A few advanced readers have gotten their hands on my new novel, The Ballad of Stevie Pearl, and I’m humbled by what they’re saying.
It’s only been a few days, but those getting an early taste of The Ballad of Stevie Pearl have had some pretty encouraging things to say! Wow. I’m always pretty neurotic about this part of the process–I really have no idea if my words are conveying what’s going on in my mind. So much is lost in translation and written language can be quite tricky… any language, for that matter.
There have been some problems–I suck at catching mistakes. Typos. Leaving words out. I am so grateful to my early readers for helping catch these flaws; struggling through an early edition to help make the end draft the best it can be. I always feel like reading my early work is a huge chore–I only want people to see the best version I’m capable of. In our modern society, getting anyone to read a book is a huge ask–having them do some work and help me fix things seems insurmountable. Thank you.
The plan is to still get this novel in the hands of a capable editor. That has been a bit of a struggle… Given our modern social climate, with cancel culture silencing civil discourse, the editors I’ve approached have declined to work on the project… I’m not going to get into this discussion now–I do have a lot of thoughts on the topic, and it’s a serious issue that deserves considerate deliberation. With that said, and especially with the early comments, this book will see the light of day. It will not be kept from you.
