Yesterday I announced that I’ll be self-publishing my fantasy novel, The Wild through my own imprint, Mythic Island Press LLC. This isn’t as frightening as it might seem at first. Book publishing is changing rapidly, and it’s much easier for a small press to bring out a book than it used to be.

Also, I’m lucky enough to have a few advantages. I’ve got a track record—six novels published by either Bantam Spectra or Tor, and a couple of awards that will help with promotion. This venture would be a lot harder if I were a first-time novelist.

I’ve also got family behind me, ready to help with finance and promotion. With luck, I’ve got other people behind me too—yes, I mean you who are reading this. You’ve been very patient with me through a long, dry spell and I truly appreciate it.

For you, I’ve got an offer and a request. We’ll be printing up twenty-five to thirty pre-publication (advance reader copies or ARCs) of The Wild. With luck, they’ll be ready to go out in early January.

We’d like to send them to a diverse set of interested readers: some who read mostly fantasy, some who don’t, some who like challenging books, some who prefer simpler fare, eclectic readers, occasional readers, writers, non-writers, men, women, different ages, different geographies . . . you get the idea.

What we ask in return is that you read the ARC within two to three weeks and answer a questionnaire on it, and on you, as a reader. Our goal is to discover and address potential problems with the story, and to determine how best to market it (and if we can harvest a few marketable quotes on the side, even better).

ARCs are expensive, so this is going to be a very limited list. Please don’t be offended if we don’t have a copy for you. But if you’re interested in being on the list, don’t be shy! Step right up and email me at linda at mythicisland dot com, and tell me a little bit about yourself and your reading interests.

As always, thank you for your interest in my work, and thanks for stopping by!

Posted on: Wednesday, December 15th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Categories: Publishing, The Wild.