August Review 2020
As usual, the summer has proved productive, although this was because of the amount of editing and proofreading I undertook, rather than new words. For this August review, I am pleased to report I have released Dead Handler.
August Review – word counts
In August I only wrote 4,484 new words towards my various projects. However, I’ve tried to not get hung up on word counts as I’ve been putting a great deal of effort into editing and proofreading. What’s the point of new words if you never get to improve the ones you’ve already got?
August Review – writing projects underway
· ‘Dead Handler’, Book 6 of the Royal Zombie Corps series, launched on Amazon at the end of the month. This was about three weeks before the official Amazon publication date, but in line with what I intended.
· There are two first drafts queued in the editing pile. These are waiting to become the primary editing focus.
- · There are several short stories I’ve queued for editing. I’ve pulled one which was previously published on the blog for a tidy up. The story should go back online during September.
- · I have started a new short story in the zombie universe, set in the 1980s. I’m planning for this to only be available to mailing list subscribers.
· The third story in the Butcher’s Funeral series is part-written, but is still to one side while I work on other areas.
· I’m continuing to develop ideas for two new future series through background reading and research.
August Review – other projects
Following the wipe of the blog earlier in the year, I’ve finally reinstated all the old posts. This was a task I’ve been dragging my heels on for quite a while as it has been time consuming. However, now everything is back – except one short story which I’m editing further.
With a book launch in August, I also worked on a few marketing approaches.
Publishing schedule
The new publishing schedule seems achievable, and I’ve been happy with how achievable it should be. Time and workload will tell, as my main job will probably demand over the next few months.
· December 2020 – ‘The Sands of War’, book 7 of the Royal Zombie Corps series. The last book in the WWI sequence.
· Early 2021 – Butcher’s Funeral new cover and 2nd edition.
· Summer 2021 – Butcher’s Funeral book two titled ‘Butcher’s Fire’.
September Plans
· Re-establish my working routine as I return to my full-time job after lockdown
· Complete edits on one story
· Begin the editing process for ‘The Sands of War’
· Add a significant chunk to the 1980s zombie short
· Continue working on marketing efforts