A Book is Born

Hello friends! Here's what's been going on in my world. I've received a number of emails asking me when Midnight Moon, the fifth and last book in the Unbidden Magic series will be available. Nobody is more anxious to see the finished product than me! Here's a peek at the journey my manuscript will take before it becomes a real book.

1. First, I had to write it. I started it in the summer of 2011, totally scrapped one of the sub-plots and started over in late October. Since it's the final book, I spent a considerable amount of time agonizing over all the loose ends that needed to be tied up. Junior and Beck. Faeryland. Allie's dad. Faye's love life. And most importantly, Allie's final showdown with the Trimarks. Sigh. In January, I had only 19,307 words written for the 70,000-word manuscript. Time to crack the whip. Fast forward to April 24th. 36,000 words. Over halfway there. My goal? The end of August. I stuck to my writing schedule and finished the book on August 16th. Then, I read the entire book aloud and made notes for revisions. After some re-writing, I e-mailed the manuscript to my editor on September 5th.


2. Very soon, I'll receive a detailed letter from my editor who will have evaluated Midnight Moon with a cool, dispassionate eye, which is exactly what it needs. That's when I'll find out if I need to do a major re-write. (Pray for me - LOL). In addition, she'll return my original manuscript in "Track Changes" mode. More than likely, each page will have her suggestions for improvement. I can respond by changing them or, if I disagree, explain why. This process can be quite lengthy, depending on the number of comments.


3. When the revisions are done, the book goes through a proofreader and copy editor. I'll have one last chance to make changes before it goes to the printer.


4. One of my publishers, Debra Dixon, will apply her artistic efforts and create a cover. One of the many reasons I like my publishing company is because they always run the cover by me before they create it. Many publishers do not grant you this courtesy.

My Summer Reads:

I've become totally hooked on The Game of Thrones series by George R.R. Martin. His books are massive with a cast of thousands. I think I've made a lifetime commitment! So far, I've completed A Song of Fire and Ice, A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords. I'm currently reading A Feast for Crows.

In addition, I'm re-reading the Dave Robicheaux series written by James Lee Burke, one of my favorite authors. Also just finished Down the Darkest Road by Tami Hoag. Good mystery but a bit too angst-filled for me.

A Contest -- Just for Subscribers

If all goes as planned (it usually doesn't) Midnight Moon is due to be published in November. When that happens, I'll be running a contest for all you lovely newsletter subscribers. One of you will be getting a signed copy. Stay tuned...

Another Way to Win

I'm still looking for pictures of people reading one of my books. It's another way you can win an autographed copy of any of my books.

Visit the home page of my website (www.marileebrothers.com) for a link to submit your photo.