The Game On Chronicles: Draft Completed

Last night, I finished the draft of Game On. Thirty chapters are written. For me, writing is the hardest part. Getting my ideas out of my head and into a tangible form takes a lot of time and effort. And tons of thinking, scheming, and daydreaming.

I said in a previous Chronicle that I don't know how a story will end until after I write the ending. That's so true; I knew that my main character Audrey would return home for Christmas, and that's when the story would end in the timeline of events. But it wasn't until I got to the final scene that I felt the closure I needed to feel to know that the story was over.

So, the writing's finished. But what does that mean for a story?

It means there's more work to be done!

A draft must be turned into a final copy suitable for publication (and for a publication date to be calculated), which requires the following steps:

1. Editing
2. Proofreading
3. Formatting for eBook Publication
4. Cover Designing

For those of you who keep up with the Chronicles, the cover for the Game On eBook is finished. So that's one less thing to worry about.

Editing is about making sure the story is the best that it can be, that the plot and characters are exciting and believable, and that reading the story will be enjoyable for those who buy it. The editing process is finished. Mel Ting has been checking over each chapter as I have completed it. Out of 30 chapters, 26 have been edited. So I just have to implement the edits for chapters 27-30. That means I have some rewriting to do, so this may take up to several hours of time to complete.

Once that is complete, the entire document needs to be proofread for errors such as typos, misspellings, and anything that may have been missed the first few times around. Proofreading is all about the technical details; it's polishing the story to perfection (er, as close to that as possible). I proofread as I write, but it's hard for a writer to always catch her own mistakes.

Then it's time to format the story. This will make the eBook look like an eBook when it's uploaded to Amazon and then downloaded by a buyer. To save time at this stage, I've been writing out my story in publication format. I have the title page, copyright page, author page, etc. already plugged in, and the text is set up for conversion. There's even a little teaser for what will be my next full-length novel....

All that to say, all I have to do is finish the editing process and then proofread again. And Game On will be finished!

Now that I'm close to being ready to publish, I've set the publication date: February 28. Ten days and counting!

I know this post is long, and I'm hoping you're still with me. And if you are, you're in luck! I'm going to distribute advanced reading copies (ARCs) to any interested fans! Just leave me a comment with your contact info, and I'll be happy to send you an ARC when the final version is completed, before it publishes on the 28th! All I ask is that, if you enjoy the story, please review the eBook on Amazon and/or Goodreads to help spread the word. Reviews for eBooks are like comments on blogs.... Authors live for the feedback!

Oh, yeah, and I created a Facebook page. So, if you like me, why not Like me?

I've got big news coming up, too, that I'm very excited about. Stay tuned for that!