As you may or may not have noticed, I haven't posted anything in a while. A lot has happened recently - moving houses being the main one, which is always a bigger task than one anticipates. But I have also been busily tying up the loose ends of the book that I've been working on. Everything from the final steps of editing the manuscript, the cover design (which I did myself), to understanding and navigating the various platforms on which to submit my work. But I can finally say that I'm done. I have published my first novel!
This book has been a long time in the making, but I have managed to get all the moving parts together and into what I can finally call a 'book'.
I'm excited about the release for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the removal of that nagging feeling at the back of my mind. You know when you have something that you know you need to do, and you haven't quite finished it, and it always seems to come to mind when you are lying down in bed trying to sleep? Well, this book was sort of like that. It really is a relief to have finally finished it. I am not one to juggle many open things at the same time, such that my time is stretched so thin that I can't do any of them well. I much prefer to have a select few things that I commit myself wholly to, ensuring that I do them to the best of my ability. So having this project so close to being finished, but remaining open for so long, has been been quite contrary to my nature, and so it is a burden off my shoulders to now be done with it.
Secondly, I can now move onto writing book two, which I am very excited about! The editing process is a necessary part of writing, but it is quite cumbersome. Nothing quite compares to the thrill of the writing process, where creativity and storytelling take center stage, and the true skill of a writer can shine. Having gone through the full editing process for book one, I believe that the editing process for subsequent books should be far easier (I hope).
Finally, I am eager to get feedback on the book from people that have no reason to hold back their critiques. Things always seem better in your own head than they probably are, so I am curious to see what others think of my work. There have been a select few who have read the drafts and provided feedback, so I have some idea of the quality of my work, but there is no judge quite like the avid reader who has no reason to hold back criticism, constructive or otherwise. I must say I am a bit anxious about this particular part of the process, but I am also excited to see where it goes.
Overall, the experience of writing this book has been a positive one, albeit longer than I originally anticipated. I'd like to think that the book has something of my personality in it—insights into my thinking and what makes me tick. In reading it, you will get to know me a bit more, I hope. I really enjoyed writing it, and I hope you enjoy reading it at least in the same measure.
Click here to purchase a copy of The Assassin's Hand.
Matthew Norman
So excited to read it!