Moving in roughly the right direction...

A bit of an update on all things writing...

The 100 days of writing challenge.

I'm on 28 days of writing, 6 days missed. The ratio is improving all the time - I'm finding a natural pattern is emerging of 5 or 6 days writing, and one not. But as a technique, it's certainly helping to keep me focused on the WIP.

In terms of what do I record as 'writing', well, I'm still flitting between playing in my notebook and physically typing up the story. Either counts. I'm not really referring back to the notebook much though, which some might see as a bit of a waste of time and effort; why bother writing all that stuff in longhand if you're not going to use it?

But I AM using it. The process means I have images and phrases and scenes that are now quite firmly cemented in my head. So what if they don't come out on the computer ('proper') version word-for-word? In those 28 days I've managed to get four chapters pretty well drafted, though they are rough and will need editing of course.

Be interesting to see how I can continue to write this weekend, as we have family staying with us. I may have to sneak off for half an hour a day to get my WIP-fix...

StarMark. 

We are now officially in that 'author-must-be-patient-before-everything-happens-at-once' stage. I do know that there are discussions being had round about now on the subject of blurb and covers, so I hope to have some news to share with you soon.

It's all very exciting, but there's still a little bit of me that's thinking, 'is it really going to happen?' I know it is, of course, but it's a very different process to organising the publishing yourself, like I have with the two Granny Rainbow books. Speaking of which...

More Granny Rainbow.

Authors; don't let anyone tell you the second book is easier and will be a success because you did well with the first and got good feedback; sales of More Granny Rainbow are disappointingly slow at the moment.

Now I'm not one who relies on sales numbers to get a measure of any 'success' - but I had hoped that people who enjoyed the first book would be pleased to see the publication of a second. And then buy it. Either my publicity's not working so well, or there's just no interest in a second.

We shall see. Maybe this time sales are going to be slow and steady?

I'm not going to worry about it too much. I've plenty to do, especially trying to write the WIP while sitting on my hands waiting for StarMark! Onwards and upwards...

More Granny Rainbow...almost there

It's all coming together for More Granny Rainbow!

Imran has sent me two more versions of the cover, to check the text for 'more' in the title. As soon as I've made a decision, I'll share the new cover with you all.

Tomorrow, I have the last little bit of text to add. Once that's been incorporated, the proofreader is lined up, ready to go.

The finely tuned and highly polished version will be pdf'd and then - bish-bash-bosh! More Granny Rainbow will be off to the printers.

Then... it'll be PARTY!

And just because I couldn't leave you without a little teaser for the new book...here's the blurb!

Blurbing

When I walk into a bookshop to browse, the first thing that catches my eye is probably the cover. Something about the artwork draws me in, makes me want to pick up the book and take a closer look.

The next thing I do is check the blurb.

Blurb is crucial. Those words on the back cover? They give me, the potential reader, a taste of what is sandwiched inside that rather attractive cover - and if it's interesting and appealing enough, I might check out the first couple of pages and who knows? I might even buy the book...

StarMark's going to need a blurb.

There's loads of advice on writing blurbs. The main advice seems to be 'keep it short, make it interesting, and pack a punch.' Others suggest including a hint of the plot, the main characters, words that evoke the genre, an idea of setting, a question to suggest mystery, a strong theme if the book contains one, and even something about the author or what other people think of the book...

Trying to include all of that sounds harder than writing the flippin' book! How do you condense the essence of your story into around 150 words? Where do you even start?

So I took a look at the blurbs from some books I have on my shelf.

I'm not sure that in Dickens' day, there would have been a blurb on the book cover - I imagine all books at that time to be leather bound and gilt-edged, without the need for anything other than a title. However, a Puffin Classic copy of A Christmas Carol says this:

Go on a ghostly journey with Ebeneezer Scrooge... Scrooge is a mean old man with no friends or family to love him - he's just so miserable and bitter! One freezing cold Christmas Eve, Marley's Ghost pays Scrooge a visit and an eerie night-time journey begins. The Christmas spirits are here to show Scrooge the error of his nasty ways. By visiting his past, present and future, will Scrooge learn to love Christmas and the others around him?

OK, so we have character (Scrooge) who's not very nice, we know it's a ghost story which happens at Christmas, and Scrooge has a lesson to learn from the encounters. Sets the scene and leaves the reader with a question...Nice. (Although I probably would have changed the first sentence to read less...teenagery.)

Sir Terry Pratchett is my favourite author, so I don't always read his blurbs - I'd buy the books, regardless. But here's what's on the back of my copy of The Colour of Magic:

On a world supported on the back of a giant turtle (sex unknown), a gleeful, explosive, wickedly eccentric expedition sets out. There's an avaricious but inept wizard, a naive tourist whose luggage moves on hundreds of dear little legs, dragons who only exist if you believe in them, and of course THE EDGE of the planet...

Hmmm. Setting, characters, a hint of fun - and literally leaves you hanging on THE EDGE. There's a pattern emerging.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone:

Harry Potter thinks he is an ordinary boy - until he is rescued by a beetle-eyed giant of a man, enrols at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, learns to play Quidditch and does battle in a deadly duel. The Reason: HARRY POTTER IS A WIZARD!

Now that one's actually very clever. See the word 'thinks'? And 'rescued'? Completely undermines the use of the word 'ordinary'. Regarding character, only Harry is mentioned, though it hints at Hagrid. There's no mention of Dumbledore or Ron or Hermione, who are pretty major players - nor even He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named...

And my own Granny Rainbow:

Granny Rainbow has a knack for solving problems. Whether it's getting rid of the Black Shadow, improving a violinist's performance, helping to mend a quarrel or putting the secret ingredient into perfect marmalade, she has a potion or a powder for the job. Step into a world of colour with these illustrated short stories about a very special lady.

You know who the main character is, what she does, and that there are pictures. I reckon that's not bad, even if I do say so myself.

I only took a small sample of blurbs, but it was enough to get me started on a blurb for StarMark. I had something left over from the agented days, when the book first went out to UK publishers, but it felt very explain-y, and too long for a back cover. So I tried to write something a bit more question-y, to hook the reader in. I'm not sure that it hits the spot exactly - and the team at Bedazzled Ink will do a much better job of writing the finished copy - but it's a start:

Imagine your future, written on your skin.
The StarMark; black on the skin at birth, which changes to gold when it's your turn to be in charge.
But what happens when you don't know it's there - and someone else discovers it before you do? Especially when that someone will do anything in their power to stop you from fulfilling your destiny?
Irvana is about to find out...

So be honest - would that blurb make you want to read StarMark? And if not, what else would you want to know?