On Monday, November 18, 2013 my debut historical thriller, MURPHY’S TROUBLES became available on Amazon.com (www.Amazon.com/Murphy’s-Troubles-Rex-Owens).

Why am I announcing this event on Wednesday, November20th?  Now, there’s a story.  I was surprised to receive the final hardcopy proof with cover late in the afternoon on the 20th.  I didn’t expect the final proof until November 25th.  I sat down and reviewed the last round of corrections I submitted and found everything perfect.  I could have (or should have) taken the time to check everything again.  I’ve reviewed four proofs so I decided to take a leap of faith that another review wasn’t need.

I logged into Create Space and approved the final proof.  Then I selected price, distribution channels, created an account to have royalties deposited and ordered books for my readings on December 14th and 16th.  The instructions noted that after final approval it would take 3-5 business days to have MURPHY’S TROUBLES listed on Amazon.

Just to make sure I understood the timing I called the Create Space customer service.  They explained that they couldn’t provide a date for birth on Amazon, just the 3-5 business day range.  I then asked the typical newbie question, can you guarantee it will be on Amazon by Monday, November 25th?  YES!

I was elated because the book launch was a full week ahead of schedule.  I switched gears to marketing mode and began work on the details of making the big announcement on Monday.  For some reason Tuesday I had an abundance of nervous energy and couldn’t focus.  I distracted myself with mundane jobs like grocery shopping, painting set for our civic theater production and other non-cerebral activities.

Tuesday evening I was watching the last episode of a PBS series I enjoyed but again found I couldn’t concentrate.  I decided, on a whim, to check Amazon.  I went to Amazon books and typed MURPHY’S TROUBLES in the search bar.  It popped up at the top of the page!  How did that happen?  I don’t care.

Having MURPHY’S TROUBLES listed on Amazon is a moment of triumph and the conclusion of a journey that began in 2000.  My nervous energy dissipated and I felt a wave of calmness through my body and could literally feel my tense muscles relaxed.  I hooted at the top of my voice! 

So today I become marketing man and this blog is my first declaration to the world – I DID IT!   

Plain and simple, here it is . . .

10/18 received electronic proof of book

10/21  received  physical proof of book

10/21 to 10/25 review proof,  make corrections, upload corrected proof

10/28 review and upload final book cover with spine

11/5 receive corrected proof

11/12 approve final proof

11/12 approve final cover

11/12 select regular and extended distribution

11/12 MURPHY’S TROUBLES sent to Amazon distribution

11/19 receive author’s complimentary copy

11/20 MURPHY’S TROUBLES available on Amazon for purchase

Part of the schedule is based on milestones Create Space provides to accomplish their tasks and part is dependent on me.  Having this timeline makes it real, concrete.  I began down the meandering road to publication in April 2010, it has taken 44 months.   

This past Monday I took one giant leap closer to releasing Murphy’s Troubles on Amazon.  I had a telephone conference with my design team at Create Space.  I panicked when my manuscript file was converted to a book format came in at 501 pages.  I attempted to change the formatting and physical dimensions of the book (called trim size) to reduce the page count.  It became clear that I had stumbled into the realm of graphic design experts and I was lost.

For a $349 I purchased the Create Space interior design package.  They sent me a document with recommendations for:  trim size, body copy font, accent font and fleuron (that squiggly thing separating major paragraph breaks within a chapter).  Before purchasing the package I was asked three times if I would like to try to do the interior design myself.  I appreciated not having a hard sell but I knew I needed help.

My graphic designer, Anna, led me through a series of questions to make the decisions that will shape the physical book.  I didn’t hesitate to ask for recommendations.  First choice – trim size.  Originally I chose 8.5 x 5.5.  Anna recommended 8 x 5 because it was more common for my genre.  She was able to tell me that size would result in a 330 page book, perfect.  I reviewed the various font options with my cover designer because I trust his judgment in the visual appearance of the book.  We chose Mercury for the body copy font (interior paragraph font); Charlemagne for the accent font (chapter headings) and a simple fleuron.  Next I was asked if I wanted the right page chapters.  That means each new chapter would always begin on a right hand page.  At first I thought that was a good idea.  However, Anna pointed out that could add 30 pages to the total page count.  I didn’t want to do that and she explained that most fiction books don’t have right page chapters.

Finally, we reviewed the image size of my book cover.  When I uploaded the cover file several months ago we guessed at the trim size.  We downsized the book so now the image needs to be adjusted.  I notified my cover designer and will have a properly sized image in about a week.

With all these decisions behind me the book seems much more real because it’s taking on physical shape in the real world.  I’ll be sent an electronic proof on 10/28 but I asked to be sent a physical proof which should arrive in early November.        

In February I terminated my contract with Mischievous Muse Press to begin the journey to self-publication.  Since then the book cover has been completely redesigned and the back of the book blurb tossed and re-written.

The first edit the manuscript had was a substantive edit by my friend and mentor Marshall Cook.  As a result I added two chapters and re-wrote the last chapter, dramatically changing the ending of the book.  Marshall convinced me that making the last paragraph of the book a cliff hanger just wasn’t fair to the reader.  Of course, he’s right.

Next, my website:   www.rexowens.us had a complete make-over.  I actually hired a pro to provide me with an analysis and make specific recommendations for change.  I accepted all the recommendations and in a single month saw a 25% jump in hits.

It took quite a while for me to find a compatible copyeditor/proofreader.  In August I found Christine Keleny of www.ckbookspublishing.com, who lives in a small town right here in Dane County, Wisconsin. Christine provided both insightful copyediting and line proofreading.  It has taken me about a month to review Christine’s recommendations and incorporate about 98% of them (Christine would prefer I write out all numerals).  In September I also took a one day brush- up course on grammar and punctuation because my experience with Christine was proof it would be beneficial for me.

I am now on the brink of publication.  First, I will be doing technical editing on formatting and consistency in the manuscript.  Then will come the day that I upload the manuscript to Create Space.  Recently, Create Space is offering more options on what is called interior design.  I want to take my time to get the “look” that I want for the book.  Create Space will also send me a hard copy galley to review and make final changes.  Then, the hour will arrive in October when MURPHY’S TROUBLES is published.

I want to choose a date for publication that coincides with a significant event in the history of the Provisional Irish Republican Army.  Right now I’m leaning toward 27 October (1980) the day the first Hunger Strike began.    

  

I have used a Paypal account for several years to invoice and accept payment for my freelance work.  Until recently I’ve never used Paypal for other traditional banking functions.  My copyeditor asked for payment via PayPal and sent me an invoice by Paypal.  Originally, we agreed I would pay half up front and the remainder when the project was finished. 

As it turned out the copy editor gave me a date when the project would be finished but it was right in the middle of my sojourn to Montreal.  I didn’t think she should have to wait while I was away for her final payment, so I agreed to make full payment prior to heading north for holiday.

I needed to make two transfers from my credit union account to paypal.  When I entered the transfer I was notified that it would be 5-7 business days for Paypal to receive the funds.  Why?  It’s all electronic, the transaction should be completed by the end of the day the transaction was entered.  I ckecked my credit union account and the funds were transferred the day I entered the transaction.  I checked my Paypal account the next day and there were no funds deposited.

It took five full business days ( 7 calendar days including the weekend) for the money to show up in my Paypal account.  So where was my money for 7 calendar days?  I called Paypal and the explanation offered was that the money went to a Federal Reserve clearing house and it took 5 business days for the transaction to clear.  What?  Why did the Federal Reserve have my money?

It all sounds a bit fishy to me.  There’s a float here and my guess is that somebody’s making money off my money or using my money temporarily without my permission.  Does anyone have a clue?

Write a comment back if you understand and let me know where my money went for 7 calendar days.     

When I decided to terminate my contract with the California micro publisher I was naive about the self-publishing world I would enter.  Where does a self-publisher find resources needed to publish a novel if you want to avoid the vanity houses that have been around for years.

There are private companies now that specialize in helping self-publishers find resources for editing, printing, marketing, and distribution.  I signed a contract with one.  I turned down two proposals to content edit my manuscript.  One proposal was for $5000 and the other for $2700.  A Madison friend offered to content edit in exchange for a contribution to his favorite charity.

A Sun Prairie friend offered to design a book cover.  He didn’t want to be paid but I researched the going rates for design work and gave him a check plus paid the picture he got from the internet.

My book was ready for copyediting and proofreading.  I contacted the firm and they put me in touch with an editor in South Dakota.  That editor wanted over $3000 for the job.  I was discouraged because I don’t have that kind of money to spend on my book.

My wife recalled that we attended a seminar at a local independent bookstore in April and one of the presenters was a copyeditor.  I searched through my notes and found her contact information.  She responded to my request for a proposal the same day I sent the e-mail.  The quote was very reasonable; she could start immediately and be finished in a week. Tilt! Tilt!  The copyeditor lives in Dane County, Wisconsin.

I have been fortunate to find the resources I need to self-publish Murphy’s Troubles and all within My Own Back Yard.    

I’m at the stage of self-publication to need copyediting/proofreading services.  I asked one of my writing teachers for a recommendation for a local person and received one.  I dashed off an e-mail to learn if the person was currently available to take on another client.  The response I received corrected me; she was a line editor, not a copy editor or proofreader.  I thought the response was a bit high minded but the description of the services made sense. Her fee was $45/hr which was within the range I had researched on line for this type of service.  She asked for the first chapter of my novel and I sent a file on July 6th.

The first chapter is six pages, about 1830 words.  How long can it take to read those few pages and make a proposal?  It took three follow-up e-mails to receive a response on July 21st.  She estimated she would charge $200 for the first six pages.  At that rate line editing my novel would cost over $9000!  After reading just six pages she concluded:  I’m at the beginning stages of the novel and stated:  “My strong suggestion is to take a class in constructing the short story –this will strengthen your understanding of how to avoid cultural stereotypes and produce a complex protagonist who is a real individual; how to stick to a strictly internal POV; how to introduce back-story convincingly; and above all, how to expose conflict gradually, instead of all at once.”

Guess what?  The editor teaches short story writing.  Also, the editor has only published short stories, never a full length novel.  The critique is harsh and not transparent in being self-serving to attempt to get me to take one or more of her short story classes.

I understand that short story writing is a difficult and unique form in the writing profession.  I’m not writing a short story, it’s a novel.  A short story is a song while a novel is a symphony.  Her comments also convinced me she hasn’t kept up with current teaching on novel writing such as Donald Maass’s, WRITING THE BREAKHOUT NOVEL, where he implores authors to have conflict dripping on every page.

While her response was both subtle and tactful it still had the affect of slicing and dicing my novel to shreds.  Where is her support for a first time novelist?  She broke the cardinal rule of critique, praise the good and make suggestions for improvement.

I admit at first reading her comments were devastating and sent me into deep depression.  With this blog I’m exorcising her from my psyche and moving on.  I’ll find an editor I can work with.  

Several years ago at a Writer’s Institute Conference I was convinced of the wisdom of having one or more beta readers for my novel.  The first person that had the job I didn’t know.  It was a relative of a friend I met at the conference who swore by his sister-in-laws skills at reading and commenting on fiction.

Several weeks after submitting my manuscript to her she sent me a three page, scathing e-mail that ripped my manuscript and me apart.  It was very personal and disturbing.  She closed her written critique by stating she hated historical fiction and felt she had wasted her time in reading my manuscript.  My friend was embarrassed and I felt I wasted my time in letting a stranger serve as a beta reader.  Lesson learned – ask someone you know and trust to be your beta reader.

I asked my friend Rob for his help.  He was thorough and insightful and helped me with theme and timeline but he insisted on telling me what the title of the book should be.  In fact, he obsessed about the title and would even call me for weeks with his latest rendition of what the title should be.  That should have been a warning to me but I didn’t heed it.

After getting a galley back from the publisher I parted ways with in February I asked Rob to serve as my beta reader again.  Again, he took about three weeks to give it a good read and took copious notes and made many notes in the manuscript.   I also gave him a copy of my latest version of the back of the book blurb.  When he called me to arrange a time to meet to review his comments he proudly announced that he had re-written my back of the book blub.  What?  

Making comments, suggestions, having a discussion is fine.  But re-writing just isn’t acceptable, it crosses the line.  My friend is a song writer and we discuss his songs, I make comments and suggestions but I’ NEVER re-written the music or lyrics to one of his songs.

He also claimed I had a number of misspellings.  One he constantly corrected was Midleton (one d) a city in Ireland east of Cork and the location of the distillery making Ireland’s finest single malt whiskey.  He corrected everyone to Middleton (two d’s).  He didn’t take the time to ask me about the spelling or research it himself, he was arrogant enough to correct me.

So, as you might imagine, I’m searching for a new beta reader.  Anyone interested in being a beta reader to help a writer? 

I’ve always been a person who begins all relationships with trust.  For me, it is the civil approach, to just expect that you can trust people.  I have had friends (people I’ve trusted) tell me that I am naive and leave myself vulnerable to be both disappointed and hurt.  Their advice is that trust must be earned over time.  The problem is, I’ve never figured out what the criteria is for earning trust.

In the real world there have been a few times when my friends are right.  I had a contract with a micro publisher for my debut novel since April 2011 which I terminated in February 2013 – only 22 months.  My initial reason for terminating the contract was their refusal to schedule a publication date for the novel in 2013 after making promises to publish in April and then November 2012 and failed to do so.

For most reasonable people, I believe, that would be sufficient cause to terminate a contract.  However, after reflecting on my experience with the publisher, I’ve decided the real reason was that we never developed trust.  Without trust any relationship is doomed to failure.

I also have a beta reader that I trusted, until recently.  I gave the reader the latest draft of my novel along with a draft of the back of book blurb.  Rather than commenting on the blurb, discussing it with me or making suggestions – he re-wrote the entire blurb.  I was offended.  I considered his attempt to re-write the blub arrogant even though he thought he was being helpful.  No writer needs that sort of help – so in this case – trust was shattered and can’t be repaired.

The lesson is simple.  To help you create your book or whatever creative writing you undertake is careful to work only with people you would trust with your life.  You’re writing is the purest expression of yourself so share the creative process with only those you trust.