Draft one completed! Yay... Now begins editing and redrafting, I've also decided to start working on a street team, That's new I've never had one for any of my previous books. Like I said when you self-publish it's a process of learning trying everything keeping what works fine tuning that to make it work better. Draft one consists of the story, there's no spice there's no major descriptions of any adventure scenes or fights. Draft two I will add those, so you're wondering what I do between now and then.
Well in all honesty I've always just went immediately back into the book and printed it out and started reading it and making my edits. This time around I'm doing something a little different I'm taking pictures of each printed page, loading it up to an app called natural reader. Natural reader will read it to me as I read it in my head, a lot of people say read it out loud. Reading out loud for me has bad memories associated with it, a father couldn't read so when I would read out loud he would be very negative in his criticism. So I have the book read it to me as I read the words, let me tell you this is amazing to me because I can hear how it sounds and see how it's written, then I go back make it sound better and read better.
I'm doing that, and making those changes before I print a second copy of the draft to physically read as a reader. As you know I do not outline like normal people I take notes of the incidents that my characters find themselves in so I can write the report. Having said that that's what I'm doing while I listen I'm taking notes on things that I want to change or I have questions about, or things that just don't feel right while I'm being read the story. I hope fingers crossed, I hope that I can release this book in February... February 14th is my goal date but in all honesty it's not set in stone.
After taking 4 years off from writing because of so many changes in my life and so many stressors that I will discuss in a different blog. I want this book to be one of my best yet, I mean in all honesty I've done three I love those three do not get me wrong, but I also know I could have done those three better if I had taken my time and found steps to make them better.
The thought of a street team makes me nervous, I'm not there yet. But I will be getting 20 names of people who like to read, and they suggest two of their friends who like to read... That gives me 60 people to work with, so in all honesty the book that they get will be 98% the book that will be released. I am writing this story adding to it and changing it with the audience of 60 in mind. That is my ultimate goal, to write the story I want to read so technically 61 in mind but I want to give at least 60 people a worthwhile adventure.
The story is always been easy for me to put on paper, honestly I never reread any of my stories until serenity song. So the editing process is an entirely new adventure for me, and like I said try things they work tweak them, they don't work throw them away and find something to take its place. I'm super stoked at the actual story, like I said right now the story does not have spice or descriptive fight scenes or any real hard deep thinking scenes, those are coming in the second draft.
I want to thank you for taking the time to read my blog, I know time is precious, to me more precious than money. So you have no idea how grateful I truly am that you took this time! Please have the day the universe wants you to have, know that you are enough, and that there's no one in this planet more unique than you!