Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Cover Story

Finally making some progress. Well, not in the “finding time to update the blog” arena, obviously. I had great plans, really I did. While I was on my America Tour I and America Tour II, a whole raft of blog ideas came to me. I even wrote them down. When I got home, of course, I couldn’t read my notes.

Buck heads, buck shot and baseball -- now that's a bar
One of the many untold stories from my first US trip


A book store without a huge display of 50 Shades of Grey
One of the many untold stories from my second US trip

Being away for a fortnight, and then away for another fortnight is grand (if you get the chance to do it, grab it with both hands). The problem is, there is that much more work waiting for you when you return, so the inevitable "back home again" let down isn’t followed by a mere seven day pile of overdue issues, but a 28-day teetering mountain of neglect demanding immediate action followed, a few days later, by a somewhat smaller mountain consisting of all the stuff that piled up while you were dealing with the stuff you didn’t deal with during the 28 days you were busy enjoying yourself.

Accordingly, I need another holiday, and fortunately, I’m going to get one. My wife is going to Bath on a girls night out extended over 5 days (just some sight-seeing and medium to industrial-grade shopping with her mates, at least that’s what she told me; I’m keeping bail money handy, just in case) so I thought I’d take the week off myself in order to spend some quality time with my novel (at least that’s what I told my wife, I’m sure there will be some running with scissors, staying up past my bedtime and sitting too close to the telly involved; she’s keeping bail money handy, just in case).

The big news is, the cover for Finding Rachel Davenport (that’s what we’re calling it, in case I forgot to mention that earlier) has arrived:

Cool, eh?

I like it. It’s not too girlie and chick-lit looking, like the first attempts, or evocative of a Peter James or Jo Nesbo thriller, like the second attempts; this one hit the Goldilocks Spot—it’s just right. I see my publisher has also convinced someone to read it so they could put a nice blurb on the cover and attribute it to a real person. Nice touch.

So now everyone is waiting for me. I have the corrected manuscript and am supposed to be working diligently on it instead of wasting my time earning a living. Good thing I have that vacation coming up; I’ll be able to put that time to good use, at least.

Now where did I put those scissors?

13 comments:

  1. Well seen you've recently spent time in the USA. Chit lit? Or chitlins?

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    1. Oops! Meant Chick Lit -- I wasn't far enough down south for Chitlins ;)

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  2. Wow, how did I miss the fact that you are writing a novel?! Way to go! What is it about?

    -Abigail
    www.picturebritain.com

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    1. Hi Abigail! First, YOUR good news--you're coming over! I read about your acceptance to the Capernwray school in Lancashire. Way to go! I hope the UK lives up to its expectations ;)

      But my book, yes, I have one, a novel, being published by a real publisher. (I know, the mind boggles.) 'Finding Rachel Davenport' is about a young woman who works as a travel agent and moonlights as a crime-fighter. It's a light hearted, humorous crime thriller sort of thing, which is hard to pigeon-hole and there's nary a nasty killing or an explicit sex scene (not even one featuring a grey tie) to be found anywhere in it. My publisher, as you might imagine, is very disappointed by that. ;)

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    2. Yes! I am so excited about Capernwray and can hardly wait for the cream teas and drizzly days to begin :)

      That is fantastic! I am so happy for you. Personally, I'm very appreciative of the absence of gray ties.

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  3. Erm, I have a Kindle Mike, (we both have in fact, plus numerous mobile gadgets which have Kindle on them) but we'd really like a paperback copy, so from where and when can we buy one please?

    Other than that, hope you are both well

    Steve & Paula

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    1. Steve & Paula: I will make details available as plans shape up but I expect I'll have a link on my web page and this blog to allow you to order paperback copies. I know there are a fair number of people out there--kindle owners or not--who might want a paperback (myself included) so I'll make sure everyone knows how to get one.

      My aim is to NOT have it on Amazon because that will make 'Finding Rachel Davenport' look like a DIY project and I do not want people to think that.

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  4. I get stressed out just reading about doing a final edit. That is crunch time! May you have a beautiful wind in your figurative sails as you steer through the shoals!

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    1. Ms Sparrow: at this point, the final edit is mostly about changing 'there' to 'their' and deciding if cars are 'booted' or 'clamped' in the UK. Still, it means reading all 350 pages, out loud, to myself, one...more...sodding...time.

      The ironic thing about having a book published is, by the time it comes out, you are so sick of it that you never want to see it again ;) (I expect I'll get over it.)

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  5. This may not be the best place to put this as it's completely 'off topic' but I've an urgent desire to say thank you Mike and all your American followers for the great time I've just had during a fortnight holiday (2 week vacation) in New England. It was a beautiful area to go to and the trip was made so much better by the consideration and politeness of the American people we met and talked to. This wasn't my first trip to the USA but was certainly my best - Mike, you have every right to be proud of your country and it's people. Thank you

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    1. Glad to hear you had a good time. New England is beautiful this time of year, with all the trees turning and the stunning October weather. I was just back there in August and again in September and, yeah, America is a great place, is it not?

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  6. Mrs Baum12:00 PM

    Cars are definitely 'clamped' in the UK, and haven't your publishers sorted the other corrections for you? Tsk!

    All very exciting. I like the cover and I'm looking forward to a read of the book. I want a paperback too. My laptop is kaput (got to decide whether to treat it to a new hard drive or just replace it), the ipad actually belongs to Pete's work and while a Kindle Fire is on my Christmas list, I'm not holding out that much hope. So actual books are the way to go for me atm!

    Be careful with those scissors eh. And tell Shonagh to say hi to Bath for me - I went to uni there and loved it. Must go there again soon.

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    1. Clamped/booted, license plate/registration number -- it's all a bit too confusing. But it's done now; I finally sent the final version off last night, probably 98% free of errors ;)

      Plans for paperback are under way---watch this space.

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