As promised, here's an update on my progress with Eon's Door:

This weekend I'm having my proof reader take one last look at the manuscript before I tell my book designer it's ready. My proofer's name is Diana Cox, and she's come highly recommended by Joe Konrath. Joe introduced Diana on his blog, http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/. Check it out if you're someone thinking about going the self publishing route; he's got a lot of good advice and information. By the way, Diana can be contacted via her web site: http://www.novelproofreading.com/. She's offering new customers a half price deal, so if you're close to publishing your manuscript, you might want to contact her. I'm confident that my book is ready for publication but I'll be relieved to get another person's eyes on it before I press upload. I've come to realize that, no matter how good you think you've edited a work, there will always be something that slips through the cracks.

I have Malcolm McClinton working on my book's cover art. I'm incredibly excited about what Malcolm is going to create for me. He read the book and we threw around some ideas about what should go on the cover. At first, I was thinking more about a concept-based illustration, but we decided an action pic would be more engaging to readers. If you check out Malcolm's work (http://www.wix.com/hangedman/hangedmanstudio), you'll see why I'm so hyped. His work is phenomenal! When I advertised for a cover artist in the forums section of conceptart.org, I had more than fifty responses from over ten different countries. Ironically, Malcolm was the first to express an interest in the job, and I was blown away when I looked at his portfolio. All I did was compare the work of every other artist as his/her message came in, and no one impressed me as much as Malcolm did. Later this week, I'll get to see what he's created.

Last, but not least, I can't forget my book designer, Iryna Spica of Spica Book Design (http://www.spicabookdesign.com/). She's been incredibly helpful and understanding, as I create the interior design of Eon's Door. She's also been incredibly patient, helping me make choices, and accommodating the many "special" requests I've made. We're almost finished with the inside of the book, then we'll get to work on the cover. I can't wait to see what it all looks like when it's finished.

Now that I'm almost there, I'm making plans for distribution. What good is writing a book, if no one gets to read it? To begin, I will use CreateSpace to make the book available through Amazon (both as a print-on-demand paperback, and a Kindle e-book). Through CreateSpace's expanded distribution "Pro Plan", my novel will also be available to other retailers. Next will be Smashwords. Through Smashwords, I can sell the book through Barnes & Noble, Sony, Apple, and others. To promote the book further, I've also created a complete Eon's Door Novel Study Unit that I'll be getting out to educational web sites (some that have an environmental focus). I have a few lined up already, waiting to take a look at the unit and make it available to their visitors. I'll also be posting the free novel study unit on my home page, along with links so readers can purchase the book on Amazon. I still have a lot to do.  

It won't be long now. Interior design and cover art for Eon's Door is underway, and the book will be available soon! I'm very excited about its release. So excited that I decided to start this blog as a way to share the experience of bringing my first bouncing baby novel into the world. I think I'll even hold the first copy up by its cover and spank it.

It goes without saying that most of the work--writing and editing, and editing, and editing--has been done for some time. Now comes the moment of truth when strangers get a chance to read it and tell me what they think. I can't wait. Really. I think this book is something special. I know that sounds like a lot of bravado coming from a first-time author, but I believe it. If you read the book, I'm confident you'll agree.

I'm self-publishing this book. A year ago I would have said it's an indication of failure, that what I've written isn't good enough to break into the traditional publishing world, that it isn't good enough to share with you. I know that isn't true, and the revolution that's underway in the publishing world is going to help make this book more successful than I ever could have hoped had I gone the traditional route. In fact, I'm now relieved that the close calls I received from agents and publishers didn't pan out. Now I get to publish my book my way. I get to pick the interior design. I get to decide on the cover and choose the artist I think is right to create it. In short, I get to make Eon's Door the way I envisioned it.

In future posts, I'll be talking more about the cover and the design, including the two talented people I have creating them. I can't wait to show you what it looks like. The Door will soon be open...