Status Update - Book 2 - Cover Art Complete - Second Beta-Read Drawing to a Close

This past week, I incorporated the second round of beta-reader edits into Chapter 7 - leaving only Chapter 8 still to go through the final edit process. It's taking longer than I would have liked it, now that my daughters' school year is back in full swing, but we're almost done.

For those who haven't worked with a beta-reviewer before, I thought I'd describe a little of the feedback that I, as an author, look forward to receiving.

The beta-reader process is not really about identifying spelling or punctuation errors - although that can happen too. It's more about getting a different perspective on things, from a reader who's willing to be candid and critical where need be. This means identifying scenes which need to be re-written, paragraphs which needed to be combined, word choices or descriptions which missed the desired effect, and so forth.

I also look forward, of course, to the occasional word of encouragement for scenes which had the desired effect. I will share a few of those from my latest novel here:

"I love every scene about Elise. And scenes between Sybille and Elise are nice."

"I like this comparison/description."

"I like how this little detail says a lot to the readers because they know the reasons and feelings behind it. This is a great example of saying only a little (in terms of word count) to actually say quite a lot, specifically to reveal how a character is feeling."

"I liked that scene a lot."

"The descriptions in this part were really nice and added to the tone/mood of the scene."

And of course, no beta-review of Book 2 would be complete without at least one tongue-in-cheek reference to one of their favorite characters from Book 1:

"Needs more Barg."

Status Update - Book 2 - Cover Art Complete

The cover for the second book in the Stormfall Chronicles is now complete. I'm still holding off until the blurb has been thoroughly polished and through the beta-reader process before I have the cover reveal, however.

For those who didn't already know, my cover designs are done by my middle daughter, using her sisters as models and adjusting or combining scene elements as needed. I usually sketch out the concept for what I'm looking for in the cover art, but it's my middle daughter who executes it.

First Scene for Book 3 Written

Today I celebrated a writing milestone of a different sort.

While waiting for my second round of beta-reading edits for Book 2 to be submitted, I completed writing the first scene for Book 3. Can hardly wait for Book 2 to be released so I can begin focusing on the next book in the series.

New Banner Design

As I approach the launch of the second book in the Stormfall Chronicles, I've also been working up my marketing campaign for this next novel. The first part of that campaign - is actually to attract more readers to Book 1.

I therefore decided as part of this effort, that it was time to update my banner design for both my Blog and my Facebook page. It will be nice to see Book 1 in the banner for a little while - at least until Book 2 is rolled out for Pre-Order later this month.

Status Update - Book 2 - Beta Reader Edits Through Chapter 6

As some of my regular followers are aware, my daughters have been the beta-readers for my novels - with my middle daughter being my first beta reader and my oldest daughter serving as my second. With the start of her senior year in high school, and college entrance essays to write, my oldest daughter's attention has, of necessity, been divided between multiple demands. The entire process takes time to get it right.

I have, however, completed the updates recommended by my oldest daughter for Chapters 5 and 6. She is now immersed in Chapter 7 - the longest chapter in the second book. We're all looking forward to its release in the coming weeks.