Tag: changes

Done

    Guy Pace

Done | Guy L. PaceDone.

Nothing is ever–really–done. Especially writing.

I see places in Sudden Mission and Nasty Leftovers where maybe I could have written them a little better. Why? because I keep going back and re-reading parts. I read parts for events. Nothing brings a rough passage, a poor choice of words or phrase to the front like reading it aloud in front of an audience.

As I work through the first round of edits on Carolina Dawn from my editor and my “first reader” (wife) I find little phrases to improve and events to make more exciting. That means the editor will need to see these. And, I’ll have to go through it to review and accept the editor’s changes when it comes back.

You have to have the will and determination to stop. You must put the work down and move on to production. The whole point is to get it to readers. But, you want to get the very best possible story to your readers. So you give it one more pass through.

The problem with this is that every time you make changes, you have to run those changes before another set of eyeballs. You need that third party to look it over to make sure you haven’t made a horrible mistake, misspelled something, or made hash of a paragraph.

At some point in the process of writing, editing, rewriting, revising, and editing some more … you have to stop. Accept the editor’s changes, save the file and start formatting it for e-book and print. If you don’t, you’ll be stuck in this cycle forever.

Keep writing.

(Note: If you haven’t read the first two books, it might be a good time to do so. That way, you’ll be ready for Carolina Dawn when launchsd.)

 

Changes

    Guy Pace

 Crater Lake | Guy L. Pace

Changes

So much changes in our lives. About fifty years ago, I was a young man in Central Oregon. My friends and I made a huge playground of the high desert. We explored lava tube caves and the wide open juniper forest, climbed Mt. Bachelor and the South Sister, among other things. What is now a national monument (the Newberry National Volcanic Monument) was our back yard.

Where we used to hunt rabbits, bike, and hike is now filled with subdivisions around Bend, OR. Our old archery deer hunting grounds became the Sun River resort destination.

Now I must pay admission to go up Lava Butte or visit Paulina Lake. Well, I would if I didn’t have my senior pass (that was a very good decision).

Change is the only constant.

I met my brother and cousin in Southern Idaho recently, and the three of us rode our motorcycles through to Oregon, the coast, and finally to Crater Lake. In all the time I’ve lived around the area, I never got to Crater Lake. This time I did and it was the final destination we had as a group. From here, we split and went different ways. This gave me some time to reflect on our travels, the places we visited, and the sights we saw.

The pace

Some places, like the John Day area, change little or slowly. It seemed some of the farms we passed had the same horses I used to see all those years ago. The pace is slower and all the businesses are still there.

Bend, on the other hand, is so very different now. The pace is faster. Growth continues. Nothing looks the same. It takes time and effort to find the old house, the park, the high school, and some of the other places that were meaningful so long ago.

Like the characters in our stories, change is a given. Nothing stays the same for long. Prices increase and people move. Farmers grow different crops because of economic changes. New highways bypass old neighborhoods and leave the past behind. All that impacts our characters. Sometimes for the good. Sometimes not. It is rare that a place retains the nuances someone might remember from long ago.

Keep this in mind as you work with a character in your story.

Keep writing.

 

P.S. — Never explore lava tube caves alone. You never know when you need a friend to pull you out by the feet. And, take a flashlight with fresh batteries.

 

 

Changes

    Guy Pace

Changes

Friday, about 400 authors received an email from Booktrope, our publisher. It shook our world. As of May 31, 2016, Booktrope will close its doors. On that date, the 1,000-something books of those 400-some authors (including mine) will no longer be available through that publisher.

So, on June 1, 2016, readers will no longer find those books available online.

This was a shock.

Many, or most, of the authors in this publishing family depend on income from their book sales to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. Some are scrambling to get another publisher, some will go the self-publish route, others may just give up. Changes come hard for some.

I’m still processing this. I have only been with the company a year. We released Sudden Mission in August, 2015, and Nasty Leftovers in March, 2016. Both books have had some success and good critical reviews, and won awards. But it seems we just started this journey.

I’m with an incredible team that helped get both novels into shape for publication and I do not want to lose that. I’m making an effort to keep that team together as I go forward. I love the covers and artwork. The editing and proofreading were top-notch. I reached out to my team and we are working out details.

What things will look like after May 31 is anyone’s guess. I’ll know more as the business relationship with Booktrope dissolves and we get more information from them in the coming week.

So, in the meantime, Sudden Mission and Nasty Leftovers will remain available through the end of May on Amazon, Nook, and iBook. After that, I cannot predict how soon or if the books will return. I promise, I am working hard to sort this out and keep you informed of the progress.

The one thing I can guarantee now is that the books are still available until the end of May. If you want copies in e-book or print in the Vox Dei edition, get them this month. All the links are on the Sudden Mission and Nasty Leftover pages on this site.

Stay positive and keep writing.