As discussed in my previous blog, I’d been dipping in and out of the idea of writing Troll Life for about a year or so and did some work on a synopsis and character profiles in the summer of 2016. I don’t know how long I spent on it in total but I’m going to … More Time to write. (How long does it take to write a novel Pt.2)
Writer’s get asked many questions “what’s your proper job?”, “are you rich?” and “have you thought about writing about a wizard who lives under the stairs?” being just a few of them. One of the most frequent questions is “How long does it take to write a novel?” It’s a question I rarely have an … More Time to write (How long does it take to write a novel?)
On Tuesday, almost two years on since I released Idle Threats, I launched my third novel, Life In The Balance. More accurately, I released it over a week ago but chose not to tell anybody. This may appear to be counterintuitive. Why wasn’t I shouting it from the rooftops? The answer is simple, I wanted … More Softly, softly. (The cautious approach to book launches.)
How far would you go to make amends? Manuel Frost is obsessed with right and wrong. Each day he logs good and bad deeds that he witnesses into a ledger that nobody is allowed to see. Each night, if the books don’t balance, he sets out to perform deeds of his own to even them … More Life In The Balance
We’ve discussed the disasters I’ve had and the improvements I made to my book covers but now I’ve decided to change again. ‘Why?’ you may ask. There are a number of reasons, some that I outlined in my previous blog but the driving force was that I wanted a consistent theme across all my book … More Judge a book by its cover. (Part three). The rebrand.
In my previous blog I discussed some of the awful mistakes I made with book covers in the early days so it is no surprise that when I came to publish my second novel, Idle Threats, I decided that I needed some help. The dilemma that every self-publisher will face is knowing when and where … More Judge a book by its cover. (Part two) Making improvements.
Those of you who have followed my writing career or have read my earlier self-publishing blogs will know that I have a love hate relationship with book covers. Being a self-published author means that you have to be responsible for every aspect of your book’s publication and it’s fair to say that designing book covers … More Judge a book by its cover. (Part one) Making mistakes.
As well as trying to amuse and educate you with my etiquette blogs, I do have other writing priorities such as writing novels. My ‘proper job’ if you like. Novel number three should be out in early July and I’ve been slaving away on number four recently. Today marked one of the major milestones in … More First draft, how to set a word count target and stick to it.
I’ve been toying with the idea of serialising Leg It for some time and I’ve decided to give it a go. I’m going to release approximately 1,000 words every Monday and allow people to read it for free. The book is approximately 83,000 words so it will of course take some time to read the … More There’s no such thing as a free book …
In July I visited my first ever Literature Festival in Ampthill. I had a great time but all the way through I was thinking ahead to October where my home city, Sunderland was holding its first combined Literature and Creative Writing Festival. Not only were there going to be some great acts, I was also … More Enthused, amused and educated. (My review of the Sunderland Literature & Creative Writing Festival)
Alan Parkinson 