I am posting today to wish you all a Happy and Safe Halloween. Also, I want to inform you about the Sneak Preview of Monarch:Egg. Several months ago, I contemplated giving people who purchased Monarch early a collectible item. My choosing to publish through Amazon seemed to eliminate that option. I thought about giving away t-shirts with the Monarch logo and had several other ideas in mind. Oh well.
While I can no longer give away t-shirts or other gifts of appreciation, I can reward those who purchase my book early in one way through Amazon. For anyone who purchases either Monarch: Egg or Monarch before 11/13/11...ish, I will give you a Sneak Peek at Monarch.
How will I do this?
Well, the Sneak Peek will not be available immediately. First, I have to attend the 11/11-11/12 Atlanta Writers Conference and see what comes of that. At some point after that weekend, and before the 12/22/2011 release date, I will make the preview available. Amazon will send an email informing you that an update has been made to the book. By clicking on a link in the email it will allow you to replace the message with the Sneak Preview of the book on your Kindle or Kindle application.
I am choosing to do the Sneak Preview for two reasons. 1) It is a way for me to apologize for having to change the Release Date because of the Conference. 2) It is a way for me to thank you for purchasing Monarch before it is even available. And I appreciate that very much.
Happy Halloween!
Aaron Pitters
Monday, October 31, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
The Eve of November
There are only a handful of days before Halloween and November. That is important for me to note for two reasons.
First, two movies I have been wanting to see release this weekend: In Time, the futuristic thriller starring Justin Timberlake, and Take Shelter, the psychological everyman movie starring Michael Shannon. The later of the two is in the same vein as Monarch, with Curtis (Michael Shannon) and Ginger both negatively affecting their families by obsessing over his and her beliefs in the possible End of the World.
The negative reviews In Time is receiving may cause me to postpone viewing it until it comes out on DVD or On Demand. We'll see. But Take Shelter has been sitting on a shelf since last year. I had hoped they would release it then, yet that didn't happen. The producers of the movie likely felt going up against The King's Speech was a bad idea and pushed it to now. Just a guess. Still, I can't wait to see it.
Second, there are only two weeks until the Atlanta Writers Conference. I recently received the last of three rounds of notes from my editor for Egg (the first stage of Monarch). Over the past month, I have been tweaking and tinkering with her suggestions. By the 11th of November, the story will be polished and ready to go to the conference.
This month did not start out on a positive note; I had to move the release of Egg until December. I felt horrible for having to make the change, but it was the right thing to do. I'm a SPA (self-publishing author). My goal from the time I started writing this story was to self-publish an e-Book through Amazon. If nothing comes out of the conference, no worries. I will continue per the plan. However, there is a minute chance to make an impact at the conference.
The month and a half after the conference should allow for one more round of editing by an outside source. Depending on how the conference goes, the editor either will be of my choosing or suggested to me. This "not knowing" what will happen next is just part of the ride of being an unknown SPA. Like being on a roller coaster, you cheer when it's up and hang on when it comes roaring down.
Here comes November... wheeeee!!!
-aap
First, two movies I have been wanting to see release this weekend: In Time, the futuristic thriller starring Justin Timberlake, and Take Shelter, the psychological everyman movie starring Michael Shannon. The later of the two is in the same vein as Monarch, with Curtis (Michael Shannon) and Ginger both negatively affecting their families by obsessing over his and her beliefs in the possible End of the World.
The negative reviews In Time is receiving may cause me to postpone viewing it until it comes out on DVD or On Demand. We'll see. But Take Shelter has been sitting on a shelf since last year. I had hoped they would release it then, yet that didn't happen. The producers of the movie likely felt going up against The King's Speech was a bad idea and pushed it to now. Just a guess. Still, I can't wait to see it.
Second, there are only two weeks until the Atlanta Writers Conference. I recently received the last of three rounds of notes from my editor for Egg (the first stage of Monarch). Over the past month, I have been tweaking and tinkering with her suggestions. By the 11th of November, the story will be polished and ready to go to the conference.
This month did not start out on a positive note; I had to move the release of Egg until December. I felt horrible for having to make the change, but it was the right thing to do. I'm a SPA (self-publishing author). My goal from the time I started writing this story was to self-publish an e-Book through Amazon. If nothing comes out of the conference, no worries. I will continue per the plan. However, there is a minute chance to make an impact at the conference.
The month and a half after the conference should allow for one more round of editing by an outside source. Depending on how the conference goes, the editor either will be of my choosing or suggested to me. This "not knowing" what will happen next is just part of the ride of being an unknown SPA. Like being on a roller coaster, you cheer when it's up and hang on when it comes roaring down.
Here comes November... wheeeee!!!
-aap
Thursday, October 20, 2011
When words are not necessary (Poem)
When words are not necessary, an ending has either long since passed or is close at hand. You find yourself speechless due to exhaustion of the mind or physical condition.
The King of Sighs rules this realm. He has seen an epiphany in the eyes of billions, marveled as all worries ease into gladness. Long it has been since he has smiled back.
Be you a seeker or lost finder, your path shall lead you there. And words won’t be necessary.
----------------- -------------------- -----------------------
This marks the first of several Cipher inspired poems that I hope to post over the next year. They will be grouped together in Ted's Poetry Page.
-aap
The King of Sighs rules this realm. He has seen an epiphany in the eyes of billions, marveled as all worries ease into gladness. Long it has been since he has smiled back.
The bond between one and another, when words are not needed, is as close to a psychic connection as the masses can achieve. At these moments, new archetypes are forged in our swelling collective conscious. Monuments of the mind or cloud figurines?
Be you a seeker or lost finder, your path shall lead you there. And words won’t be necessary.
----------------- -------------------- -----------------------
This marks the first of several Cipher inspired poems that I hope to post over the next year. They will be grouped together in Ted's Poetry Page.
-aap
Thursday, October 13, 2011
The Autumnal Harvest
This is my favorite time of year, October. Spring is a close second. And the two change in favor depending on what time of year it is. The leaves falling off the trees. The pleasant drop in temperature. A change in wardrobe. Change. The past, present and future can be perceived simultaneously during Autumn.
I missed the progression of seasons while in Los Angeles. Visually it stays the same most of the year. Growing up in the south, the change of seasons became part of who I am. Fall is a reminder that all things must change. It is also a time to harvest. It is a reflective period, similar to January, except that there are still two and a half months left in the year. What has been achieved must be accounted for and put to use. For me, that harvest is Monarch, my first novel, due to be released in four stages over the next year.
Egg is now in the "The Spit and Polish" stage of the rewrite process. At this point, I am no longer making wholesale revisions -- the time for that was yesterday. The next thirty days shall be geared towards refining and making subtle modifications before the November Atlanta Writers Club Conference.
While I look forward to meeting with all of those at the Conference, the release of Egg is not reliant upon what transpires over that weekend. I'm a former theater guy, and the show must go on. The stage is set. Part one of Monarch will be available to read with a Kindle App by the end of the year.
Time to open the windows and get back to work.
-aap
I missed the progression of seasons while in Los Angeles. Visually it stays the same most of the year. Growing up in the south, the change of seasons became part of who I am. Fall is a reminder that all things must change. It is also a time to harvest. It is a reflective period, similar to January, except that there are still two and a half months left in the year. What has been achieved must be accounted for and put to use. For me, that harvest is Monarch, my first novel, due to be released in four stages over the next year.
Egg is now in the "The Spit and Polish" stage of the rewrite process. At this point, I am no longer making wholesale revisions -- the time for that was yesterday. The next thirty days shall be geared towards refining and making subtle modifications before the November Atlanta Writers Club Conference.
While I look forward to meeting with all of those at the Conference, the release of Egg is not reliant upon what transpires over that weekend. I'm a former theater guy, and the show must go on. The stage is set. Part one of Monarch will be available to read with a Kindle App by the end of the year.
Time to open the windows and get back to work.
-aap
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Release Date Change for Monarch: Egg
In my last post, I wrote about how an SPA
In late May, it became evident that non-writing issues would prevent me from meeting my then July deadline, so I moved the release date to November 11th. All was a little more chaotic then and I was not as focused as I needed to be. I did not take into full account the November 11-12 Atlanta Writers Club Conference I signed up for in mid-June.
I justified the close proximity of these two big events, choosing to believe that it would actually help to have my book out on the market one day before I meet with agents and publishers. One day? I should have changed the release date again then. Did I? No.
Yes, meeting and talking with fellow writers about my newly released book at the conference might help short-term sales, though it would likely ruin any chance I might have at securing an agent. I tried to hide the fact that an agent or publisher might lose interest in my story, if I were to self-publish it the day before meeting them. I believed that it could somehow bolster their interest. I was wrong. The days are too close.
I had in mind three possible release dates at the beginning of the year. The first was early July, which was changed because of issues beyond my control. The second was November, and I don't see it happening because of the conference. The third was December, with one year to go to the end of the Mayan Calendar on 12/21/2012. I cannot release any later than the winter solstice on 12/22/2011. That will still allow readers one full year, with leap day included, to read Monarch. A solar year.
Now that I have the end in sight, I see that my egregious error is not that I must change the release date. No. I am an unknown author. The people I have wanting to read my book right now, I probably know. My error is that I may have disappointed some of them.
To you, I apologize. I appreciate your support and I apologize for having to alter the release date of Monarch: Egg to December 22nd. It means a great deal to me that you would purchase my book before it was available. If I do release it earlier than 12/22/11 or give a possible sneak peek, those of you who have bought your copy before 11/11/11 will be the first to know.
-aap
Monday, October 3, 2011
Self-Publishing Ebook Update
I began work on Monarch back in March 2010. Since then I have made changes at almost every step along the way. The story has been tweaked. The release date moved back. But the idea behind it all has stayed the same: A woman struggles with her perception of time and her place in the world. Her battle to accept change is similar to my rewriting process. Discovering what need be altered is the central aspect of rewriting—along with making the necessary changes.
Being a Self-Publishing Author (SPA) requires a sense of focus and drive. One must be more than an author. There is no publicist or publishing house to assist along the way. Family, friends, fellow writers and the internet, with their combined knowledge and insight, are invaluable to an SPA. An ability to listen and adapt are as important as that first spark of inspiration.
An SPA must be able to listen and adapt during this fluid time in publishing. eBooks have started a revolution. Smart phones, eReaders, tablets and the other new electronic devices hitting the market are changing the landscape of society and publishing simultaneously.
If the known world had not begun making these technological advancements over the past couple of years, I would not have tried to tackle the 12/21/2012 themed Monarch. The lack of time would have been an issue with the traditional paper-based publishing model. And self-publishing to print would have been too expensive.
My writing of anthologies in the past helped me realize that I could release Monarch in four stages over the span of a year. Writing them as four separate eBooks allows me more time with each stage in the story.The first stage, Monarch: Egg, is due to be released on 11/11/11. Since I am self-publishing, if I needed to, I could change the release date. One year prior to the end of the Mayan Calendar, on the December 22, 2011 Winter Solstice, would be the most logical alternative date for release. We'll see.
-aap
Being a Self-Publishing Author (SPA) requires a sense of focus and drive. One must be more than an author. There is no publicist or publishing house to assist along the way. Family, friends, fellow writers and the internet, with their combined knowledge and insight, are invaluable to an SPA. An ability to listen and adapt are as important as that first spark of inspiration.
An SPA must be able to listen and adapt during this fluid time in publishing. eBooks have started a revolution. Smart phones, eReaders, tablets and the other new electronic devices hitting the market are changing the landscape of society and publishing simultaneously.
If the known world had not begun making these technological advancements over the past couple of years, I would not have tried to tackle the 12/21/2012 themed Monarch. The lack of time would have been an issue with the traditional paper-based publishing model. And self-publishing to print would have been too expensive.
My writing of anthologies in the past helped me realize that I could release Monarch in four stages over the span of a year. Writing them as four separate eBooks allows me more time with each stage in the story.
-aap
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)