The book is almost out there now. You can pre-order it on Amazon HERE and the e-book will be available from 22nd December, while the paperback launch is scheduled for mid-February. And in the meantime, here’s a link to Writing Magazine, and an excellent article by Margaret James about Sealskin: https://www.writers-online.co.uk I’m learning along the way, and one interesting thing is that – for my publisher, Orenda Books, at least – e-publication is much less important than the ‘actual’ book. It enables people to start reviewing, and generates a head of steam before the launch. I’d imagined that e-books were overtaking real books in importance, but it seems to be the opposite. Certainly, most readers I’ve talked to say they’ll wait for a real book, preferably signed by the author. I have one of the earliest Kindles, and it’s no pleasure to read on it, but even with a state-of-the-art, backlit, large print and touch-screen model, I’d still rather read a book. That may change in time, but I’m not sure I want it to. I remember an animated film from childhood, in which when a book was opened, a landscape sprang out peopled with characters, roads winding away into the distance, birds flying past; a whole reality that was different from the one waiting inside the next book. For me, books are like that. Taking my chosen book in hand, looking at the cover and then opening the first page, is all part of the journey; a ritual, like checking you’ve got your passport, tickets and money before you set off on your travels. And when you get to the end, you pause for a while – if it’s been a satisfying read – before closing the book and laying it aside. If I’m not quite ready to leave it behind, I keep it to hand for a few days, to remind me as I go on with other things. You can’t do any of that with an e-book. But still, it’s been a long wait, and I’m ready now – I think! – for people to read Sealskin. So here we go…
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