After months of hard work, I have finally published the ebook version of my novel, Melody for Lizzie. So I'm inviting you all to raise a virtual glass of champagne to toast my new venture.
The original book had been written on my old computer that only used five-inch floppy disks. Those were the days! In 1995 I felt quite up-to-date when the publisher asked me to send the floppy disks to use for publication of the book. That was before I had experienced Windows computers and the Internet!
So over the past year, in between other writing projects, I have learned how to scan, save and edit my novel so that I have a copy in Word. After Christmas it was still languishing, the last few chapters unfinished. So I took myself in hand, and promised that I would have it online by the first meeting of the northern chapter of the Romantic Novelists' Association at the beginning of March.
After a few tweaks to the text (including the removal of the word 'smog', as I have since learned that it wouldn't have been used in the Edwardian era), I proof-read the novel several times. With only a few minor glitches I managed to convert the novel for publication. Then I had the task of finding a suitable image for the cover. It took hours and hours of scouring royalty-free photographs online, until I finally settled on the stage with the roses, as I felt that it kept the spirit of the original cover illustration. I also wanted to keep the colour theme the same.
At our RNA meeting last week, I asked the other writers for some feedback on the cover design. Some of them gave me tips on how I could improve it. I spent much of the weekend trawling through photos again, and finally chose an image for Lizzie herself to add to the design. After three hours of editing, the new cover was finally finished, and ready to upload to Amazon and Smashwords.
Today I finished my author website at www.evelynorange.co.uk, and started my new blog. I hope you'll visit from time to time to share my news and views.
So now it's time to celebrate and raise a glass!
The original book had been written on my old computer that only used five-inch floppy disks. Those were the days! In 1995 I felt quite up-to-date when the publisher asked me to send the floppy disks to use for publication of the book. That was before I had experienced Windows computers and the Internet!
So over the past year, in between other writing projects, I have learned how to scan, save and edit my novel so that I have a copy in Word. After Christmas it was still languishing, the last few chapters unfinished. So I took myself in hand, and promised that I would have it online by the first meeting of the northern chapter of the Romantic Novelists' Association at the beginning of March.
After a few tweaks to the text (including the removal of the word 'smog', as I have since learned that it wouldn't have been used in the Edwardian era), I proof-read the novel several times. With only a few minor glitches I managed to convert the novel for publication. Then I had the task of finding a suitable image for the cover. It took hours and hours of scouring royalty-free photographs online, until I finally settled on the stage with the roses, as I felt that it kept the spirit of the original cover illustration. I also wanted to keep the colour theme the same.
At our RNA meeting last week, I asked the other writers for some feedback on the cover design. Some of them gave me tips on how I could improve it. I spent much of the weekend trawling through photos again, and finally chose an image for Lizzie herself to add to the design. After three hours of editing, the new cover was finally finished, and ready to upload to Amazon and Smashwords.
Today I finished my author website at www.evelynorange.co.uk, and started my new blog. I hope you'll visit from time to time to share my news and views.
So now it's time to celebrate and raise a glass!
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