What Changed When I Revised Three of my Books?

It has been a little over 17 years since I wrote and published Chandra’s Quest. Originally the title was, Chandra’s Quest Book 1, I published it with Instanpublishers.com, a subsidiary publishing company. Two years later I published Chandra’s Quest Book 2. 

I re-wrote and changed a few things in both books, including how Chandra looks like. In the first book, Chandra (the main character) had long naturally curly hair and brown eyes. 

Picture is not a part of the book.

In the original version she was Latina, Carlos remains the same, Keeja, remains the same, Xenos remains the same and Soran had some changes done but not by much.

In the revised version, Chandra has shoulder length light brown hair, not curly but set with a light wave to it and brown hazel colored eyes and she is multiracial, Hispanic/Caucasian.

In both Chandra’s Quest book 1 & 2, I added and removed some text. I changed some chapters and added more chapters. The endings are different from the original books.

Since both books were labelled Alternative Sci-Fi/adult romance, I did a lot of re-writing to edit out the content no longer suitable. I changed the book series to accommodate 14 and over. Only a few of the original books remain in the system.

Book 3 has not been completed and frankly, it won’t be published till the end of the year—maybe. Please keep an eye out for it by visiting my website, Facebook page and Twitter page.

       picture not in book

In the Company of Elves, has some changes as well. It was meant for adults. I wrote it to be adult fiction but changed it during the re-write. Melissa’s appearance changed a bit, she doesn’t have blonde curly hair, it’s straight and long. 

The elves remain the same, Faye's appearance was changed. For those who read the original version, will like the changes I made.

 

In the Company of Elves is categorized as 14 and over.

The only books I did not or will not revise are:

Saints and Sinners: Affairs of the Heart

The Other Side of Things Part 1 & 2

The Stranger Things: Paranormal, Supernatural, and Unusual Phenomenon

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Why Reviews are Important

Reviews make or break a new author! It’s true. When I got my first review for the 2002 unabridged version of Chandra’s Quest book 1, I was crushed but it didn't stop me from writing. 

In fact, I was in the process of revising Chandra's Quest, so as mean-spirited as the comment was, I chose to plow forward and continue revising Book 1 & 2.  

Constructive Criticism:

The one thing that a person should do when writing a review, is not discourage buyers from buying or downloading the book they've read. I’ve learned that leaving a review is important, better than none.

You should leave a review, whether good or bad but you should end it with something like this, “whereas this book did not appeal to me, it might appeal to those who are interested in reading it,” or “I did not like the book but you can buy it or download it,  judge for yourself.”

It's only fair to give others a chance to read, rate and review.

On Twitter, a reader asked everyone if they should leave a bad review on a book they read but didn’t like. They feel bad in leaving a negative review. They fear that the person will figure out who they are. 

As I stated before, all reviews are important, no matter if they are good or bad, as long as they are constructive, and it does not discourage others from reading the book and posting their review/opinion. In addition, people can remain anonymous. 

In conclusion, please do post reviews on any book that you've read from an author. Do it in a way that it does not discourage others from buying or downloading the book!  

You're not only helping the author but you're giving others a chance to read it too. Remember, that what you don’t like, the other person might. Keep that in mind.

Enjoy your books.

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What Would You Be If You Weren't a Published Author

On Twitter, one of the other authors whom I follow, asked everyone: What would you be if you weren't a writer/author?

Well I can't speak for all authors but for me, I would be as I am now with one exception--not an author/writer. I probably would still have a presence on social media/online, I would still create handmade gifts to sell on Etsy or eBay but there would be no books, no Chandra's Quest, no In the Company of Elves, et cetera. I strongly believe that my life would be the same except that I wouldn't have published a book/books, I wouldn't have thought about becoming an author at all; I would not have the inspiration to do so.  

Since I love making handmade gifts, that would have been the only creative outlet I would have going for me. I often wonder though, if I didn't become a published author, would the people who blocked me on social media, have still blocked me? Would they have been just as critical of what I sell online?

So many questions, so many 'what if's.' My children took inspiration from my creativity and if I had denied or ignored my passion, what example would I have set for them? If I had not pushed forward, been assertive pursuing my dream, would that show them that keeping their creativity bottled up inside is better than having others critic their work? 
My creativity is a way for me to put my imagination out there and it eases my mind, makes me happy. I enjoy writing, letting others read my work. Money isn't the issue for me because when I create something, I want those people who are interested in my work or items I've created, to like/ enjoy the things I've done; to own something I've created with my own two hands. 

When I write in this blog or in one of my other blogs and someone actually reads the entry, I am grateful that they took the time to read what I've written. Perhaps, that person agrees with what I've written and enjoys it. I really don't know the type of audience/readers I attract but it is for them that I write, it is for them that I create my stories and publish my books and it is for my children that I pursue my endeavors, so they will be encouraged to pursue their dreams. When I pass away, I would leave something behind, something precious to my children, memories and my books so they can continue selling them and giving readers my gift, my creativity, my books. Just saying. 

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In the Company of Elves: What you Need to Know

As the author of, In the Company of Elves, I highly enjoyed writing this fantasy story. It is one of my full-length novels, other than the Chandra’s Quest trilogy books. Even though Chandra’s Quest was my first book, I was inspired to write, In the Company of Elves by watching movies like Legend, Willow, Lord of the Rings, Alice in Wonderland to name a few. I published In the Company of Elves in 2009 but started writing the story back in 2004/2005. Yes, I came up with the title for this book many years ago. The first copy of the book was published through Instant Publishers, a subsidiary company. It only had 120 pages. 

Then I decided to revise the book, so I re-wrote it and added more chapters to it. For those who have downloaded my book and enjoyed it, Thank you. If you have a paperback copy, thank you for purchasing it. I recently donated 1 copy to one of those Little Library Boxes, in Menifee Ca. If you read it as a Summer read, please be sure to leave a review on Amazon or on my Facebook page or Instagram. Thank you. 

NOTE: In July, I will be publishing The Other Side of Things Part 2. It is a non fiction book, with issues on Health, Social relations, Romance and Fashion.Visit my Facebook page and my Website for more info.

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CreateSpace and Kindle Merged

Most recently, CreateSpace and Kindle merged, leaving some Indie/self-published authors having to make changes on their kindle books. 

I don't know about the rest of the authors, but on my part, I had to create two of my books as new paperbacks, for Kindle. I  changed the book cover image and on one book, I decided to change one or two things within the manuscript, so for those who have uploaded Saints and Sinners: Affairs of the Heart, please do upload the book again or buy the paperback. The image is awesome, and it does say a lot about the story in general. 

Kindle version

Paperback version

paperback version of Chandra's quest Book 2

NOTE: the eBook version of Chandra's Quest Book 2: Twisted Embers looks like the picture below:

I believe that any changes that I've made to any of my books, won't show up on Amazon's display list for a week or two. 

Saints and Sinners

(Facebook would not let me boost Saints and Sinners because of the cover image. Personally I've seen worst. Just saying. Since Saints and Sinners and The Other Side of Things are novelettes, boosting them, really doesn't matter but it's my full length novels that matter, so I will continue to boost them)

Sharing Links to My Book Web Pages

I am sharing links to all my books webpages. please feel free to visit. 
In the coming weeks, I will share more excerpts on my blog and share them on my Instagram.

Saints and Sinners: Affairs of the Heart

Chandra's Quest

In the Company of Elves

These books are now available for purchase. Visit my website to view up and coming books.

NOTE: The webpages for these books are now located with google sites.

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