Today I had another reader come up and tell me how much they enjoyed my book and what a good read it was. Secretly a little part of me was thrilled. I've had a few such comments since I published Witch on the Warpath. It's nice to know my writing has merit and a few have decided to tip their proverbial toe in the water and take a chance on an unknown author - thank you to those of you that have.

A number of folk, you shall not be named and shamed, informed me some months ago "of course I don't buy books now I have a kindle. When its published on kindle I'll shall purchase it then."
So I did, and it wasn't easy, and in the three weeks since it's been out there as a kindle novel I've sold a staggering amount of copies = 1.
I say staggering, but I'm sure there's another word I'm looking for and just can't my tongue on, which is surprising since I'm apparently supposed to be an author.
Do I sound a wee bit jaded? I think I might be. It's so hard going up against the big boys in the industry - who have nothing to fear from me. I suppose I naively thought I might make a tiny dent on their fence.
Am  I disheartened? Tonight maybe, but I fear this is the writers life as I may have mentioned before.

Tonight I'm finding it hard to find the motivation to continue polishing the next ten chapters of my  novel Aquasapien ready for my proof editor Graham to process. I was pleased to find that in a couple of places I'd fallen into reading the story instead of critically reviewing it. I'm hoping that's a good sign and not just me inheriting my parents dementia early.

As a footnote, thank you to Amazon for putting my 2 reviews back online, I do appreciate it. Especially since I haven't paid someone anonymous to review my work as a few others do and get away with it.

It's taken the better part of a week and most of the weekend but Witch on the Warpath Kindle edition is about to go live on Amazon.

I looked at all the programmes designed to 'help' you, but couldn't follow half of them. The result? Me sitting with a Kindle in one hand and sending versions of the book back and forth via my e-mail. Not only did I check my kindle, I also viewed it all through the kindle app on my tablet. Seven versions later it's in the hands of Amazon - or the gods (same thing really?).

This is a second edition of the book, remedying the 8 mistakes I found in the first edition and couldn't live with,  and altering an odd word here and there. There is one layout error which, after 4 versions of trying to correct it, I've given up - I'm left-handed anyway and who says, if it's my book I can't mess it in up a bit?

Sorry no spoilers, you'll have to buy it to view it!! lol.

I've priced it at a very reasonable £3.99, though I wanted to go over £5.00 cos the paltry royalties, even on 70%, mean I won't be retiring any time soon. Unless my remaining five books do well. (waiting to be published) E-books now suffer the ignominy of VAT!  And, whilst it is an e-book Amazon also charges 'delivery' or 45 pence for every e-book sold. How can they do that? On top of that there's tax to pay leaving me with just enough to buy an ice-cream!

I've got the Red anthology to review now and also get back to Aqua.

Please, please think about leaving feedback on Amazon and especially Waterstones since they turned down my application, after I sent them a complimentary copy too.

Spent much of this weekend trying to get WOTW into a kindle format. Not as easy as it looks. Finally happy with result on my own kindle. Next step in to upload it into Amazon's  matrix, which I'm hoping to do this week.

Once WOTW is published on kindle (I'll let you know when) I can concentrate on finishing the polishing of Aqua for the proof editor  and getting to grips with the Writing Group's  publication which I am also project managing. I am publishing the Red Anthology for Inspirations Writing Group. It will be our first publication as a group, with members financing the project, critiquing and proof editing. Any profits made will go to a charity of the group's choice. A small group met initially to devise the format, title, costs etc. We hit upon using a colour for the anthology because that means it can contain any and all genres. The premise is that the word/colour 'red' must be within the story.

If any of you budding cover illustrators want to have a go - there's no fee to collect - feel free to have a bash designing one, drafts will be welcome. Who knows yours could be the lucky one selected by the group.
Guidelines - Red theme, Name 'RED ANTHOLOGY' & 'INSPIRATIONS WRITING GROUP'  must appear on the front cover. The back cover is optional but will also have a list of contributors. So far we've had horror, Sci-Fi, memories &  murder mystery.

Excited as a box of chicks being spilled out into a highway full of seed!
Last week I sent off a final demand for payment from Waterstones and Bertams and received - nothing.
Okay I received an automated e-mail from Waterstones which had me more agitated than a house full of snakes with one mouse in it. (hope you're enjoying the visual imagery). Was I the mouse or a snake - you decide.
Anyhoo (thank you Pub landlord sitcom) the e-mail informed me I had received my payment on 2nd Jan. I'm sure I didn't see that in my bank account so I went back and chequed/checked. (See how excited I am? I've given you the option of complaining that I put in the wrong spelling.) Nope, no money there.

Tonight, after stewing at work most of the day - I was very busy as usual - I managed to get indoors before big businesses had gone to bed and spoke to their equivalent of what us folk call the accounting or finance dept. Both company's staff were extremely polite and efficient. Yes they had received my invoices in November and yes they did have my bank details and the correct amounts but... Big business only pays 90 days after they receive the invoice.

Gosh I wish I could live my life that way;

"Yes I know I've just filled up my car, but if you send me an invoice I'll pay for it in 90 days."
"Yes the cup of tea and cake was lovely, just invoice me, 90 days".

I think I could get the hang of this, but I can see a court looming in the distance and that probably won't be 90 days away!

Happy I'm going to see some money on 29th Feb. It's back to trying to figure out how to kindle WOTW and continue with polishing my extremely rude and sexually explicit next publication. I have to say I'd forgotten how rude (to me) it was. It's okay for the first few chapters then wham there's a whole plethora of goings-on. I'm a bit embarrassed to tell the truth and definitely considering a pen-name here. Ideas on a postcard.