Billy Young's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing"

This week has just flew in, not that I felt that I was busy or anything, yet still it is the weekend already. I have been lost I suppose finishing the first draft of Bublos which I managed to do last night. Of course as you may know I have got a lot to rewrite as well as flesh out. Where to start? I was thinking in the middle though I could swap and change to keep me fresh. I still have an epilogue to write too, I do have that in my head at the moment though I don’t want to put it down till I have sorted out the rest. I know it makes no sense, who said authors ever did that though.
Spring is certainly with us this week. I can tell because my grass is needing cut again. It’s to rain tomorrow though to be dry on Sunday so with any luck the weather man will be right and I can get out then to do it. With the growing lawn, so my plants are starting to look good. I had brought them in the other week when the frost returned, now they are back out in the back garden again. Hopefully I can leave them now, after all they are able to take cold weather; I’d just like to get them a good start before facing the chilly blasts off of the north.
Monday isn’t far away now and back to work. It will be good to get out of the house, even though I shall have less time for my book. As always I will just have to find the energy to get on with my story, after all writing doesn’t really pay for its self. Rather I’m the one that has to find the money for my stories to get out there. I enjoy the whole process, though working on the story, constructing it is the best part of the journey, at least to me. Yes I get the thrill of seeing it in print but finishing the project, getting those words down is something. Now to polish it, make it something, hopefully, that the reading public will enjoy.

I managed to write the synopsis for the back of my new book this week. I shall post it when Bublos is closer to release as I still have some work to do on it yet, as you may know if you have been following this blog. I have managed to sort out some of the story and rewrite a little of what I needed to do, though I still have more to do. The middle is building up nicely yet Joe needs to interact more with the family he is staying with. After all they have been good enough to let him stay with them without question as a favour to Urim, who save Joe from a very sticky situation. Yes the main character is coming to terms with some serious problems after watching his friend murdered before his eyes. He has also learned that there is more danger in the world than he once believed, demons and angel are more than just myth. The secret of the book has also got to be revealed in some of the reworking of the tale I am trying to shape. At least I have the basics set out already so most of it just needs the polishing that I hope will give it more sparkle or whatever it is that makes a story good. Hopefully I can do this and that if you do get a copy you will like what I have done.
I have got some shopping to do this weekend to get some bit and bobs for the garden. So I will be off to B&Q tomorrow afternoon, taking the family and make it a day out. Sunday, if the weather is up to it, I get the fence posts up but it will be a week before I get it finished. That gives the cement time to set, holding the post solid as we get some strong breezes hitting the side of the house in winter; where the fence is to go. So a busy weekend ahead though I will still find time to write

That’s me registered with the Jobcentre now. It was a rapid reclaim which made the whole process very quick and painless. Still I do hate it, signing on that is though I don’t actually sign on the dotted line till the 25th of this month. When checking for advertised jobs on the website I find little has changed from the last time I did so. As things go though I didn’t expect that much would be different after all it was only just over a month ago since I was last claiming unemployment benefit.
I’m hoping to get out this weekend and cut my grass. It seems to grow at an accelerated fashion this time of year; no sooner have you went over it with the mower, than you need to do it again. I was out working in the garden during the week, really just pottering about for something to do than actually doing anything in particular. My plants are coming on well though, the onions need thinning out and I’m still waiting on the tomato plants bursting into life. I’m sure that in the next week I should see the first of the pushing their way through the soil.
I’ve been working hard with my writing. Bublos is starting to shape up as the rewrite and editing of the middle of the book is starting to show fruit. There is still a bit to go as well as more of the old editing after I finish this reworking of it. It is still on track, fingers crossed, for a June release; which is what I am hoping for. Last night I redid chapter 15, which was 13 but with added content, it may need finishing tonight when I look at it; saying that it might not, I’ll just have to wait and see how my mind flows tonight.

I’ve been out making up a gate to finish off the fence I built at the side of my house. My son and friend Mickey helped though I did the major work myself. I took a six by six fence panel, cut it down and then made my gates out of that. Yes you read right, I have two as the gap was just a bit big for one. Making it from a panel keeps it looking like just part of the fence yet at the same time keeps them light. The real test will be later in the year when the high winds come in. I think it should be fine though I might make sure by getting a or rather make a latch for the top as I can’t seem to find what I have in mind anywhere. It shouldn’t be to hard to get some bit and bobs to make up what I want.
I’ve done most of the re-writing of Bublos though I still have the epilogue as well as some reworking to keep the story consistent. Some issues crept into it as I added some content though it was only minor things that should be easily sorted. After I have that sorted out I have the next part of the job to do, proof reading/editing. As you can tell it’s not the most favourite part of creating a story, still it is important. I have to format it before I go forwards with it to Lulu for publishing, that’s not so bad though. I do hope to have it all done for sometime in June but that is only hoping. We will see how I manage to get on in the coming week.

I finished the first draft, which includes the epilogue. I wrote to endings, both are similar yet I need to make up which fits best with the story. I’ll take it under advisement once I let the wife have a look; saying that though she won’t get it till I’ve sorted out as many of the typo’s and other mistakes that I made writing it. It also gives me a chance to look over the rewritten parts to make sure I sorted any inconsistency problems, I’m sure I got them all; I think I did though.
Before I go over the book again I’m going to have a weekend of from it. I’m going to have a game of Civilisation and put writing out of my mind, as much as I can. Especially Bublos so that I can look at it with fresh eyes after the weekend; this way it might be easier for me to see where the work is needed. As it goes with money at the moment I might to have the funds to publish this coming month as I had hoped because the social has decided that they’re going to put my wife and I through the same hassle they did over Christmas. This has the effect that I may need the money I had saved to see us through the coming hardship that the brew is causing. I tell you if I was to stick a needle in my arm filling my head with smack, then I would get everything going including a bus pass. Yes they have an illness but it’s self inflicted so I have no sympathy for them, not when I have to struggle because I’m willing to work. Rant over as I’ll just have to hope I can save somewhere else and not need to use my book money.
Was out gardening this week again, mowing the lawn front/back. Got a very large bag of compost at B&Q for £2.50, it was reduced because it was burst open. As I needed compost to replant my seedling peppers I just had to grab it. What’s left will do for other things, the strawberries when they also are in need of more root room. 70kg of compost for that money though was just to good a bargain to turn my nose up at.

By the way I thought I would like you to see the synopsis for the back of the book:

In the book of Revelation it mentions a scroll with seven seals. What if this scroll was hidden on earth? When an old man dies in Liverpool his flat is emptied by Joe and his friends and a strange looking book comes into Joe’s keeping. Soon he finds what trouble comes with the book when he watches his friend Toby being tortured then killed before his eyes. A man he recently met rescues him from possibly the same fate. Soon he finds out the man that saved him is more than just a man and that those that are after him aren’t what they appear to be. Demons and Angels don’t really exist yet Joe now knows they do and the book mustn’t fall to the wrong side or it may spell the end of everything.

Had a break from working on my book last week-end but was right back at the editing on Monday. I’m also looking for quotes from the bible as headers for each chapter. So far half of those needed have been found; it’s not easy when looking for the right ones to complement the piece of writing. It is also interesting as I find things I had forgotten or missed when I last read the passages in the good book. I have had to use the net to help find some verses, whilst others I knew. The editing/proofreading is certainly helping improve what I have though there are still one or two lines that I just can’t seem to get right. I’m giving myself more time to work on it as with my current situation financially I thought it best. Once I have things sorted with the Social I can think about going ahead with publishing this book, which could be July though. Still look on the bright side, it helps me spend more time looking it over, sorting anything that needs fixing.
I also can give myself time off from writing at the weekend. Give myself a chance to thing about what the story may need. I got a game for my birthday, Hand of God Legend, which I will be able to lose a few hours with. I’ll need to check to see if there’s any online help, though I enjoy gaming I’m not a gamer by any standard. The main thing is that I enjoy it but I know there is more to life than banging on a joypad.

Still not sorted my problems out with Lulu, I’ve been force to move my query to the Escalation forum. I don’t hold out much hope of them getting back in touch but have to give them a couple of days to see. It hasn’t stopped me finishing Bublos though, so that one good thing. My wife is reading through it checking for those little errors that I have missed. While she does that I’m trying to design the cover. With a couple of idea’s to play around with, I don’t think it will take me to long. I’ve got my graphics pad to help make the whole process easier, there’s nothing worse than trying to draw on a computer with a mouse. I know from experience because that was how Teddy the Bear was done and I did have to fight with the mouse to get it to do anything. Don’t get me wrong the pad makes it easier but you still have to learn to use it. It’s not like when you drew at school with pencil and paper. Then you looked at the paper and your hand was there, unlike with the pad where you aren’t watching your hand; as what you are sketching is appearing on the monitor screen, with your hand out of view. You quickly adjust which is good; leaving everything down to how good you are as well as how good your ideas are.

Lulu still hasn’t addressed my problems with them. I did get a reply from support but it was unhelpful to say the least and by the answer they gave me, it looked like they failed to actually read what I was saying. I have now gone to the Better Business Bureau to make a complaint to them. Whilst at their site I noticed that Lulu is being reviewed by them at this time. I only hope that this action will lead to Lulu sorting things out for me and others but by the way things have went so far I don’t hold much hope of it.
Bublos is being re-edited by me after my wife asked a few questions. I thought I had everything neatly wrapped up. Still if I need to work on it some more to get it right then that’s what I need to do. Most of it is background or to explain what happens next to the main character. As I said, I thought the end was answered, hopefully it will be by the time I finish reworking it this time.
On brighter news, I start work on Monday. Again it is with the company that I worked for before, so it is only for three weeks. Still that’s better than nothing and I’m looking forward to be earning again. It may not be my dream job, yet does it really matter when the bills are piling up and the kids are making their never ending demands for the things that they see as essential, no.

Started work again, Adcraft phoned me on Tuesday. So that was me back at work by the next day. It’s only for three week, with the usual, if more work comes in it could be longer. It would be nice but three weeks is better than nothing, especially as I had to pay out for a new power pack. The computer is fine though and the new PSU is a Tagan 680w, plenty of power there. It’s also the quietest unit I’ve had, which is an added bonus.
Got another answer from Lulu but it just adds to the first problem. I got a reply from my question regarding withholding tax. They said all my sales were from the US none in the UK. So that still leaves me wondering where the UK sales are. I know I have had some but they aren’t on my account. Saying that, others have been told that Amazon seems to be using a US printer for books sold through them. This means all Amazon sales are classed as US sales. This all seems to be a little confusing for me. Mind others are saying that they are missing more sales than has been reported. In the end it still leaves me wondering about my own troubles with Lulu. After all they haven’t given me anything but the run-around. I even was told off from a Lulu staff member for posting about my doubts concerning getting help from support in the forums. If Lulu doesn’t want to hear people complaining the sort out customers’ problems, don’t ignore them or give them the brush off with lame excuses.
I have four more chapters to edit in Bublos this weekend. I’m also getting some feedback from fellow writers on Authonomy.com. I’ll wait for more before I decide to make any more changes as I want to get to my next story. A follow up to Banshee Angel of Judgement is beckoning and sitting Bublos to the side till I can get it published might be a good thing. It would then let me give it a fresher look at it and give me an idea of where I need to fix it. I will at one time put the whole story on Authonomy for a bit but not yet and only for a short time, to get feed back with any luck.

I was looking at Createspace this week as a way to publish Bublos. After checking it out though I realized that it doesn’t offer much in the way for distribution. At first I thought that their Pro Plan would offer at least distribution through all of its parent company’s many sub domains but unfortunately no. This is sad because if it had then it would have given me a way for my books to be on all of Amazons’ sites world wide, as they are the ones that own Createspace. Ah well, it doesn’t and they don’t.
I will keep looking though the cost of other publishers seem very high, from $399 up till you reach the silly money. I’ll need to save a lot before I can afford to publish again by the looks of things. Saying that, if Lulu were to get around to sorting things out, then I might be able to get on with setting up Bublos for the market. I don’t think that is going to happen though, it’s been to long and they don’t seem to really wish to answer my calls for them to come clean.
Whilst I save I can start writing my next story, Banshee 2. There’s a sub title that I won’t reveal at the moment. Mandy will be back for the funeral of one of the two men that died in the first book. I’m still working out their relationship, as there is a gap in the years separating them. Aunt, Great Aunt? As I said something to figure out this weekend, maybe.