Another month gone… and with it, the inevitable release of my debut is drawing closer. So let’s have a look at what I’ve done the last month…

I’ll take this in a different way than usual, in a kind-of summary based on the template I did in this post back in April.

Five year anniversary

Not as much a progress but still noteworthy milestone (I gave it its own post) – it’s FIVE years since I started writing – the demo chapter was written back on 21.7.2015.

Cover design

Status: Artist found.

I’ve found a cover artist and now I’m at the very beginning of the process. Should everything go well, I might be able to reveal the cover in the next monthly update and post my experience with the process shortly after.

Blurb/description

Status: done.

I’ll check it for typos but this part is pretty much closed.

Maps and drawings

Status: Early stage.

Since the previous month, I had no progress on either the map, the palace sketch, or the Order’s crest. Planned for the next month.

Front and end matter

Status: rought draft.

I’ll just use a simple template of the front page (merging title page and copyright page into one), and I’m still thinking what exactly I’d want my end matter look like.

Online presence

Status: preparing an update.

By online presence, I mean several things. I have a rough draft of the author bio (though I may change my approach to it) to use on both Goodreads and Amazon, and I’ll update the ‘about me’ page as well. The author bio will also be a part of the end matter (as ‘about the author’) in some form.

Furthermore, there will be some changes to the static part of the weblog – the blog will be moved from the homepage to its own section while I’ll make a new home page that’ll be a hub of a kind and feature the book. Some other changes are probably coming as well.

Legal stuff

Status: probably done.

After a talk with my mother (an accountant), I was told that I don’t need to register anywhere – as I’ve already been handing in a tax report once, I should be in the database and have an ID which I should be able to use for upgrading my Amazon account to author account.

Distribution decisions

Status: Stage 1 decided.

What does this mean? I know I’ll release the Kindle e-book first – at this time, I guess in October. Some time later (not sure yet how long, probably around 3 months), the paperback will follow. This isn’t just to hopefully get some reviews on the e-book but also because it’ll let me tackle the specifics of print formatting separately when the e-book is sorted out. Anything beyond that will depend on how stage 1 goes.

Unless something changes, the e-book will go for $2.99 for the launch period (2-4 weeks, not sure yet), then probably up a bit (I’m considering $4.04 because why not). Conversion to other currencies is something I’ll give a look when I upload the file, especially in the other 70% royalty markets (I’ll probably not publish at the moment of uploading but keep 1-2 weeks window with pre-orders open – in case something would demand a last-minute change).

Formatting

Status: Testing.

It took me some time in major chunks (two afternoons and somebits here and there) but I got some hands-on experience on e-book formatting and got a first formatted version (minus front and end matter) to test-read on my Kindle. I’ll do this along with a proofread to find out any last typos or other issues before adding the front and end matter and creating the final file. For now, I can post a screenshot (yes, Kindle Paperwhite can take screenshots) of the early attempt (and yes, I know there’s a typo).

I’ll probably write a post about my DIY formatting experience – and mention my sources of information there. No ETA yet – when I’m done.

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Well, this is a summary of my progress for book one. But that’s not all I’ve done – I did a not-so-small amount of editing on book two (roughly 30 hours total), to the point I’ve actually started to call it the third draft (instead of 2.1). Some chapters were omitted from the edits as I expect no changes yet – and my plan is to read the draft of #2 right after the proofread of #1 to check continuity.

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And that’s what I’ve done this month. As usual, feel free to comment. Questions and tips are always welcome.