When I first published Ebony Sea: Origins (was it five years ago already? YEESH!) I was quite proud of how few errors were in it. Then my grandma found one.
Here’s the story:
I was showing off my proof copy - the only copy I had, and she grabbed it. “Thanks, Mark. I’ll read through it.” I though, "My only copy!" But she's grandma, so I let her have it. A week later I got the book back with a bookmark and note that went something like this: “You have a ‘downing man,’ and I think you mean a ‘drowning man.’” Yep. And that version had already gone to print. It was updated since.
So I was pretty confident that I had a clean book. Until I started reading through it again earlier this month.
I’ve found at least three dropped words, a few more spelling errors, and sloppy writing. I’m going through it again to do some more correcting of those issues. I’m hoping my publisher will allow a new version to be uploaded. There are ISBN issues, and it might not be allowable. We’ll see this weekend.
This effort to go through ES again is to familiarize myself with the characters again. I’ve written a number of stories with those characters that are akin to a TV series. I had “season one” plotted out and was a little more than halfway through when I moved to other projects (like The Brotherhood).
With The Brotherhood on submission I’m free again to work on Ebony Sea: 1, which still amazes me. I think I was a better writer when I was producing those stories. I may be a “cleaner” writer, but the stories back then seem more . . . alive. And they were put out much more quickly - a story (or episode) every month.
Getting back into ES will be a labor of love, but note that it is “labor.” Anyone who tells you writing is easy might be right for THEM, but in general it takes a lot of effort.
Unless you’re the author of Outlander.
I heard she decided to write a book. Wrote it. Had it picked up by the first publisher she approached. That’s very uncommon.
With a five year hiatus in Ebony Sea, it’ll take some fits and starts to get back in. But that’s the plan for now.
Hang on. This could be a bumpy ride.
Are you up for it?
