Free To Read!

I posted EDEN online to read on June 8th. You can find the link through my main website. I also posted the first twelve chapters of MAY THE DEAD SPEAK, which is a story under OF THE MOON AND SUN. So far I've been have a positive response to this move. This has also pushed me to fill out the series website. I'm working on the Characters area right now. I also plan to have a FAQ section, some dealing with the mythology while the other will focus on the miscellaneous questions I receive.

This brings me to FOUR CORNERS. I plan to bring this series back online, as well! :D Not sure when I will find the time to convert everything to their online format. It will take me a full day of HTML editing for that series. Though only two of the books have been published, I do have a third that's finished and ready to be edited. So much stuff to do. But I will work on this series when I need a break from EDEN.

Switching gears. My cousin is planning to publish the first book in her series called [name removed upon request]. She, however, will be going the traditional route and will be looking for a publisher that way. She expressed how she hopes she won't create a green-eyed monster out of me when/if she gets published. Seriously? She fails to realize something; I'm already published. But this is where self-publishing is looked down upon. Let me clarify. Everyone that follows me knows that I've tried twice to get published the traditional way, even looking for an agent. She says that I gave up too soon. That's not the case. I only changed my plan--my path in the whole publishing journey. I haven't completely tossed out the idea of nabbing an agent or landing that publishing contract with a respected company. The thing is, my method isn't traditional. I doubt any agent or publisher would allow me to post my work online as I write. I need this to help fuel my drive. I got a taste of it when I began publishing FOUR CORNERS online back in September 2000. It was like the webcomics of today, releasing 1-2 chapters a week. I didn't have a set released date at that time, but I hope to use one for my EDEN series. This will give me to drive to meet my deadlines, something I need to get comfortable with. If I can win NaNoWriMo, then I can meet a weekly deadline.

So no, no green-eyed monster here. It just upsets me that indie authors are looked down upon. It's not because we were rejected elsewhere and this is our only option. It is a choice! I choose to be an indie author. I choose to have complete control over my work. I choose to write for myself and not worry about making money. This has never been about making money. It's about writing stories that entertain me and perhaps others. I know I'm not the best writer, but I'm having fun. I've said this before and I'll say it again; too me, it's all about having fun, and if I can entertain others in the process, it's just sprinkles on an already iced cake.

;)