Thursday 13 November 2014

Now Is All There Is

So, the sequel to 'Aphrodite's Child' was published on 12th November, 2014.  I can't quite believe I've published two books now.  Not that long ago, it was something I thought about – a lot – but I never dreamt I would actually write one novel, never mind two.

For those of you who haven't read either book, my debut novel, 'Aphrodite's Child' is set in Cyprus in the nineties and took inspiration from our posting to RAF Akrotiri in 1991.  I left the ending 'up in the air' as I like novels that allow the reader to imagine their own future for the characters, but so many people asked me if I was going to write a sequel that it got me thinking and I realised I could easily carry on the story.

It was a very different experience from writing the first novel as, when I wrote Aphrodite's Child, I was studying for an MA in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University.  This was a mixed blessing – on the one hand, I had loads of work to do: reading novels, writing essays and reading other students' work – but on the other hand, I had lots of help and positive feedback from all the workshops I had to attend.  While I was writing 'Now Is All There Is', I was very much on my own, which meant that I could get on and just simply write, but I had no help in the form of feedback.

I had built up a good fan base using Facebook and Twitter for 'Aphrodite's Child'.  I realised I had a niche market – people who loved Cyprus; people who had a connection particularly to RAF Akrotiri; people interested in the RAF and the life of RAF wives and people connected to the military in general.  This proved to be a real bonus for me as my readers (mostly women) loved the setting and seemed to appreciate the story.  So, having cemented my relationship with people by communicating directly with them via social media, I found that they must have recommended my book to friends and shared things on Facebook, because I then found I was receiving messages from people unconnected to my 'niche'.  Indeed, I was hearing from people all over the world.  I have a huge following in Turkey for some reason!

To be honest, when I first decided to self-publish, I thought after the initial interest, sales would just die away, but this has not been the case.  'Aphrodite's Child' has continued to sell well and it entered the Top 100 Best Selling books in two categories – Women's Literary Fiction and Literary Fiction/Romance and remains there today.

So, I had lots of people interested in the sequel.  I had many pre-orders and when it was published I had a real 'peak' in my sales!  It was only yesterday that it came out and I've already had one lady read the whole novel and given me a rave review.  Now,  that's what I call a fan!

I was a little worried that my fans of the setting would be disappointed that half the novel isn't set in Cyprus.  But, that's life ... Emily's posting had to come to an end.  I feel that the novel's second setting, Cornwall, is equally loved and atmospheric.  Maybe I'll even gain some new fans who love the Cornish setting.  Who knows?

It's very early days, but I'm pleased with this book.  It's always difficult to write a 'second' novel.  Rather like a second album for a pop star – people have high expectations and expect it to be as good, if not better than the first.  Let's hope 'Now Is All There Is' lives up to its predecessor.


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