Welcome to Jon's author diary for July 29, 2019.
Last week was the 10th anniversary of my wife and me getting married. So we went to Scotland to spend a week in a log cabin enjoying wine and a hot tub.
We then went to Edinburgh, where I attended the 20books conference, and got to meet some great authors and catch up with some old friends. So my head is still spinning from that. I’m what you’d describe as an outgoing introvert—I can deal with meeting new people, but when it’s over, I just want to curl up in the dark and listen to a good audiobook.
Writing is a weird business, especially when you do it full-time, so having conversations with people who ‘get it’ was amazing. Even my closest family and friends don’t really understand what it is I do. Because write characters that connect on an emotional level with readers is more than just a hobby to me—it’s my calling.
Digit
When I went to Scotland, I decided to leave my guide dog Digit with a boarder for the week. Luckily, it was the person who’d trained Digit as a pup, so it was someone who knew Digit, which put my mind at rest.
I really missed having him to help me as using a white cane feels awkward. It was probably for the best though as I had some great discussions about books and writing at the conference which I’m sure would have all been about dogs if Digit was there.
Reading
I’ve started reading Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski, which is the first book in The Witcher series. I’m about halfway through and really enjoying the world and characters, though it does feel like a series of connected shorts rather than a fully realised novel.
Getting my son into fiction
My son turns seven in September and is starting to get into reading. He has recently read all of the How to Train Your Dragon books by Cressida Cowell (they are very different to the movies), he's read the first two in her Wizards of Once series, and has moved onto Harry Potter—I couldn't be prouder!
Wheel of Fortune
The tenth book in my Ravenglass Chronicles series comes out on Thursday, August 1. I’m not a fan of the title—it reminds me too much of the game show, but it is a tarot card in the Major Arcana, so my hands are tied.
Wasteland series and Patreon.
As you may be aware if you listen to my Author Diary podcast, I’m in the process of re-writing my Wasteland series.
I’ve just posted the first chapter of the Wizard of the Wasteland onto my Patreon page patreon.com/joncronshawauthor. The first chapter is open to anyone, and I will post a chapter on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for patrons.
I’ve overhauled the entire series, rewriting every line to tighten up the language and story, turn it from present to past tense, and give readers access to Abel’s thoughts. This has added a new subplot, which I hope will make for a deeper story.
They are still in a draft state, but I thought it would be fun to share what I’ve done and give a bit more insight into my process.
This means as well as posting chapters from ongoing projects as I’m doing them, giving access to story months in advance, I’ll also share things like scrawled outlines and raw audio of dictated chapters if there’s interest.
I hope you’ll come and join me. I’d love to hear your feedback as I go. I want my stories to be as powerful as possible, and the best way I can do that is with your help.
Yours,
Jon
