The calendar has flipped eight times since my last update, but I finally have some good news to share about my novel Lost in the Fog!

As mentioned previously, Inkshares is a small company with limited resources, and they can only put out so many books each year.  Most of you reading this update have already purchased/backed my book, and I wish you had a copy of it in your hands right now.  I submitted my final draft last summer, and my manuscript has unfortunately been collecting digital dust since then. 

But I’m happy to say that Lost in the Fog is finally in production! 

An editor from Inkshares (Mr. Ryan Quinn) recently did an excellent copy edit on it last week, and I got the opportunity to review it.  My job was to go through all his comments, answer his questions, and then either make changes or respond with “stet”, which means “let it stand”.  Then I had to review all of the tracked changes he made (mostly punctuation, formatting, and keeping the manuscript copacetic to the Chicago Manual of Style), and either accept or reject them.

Thankfully Mr. Quinn did not have many questions (I attribute that to the great job of my first editor, Ms. Caroline Tolley), and all of the changes he made were technical ones that I accepted.   But I still took about 6 days with the manuscript, figuring this is likely the last time I will be able to make any modifications to it (I ended up making some minor tweaks of my own).  I am very happy with this new and improved version of Lost in the Fog, and I submitted it to Inkshares on Friday.     

Once a book begins production, Inkshares says the process is approximately four to six months to when backers (that’s you) will receive your copy in the mail.  Lost in the Fog still needs to go through another round of edits, a design pour (whatever that is), design updates, cover design, printing, and shipping.  I’d love if my novel could be released by Christmas, but to be safe let’s target January/February of 2020.

I’ll know more soon, and as the timeline gets firmer, I’ll keep everyone updated.

Thank you!

The calendar has flipped eight times since my last update, but I finally have some good news to share about my novel Lost in the Fog!

As mentioned previously, Inkshares is a small company with limited resources, and they can only put out so many books each year.  Most of you reading this update have already purchased/backed my book, and I wish you had a copy of it in your hands right now.  I submitted my final draft last summer, and my manuscript has unfortunately been collecting digital dust since then. 

But I’m happy to say that Lost in the Fog is finally in production! 

An editor from Inkshares (Mr. Ryan Quinn) recently did an excellent copy edit on it last week, and I got the opportunity to review it.  My job was to go through all his comments, answer his questions, and then either make changes or respond with “stet”, which means “let it stand”.  Then I had to review all of the tracked changes he made (mostly punctuation, formatting, and keeping the manuscript copacetic to the Chicago Manual of Style), and either accept or reject them.

Thankfully Mr. Quinn did not have many questions (I attribute that to the great job of my first editor, Ms. Caroline Tolley), and all of the changes he made were technical ones that I accepted.   But I still took about 6 days with the manuscript, figuring this is likely the last time I will be able to make any modifications to it (I ended up making some minor tweaks of my own).  I am very happy with this new and improved version of Lost in the Fog, and I submitted it to Inkshares on Friday.     

Once a book begins production, Inkshares says the process is approximately four to six months to when backers (that’s you) will receive your copy in the mail.  Lost in the Fog still needs to go through another round of edits, a design pour (whatever that is), design updates, cover design, printing, and shipping.  I’d love if my novel could be released by Christmas, but to be safe let’s target January/February of 2020.

I’ll know more soon, and as the timeline gets firmer, I’ll keep everyone updated.

Thank you!

Aloha All,

As Tom Petty once said, the waiting is the hardest part.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KJPP7GkuPU

A huge thank you to everyone for waiting along with me for Lost in the Fog to get published.  I figured by now I would be able to provide a date when you’ll receive your copies of my book, but as they say here in Hawaii, “no can”.  I reached out to Inkshares just before Thanksgiving and still no news. 

However they reiterated my book was next to go into the queue for publication.  It’s going to happen, but more patience is needed.  I’m so excited to share Lost in the Fog with you, and as soon as I have more information on the timeline, I will let you know.

In the meantime, I wish everyone Happy Holidays!   I also have a new blog post to share, which you can read by clicking the link below.  It’s the story of my misadventures trying to get home for the holidays eighteen years ago.  Traveling in December 2000 was a lot different than it is now ....

https://underdiamondhead.com/2018/12/17/if-only-in-my-dreams/

“Time flies. It’s up to you to be the navigator.” - Robert Orben

Aloha All,

It’s hard to believe it was almost three months ago that I submitted my novel Lost in the Fog to Inkshares!

Summer had just started, Elon Musk had yet to smoke marijuana on a live show, and nobody cared what the word “boof” meant.  I guess a lot can happen in 90 days. 

In early July I had just finished the developmental edit of Lost in the Fog, where I had worked tirelessly  whenever I could find free time with a very talented editor to significantly improve my manuscript.  I was ecstatic back then, as submitting the new version of the book to the publisher was a huge milestone!  But as I wrote in my last update, Inkshares is small publishing house and they only have the ability to work on 1-2 books per month.  I knew I had to wait my turn.   

I finally have great news to share …  Lost in the Fog is next in the queue to start the publication process!

While I still don’t have an exact timeline and I cannot yet give you a publication date, we’re another step closer.  I would say early 2019 is looking very good.  Once Inkshares begins to work on Lost in the Fog and I have more detailed information, you’ll be the first to know!

I’m also very happy to share with you that I have been writing the sequel to Lost in the Fog.  Here’s the pitch:

An investigative reporting team from San Francisco must discover why a religious cult in Honolulu wants to assassinate them.

I’ve lived in Hawaii for the last six years, and I am super excited to set the new Camden and Veronica Mystery in the place I’m honored to call home.  While we wait for Lost in the Fog to go through the publication process with Inkshares and get into your hands, finishing the sequel is now my top priority.  My ultimate goal is to create at least a trilogy with these characters, but hopefully a longer series featuring Camden and Veronica where each novel will take place in a different location.  I’m already thinking Paris for the third book …

 Mahalo again for your support!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

-Michael

https://www.inkshares.com/books/lost-in-the-fog

“Most people are scared of those things that don’t sit still and pose for our official portrait of reality.”                                         -Tom Robbins, Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas

Aloha All,

Some great news to share that is tempered with a dose of reality and sprinkled with the dust of a hard drinking pixie.  After more than six months of working to improve the characters, story, and structure of Lost in the Fog, I finally finished the development edit.  Caroline Tolley, my editor, has helped make the book the best it can be.

The manuscript is now in the queue for publication with Inkshares!

The reality is the publisher is small and can only work on one to two books at a time, so I need to wait my turn.  Completely understandable (I took longer to finish the development edit so I’m to blame for being pushed back in the queue), but still a bit of a bummer.  I feel the book is ready to go (it’s been heavily edited), but the process is the process.  They are estimating it to start in September. 

The pixie dust is the sheer fact that Lost in the Fog is being published.  For something I started in 2004, finished the first draft in 2008, and then mostly abandoned until last year, I’m just happy to be at this point.  Making me smile even more, is that I’m not publishing my book on my own, I’m getting it in print because of all of you.  I needed at least 250 pre-orders for Inkshares to help me realize my dream, and I accomplished that with your awesome help.

If the publication process starts in September, there’s still a chance Lost in the Fog reaches your hands by the end of the year.  Though that might be too optimistic, and it’s never good to over promise and under deliver.   You’ve all been so amazingly patient, and we’re almost at the finish line.  Once I have more information on the publication date (or even a better estimate), I will share it with you immediately. 

But I hope you’ll raise a glass and toast with me that we’re one step closer.  Thank you and mahalo!

-Michael

"How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?"

- Dr. Seuss

 Aloha All,

It’s almost impossible to believe it’s been over five months since my last update on Lost in the Fog.  But here we are.  Working with a development editor has been an amazing and enriching experience, and my novel will be so much better for it.  But it’s also been mind numbing how long it’s taken me to finish!

If I didn’t have a full-time job that consumed most of my time, I would have completed the final version of Lost the Fog months ago.   I am certain of that.  But of course, that is just a convenient excuse, and I know I could have carved out more minutes, hours, and days to work on it.  Playing the role of Sigmund Freud, maybe there’s some perverse part of me that doesn’t want to be done . . . this is, after all, a book I’ve been working on for more than a decade.  Finally letting go of it is both exciting and terrifying. 

But I promise you I will, and very soon.

My editor Caroline completed her second round of edits back in March, and I’ve been working (slowly, as explained previously) on my final version of the manuscript ever since.  This weekend was a big one for me, and I made significant progress.  My goal is to turn Lost in the Fog to Inkshares by the end of the month.

From there we have the final copy edit by the publisher, the galley proof revisions before the book goes to the printer, and the cover art and publication process.  I’m still hoping for late 2018 for you to get your hands on Lost in the Fog, and once I have a better idea of the actual date, you’ll be the first to know. 

As always, thank you so much for your support!  Mahalo! 

-Mike 

Thanks, Dean!  Happy New Year to you as well, and can’t wait to get my copy of "Murder Happens"!!  

Caroline’s web site is impressive. And she went to Skidmore. Happy New Year, Mike! Looking forward to Lost in the Fog in 2018.

Aloha All,

I hope you are enjoying this holiday season, and are getting the chance to spend it with friends and family!  With one more day until 2018, this seemed a good opportunity to check in with a brief update on Lost in the Fog, my book you graciously pre-ordered/followed.

And I finally have some good news to share! 

For the last month I have been working with an editor, the extremely talented and sagacious Caroline Tolley.   Her resume is beyond impressive (please click on the link and check out all the great books she has edited), and I am very lucky to have her in my corner.  A few weeks ago she returned her first round edit of Lost in the Fog, which was filled with terrific advice to make it a better book.

Caroline’s development notes were overwhelmingly positive on the story, characters, pacing, and plot.  She said overall the book was in great shape.  Her feedback for improvement was mostly in the narration: specifically, the 3rd person narrator (while often humorous) impeded the reader from bonding with Camden and Veronica.  This also caused a ripple effect where these two main characters did not share enough internal thoughts.  I also have some tone ambiguity I need to work on.

I agree with my editor’s evaluation, and these necessary changes will be relatively minor in scope. 

I just need to find the time to do them. 

This month nearly every night has been a holiday party for work and friends, and I’ve also had visitors and long days spent in the office for my job that pays the bills.  No complaints at all, as I’ve been having a lot of fun and finding satisfaction in my work.  But I’ve been eager to dig into my rewrite based on Caroline’s notes, and I finally was able to make some progress this past week.

I plan to keep this momentum going, and mid-January should be a realistic timeline for me to finish my rewrite and submit it back to her. 

The next step in the process is for Caroline to do one more edit.  I’ll then take that, make the required adjustments, and Inkshares will do a final “line edit”.  This is exactly what the name implies- someone will go line-by-line to ensure everything is proper, perfect, and ready for publication.

I’ll keep everyone updated as I hit key milestones, and I hope to get Lost in the Fog to all of you by late summer/early fall of 2018.  But the date is unfortunately out of my control.  Whether you’re an established best-selling author or someone like me, unlike the instantaneous click/like/tweet of our culture, the publishing process is plodding and requires patience.  But I’m so glad to have you all with me on this.  

As the clock ticks down on 2017, I will humbly once again say thank you and mahalo for your support! Simply put, Lost in the Fog would not be getting published without your help.  I wish you all a Happy New Year, and success and happiness in 2018!! 

-Michael

Hi All,

I’m long overdue for some news about Lost in the Fog, so here we go!

First, I must express my continued gratitude.  Because of all of you, my novel surpassed the 250-pre-order requirement (272 thus far) and will be published by Inkshares!  Your support brings a ginormous smile to my face, and I am beyond grateful.  For years I’ve wanted to share Lost in the Fog with the world, and I will be able to do it because of you.  Merci beaucoup, danke schoen, arigato, mahalo nui loa, and thank you!

Second, I want to provide an update to the question you all have: when will I receive my copy of Lost in the Fog?   While I wish I could give it to you right now, unfortunately the world of book publishing moves at a slower pace.  Here’s a recent example.  Robin Sloane, author of the outstanding best seller Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore (which I highly recommend), announced to his fans on July 15, 2016 he had finished a new novel.  On September 5th of this year, Sloane’s Sourdough will be released to the world.   

For those of you who don’t want to do the math, that’s almost 14 months from completion to publication for an author who just had a best seller. 

While I’ve yet to have a best seller, the goal is to get Lost in the Fog to you a whole lot sooner.   Here is where I am with the process.  While I’ve gone through so many drafts of my novel that I’ve lost count, I am still working on one more.  When that is finished I send it off to the publisher, and then they assign an editor to work on it with me.

The editing process can take several months, and then there’s the cover, the clean-up of the final version, printing, marketing, and distribution.  This meticulous process will be done to produce the best possible version of my book.  Because you should never over-promise and under-deliver, my goal for Lost in the Fog is that it will be published next summer. 

Inkshares is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I plan on flying back there to sign every book before they ship.  So while a little patience is in order, I’m happy to report that everyone who pre-ordered a paperback will receive a personalized signed copy!

Third part to this update: as we walk down the long and winding road to publication, I will keep you informed along the way and hopefully have some fun with it.  I plan to share with you, the ones who have made Lost in the Fog possible, special items akin to DVD/Blu-ray extras.  Here’s a sneak preview.

In the beginning of Lost in the Fog (which you can check out right now on the "Read" tab), the main character Camden takes the Caltrain (the commuter rail) from San Carlos into the city of San Francisco.  Here is what he sees and thinks that morning:

Tired and hungover, he could only stare slack jawed at the lavender and pink clouds which appeared to be crashing like waves over to the East Bay sky.  Camden couldn’t get it out of his mind that he was a yo-yo.  Slung up the Peninsula to San Francisco in the morning, he was suspended there in a “walk the dog” move for the day.  As the sun set the giant wrist flicked and he returned to his home thirty-five miles south of the city.

 At the Caltrain Depot in San Francisco, Camden exited with the mass of commuters and began his usual walk up Fourth Avenue…….   

Below are some pictures of what Camden would have seen as he approached the San Francisco station on that morning, and also the view of when he exited the train to walk to his job as a gallery attendant.  Back when I was writing the first draft, commuting into the city was my life.  Those thirty-five to fifty-five minutes (it all depended on whether it was an express or a local), I used to spend working on Lost in the Fog.  That time on the train fueled my creativity and was very important to me. 

Thank you all again, and looking forward to sharing more updates soon!

-Michael