anthologies – Page 15

Yes, we have lift off … with a collection of stories which detail a variety of journeys.

I’ve only dabbled in sci-fi in the past, but following a handful of kind comments, I had a need to feed.

I wanted to add a small collection of the genre to my catalogue. In an effort to improve on the idea of 12 short stories by me, I invited submissions from international guest authors, and I was not to be disappointed.

The collection contains six new stories from me, plus three ‘bonus’ tales which feature in other anthologies, but there are also great pieces from: AA Jankiewicz, Pam Kesterson, CI Lopez, Paul Ruddock, Val Tobin, and WK Tucker.

It’s great to have this anthology ‘launching’ within a few days of seeing British astronaut, Major Tim Peake, setting off to join the International Space Station. By the time the Soyuz rocket was lifting from Earth on its remarkable journey, my stories were already written, but I was delighted to hear small details from my theories being mentioned about the astronaut training and life in space.

I don’t believe you have to be heavily into Sci-Fi to enjoy this collection, but then you’d expect me to say that, wouldn’t you!

In this collection you will find regular people, strange people, astronauts, aliens, Earth, other planets, exploration and invasion.
The tales are made interesting by manipulating the situations in which the characters find themselves. Sometimes, all is not what it seems …
There is a high degree of ‘What if …?’ in the telling of these stories, which is where I believe the sci-fi aspect evolves effectively.

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Does this mean I’ll go on at some stage to write a sci-fi novel?

Let’s just say, for the time being I’m not ruling it out. As I’ve done since I published my first eBook I will read any reviews or comments and make note of the positives, and any negatives.

Both positive and negative comments are important, and attention to what others say is where we as authors can improve our craft the most effectively. We write first for ourselves, and then for others, but when we publish – we are hoping to entertain, so we must respond to the feelings of our readership.

Metaphorically, The Welcome … has now left the launch pad and is on its own journey. As it passes among the stars and those stars take note of the vehicle and its contents, I would ask that anybody who takes a chance on it – please remember to check out the whole crew – because this wasn’t a single effort, but an international collaboration.

I sincerely hope all who take a chance on our tales feels rewarded for their choice.

Amazon – Universal

(Universal linking to your local Amazon)

What’s the hardest thing to do when you’ve received praise?

I believe the hardest thing for many of us is to consider that we could have done better.

Yes, you’ve done something that received acclaim, but does that really mean you’ve done your best?

No, it means you’ve done enough.

In July 2015, while I was working hard simultaneously on Give & Take: A Tale of Erotica, and Beyond The Law: Retribution, I wrote a blog titled A Review of Reviews.

I stated in the post that I intended to get my main projects published by December 2015, and then I would tackle each of my titles, one after another to perform a full critical analysis and rewrite.

Well, guess what … it’s November and those two main projects are now published.

What are my projects for the months ahead?

My agenda is flexible, but fairly well set up for the foreseeable future:

1. Continue working on my next anthologies
– The Welcome: and other Sci-Fi stories
– A Time for Courage: and other military stories

2. Dust off and get back to work on my fact-based fiction / coming of age story A Life of Choice, which I will now be producing in a series of books.

3. Continue to work behind the scenes to support and build on the success of the Indie Author Support and Discussion Facebook group, especially with the restructuring of the group website.

4. Read and review titles from the IASD group website.

5. In December 2015 I will begin what I said I would do – commence a detailed revision and rewrite of all of my titles.

– Make a copy of the main manuscript.

– Read and make notes from every review, whether positive or negative issues.

– Locate and amend the negative issues as a priority.

– Read the story as a reader, and look out for the telltale signs of the novice. I will have a list of key words and phrases in front of me to locate and zap / replace.

– Subject each chapter individually to Grammarly to double-check punctuation, grammar, and so on.

– Amend the cover and inside information to have a subtle ‘Revised Edition’ with the appropriate date.

– Ask for beta readers in advance of completion.

– When all bugs are ironed out, republish and set up a Kindle Countdown Deal to kick-start interest in the title, and my brand.

– Move on to the next title.

How long will it take?

Time is not my major concern, because if I’m aiming to achieve a higher standard, it takes as long as it takes.

I’d like to think if I don’t touch the poetry series, I might be capable of dealing with the novels and short stories by next summer. It will be interesting. I’ve no doubt there will be many things which are fine, but there will be issues and it will be a test of my mettle to deal with them properly.

I will of course report back on a regular basis. Once underway, I will not give up.
Thank you once again for joining me on my journey. All comments are welcome.

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