"So When Is This New Book Coming Out?"

Okay...so I lied. The new book didn't come out in late spring like I promised, it didn't come out in early summer, or even mid summer!  And the way things look, late summer is looking pretty frickin' shaky as well. Let's face it, I have no idea when this thing is going to see the light of day!!

Well that's not exactly true. I was informed by my wonderful compositor Michel Newkirk that it was indeed either going to or is at a printer somewhere in the U.S.A. That much I know is true. So I will sit and wait with the rest of the world until that fateful day when my twelve author copies (as stipulated in my contract mind you!) arrive on my doorstep. Michel has been a wonder through this whole project, my lifeline to the status of my book. She has supplied me with countless e-mails that have led me through the entire lay-out process for the book, for that I am forever grateful!

The proofs she sent me were amazing! I'm really excited to see this thing become real and not just a PDF file on my computer. My only hope is that the printer is able to do justice to the full, deep color of the original artwork, something I was not totally over joyed with on my last book entitled "Still (A Winter's Journey)". "Still" looked okay...sort of like old sepia tone photographs. But when I realized how much of the varied blues tones didn't come through in the final printing, I was a little heart broken.

But I've come to realize, unfortunately, that sometimes things don't work out they way you would like them to. 
I wish my first book entitled "I Hear the Wind" would have been released in hardcover as originally planned. Even my publisher has agreed to that fact, he now admits that not releasing that book in hardcover was a mistake. 
I wish that at least one of my books would have been included in the Library of Congress catalog, all the other books released by Stemmer House at the same time were, but not mine. 
I wish my publisher would be a little more motivated on my newest book. They haven't even submitted an image to Amazon yet for the books page, and the book description from the publisher states... "Reflections on the passing of summer's day."  REALLY?!! That's the best you could come up with?!! I was extremely underwhelmed with that lack of effort. They even had the title of the book listed wrong...it's called "AT the End of the Day" not "The End of the Day".
I wish my books could have had more national exposure and been sent to Publisher's Weekly or Booklist for review. I am eternally grateful to the smaller yet just as important book review sites that have reviewed my books, but getting a starred review from Booklist can have libraries all over the country buying your books.

I'm sorry for coming off as a bit of a sour puss on this subject, I guess I've dealt with and accepted these realities over the last five years, I should keep listening to those inner voices that tell me..."You should consider yourself lucky and be grateful for all the success you've had... at least you've been able to get published!!!!" But sometimes isn't it nice to maybe, just maybe, get what you really want instead of settling with what you're given? Maybe on the next book...

So when is the new book coming out? Hopefully soon...I'll try to keep you posted!!!  

Take care
Greg