Multi-Tasking...

Very pleased that the temperature has gone done to nearer normal for this time of year. Last week it was a struggle to do anything, even writing was difficult.

I took a picture of the moon last Thursday night as I wanted to catch the polluted tinge that hung across it, but it was too low. By the time it was high enough it had gone above the that layer so looked a lot cleaner.

Early July Moon...

This week has been good so far. I've managed to get a couple of hours to write each day this week so I've added about 1,600 words.

It may not seem a lot but as I don't touch type that was a big improvement for me.

It's always difficult to write in the summer when it's sunny outside and there's lots of things you need to do- the plants need water and the grass needs cutting again to name but a few.

At least I'm on the downward path to the end of my current work in progress. Okay it's still only a first draft stage, but I can already see where I need to insert scenes, and make changes in the second draft.

At the moment my brain seems to be juggling thoughts on each of my three projects.

My Dorset novel has a synopsis and first four chapters. I needed to give myself some time to work on a few of the characters, to round them out a little. It's been a couple of years- longer than I intended- but now I know what works for me, I'm looking forward to getting on with it.

My Nottinghamshire novella has a complete first draft and is waiting for a complete read through before I start the second draft. I've pinpointed a few things that need changing, major and minor.

Then there's my current story, making steady progress.

There's at least another four ideas in varying stages, but fortunately those characters aren't hassling me.

(I've got a Pinterest board for each of the three stories, and adding to when I have time, but they're remaining secret.)

I'm also putting together the writing session for the writers' club next Wednesday- putting names to faces and creating bios. Hopefully some of the writers will use them as inspiration for a story...

Plus the final thing I need to do is get my entry sorted for this year's Festival of Romance, New Talent Award 2015. You can read more about it over on the website.

I'm going to enter the first chapter of my Dorset novel. It's an historical romance so fits within the specified 'romantic novel (of any kind)'. I just need to look at the word count of my first chapter as there's a maximum 2,500 word count.

So there's lots to do over the next few months.

Scribd and Kindle Changes- Good or Bad?

The week just gone has seen a couple of changes relating to e-books that have implications for both writers and readers.

The unsettling announcements came days apart, so concerns and questions will depend upon which service is your priority...

I'd heard of Scribd, a subscription service for e-books, but never looked into it further.
I can see that if you're travelling every day then reading a book on your mobile device would be a good way to pass the time, and you could get through a number of books in a month, before you add on the number you could read at other times. So a one-off cost each month would be cost effective.

For the writer it's another sales avenue that doesn't rely on Amazon only, and gets their books out to more potential readers. But now it seems many romance writers will find their books delisted- though free offerings are being kept.

Smashwords who provide many self-published books to the service have an extensive post on their blog, and highlight the few advantages the culling of titles will bring- less competition being no.1, nice if your paying titles are kept, not so good if they've been removed...

For anyone who is unfamiliar with the news, here's a few links to find out more: Smashwords blog and the Guardian books section. And the Bookseller. Obviously there will be some duplication of content, but each has something different to say on the subject.

Now to the Kindle changes.

For those authors who have books in the KDP Select and the Kindle Owner's Lending Library, they will now be paid by the page read. This will be referred to as KENPC- Kindle Edition Normalized Page Count, so no matter how you've formatted it, it will be calculated to a standardized form that they've worked out.

There's a good explanation of how the money side works in this Bookseller article.

The brilliant thing about KDP was that there was finally a place to publish novellas- something many mainstream publishers didn't want. Every story has its own length, and not every one will be novel length, so authors of shorter works could suffer under this new regime- it depends on whether the amount they get per page equates to what they would have received under the previous system...

Writers who have been able to build up a readership over a number of books, probably have more choices available to them, plus the statistics to help them.

Likewise. those who have e-books with a mainstream publisher are in a different position to self-publishers.

Anyone just starting the self-publishing process needs to step-back for a moment and look at all the options available to them before they make a decision.

Yes, Amazon will triumph because they have the largest share of the e-reading market, and any writer who ignores that fact does so at their own peril. The option of which service you sign up to will be the difference...

It will be interesting to see what effect the Scribd and Kindle changes make, to both writers and readers of e-books, for the remainder of the year.