Redrafting, and related wittering

I recently finished checking through the latest draft of the book-yet-to-be-titled (I will think of a name. At some point). As expected, there was the odd error in the old stuff and some changes needed to make the new bits fit in better, but overall not too much to do. Earlier today I began actually changing the documents on the computer, and I’ve got to say that the Kindle’s bloody convenient when it comes to this sort of thing. Before I had to use a level arch-file, a pint of ink and seventeen oaks’ worth of paper (and my printer’s ancient, so it would take literally hours to get that much printed). I’ve probably saved more money redrafting using highlights and annotations (avoiding ink and paper and file costs) than I have actually buying books.

Assuming another snag doesn’t arise then the text itself (title excepted) will be done relatively shortly, leaving me with all the finickity practical things at which I am useless. Off the top of my head there’s the ISBN number, whether I can use a pen name on Amazon, whether I can copyright it using a pen name, deciding on cost (I’m thinking of £1.97 at the moment) and (probably the most fun) sorting out the cover. Oh, and trying to make it readable in multiple formats (Kindle should be alright as I can fiddle with and test that myself).

My cunning plan is to try and get all the chapters done (18, including a brief epilogue) before Skyrim comes out, and then taking a couple of days off as a reward and break before getting stuck into the other thingummyjigs.

The first time the technical stuff might be tricky and time-consuming, but hopefully it’ll become relatively easy for the next book.

The present draft is number 5, which isn’t all that high a number, and I think I’ve become a bit better at redrafting (admittedly, I was bloody awful when I first started doing it). Being objective is hard twice over; firstly because it’s your own work so it can be difficult to stay on the straight and narrow between being too harsh and too over-confident, and secondly because liking books is very subjective anyway.

When it comes to promotion I’ll obviously bang on about it on this august blog and emotionally blackmail, er, encourage people I know to buy it. I might try hunting down magazines and offering them a sample. Hmm. Now I think of it, when I get the cover done I could get extra art work and that might help to drum up some interest, especially if it’s particularly dramatic and thrilling.

So, the plan is to update the chapters with the latest changes, then take some time off to play Skyrim (and think up a title).

Thaddeus