I’ve taken some time to reassess my writing, lately, and I’ve come to a couple of important decisions.
Artwork
Not long ago, I altered the covers for my Indigo Skies series in a bid to create more interest in the books. Whilst I don’t regret my decision as it taught me a lot about cover creation and using photo editing software, I do wish the covers I’d created had been to a slightly higher spec. Unfortunately, a lack of funds to make amazing covers happen meant that that was all I thought I could afford.
However, I discovered a great website that provides commercial free images, which is how I’ve been able to produce better promotional pieces regarding my books. It was one of these images for the release of Taste Of Blood, that prompted a fellow author on twitter to make a comment I’ve been considering for months.
That’s a great cover!
— Dark Angel*USMC Vet (@bobbi_bobbi) March 4, 2018
It’s attractive. Have you done your cover reveal, yet? Would be great if it was as stunning as this. Covers, sadly, mean more people will pick it up to see what’s inside. I’m constantly looking for a stunning cover.
— Dark Angel*USMC Vet (@bobbi_bobbi) March 4, 2018
Of course, B Hughes Millman, author of the Dark Angel Series, had a point. And, after little to no change in sales figures this past year, I’ve come to the conclusion that the covers I’d created, despite my time and effort, were just not cutting the mustard with new readers.
More and more of my promo images, however, were getting noticed. Such as the one my fellow author commented on:
So, I’ve come to the conclusion that it would benefit the series if I was to redo the covers in the style of my promotional images. I think they work well and are more in keeping with the genre of the books.
I hope you guys agree when you see them, but there are reasons that I’m not revealing them all quite yet…
Earlier Works
And the reasons are….
Preying On Time and Baying For Blood.
I’ve been a little unhappy with their quality for the last few years. There’s nothing wrong with the stories in them, but there is, perhaps, a lack of experience in the writing of them. In terms of my writing career, both were written at the very beginning when I was less wise and authorly than I am now.
For the last few years, I’ve mentioned the idea of going back to them and revising them. Editing here and there. Tweaking. Making better.
I don’t think either of them are a reflection of the author that I have become, but… I know I don’t want to drop the series that they belong to. So, I’ve deliberated and finally come to the decision that I must go back over them.
Even if it makes no difference to sales, I’ll sleep easier at night knowing that they are closer to great writing than they previously were.
Rerelease
I’m already halfway through my first pass on Preying On Time. My intention is to do at least a couple of passes to ensure the quality of the finished pieces are up to the standard that I’d like them to be.
Once I’ve done that, I intend to rerelease them with the new covers. I’ll update all of the books with their new faces at the same time. And then, I have one more surprise for you….
A New Book Release
Of course, once Preying On Time and Baying For Blood are rereleased, I will be setting about releasing my new novella, Those Who Wait, for the first time. It’s not an official read of the series, but it is in the same world and explores a short section of Violet’s past.
Watch This Space
So, make sure you watch this space in the coming months. My plans are to get as much done as possible to ensure that Those Who Wait is my second release of 2018.
The support and love from my readers is always a great source of strength. Especially, when I’m exhausted from the day job! I still know I need to push on to get a great story completed for you.
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