I never realized how complex it is to both write and to publish a book. Writing the story itself is mind boggling with all the research necessary to get all of the facts and storyline correct.
People continually ask me that since my book is fictional, "why not make everything up.. I mean your characters are fake... so why not make everything fake as well." My stock answer is always the same... to make the fictional characters appear real, all of the background, the locations, the other people, life in that period of time etc... everything behind the story and the main character must appear to be very real.. or credibility for the main character and the story is lost..
In my story......
A Man With A Secret, the main character is called Jack L. Striker. He was born in England, later moves to Canada with his family where he grows up in Toronto. Jack then returns to England and joins the Royal Marines, involved with 3 commando brigade. He sees a lot of (behind enemy lines) action, then is involved in the Falklands war. Later he returns to Canada, where he meets the woman that will become his wife.
Jack leads a dual life. Jack L. Striker works for an organization that investigates high level fraud within companies and sometimes problematic countries. This cover job allows him to travel unsuspected to anywhere in the world.
Jack L. Stryker also works for an organization only known as The Company. Here his involvement has him working on sensitive and secret missions as a highly trained specialist, an assassin.
No one in his other life, his wife, his family, his friends and associates, no one knows who Jack really is.
"A Man With A Secret" will be published as an eBook.
which is so easy to say and somewhat difficult to do, or that is, to get it done the right way. There seem to be challenges at every corner to get all of the technicals aspects of publishing online done the way it should be done.
I plan to also print some books (on real paper). Yes real books. These real books will be used to cover some promotional aspects of the way I plan to market "A Man With A Secret" and to use as giveaways to people that will support my efforts along the way.
There are always costs to me involved and to offset those expenses, I am looking into using a crowdfunding platform, which has become a viable means for many people to get to where they have to get to. Small investments from many people making the whole project work. I believe it is all very possible to accomplish.
I more or less understand the costing for printing a paperback book now. It is fixed to the amount of books you print out. A bigger run costs less per book and so on. Some publishing houses offer art services for covers or dust jackets, etc.
Then there is copy editing and proof reading which is far more involving that just a spell check service.
Marketing comes in many forms. There are a vast number of outlets that I can use, especially online. It will be important to have as many other writers read my book as possible. Book clubs are important. Book readings invaluable.
Teasers used online of part of the book to entice that "more" feeling from readers.
And if I choose to use Amazon's Kindle Owners Lending Library, the possibilities are endless for me.
That aside I would love to take this book onto the streets. Not literally the streets that is, but to promote it by visiting country fairs, shopping malls, use POP displays, trade show events, or anywhere that people gather.
While it may seem a marketing nightmare, the trick is to give away as many books as possible. I never understood that marketing strategy. It does though work. Pleased readers talk about the book and through word of mouth more learn of it and purchase the book. The end result will be a book that becomes popular. A popular book sells. A popular book sells itself.
There are three books involved here. There is far too much information as the main character is as complex as the enemies he faces. It is now a trilogy of the story A Man with a Secret I am writing.
Three books that cover his life and adventures. The first is completed. Book two and three already show a good layout and using a good template, they become easier to create. They are flowing out of my imagination easily. A prequel is in the planning stages that follows the adventures and the life of his father and up to the time he meets Jacks mother and the start of a new family.
