Eric Kent Edstrom's Blog, page 20
August 27, 2012
8 Award Winning Books for under $8: 2012 eFestival of Words
Readers! Eight award winners in the 2012 eFestival of Words “Best of the Independent eBook Awards” have grouped together to offer you an amazing opportunity. They’ve reduced the prices of their award-winning novels to 99 cents for August 27 and 28th!
Whether you like to read mysteries, romance, horror, young adult, women’s fiction, or fantasy, this group has it. Are you a writer yourself? Do you want to learn all about digitally publishing your next masterpiece? They’ve got you covered there too.
Get all eight award-winning ebooks for the price of one single paperback!
Award Winners
Best Mystery/Suspense: Dead is the New Black by Christine DeMaio-Rice
Best Non-Fiction: DIY/Self-Help: Let’s Get Digital by David Gaughran
Best Horror: 61 A.D. by David McAfee
Best Romance: Deadly Obsession by Kristine Cayne
Best Young Adult: The Book of Lost Souls by Michelle Muto
Best Fantasy/Urban Fantasy and Best Novel: The Black God’s War by Moses Siregar III
Best Chick Lit/Women’s Lit: Carpe Bead’em by Tonya Kappes
Award for Best Twist (“I’ve Been Shyamalaned”): The Survival of Thomas Ford by John A.A. Logan
Here’s a one-stop shopping link for your convenience: http://amzn.to/MO7qBY
Happy reading!
August 24, 2012
What is a “First Draft?”
Just completed the, I don’t know, fourth or fifth day of insane writing productivity. I’ve set a daily quota of no less than 5000 words. That’s a lot, but I’ve been beating it pretty soundly. My top day was nearly 9000 words. This isn’t to brag, because the secret to getting a lot of words written is as follows:
Have a good outline (I do. Often with snippets of dialogue)
Write established characters (I’ve already written two books about these jokers)
A goal (finish first draft by end of August)
Enthusiasm for the story (I’m dying to write the ending because I know it’s gonna be awesome)
Dictate the first draft (in the car and in the writing studio)
I have all of that in place, so it’s relatively easy for me to blast through several chapters a day. So what does that first draft look like? Is it polished prose or is it total dreck.
Neither. It’s a first draft. Therefore, one does not judge it by its deficiencies, but by its state of being done or not done. A done first draft is awesome by definition.
I wouldn’t let anyone read it. Not even my wife.
As soon as I finish it, I’ll start at chapter one and begin fixing. Some of it is just fixing formatting stuff. The transcriptionists I use aren’t real savvy when it comes to fiction. I have to do a ton of search and replace to fix character names that the transcriptionist got wrong. It’s not a big deal though.
But the main thing for the second pass is to take this lump of clay and begin to shape it into the wonderful sculpture I envision in my head. The second draft also does not go to my wife, because in the process of that revision, I’ve uncovered a list of “broken things.”
Pass #3 fixes the “broken things.” This often requires me to rewrite some chapters or insert scenes I didn’t know I needed on the first pass. But this is a fun and rewarding process because the end state is starting to emerge. It’s like mixing a song and adding harmony vocals and guitar parts to fill out the sound.
No one reads pass #3 except me. I usually let the MS sit for a few days at this point and then go right into pass #4, re-reading, fixing, tweaking, looking for logic errors, continuity problems, asking myself “why doesn’t Shiv do this or that instead of what he’s doing?” I try to see those big issues where the reader thinks up a solution that would make everything way easier. If I find that kind of hole, I look for a place to plug it, either with a bit of dialogue discussing that option, or I introduce something to make it not-an-option.
After that, my generous, talented, smart, and lovely beta readers get a shot at it. When I get their remarks I make another pass or two of revisions. Then it goes to my editor. When I get that back, I silently weep for a while. Then I start in, accepting or rejecting his suggestions. Sometimes I have to rewrite scenes because the editor points out some heinousness that just has to be addressed. This phase always makes me mad. But I get over it, because now I’m getting close. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Another pass to fix more “broken things” that I discover during the last revision, then it goes to a proofreader. I make all those corrections and then it’s ready.
So now you know what I mean when I say, “First draft.”
Eric is the author of Undermountain and Afterlife, the first two books of the YA science fiction series The Undermountain Saga.
August 23, 2012
August 22, 2012
Writing Hit Country Song Lyrics — Now in Print!
I got a present from the USPS today. No, it wasn’t a Victoria’s Secret catalog. It was a box of books. More specifically, the paperback version of my songwriting booklet.
Writing Hit Country Song Lyrics frequently hits the songwriting besteller lists on Amazon, but I realized a lot of people still don’t have an ereader, OR they want a paper version to keep as a handy reference. Others just want to stroke the cover and chant my name.
Whatever your reason, rejoice! The book is available in this wonderful little form-factor known as a paperback!
Yes, I have a maniacal look on my face. That’s because I’m building a publishing EMPIRE!!!!!!!
The ebook is available from all the usual suspects. Click here for a clickable list of places to buy it.
The paper book (shown above) is available from Amazon. Get it before the world runs out of paper.
August 21, 2012
What Would I Do if I Were Romeo?
There's also a cool giveaway happening there, so hustle over and sign up before the end of the week!
August 12, 2012
Afterlife Wins Ebook Cover Design Award
The guest judge for July was Tamara Deaver, owner of TLC Graphics in Austin, TX. This is what they she to say:
"This month’s winner is “Afterlife.” It’s simply stunning, full of depth, great use of typography, and very unique. The use of color, type, texture, and imagery are all very well done. The design would work well if this were a series, too."
I particularly want to thank Joel Friedlander for creating this award to recognize great design.
August 9, 2012
New Song: Let Me Be Your Mirror
Copyright © 2012 Eric Kent Edstrom
August 6, 2012
Two New Reviews! and a Giveaway!
"I cannot find the words to describe it. I enjoyed each Bigfoot surprise and do not want to spoil it for you so you will have to read the book to find out what happens. It was so very innovative and creative, bringing to the genre a new and wonderful twist on the Bigfoot story."
Make sure you go to the end for the easy chance to win a copy of Undermountain!
Read the rest here.
First Five Free
Undermountain Video Review
Special thanks to Alison at wingedreviews.com 
