Dark Horse

Way back in July-August of this year, I tried my hand at writing a romance novel with elements of mystery and suspense thrown in.  The book was written in a little under thirty days, but in spite that short timeline, the story was the result of a great deal of thought, effort, and writing.  Thus far no publisher has been interested, however, and therefore I have put together the book for sale on my own.  I recently learned how to “style” a document—a debt of gratitude is owed to the Smashwords Style Guide—and it was much easier to put together the book after going through this process.  For the first time, one of my print novels looks like the genuine article.  I wish I had known earlier how easy the process truly was.  I have already reworked the interior of one novel, and am considering doing the rest.  It is a simple cut-and-paste job; the most difficult part is redoing the interiors on CreateSpace.  Anyway, for readers who might be interested, I am including links to the e-book and paperback versions of Dark Horse at the close of this blog.

Dark Horse

 

Published

A short five months after I first put pen to paper, my novel is published in paperback form.  It's been an interesting journey, a learning experience, and a fun ride.  I didn't really have a goal in mind when I started other than writing a story and finishing it.  It was, without a doubt, the longest thing I'd ever written.  I'm not even sure how far I was into the process when I began to explore avenues for publishing it.  The writing process was very easy for me.  I only struggled when it came time to wind down the story and let it reach its conclusion--a topic I've written about previously in other blog posts.  I have faced a similar conflict in finishing my second novel, something I also did this week.  It has been a momentous week for me when it comes to my writing.  Anyway, I write quickly but it's the editing that takes the longest.  I also had to come up with a good cover for my first book, which was another unexpected challenge.  It allowed me to get in touch with my artistic roots again.  I'd never used watercolors before so that was another learning experience.  I'm thankful to already have a cover in mind for book two, something that will speed up the process when I go to publish it. 
My foray into publishing became reality around midnight last night.  My eBook had been online for a month but now a physical copy is available to be placed in the hands of friends, family, and, hopefully someday, a library or two.  Seeing the proof of my book, unfinished as it turned out to be, was pretty exhilarating and exciting.  First of all, I was astonished that it was ordered, printed and delivered within two days.  Second, I was shocked at how many typos slipped through--I have literally read the entire work about seven times now, so any remaining typos must be really stubborn. Finally, I placed the eBook in a free promotion for a few days.  If anyone discovers my blog via the Kindle book, I thank you and hope you will stick around.  I will likely focus more on this blog now as I take a break from writing.  If my mind lets me, that is.  I didn't intend to write two novels back-to-back either.  Now that I have, my goal is to pursue this writing thing as far as I can.  I only hope there's an audience out there for me.

http://www.amazon.com/Windswept-Mr-Tommie-D-Conrad/dp/1477604987/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339806408&sr=1-1

 http://www.amazon.com/Windswept-ebook/dp/B0082BQLQQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1339769592&sr=8-2&keywords=tommie+windswept

Currently listening to:  Come Wake Me Up by Rascal Flatts