Duane

I’m done through chapter 14 on the re-edit, and it’s like a night and day difference in the writing.  I’m super happy with how it’s turning out, and I’m really looking forward to getting it out there so I can get the print version out as well.

Now, be aware that most 2nd editions will have a new ISBN number, and I know technically you’re supposed to do that, but I’m not going to.  I’m just going to reupload the new version on the same number it had before.  That way anyone who’s purchased the books in the past can get the new versions for free just by redownloading them from wherever you bought them.  That way you can get the best of what I’m capable of at this point in my career, without having to pay for a new copy.

As I said before, the later books in the series won’t change as drastically in the writing style, because my style was already well established by the time I got to writing those.  These earlier books however will show a marked improvement.

Also, I’m going to take this opportunity to change a few character names.  Unfortunately, I used the name John twice, the name Mike twice, and the name Billy twice, though the second Billy wasn’t a character, it was just some kid that was mentioned in a memory.  It always bugged me that I did that, and even though I differentiated between John (Derek’s father) and Johnny (Heather’s brother) by using different forms of the name, Mike Hammond, who was introduced in Travelers, and Jeremy’s friend Mike both use the same form of the name.  This was actually not really a flub on my part, because I was planning on making Travelers into a spinoff series when I wrote it, so I didn’t think the two characters would ever be in the same place at the same time.  Well, that all changed, so I’ll be changing Mike Hammond’s name to something else when I get to Travelers, and then I’ll have to change it in whatever subsequent books he appears in.

To be honest, people in real life meet up with people who have the same name as them all the time, and while I like to have a high level of realism in my stories, there’s no excuse for doing that in a book when you have so many different names to choose from.

The nice part is, since there were never print versions of the series, all the print versions will be good to go right out of the gate since they’ll be published after each of the books have been re-edited.

This series is my flagship as an author, and the characters in it are like family to me.  That’s why this 2nd edition project is so important.  I want the entire series to be the best example of my work that it can be, so I’m dedicating the next ten months or so of my life to make sure that happens.

As I re-edit the series and get it ready for print, if you’ve purchased the ebooks in the past, you won’t be left out in the cold.  Updating to the second edition books is as easy as logging into the account you bought them on, and then downloading the new versions.

These new edits will be considered 2nd edition.  I’m not so much going to change anything in the stories, but I am doing heavy work on the writing itself.  Obviously after 22 books published, my writing has improved considerably.  These edits will bring the entire series up to my current level of writing ability.  The more you do anything, the better you get at it, right?  Anyway, since there were never any print books of the series before, that’ll be less work I have to do.  Still, this is going to be a long and tedious process that’s going to take me probably close to the next ten months to a year to complete.  Still, in the end it’ll all be worth it.  The series is my flagship, so I want to make sure each one is as good as it can be before the print versions come out.

Cindy’s Story is good to go in both print and e-book, so you can pick up a copy of that while I work on the series. 🙂

I’m finally free to get back to being an author again, but I have even bigger plans, which I’ve already started.  These include:

Updating the synopsis on Cindy’s Story, and updating it on the back cover of the print version as well. – Done!  I just uploaded everything today, so it’ll take a couple of days to propagate.

Re-editing each book of the series in order, and then formatting them for print versions. – Will be starting that in the next day or two.

Getting back to writing Retribution. – I will be mixing this in with the editing and formatting of the series, so I won’t be pounding away on it, but I will be making more steady progress on it.

It had gotten to the point where I didn’t even feel like an author anymore because I’d gotten so out of touch with my own work, so being able to rededicate myself to it once again is an incredible feeling.

Anyway, I just wanted to make a little update since it’s been a long time since I made one. 🙂

Yeah, I know.  It’s been ages since I posted an update.  The fact is, I’ve been busy with work and had to set my writing aside for a while.  I got three chapters into Retribution and stalled out because of work.  I’ve come to a decision though.  I am still going to write Retribution at some point, but I think the first thing I’m going to do is to go back and re-edit about the first 3/4 of the books in the series, and I’m going to get them all ready for print, releasing print versions one by one as I do them.  I was looking back at the first book today and while the story is still what I wanted it to be, the writing isn’t up to my current level of writing experience and expertise.

The first book in the series was the first one that I’d ever written, and while it’s had re-edits and what not, style-wise it’s different from the later books, because my writing style developed drastically throughout the course of the series, and I want the whole series to measure up to the later books.  So, that’s going to be my next project.  Once I get through with all that, then I’ll go back to Retribution and work on it.  I have a good start on it, but the series is honestly more important to me, and always will be.

So that’s what’s happening.  I’ve been trying to find a way to balance work and my own writing, but the stuff I’ve been doing for work hasn’t left me with the mental energy to work on my own stuff, so I need to get past what I’m currently working on before I’ll be able to focus on writing again.  However, I will be able to dedicate at least a couple of hours per day toward the editing work on the series, so I’m fulling planning on getting started with that soon.  I want print versions of them all to be available, so that’s a priority for me.

I just added two more short pieces that I wrote from writing prompts in my writers group to the Bonus Scenes & Short Stories section here on the website.

A Prison Without Walls – Literally what it says.  It’s a prison without any locks, bars, or outer walls, and yet the prisoners can’t leave.  Anyone who’s ever tried has met a tragic end.

The Stars Have Aligned – The stars aligned and people all over reacted to it in a variety of ways.  A man who works in a coroner’s office relates what happened on that not-so-fateful day.