Just finished the first pass edit of ASCENSION POINT. I was quite pleased, overall. I managed to tighten the prose and trim just over 6,000 words from the draft – about seven percent – and the plot seemed to flow quite well.

The next step is passing it to my beta readers, my lovely fiancée and a couple of friends. I’m hopeful they’ll give me some useful notes; I’m absolutely sure there are some fundamental structural problems with either the plot or character development (there have to be, right? It’s my first novel) but I just can’t see them. I’m too close to it, I guess.

Once that stage is over, I’m ready for a professional edit. I’ve got a slot booked with Lynn O’Dell and her team at RedAdept Publishing. I’ve heard some wonderful things about them from other authors on the Kindle Boards, so I’m really looking forward to seeing what they have to say.

And during all of this, I need to get a cover commissioned! I’ve got a couple of ideas, one of which I’m almost certain I’m going to go with. There are a few designers I’ve been referred to who’ve done great book covers in the past, so we’ll have to see who fits the style I’m after – and my not-enormous design budget!

Exciting times…