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Words All Around!

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

I hope this post finds you well and in good spirits, and that you are on the path to accomplishing your goals for the day, the week, or even the goals of your life. I encourage you to push on through the obstacles and trials you face, for the end result is worth the struggle. After a week’s hiatus, let me bring you up to speed on my work…

The Faces of the War Collection

In the past month or so, I’ve written and completed the first draft of the Prologue for Book Four. The word count came in at around 1,650 and looks pretty good to me at this point. Of course, I’ll go through it a few more times down the road, so more may be added, or maybe nothing will. Once the whole story is fleshed out and the scope is intact in raw form, I’ll have a better idea of what will constitute the Prologue in its entirety.

I also began writing the body of Part I (of III); it currently sits a little above 2,500 words. So hitting over 4,000 words in the first full month of writing is right where I want to be! I’ve gotten into the habit of writing on Sundays, or sometimes Saturdays, which is working very well for me. And I’ll have my Spring Break at the end of the month, so my goal is to knock out at least 1,000 words a day that week – that will really bump me forward in my writing schedule.

I’ve also gotten the ball rolling on the cover for Book Four, and so far the draft looks good. I sent back some revisions and am awaiting a second draft, but at this point I’m optimistic. It’s exciting to see it start come into being, just as it’s exciting to see this story start to take shape. If you’d like to get a preview of it and let me know what you think, you can check out the Prologue for free at this blog post link.

The Short Story Collection

I have whittled away at the next volume of short stories, but have put most of my focus on my WWII historical fiction. Fear not – I aim to release Volume 3 by the time fall arrives. I’ll keep you posted on progress as spring turns to summer.

YouTube

Just as I’ve taken a hiatus from blogging over the past two weeks, I took a break from vlogging on YouTube. There is a reason for this decision, but I can’t really touch on that just yet. You’ll understand in the coming weeks…I only ask for your patience.

New Blog Topics

In the coming weeks, I plan to release special topic blog posts that will not only vary the material I provide my readership, but it will also afford you an opportunity to better know who I am. Plus, it can be the start of some great discussions, especially with fellow readers and writers.

That’s about it for this week. Thank you again for your continued support and encouragement, and for taking an interest in my work. If you haven’t yet subscribed to my mailing list, you can do so here…that way you can get my monthly e-newsletter that has the inside scoop and behind-the-scenes details about my life and my work.

Until next time,

-Eli

New Short Stories Released!

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

I know I’ve said this before, but the autumn season is wonderful! So many beautiful scenes to be seen and smells to be smelled, all before the backdrop of everyday life! Time flies by, whether we realize it or not, and soon it will be a new year. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s get into this week’s post…

The Short Story Collection

After much time of fiddling with different ideas and developing nascent stories, I’ve finally arrived to the point of releasing a new volume of short stories! I originally wanted to publish this ebook shortly after Unguarded came out earlier this year, but I opted to focus my writing efforts on Imminent. At that point I thought, “I’ll get the new volume out by summer.” That didn’t happen. “Early fall, perhaps.” That didn’t happen either. My goal, then, was to release it by my birthday in February.

However, my writing muse intervened and urged me to finish the work and finalize the stories, one of which was already completed. I sent the other two off to a friend for some feedback, which I quickly got back and implemented. After a final read-through, I submitted the ebook to be released through Amazon, and it was done very quickly. I submitted it Thursday night and it went live within a few hours, having the official release date of October 15. You can check it out and purchase it on this sales page!

Cover of Volume 2 in “The Short Story Collection”

Like my first volume, the stories in Volume 2 vary from my larger projects with regard to different aspects, such as scope and story premise. That’s been the whole goal all along: to produce new content that is different and that allows me to experiment with my writing. So I encourage you to pick up a copy on your Kindle (or through your Kindle reading app) and let me know what you think about my new work. I hope you enjoy it!

The Faces of the War Collection

Progress is being made with the edits for Imminent, with everything still on track for an early December release. This story is really coming together as I’m going back through and addressing changes or additions from my editor. The idea is that she’ll complete her work by November (thus allowing her to do NaNoWriMo), which then will give me a month to go through and do my final read-throughs. My goal is to submit the final manuscript to Amazon by November 30 so that it can be available for purchase by December 11. Details regarding pre-order for Kindle and the costs for both formats (print and Kindle) will be given when the cover is released – sometime in the next few weeks. Barring any major impediments, you’ll have another WWII historical fiction book by Christmas!

Indie Writing Advice

Due to Volume 2 being released, I had to take care of the book’s details in Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). There’s a YouTube video that covers this on my channel, so feel free to check it out. I’ll say that it would be good to explore the ins and outs of Amazon KDP before you are ready to upload your book. This way, you are familiar enough with how it works and what all needs done in order to complete the uploading process for publication. That is, if you’re wanting to sell your work on the Kindle platform. Personally, I only sell through Amazon. Everyone has their own reasons for choosing what platform(s) they sell their work through, and each certainly has its own draw. So if you’re in a position where you have a manuscript nearly ready for publication – and you want to sell it on the Kindle – I suggest you log into KDP and get acquainted!

That’s it for this week, but there’ll be more in the coming weeks! Thank you so much for reading this post, and for your support and encouragement of my work. If you haven’t yet done so, I encourage you to join my mailing list (you can email me with a brief “Hey, how are ya? I wanna join the mailing list!” at elikale.author@gmail.com) to get the most detailed and behind-the-scenes information regarding my projects, especially Imminent!

Until next time,

-Eli

Fall Is My Favorite

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

Autumn is in full swing here in Ohio, with the trees turning colors and the temperatures getting cooler. It’s probably my favorite time of year! Let’s get into this week’s content…

The Faces of the War Collection

The editing process continues for Imminent, with everything still on track for a December release. I’ve decided that once I receive the edited manuscript from my editor, then I will reveal the cover and book details. It’s easier and way less stressful letting out that kind of information when you have the story back in your own hands versus still waiting to receive it – mostly because you can’t control it if you don’t have it. I’d hate to reveal the cover and details and then find out there’s a snag in the editing or I need to do a major rewrite, thus prolonging the book’s release. That wouldn’t be fair to you, my readers!

Teaching Life

My new teaching job is going well, with my second full week beginning today. I teach through an online program, educating about 200 students across the state of Ohio. I’m currently teaching one class – Modern World History – three days a week. And yes, I’m working the other days of the week as well. When I’m not teaching, I’m planning lessons, creating presentations, and answering emails, among other things. It’s an exciting new endeavor in my life, not to mention the profession for which I went to college!

YouTube

I capture aspects of my everyday life through the lens of my digital camera, and upload that footage to my YouTube channel every Friday. I talk about indie publishing and the progress of my writing projects, as well as teaching in this new position. I also touch on travel here and there in my videos. If you’re interested in any or all of those topics, come on over to my channel and check out what I’m doing from week to week!

Indie Writing Advice

As a writer, you should also be reading. It’s good practice to always have a book ongoing, whether it’s in physical form or on a reading device. I actually have a few books that I’m reading right now, each of them different from the others. “Let’s Get Digital” by David Gaughran touches on his experience in the self-publishing world; “The Craft of Intelligence” by Allen W. Dulles covers the author’s experience as an intelligence officer in the Cold War; and “On Hitler’s Mountain” by Irmgard Hunt.

The first book is one I’m reading for knowledge, because learning about how the indie publishing world works is vital to being an indie writer. I’m reading the second book for research purposes, because some of what I’m learning about here will apply to what I’ll write later. And the third book is my “just for fun” book, because reading shouldn’t always be business. So if you don’t have a book cracked at any given time, then get on it! Reading books helps make one a better writer of them.

That’s it for this week. Thank you so much for your interest in my work, and for reading my post this week. I encourage you to follow this blog, subscribe to my mailing list, follow me on social media, or even subscribe to my YouTube channel – any and all of those things will help keep you informed on what I’m doing, and will help us connect with each other.

Until next time,

-Eli

Read-Through Editing Complete!

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

This week, we’ll be getting into October! It’s crazy how fast these last few months have flown by, and how quickly the autumn and winter seasons are approaching. I hope that with a new season upon us, you are able to have a renewed opportunity to work toward achieving your goals and seeking your ambitions. Let’s get into today’s material…

The Faces of the War Collection

I recently finished the read-through editing of my manuscript for Imminent! Upon completing the first draft, the manuscript was just shy of 43K words. After this first read-through, it is just over 45K. This is right where I originally wanted the story to be in terms of word count, so we’ll see what changes end up being made once I get the returned manuscript from my editor.

Also, as I’ve mentioned before, you can expect a cover and synopsis reveal probably around Halloween. I’ll give more details regarding the reveal as the next four weeks press on. I want to be sure that I have the manuscript back in my hands completely edited before moving forward with the reveal. The point is, you can surely be excited in the anticipation of it!

I alluded to something in my most recent vlog that has to do with my next project. It is going to be the next book in the WWII collection, the story of which is already planned out and ready to be written. I am excited to get Imminent off the ground, but I’m also excited to continue writing into the next project! More details about that will come in due time.

Indie Writing Advice

I have learned through writing my first two books, as well as during the writing of Imminent, that a good habit to have is to be conscious of the characters you write. When it comes to writing main characters, you must make them relative and understandable to the reader, for it is those characters that the reader experiences the story. The story line should differ from book to book, and so the character’s experiences should be unique to their circumstances.

In a series or collection, like what I’m writing, it’s okay to reintroduce familiar themes or motifs across different stories, because it helps the reader understand the world they’re reading about and the characters within that world. We draw on preconceptions of places or things if we come across them in reading multiple times, and so that can be used to help establish a better understanding of what’s actually going on in the story and where. However, you don’t want to fall into a habit of writing what is known as a flat character – someone in the story who lacks a dynamic personality or who doesn’t really change through the course of the story. In the same way, you don’t want to have a flat story line, either.

So if you are new to writing, don’t be afraid to explore your world and your characters, and on the same token don’t be afraid to revisit places or people in an effort to help keep a newly formed story familiar to the reader.

That’s about it for this post. There’ll be more in the coming weeks as Imminent progresses through the publishing process, so stay tuned! Follow my blog or join my mailing list (by emailing me at elikale.author@gmail.com) to stay as updated as possible on this project!

Until next time,

-Eli

Cover on the Way!

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

An exciting time in writing is coming up, starting with yet another new week full of opportunities and chances to accomplish your goals! I say an exciting time is approaching because, at least in my writing life, more progress is being made on my third book, Imminent!

The Faces of the War Collection

I ended up not getting the next draft of the cover this past Friday, so I anticipate receiving it by later today or tomorrow (hopefully not Wednesday). It’s crazy to see how this cover has evolved from the vision I had initially. But like I’ve said before, having a finished product end up not quite how you first envisioned it ins’t a bad thing!

With having the day off today, I hope to knock out at least 3,000 words, if not more. If I can manage that, it’ll put me under the 10,000 word mark for words remaining! My target date for completing the first draft is September 21, so I’m really trying to work productively and effectively toward that end. September is just a week away, so like I said – these next few months are about to get crazy!

That’s the main piece of information that I wanted to keep you updated on this week, so this blog post will be shorter than usual. But I like to change it up a little sometimes, and that also means that there will be more information in the next couple of posts.

Thank you for reading this post and for supporting me and taking interest in my work. I write because I enjoy it and have a passion for it, and I hope that what I write can entertain you, my readers! Feel free to check out my currently published books (Resistant and Unguarded, and my short story volume), and follow my blog to stay in the loop with upcoming project details. Another great way to stay in contact with me and my work is to join my mailing list by subscribing. And yet another way to connect with me is through my YouTube channel, where I upload weekly vlogs that detail my writing and personal life.

I look forward to connecting with you, whether you’re new to my work or have been following for a while!

Until next time,

-Eli

Newsletter Update (and Other Things)

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

I hope this week brings you happiness in life, success in work, and peace in your heart and mind! I have a couple of things to cover today, so let’s get down to it…

Mailing List

As I wrap up a year of mailing list newsletters, and considering what’s going on in my life, I have decided to send a newsletter out every three weeks instead of every two. At this point in my writing life, there just isn’t enough new content every time for each newsletter to be fresh. In addition, it takes away time that I could use to write more. So this week there will be a newsletter sent out to those on my mailing list (and anyone else who’d like to subscribe to it in the meantime); the next newsletter will be sent out sometime around Wednesday, August 26th. I believe this is a wise move in my writing life, so I thank you for your understanding and I encourage you to join my mailing list!

The Faces of the War Collection

The process has been a little slower than anticipated in relation to getting my next book cover designed. However, as my wife reassures me, I shouldn’t worry about it right now because the book isn’t finished. With that being said, please know that I am working on this project a little at a time, and am eagerly anticipating its release. As I’ve said before, sometimes a working timeline doesn’t pan out exactly how you plan it; that’s how it usually is in the world of education, so I’m used to it and I know how to handle it.

In the meantime, if you’d like to check out my first two books, you can find them in print and on the Kindle here (Resistant) and here (Unguarded). Keep in mind that they’re not related stories, so you don’t have to read one to understand the other!

YouTube

I am excited to see that I’m slowly gaining followers on my YouTube channel! I would like to gather more people who are interested in reading, writing, history, and life in general, so if you have family, friends, coworkers, or anyone else you know that shares those interests, please send them my way. My vlogs are usually between 8-15 minutes, depending on the topics I discuss, so they can easily be watched in the morning before work, on a lazy Saturday, or even at night before bed. And I only upload one video per week, so you don’t have to worry about watching a whole bunch of videos to stay up-to-date with what I’m doing. Many thanks in advance!

That’s about it for now, but like I said – hopefully over the next few weeks things will develop more as writing continues and as my book cover gets closer to completion. Come back next week for more, and I hope to see you on my mailing list!

Until next time,

-Eli

“This Is Sparta!”

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

Welcome to yet another week – another opportunity – to achieve greatness. In the words of Leonidas, “Prepare for glory!” Let’s get into today’s content…

The Faces of the War Collection

Toward the end of last week, I came across some things I had jotted down while doing the skeleton planning for Book Three, and it got me thinking. After some careful consideration of historical facts and other things I had discovered in my research, I decided that it was best to revamp some of the planning I had done and change up the story outline just a bit. Now that that is done, I can move forward with more confidence that what I’ll be writing will be more realistic in appeal and closer along the lines of what actually could’ve happened.

That’s part of the trick with writing historical fiction: everything little event that occurred in the past doesn’t have a personal account to go with it. That’s just a fact historical writers must deal with. So when writing, the gaps in what could have happened are filled with the writer’s creativity fueled by contextual knowledge. In other words, the writer creates an event in the story that contains people, actions, and so on that could have existed at the time.

That’s what I do with my stories when there isn’t much substance to certain things I want to put into my story. With Resistant and Unguarded, my first two books, this method of writing was executed fairly well I think. In my third book, I am currently expanding and experimenting with this method in the second half of the manuscript, and I must say that it’s a fun thing to do. And I think that’s part of what writing should be about – experimenting and trying new things to see how far you can take yourself in your work. I should add that the developments in the story with which I’m experimenting are rather bold, mostly because the events that are taking place very well could have happened and it’s very hard to tell either way.

The word count is approaching 25K in Book Three and I’m about to send the word to my cover designer to get things rolling. As of now, I’m resetting the tentative release date for mid- to late-September. I’ll be writing as much as I can throughout the rest of the summer, and hopefully I’ll be able to produce a quality book to add to the first two.

YouTube

If you haven’t seen my videos on my writing process, you can easily find them on my channel. Since finishing my writing process videos, I’ve switched gears and am now doing weekly vlogs by recording footage throughout the week and posting a video on Friday.

Please subscribe to my channel and join me on my journey through both my personal and writing lives. And if you have family or friends who might be interested in me and my work, please pass the word along. I enjoy getting to meet new people!

And if you want to go a step further and get more out of the content I produce, you can join my mailing list by clicking this link and filling in the information. I send out a newsletter vie email every couple of weeks, and it includes details about my projects, fun facts, Q&A posts, and much more. It’s easy to do and fun to be a part of!

Other News

I have hinted before that there are other projects on my plate behind the scenes, but I haven’t really elaborated on that point. I’m not going to right now, either (sorry), but I will tell you that a pretty cool thing is in the works and in the coming weeks I’ll share with you about it.

That’s just about all I have for right now in terms of news. Thank you for your interest in my work and for following my blog. I truly appreciate it!

Until next time,

-Eli

Final News on Unguarded

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

Welcome to a new post…I hope you are well and in good spirits, ready to tackle a new week ahead! Let’s get right into today’s post…

The Faces of the War Collection

As you know, much has been happening throughout the past weeks with the preparations for Unguarded‘s release. There are a few things in particular that I’d like to point out:

  • Pre-order: this will remain open until Saturday, January 24, which is the release date for the book. If you pre-ordered Unguarded for your Kindle, it will automatically be delivered to your device on that day. At some point after the release, the price will go up to the usual amount of $4.99.
  • Resistant: though this book and Unguarded aren’t directly related, they’re part of the same collection. As such, I wanted to make my first book available at a cheaper price on the Kindle and encourage you to pick it up. You can easily find it here. I plan on keeping the book on sale until the end of January. My hope is that you will pick up both and enjoy reading both, but I am grateful for your interest in my work either way.
  • Newsletter: if you aren’t subscribed to my newsletter already, I encourage you to that as well. You can email me at [elikale.author@gmail.com] or click on this link. The next newsletter will be sent out this Wednesday, January 21 and will contain details about Unguarded‘s release – details that won’t be revealed right away on this blog. In addition to details, I will be having book deals/giveaways and other things of the sort, so there’s no real reason you shouldn’t be on the list. Check it out today!

Those are the main points I wanted to make that will affect the immediate future. There are a few other things I’d like to talk about…

The Short Story Collection

The next volume in this collection is underway, with a tentative release time in the spring. As the weeks go along, and after Unguarded is launched, I’ll give this more attention in the blog posts. If you haven’t yet read or seen my first volume on Amazon, you can easily find it here.

Future Projects

I have already begun to brainstorm ideas of what to write after I finish my WWII collection. I really enjoy writing these books, so I want to be sure that I finish what I started and complete the collection before wholly moving on to another big project. I can say, though, that two projects have been fairly fleshed out in terms of story ideas and certain plot details. I’ll have more on this in the coming months.

I’d like to express my gratitude to you, my readers and followers, for your continued support and encouragement throughout the writing process. It means so much to me! When next I post, a new book will be released with a new story to be experienced. I hope you will experience it with me.

Until next time,

-Eli

Unguarded Details

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

I hope you are well as you read this, and well on your way to accomplishing something on your to-do list this week! Let’s get into the blog post for today…

The Faces of the War Collection

The Unguarded manuscript is entering its fifth and final read-through today, as it will be handed over to my editor on Friday afternoon. I have polished parts of it here and there, and will hopefully find any remaining issues and fix them this week. Like I said before, the biggest issue for me is the dialogue, so my focus is to make it crisp yet still within the confines of each character and situation they face. Along with a few other minor things, that is all that is left to do for my part. I’ll hand the manuscript over and revisit it upon my return from Germany in January.

The tentative release date is January 24th. Details about the release and the book’s pre-order will be included in next week’s blog post. At this point, my goal is to have the pre-order set up early next week. Keep in mind that it is only for the ebook version. I have never set up a pre-order before, so hopefully it goes over well and it actually works when readers order the book. Keep your eyes peeled for the details in next week’s blog post!

The Short Story Collection

I have yet to receive the first review for my short story ebook Volume 1, but I am not letting it get me down. Reviews will come when they come – that’s just a part of writing that I have to get used to. After launching Unguarded in January, I will work more on the short stories in the next ebook, Volume 2, which I’m aiming to release sometime in the spring. I would like to release it before really getting into the writing of my next book, but only time will tell what is to happen. More details about that in the coming blog posts.

Mailing List

If you haven’t done so already, I strongly encourage you to join my mailing list. It is very easy to do and will be well worth your time. I send out bi-weekly newsletters via email to my followers, where I reveal details about my upcoming projects, as well as give updates on currently published books. Not only that, I also am more personal and informal here because I want it to be a place where my readers can connect with me on a more personal level than through social media. So if you have a minute, click the link above and send me a message – I’ll gladly add you to the list and you’ll be all set. The next newsletter goes out this Wednesday, so do it now in order to receive it on time!

Thank you to all my readers, family, and friends – without your support and encouragement, I couldn’t do what I love to do.

Until next time,

-Eli

Unguarded Update

/ Eli Kale / Leave a comment

Friends,

Another week gone, a new week ahead. I hope this post finds you well and raring to accomplish a goal this week! There has been a development in the past week, so let’s get right into the blog…

The Faces of the War Collection

The third read-through of the Unguarded manuscript was completed on Thursday of last week. I feel that this read-through has improved the dialogue, but I will continue to focus on that aspect of the story in my next read-through this week.

After I posted to the blog last Monday, I was in contact with a friend who has expressed interested in collaborating together on a project. Given the circumstances surrounding the professional editor and how not purchasing those services at this time has affected the publishing timeline, I asked if he’d want to work on this project. He said yes! So, I will be submitting the manuscript to him the week before Christmas, over which time he’ll edit it. Upon my return from Europe, I’ll get the edited manuscript back and make the necessary changes that need made. I’ll then do one final read-through before sending it through to Amazon for their final preview before it launches in print and ebook form. My hope is that it will be no later than mid-January when the book goes live. It is definitely a very exciting development for me! I will have more details on the release as the date nears.

In the lead-up to the holidays, I am going to attempt to set up a pre-order deal through Amazon for Unguarded, which will begin just before Christmas Day and last until the book is released (so roughly a month). I plan on making the print book $5.99 or $6.99 for the pre-order, then reset the price to the usual $7.99 after it’s been live for a week or so. My advice: pre-order the book when it goes live, just so you can save yourself a couple of bucks! I’ll also have more details about that on my blog as well as through social media.

Also regarding my WWII books, the cover reveal for Unguarded will be held first through my newsletter, then a few days later on my blog. If you haven’t joined my mailing list yet, I encourage you to do so in order to receive in-depth updates before the general public. It’s well worth the time, and it’s easy to do!

That’s really all the big news for this week. If you’re a regular follower then I thank you for your continued support of my work. And if you’re new to this site or to my work, then I say “Welcome aboard!” and I hope you enjoy what I write and put out to you. Writing has truly become a passion of mine, and I’m very grateful that I have the opportunity to do it.

Until next time,

-Eli