Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Editing Week - I Knew It Was Coming

Sometimes you have to take a step backwards to brace yourself for a leap forwards. Right now I'm at a point where I have to remind myself of all the details in Spinward Fringe Broadcast 6: Fragments.

Instead of simply reading the book, I'm taking the opportunity to perform another pass on it, to correct those niggling errors that have been irritating me since the book came out. Broadcast 6 suffered from growing pains, since it was released at a time when how I did things was changing even faster than I thought at the time. A year later it's easy to look back at how my writing and editing processes have taken a step or three forward. Life has changed a great deal around that time for me as well, which was a strain on Broadcast 6's release as well.

Once this pass is finished I'll have a much clearer idea of how the timeline of The Expendable Few applies to Broadcast 6, and it'll be easier to write the next section of Broadcast 7. This edit isn't so much of a chore either, it's more like visiting an old friend. I spent a year writing this book.

When it's complete it'll be uploaded to Smashwords, the retailers on their distribution network (like Barnes and Noble, the iBookstore), and to Amazon. You'll be able to update your copies for free, but beware Amazon users! There is an excellent chance that any notes or highlights you've made to your version of Broadcast 6 will be lost when the update takes place, so find a way to dump those to a file using your PC or other magic computing box.

Well, time to get to work, see you on the other side!

RL

[One more thing... There will be a preview of Broadcast 7 in the new version.]

[If you want the current version for any EReader, it can be found in its many formats here at Smashwords.]

[EDIT: This polish of Broadcast 6 will take longer than a week, and the reappearance of the book on Amazon.com will be further delayed because I am hiring a professional ebook formatting firm to make it ready for its final appearance there.]

21 comments:

Michael Lockridge said...

I am making a final (yeah, right) pass in editing my three completed novels in my fantasy adventure series. It sure is a learning process. Got volumes one and two uploaded to Barnes and Noble. Three goes up tomorrow.

Your work has been fun to read, and your adventure in publishing instructional. Next on my lesson list is promotion. Again, your example will prove quite valuable.

Thanks for everything!

Bruce said...

you know i read Broadcast 0 through 6 last year in less then two weeks, man i am dying here, been looking forward to this for a while

Starmile said...

Why can't I find Broadcast 6 on Amazon? A Google search shows it used to be offered there, but the page now leads to a 404 error.

Randolph Lalonde said...

Starmile: Broadcast 6 will be back up on Amazon in a few weeks. Until then you can get your hands on a Kindle (or any other version) of the book at Smashwords for the same price here:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/19286

Thanks for bringing this up, I hope you enjoy the book!

Michael Lockridge: Congratulations on finishing three novels, most people never get to the end of one! Good luck with the launch of the third, I'm glad you've enjoyed my work.

Bruce: I'm dying to get Broadcast 7 and the Expendable Few out there too. Editing other work will slow things down, but it won't stop me from working on new stuff every day. You know what they say: "A thousand words a day keeps the angry mob at bay!"

Thanks for turning up and enjoying the books,

RL

Starmile said...

A little frustrating to have to open an account at a new store but I'll survive. It's better than waiting several weeks for it to come back online at Amazon.

Jason

Eibwolf said...

I just finished Broadcast 5 on my lunch break at work and I directly got on Amazon and noticed 6 was gone. I'm going to try and hold off until that final edit is up on Amazon to read it though.

I love this series of books, keep up the good work!

Jim Ortner said...

I just finished Broadcast 6 a little over a week ago. I'm having withdrawal symptoms waiting for Broadcast 7!

This is an excellent series of books and I'm totally hooked.

Anonymous said...

I must agree with everyone here; your stories are addicting I couldn't put my e-reader down for two weeks...good thing I work night shift. I'm currently "trying" to write my own book; I'm learning it's something you can't rush and exceptional stories take time and dedication. You have undoubtedly devoted yourself to each and every book. Your creative work has re-awakened that creative center that all writes strive to keep alive and I thank you. Please keep up the good work and I'm quite sure that no other book I choose to occupy my time with while I wait for your next one will be good enough.

Anonymous said...

Aaaahhh I thought 7 would be out already! Going to have to slow down on reading 6...We're also going to need a Guide to Spinward Fringe eventually too! middle earth style....Please!

Thank you so much for a great read, do keep them coming.

PS I think I'm a little in love with Jake.

Anonymous said...

Any update on the status of the amazon.com re-release of Fragments? I need my fix man!

david said...

I'm about to start broadcast 5. I think I'll be lost if broadcast 6 isn't up on the amazon store by the time I finish it...

A.M. said...

Is there an ETA on the reviewed edition for Broadcast 6? I just finished 5, and would rather read the edited version if it's coming out soon.

I don't know if I'll be able to hold off the addiction though.

Randolph Lalonde said...

The editing is going fairly smoothly, but it's still going to be a while longer. We're also sending the file out to a formatting house which will take an extra week before release.

We're looking at 2-4 weeks, and I'm trying to get this done as fast as possible, especially since I know what it's like to wait for serialized fiction first hand.

RL

A.M. said...

Ok, one month.... I can do it :-)
Thank you for the quick answer and thank you for the whole series, it has got me hooked since the first page!

Charles said...

Ahhh!

So, I routinely surf through the free e books on amazon looking for something to hold my attention, and came across the Orgins trilogy last week. One trilogy and 5 broadcasts later, I've managed to chew down all my finger nails, and feel like an addict looking for his next fix! I LOVE this series. Cant wait for the finalized Broadcast 6 to come out on amazon.

Good work Randy! Keep em coming!

ays0s said...

Hi. I know #6 is on smashwords. But please please find a uk seller aswel if amazon is not gonna be used for the time being.


p.s

loving the series

Randolph Lalonde said...

I have many readers who purchase the books on Smashwords who live in the UK. I've never heard of anyone having difficulty from any country.

Maybe you should contact Smashwords support?

Anonymous said...

Hi I have read eagerly through all of the Spinward fringe books and like some of your other readers find book 6 missing from Amazon. I'd prefer to wait for the final version to pop up there before continuing, but just want to make sure it is going to get to Amazon at some point, or am I better trying smashwords. (I am in Australia and find I do sometimes have trouble with some ebook sites)

Randolph Lalonde said...

The new version of Broadcast 6 will be up sometime in late November, early December.

When it is uploaded everyone who has already bought it will either be able to download it for feee (Smashwords), or it will be updated on their device (Amazon).

You won't run into trouble downloading from Smashwords if you're in Austrailia though.

In fact, no one on earth should have difficulty downloading from Smashwords. It's one of the perks of placing a book there.

RL

David said...

Hey Randolph.

Just finished book 5. Wanted to let you know I've enjoyed the series quite a bit over the last couple of months. Looking forward to book 6 when it releases. Good work!

Anonymous said...

Steve says: #6 has really brought out the essence of the characters and looking back to the prior books, the characters actions made more sense knowing a little more about what makes them tick.

Great reverse strategy at the end of #6. Sole Defense to the rescue!