The launch of Mine to Avenge is only 4 weeks away now. The invitations have gone
out and RSVPs are coming in. I can’t believe how quickly the time is passing and
there is still so much to do, but when I look at my original list of things to
be done, it’s heartening to see that some things have been crossed off. I have
hired a cheaply priced venue (the deposit is steep but refundable), a lovely niece is
providing the food at a very generous rate, and different friends are assisting
with setting up the venue and selling books.
Later this week I am also expecting to
receive the first bound proof copy ahead of printing the actual books. I can
only imagine at this stage what it will be like to have the actual bound book
in my hands.
EBooks are the big thing these days, and Mine to Avenge will also be released in
four weeks time as an eBook, but there is just something about the idea of
holding a tangible product in your hands after all the years of hard work. I’m
sure it must be the same for other authors as well.
This new electronic age has also brought
with it the possibility of on-line book launch - something else I am
considering for a time soon after the launch for the hard-copy version. The idea of planning such a thing is somewhat
daunting, given that my social networking skills are still in their infancy.
However, at the beginning of this year I had no idea at all what Twitter was
about, and suffered badly from ‘Facebook-phobia’, but now I am finding my way
around on both quite well, and am actually enjoying it. I have learned how to
add Facebook ‘Like’ buttons to my blog, and have also discovered the wonderful
world of apps, learning which ones I might benefit from and how to put them on
my Fan Page. I am hoping that four weeks will be enough for me to fathom the
ins and outs of hosting an on-line book launch!
Meanwhile, let me leave you with another
snippet from Mine to Avenge - a
smaller bite this time - again from Chapter 48.
One balmy evening in 1998, the young couple living in
the farmhouse realised they hadn’t seen their neighbour for at least a month.
His car usually went along the second driveway at least once a week into the
town, but neither of them could remember the last time they saw it. They didn’t
know their neighbour personally, but were worried about him, so they walked
down to his cottage to investigate.
They found the once pristine cottage dirty and
neglected. The verandah was unswept and cobwebs adorned every verandah post.
Inside, the building looked as if it had been abandoned, with a sheet of dust
draped over the furniture. The kitchen showed no signs of recent use. Dishes
were in the dish rack from some time before, but now needed cleaning again.
Suddenly they heard a faint whimpering, and they
wondered if there was an abandoned kitten or puppy somewhere needing attention.
They followed the sound, which appeared to be coming from a bedroom at the end
of the passage. They went into the room, completely unprepared for what they
saw. It wasn’t a kitten or puppy whimpering in the corner of the room, but a
man, their neighbour, gaunt, dirty and seemingly unaware of their presence. He
was crouched in the corner of his bedroom, rocking rhythmically back and forth,
and mumbling incoherently, having succumbed to the tangled chaos of his
tortured mind.
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