Ray's Back!

The process of publishing Detective Ray Schiller's newest case has been almost as harrowing as the case itself, but he's back! The stakes are high and they're getting still higher. In Shadow Tag, Ray's out to finish what he started, if it doesn't finish him first. 

I'm not sure if he got that characteristic from me, or if I got that from him, but doggone if I haven't felt the same way while trying to get Shadow Tag published. And, frankly, I'm not quite done yet. It's available in e-book format right now, but I'm still waiting to get the "print" file from my formatter.

With this novel, my first mistake, if you want to call it that, was deciding to use a few lines of song lyrics in the book, which I mentioned in another post. Since then I've learned that the fee for using the lyrics only covers "X" number of copies whether they're sold or downloaded for free. Beyond that number of "sales", the use of the lyrics must be re-licensed. Holy cow, Batman! Oh, well. But I offer that tidbit of information as a heads-up to other writers.

The licensing process itself, however, took me beyond my self-imposed Winter publication deadline.Okay, shooting for Spring didn't seem too bad, but then my computer went on the offensive, and my well-documented technophobia (a.k.a techno-ignorance) saw another season slip right through my fingers like a greased banana. Then...a virtual miracle--to me, anyway. I'll bet I'm the last person to know this, but someone else can actually fix your computer problems, and even download your files and "what-have-you" by remote control. And, almost by accident, I found one of those computer wizards. Thank you, God! (I'm not swearing; that's a genuine prayer of gratitude.) 

                 Book 1                           

                       Book 2

On another happy note, the actual downloading of this novel went more smoothly this time around than last. It gives me hope that the whole process will get easier with each new project. (Shhh. Don't rock my boat.)                   

So, now...with renewed faith in the universe and my place in it as a high-technology failure, I'm holding my head high, shoulders back, and working with enthusiasm on Ray Schiller's next case while I wait awhile longer on my final formatting file so I can publish the print version of Shadow Tag. I guess Ray can use a brief rest, because his next case promises to be the most difficult and personally trying of all.

If you have comments about your own experiences with publication, etc., I'd love to hear them. Please feel free to share. Maybe sharing stories will serve as sort of a mini support group. And, honestly, what Indie author can't benefit from that?

All the best, and take care!
Marjorie