It’s a month since I finished writing the last two books in the series. So far I’ve done a first and second edit of Chronicles of Marsh, book 9.
I’ve also been in touch with my editors and my cover illustrator, to see how their schedules run, and get Chronicles logged in with them.
My editor, Dani English, has been very busy this spring, with commissions and also a couple of conventions on the south coast of England. Her stand was very impressive! It’s easy to forget that my journey through writing the Princelings books has coincided with Dani’s graduation from college and attempts to gain employment in the illustration field. Now, no longer a ‘recent’ graduate, she’s decided that freelance work will enable her to be creative while still holding down a job that gives her enough time to do both.
When you look at her work now, I wonder what would happen if I commissioned a whole new suite of Princelings covers! I’m not going to though. I’ve given her my idea of what might be on the covers of the last two books, but I’ve also sent her the chapter outlines for both books and the draft text in case she wants to delve for the detail. She did such a wonderful job on book 8 that I know I can leave it to her brilliant imagination.
I’m so lucky to have an amazing illustrator in the family!
I’m now working on the third draft of Chronicles of Marsh. I have one piece that needs changing as there is a danger of referring to something that hasn’t yet been disclosed. Not referring to it will be easier than changing the sequence of disclosure. What I wonder is, whether the format of the book will appeal to readers. I suspect it is really only for existing fans, since it fills in a lot of gaps between the previous books and the last one. There is a story pulling it all together, but it may be more interesting to me than the general reader!
The third draft (or whichever version I’m on at the end of June) should take it to beta-reader and editor stage. If you’re interested in being a beta-reader, just let me know in the comments below.