My newest book, for all intents and reasons, has been written. I have 56,000 words and really want 65,000, so I'm in the short rows. But, since I'm going the old route, agent, publisher, etc. on this book, I am making sure all the i's are dotted and all the t's are crossed.
One thing I am being especially careful about is the frequency I use the songs I include. Since the main character is a Baby Boomer, he grew up with the Beatles, the Supremes, Petula Clark and the Motown sound. I am playing all these songs on the computer while I'm writing, but don't want to mention any song too often. Also, I have to keep track of what the main character does and when. This means I am having to use a story board, just like you would with a screenplay. I began the story board last night and it is fun.
In addition, I run every chapter through a program that reads the chapter out loud. It is hard to believe how many repeated words, and things that aren't just right can be picked up listening to the chapter being read.
Do have a good day.
Dan
Monday, March 3, 2014
Sunday, February 23, 2014
It's Good Because It Made Memories.
I promised at least one post a week on my blog, and here it is.
I was surprised, pleasantly surprised, this week when one of my sales reports had Brandywine Bay leading my book sales. My first inclination was to go back and see if there was anything I might need to add or change. Then the words “If it works, don’t fix it.” rang in my head. It’s obviously working, so I won’t fix it.
I am happy about Brandywine Bay’s success, because I can never go back to the things that inspired me to write the book.
It was set on the Pamlico River in eastern North Carolina. When I was young, my aunt’s house was on the river and to me it was Heaven on earth. It was where I spent most of my summers. There was a beautiful little cove there that I did think was Heaven and actually refer to as Heaven in my book The Seventh Gift of God.
I’m glad I have the memories because it’s all gone now. My aunt’s house and everything around it was washed away in a hurricane and the little cove I so adored was the victim of development. I guess progress is good, but sometimes it takes so much that means something to somebody.
At least I have the book.
Have a Great Day!
Dan
http://www.danweatherington.com
I was surprised, pleasantly surprised, this week when one of my sales reports had Brandywine Bay leading my book sales. My first inclination was to go back and see if there was anything I might need to add or change. Then the words “If it works, don’t fix it.” rang in my head. It’s obviously working, so I won’t fix it.
I am happy about Brandywine Bay’s success, because I can never go back to the things that inspired me to write the book.
It was set on the Pamlico River in eastern North Carolina. When I was young, my aunt’s house was on the river and to me it was Heaven on earth. It was where I spent most of my summers. There was a beautiful little cove there that I did think was Heaven and actually refer to as Heaven in my book The Seventh Gift of God.
I’m glad I have the memories because it’s all gone now. My aunt’s house and everything around it was washed away in a hurricane and the little cove I so adored was the victim of development. I guess progress is good, but sometimes it takes so much that means something to somebody.
At least I have the book.
Have a Great Day!
Dan
http://www.danweatherington.com
Friday, February 14, 2014
My Valentines Present
Why are you getting this? Who is Dan Weatherington? Good questions.
You are getting this because your email address is on my computer. Sometime, you either sent me an email or I sent you one. You may have tried to sell me something. You may be from Nigeria and are going to send me the rest of a multi-million dollar inheritance as soon as I send you a few hundred. You may be a friend. There’s any number of reasons your email address is on my computer.
Who is Dan Weatherington? I am a writer.
What is My Valentines Present? It’s something I’m giving myself.
I have written fifteen novels. Actually, thirteen. Two are parts of the other thirteen that I feel can stand alone. Most of them are self published and that is where the gift to myself comes in.
For a long time I played the agent-publisher game. It was frustrating and took too long. A year or two for a book was nothing. There were countless hoops to jump through.
But, believe it or not. I miss it. There was a challenge to it. It was fun.
Then, came disappointment. I was browsing through several self published books on Amazon.com and B Dalton.com and the free “look inside” features got to me. Some of these people who self publish don’t know the difference between “here” and “hear”. They don’t know which “know” means be aware of and which “no” means “not going to happen.” They don’t know that the period at the end of a piece of dialog belongs inside the quotation mark. I don’t care to be connected with such people.
Besides, like I said, the old way was fun. Though I write on a computer, I still like the old Courier font. I still like pages with one inch margins. I still like the name of my work and the page number on top.
I am currently working on two novels I absolutely love. Yes, I’m writing them on my computer but they are written in Courier font and the pages have one inch margins.
And, query letters and synopsis will be sent to publishers and agents when the manuscripts are finished. Will I be rejected? Of course, I expect it. I have been doing this long enough to know that every manuscript I send out isn’t right for every agent or publisher.
Will it take a year or two? Oh yes. Just maybe I will have to work a little harder, but at least I won’t be in a group that never learned the difference between hear and here.
You are getting this because your email address is on my computer. Sometime, you either sent me an email or I sent you one. You may have tried to sell me something. You may be from Nigeria and are going to send me the rest of a multi-million dollar inheritance as soon as I send you a few hundred. You may be a friend. There’s any number of reasons your email address is on my computer.
Who is Dan Weatherington? I am a writer.
What is My Valentines Present? It’s something I’m giving myself.
I have written fifteen novels. Actually, thirteen. Two are parts of the other thirteen that I feel can stand alone. Most of them are self published and that is where the gift to myself comes in.
For a long time I played the agent-publisher game. It was frustrating and took too long. A year or two for a book was nothing. There were countless hoops to jump through.
But, believe it or not. I miss it. There was a challenge to it. It was fun.
Then, came disappointment. I was browsing through several self published books on Amazon.com and B Dalton.com and the free “look inside” features got to me. Some of these people who self publish don’t know the difference between “here” and “hear”. They don’t know which “know” means be aware of and which “no” means “not going to happen.” They don’t know that the period at the end of a piece of dialog belongs inside the quotation mark. I don’t care to be connected with such people.
Besides, like I said, the old way was fun. Though I write on a computer, I still like the old Courier font. I still like pages with one inch margins. I still like the name of my work and the page number on top.
I am currently working on two novels I absolutely love. Yes, I’m writing them on my computer but they are written in Courier font and the pages have one inch margins.
And, query letters and synopsis will be sent to publishers and agents when the manuscripts are finished. Will I be rejected? Of course, I expect it. I have been doing this long enough to know that every manuscript I send out isn’t right for every agent or publisher.
Will it take a year or two? Oh yes. Just maybe I will have to work a little harder, but at least I won’t be in a group that never learned the difference between hear and here.
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