Forgot to mention that you’ll need to sign in (at the upper righthand corner of the Inkshares homepage) to your Inkshares account to click NOMINATE. If you don’t remember your login because it’s been awhile, you can also sign in using your Facebook account.
Hey everyone,
Happy Corned Beef and Cabbage Day!
It looks like I haven’t sent out an update since August, which was…three, four years ago? I think many of you would agree that these past twelve months have seemed to stretch on forever. Hopefully as the vaccine rollout picks up steam, we’ll start to see more and more aspects of life from the Before Times returning to normal. You know, like people actually going to bookstores to buy books. Which was a really poor segue for a…
SHOWTIME UPDATE
I haven’t wanted to send out an update because, well, I don’t have much in the way of big updates to share. But I figured I should pop in just to let you know that I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth.
Anyway, I checked in with Avalon, my copyeditor, this week and unfortunately Inkshares is still seeing some lags in the development processes of their books (thanks, COVID), causing their schedules to be set back by a couple months.
I don’t want to share any potential dates for copyediting or release since that would only be disappointing if we’re not able to meet those dates. But when we have something firmly set in stone, I will let you all know. However, Avalon assured me that Inkshares isn’t rushing any part of the process, and she’s excited about getting to work on Showtime.
In a bit of good news, Inkshares’s publishing schedule for the coming months looks to be pretty robust (take a look on Amazon) with a good number of delayed books being released. So while it’s not my turn yet, the fact that books from their back catalog are being released is a good sign that things are ramping up again.
CONTEST AND NEW PROJECT
While news on the Showtime front is a bit quiet for now, my writing has not slowed down. The new book is done! It’s the most horror-centric thing I’ve written and is called Monsters. And no, it’s not about people who refuse to wear masks during a pandemic.
Inkshares is running a new contest, and I’ve entered Monsters.
Instead of pre-orders, Inkshares is choosing contest winners based on which books are nominated using the NOMINATION button that you’ll find on each individual book’s page.
Per the contest: “...we want to know what book projects have piqued your interest most. Which stories are the most compelling, and whose writing is the strongest?”
I’m not opening up the Monsters page for pre-orders (I cannot in good faith ask you to pre-order a new book when my previous one has not been published yet), but I am asking for something else. I’ve posted the first three chapters of Monsters and if you like what you read, please consider clicking the FOLLOW button, leaving a quick review, and, most importantly, clicking the NOMINATE button near the top of the page. It’s a short and sweet form that basically asks you why you like what you read and feel like it’s worthy for publication.
While potential publication for Monsters would be farther out, securing a slot in the Inkshares publication queue would give it a head start, effectively cutting out the long, grueling process of another pre-order campaign.
The nomination process will close on May 1st (with winners selected the month after), and here’s the page for Monsters: CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE.
ALL ABOARD THE DIABEETUS EXPRESS
As a fun side project, I started doing homemade sugar cookies with commissioned designs. If you have a need for custom sugar cookies in your life, let me know at rruszin17@aol.com.
AND NOW FOR THE COMEDY PORTION OF THE SHOW…
Q: What do you say to console an English major?
A: There, their, they’re
Thanks again for your support and patience, and I’m excited to share more news with you all when I have it!
Ricky
Hey everyone,
I hope your summer is going well and that you’re able to take some time to relax, eat some good food, and read some good books. I finished Stephen King’s If It Bleeds and am now about halfway through Michael Crichton’s The Lost World. So far, it’s even better than Jurassic Park.
I just wanted to drop in to say that Adam has finished reading Showtime and is pleased with the amount of developmental revisions that I’ve done with Sarah. Because of this, I’m thrilled to say we’re finished with macro-level editing (plot, character development, pacing, etc.) and moving on to the next stage of production: line and copy edits!
“More editing?” you might say. “What’s the difference between line and copy editing? Isn’t all editing the same?”
I’m glad you asked, because no, it’s not!
Line editing involves combing through the manuscript at the sentence level, focusing on the use of language—Is it clear? Is it easy to read? Does your diction convey what you originally meant? Good stuff like that to hone and polish the prose.
Copy editing, on the other hand, covers the mechanics of writing like spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
I’m not sure when I’ll have a new line edited draft to look through (I’ll send out another update when I do), but I’m optimistic that these next two stages will take less time than the previous rounds of developmental edits since we’re funneling down into the smaller pieces of editing now.
Showtime’s release date (like all Inkshares books in production right now) is still uncertain, but we’re looking at fall of 2021, which is pretty much what I expected when Showtime was greenlit for publication last summer. Regardless of the publisher, it takes around two years for a book to get from manuscript to finish product. Fall of 2021 puts it around that mark. If it weren’t for COVID, it would undoubtedly be released into the wild earlier. Oh well, that just gives us time to cast the movie. Any takers? ;)
Thanks again for your support, and enjoy your afternoon!
Ricky
Hey everyone,
It’s been a minute since my last update so I hope you all are well and getting in some good reading time as we head into summer. I’m finishing up Suzanne Collins’s The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (a Hunger Games prequel that is way better and more engrossing than I was expecting) before moving on to John Grisham’s Camino Winds. With everything closed, what else can you do but read (and eat)? But there are worse things to spend time on, right?
I wanted to drop in and say that I had a great phone conversation with Adam (Inkshares CEO) this week. Despite the brutal beating that COVID is putting on indie authors, bookstores, and the publishing industry in general, Inkshares remains in good shape, which means that Showtime will continue to remain in development until its eventual publication.
“But when?” you’re no doubt saying, crossing your arms as you furrow your brow and twist your lips into a pout. “I ordered that book months ago!”
Okay, okay. Cool it, Patrice. You know your blood pressure gets high when you get excited. Let’s chat.
Up until now I’ve worked with Sarah on the developmental edits stage. Now, after two rounds of feedback and drafts, Showtime will be turned over to Adam to read the most recent draft. (For all you kids keeping count at home, this is the 3rd.) He’s got a couple manuscripts in the queue ahead of mine, but his goal is to get back to me with notes and feedback in 4-6 weeks. You can wait that long until another update, right? By then you’ll have prepared for the beginning of summer, eaten your Fourth of July hotdogs, and wished me a Happy Birthday (June 17th *cough, cough*).
A big source of my concern has been Showtime’s word count. Since Inkshares greenlit Showtime for publication, it ballooned from 109,000 to 127,000 before settling down to a more reasonable 118,000. It’s not a ridiculously high number for a suspense/thriller, but the general publishing world guideline is around 100-110k. The cause of the growing word count came from deepening the layers of my characters, so you can imagine my relief when Adam assuaged my concern by saying that he’s not worried about word count if the character work necessitates it. After all, if you care about a character and become invested in their story, you’re going to want to spend as much time with them as possible. Adam seemed to share my belief that characters dictate the word count, not the other way around.
So that’s where we stand with Showtime for now.
In related writing news (when do I have any other kind?), I recently finished the second draft of my third book, Monsters, which is currently in the hands of nine of the best beta readers in town. It’s lean, mean, and hopefully will scar a few people for life. With any luck, you’ll be seeing it in the future as well.
Thanks again for your continued support. I’ll be back with a new update when I have more news to share.
Ricky
Hey everyone,
I ate the cookies.
I finished the Doritos.
I am running low on chocolate.
How is it possible that two weeks of quarantine snacks only lasted a few days?
While you ponder that, I wanted to drop in with a quick note to let you all know that I recently completed and turned in re-writes for the most recent draft of Showtime. With everything (including my job) shut down due to Coronavirus concerns, I’ve been able to devote all the time I would’ve been spending at work on doing re-writes. Between having two solid weeks to work on it, as well as having less to do with it in general this time around, this draft took about half the time as the last one.
From here I’ll wait for Sarah to get back to me with another editorial letter and we’ll see what else—if anything—we need to work on to make sure the characters, plot, and the book in general is as perfect as possible when it plops out of the sky and into your gloved, sanitized hands (you know, since we’re social distancing).
Thanks again for your patience, support, and enthusiasm. Stock up on snacks and wash your hands!
Ricky
Hey everyone,
I fully expect all of you to be reading this from your throne of toilet paper and canned goods, scrolling through this update with fingers slick with Purell.
While the world is losing its mind, I wanted to share that I recently received Round 2 of editorial feedback much quicker than expected. In short, things are moving in the right direction! It seems that Sarah, my editor, was overall pleased with the new draft. Her annotated copy of this draft had 196 margin notes, feedback, and comments, while the first one had 545. It’s a decrease that I’m incredibly pleased with. It means that while there is still work to be done, there’s considerably less of it.
Some of the “big picture” things I’ll be working on in this next draft are further strengthening characters and the relationships between them, as well as strengthening the dramatic tension in the novel’s climax (since more excitement is never a bad thing). Some of the smaller, easier stuff this time around includes fixing logical and continuity errors, eliminating run-on sentences, fixing confusing/”odd” sentences and phrasing, and improving the pace by removing repetitive narration and unnecessary scenes.
My work announced that it’ll be closed for the next two weeks, so receiving this most recent round of editorial feedback couldn’t have been timed more perfectly, as I’ll have a nice chunk of time to work on (and maybe even finish) the new draft. The last one took about a month to complete, so I’m anticipating to finish this one a little earlier. When it’s done and submitted, I’ll be sure to let you know. Hopefully the world will still be standing by then—you know, no rivers of blood or swarms of locusts like the media seems to think is on the horizon. Until then, try not to lick any doorknobs.
Thanks again for your continued support!
Ricky
Hi everyone,
I’m happy to say that, as of last night, Showtime re-writes have been completed and sent back to my editor for review. From there she’ll let me know her thoughts and we’ll see if anything else needs additional work. I’m anticipating another round, but this current revision (aside from actually writing and successfully crowdfunding the book) is undoubtedly the biggest hoop to jump through before getting Showtime to publication and finally into your hands. Even if there’s additionally work to be done, I doubt it’ll be as much as this round.
With this revision, I ended up adding about 17,000 additional words to the manuscript—meatier descriptions, more dialogue, enhanced backstory and character relationships, among others—for a total of 126,000 words and roughly 490 pages. I anticipate a little being cut, but overall I’m pretty excited with the changes and really think the book is even better than before.
The next step is getting some feedback from my editor about the new draft (hopefully within the next couple months) and we’ll take it from there. I’ll be sure to send out new information when I have it, but for now, thanks again for your continued support and enthusiasm!
Ricky
Hey, everyone—and Happy New Year! I hope everyone’s 2020 is off to a good start.
I’m very excited to say that the first draft of Book #3 is now officially finished. That’s exciting by itself for a number of reasons, one of them being that I can now devote 100% of my writing time to applying Showtime edits. My plan (you know what they say, if you want to make God laugh tell him your plans) is to have them completed and turned in to my editor by the end of February/beginning of March. After that, she’ll let me know whether we’re good to go or need to tweak anything else—or throw the whole thing into the fire to roast marshmallows. If we’re good, then it’s off to the races and things’ll be moving along more speedily—the fun stuff like cover design, marketing, advance reviews, etc.
It is my hope (fingers and toes crossed) that you all will have your copies of Showtime in your hands this year, sometime in 2020. It would be cool if the release date happened to coincide with summer reality TV since Showtime shares such a link with some of the shows that fill our screens in the summer months, but it’s just a thought, not a guarantee.
Just wanted to drop in and let everyone know that things are looking good and will be moving along a bit more speedily now. And, hey! If you made new friends at your holiday parties this year, it’s never too late to persuade them to buy a copy. ;)
Thanks again for your patience and support,
Ricky
Hey, everyone!
I’m happy to be able to share that I recently received editorial notes on the manuscript for Showtime so we can officially check off that box on the Long List of Things to Do Before Publication. Now it’s a matter of deciding what changes, additions, deletions, and edits to make before it goes back to the editor. I’m currently in the home-stretch of writing Book #3, so I may end up finishing it to keep the momentum going, then start working on Showtime re-writes. Publication is a long process no matter the publisher, so thanks again for your patience. Showtime is officially one step closer to being in your hands, and I’m looking forward to finally being able to share the full, finished product with everyone!
Ricky
Hi everyone,
Just wanted to pop in with a reminder that time is almost up to vote for Monsters in Inkshares’s new contest.
I posted the first three chapters and if you like what you read, you can click the NOMINATE button near the top of the page (after logging in with your Inkshares or Facebook info.). It will ask you why you like what you read and feel it’s worthy for publication. Pre-orders are NOT a factor.
The contest ends on May 1st and here’s the page for Monsters: CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE.
I’ll check back in after the contest hopefully with some good news and—fingers crossed—a publication date for Showtime.
Thanks, as always, for your support,
Ricky