Short post but no less important. For the last thirty days I have been carefully checking and rechecking the stats since the release of the Castle of Teskom. I set a goal of 30 copies in 30 days. Crushed that at the end of week two and then hit a gap of no sales for nearly ten days which was a little disheartening, but then almost everyday since a copy or two has been picked up. Cheers!
My gap years from traditional employment to full time homesteading has given me a lot of time to think and create. Summers are dry and pretty hot, early mornings in the garden only before the need to seek refuge in the shade inside or hike up high in the mountains which we did both this last summer. During my idle time inside I started writing. I kind of let my fingers type while my imagination and mind wandered all summer. Here's a glimpse at the timeline:
June-August - Three months of a rough first draft
September - One month of a second and third draft
August - October - Cover Creation (lost count of edits)
September - October - 45 days of creative edits and another post two redrafts
November - Final proof edit, formatting, marketing, publish!
I enjoyed the process of creating the characters and the storylines. Even the few Easter eggs throughout and few nods to my hometown.
The editing was a beast! I was remarkably unprepared for the amount of hours I found myself with a red pen and rereading the same sentence 100 times for comma placement. Many high speed brick wall moments, but I had an amazing editor who took my novice skills and I soaked it up.
The cover art was a ton of fun (formatting was a beast). I managed to use pictures of the Mokset Hills (no not a spoiler) and the archway is one actually found on this hillside with a few tweaks in PS and ID it came to life.
I have started drafting book two and have ideas about where and how I will do things differently to save time, redrafts and hopefully find an audience to help with beta reading the next draft now that they have read the first in the series. If you are interested leave a comment below.
If you've read the Castle of Teskom, please leave an honest review. I have problem receiving feedback good or bad.
And if you haven't read the book check it out: https://www.homesteadalbania.com/emberintime
Happy New Year! May 2021 bring you great joy and peace!
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