General

It’s no secret that summer is my favourite season. So I’m definitely not looking forward to dark days and cold nights. But September’s weather has turned out nicer than our Scottish summer so far – so here’s hoping it will be a mild winter. And the start of a new month seemed like a good time to share a quick update about what’s going on behind the scenes.

Fable and Legend

The second book in The Mirrordom Legends is out this autumn. I’ve just sent the latest batch of edits back to my publisher. The next step will for it to be formatted for print. I’ll then look over the .pdf and send it back with corrections. The final step in getting the book ready for publication is checking over the proof copy. I’ll also be looking at the cover designs (my favourite part in the whole getting-ready-for-publication process!)

Book Four in The Mirrordom Legends

I had written the fourth book in The Mirrordom Legends – but I knew something was missing. After letting it sit for months, I finally realised what that something was and I have re-written it slightly. I’m going to let it sit again before submitting it to my publisher, but it’s very much on my mind at the moment. I want to get it perfect before it ever goes into a reader’s hands – and sometimes that just takes time.

Standalone works

I have two sci-fi standalone novels currently submitted to publishers. I have huge affection for both of them, for different reasons, so I hope one of those finds a home. I will find out either way this month.

Spreadsheet time

I hate spreadsheets – but they are a good way to document data. So I started a spreadsheet for all my published works and ones that I am attempting to get published. It took me 37 attempts to find a home for City and Shadow – which I don’t think is too bad at all! The spreadsheet is really for my own information purposes, but I might make the stats available if they’d be of interest to other aspiring authors.

Summer in September

The north of Scotland seems to be having its summer right now – and I’m loving it. Reading (and writing) outside in the sun (which plenty of sunscreen on my pale, Scottish skin!) has done me the power of good.

ARC reading

I was so excited to be approached by my very first indie author who wanted me to read their ARC! Of course, I said yes and I can’t wait to dive in. Most of the ARCs I am honoured to read come from NetGalley or from me approaching authors – so it’s lovely that someone reached out to me.

How has your summer gone? Are you looking forward to autumn or do you miss the warmer weather? Let me know in the comments below.

You’re reading the latest novel from a new author, who has either been published by a small indie press or gone down the self-publishing route. You’re enjoying the tale when, shock, horror! You find an error.

Before immediately rushing onto Goodreads or Amazon to leave a scathing review, let’s take a look at why you might find errors in indie authors’ works and what you should do about it.

Why are there occasional errors in books?

The author has a smaller team behind them

They haven’t been published by the Big Five* and they don’t have as many eyes on their books. Does this mean they haven’t spent hours combing through it? No, it does not. It means that, despite their best efforts and the best efforts of their team, a few mistakes slipped through the net.

*However, even books that did have a larger team and even books published by the Big Five have errors in them. Unfortunately, it happens.

What should you do about it?

Speak to the author

Notice I say ‘Speak to the author’, not ‘Immediately write a vitriolic email berating the author’. My recommendation would be to approach the author and ask if they would like to know about some errors you may have found. This is particularly useful if you’ve got your hands on an ARC as it may not be too late to fix those mistakes. However, even if the book is published, it might still be reaching out to the author. They may be able to release a second edition… or even explain away some inconsistencies in the book in the series.

Become an ARC or beta reader

If you have an eye for detail, why not put your skills to use? Indie authors will appreciate you signing up for advanced reading copies and letting them know your thoughts on their work. You could even take it a step further and become a developmental editor.

What errors don’t mean

They definitely don’t mean the author hasn’t spent months on this book, giving their very best to it. And they definitely don’t mean the book necessarily warrants a bad review. As an indie author, I can guarantee you every book I write was given huge amounts of care and attention. I created the very best book I could at the time. Are any of them perfect? No. There are definitely typos I wish I’d caught and little details I missed that should have been changed. But did I give it my level best? Absolutely.

If you really feel occasional errors distract from the storyline, perhaps sticking to books published by the Big Five is the way to go for you.

That being said, I would like to one day put together a list of all the errors my editor and my team caught, especially if they’re funny, and have them as a sort of bloopers roll at the end of a book one day. Or perhaps they could make a blog post in their own right!

What are your thoughts on errors in books? Does it put you off reading?

As July draws to a close (and Scotland finally gets some summer sunshine!), it seemed like a good time to share an update of where we are with everything.

Venom and Blaze

Venom and Blaze has been out for two weeks and a day! My debut novel has already been sold in Australia, the US, Canada and, of course, the UK. Thank you so much to everyone who has bought a copy, left a review or a rating or told your friends about it. I really appreciate it all.

Sci-fi standalone

If you’re wondering what the header picture has to do with anything… it’s because I’m working on a standalone science-fiction novel, with a working acronym of TBWWFH (which stands for something top secret that I can’t reveal.) I’m about half-way through writing the first draft and really love the concept and the characters.

Fantasy standalone

Past blog posts have alluded to a fantasy standalone set in the year 3034, with a working acronym of FFAR. It’s currently been submitted to a publisher and I’m waiting to hear back. I am extremely proud of this novel and really hope it makes it into your hands one day!

Fable and Legend

The second installment in The Mirrordom Legends will be out this autumn. I still have to complete the edits, approve the cover design and write the blurb for it. (Writing the blurb is my least favourite part of the process!)

ARC reading

I’ve been really pleased to be entrusted with several ARCs for amazing authors. Full reviews are coming soon.

I also want to address the recent events where ARCs were pirated. It should go without saying that, as independent author myself, I always treat ARCs with the respect they deserve. It’s a privilege to get an early look at someone else’s work and lovely to be able to support other authors.

Flame and Phoenix

The first draft of the fourth book in The Mirrordom Legends is complete. As usual, I’m letting it sit in my Documents folder, languishing away, until my mind is fresh and ready to look at it again.

Currently, I am planning five books in the series. But, seeing as this time last year, I was only planning one, you never know where life in Mirrordom might take the characters. There’s definitely room to explore the world a bit more.

How have you spent your July? Have you any book recommendations? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments.

Even though I live in the Inner Hebrides, I don’t really venture to Edinburgh very much. The iconic bookshops of TikTok fame have long been on my list to visit – so when I was in town seeing The National, I lost no time in popping in to them.

As a lifelong Swiftie, I was excited to see The National in concert – with Edinburgh Castle as a stunning backdrop.

The National’s distinctive introspective lyrics and slow, musing pacing is thrown by the wayside when it comes to their live show. Their on-stage performance transforms into a screaming, guitar-ridden, beautifully chaotic cohesion of sounds and nuances.

I also purchased a rather snazzy T-shirt – I do love concert merch!

The following day, I popped into Armchair Books first – and what an epic place it is. Floor to ceiling books in every direction and a great range of genres, authors and subjects.

Armchair Books’ narrow door belies the shop’s size – inside it’s a treasure trove of passages and corridors, all leading to more books. It’s a TARDIS-like expanse of literature.

I also explored Edinburgh Books, a really bright and airy shop also with an extensive book collection.

One could really spend all day browsing. I didn’t get anything in this particular shop, but I very much enjoyed the tour and I’ll make sure to go back if I return to Edinburgh.

Both shops had the smell of old pages and leather bindings – exactly how they should!

I love old architecture and there was plenty to be found in Edinburgh. The last picture features a friendly pigeon.

I also had a peek into the Cat Cafe, filled with gorgeously exotic kitties.

Sadly, I didn’t go in because it was closed when I passed.

What did you get up to this weekend? Are you a cat lover? Let me know in the comments.

The blog has been quite quiet lately – but a whole lot of little bits have been going on. They’re not big enough to warrant individual blog posts, but I thought it might be fun to share what I’ve been doing behind the scenes.

Growing my author socials

Various people (publishers, friends, fellow authors and more) have all emphasised the importance of having a healthy following on social media. So I’ve been trying to create amusing or meaningful book-related content and grow my author social media accounts. I find this time-consuming and a bit of a maze as I don’t really know how to do that, but I can see it’s worthwhile.

Working on the work in progress

My beta-reader-turned-friend CJ is currently making her way through my work in progress. I particularly wanted CJ’s perspective as she’s a phenomenal author and her ability to pace a story and keep the reader on a simmering tenterhook is second to none. While my stories tend to get going, get in and get it over with, CJ could run a masterclass in creating and maintaining anticipation. So I really wanted her to consult with me on how I’m doing when it comes to the book I’m currently working on. This book has absolutely nothing to do with Mirrordom and is a stand-alone novel set in the future. And, yes, I’ll be trying to get it published. I have such a deep and abiding affection for this book.

Lots of reading

I’ve been accepted as one of Stag Beetle Books’ Street Team, which means I now get ARCs of their latest books and be able to review them. I’m currently halfway through my very first read for them.

I’m also reading a book I was sent by author, Sue Moorcroft. Sue and I have been chatting on and off as some of her lovely books are set near where I live. I always enjoy reading books set in Scotland as it feels familiar.

Learning about gardening

I love salad so I’ve always wanted to try and grow my own lettuce. This desire hasn’t developed further than me thinking: “I’d like to grow my own lettuce” but I have successfully kept a jasmine plant alive for over two days and some mint for over three. Not to mention the fact that I planted some sweet peas in tubs and they grew! I never saw the appeal of gardening before at all, but the idea that something grew and thrived because I had a tiny hand in it is just lovely. So I’m trying to learn this new skill.

Waiting for the print copy of Venom and Blaze to arrive

I’ve been reliably informed this should come by next week, so I will probably do an unboxing video to celebrate. Then I’ll go through it for my final proofread and sign off on any changes to be made. That will be the last review and edit I ever do for my debut novel. Once that’s done, it’s off into the world.

The day job

I am not a full-time author, so all of the above needs to be balanced around my day job. I’m lucky enough to work from home in the main, which takes away the stress of travelling, but it does mean I can’t just sit and write novels whenever the mood takes me.

What’s next?

I have three books accepted, with two due to be released this year. So, I’ll need to do editing, admin and promotion for all three of them. I also have plans for more in the series, so I need to actually get on and write them!

The work in progress has pulled me out of Mirrordom for a bit as well. I’ll need to get on with editing that, especially once CJ gets back to me as her eagle eyes will no doubt have spotted grammatical issues and typos. Then I will try and find a good home for it with a publisher. I would be really sad if this one never saw the light of day as I love the story and am very proud of it.

What are you up to this week? Tell me all about it in the comments.

My debut novel comes out this year (THIS YEAR!!!) Still, there’s a good few months to go between now and the summer, so what should you read while you’re waiting for my book to come out?

Scythe by Neal Shusterman.

10/10.

I’m still to finish this trilogy (I’m just partway into The Toll) but I can honestly say it’s been a long time since I read a book that gripped me like Scythe did. Neal Shusterman’s writing style is exceptional and his ability to create multi-faceted characters is incredible.

Katy by Jacqueline Wilson.

8/10.

Like most 90s babies, I grew up devouring Jacqueline Wilson books. I went on the run with Lola Rose, I learned about Victorians with Charlie, I felt left out like Dolphin and I wanted to be a twin like Ruby and Garnet. However, I wasn’t sure the inimitable Ms Wilson could pull off a retelling of the classic story What Katy Did Next. I was wrong.

I should point out I’ve never read the original by Susan Coolidge so there was never any risk of me making any comparisons but I will say Ms Wilson’s version is exceptional in its own right. I’ve no idea if she includes any nods to the original, but she has done a fantastic job of telling a heart-breaking story.

The book is directed at readers that are slightly younger than my target audience, but I’m confident even teenagers would enjoy this one. It did lose marks in my opinion for having quite a slow-moving opening. There is a lot of scene setting before the crux of the story begins. Fortunately, Ms Wilson’s unique writing style pulls the reader through without feeling like it drags.

Heist Society by Ally Carter.

7/10.

I’m showing my age with this one, which was published in 2011! Thirteen years ago?! But it’s one of my go-to novels when I want something slick and suspenseful. As a teenager, I loved Kat’s personality – arguably more than Cammie in Ms Carter’s other popular series, Gallagher Girls – and how her brain worked. Toss in a cast full of characters, like rich boy Hale, and you have the magic formula for keeping me entertained.

What YA books have you read recently? Maybe you’ve written one? If so, I’d love to read it and review it on the blog – so please get in touch.

Up in Scotland, we take New Year quite seriously. Traditionally, we’ll have a holiday on 2 January as well as New Year’s Day.

I’ve never really been a party person – so my main concessions to the fact that we’ve switched 2023 for 2024 were staying up until midnight, watching fireworks and having moments of self-reflection.

Plus: New Year Resolutions. I’ve always made New Year Resolutions for as long as I can remember and find it a good way of taking stock. What have I achieved? What did I fail to accomplish and why? How can I improve next year? I try to set attainable goals and measure how far I’ve come.

As well as personal resolutions, I’ve also created some book-related ones.

Last year, I didn’t manage to read as many books as I’d have liked. I use an app called StoryGraph to keep track of what I’ve read. It’s super simple to use and I’m excited to think that I’ll see one of my books on there one day!

StoryGraph also creates a fantastic Reading Wrap-Up at the end of every year. 2023 saw me read 35 books, with the first being The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell and the last being I’m Not Done With You Yet by Jesse Q. Sutanto.

I make no apologies for my eclectic taste!

This year, I want to smash my reading goals and enjoy a minimum of 80 books. I am a firm believer that to be a good writer, you need to be a voracious reader. As a child, I could devour hundreds of books each year.

I’ve already kicked 2024 off with two amazing books. The Dark Queen by Dana Gricken caught my eye because of its gorgeous cover. I bought the ebook and I’m loving it so far. I’ve also started the utterly captivating Scythe by Neal Shusterman. I can only aspire to such brilliance.

But my resolutions don’t end with just putting a dent in my TBR list. 2024 is also the year the first two novels in my trilogy are set to come out. That means editing them to within an inch of their lives, choosing covers, promoting, kick-starting my non-existent presence on social media and badgering local independent bookshops to stock my book. Plus more stuff I probably haven’t thought of. And, alongside all that, I need to get the third in the trilogy written. And the novel I started and haven’t finished because I got too excited to go back to Mirrordom. So, yeah. Wish me luck. I’m going to need it.

Do you have hopes and dreams for 2024? Do you make New Year Resolutions? Leave a comment below – I’d love to hear all about what you’re up to.