Why
Self-Publish? (Or, Why I’m Too Impatient)
Okay,
so I’m not that bad…no really! I didn’t actually think it would be easier to
self-publish. Because in fact I know it’s very, very hard. A few years ago I
worked for Stag Editors in New York as a proof-reader and editor, and believe
it or not, some of our clients were indie authors. So I not only got to see the
plethora of talent available in indie books, but also saw a lot of the
mistakes.
When
I first wrote Conner, I was only eighteen. It was a great achievement for me,
and there are plenty of young authors who are very good, but mine was….well, just good. Lots of people loved it, said
nice things about it, but…it was immature. I hadn’t wanted to write an YA
novel. I had wanted to write a novel for adults. So when I got comments back
such as ‘my young daughter would love to read this’, I knew I had done
something wrong.
For
some reason, I couldn’t look at it objectively at the time. It took me two
years to write it, and it was my first ‘proper’ novel. I had it self-published
for friends and family, but never sold more than a few copies. So I left it,
and went off to write the sequel, Erin. Then I left that one because I felt as
though I wasn’t sure what to write after Chapter 12. And then I went off to
write some short stories, and to start my next novel.
Then
back in April, I came back to it. I had almost given up on the idea of Conner
ever being something that would be published, or indeed ever seen. Nothing more
than a sad story to tell my grand-children round the fire when I’m old. “Well,
children, I once tried to do something, and got lazy….”
I
didn’t want that though! So I rolled up my sleeves, sat down at my laptop, and
began to write again. I absolutely pulled Conner apart. I considered what would
set it apart from a YA novel-it isn’t as if I don’t read, I do, and have a
collection of around 3000 books scattered around the cottage, much to my
boyfriend’s amusement. Whole chunks of Conner were taken away, others were
changed, and brand spanking new parts were put in. Then I checked it again, and
again, and again.
And
then I still didn’t go for it. Because first I wanted Erin finished, so that
they would match up. So now I had to finish Erin. It had sat on my hard-drive
for nearly two years untouched, and now I wrote over 63,000 words in a week.
Why? Not because I had found my ‘muse’, or because my life suddenly cleared up
and got easier (although there was a much loved family member who died the year
before, so obviously I couldn’t write then). It was because I had Grown Up.
Because I had realised that if I ever wanted anyone to read my book, I was damn
well going to have to think about the advice I had been given, and ACT on it.
This was the most important lesson I’ve learned, that had finally sunk in.
Instead of ignoring criticism, sticking your fingers in your ears and singing
“lalalala!”, you have to pay attention to it.
I
made the cover for Conner, and I didn’t like it, so I spent two days trying out
covers, considering what it would look like, before I finally settled on the delicious
cover that it is now. After all this, I had decided I would self-publish. Well,
you probably guessed that, seeing as I’m waffling on about covers. But why on
earth go for the hard option? And it is
the hard option; a lot of people believe it’s the lazier option. My answer to
that is that I now work about 70+ hours a week.
I
can handle criticism-now at least. I couldn’t for the longest time, but now I
can let it roll over me like air, sifting out the constructive parts. So it
certainly wasn’t that I was worried about rejection. In fact, I reckon all of
the best authors in the world have had rejection. But after the long haul I had
with Conner and Erin, something about them felt different from any other book I
would write. I needed to keep them as they were, because I had stripped them
time and again with my own editing. And having done it for a job, I thought (I
hope! ) I knew what I was doing.
Plus
I loved the creative control, and I’ve always been a little bit of a control
freak-my favourite game when I was younger was ‘The Sims’, and yes, I did try
the thing where you kill them off in the pool. Don’t ask if you’ve never heard
of this, I promise it isn’t as ominous as it sounds…lol!
So
I self-published this time because there was almost something sacred to me
about Conner and Erin. Something that had gone ten rounds with a critic and
leapt up again screaming, ‘Edit me, will ya’?” So I kept it as it is, so that
it will be remembered as it is. And because I love marketing my book now; I thrive
on it, in fact.
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Vigilante of Shadows
Scarlet Rain Series, Book One
Miranda Stork
Miranda Stork
Genre: Paranormal Thriller/Romance
Publisher: Moon Rose Publishing
Number of pages: 267
Word Count: 88,487
Cover Artist: Miranda Stork
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/vYI-jh8Fa48
Book Description:
Aodhan clutched uselessly at his head, groaning. He knew it was useless, because the voice was not inside his head. It followed him, skimming across buildings and land. It had followed him since he was sixteen, and it still followed him today, like a memory too horrific to be forgotten…
Aodhan is a shadow-demon, hardened and cold after years of being alone, after his love, his Entwined, was cruelly taken away from him. He has closed his heart to the world, and now spends his life ridding the world of men like those who took his beloved away, an immortal hit-man…
Arianwen Harris is a young DCI, working for York City Police. When a known criminal is found viciously killed, she finds herself trailing a hit-man who has seemed to escape clutches again and again…but she begins to find herself drawn to his dark charms and roguish good looks…
As their two worlds collide, Aodhan and Arianwen find themselves coming together to escape a far greater enemy, one that threatens to create a world far worse than the one they live in. As they battle to hold back the oncoming forces, fate has another plan; one to draw them together and heal their broken pasts together…
About the Author:
I was born in Guisborough, North Yorkshire in 1987 and have lived in various places around Britain, including Newcastle and Glasgow.
My writing is inspired by various writers, including the vivid characters of Charles Dickens, the imagination of Stephen King, and the gothic imagery of Anne Rice.
My love of horror began at an early age, when I was only three or four. I could read proficiently at the age of three, and devoured fairy-stories, but I always had a bent towards the darker stories, such as the Brother's Grimm's tales...Red Riding Hood was always a firm favourite, although I always felt sorry for the wolf, despite him having tried to eat everyone!
Amazon Author Page:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mirandastork
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/authormirandastork
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