Greetings from my terrace in Sydney!
During winter, I spend quite a bit of time in Sydney to escape the much harsher weather in the Blue Mountains. In fact, Sydney has experienced a particularly mild and dry July with very pleasant winter weather. This is always an excellent time to enjoy the spectacular harbour. My favourite time is just before sunset as the lights come on, illuminating the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge and bringing the city skyline to life.
Here, let me show you:
This has been a particularly busy time for me and my publishing team because we are preparing the next book for publication later this year.
As you know, this will be book 5 in the Jack Rogan Mysteries series. Because so many of you have written to me asking when the next book will be released, I have decided to change the format of this newsletter and tell you a little about what is involved in getting a book ready for publication. I am sure you will find this segment which I will call the ‘Journey of the Book’ interesting, as it will show you just how much planning and effort goes into all this ‘behind the scenes’ which you, as the reader, would normally not see or be aware of.
Journey of the Book
Essentially, the starting point of the journey to publication is the day you put down your pen, sit back and take a deep breath because you have finished writing the book. Enjoy the moment, because it won’t last long. This is the culmination of a huge amount of hard work, because writing a book like one of mine which are all ‘big reads’ – usually around 500 pages plus, with multi-layered storylines and complex characters – is a demanding and time-consuming task. As I do all my own research which usually involves a lot of travel, this adds further demands not only on my time, but requires careful planning. I have always made it a priority to visit key places mentioned in my books, as authenticity is one of the fundamental elements that shine through in my writing, and are enjoyed by my readers.
Once the manuscript is finished, it goes to my editor.
Editing a book is also a complex and time-consuming task that requires close collaboration between author and editor and usually takes several weeks. As every word on every page is my own, suggestions and recommendations made by the editor require careful consideration, as any changes to the manuscript – even changing say, one word and replacing it with another – are made by me and no one else. I believe that the integrity of the manuscript demands this, as any kind of delegation of this task is, in my view, unacceptable and would have a detrimental impact on my work. What does all this mean? More work of course!
Proofreading is another critically important task that requires an expert.
There is nothing more annoying to readers than finding silly mistakes in the text. I am very mindful of this and do my utmost to make sure that every reasonable step is taken to avoid pesky errors (typos, punctuation, layout glitches and the like) before the book is released for publication. As a writer, I am well aware that I stand or fall by the quality of my work. For that reason, I try to control the quality of what I publish from beginning to end. For that reason, I have set up my own publishing company – Bear & King Publishing – and employ my own publishing team, all of them freelance. To assemble such a team has taken several years, as each member is an expert. Take proofreading for example. As the author, it is virtually impossible to make sure that there are no little mistakes in the text, irrespective of how good and careful and meticulous you are in spelling, grammar, punctuation and so on. Why? Because you are too close to the text and just cannot see everything in the required way. That’s where the proof-reader comes in because she (in my case) does. Why? Because she looks at the text with fresh eyes and is not as close to it as I am.
Proofreading will commence as soon as the edit has been completed and signed off. I expect this to happen quite soon. In the meantime, I am addressing another critical task: designing the all important book cover.
I find that while writing the book – often quite early on – ideas about a suitable cover begin to take shape in my mind. I develop these ideas as the manuscript progresses and then convey them to my cover designer, often with illustrations and photographs. Designing a book cover that works is an art and requires years of experience. I therefore employ an expert in the field who can take my ideas and suggestions and turn them into a concept that works and conveys the ideas and messages I have in mind for the book. In this case, the cover design is already well underway and the cover, together with the title, will be revealed during the upcoming launch campaign. Curious? I hope so!
The book launch campaign is another fascinating and critically important aspect of releasing a book, and can make the difference between a roaring success, or dismal failure. To make sure we have a successful launch with lots of presales and book reviews, I have a talented and experienced publishing & marketing consultant handle this for me. Believe me, these days with social media and so on, this task is so complex and has so many demanding parts to it that it is virtually impossible for an author to handle this successfully by himself. I would certainly not attempt to do this on my own. As many of you are members of my book launch team and have therefore already participated in one of my launch campaigns, I have decided to address this subject in some detail in my next newsletter as we move closer to the launch date. I am sure you will find a ‘brief glimpse behind the scenes’ interesting and illuminating. It will make the journey of the book – and eventually the book itself – more meaningful and enjoyable.
To those of you who are not yet part of my book launch team, I would like to extend an invitation now, to become one. This is easy to do. Here’s the link to the site and all you have to do is follow the prompts.
https://gabrielfarago.com.au/launch-team/
I have no doubt that you will enjoy being part of the team with all its little surprises and benefits. And judging by the comments I have received from current members, you will have a lot of good fun as well along the way. So please, don’t delay, and sign up! As I mentioned before, the launch campaign will start later this year. But before that happens, there are a few more surprises in store for you!
You will remember that in one of my previous newsletters I told you that I am about to travel to Europe to carry out some research in Russia for a novella connected to the book, and prepare the way for the launch generally. I have done this with all the previous books in the Jack Rogan Mysteries series. For instance, The Disappearance of Anna Popov(book 2 in the series) was first released in Istanbul.
and The Hidden Genes of Professor K (book 3) in Rome.
So, exciting times ahead! Why? Because you are coming with me! How? Please read on.
In the September and October newsletters I will introduce a new segment – Hooked on Travel – which will deal with my travels through Europe, and touch on many interesting and fascinating places like the Hermitage Museum and the magnificent Catherine’s Palace for instance. I will include photographs and stories about the journey I am sure you will find interesting and enjoy. We will start in Amsterdam in early September and then travel to Tallinn in Estonia, followed by St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Oslo, before travelling to Berlin. After that we will travel south to Salzburg and end up in Budapest, Vienna and Munich. I am telling you all this to pique your interest. So, please make sure you don’t miss the next few newsletters because we’ll have a lot of fun together and you will learn a lot more about the journey of the book as we approach its formal release later this year.
It’s now time to share with you once again what one of my readers had to say about my books. For me, this is always one of the highlights, because it makes me see my work through the eyes of my readers, and tells me what my stories mean to them. Here’s what Deborah had to say:
Dear ‘Story Teller’,
I hope I do not offend you by calling you a story teller. I believe in the art of telling stories, and of their importance.
I have enjoyed reading all three of your books, and have recently started Professor K, The Final Quest. Almost instantly your books educate, entertain , and pull you inside the lives of every character.
I find myself dragging my feet reading my new book, because I don’t want the story to end! When this happens to me, and it’s rare, I truly appreciate the talent of the writer.
Have a wonderful day!
Deborah
Thank you for your kind words, Deborah. Comments like this make it all worthwhile! Because writing is such a solitary endeavour, finding out how my work resonates with my readers, is hugely important to a writer like me.
As Reader of the Month, you will receive a signed copy of my latest book. As a matter of fact, yours is already on its way to Indiana!
Finally, my friends, just another little reminder about my FREE Starter Library which can be downloaded right now by visiting my website and following the prompts.
It’s now time to share with you once again what one of my readers had to say about my books. For me, this is always one of the highlights, because it makes me see my work through the eyes of my readers, and tells me what my stories mean to them. Here’s what Deborah had to say:
