs!

Finally, if I am happy with the final written piece, I go back and re-read the manuscript again, making notes where necessary, and carry out a final judgement; did it work? Do the characters interact sufficiently? Is there tension? Did I achieve what I set out to do? Was the insertion invisible in consideration of the rest of the manuscript?

Happily, I can say yes in each instance. It did not hurt at all really. I enjoyed the writing and the editing, but you know what, a female ninja might make a good character for a more contemporary novel!

How do you get more people to read your new book?

I find myself in that void between publishing your work and seeing a response. It is a strange place, kind of like I imagine the doldrums to be. The initial excitement of my book entering the big bad world was maintained by the good friends and supportive family members who bought a copy of course, wonderful people each and every one of them, but that is not enough.

Every author knows that the goodwill and best intentions of family and friends is crucial to seeing a project through but not enough to give you a degree of commercial success. Even the copies bought and read by strangers, as thrilling as it is in its own right, is not enough.

The word has to get around somehow.

Don’t get me wrong, when I write ‘commercial success’ I am not dreaming of a mansion and a garage full of Italian supercars, it is something much more down to earth than that. I am thinking of earning enough to cover my current salary. This is because working full time and being a husband and father really does not leave much time left for pursuing the dream of being an author as well. Whatever free time I do get I try to squeeze as much out of it as possible – but there is so much to do!!!

Each day I keep having new ideas for new stories with new characters! Why did this not happen to me when I was a teenager with no commitments and no job? Not that I am complaining, I love thinking things through and developing new ideas in my head gets me through my boring day job, if only I had the time and energy on an evening to sit down and put everything that is that overfilled cranium onto a page or two.

If I could earn enough to uphold my side of the domestic budget then my wife would have no objection to me giving up work and staying at home to write books and do the cooking and a bit of cleaning. That is my dream...although if I could stretch to an Aston Martin DB9 I would not complain either!

Book promotion is the name of the next game. It is a flumuxing world for a novice like myself. There are of course lots and lots of websites out there that offer all kinds of seductive treats for the desperate indie-author looking to flog their latest work to the world. There are many big bad wolves just salivating over every new little red riding hoods that go wandering by.

A good rule of thumb – if it is too good to be true then it probably is!

A rule of thumb that is sometimes true but not always – if you have to pay then it is not a good idea!

This is because some of the better promotion sites ask for a reasonable one off only payment. They also usually offer a number of different packages with a sliding scale of costs that even at the higher end are still reasonable. Good Kindles (http://www.goodkindles.net/) is one such site and Independent Author Network (http://www.independentauthornetwork.com/) is another. I do not advocate one over the other, just take a look yourself and see which you prefer or even if you like both.

Another rule of thumb that is always true – if you have to pay more than a reasonable cost then walk away!

Anyone who offers you instant success but then starts talking about you forwarding money to them before they start to do anything for you, and usually large amounts too, is probably looking to milk you dry!

There is no doubt that unless you get some big shot literary agent behind you or if you already have a large stash of money to call upon then you are only going to get what you are willing to put into this marketing game. It is worth it though. There are some good people out there looking for an interesting read, they just need to know that you have written the sort of thing that they might be looking for.

To begin with I started cheap and cheerful, or ‘free’ as we call it in Yorkshire. I used Facebook and Twiter to begin with. Join groups with the former, retweet other authors works with the latter. This leads to some encouraging reciprocation. Blogging is also free, fun and rewarding.

Goodreads is another great place to be if you are a writer as it is full of readers! Yes, lots of lovely, charming, delightful readers! Get into the Goodreads Author Program, it is free and comes with more benefits than most of your friends!

Of course there is a limit with everything and when you reach it then is the time to start thinking about investing some money in promoting your book. This need not be the money-pit of nightmares. The key is to establish a budget that you can afford and stick to it. If anyone starts suggesting that you can stretch to a little bit more, adopt a John Wayne voice and tell them in no uncertain terms that you are the boss and you will do what you jolly well think is best, which should not include spending next month’s mortgage payment.

Its a long road to success but like all journeys it has to start with the first step, as sure as fish and chips is the food of the gods no one ever got anywhere by standing still, well except those who consider the earth rotating an approximate 800mph is a means of getting somewhere. And do not forget the fun! There is fun to be had in marketing your work because it involves meeting new people, even virtually over the internet, and every new person you meet, even virtually, is virtually a new reader of your work – enough with the repetition!

I’m off to flog my wares now, anyone want to read a good book?

Holding your first novel in your hands

Today I started reading the proof copy of my book The War Wolf from CreateSpace. I have to admit that it was pretty exciting to be holding an actual printed copy of my book! It looks fantastic, but then I would say that; I wrote it!

Joking aside it was a very special moment, even though this is the proof version, which means that it is not yet fully approved. I still felt a kind of reverence for what I was holding; I expect most first time novelists do. It was exciting seeing the image on amazon.com but to have it there in front of me was somehow more moving. I like e-books, in fact I am getting to like them even more having just inherited a Kobo e-reader, but I am old enough to remember when such devices did not exist and a book was just that – a book!

I expect that I will have to knuckle down and stop just lovingly looking at the thing and actually start turning the pages. Yes, I know, I said that I had started reading it, but in truth all I have done is...well...just lovingly looked at it!

More to follow along with a picture of myself and my treasured possession!

Away so long!

Wow! 7 days since I last posted anything and yet it seems like I have been doing nothing but writing!

That is not a complaint, I love writing!

The problem is when you are not a full-time writer then there never seems to be enough time to do all the things that you want to do. Now that my first novel is published on the Kindle I need to get the message out so that people can find it and enjoy reading it.

This is a daunting task because there are so many pitfalls awaiting the unwary independent author. Hard sells don’t work, if anything they just switch people off to your message. Actually, I know that is true because that is how I react to other people who come at me with that approach.

I did have a little success with a softer approach in which I happened to mention that I had written a book in passing; that created some interest. However, you need more! You need a marketing strategy and this is where things get weird.

I want to write books not sell them but then if no one reads them is it worth all the effort and anguish to write them in the first place? The artist in me responds immediately – YES! Well he would, wouldn’t he! I mean, I always stated that my goal was to be read by someone that I did not know and I have succeeded there. They were even kind enough to write a very positive review of my book. The artist is happy.

For the real world it is not enough. For the kind of life I want where I get up in the morning and over a cup of coffee I contemplate character development, plot twists, how to insert a new piece of research, it is not enough. To be able to go to work in my study instead of an office 20 miles away it is not enough.

So now I am drifting away from the actual writing, the act that I love, to look at how to get more people to read my book. It is not all about making money; it is about achieving a lifelong ambition. I keep consoling myself with that thought.

Of course I know that I am not unique, almost every artist has struggled and suffered, even a little bit, but some artists have also gone on to enjoy credible success, so why not me?

For me it is a dream come true, my book has been published!

It is quite a feeling logging onto a site like Amazon and seeing your hard work appearing there and not just that but knowing that it is for sale! What a rush!

After four years of writing, research, re-writing, more research, and then hours of fine tuning, my project has finally seen the light of day. Looking back it does not actually seem that long ago when I had the first idea to begin writing this book, although that is actually incorrect, my first idea was to write a book about how the Saxons defeated the largest Viking army ever to set foot in England at Stamford Bridge, but then I discovered that there was more to it than that. Anyway, I digress, the fact is that without checking my prodigous amount of notes I would not have thought that I had spent four years doing this!

The good thing is, however, well at least I think that it is, that The Sorrow Song Trilogy project has only just begun really; there's two more books to write! So why I am busy doing that I don't suppose you fancy having a stroll along to Amazon and having a look do you?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FBZW76E

And here's my author's page if you happen to be interested:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00FCRZU56

My book has gone to Kindle for publishing

After two days of intensive work at the prompting of ‘M’ (you know how you are!) I finally submitted my manuscript to Kindle last night!

At last, I have written a book and sent it for publication.

I’d like to say that it was easy but it wasn’t. Even going down to the last wire I discovered some formatting problems that I had not expected, but I got them sorted in the end...I hope!

‘The War Wolf’ is not sitting on my Kindle bookshelf with ‘Publishing’ written underneath it, even seeing that leaves me with a great feeling of satisfaction! It feels better than I had expected to be honest, but then I began this project with the idea of following the traditional route for publishing a literary work. That did not work out, got a lot of rejections to prove it, but as the book developed the idea of e-publishing became more and more attractive.

Some might see it as an easy option but I do not think that that is necessarily true, at least not for the dedicated writer. The reason why I spent two days working until late each evening was because I wanted my manuscript to be right. I did not want to see any silly spelling mistakes or careless grammatical errors in the finished article. I wanted people to concentrate on what I got right not what I got wrong.

As a result I feel more closely bound to my manuscript than maybe I expected. I am very proud of it. I think that it is a story that is worth telling; in fact I know it is. It no longer matters to me that I could not get a literary agent interested because I know that that really does not signify anything. A literary agent is just another person expressing a subjective opinion bound by the parameters of commercial success. If they did not see The War Wolf as being a commercially successful book then they are not likely to accept it. I understand this point and move on.

The real litmus test is not the literary agents and, perhaps not even the critics, it is the reader. Obviously the critics can have a massive impact upon a book, I don’t discount that, but you have to stop and think who did you write this book for? It was not for the critics, it was people who enjoy a good story, empathise with your characters and want to know what happens to them. Of course critics are such people, so they figure in their anyway!

Now I wait for Amazon to tell me that my book is out in the wide public domain, it’s like waiting for Christmas morning!