e-Publishing

I'm working on an e-book anthology for my Sisters in Crime chapter and it's proving to be quite a challenge. If I had known it was going to be this difficult, I may not have volunteered to co-edit.

Not that e-publishing is that hard. It's just that acting as the publisher, there's so much to know and learn. And while the chapter itself is the publisher, learning about it so far has fallen to just to few of us, including my co-editor. But the stories are nearly all edited and I'm getting them into a single file folder to hand over to the chapter president.

It's a historical anthology and the stories -- 15 in all -- are set in the past, from the recent past to as far back as the 16th century. Not all are set in Indiana, although most are. (My story is set in Tennessee in 1930.) But all the stories are authored by an Indiana writer.

One of the big challenges now is to arrange the stories in the strongest way possible. We have already picked out the first story, which is very strong, and the last story, which is also strong and will end the anthology on a strong and positive note. But arranging all the stories in between is difficult because there isn't one over-arching theme. And while all the stories have merit, some truly are better than others. However, we want to showcase the book and the chapter in the best light. I'm keeping that in mind.

Well, that's about it for now. I will let you know when it's coming out. Stay tuned.

Thanks for reading and keep writing.

ABNA

Read the announcement today that Amazon this year is not hosting its annual Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. ABNA is probably now gone forever.

That makes me sad. It was a fun contest that not offered a slim chance of getting a publishing contract, but it also was a great gathering place for authors like me to meet and befriend each other. A large number of my Facebook friends are from ABNA. Only one have I ever met face-to-face -- and then only once and briefly.

I will miss that -- getting ready for the contest, chatting with the others, offering and receiving advice on my writing, offering and receiving encouragement when the inevitable comes.

There are forums with former participants but it won't be the same as during the late winter and into the spring when the contest unfolds. It was a gathering of like-minded people who cheered each other on and cried with each other when elimination came.

Last fall, Amazon announced a "reader-powered publishing platform" called Kindle Scout and encouraged past contestants to consider that as a publishing option. In today's announcement, Amazon mentioned Kindle Scout again.

I'm assuming the company feels that is a better and more cost-effective method of finding new authors and new voices. And now, without the contest, I guess I may pursue that.

But regardless of the outcome, I doubt it will be as much fun as the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. Sorry to see it go.

But onward and upward

Thanks for reading and keep up the writing.  

A book I just read

I just finished a novel by Felicia Mason, a native of Pennsylvania now living in Virginia (according to her bio). the book is call Hidden Riches, and I loved it.

In October, my wife's book club read my unpublished mss, The Last Tontine Survivor, which is a thriller. In November, they read Hidden Riches. And after my wife finished, I decided to read it, although I didn't get around to it until last week.

Wow, what a wonderful book. It's about three siblings who travel back to North Carolina for the funeral of their estranged sister, Ana Mae, who was a domestic, and are forced to stay to discover the unknown hidden riches Ana Mae left behind, including nearly $4 million.

It a great book with great characters, particularly Ana Mae, who's dead, and the deceased younger sister JoJo. Plus it has a wonderful surprise ending.

Well done, Felicia.

Superb!

Thanks for reading.