Inside Evil – Page 4 – Geoff Wakeling

Sample Sunday – September 16th

September 16, 2012September 16, 2012Leave a comment

This week I’m joining in Sample Sunday; a chance to offer readers titbits of books if they’re looking for something fresh and new to devour. Whilst last week I shared Chapter 1 of Inside Evil from my ‘my Writing’ page, this week I’m sharing an excerpt from Chapter 9.

*****

There was a soft humming from the kitchen as Susan made her way down the stairs and turned into the lounge. The table in front of Martha’s conservatory was already set, and there were a selection of warm croissants, jams, fruit and pastries laid out.

“There you are,” Martha smiled as she walked through the kitchen door with a steaming pot of coffee. She placed it on a placemat, removed her apron and beckoned Susan towards the table. “Breakfast?”

“I’m not hungry,” Susan replied as she made her way to a seat which overlooked the frosty morning garden.

“Just have some coffee and a croissant at least, you’ve got to eat. Plus, I’ve gone to so much effort.”

Susan smiled and raised an eyebrow, “Martha, you do this every morning whether you have company or not.”

“True, but it’s good to have a few family traditions kept up. Here,” Martha poured dark coffee into Susan’s cup before handing her the plate of pastries. Susan soon realised that she was actually famished, especially having not eaten anything the night before. After seeing the ghostly figures in the cellar she’d come to Martha’s to seek advice. It had become late, she didn’t care to see her husband’s face and let another row boil over about her increasing distance from him, and so she’d stayed in one of Martha’s guestrooms. And now that she was guzzling coffee and working her way through several pastries, she was hugely thankful for her friend’s care.

“So, these ghostly figures,” Martha began as calmly as if she were asking about how Susan had slept, which had in fact been one of the best sleeps since Vanessa’s death. “There were two?”

Susan nodded and washed a piece of toast and jam down with a sip of coffee. “The second only came towards the end. I couldn’t really see either very well. They weren’t in the cellar, it was as if I were looking through a window to somewhere else.”

“Yet you were able to pick up the diaries off the table and can feel heat and see light from the candles,” Martha mused. “And, the main figure just placed the fallen candle back onto the table and left?”

Susan hesitated, she still hadn’t told Martha about the stone disc, and to reveal that another had been placed on the table would mean she’d need to reveal the item which still rested in her pocket now. Her fingers dug into her cardigan for reassurance, recoiling instantly as they touched the cold round object. She moved her hand to her other pocket and pulled out Vanessa’s pages which were becoming increasingly crumpled and damaged.

“The second figure appeared, grabbed the first’s arm and seemed to indicate that someone was watching them. It looked straight at me for a few seconds and then they both vanished.”

“Well, I’m glad that’s all that happened, Susan. I’ve got a horrible feeling that whatever was staring at you was the same thing that attacked me the night of Vanessa’s death.”

“I think it’s certain,” Susan replied, “Yet we’re still no further along with what’s actually happening.”

“I wouldn’t say that! For starters, Karl confirmed what I’d been thinking all along, and that Vanessa didn’t simply just drop dead.” She looked across to Susan, “I’m sorry I didn’t say anything before, about Karl. I know you’re upset, but truly Susan, I just didn’t think of it until he came through the door. I knew only of the other deaths because Barry had mentioned them to me. I didn’t have the details. I just knew that matters had been handed over to a team outside of Ridgewood. And then, when Barry found James Harrow, I didn’t care much for anything other than what he was going through.”

“It’s OK,” Susan smiled. “I get so caught up in my own mind that I forget that you went through it too. And it doesn’t help that I still don’t know what any of this means.”

She passed Martha the diary pages. Martha took a moment to read through the scrawl again.

“I think it’s pretty safe to say that your Vanessa had the same encounter as you and I have had,” Martha murmured as she studied the text. “Black eyes bore into me. I would say that’s a pretty perfect description.”

“But what does that tell us?”

“Well, it tells us that whatever happened to Barry all those years ago also happened to Vanessa. That we’re not going mad, and that whatever we’ve been seeing is not a figment of our strange imaginations. And, it brings us right back to Roberta Arlington again.”

“How so?”

Martha looked up at Susan with astonishment, “R pulls me aside, R’s there, lurking,” she recited. “It’s obviously her. After the incident at the school I was sure there was something wrong, I felt a panic which I hadn’t felt since Barry.”

Though Susan had somehow managed to completely miss this obvious connection before, she was certain of its truth. As soon as she heard Martha say it aloud, she was also certain of who the developing image on the cellars new stone disc was.

“But how are we supposed to get remotely close to her? You saw what happened. We can’t just go and knock on her door and have a conversation about what the hell she was doing to my daughter.”

“We could talk to Sam, see if he knows anything, has seen anything unusual?”

“Unusual, Martha, all of this is unusual,” Susan said, taking yet another pastry. “But you’re right, Sam’s the obvious link to Roberta. But, how do we get him alone?”

Martha thought on the question momentarily before answering. “Just call him Susan. Say that something happened in the cellar, that you don’t want to talk about it over the phone, and could he pop into the shop.”

“It’s that easy?”

“I don’t think Roberta will want to be anywhere near you right now. Barry shut out his best friend during the last weeks before he vanished. I never found out what happened, but I am starting to realise that there was more to it than a simple argument. If anything was proved by the incident at the school it was that Roberta and you need to stay away from each other. Just tell Sam you don’t want any trouble, and that he has to come alone.”

“It’s worth a try,” Susan replied as she drained the last coffee dregs from her cup.

*****

To find out what happens, and where it all began, find Inside Evil for $2.99 at:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Smashwords | B&N | Kobo

Making paperbacks with CreateSpace

September 15, 20124 Comments

I never imagined that my self publishing journey would take me to where it has. OK, I’m not a millionaire, I’m not even earning a living off my books, but back in March I had nothing published – at all. Then, I discovered this world of eBooks, and I was hooked. Later, I heard about CreateSpace; this company that would print actual paperbacks. It souned too hard, too complicated, something I would explore….eventually. Now I have explored, and I’m overjoyed.

One of the reasons that I’ve been put off developing paperbacks in the past is a) my personal confusion and b) the higher costs that readers have to pay. $2.99 is a very good price for a book, in my opinion, and so I have no qualms pricing an eBook of Inside Evil at this level. However, to pull back paperback costs means that Inside Evil has to be at least $10 for me to even make $1 profit on it. Would people pay this for my book? I didn’t know.

Whilst I’m still in the dark as to whether people will actually buy at a paperback by an indie author at that price, my paperback copy of Inside Evil arrived today and I’m OVER THE MOON. It seems far more real to hold an actual book in your hands. See the print, see the cover, turn the pages over with your fingers. And, far from my huge concerns, creating the paperback was VERY easy.

Making Paperbacks with CreateSpace

The formatting issue was my first concern when it came to producing a paperback, and I thought I’d never be able to get the book outline correct. However, CreateSpace makes this very easy to do. Whilst you can go through all manner of preformatted options and templates, I’ve found that using a current Word .doc of your manuscript is the best way. Here’s what I did:

1. Used the Word .doc of Inside Evil that I use to upload to Smashwords. Don’t worry – CreateSpace will send you an email saying that you’ve got all manner of formatting issues, but this is normal. I chose the 5′ x 8′ template for my book, meaning that my .doc was completely wrong. However, after you’ve uploaded, CreateSpace will offer you the option to download a template. DO THIS. You will find that the template includes your manuscript but with the CreateSpace formatting. You can then make alterations to your document in line with the formatting required.

I’ve found this method to be a lot easier than trying to pre-prepare any document. Remember, if you’re uploading a Smashwords ready file, take out the Smashwords copyright blurb at the front of the book. Also, if you have hyperlinks in your eBook, remember to take them out. As many times as a reader presses that link, it won’t open if it’s on paper. 😉

2. Having made the inside of your book beautiful by using the easy process above, it’s time to do the cover. There are MANY tutorials on the web which show how to make extremely good but complicated covers. If you have some cover art ready made, use the CreateSpace online cover editor.

If you scroll through the template options that they give you, there are a few blank ones that you can use. Simply update your information for the spine, use your cover for the front and utilise Photoshop, or something similar, to make a back cover. You might have to make a few corrections so that no text spills into the gutter lines but CreateSpace makes this very obvious so you know when you’ll need to change something. Your back cover also doesn’t have to be complicated – at all – and all I did was to overlay a black raster layer on top of my front cover, cut through to create a few lines of colour, and add the same text that I use for my sales copy.

*Note* – CreateSpace GIVES you a free ISBN and sorts out the barcode image on the back of your book. Don’t stress, they do it for you! 😀

3. After you’ve done your interior and cover, you’re pretty much done. The team of reviewers will look at your work, after which point you have the option to order a Proof copy or just proof online. I was tempted just to proof online, but ORDER A PROOF COPY. Here’s why:

– Because I’d used my Smashwords .doc, I’d forgotten to put my headers and footers back in. Therefore, Inside Evil had NO page numbers.

– My About Author section still said ‘ebooks’, when it should have said ‘books’.

– You need to check your cover prints correctly. Just because it looks great on your computer screen doesn’t mean it will be perfect on the book.

– Your ebook font size and spacing may need changing. My font is size 12, with spacing set at 1.5 lines. Whilst this is OK, I’m trying another proof with normal spacing. This will reduce the number of pages, therefore making it cheaper for readers to buy. It’ll also look better.

– Holding the first ever printed copy of your book is AMAZING. I have no page numbers, an author error and PROOF written across the last page, but I love it.

Using CreateSpace is really easy to make your paperbacks, and I highly encourage it. Now that I’ve done a first proof of Inside Evil, I’m going to make a few changes and get another proof done. I’ve also spent today getting the The Tower of Souls ready for publication. Will I sell any paperback copies? Who knows. Will I love having MY books on MY real bookshelf? Yes.

Writing inspiration and utilising Pinterest

September 5, 2012September 5, 2012Leave a comment

Inspiration is a great thing, and it often comes when you’re least expecting it. Try to sit down and pull a story out of the air and, chances are, your .doc will remain blank. However, delve into the thousands of ideas, images and characters that are roaming around in your head, and you’ll more than likely find something to get those fingers tapping away.

For me, inspiration arrives in two main forms; either a huge crashing explosion of a new story idea or the subtle and gentle flow of consciousness that occurs when I write. My latest WIP, the yet un-named science fiction novel, was inspired by a enormous crane pulling down the old block of flats that I used to live in. It looked like a dinosaur, a giant beast of some sort, tearing away at the fabric of man’s creation. ‘How can I include that in Inside Evil?‘ I thought. I realised that I couldn’t fit it in, not really, and so a new work was born. A work that has grown into something quite different from that first image which was conjured into my mind all those years ago.

Aside from these very visceral images that create new WIP’s, I find that other inspiration takes a more subtle approach and I don’t even know it’s there until it releases itself into my work. As a trained zoologist and professional gardener, I surround myself with nature, creatures, bugs, plants, and this has very gently found its way into my work. I never sat down and thought ‘Right, today I’m going to include a spider in my writing.‘ However, when I was first writing Mrs Peacock’s scenes (Inside Evil) Elrick just kind of appeared. From nowhere. Today I was gardening again at a client’s and what should I find but this very cool yellow crab spider. Perhaps it, in the past, was the subtle inspiration for Elrick and the purple ink spiders that followed in The Tower of Souls.

Pinterest

I’ve been using Pinterest for a few months now, mainly as a way to collect inspiration for gardening and home decor, but have decided it might be a good idea to share images which have helped, and continue to help, create the Inside Evil worlds, creatures, characters and stories. I’ve created a range of boards, including ‘Inspiration for Inside Evil‘, ‘Inside Evil character inspiration’ and ‘Music I listen too whilst writing‘ to draw together some insights to how I, myself, see the novels. I’m sure I’ll be adding more boards over time too, as further ideas come to me.

As a slight aside, the ‘Inside Evil character inspiration‘ board won’t have actors or actresses that I think look like Roberta, or Sam, or Martha. I’ve made a conscious effort to avoid describing characters too much in the books, as well as avoiding character imagery on the covers because I want people to make up their own minds on how they see people. Of course, I might post Martha’s pearls or Sam’s glasses, but I won’t post my thoughts on character faces. However, you will see images of people that readers have suggested – particularly the first image of Martha, who one reader imagined as looking like Felicity Montagu in Bridget Jones.

If you want to follow me, then just tap the little button below and you can peruse my boards, and even join up yourself. It’s a great way to create mood and inspiration collections whether you’re a reader, writer or dreamer.

The Tower of Souls is here

August 25, 2012November 28, 20122 Comments

The Tower of Souls has landed! After six months in the making – less actually, because I didn’t actually start writing it until about May, 2012 – the sequel to Inside Evil is now available at Amazon and Smashwords, and will soon be available at iBooks, Sony, Kobo, B&N etc via the Smashwords distribution network. I’m really happy with this sequel and feel that it’s a great new story for the series, adding to the world that was already created in the first book, and throwing in some new elements which I hope readers will be eager to sink their teeth into. Whilst Inside Evil was very much a mystery paranormal, The Tower of Souls opens up the new fantasy realm of Gathin and is probably best considered a contemporary fantasy novel. OK, so switching genres may not be the best idea, but as I mentioned in my previous post, indie authors can pretty do as we please – we just might not make all our readers happy!

You may have also noticed a new page appearing in the top bar – “Exclusive Content“. Whilst still in the works, those who have signed up to the newsletter will soon be able to access exclusive character biographies, encyclopaedic entries for Inside Evil lore, objects, creatures and places, in addition to information as to how I developed certain aspects of the books. Newsletter subscribers will be able to access this content with a password and will be updated as new items become available. More coming soon.

In the meantime, pick up your copy of The Tower of Souls now if you want to continue Roberta and her friend’s stories. And, if you haven’t yet read Inside Evil, there’s a nice little price drop and you can now pick up the first in the series for just $2.99

Defining genre for indie authors

August 21, 2012August 21, 201210 Comments

There was once a time when the big six practically ruled the literary world, making authors famous, rejecting great books on a flippant whim and creating their own specific genres that writers had to adhere to if they wanted even the slightest hope of publication. I’ve heard many stories of authors who’ve had to significantly alter novels or remove entire story threads so as to appease the literary powers that be. Then, Amazon said ‘hang on, lets enable authors to publish their own books and take a cut‘. The self publishing indie world was born, free of restrictions, enabling authors to write what they wanted with no compromise. However, in the sudden rush of this literary bandwagon it seems that both Amazon and many readers have failed to keep up with the changing genres, often making it very difficult to place your book into the right category.

It seems that many good indie authors, authors who have written amazing novels and are doing well, as still finding difficulties with defining their genre. Numerous problems seem to be rife with romantic books in particular; even if your entire 400 page novel is bursting with romanticism, if the lovers don’t end up together, then your book is not romance and you will feel the wrath of many a reader. Readers are the indie author’s life force, offering the means to keep writing and share their work. But, there can often be a very stringent unsaid code of conduct to write by if you want to please the majority. Of course, there are readers who like the break from the mould, the chance to read something a little different, something refreshingly new, but in altering the traditional format, you may find yourself risking a backlash.

I’ve had particular problems defining Inside Evil myself. There are fantasy and paranormal elements scattered throughout the book, but many readers of this popular genre are looking for werewolves, vampires and fairies, of which NONE appear in my tale. Instead, a mystical tome offers intrigue, an evil curse lurks awaiting another victim, another realm’s ‘gatekeepers’ follow ancient customs to keep demons at bay. I sail perilously close to mentioning spells and some characters do entertain supernatural beliefs, but for a reader wanting a witchcraft read, once again Inside Evil does not quite fit the bill. Parallel worlds are often used in science fiction, but again, though there is another realm in Inside Evil, it is certainly not one that lives in the sci-fi genre. Then, there is the horror and occult aspect of the book which, though not apparent in full visceral force, does provide an underlying tone. But, for those wanting full throttle horror, once again, Inside Evil may not be the right genre. It seems that I’ve written a novel which fits into many, yet no traditional genres. Though the eclectic cast of characters offer a unique and page turning story, traditional readers may remain unsure.

Indie publishing is a godsend for people like myself who want to share their work with readers without having to deal with creative oppression. However, even Amazon itself is has so few categories within their Kindle listings that they seem tied to the very stereotypical genres that have been forced into society by traditional publishers. Whilst the traditional author might have to write a, b and c to create a perfect thriller, the indie author might take out b altogether and throw in a couple of wayward z’s to the mix. Just to liven things up a bit. Just to refresh the genre and offer something unique. But, it comes with the risk that you may divide readers, causing outrage from traditionalists and clamouring fans from modernists.

There are many indie authors whose works easily falls into a specific genre, making their lives far easier. However, for many, like myself, who have forgone the carefully constructed genres of the past, the world may be our oyster, we just have to work a little harder to try and define ourselves. Meanwhile, readers will remain vital in helping to break the traditional restrictions so that authors feel free to offer something new. In the meantime, I’ll keep trying new genres for Inside Evil and taking feedback from readers to help discover its best suited category, but until then, it seems that many will either love, or hate, novels which break the norm.

LibraryThing Giveaway Promotion

July 4, 20124 Comments

As some people will know, early in June I offered a LibraryThing giveaway, providing 50 copies of Inside Evil to people on LibraryThing in return for reviews. I had many hopes, not to increase sales, but to get reviews. Here are the results.

It can safely be said, that the LibraryThing giveaway was a bit of failure. At the very least, it failed to live up to expectations. Of the 50 books that I offered, 39 people downloaded the novel from Smashwords which I would think is a pretty good result. However, over the course of the past month, I’ve only had ONE review and around FOUR Goodreads adds. It’s a little disappointing, as I hoped that a ratio of at least 10% would give me a review, but alas, so far, the one sole review is all I’ve had. Still, this was a 4star one so it’s not a complete loss and I was ecstatic to see that the reader posted on LibraryThing, Amazon and Smashwords.

Of course, when you’re running a LibraryThing giveaway, it’s important to remember that the types of people bidding in these contests are the type of readers who may well have a substantial backlist of books to read. After one month, I’ve had one review. However, that doesn’t mean that there won’t be more to come in the future as individuals finally get around to giving Inside Evil a go.

Would I use LibraryThing’s giveaway again?

At the end of the day, it’s a great giveaway tool and so, yes, I would use it again. I plan to offer 50 copies of Tower of Souls to readers about a month before the release. This should give people the chance to read the book and make a few reviews so that when it goes live on Amazon and Smashwords, there is already some feedback available. Obviously, it’s a sequel, so people winning the book may even buy Inside Evil first so that they’re caught up on the story.

If you’re thinking of using a LibraryThing giveaway, then don’t expect great instant results. Be happy for the reviews that you do get in, and utilise it as a way to get your work read and find a few new fans and followers.

Increase your July book sales with Smashwords promotion

June 28, 20122 Comments

Promotions can often be key in marketing. Getting people to buy your book is no easy thing, as I’ve discovered myself, and a few freebies and discounts here and there can offer great incentives for readers to download your book, read it, love it and hopefully spread the word.

If you currently sell with Smashwords and received their email this morning, don’t bin it to your delete box before reading because they’ve announced their Summer/Winter sale. This site-wide promotion starts on July 1st and lasts a month, allowing you to discount your books. You can make them free, 75per cent off, half price, or 25per cent off. If you want to enrol, then do so before July 1st for maximum exposure.

As you can see from the form above, it only takes mere seconds to enrol and you might find a jump in sales. I’ve never used the promotion before, but anything to offer readers a little extra incentive to buy your book is a good opportunity to utilise. Inside Evil will be 50% off for the month, and you’ll be able to buy it at the reduced price using the SSW50 code.

Inside Evil; The Tower of Souls

June 15, 20123 Comments

It’s official, the sequel to Inside Evil that I’m currently writing will be called The Tower of Souls. You may think that, as an author, I ought to have known the title before I started writing. However, many authors actually finish entire novels before the title pops into their mind. In a similar way that characters grow into themselves as the pages are written, so too does the overall story arc, and often the title. And now, 20,000 words in, The Tower of Souls has ruminated in my mind for long enough to set down its official anchor.

What can we expect from The Tower of Souls? Well, to be completely honest, I’m not even sure yet. When I was in the throes of writing Inside Evil, a lot happened which I’d never envisaged. I have set milestones that I work towards, but the storytelling in between is left largely to my fingers and the characters themselves. Do I know where Tower of Souls will finish? Yes. Do I know what is going to happen along the way? Not entirely.

I can tell you that our favourite characters, Roberta, Sam, Susan, Martha and Karl will all be back, with Sam moving to the forefront a little and having his own Point of View (POV). As Roberta explores the dangerous world of Gathin, she’s going to discover the true horrors that shadows Ridgewood, and she may come to realise that her part in this story is not a mere accident. Meanwhile, with Roberta presumed dead by her friends who have been left behind, life goes on. However, shaking off the experience that was suffered in the final days before Inside Evil’s conclusion isn’t easy and, Sam in particular, will struggle to adapt.

Several further reviews have come in for Inside Evil, making me know that taking a breath and hitting that ‘publish‘ button was the right thing to do. Now, even I am excited by the story unfolding on the screen before me. Over the coming weeks I’m also going to post a little competition for one reader to have a very specific character placed within Gathin, allowing a creative fan to have their concept immortalised in an eBook form. But for now, and with a tentative release date of September, I need to get back to tap, tap, tapping away.