The Publication Blues

I have been writing, off and on, a short story that came to me a while back (I've posted a sample on here in the Stories, Poems, and Musings section under "Excerpt from Dead in the Water"). But my circus books are on hold because I have had this sense of unfinished business ever since I typed the last word. And of course, there was endless amounts of editing before I was happy (I'm not satisfied, but I am happy). My daughter, Emily, said I needed to just leave it alone finally. But still, something was missing and the characters in my head refused to speak to me until I addressed this unresolved issue.

Finally, I figured out what the problem was. The book was just sitting in my computer, in a Word document. It was going nowhere.

It needed a cover. Which my lovely daughter Emily Le Artiste provided. Here it is:

 

And it needed an audience. Sure, I have had editors and test readers go through it, but it needed someone to read it without any agenda other than receiving its message. How can I do that? Hailey and her friends (the characters in the book) insisted I figure it out or there would not be another word forthcoming for the second and third books. Sure, I have a good idea what's going to happen but typically those ideas don't go the way I originally intended. It's as if the story takes on a life of its own. But I digress.

 

How to get their story out to others? I went the self publishing route. My book is now available as an Ebook at www.smashwords.com. Just turn off the adult filter (because there's some adult content in my book, boy howdy) and search for my name, Chrystal Vaughan. Here's a coupon code for 20% off until November 9, 2013: KD58U. Just use it at checkout for the discount. Additionally, once the book passes the review panel's approval for formatting, it will be distributed to Kindle, Nook, Kobo Reader, and iPad as well.

 

Print copies will be available soon from Amazon, once the cover art passes final inspection. Just search my name there for a print copy of the book, in about a week. I don't have a coupon yet but if they allow me to create one, I'll post an update here.

 

As soon as I have a copy of the book in my hand, I know that Hailey and her friends will let me back in their world. In the meantime, my short story "Dead in the Water" is nearly finished. POLL QUESTION: Would you prefer an author to release each short story as they are finished, or compile them into a book of their own? Leave a comment and let me know!

 

 

****UPDATE*****

The book is now available at the Amazon.com Kindle store in Ebook format for $9.99! Print copies will be available at Amazon.com in 7 days from 10/12/2013 (so on 10/19/2013) for $14.99. The link above to Smashwords is still valid to get your discount until 11/9/2013. I welcome reader feedback as I am hard at work on the second book in the series. Happy reading!