These past three weeks I have been absent a great deal and, for that, I apologise. I have been deep in what I will call Phase Three of my great Plan of Writing! Where there phases? You would be right to ask that question. Yes there are and I just finished the third one!
Phase One was the Alexander Collections, the anthologies of short-stories and poetry which were the first four books I released. The Wondering Wanderer, The Wakeful Dreamer, Turn Out to Inward and Whispers From Behind the Eyes make up that series. The introduction to the Hegemony universe and setting of the scene; the begininng and first exploration of an alternate history. They introduce Sham, Gabriel, Kalliades and the rest and build up to the great secret Alexander uncovered and it's ultimate consquences for our present and future. The same very popular series I have just made free for download today, for the next nine days. You can get your FREE DOWNLOADS today by following the link.
Phase Two revolved around the Alexander Novellas; Skander Draco, The Victory of Wolves, Neshaa, The Charmer of Snakes and Son of the Dragon. These novellas had two main purposes; to expand and deepen the characters we had already introduced and expand also on the story-lines we had begun. Each Novella is a character study and the history of the Hegemony from one person's point of view. At least mostly from that person's point of view. In the complex and dynamic world of the Hegemony, it is truly impossible to avoid bleed-overs and, events occurring as they were, Sham would have a strong role in Lupernikes' tale. Alexander, of course, influences all. The mysterious Nazarine rabbi is an influence on many. The enigmatic and sociopathic Ataraxias is, well, just always there. That is the idea; the Novellas lay the ground for the coming Novels; the Hegemony and Trinity trilogies, which are soon to come. Hegemony first.
Phase Three was a lot more complex and had no real concrete milestones, markers or indications of achievement. No actual physical things, I suppose. It involved what many would call "retro-fitting" or retconning to use the Sci-Fi and literary world's parlance. Making everything make sense and have a clear continuity. As I wrote first the Collections, then the Novellas, the story and the history were highly dynamic things. Some small thing Neshaa did could have an influence in Sham's actions and, by indirect effect, what Sham was going to do later. Some aspect of Lupernikes' behaviour could change Sham's actions and thoughts later. Minor characters introduced throughout and their dialogue with major characters could have later repercussions. A minor character could morph into a more important one, or at least have an important role. I have groomed such minor characters for their Great Moment and hope the shift came as a surprise!
So Phase Three consisted of a number of sub-phases;
Uniformity of layout and appearance of the books. When I started in this self-publishing game I was naive and inexperienced. As I have progressed, I have also refined abilities and skills. I have levelled up, as it were. Thus, my earlier efforts were nowhere near as good or as clean-looking as my later ones. So I went back and gave all of the books; Collections and Novellas a make-over. I have just re-released all of these changed, these 'new & improved' versions ;
Covers all tidied up and cleaned up. Using fonts, looks and branding to make them look like a series
Addition of images and vectors for story titles and dividing up each short story with a title page and it's suitable graphic. As the Novellas have their section dividing graphics and front page graphics, so too do the Collections now
Retcons, of course! I have changed a thing or two as I went along so needed to change something else form earlier, ensure later - or even earlier - events made sense.
With a better idea of where the series is going now, I had to seed clues, false trails and hints as you know I like to do! Mysteries which I now "know" the answers too must be carefully considered and I had to ensure they were presented and introduced correctly. I may have loved the TV series LOST but I intend to answer more questions than many felt they did. Eventually at least...
So Phase Three is now done. Last night I uploaded the final and updated manuscripts and covers for both the eBook and paperback editions of all nine books. I have to admit I am very pleased with the results! You should check them out. Some changes are minor, others wider-ranging. For some, I have done no more than tweak a word of two, for others there have been major re-writes.
The earlier mentioned GIVEAWAY is sort of a clebration of that achievement and major milestone. I wanted to show off my updated works. I produced my 'eReader-Ready' PDFs and added my covers to the files. I realised these could be added to people's favourite reading devices easily. So, the idea struck me. Give some away! So it is to be.
Phase Four will soon be coming. There are actually Six Phases in my plan altogether. You can probably guess what Phases Five and Six are, so what is Phase Four. Ah, well you shall see. Phase Four will be BIG but not, perhaps, for everyone.
This Phase Three has taught me many valuable lessons and made me think some serious thoughts. It has been a rocky road but it has given great pride in it's completion. I encourage you all to DOWNLOAD your FREE Collections PDFs today and, perhaps leave a nice review or two? Tell me if my result is less than perfect. I am not so proud as to refuse assistance when it is offered!
In the end, I hope to inspire others and, through what I learn in making my mistakes, be able to teach others too. This is my "grand vision"; a community and orgnaisation of writers, word-smiths, ink-slingers and artists who can teach ANYONE wanting to join "The Profession" the basics and lessons of "the craft" so thay they can share their vision and their gift with us all too. To gather all the wanderers who wonder, awaken all the dreamers, turn all that is inward out and give voice to those whispers the eyes hide. Yes! My titles, and the order thereof have sense now, you see!
We are all works in progress aren't we and none of us are perfect. What we may consider our best work could be in need of some serious help and love. That is the biggest lesson I learned from this exercise; even if we think we have done our greatest work, there is ALWAYS room for improvement. My best can always be better.
Out there, there are people who we may mock for their lack of skills and the basic errors which their manuscript is full of but remember this; that was you one day past. It is your duty to help any writers you find along the way with honest and friendly hands, I feel. We cannot crush someone else's dreams just because we, personally do not like them. Give them tools and opportunities and then, if they spurn them, that was their choice but at least try to help, right?
That is my vision. To allow for a place where those up and coming young writers may safely visit and not be laughed at and ridiculed but encouraged and trained. Given direction and good, solid constructive criticism so that they can grow and learn. I want The Raven's Crew to be that place, or at least the start of it.
Get ready for more updates and news as they come!
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