Sometimes Less Really is More, by Mike Sova

Hello, MB4 fans and friends.

We've all learned hard lessons along the way when writing our first novels, haven't we? It's just part of the rights of passage, I think. Some learn to make their dialog more natural or to avoid "forbidden words." Others learn about grammar or the "newly accepted" etiquettes, such as using only one space between sentences, instead of the two spaces we were taught to use in high school.

There's so much to learn!

Today, Mike Sova shares his insights into the benefit of writing books that fit the printing industry's standards, so his fans will be able to afford his book. I think it makes a lot of sense, especially since all my books are regularly less than 100K words, and they still cost about sixteen dollars each!

Thanks for stopping by today and have a great weekend.

Aaron Lazar

www.lazarbooks.com

Sometimes Less Really is More

copyright 2014, Mike Sova

 Do you hear that? It sounds like the shriek of grinding metal mixed with the sorrowful wails of countless tormented souls. No, Cash Douglas didn't hit the wall again. It's just me. Before I go any further, I should point out that Cash Douglas is the hero of A SHOT AT REDEMPTION, my debut suspense novel. He's a racecar driver, and what looks like a once in a lifetime opportunity turns into what Lemony Snicket would call “a series of unfortunate events.” They range from cryptic warning messages, to sabotage, to attempted murder. When I finally completed the manuscript nearly a year ago, I truly believed I'd dotted my last i and crossed my last t. After all, the book is already published and available right now in Amazon's Kindle Store. I haven't sold a ton of copies yet, but the reviews and feedback I've received have all been extremely positive. That's wonderful and I really do appreciate the kind words. By the way, I encourage you all to get in the habit of writing reviews or at least rating the books you read and enjoy. It makes a huge difference, maybe not to the Stephen King types, but certainly to the authors a bit lower on the literary ladder. There are a lot of us and we need all the help we can get (insert sincerity emoticon here).

 So back to my manuscript. It's under construction once again. I am endeavoring to delete, cut, slash, incise, chop, trim, sever, or otherwise remove a minimum of 20,000 words. Why, you might ask, would I do such a thing? Simple. The one question I'm asked more than any other is when will your book be out in print? I don't have an answer to that yet. What I do know is that print costs are staggering. I wrote a suspense novel. The average length of a book in that genre is around 120,000 words. Mine topped out north of 207,000. The longer it is, the more it costs to print. And for a totally unknown commodity like by Michael Sova, that's a double-edged sword.

With certain authors, I'll say Ken Follett this time, it may take 100,000 words just to get warmed up. His publishers don't blink an eye because they know anything he writes will sell. He backs that up by cranking out one great book after another. In economic terms, that's called low risk--high reward. It's an entirely different scenario for a new author with a debut novel a good bit longer than the industry standard. Once you enter the realm of high risk--low reward, publishing contracts are a lot harder to come by. In a nutshell, my hefty manuscript wasn't doing me any favors.

 As Billy Joel sang in The Entertainer way back when, "If you're gonna have a hit you gotta make it fit so they cut it down to :3.05." That doesn't just apply to popular music. At first, I didn't worry much about word count because I planned on pursuing one of the many print on demand options. In other words, I was releasing a bootleg. I really didn't see the need for an agent or what's now called a "traditional" publisher. I assumed I could to it on my own and please don't confuse me with the facts. Can you say rude awakening? I checked out a few different POD companies. Based on the length of my book, I was looking at print costs ranging from about $9.00 to, and this one totally floored me, $34.00. That's cost only, and doesn't take into consideration things like, shipping, handling, or something called profit. If I have to charge upwards of $34.00 just to break even, what's my price point if I actually want to make any money? I may as well charge a thousand bucks a copy because no one's going to shell out that much for a paperback anyway. If print on demand is what I end up doing, and it is still a possibility, a shorter book will be better for me and likewise better for my readers. And so, the revisions continue.

 A SHOT AT REDEMPTION is sort of a niche book because the main character is a short track racecar driver. You don't see much of that in mainstream fiction. Actually, I've never seen it at all. Because of that, and because the manuscript took so long to finish, I didn't spend much time trying to find a literary agent. I decided on my own that it would be a tough sell, so rather than sending out hundreds of queries and then waiting around to be told what I thought I already knew, I went straight to self publishing. I know now that I was a bit too hasty. I recently had the opportunity to interview Campbell Award winning urban fantasy author Mur Lafferty and I asked her about the biggest mistake she sees new authors make. She said, They ignore “the man” and run straight to self pub when their writing isn’t accepted immediately. There’s a fine line between self publishing something of quality because a publisher can’t find a home for it, or you have a readership you know you can reach, and rage-publishing your first novel after you get a rejection that hurts your feelings. The process of dealing with “the gatekeepers” does more than hurt your feelings, it makes you a better writer because it often points out things that are wrong with your writing.

 For the record, my decision to self publish was not based on rejection. I didn't even give rejection a chance. Yes, I have an audience I know I can reach. I also believe in my heart that my book would be enjoyable to any fan of the suspense genre. I was selling myself and my readers short by not at least trying to get a publishing contract. I'm thankful to Mur for opening my eyes. Once I find that publisher and the book is finally in print, Mur Lafferty will be near the top of my acknowledgements page. In the meantime, I'm sending out query letters every day. I'm working on the manuscript as well. I've trimmed roughly 8,000 words so far. I still have a long way to go but I know it will be worth it in the end.

Note: The previous post was written about two months ago. Since then, I revised the A SHOT AT REDEMPTION manuscript and cut better than 40,000 words. It was hard. I believe the gang on the Writing Excuses podcast refers to that type of editing as "killing our babies." That's sometimes how it feels. I had to scrap heap some passages I truly loved. However, even as my trembling finger inched toward the delete key, I knew I was making my book stronger. Yes, I began the endeavor merely in an attempt to cut costs. Mission accomplished, with a bonus. The book is better than I thought I could make it, and isn't that really what this is all about?  

***

About the Author:

Michael Sova is a blogger, book reviewer, and author of the new suspense novel A Shot at Redemption. While earning his BFA at the State University of New York at Oswego, he spent time in print and television journalism related to auto racing. That led to a career in radio where he worked as a promotions director, music director and DJ. Michael now concentrates on his writing craft. He enjoys reading, red meat and cold beer. He's also an avid sports fan, and spends much of his time from September through December lamenting the deplorable state of the Minnesota Vikings. Michael lives in New York with his wife and two children. Visit him at http://www.michaelsova.com. 

About A Shot at Redemption:

In racing circles, Cash Douglas would be referred to as a helmet carrier. He has made a career of jumping from car to car and track to track, always following the big paydays and never worrying about whose toes he might be stepping on in the process. He has his reasons. When Cash and his wife find themselves facing a personal crisis and an ever-growing stack of medical bills, he relies on his unique skill as a race car driver to make money the best way he knows how. He’s able to provide for his family but his reputation suffers.

About the time his situation begins to improve, Cash receives what he believes is a once-in-a-lifetime offer to drive for RaceTech, a brand new supermodified race team. Frank McKinnel, the eccentric owner of RaceTech, has plans to franchise his custom race parts business. He wants publicity and knows hiring a black sheep like Cash Douglas is a sure way to get people talking. His decision angers at least one person as well.

A suspicious practice day crash is the first of many misfortunes. Broken windows lead to slashed tires, mysterious warning messages, assault and attempted murder. Someone is out to get Cash, or RaceTech, or both. The big question is why? Frank McKinnel appears to be the only one with a clear motive. He has a knack for turning publicity into profit, but would he trash his own cars and risk the life of his driver just to sell a few more franchises? Cash has to find out before it’s too late.
Read or listen to excerpts from the book at http://michaelsova.com/my-work/about-the-book/