I’ve finished the first draft of The Forge, book two of the Hammer Springs series.

Now what?

For this series, I’ve found myself in a bit of a trap. It’s set in 1950, in a small segregated town. Ugly things happened back then, and I’m not an over-the-top violence and offensive writer, so my fictional town of Hammer Springs isn’t as bad as most in some ways and just as bad or worse in others. I don’t include truly offensive racial words, even though they were used at that time, but others, I do. I’m shooting for verisimilitude, that is, words and actions that “feel” true, but aren’t.

So, as I read through the first draft, I’m looking for:

• Tipos.
• Repetitive words that repeat.
• The use of conflict, darn it!
• Are modifier right place in?
• Verisimilitude that sounds real (or false to correct)
• Things that are explained twice and twice explained things
• HIGHS and lows.
• T-e-n-s-i-o-n
• Dialog consistency, so people talk the same.
• Fllloooowwwww
• Unneeded th ngs
• LoGiC
• sTRUcture (does it all hang together?)

You also need to address your fears. Are the stakes high enough? I’m concerned mine aren’t because I don’t want to go there. So, are the ones I’ve got going to work? My narrator has racist undertones. Will those be seen as things to grow out of or missed entirely?

It could be your story needs complete rewriting. Mine doesn’t, I don’t think (fear!).

The only thing that can confirm that is beta readers. Yet, can you trust beta readers? One beta reader of my first book in the series (The Anvil) told me it was good, but they weren’t motivated to read the next book, while others are demanding the second book. One found the beginning slow, while the other loved it.

Assess your beta readers by your audience. As new adult novels, my audience is young men. Doesn’t mean women won’t enjoy it, but it’s written with a male perspective and men may pick up things some women don’t (example, world-building is a male delight; not so for some women). If your beta reader is a literary reader, your non-literary novel might receive odd notes.

An editor is always a good idea, but first:

• Go over it with ProWriteAid or Grammarly.
• Read your book in a different format (read it in print).
• Read it out loud.
• Listen to it out loud (Google or Word can read you your book)

Each of these will help you catch typos, they will not analyze your structure. To do that, go to https://authors.ai/ for a Marlowe analysis. There is the basic version for free, and pro reports for more detail. (I do not like most AIs, but this is merely comparing your book with others. It isn’t plagiarizing anything.)

If you still want a human structural editor or proofreader, go for it.

Ultimately, it’s your story and at some point you need to trust yourself.

Book One of the Hammer Springs series

My latest book, historical fiction of the Forgotten War era.

This story began with book 3 when it was only one book, but needs must and four books it will be.

Meet Sam Graves and Jimmy Vauhn, blood brothers and polar opposites. As they wait to be drafted, Hammer Springs is rife with things to take their minds away from war. But when Sam falls for a girl (and she falls back), things go from bad to worse.

Hammer Springs is a near-coastal town on the gulf of Mexico in northern Florida. Be warned, it’s 1949 and 1950 in this book. Race relations and racial words were different then (I restrained myself from the truly ugly words, but…).

Note that handsome devil on the cover. That’s my 18-old-father (he wasn’t my father yet, and wouldn’t be for another 17 years). He lent his face to the character, but that’s all.

Originally, I tried to write Sam as me at 18, but he became a totally unlikable, hyper-immature, jerk of a character, so now he’s his own man, striving for a future he doesn’t think he can have.

This is a new adult novel (Amazon made it a young adult novel, because they don’t recognize New Adult yet), that according to a couple beta readers, can be enjoyed by any age. So buy it. For yourself, for your friends, for your family, for strangers… just buy it!

Note, Sam will be growing and maturing through the series. He’s fairly clueless in this one, but each book moves him further into maturity and closer to faith.

It’s a wonderful sentiment and an even better book.

Bonnie Manning Anderson, in an ode to her father, wrote a charming book with a wonderful theme; that magic is all around us, particularly in relationships.

The fictionalized story of how her father found his love for magic, and the zany ways he goes about learning to be a magician during the prevails of the Depression, will bring a smile to your face.

Bonnie is a delightful woman with a unique sense of humor and viewpoint on full display in this wonderful book for readers 6 to adult.

Bonnie has her next book coming out soon, this one for adults (not an adult book, but a book for adults).

Always Look for the Magic is now available as an audiobook, as well as ebook and paperback.

Audiobooks are big and getting bigger. Almost all your Prevail Press favorites are now available as audiobooks. Some are not, unfortunately, since they are ineligible for the Amazon Beta program we’ve been involved with.

Just a handful of computer voices, and minimal control, but I’m sure that will change. Imagine, five minutes to produce an audiobook instead of a month of painstaking labor.

You can add an audiobook for $1.99 when you buy a physical or ebook version of the book, or $6.97 for a standalone purchase.

This opens our books to a whole new world of “readers,” as audiobooks take off. Enjoy a story on the road, a flight, or a long walk. Playback speed is adjustable, and the voice even handles inflection fairly well.

Far superior to KIndle PaperWhite ReadMe Voice, these computer voices are quite life-like. Don’t forget, a young reader who struggles with reading can improve their skills with a book in front of them as they listen to the audiobook (we used this with our daughter, but she didn’t like that voice.)

More audiobooks are being added all the time.

Available on Amazon and Audible.

Enjoy and let us know how you like them!