Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The Stone Dragon: moving toward publication

"I didn't just read the first three chapters of your book, I DEVOURED them."
          --www.hopelessbibliophile.com


I kept dithering: Should I publish The Stone Dragon through my own company, Wise Moon Books? Should I continue seeking an agent or another independent publisher?

Finally, the reasons and possibilities focused to these:
  • I want The Stone Dragon available to students and community now.
  • I want a book that represents me as a writer now
So it appears the now's have it: The Stone Dragon will be out this fall.

Here are some recent accomplishments:
  • The book block is 80% ready to upload to the printer at Lightning Source International. The process is moving about 3X faster than last time. I've learned quite a bit about Adobe InDesign (but still know so little!). I'm meeting with a beta reader today for some last input. Then it's on to the details of attention that make the book look professional.
  • The cover template for the book cover will be available soon.
  • Suzanne Bonnefond, French photographer, has sent me two photographs (jpgs) for use.
  • Advance "rave" review quotations are being collected from writers and book blog reviewers for the back cover and inside first page.
  • ISBN--yes.
  • Copyright registration--been through the process twice already. 
  • Amazon "Look Inside": familiar with the process.
  • Kindle and Smashwords ebooks?--have established sites.
 "And appreciation always to my wife, who kept reminding me that this would be a good project to finish."

The above is part of my acknowledgements for the book. Yes, thanks to all. It will be good to be able to hold a copy of The Stone Dragon in my hand.


Copyright 2011 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

4 comments:

  1. The very best of luck with the new book Tom.
    Regards
    David

    ReplyDelete
  2. I hope this doesn't post twice--I tried once before :) I was just saying that the 'now' factor is a huge pro in the indie camp. I think that things go awry when people feel there has to be one best way for publication. Different writers--different books even--will be more suited to one or the other. I just received an offer from a traditional publisher and couldn't be more thrilled. Still, it will be 18 months before my book is out. There are trade offs on both sides, and it's all about determining which are most important to you. I wish you great luck with this path!

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  3. @barsetshirediaries

    Thank you, David. The meeting with my beta reader went well today.

    ReplyDelete
  4. @jennymilch
    I think that diffent approaches for different books is a good concept. I am developing two book outlines that would be best for middle school and traditionally published.

    ReplyDelete