Allan Bott's Blog, page 2

A little snippet of book two…

Well we can’t leave today on a downer now, can we?

So I’ve decided to let you all have a read of the prologue of the Sequel to “James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn.”  Of course, if you haven’t read the first, there might be slight spoiler. But it doesn’t give too much away.

Let me know what you think! :)

‘Tweena’ Skyelorne looked longingly at the lush green fields and pale blue rivers below her. The cooling breeze collected her auburn hair and plucked each strand before carefully laying it back across her shoulders. She loved sitting up here, this was ‘her’ place; at the summit of Mt. Sol, many miles away from the capital city of Solveil. No one else came here and that’s what made it so personal. All her stress would be carried away by the wind and her angst would wash away down the trickle of streams that ran from the mountain all the way to the Great Salt Lake that kept the city away from the mainland.

A glass covered airship skimmed the clouds above her changing her gaze from the floor to the ultramarine sky. It was rare to see the clouds this high up, they were normally below, way down below. She watched as the gleaming craft sped down the usual flight path that trade ships would take into the city – her city.  Well, it should be; she should have been sat on the Golden throne of Skyelorne, but following the first sorcerer war, the people revolted against the monarchy because of the Kingdom’s involvement. Many people were lost in that horrific, pointless war that was caused by an overzealous sibling.

Following the end of the war a Republic was formed, the political race headed by a man named Gideon Mohmlapse. His clever campaign forced a landslide victory when the referendum took place and the royal family was forced into normality.

Queen Skyelorne, the founder and first ruler of the Kingdom was banished by Mohmlapse as his first act in the newly formed republic, forcing her out of her out of her home, telling her to ‘take that wretched curse’ with her and magically sealing her in a crystal tower at the summit of Mount Sol.

The ‘curse’ was the tool she’d crafted centuries before, one she’d shared with her brothers and sister, one that helped them save the world from Sorcery – The Staff of Skyelorne.

With the Queen and the ‘Cause of their demise’ gone, Mohmlapse appointed himself Viscount of Solveil and High Ruler of the Republic of Skyelorne.  He wanted a fresh, new start for his new Republic and ordered for all history and prior knowledge of the Kingdom erased and all ancient texts destroyed, circulating new texts effectively wiping all existence of the City, the Republic of Skyelorne and Southern Continent off the face of Exoré.

Tweena sighed, she hated thinking of the horrible things that had happened in the past, and she always vowed that the Viscount would pay for what he did, but nothing ever came of her vows. They were constantly wasted, empty threats that fell on tone deaf ears.  But it wasn’t all bad, today was Tweena’s birthday and she was content enough to know that she would be celebrating it on her own, like last year – and the year before that, and the year before that. Come to think of it, she’d always spent them alone – no one came to visit her at all! How unfair!

A Corah fluttered down onto the ledge in front of her. The deep blue feathers of this native bird were seamless and it ‘tweeted’ to her before flying off again, bobbing across the waves of the wind.

‘Why thank you Mr. Corah, it’s nice to know you remembered.’ Oh well, she’d get over it, it was only just a birthday after all, there would be plenty more. But she was still a bit miffed by the whole thing. She’d at least thought someone would have come to congratulate her on her 1000th birthday.

An overdue update….

Jesus, was it really November 2014 that I last posted a blog update? Somehow I don’t believe that, yet it’s highly plausible.

2015 has unfortunately not brought me much luck with the book front either!  I am now at a total of FIFTY manuscript rejections.  I won’t lie, it feels crap right about now. I have had some maybes and some full manuscript requests, but they have either ultimately lead to a rejection or the publisher/agent just never got back to me and ignores my further badgering.

I have a few outstanding, waiting to come in. I have my fingers and toes crossed, but I all think we know where it’ll end up.  I’d love to remain positive, but it just seems that “James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn” was not meant for this world.

It is however, still available on kindle here and still 99p.

Part of me wants to give up, throw it in the bin, frame the one crowning achievement I have and just putting it down to experience.  The other part keeps kicking me in the shins and telling me not to give up and to finish the sequel – which is almost done. It also has a title.  That will come later on in another blog post.

Now as I’ve been extremely lazy of late I will promise to update this at least weekly from now on.  I did so well to start with, that and I owe a friend a book review…*ahem*

But as time goes on, if getting published proves to be a futile journey, I’ll seriously look into self publishing so you can at least get to read what I love doing the most.

 

– Allan

Is pure talent a thing of the past in publishing?

Apologies for the lack of blogging of late, it’s been a busy time and with the book not doing so well, I’ve not had much to blog about.  For those who don’t know, my publisher unfortunately went into administration meaning my novel was no longer going to be published and subsequently unavailable in shops.

Since then I’ve created a kindle version which can be purchased for 77p! A bargain at that price.  Click here  to find it!

 

I have submitted too many more agencies and publishers since the rights were given back to me, however each was met with rejection and again with the standard “out of the box” answers.

“It’s not for us.”

“It’s not marketable.”

“My client list is full.”

Where as I can take the brunt of the rejection for the first and last comment, it’s the middle one that really gets on my nerves.  “It’s not marketable.”  Ok – Says who? And to what extent? What market are we talking about? You only need to take a walk into Waterstones or any other leading book shop, stroll over to the Middle grade/Teen area and look at the mass array of different unique styles of fiction in that area.  To say something isn’t marketable after reading only three chapters is a bit rich, especially when the opinion is clearly subjective of one person.

But that aside, I don’t think it’s just down to opinion, it’s also down to how much money the book will make regardless of how fantastic the story is.  I say this because this morning I read that a Famous YouTube Vlogger under the name of Zoe Sugg aka Zoella, has written a Children’s book and it’s tipped to be a best seller just in time for Christmas.  My initial thought was “Fair play, for a debut novel that’s something special!”  But then I broke it down a bit more.

She’s a very popular vlogger with over 6.5 million subscribers on YouTube who posts videos about beauty advice to her subscribers.  This alone is a fantastic achievement and I tip my hat to her.  To gain such a fan base takes a lot of hard work and dedication – well done!

But when she announced she was writing a book, or perhaps submitted it to an agency/publisher and perhaps noted she was a vlogger on YouTube, did the agency read her sample chapters and think “Wow what a fantastic book!” Or did they get together and say “Hey, this girl has over SIX MILLION followers on YouTube, We have to think for one second, that at least a half of her fan base will buy it!”

I pray to all holy beings that it was the former, but having dealt with agencies over the past few years, I know for a fact it was the latter, which is a real shame.

Now I can hear some of you screaming at me already “You’re just jealous.”  Well, yes, she’s going to become an overnight best seller and author sensation, something I wish to be – of course I’m going to be jealous!

But there are so many would be authors out there who have written some fantastic books, but don’t get a look in because Agencies and Mainstream publishers won’t take the time to investigate the market properly and take one look at the profit margin instead.

Is my book better than Zoe’s? No.  Is hers better than mine? No. It’s all down to opinion, I don’t believe for one second that she has written a terrible book. But take away her YouTube Status and she’d probably be in the same boat as the rest of us.

 

-Allan

As one door closes, another one opens…….

I hate starting any conversation with bad news, but this one unfortunately is inevitable. Last week I received some bad news in regards to my very first published novel. That news was that the book was to be published no longer. Unfortunately the Publisher had come into difficulties and that has meant that my book, amongst others have unfortunately been affected.

I won’t go into huge details as I don’t want to stir anything, but suffice to say I am now back to where we were over a year or so ago – back to square one. It’s a mixed bag of emotions, on one part I’m bitterly disappointed that this has happened. But on the flip side it’s opened up opportunities again, albeit it’s a huge leap backwards.

But along with that, there’s a feeling of guilt. So many people were looking forward to reading my book and its future sequels, but now that’s all been stopped dead in its tracks, I feel bad for not being able to provide what they crave.

Hopefully in time, we’ll get somewhere.

Al the rights have been reverted back to me, so I’m free to submit to agencies and publishers again. But the thought of having so many people read and reject my work leaves me reluctant to want to. That’s a fear I’ll no doubt have to conquer pretty damn quickly otherwise it’ll be left too long and the interest in my book will dwindle and readers will forget it even existed, unless of course they bought a copy.

So there we have it, a short but bittersweet update. I know I’ve not been very good with keeping you all informed, but now you know why….

But it’s not the end of the world, there will be another chance. I just can’t tell you when that will be.

I’ll keep you posted….

Allan

…Author Allan Bott Guest Blogs and tells us of an exotic new WURLD… #TBSU…

azrall:

My guest blog with Seumas Gallacher!

Originally posted on Seumas Gallacher:

… my pal, Author, Allan Bott tells us a wee bit about his book, and the WURLD he creates in it…  I’m always amazed at the ability of we scribblers to continue to conjure up those wonderfully exotic place names… kinda makes my hometown,‘Govan’ look a bit tame… over to you, Allan:

ALLAN BOTT

Hi all!

I’m a new author residing in Swindon Wilts! I’ve been following Seumas for some time now and he’s given me the privilege to appear on his blog!

My debut novel ‘James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn’ is now ready for the masses to enjoy. Here’s a bit of background on it:

James Knight, a young adult with an average, working-class lifestyle has a life-changing experience when his late grandfather leaves him an artefact of mysterious power that leads him to another world where he befriends Valeria Flintlocke – An Airship…

View original 194 more words

Lisa J Hobman – Cover reveal for Bridge of Hope!

Hi All,my friend and Author, Lisa J Hobman has just revealed the cover of her next novel “Bridge of Hope”. This novel is kind of a “spin off” of her First novel, Bridge over the Atlantic. This time it’s told from the POV of the character Greg!

See below!

Genre: FICTION / Romance / Contemporary
Release Date: August 21, 2014
Digital ISBN 10:163112062X ISBN 13:978-1-63112-062-6
Print ISBN-10:1631120638 ISBN-13:978-1-63112-063-3
 
 
Love is like a snowflake; beautiful but fleeting in its presence…
I’ve been in love. But I’ve also been lied to, betrayed by
those closest to me and I’ve suffered loss. Sadly it’s those last three things that stick with me the
most. The only real constants in my life are music, Angus my dog and Rhiannon;
my guitar.
But things changed when she
walked into my place of work. All blue eyes, curves and a warmth that could
melt even my hardened heart. I was
taken over by feelings that I didn’t expect so soon. Guilt plagued me and I
took my anger out on her.
On Mallory.
But I fell fast and hard and there was nothing I could do to
stop it. When she too became the victim of heartbreak I was the only one who
understood her pain but I was the last
person she wanted help from.

 

Would I ever convince her that we could be friends? And
would I ever accept that she couldn’t love me back?
 
 
 
 

for more information on Lisa, please visit her website http://www.lisajhobman.co.uk

I’m sure you’ll join me in wishing Lisa the best of luck with her new book!

-Allan

…we should have a slew of new Author billionaires by this time tomorrow… the power of the viral algorithmic web message… #TBSU…

…we should have a slew of new Author billionaires by this time tomorrow… the power of the viral algorithmic web message… #TBSU….

James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn – 99p On Kindle store!

That’s right for one week only!

My debut novel has done well so far since it’s release and has been well received!

 

But for this week only it’s on sale on the kindle store for 99p/$1/.67!

You can get it right here! http://www.amazon.co.uk/James-Knight-And-The-Ziarn-ebook/dp/B00K941X44/ref=tmm_kin_title_0

 

A short blog, but I promise an update one will be here soon!

James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn – Out NOW! on Kindle!

Well – it’s finally arrived. The day I’ve been waiting for!!

My Debut novel – James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn – has been released into the big wide world!  For now it’s only available on Kindle, but the paperback version is on it’s way! Huzzah!

To purchase this amazing work! *modesty Mode* click here

But wow, what a Journey. About two years in fact. Overall it’s been a huge learning curve and a roller-coaster of emotions.

When I first received my edits back from the Editor, I wanted to throw in the towel, some of the comments made my blood boil! Haha! But it’s all part of becoming a successful author.  It’s like any job, practise makes perfect!

Now the book is out in the open, I’m hoping to blog a bit more about how things are going with the Sequel and how well received “the orb of zian” will be.

But I’d like to thank Ghostly Publishing for giving me this chance and also to all my friends and family for sticking by me.

Finally – to all the Glipho staff, thanks for the exposure and now I’m back you won’t be getting rid of me! Don’t worry, your autographed copy is on standby! ;)

For those who wish to purchase a paperback (24th May release) copy, you can do so on the link above or direct from the publisher here.  You can also pre-order from Waterstones too,  or any good bookshop that can order in titles.

GAAAAAAAAAH! I’m so happy and excited! \o/

Hope you all enjoy the book! Let me know your opinions here =]

thanks!

Allan

First interview with Ghostly Publishing!

It’s been a while, but at long last here’s an update! 

I recently had an interview with my publisher, Ghostly Publishing.  You can read it in full here

But i’ll post it below also:

1. What is Writing?

Depends on the individual I would imagine. To me it’s a form of expression, a way of pulling all my bizarre and funky ideas from my imagination and placing them into a reality that transforms into a fantastic story.

2. Why is Writing so important?
It’s important on so many levels. Many creative minds are responsible for what we take as a given. Take blockbuster movies for example – all of which started out as a basic script written by a creative mind. Most these days are all adaptations of best-selling books.
That aside I feel it’s important as it improves literacy skills and expresses who you are as a person, most people who know me didn’t know I had these skills inside me. In all honesty – neither did I until recently!

3. Can you tell us about your background about how you got involved in Writing and what led you to become such an expert?

I always enjoyed reading young adult fantasy as a child and used to day dream about that sort of thing instead of concentrating at school! I wasn’t hugely academic and I’m still not now! My first experience of creative writing was in secondary school, we had to come up with a short story for our creative writing module. I did something crime novel-esq and suffice to say it wasn’t brilliant but earned me a grade C.
I didn’t really delve into it again until later in life where I began writing comic fan fiction for friends I played online games with. I would write about the stupid things we got up to within these mysterious online worlds and translated them into short novels of sorts. It sounds really geeky, but some of the ideas that were born in these fan fictions made their way into my debut novel.
I didn’t start writing ‘James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn’ until late 2011. I was working away a lot and spent many a lonely night in a hotel, so without anything to do I started messing around with story ideas and plots. I wasn’t expecting to write a full novel. But the more time I had the more the ideas kept spewing out of my head and onto the page. There were times where I wrote for hours on end!
But it wasn’t always so easy, my first few drafts were heavily criticised and that’s when you learn you HAVE to grow a thick skin and take it on the chin. Some advice and feedback you should take, some you should ignore. There are a lot of people out there who just want you to fail. Listen only to constructive criticism and people who offer advice and resources to assist you with your writing.

4. What are the main things we need to know about Writing?
It’s hard work! But there are ways to improve to ensure that you’re always writing your best. You should read all that you can, get as much done as possible. The last thing you want to do is to write something that’s already been done.
Also write something every day if you can! I try to, even if it’s just a few hundred words, it still counts. Gone are the days where I could write up to two thousand a day! Maybe one day that’ll happen again!
As I said above you will need to grow a thick skin and learn when to take the criticism and when to ignore it.

5. What’s the best way to get started?
Pick a subject that you’re interested in. Not what everyone else is interested in at the time, but what YOU love the most. I’m a huge geek and lover of steam powered things! So including Steampunk aspects were ideal for me.
However don’t just pluck a subject and start writing about it, research your idea – Is your idea for a story unique enough? Has it been done before? Who would like it? These questions popped through my mind several times when I was halfway through my novel. And the only way you’ll really find this out is by researching the idea that’s in your head.
If you want to write a fantasy novel, make sure it IS fantasy and doesn’t have aliens or spaceships! Make sure YOU understand the genre before you write about it!
Head to your nearest bookstore and see what’s in the current chart. See what’s selling, what isn’t. Does your idea fit the current market? Will it fit the niche gap that’s crying out for something new? I did a similar thing once I decided that I wanted to write a Steampunk style fantasy for Young adults/Older teens.
I headed into the biggest bookstores in Swindon and B-lined to the YA section. Straight away I saw that there were hundreds of vampire novels that were lining the shelves. Some were in the charts….some were not. My idea didn’t have vampires. So straight away I knew it was unique to the market – HOWEVER, that doesn’t mean it would sell. You have to believe in your idea and your story if you want to see it on the shelves, even then that won’t guarantee success.
Love your characters – I mean literally fall in love with them. Every single one. Even the villains. If you can’t love the fact your villain is a villain. Then you’re not doing your job properly as a writer. The best way I found how to do this was to get to know them. Yes that’s right – I “talked” to my characters. How did I do that? Well I made “mock” interviews with them. Asking them how they were finding their role in the “story”. Who they liked, who they didn’t like. Favourite things etc etc. It helped lift their personalities off the page and make them as real as you and me. If you’re struggling to do that, then look at your character and think who he/she reminds you of. Do it for about 4-5 people, combine their personalities and see what you come up with – It worked for me and Valeria Flintlocke was born!

6. What are the business and life benefits of writing?
Of course we all know what the business benefits are – getting paid! In an ideal world I’d love to write full time and write a fantastic novel every year or every other year and live off the royalties – But at present I can’t, so I’m happy to write when I can and I love doing what I do.
Since I started taking my writing seriously I’ve been far more dedicated to this as well as my working life, taking everything seriously. It’s also helped me unwind so much! I can’t believe how stress free I become when I’m lost in my own writing.

7. In what areas and circumstances does your advice about writing work best?
I’m not sure that it works at all! People have approached me and asked for advice and I’ve been honest with them and shared my experiences with them. If they can benefit from it then I’ll be over the moon that I’ve helped them take that step on their writing journey.

8. How long does it take to really become good at Writing?
How long is a piece of string? It’s really hard to say. It took me two years, give or take, to finish my first draft of “James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn.” However I believe that some people have a natural talent for being able to write perfectly without any assistance. For others it takes a bit longer.
Think of it as any normal hobby or skill – practise makes perfect.

9. Do you have some examples of other people’s success with writing?
I have several friends within the “Writing community” so to speak. Just to point out a couple – There’s Lisa J Hobman who has written four novels so far and has seen great success with these.
Rebecca Inman – Author of “The Blue-Eyed General” a fantastic YA novel all should pick up!
Moving away from writing novels, another friend, Vaughn Highfield is successful article writer and content editor for the website “The Gamer’s hub.”

10. What are 3 quick-start tips about Writing that you can give my listeners?
Write everyday – it’ll help you get better!
Keep a notepad handy – sounds strange but some of the best ideas come when you’re least expecting it!
Be patient – becoming successful doesn’t happen overnight. Keep at it, your time will come.

11. What are some of the common problems that people experience in Writing?
I occasionally suffer from bad cases of writer’s block. Sometimes I can go for weeks without writing anything as nothing pops into my head. Then it hits me like a brick to the face and ideas pour onto the pages.
Lack of motivation is another, sometimes motivation just walks away, try to keep motivated by writing as often as you can.

12. Are there any downsides or things to consider with Writing?
I’d consider setting up a budget for your writing. Sounds silly at first but when you get to the point of submitting your work to agencies and publishers you might find that they would like you to print off your manuscript and post it to them! That soon adds up.
And then there’s the option of editing. I did this and it cost over £100 to edit my sample works, It’s definitely something to keep in mind before you go ahead.

 

13. Where can people find more information about Writing?
There are many writing forums out there to use. Litopia and writing forums are two that I have used in the past. Also follow as many writing blogs as you can, these often give out tips and tricks. Also check with an indie publisher, some places, like Ghostly publishing have a media section that offer advice.

14. What is your website address? How can people contact you?
My website is currently a work in progress and will be http://www.allanbott.co.uk when it’s live, but I do have a blog that you can follow : http://allanbott.wordpress.com
I also have a facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Allan-Bott-Author/360983123998830
Im also part of goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7149638.Allan_Bott
Finally, feel free to follow me on Twitter – @azrall or click the link https://twitter.com/Azrall

 

Enjoy!

Allan