Blood of the Falcon Is Published At Last!

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After what feels like a billion years of toil, the first novel in my Falcons series is now, at last, for realz, available for sale. Crazy, saying that at last.

So here's the scoop so far. The print version is available at CreateSpace right now. It will take a few days for it to be listed on Amazon. The Kindle version is not yet uploaded, but hopefully tomorrow or the next day it will be. Crossing fingers on that score.

Now, for future reference, all you people who plan on self-pubbing your novels: CreateSpace has a page limit of something like 844 pages (may even be less than that). My novel was like 30 pages over the limit, so I had to publish it in two volumes.

So there's less confusion, even the Kindle version will come out in two volumes. Be watching, b/c Volume 1 will be free for a run of five days coming up soon.

Here are the links to each volume's CreateSpace page:
Volume 1
Volume 2

Don't let the prices scare you. These are big books. 9.21x6.12 in size and together, they probably weigh 7 lbs. I'm very pleased I got to price them at a realistic price, instead of having to jack it up to $20 a piece, like I feared.

In any case, the Kindle version will be only .99 cents per volume (at least for now). When they become available, I will certainly post about it.

Now that the business stuff is out of the way, I'm going to do a happy dance and pop open the champagne. Cheers!

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Interviewed!

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A few weeks ago LegendFire received a new member who called himself by the mysterious username "The Bearded Scribe." Because it is my job to keep an eye on new members, mildly stalking them, if you will, until they prove themselves benevolent, I checked out the links that the Bearded Scribe posted and engaged him in conversation (it may sound creepy, but I'm Momma Bear where our members are concerned). Lo, and behold! Who would have guessed that my investigation would lead to a valuable network with a fellow fantasy author and an interview and guest bloggerhood?

The Bearded Scribe is a relatively new blog at Blogger that will focus on speculative fiction, writing it and reviewing it. If you're curious, check out my interview there. It's lengthy, but it provides a thorough overview. A little about writing, a little about administrating LF.

About that guest bloggerhood bit. I'm flattered and astonished. I always wondered how that happened, and now I know. Not sure when I'll be posting there, or about what, but I'll let you know how it goes.

Cheers!

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My Babies Have Come Home!

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The proofs for Falcons came in five days before I was expecting them. It's like Christmas around here, folks. I figured that holding a physical copy of my novel would feel good. But I didn't expect a high quite like this. Twelve years of labor, worry, tears and doubts are about to come to a close, and it feels amazing. While I've spent the last couple of days tweaking the layout, I would often pause and just pick up one volume or the other and flip through it, sighing or smiling.

One more set of proofs to order, then final release...

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Itchy Fingers

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Like the title says, my fingers are starting to itch. The last proofread on Falcons is complete, the covers are designed, the maps are tidied up, and the whole package has been uploaded at CreateSpace and approved. I ordered the proofs today. The estimated arrival in my mailbox is Friday, May 4! What? That's over a week away! Way too long. I can't stand it. I want those copies in my grubby paws yesterday! Ah, waiting. Why must it hurt so?

In the meantime, here is a sampling of cover art:

copyright 2012 by Court Ellyn

Not exactly happy with the muddiness of the falcon pic, but hey, it's a start. Brighten up that puppy and all should be well. Volume 2 gets cerulean fonts and pics. Cerulean ... a very important color on the battlefield, as readers will discover, so that color on at least one of the covers was a fun detail to play with. Set side by side, the two books will make an eye-catching pair on the shelf. Nice.

So, what's left? A bit of formatting once I'm sure about my margins, then final approval and release. Mid-May ought to see it happen. *crossing itchy fingers*

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FALCONS FINISHED!

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Woohoo! Last Tuesday I finished the major rewrite of Blood of the Falcon! Three days before deadline, too. I was so stoked that instead of posting about it, I dove into the next stage of the project: the formatting and beautifying of the final product. So it looks like end of April might become the release date after all. 

My embarrassing confession is that the text, when formatted in the size I want, is 30 pages too long to fit into one volume. So I used the old dividing point, the one the editor advised way back when, and will be putting the novel out in two volumes at the same time. That way, I also have plenty of room for maps and appendices. I could let the Amazon page limit dictate the content, but because this is a personal project, I feel like I would be untrue to my novel if I let Amazon's thing govern the result. So two volumes it will be.

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Almost There...

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Over a month since my last post? Yikes. Well, it's only because the end of the novel project is at hand and I've been obsessively rewriting the conclusion. Now, there's only one chapter of Falcons left to revise! One chapter!!! This is the week. I'm stoked. Hoping nothing goes wrong or gets in the way. This project went on for several months more than I expected, but it's almost over now. I can almost taste the glorious words "The End."

Back when I was panicking about the number of pages still to go, I feared I would have to move the deadline yet again, but it looks like the end of March it will be. April will be a whole 'nother adventure. I've formatted a novella and a short story for self-pubbing, but never a full-length novel, a novel that, in truth, is long enough to be two novels. That task will take time and diligence and a sharp eye, or the results may be disastrous. Then maps and covers and proofreading. My goal was also to have a website set up before the novel's release, but I'm not sure I can fit that in as well. Me, busy? Never. So here goes nothin'...

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Blood of the Falcon, Progress Report

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Ack, this novel rewriting business is eating my lunch! My brain is on the verge of fried. Honestly, I did not expect rewriting a novel that I know so well to be so difficult. I was trucking along, enjoying myself until about three chapters ago. Then the end felt soooo near, and for some reason writing became exhausting. Is it because I’ve spent a year and a half revising something that originally only took me six months? Is it because I have a “perfectionist” issue? Is it because all those loose ends are starting to tie up and there are too many details for my shrinking brain to handle? I think it’s the latter, actually.

But I shall persevere! Hoping to be finished with the major part of the project and reach “The End” by the end of March. Then comes the proofreading, formatting, covers and maps, etc. in April. That’s the tentative schedule at present.

So, the updated progress report:

Where We Stand This Week

pages left to revise: 65

bad things that happened: a hero faces the demons chasing him

good things that happened: … nothing? hmm, that’s a good sign

Wow, sixty-five pages left is far fewer than I had feared. Hurray!
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