Made my first submission

  I've begun submitting my first novel to literary agents. The first to receive it is John Rudolph at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. His interest in middle grade fiction piqued my interest as well, and so I thought he would be a good candidate for it. To him I sent, by email, a query cover letter, along with attachments of a synopsis of my book and a sample chapter (the prologue). We'll see what becomes of this in the following weeks. I'm now working on converting the book over from what I wrote it in (single spaced, OpenOffice) and into what the agents prefer to accept (double spaced, MS Word format). It's not difficult to do so, just time consuming.

Remaking my first book

   So, I've decided to pull my book Wyrmewood and the Forsaken Orb out of publication and make a few changes to it in order to make it ready for submission to literary agents. The changes include; moving the original prologue into chapter 2, making a new prologue from chapter 3 of Tymespell (from the chapter Carpaggio Sole), re-editing the entire book, and also even renaming the book itself.
   The new name is: Andy Brighton and the Dragons of Wyrme, book one, The Forsaken Orb. Book two will be probably named: Andy Brighton and the Dragons of Wyrme, book two, Magic & Dragons. I am almost half-way through the second book now, but want to get the process of finding an agent out of the way first before proceeding further with it. I haven't come up with a title for book three as yet.
   I've designed a new cover for the first book, and you can see the difference between them here:

                                 Original book                      New design

    We'll see what happens. I know that the submission process will take a while and it may be very frustrating. All I can do is try though and I know that even the best books in the world sometimes get rejected many times before finally being accepted. (J K Rowling's Harry Potter was rejected many times, but it turned out okay in the end).

Happy New Years (A couple days late)

2012 is finally here. And who knows what it'll bring? Let's hope only good things!
I captured the Bing! homepage image of the day to ring in the new year...

Finished Chapter 10

I've completed chapter 10 of book2 of Wyrmewood. Andy and Fay explore the depths of the Undermine and the many dangers therein. Here's an excerpt;

The raging river heaved wildly as it seemed to come alive, like it had transformed into a great dark serpent, and in an instant they were swallowed up and being carried downstream at a considerable speed. At times they bobbed along above the waves bounding into the tunnel walls in their bubble, while finding themselves underwater at others. Fortunately, within the globe there was enough air for them to breath, though the ride was both simultaneously frightening and exhilarating with how bumpy it was and not knowing where they'd end up. And when they'd had nearly more than they could take it ended, dumping them into a deep pool, and then the dark watery serpent vanished, slithering quickly through an adjacent tunnel exit. They floated and bounced about within the pool and tried for the next several seconds to regain their composure.

So, I'm nearly halfway done with the second book now. It's coming along nicely I suppose and I hope to be able to keep up the pace. By the summer of 2012 it should be done.

Book 2 of Wyrmewood

  I've finished chapter 9 of book 2, Wyrmewood of Magic & Dragons. Here's an excerpt:

The day was cold and gray. A gathering gloom was rising from the west to cover the land and the wind was freshening with the smell of rain. The darkening clouds, rippling to the flashes of faraway lightning, grew heavier by the hour as morning passed into midday. A wicked storm was brewing over Wyrme the likes of which even the bravest of dragons would shun.

In this chapter Gratoly meets the Mermydians-one of the more curious species of Dragons on Wyrme. They give him his mission, whereby he heads off to begin but runs into a little problem. After a talk with Murme, his former mentor, he continues on his journey. Far to the west, out over the Endless Ocean, he finds what he is seeking, though it isn't like anything he's seen before or quite what he expected to find. There his very faith is tested by a choice he is given. Enjoy.

Something New: KDP Select

  I read an interesting email today, and it lead me to something new. KDP Select. Apparently it's a new way to promote/sell your ebooks on Amazon.com for their Prime members. Something they've created called the Lending Library now lets members check out one book/month for free, while the author of said lent book still receives royalties as if it were purchased.
  After reading about it I unpublished my 2 ebooks from Smashwords.com (a requirement) and enrolled both into KDP Select. (Neither book had done anything on Smashwords anyway). I doubt that I'll see much from this as I don't market my books (so no one really knows anything about them) but it's worth a try at least. It's also a good bet that since the Prime members only get to 'borrow' one book/month they will use this priviledge to get a top selling book (instead of an unknown book like mine).
  Information on KDP Select can be found at:
https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/KDPSelect

Wyrmewood of Magic & Dragons

  Yesterday I completed chapter 7 (or actually 8, as I'll probably be renaming the Prologue to chapter 1) of my second book in the Wyrmewood trilogy. Gratoly's recovering from his first test as Andy is busy learning of magic and preparing for his own challenge: the Undermine. A few surprises arise along the way, but ultimately Gratoly receives good news from the missing Andy and is ready to face his second of three tests-that of the Mermydians. Here's a small excerpt for your enjoyment:

  One morning while trying to study even the most basic of tomes, which he thought reminded him of children's literature from earth with their lavish illustrations and large font styles, he was overcome with a sudden qualm and could only sit and stare at the walls.

  “Are you alright Andy?” asked Fay at length, noticing his state of unease. “Is something on your mind?”

  “It...it's nothing really. I was just thinking of Gratoly and if he was okay. It's been a while, and I imagine he would have found out by now that I was gone.”

  Fay hadn't lost any of her friends, but her mother had been killed several years earlier while hunting for mushrooms in the Undermine. And she knew that Andy had also lost his brother and parents. So, she could empathize with his feelings and relate to losing someone close to her.

  “I know that it's tough right now, so soon after...a loss. But your friend will be fine, and you'll make new friends in our society. You're Rysouri now Andy. If you wish to be at any rate.”

Thanks for looking & I'll be back soon to post more of the book.