What a momentous week!
And I’m not talking about politics. I completed the first draft of “The Captive Girl” and finished reviewing the audio book for “The Shaman“. My goal was to complete the first draft by end of September. I was a few days late, but not too far off target.
I now go into what I call polishing mode, turning a rough agate into a gemstone (hopefully). I have three valued beta readers who go through my draft and let me know if there are any flaws. What flaws could there be, you ask?
- Confusing shifts in plot
- Confusing timeline shifts
- Awkward dialogue
- Lack of “flow” in the story arc
- Parts that jar the reader out of the story
- Parts that stretch credibility too far
There’s probably more. I’ve been guilty of all of the above at one time or another. It’s part of the process. First drafts are not meant for public consumption which is why my precious beta readers and so important. They read the product in its raw state, not yet finished.
Now it’s also time to put out a call for ARC readers. That stands for Advance Review Copy readers. If you’d like to read the finished product before it’s published, for free, email me at david@davidnees.com and let me know; leave you name if it’s not in the email. When the polishing is done, I’ll email you a pdf of the book.
If you decide you want in, I’ll send you more details after you respond. This idea worked great for “The Shaman”; I had a dozen reviews right out of the gate.
When “The Shaman” audio book is ready you can find it here along with my other audio titles. It will take a few days for them to process. Audio books make great gifts for someone you know who has a long commute or doesn’t like to read that much.
Later this fall I’ll have a big announcement regarding some of my other titles. I’ve realized that “Jason’s Tale“, my first novel in the post apocalyptic genre is still one of my best sellers. Readers have commented that they want more of the characters I created, so I’ll probably go back to the “After the Fall” series. More about that later…
