Princelings Revolution is finished!

Princelings Revolution, book 10 in the Princelings of the East series, is now complete. The cover is finalised, the illustrations are finished, and the editing done (although there is always some more fiddling one could do with it).

Book 10 pre-draft

The Cover

The one I’ve been using as the draft cover is roughly the same colour, but the final version is so much better! There will be a cover reveal some time in September. I’m hoping a few more people might want to join in with the reveal, so you aren’t getting a sneak preview now!

The cover is dramatic and mysterious, I hope! Just like the book. So you can judge a book by its cover!

The illustrations

I always start the chapter illustrations thinking ‘why did I give myself all this extra work to do?’

Several times during the process I think that again, and think I’ll never be able to produce a half-=decent drawing to illustrate X happening.

The process, roughly, is that I list the chapter headings, and their subheadings (which are a real help in this process). Then I go through jotting down ideas for what might be suitable subjects. Some are self-evident – locations, castles. Others are difficult, especially where nothing much happens visually but a lot happens in terms of plot! I usually have to find some sort of motif for those.

This year I asked my beta readers what they thought about my recycling images that have appeared in previous books. I’ve reused several pictures, some maybe too many times without an update. Some of my early drawings really show their age–and I’ve redone most of those I’ve reused. It’s good to know that ten years experience has improved my skill level!

There are 22 chapter illustrations this time. 18 have been newly drawn, or severely updated, on my iPad. Four are being reused as they are: two from Willoughby’s book (7), one from Princelings of the North ( 8), and one from the very first book! And I have at last done a completely new version of the Inn of the Seventh Happiness. It was a hard, intricate drawing before, and that hasn’t changed. It’s very difficult not to let it look messy. But I’m pleased with the results.

Here are a few teasers for you. There are three more in Jemima’s project update (click here). I’ve used the bridge there too, because I like it!

So, now to put everything together and upload it to the various ebook publishers.

Help needed!

If you’d like to help with the launch by posting a cover reveal, or a launch post on your own blog, please let me know in the comments below. All helpers will get a space in the Rafflecopter Cover Reveal will be mid-September, and launch date is 1st October. I’m doing a guest post on 7th October as part of the launch. I can do interviews, too. Whatever you’d like, in fact!

Pre-Order the book

Book 10 of the Princelings of the East series – Princelings Revolution – the final book in the series, is on schedule for publication 1st October 2020.

The planes are crashing, the people are angry at the changes and shortages. King Fred puts democracy to the test and finds it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.  There’s an organised anti-monarchy group called the Causists, and they are spreading false information which the people seem to believe. Things are bad—but they are going to get worse…

Will he even keep his head, let alone the promise made to Lord Mariusz at the start of the whole shebang?

The ebook is now available for pre-order a very special price at iTunesB&N, and Kobo. This special launch price is only for a few weeks. It’s also on pre-order at Amazon! (who might price-match, but I have no control of that).

Princelings Revolution listing

Book 10 pre-draft
Book 10 pre-draft

Princelings Revolution (book 10) is now listed on Smashwords. This is the final book of the series, so I thought I’d give it a long lead-in.

The target publication date is 1st October 2020.

That’s a long way off, but there is a huge amount to do before then. The first step is rewriting, which I’ve started, and immediately hit some problems to rework, both of continuity and plot.

After I’m happy with the story, there’ll be editing to get the phrasing and word usage right, and to improve it in general. Then editing to make sure it’s got all the right words and punctuation in the right places.

Then I’ll send it to my beta readers for their opinions and comments.

I’ll make corrections and improvements based on their feedback.

Then it’ll go to the editor. That will undoubtedly lead to more corrections and edits. And I probably need to be at this stage by early May.

So I’d better get going.

But if you want to see the listing on Smashwords, it’s here.

Watch out for a new thing Smashwords is now offering – pre-sales. These are different from pre-orders, it’s more like an advance copy. I’m not sure how different it will be from offering you an ARC direct, but we’ll see.

Cover Reveal! Chronicles of Marsh

As always (maybe) followers of the Princelings series get the first view of the cover of a new book.

So here it is… another wonderful illustration by Dani English

Chronicles of Marsh draft cover

The book is currently on schedule for release on November 14th. Pre-order at  iTunes , Kobo, and B&N right now. Amazon link now available.

If you’re in Eastbourne, England on the weekend of 28th September, you can meet Dani at the Wyntercon at the Eastbourne Sports Park 28-29 September.

Read more about the Chronicles of Marsh here.

Chronicles v2 is with the editors!

Book 9 draft cover

It’s the same old story, really. Chronicles went to the editors, came back with a general comment about its structure, and I spent July rewriting it.

It seems to be a pattern, these days, rewriting the first half (well, third) of my books. I think with the first draft I was too complicated with my approach. Certainly one editor couldn’t work out what was going on at all.

So after a good long week or so of thinking, I got back into the swing of rewriting it, and editing it, and so on. My last edit this time was to read it through out loud. I think the guinea pigs quite enjoyed it, save for the occasional stops, mutterings, and typings before starting again with a different phrase.

Meanwhile, my lovely cover illustrator has been working away. Each time she sent me her ideas I gasped. They were all super, but I settled on this idea. This is not the finished version! But I thought you’d like to see it.

Book 9 draft cover; a dark flying boat in the foreground, and sailing ships in the background, with a castle we haven't seen before on the land to the right. All surrounded by blue cloudy swirls