Moved to New Website!

No new posts will be added to this site. My new author website: www.leonarddhilleyii.com
Subscribe to my mailing list there and download a FREE copy of Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter.

The Deimos Virus: Target Earth

The Deimos Virus: Target Earth is now available on Kindle.

Sometimes Vengeance is More Blind Than Love:

A devastating virus spreads through the Deimos Moon Station killing fifty-six people. Dr. Carter is somehow immune and the sole survivor. Vowing to avenge the lives of his colleagues and his lover, Carter takes two vials of the contagious lethal virus to Earth with the intention to infect and kill Boyd Grayson, the owner of Grayson Enterprises. He holds Grayson responsible for their deaths. His blind vengeance dismisses the fact that there is no cure, placing the entire world population at risk.

The Deimos Virus: Target Earth 

Publisher: DeimosWeb Publishing

Genre: Science Fiction, Sci-fi Thriller, Suspense

524 pages

Succubus: Shadows of the Beast

NOTE: Formerly published under pen name T.W. Mordrake.

Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance:

Entering the real world after college often educates one to the true horrors of the harsh obstacles life has to offer. For Kailey Yates the discoveries are far more terrifying and dangerous. Two days before she graduated with a degree in investigative journalism, her brother Vincent is found dead in his swimming pool with a syringe stuck in his arm. His death is ruled as a suicide, but Kailey doesn't buy it.

She suspects Vincent's new wife Cassie is the one who actually killed him. Her suspicions are drawn from his rapid health deterioration during his short six month marriage. During one of her last Skype conversations she had with Vincent, Kailey's roommate Raven witnesses their conversation and immediately senses that Vincent is being soul-drained by a succubus. Since Raven is a witch, Kailey has no doubt about her friend's perception and concludes that Cassie must be the demon responsible.

Kailey leaves Boston and flies to Seattle for her brother's funeral. While there she investigates the circumstance surrounding his death. She uncovers dark information that leads her to Nocturnal Trinity, a nightclub in the heart of Seattle. And worse, the underground club is run by a powerful alliance of vampires, demons, and witches that wish to protect Cassie at all costs, which includes killing Kailey or anyone else if necessary.

Publisher: Nocturnal Trinity Press
Genre: PR/UF
Pages: 481
Formats: Paperback, Kindle, Kindle Unlimited
Price: $2.99
Succubus: Shadows of the Beast

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter [Vol. 2] Blood Mists of London

For Forrest Wollinsky fans, Book 2 will release on Friday 13th. Here's the cover and blurb:

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter [Vol. 2] Blood Mists of London

Whitechapel, London: 1888

A ravenous madman stalks the foggy streets of Whitechapel, savagely butchering women during the dead of night and mysteriously disappearing without a trace or even an eyewitness, which leaves detectives at wit’s end to find the murderer. The newspapers call this serial killer Jack the Ripper, but Forrest Wollinsky believes this sinister phantom is a master vampire who has ventured far from his homeland for one reason: unrelenting vengeance.

However, stopping this vampire won’t be easy. He’s the most powerful vampire Forrest has encountered to date, and even his werewolf cousin discovers he’s no match against him alone. Slaying this vampire will require Forrest to align himself with some unusual creatures he never knew existed, but even then they have no guarantee of success.

290 pages. Ages 14+. Paranormal/UF. Mystery. Formats: Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, PB, Audio [later in the year]

A Typical Day in a Writer's Life

Good morning, all!

This is Day 5 in Bewitching Book Blog Tour for Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter. My guest blog "A Typical Day in Writer's Life" is at: I Smell Sheep. So stop by and check it out. This blog gives some insight to how I start my day and my writing process. Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway at the end of the month for a chance to win 1 of 10 FREE copies of Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter.

More news is on the way. I've almost completed the first draft of the second book in the Vampire Hunter series: Forrest Wollinsky: Blood Mists of London. I will have a cover reveal soon.

Thank you for stopping by and for your support!

All my best,

Leonard

Day Three of Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter Blog Tour

Please check out Day 3 of the Bewitching Book Blog Tour for Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter at the CBY Book Club Blog. If you haven't already, sign up for the giveaway. 10 digital copies of Forrest Wollinsky will be given away at the end of the tour.

23 Years of Marriage

My wife and I celebrated our 23rd wedding anniversary yesterday. In so many ways, it doesn't seem that long, but I've treasured every day we've been together.

We met at Berea College in 1993, fell head over heels for one another, and married within a few months. Yes, most marriages don't last when the couple hasn't known one another very long. But, I knew from the moment she and I took a walk along the trails on Berea College's campus that she was the woman I wanted to spend my life with. We had so many common interests.

At the time our paths crossed both of us were at very low points in our lives. What we discovered wasn't a rebound, but we found the part that completed us. We're soulmates destined to walk the journey of life together.

Before I met Christal, I had stopped writing for nearly ten years. I had tried a couple of times to put words on the page but without success. After we started dating, she and I went to a bookstore on campus. We were looking at discount books, and she showed me a 3-in-1 set of Dean Koontz's books. She expressed how much she loved his books. So, later in the day, I returned to the store and bought the set to surprise her. Only, the surprise was on me.

When I got back to the dorm room, I started reading The Servants of Twilight. I loved the way Koontz wrote the different chapters from the POV of each character. By chapter four, I was hooked. I had to confess to her that I had bought the book for her, BUT I needed to finish reading the first book first. She laughed. Reading his work refueled my desire to write, which is why the dedication of my first book, Predators of Darkness: Aftermath states: "For my wife, Christal, who reignited my desire to write. Without her this book would not have been written. And you? You would not be reading this."

While Koontz's works influenced my early writing, Christal was the one who had introduced me to this books. I had never heard of him, and quite possibly I would never have sought the books out. When it comes to writing, she's been a great inspiration and early on, an excellent critic of how I was writing. If she read my work and thought it wasn't good, she told me, not in an impolite manner. As most early novelists do, we tell and don't show, and since she had read hundreds of books she really knew what worked. So I work feverishly on my craft, doing everything I could to learn how to improve my stories to draw in the readers.

I could write books on the things we've seen and shared during our twenty-three years together. The biggest blessings we've had together are our two children and our grandson. I love her for who she is, and I could never have made it this far in life without her. She's the best friend I have, and I hope we share our journey ahead for many more decades to come.

Interview with Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter

Day TWO of the Bewitching Book Blog Tour for Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter. To read an interview with Forrest, please check out the blog post: http://dianes-book.blogspot.com/ Also, ten digital copies of Forrest Wollinsky will be given away at the end of the book blog tour.

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter [Bewitching Book Blog Tour]

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter Volume One is currently on a Bewitching Book Blog Tour starting today.

Here's the schedule for the month ahead:

Schedule Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter Vol. One 

by Leonard D. Hilley II

April 25 Spotlight

aobibliosphere™

http://aobibliosphere.blogspot.com

April 26 Character Interview

Diane’s Book Blog 

http://dianes-book.blogspot.com

April 27 Spotlight

CBY Book Club

http://cbybookclub.blogspot.com/

April 27 Review

Romance Authors That Rock

https://pratr.wordpress.com/

April 28 Spotlight

BookwormBridgette's World

http://bookwormbridgette.blogspot.com

April 29 Guest blog

I Smell Sheep

http://www.ismellsheep.com/

May 2 Spotlight

Sapphyria's Book Reviews

http://saphsbookblog.blogspot.com/

May 3 Spotlight

Share My Destiny

http://sharemydestiny.blogspot.com

May 4 Guest blog and review

happy tails and tales 

http://happytailsandtales.blogspot.com

May 5 Spotlight and Review

The Recipe Fairy 

http://recipe-fairy.weebly.com/

May 6 Spotlight

Apocalipstick

https://apocalipstickthebook.wordpress.com/

May 9 Spotlight 

Paranormal Tendencies Book Reviews

http://www.paranormaltendencies.blogspot.com

May 10 Spotlight

Lisa’s World of Books

www.lisasworldofbooks.net

May 11 Guest blog

Fang-tastic Books

www.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com

May 12 Interview

Deal Sharing Aunt

www.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com

May 13 Guest Blog

The Creatively Green Write at Home Mom

www.creativelygreen.blogspot.com

May 14 Review

aobibliosphere™

http://aobibliosphere.blogspot.com

May 16 Guest blog

Roxanne’s Realm

www.roxannerhoads.com

May 17 Spotlight

Hart's Romance Pulse

www.HartsRomancePulse.weebly.com

May 18 Guest blog

Zenny's Awesome Book Reviews

https://zennysawesomebookreviews.wordpress.com/

playlist, recipe, top 5 or 10 list

May 19 Spotlight

T's Stuff  

http://teresanoel.blogspot.com/

May 20 Spotlight

3 Partners in Shopping , Nana, Mommy, and Sissy, Too!

http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com/

May 23 Spotlight

Ramblings of a Book Nerd

http://booknerdramblings.com

Like Vampire Hunter novels? Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter is now LIVE at Amazon. Read for FREE if you're enrolled in Kindle Unlimited. YA friendly. #YA #Kindle

"Killing Vampires Since 1888."

I was born in Bucharest in 1880 in the heart of the vampire population. At eight years old, I was considered a freak of nature since I was already the size of an adult male. Other children my age, and some of my teachers, shunned me. Being rejected by one’s peers cuts deeply. Then I met my first werewolf and discovered a master vampire was plotting to kill me because of what I am. From that moment, my destiny stole my future aspirations all men grow up wanting. This is how my destiny begins.

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter

"A new vampire hunter."

Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter (In Kindle Scout)

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Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter

by Leonard D. Hilley II

New 

 

Killing vampires since 1888. 

Synopsis:

"I was born in Bucharest in 1880 in the heart of the vampire population. At eight years old, I was considered a freak of nature since I was already the size of an adult male. Other children my age, and some of my teachers, shunned me. Being rejected by one’s peers cuts deeply. Then I met my first werewolf and discovered a master vampire was plotting to kill me because of what I am. From that moment, my destiny stole my future aspirations all men grow up wanting. This is how my destiny begins."

My newest novel,  Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter, has been submitted to Amazon Kindle Scout program in hopes that they will accept the novel to be published by Amazon Press.
 

Why? For one, should they accept a novel for publication, the press pays a $1500.00 advance, and ebook royalties are 50% on all sales. If they choose, they can translate the book into other languages around the world, which is something I’ve wanted with my other books.

“Early downloads & reviews: One week prior to release date, everyone who nominated a book that is published by Kindle Press will receive a free copy and be invited to leave reviews.”

Another advantage, even if Amazon Press does not choose it, is the publicity generated by those who have voted for the book. When a lot of votes are generated, the book rises into the Hot & Trending category, which means more potential readers see the book.

Fingers are crossed.

28 Days Left!  Here's more information:

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Are you a fan of vampire novels? How about Vampire Hunters?

If you own a Kindle or have an Amazon account, you can read the first 2 chapters. If this is something you’d like to see in print, please nominate Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter. Here’s the link: https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/1Z29TY753FBMW

If Amazon Press chooses the book for publication everyone who nominated the book will receive an advanced Kindle copy approximately two weeks before the book is released.

Please check it out and tell your friends. Thanks!

Writing Week in Review 10/12--10/17 2015

Writing Week in Review:


This week started off rough. On Monday, the words just didn't want to emerge. Writing was brutal; the mental equivalent of scratching fingernails on a chalkboard, with BOTH hands. I barely got 4 pages in eight hours of writing ("trying" to write).

Tuesday and Wednesday moved along better with 8 pages each day. Good but not what I was hoping to achieve.

Thursday, mental gears rolled along much better. 11 pages.

Friday was glorious. I wish every day came this easily. For some reason I was in that writing zone. I was inside the novel and trying to keep up with everything that was going on. 20.8 pages!!!

I mentioned some days back that I "hoped" to be finished yesterday with Lady Squire. VERY close now. In the home stretch! Here's where it stands: On Chapter 79. By the standard 250 words per page, it is 709 pages long. You heard it, too? Trees in the forests are groaning! Good thing Kindle sales are much higher than PB.

Thanks, guys, for your patience! I plan to write more today (7 pages in 4 hours) and back into the grind on Monday. I will keep you posted.

Keep the Reader Guessing

Years ago, when I first decided to write "seriously," I submitted a lot of short stories to science fiction/fantasy magazines. Sadly, a lot of those publications are now defunct. But, I learned a lot from various editors during that time.

Some editors were gracious enough to enclose pointers with their rejection forms. However, a few went a bit further and actually wrote comments on their forms (ALWAYS a good sign). One piece of advice was to avoid using too much exposition. Basically, get to the point and don't bog down the reader with nonessential background information. Marion Zimmer Bradley put it another way, as she had been told by an editor, "Johnny gets his butt caught in a bear trap and spends the rest of the story trying to get out of it." Dean Koontz suggests start with the action.

I've learned that adding the urgency and dilemmas early on--like the opening--really pulls the reader in. After all, if readers aren't interested in what you're writing, they won't finish the work. No audience? What's the point in writing other than for one's self-amusement?

I took creative writing courses during my senior year of college. The professor kept insisting that I show the monsters of Predators of Darkness on page one. His advice was to put it all on page one, but page one is only so long, right?

I argued  that I don't need to put a description of the monster on page one. When he asked, "Why?" I explained. If I show the monster on page one, I just killed the suspense and mystery that attracts the readers to the main character's problem. You're more afraid of what you don't see hiding in the shadows than when you find out exactly what it is. Ask anyone that's terrified of spiders or snakes that steps into a room where a spider or snake is hidden what level his/her fear is. If you know where it is, you can avoid finding it. Not knowing where it is . . . means you might accidentally walk into its path. Sometimes not seeing is MORE frightening. The possible element of surprise, so to speak.

This is why I try to start with the action first and keep the reader guessing until the end.

Getting into the Flow of Writing

The hardest part about writing is getting into the flow. For the past two days, I've added 8 pages per day to Lady Squire, but it took a few hours of staring at the computer before the words dislodged. Once the dam breaks, the words seem to spill out faster than I can write them. That's a wonderful sensation once it occurs, but it's hell before that.


I love being in the writing zone when the story unfolds right before me. One of the best compliments readers have given me is that they feel like they are there in the story, too. But, as the writer, I am there. I am in the characters' world, seeing and hearing everything around them. Maybe that's why others feel that way too?

Time to venture back into Aetheaon! Here's hoping it doesn't take long to step through the portal.

Dee's Mystery Solvers: The Beating Heart Beneath Hollow Hill Cemetery

When I was young living in rural Alabama, my sister and our friends made a club to investigate mysteries in the pastures and woods behind our house.  So, it comes as no major surprise that I'd eventually begin writing about a club of teenagers (Dee's Mystery Solvers) who seek to solve mysteries.

Behind our house, an old dirt road divided the dense woods and a large pasture, but the owners finally blocked the old dirt road when I became a teenager.  Along the old road were places where people had dumped garbage long before I was even a thought.  We found old bottles, shoes, discarded clothes, and other odds and ends that made for interesting "loot."  But also, in the center of the pasture, within sight of our yard, was an old house the pasture owner used for a barn to store hay.  Unpainted, and missing parts of the walls and tin roof, this house certainly looked haunted.

My older brother and I had once gone into the old house to investigate.  I was only about five years old, so the experience was frightening and exciting at the same time.  He had me stand on the ground floor beside the old brick fireplace while he walked up the short spiral wooden staircase to the top floor.  He wanted to knock on the fireplace to see if I could hear him from down below, but I never heard the knock.

Later, I went upstairs to find him.  About one fourth of an upstairs wall was missing. Outside this open space was a panoramic view of the pasture, trees, and the pond on the next hill.  An old iron bed frame stood against the other wall.  Rusted hangers hung on an old metal wire with tattered clothes dancing in the breeze.  The inside of the house wasn't as frightening as I had imagined it would be, which is also how most unknown situations can be when one explores.  Our minds often paint darker images of the unknown.  Of course, my brother and I also read all kinds of scary comics, so in my mind I feared what might actually be hiding in that old house.  To my satisfaction and partial disappointment, none of the things I pictured were there.  It was rather tame.

Other mysteries abounded during our younger years.  Some we never found explanations for why they occurred.  One unknown occurrence was what we called the "ghost dog" because this dog barked and howled but we never ever saw it.  We learned to accept that he was there, even though we never found him.

My oldest brother lived a while in the old one room shed behind our house during his mid-teens.  Even to this day, he talks about the strange things that happened at night in the woods behind that shed.  Things that frightened him, and he was never one to show fear.

So many elements during our youth shape us.  Our earliest fears, curiosities, and obstacles get stored inside our minds.  For writers, this is a wealth of information that later comes out in our stories.

And along comes Dee's Mystery Solvers.  The Beating Heart Beneath Hollow Hill Cemetery is based on an account told to me from a friend years ago.  The overall premise is based upon this legend, and the outcome is nothing less than what others discovered about the strange mysteriously beating heart near Chattanooga, Tennessee.

More stories are to follow with Dee's Mystery Solvers.  I enjoy the freshness of how teenagers attempt to discover the truth through adventure and investigation.  Writing these accounts brings me back to a younger time when there was so much to learn and new places to explore.  Of course now, most of my explorations occur on the page, leading me to places I'll never find in this world.

Shawndirea: The Magic of a Faery

When I started writing Shawndirea, I anticipated that the story would be a novella (40-50,000 words), as a back story for the characters in Devils Den, which is a novel set twenty years after Shawndirea takes place.  This didn't happen, and for whatever reason, the book took to life on its own.

I suppose this shouldn't be a shock to me.  Most of the characters were from a novel I had started in 1993.  The novel was bad, so I scrapped it.  However, the characters remained inside my mind for nearly twenty years.  During this time, they matured without my knowledge, and once they were placed onto the pages, they came alive and took the reins.  They had things they needed to do and voices that needed to be heard.  I let them take over so I could see where they were going.

Truth be known, I don't consider myself a writer.  I'm a note-taker.  I write down the scenes as they appear vividly, and stand idly by, taking careful notes while eavesdropping on my characters.  This has never failed me.  The next thing I know, there's a completed novel.

But still Shawndirea was different.  This wasn't an ordinary novel for me.  Amassing 528 pages, this proved to be the longest of my projects, but it has also opened many doors in the realm of Aetheaon.  Already, I have tentative ideas for three novel plots in this series, but as the second book is coming along (at 200 pages currently), I realize there may be many more.

What I love about this journey is meeting new characters within different races that I never expected to meet.  Some of the strongest characters are the ones that show up unannounced and introduce themselves.  This happens far more than you might expect.  But these are the things I enjoy about being a note-taker in a new world.  And for those of you who are following this journey, there aren't enough words to express my thanks and gratitude.  The feedback has been overwhelming and knowing that others love these characters and novels as much as I enjoy putting them on the page, is one of the greatest rewards this author could ever have.

My thanks to each of you!

FREE: Predators of Darkness: Aftermath (June 7th, 8th, & 9th)!

For the next few days, the first book in my Darkness Series is absolutely free on Amazon Kindle!

Predators of Darkness: Aftermath

Using Sensory Impressions to Bring Your Scenes to Life

Using sensory impressions in your creative writing helps draw a reader into your story.  Certain sounds, sights, smells, tastes, and textures produce pictures in readers' mind that are connected to emotions in their pasts.  A writer doesn't have to be flamboyant with the descriptions.  Sometimes subtle depictions do more than over-description.

If you've ever walked through a forest after a heavy rain and kicked up wet leaves, your mind picks up that scent and visual while you're reading the setting right now.  Does the thought of a freshly plowed field in early spring trigger anything in your mind?  It might, if you grew up in an area where farmers planted their crops. What about walking along a pier as the misty breeze off the ocean flows past you?  Moth balls in your grandmother's closet.  Honeysuckle on a late summer afternoon. Freshly picked tomatoes.  Dill pickles.  Grandpa's pipe.  These images remind me of times in my youth and as I grew up.  They might mean something totally different for someone else, or others might visualize similar things.

The point is words produce images in our minds, and sometimes those images are linked to our emotions.  Exact sensory words connect with readers, but they won't if the writer doesn't get out of the way.  "Show, don't tell" is an adage that is more valuable than most writers understand.

A simple example is:

I saw a big tree and heard a bird singing on a branch. (Telling)

A red robin sang on the leafy branch of the massive oak tree. (Showing)

Even in the modest example, showing is more beneficial for the reader.  You get specifics, which are details that paint a picture with words.  So, if you're writing about a man driving a car, don't be vague.  What kind of car?  What color?  Rental or does he own it?  How old is the man?  Does he have a beard?  Is he bald?  Tall and skinny or short and chubby?  The possibilities are endless, but all these details give the reader insight into his personality, his tastes, etc.

However, don't be too overly descriptive, either.  Too much detail will cause a reader to skim ahead or skip entire passages because it bogs down the plot and eliminates the urgency.  Have you ever read a novel where the entire room or house is thoroughly described to the point where you flip ahead?  Yeah, me too.  Overdoing description is almost as bad as not enough details.

Take a notebook and go for a walk sometime.  Find a place to sit and describe all the sounds, smells, and sights.  Bring your surroundings to life on the page.  It might take a few attempts, but the effort is well worth it.

Shawndirea (Chronicles of Aetheaon: Book I) Release Date: June 12th

I am proud to announce my newest novel, Shawndirea, will be released on June 12, 2014.  Here's the book blurb:

" Often the smallest unexpected surprises garner the most demanding dilemmas, which proves to be the ordeal that entomologist Ben Whytten faces.  While netting butterflies to add to his vast collection, he mistakenly sweeps what he thinks is the most spectacular butterfly he has ever seen into his net.  Upon examining his catch, Ben is horrified to discover he has captured a faery and shredded her delicate wings into useless ribbons.

Devastated, Ben vows to take Shawndirea back to her realm, Aetheaon; but he discovers that doing so places their lives into immediate danger.  To get to Aetheaon, they must pass through a portal rift deep inside the haunted cavern, Devils Den. 

Once they cross the rift, Ben enters a world where mysteries, magic, betrayal, and power struggles await.  He must adapt quickly or die because Aetheaon is filled with enchanted creatures and numerous races where chaos often dominates order.  And since Shawndirea’s destined for the throne of Elvendale, opposing dark forces plot to prevent her from ever reaching her kingdom again.  The faery's magic isn't enough to fully protect them, so he must trust other adventurers to aid them during their journey."

Book contains a great map drawn by Millard Pollitt.
Book Length: 148,000 words or 536 printed pages (It's a LONG book).
Genre: Fantasy, Fae/Faeries, Sword &Sorcery, Action/Adventure, Magical Realm, Dragons, Wizards, Dwarves, Elves, etc.

Pre-orders at Barnes & Noble later this week!  $5.99

Indies, Why the Rush to Publish?

Why the rush to publish?

Never upload an unpolished novel to Kindle or Smashwords without hiring an editor to proofread and make corrections.  Finishing the first draft of your manuscript is a remarkable accomplishment, but the novel isn’t ready to enter the world of readers.  Your reputation is on the line.  First impressions do mean everything.  A book filled with excessive grammatical errors, improper punctuation, and plot holes will only reveal the author’s lack of writing qualifications.  Think about it.  The better your book is, the more readers will anticipate your next one.  And the best part is word of mouth.  If readers are telling other readers how great your books are, your audience is going to grow.

Trust me.  I speak from my own experience.  In 2007, I published my first novel through a Print-on-Demand publisher, and it was riddled with numerous flaws.  The publisher, which I shall leave nameless, did not make corrected edits that I had paid for, and the “package” I bought was hefty in price.

At first I was so ecstatic to see my book in print that I didn’t notice.  However, as time went by, readers would message me via Myspace and let me know where they had found some errors.  The more I looked, the more I realized the publisher had taken my money but didn’t do the work they were hired to do.  And worse, this knowledge came to me after having a third novel published through them.

The final straw was with my third book, The Game of Pawns.  I handed one of my sisters-in-law a copy because she loved the series.  A week later she said, “Did you know at the end of the thirteenth chapter that it stops midsentence?”

I was horrified.  I know I enjoy writing suspense, and an incomplete sentence does leave a reader wondering what happened, but this wasn’t a good thing.  For one, the book had been completely edited by an editor with over twenty years experience.  Secondly, I had gone through the first digital galley they emailed me and found only six errors.  I marked those and sent it back.  When the second galley came, I checked for the corrections.  All six had been fixed.  I okayed the novel to go to print.

Once my sister-in-law pointed out the error, I went back to the galleys.  Somehow between galley one and galley two, two and half paragraphs had vanished.  This was not on my end, so I called them.  They wanted to charge me another $149.00 to “fix” their error.  When I told them that I kept copies of the digital galleys and could prove the error was on their end, they were taken back but insisted that I needed to pay for the correction.  My reply was that short of legal action, I don’t know what else to do.  They fixed their error for free.

Another problem with the third book was the royalty rate I was receiving.  Both Beyond the Darkness and The Game of Pawns are ~80,000 words.  However, The Game of Pawns was almost seventy pages longer than Beyond the Darkness, which not only increased the price of the book, it lowered my royalty per book.  Thanks to CreateSpace and learning how to format paperbacks, I figured out what they had done.  Instead of 1.15 space between the lines, they used 1.5.  Sheesh . . .

In my situation with that publisher, and since their imprint was on my books, most readers faulted the publisher, not me.  This was before the Indie craze took flight and sales of Kindles and Nooks dramatically increased.  Now the majority of readers do fault the authors because we’re the ones that push the “Publish” button.  Not other publishers.

I learned about KDP in 2011.  I wish I had known sooner.

Since I retained the rights to all of my books, I pulled them from the POD publisher and decided to upload them after thoroughly editing them once again.  I’ve learned a lot in three years, and during that time, I also finished my MFA in creative writing.  I believe the more I write the more patient I have become as to when to release a book.  I have also grown pickier about the quality of my writing.  With most of my books, I try to read each page at least fifty times.  Excessive?  Yes.  Are there still errors?  Of course.  No one catches all of them.

Let me give you an example.  With Beyond the Darkness, I know I read the first page at least 100 times.  No exaggeration.  I handed the finished draft to my wife to read.  On the first page she caught a mistake that I hadn’t seen.  Instead of “reclining” chair, I had typed “recycling” chair.  After nearly a hundred times of reading that page, I had missed it.  That’s why it is crucial to have Beta readers, proofreaders, and editors.  My mind kept correcting the word to what I thought I had written, but we all do that.  Another set of eyes is essential to catch the mistakes.

Periodically, I have an author send me a request to read a novel and write a blurb.  One author requested friendship on Facebook and after I accepted, she asked me to write a blurb for her novel.  I told her that I couldn’t because I had not read the book.  She sent me a PDF of the novel, and I read a few chapters.  I politely mentioned that she needed to have it edited, which infuriated her.  I explained that I was only speaking from my own experience.  Suddenly she “unfriended” me on Facebook.

I am thankful for what Amazon and Smashwords have done for Indie authors, but the ease at which people can publish is like a two-edged sword.  It’s too easy to rush to publish.  However, here’s a formula to consider: Rush 2 Publish = Readers’ Rush 2 Judgment.  Quality should always outweigh the quantity.