May your news be good news

It's been a fairly long wait but I just received some pleasing news from Lulu.com. It seems the issue that has held up my book What Lies Beneath is on the cusp of being resolved. Here's an extract from an email I received earlier this evening:

We do have some good news in the works; the paper issue will be resolved within weeks, possibly less, and we should then see these future orders on our normal standard of printing. This would also fix the misalignment issues of the spine, as the paper would not be so thin, which is what is causing the spine misalignment.

Why does this fill me with the happiness of one hundred warm puppies? Because I'm a virgoan and I like to finish stuff. I like full stops. I like to rub my little hands together and say, 'That's done!' Closure is as important to me as it is to a bear trap.

This correspondence means I can now (now as in soon) say to friends, family and that odd fellow who talks to me at the train station on Wednesdays: 'Oh yeah - the book's on sale now. Just head over to Lulu.com and buy yourself a copy.'

It's a good night to be me.

Ten Tips for Reading 'What Lies Beneath'

On the eve of my first book going public, I thought I'd put out a top ten list to accompany its release. What lies below is a list of tips that may help you in your trek across the pages of What Lies Beneath.

1. Make a mental note of anything that seems significant. If it seems important, it probably is.
2. Don't expect all loose threads to be tied up in this book. Some matters aren't resolved until the final chapters of Akin to Pity (the second and final book in the tale).
   
3. Give yourself time to read What Lies Beneath in uninterrupted chunks - it will be difficult to tame the narrative if you only read it a page or two at a time.
4. Try to spot the literary allusions - there's quite a few although some are a bit obscure.
5. Pay heed to the names. Many of them reveal a thing or two about the characters, creatures and countries of the Myr.
6. Get attached to certain characters but don't expect them all to live.
7. Consult with the Map on my wiki if you get a bit lost.
8. Check out the Characters page of the wiki if you'd like some more details on the characters.
9. Feel free to email me if you need clarification of anything you stumble across in the book.
10. Don't expect literary genius. The book is - after all - a hobby. It's far from perfect, but I hope you find it interesting enough to read to the end.

I'll be giving details in my next post about where/how to buy the book.