Launched Into The Unknown

I’m at a bit of a loss today. For the past couple of years, amongst other projects, I have been working on my fourth novel, Troll Life.

The humorous tale of an online troll being exposed, and having to work in the very call centre he has been trolling, has been eagerly anticipated in some quarters and I would like to think it is my best work yet.

Yesterday, after 307 hours of planning, writing and editing and many more preparing for publication, it was officially launched.

In the Pottery Gallery in Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens, as part of Sunderland Libraries Literature Festival, I finally unleashed Troll Life on the world.

 

It was a subdued affair with a small but attentive audience and regular readers and fans had been able to take advantage of early purchases due to my soft launch approach. (I already had a five star review before the official launch date.)

I let social media know, watched the news get shared far and wide and now I’m just waiting for the sales to flood (trickle) in.

I’ve still got a few more things to do. I’m getting some publicity shots taken tomorrow at a popular local coffee shop and they will be added to my press release.

I have a couple other promotional tricks up my sleeve but I am wary of spamming people so I’ll try not to bore you about it.

Now that it’s officially out there, I don’t know what to do.

Do I start work immediately on novel number five?

Do I concentrate on my plays that have been getting some very positive feedback?

Do I work on the long promised book based on my etiquette blogs?

I could restart a couple of ‘secret’ projects I started when I first became a full time writer. I’m undecided whether they will be published under my own name but I think they both have legs.

Or I could do some more short stories as, despite not being a man for competitions, I have been shortlisted for the Crossing The Tees short story award and will be appearing in their anthology next year.

Whatever I do, I have plenty of options, but it’s a strange feeling letting go of something that has been a daily part of my life for so long.

I’ve got another appearance at the Literature Festival on 26^th October at Washington Library (2.30pm) and the same night, a play based on Idle Threats will performed at the Westovian Theatre in South Shields.

Hopefully by then I will have some idea what I am working on.

Troll Life is now available on Amazon and I would be grateful if you could spread the word.

I hope you enjoy it and whatever I decide to do next, I promise that you will be the first to know.