Creative Reviews discussion

Hi peeps:

I could do with a quick vox pop from as many people as possible, please?Bear with me while I explain...

My first book was short - 6 chapters - and readers wanted longer. I've released book 2 at a similar length so that, put together they make a decent sized paperback (and bk3 onwards will be full length).

They will be released together to go with the paperback but because a whole load of people already have Book 1 I feel it's only fair to release book 2 as a single for those people.

I numbered the chapters in book 2 starting from Chapter 7 (to follow on from the 6 in Book 1) without worrying too much about it as I've seen it done in fantasy before - but this has thrown a couple of people already and they've thought it downloaded wrongly!!

So here's the question: if you open a book in a series and it says Chapter 7 would you assume something had gone wrong?

I think I need to reformat - any thoughts, or do you reckon that's an overreaction? All feedback appreciated...

Thanks guys:
JAC

Links, if you want them, are
On Dark Shores: The Lady
and On Dark Shores 2: The Other Nereia

Yes, it would seem wrong to me.

I have these good ideas you know....


Thanks Sadie. Anyone else?
JAC

I would be confused about it too. It's a new book, so it starting at Chapter 7 would throw me off.

Thanks Danie...
JAC

Yes, yes and yes (it took me forever to work out why 'A New Hope' was episode 4 :})

I think I would feel the same. I would wonder if there was a mistake in the printing. Hope this helps!

Oh damn. A consensus in 4 posts and three comments...
Anyone else got an opinion on the matter?

(Stephen, did you celebrate Star Wars Day recently? Took me ages to get why that date, and then it amused me greatly...)

JAC

Yes: May the fourth be with you :3

I also think you should renumber them. I would think that it would cause a lot of undue confusion.

hmmmm... starting to wonder why it seemed like such a natural thought at the time now...
JAC

Yes, I think it would confuse me if it started at chapter 7. Sorry!

That's confusing, so yes.

Thanks, people. In the short term I've put a note in the book description. I have to reformat anyhow as there is the usual irritating strays - in this case one full stop, and an "and" - so at least changing the chapters makes it less irritating.

Anyone else got a point of view?
JAC

Man, I did a good job on this one!!
heheheh
I feel a reformat coming on...
JAC

I think I would freak out opening a book that started on chapter 7. I think just having it stated as book 2 should be clear enough that there is a prior book.

I would think that I was missing something...

If the books were called The Lady: on Dark Shores Part One, and the second The Lady: On Dark Shores Part Two, then it would be acceptable to have the chapters starting on 7, because people would understand that it was two different parts of the same book. But with different titles and such, it would make for a very confusing situation.

I think that unless people are going to read them all in one go, which is pretty unlikely, it probably would throw a reader to start at Chapter 7. I can perfectly understand your logic but don't think it works in practice.

Yes... think you're right! One of those things that seems perfectly logical till someone says "Wait a minute" and then you start to wonder what you were ever thinking!!

For the moment hopefully at least the disclaimer on the book's pages will help a bit, and when I do the reformat I shall renumber.

Thanks for your opinions, people! As always, you pull me off the path to total numpty-dom and back to the realms of basic good sense....
< grin >
JAC

yep, book 2 should start with chapter 1 not 7. There have been books miss printed like this before and it may look wrong which might turn people off from reading it. Plus, you would end up with tons of emails about this issue...time is money and you don't want all that crazy email :o)

Hi, JAC

If a reader read the first book, then immediately read book 2, starting with Ch 7 might be ok, but other than that it would be confusing.

I think us "bookie" people would read the books in order, but there are people who just read any book that catches there interest - no special order (as shocking as that is to 'us'!). And that person might see chapter 7 at the beginning, and then toss it aside - not good.

Sorry, JAC, I guess we have given you work.

Patricia

Don't worry Patricia, I'd far rather have it right than not do the work. I may be a bit OCD about though - I had to re-format Book 1 after I uploaded it and discovered there were three lines in the "About the Author" bit (which no-one will read anyhow) which should have been blank and had one solitary full-stop on each. I tried not to, but all this indie lark has knocked me over the line from "pedantic perfectionist" to "bit of a nutcase" I think!!

I just feel sorry for poor Regina who's doing my book cover...she's been very good-humoured about the number of miniscule changes I've made, but I suspect that when it comes to the cover for Bk 3 she'll be otherwise engaged!!!

Ah well.... as soon as I have the paperback sorted, I'll be back on the reformatting wagon for bk2. Already made the changes in the MS for the paperback though!
JAC

Stephen wrote: "Yes: May the fourth be with you :3"

That is truly funny!
––an appreciative reader

Why don't you give it a while and then do an anthology type thing of the first two. That way you get to have one full length book but you also get to have your cake and eat it with the chapters.

I saw this thread kind of late in the process, but I have to tell you--I have a preface (note) in my current WIP--not even my beta readers bothered to read it. They went right to the story! So do not count on a note.

Second point. I recently "finished" reading a book that was not a complete story. The next "segment" was in "book 2." Do not do this. It irritates readers and they feel ripped off--like you're releasing in parts to make more money. Or you're too impatient to finish the work before releasing it.

Now, your first story may be complete, but it sounds like you are releasing novellas that exist in the same world/setting. Or short stories that exist in the same world/setting. This can be confusing to readers and I highly recommend that you do what you can in the description to make sure the buyer knows what they are buying! Some people don't want to read novellas!

Were it me? I'd stop selling the first one and just sell the combined book as an anthology. I would make it clear that they were novellas or short stories too. It's great that you have found an audience, but I can tell you NOTHING made me angrier than to get to the "end" of that segment of the "book" and be told I had to buy "book" two and "three" to get the full story. Serial releases of this nature are not popular with readers (it didn't work for Stephen King either--he tried it years ago).

Just my 2 cents and it might not be worth that!

MTM - what, like the one I'm just sorting out the cover for? heheheh.

Maria - the current plan is to release 1&2 together as a paperback and then when 3 is out, discontinue the separates. The problem lies in the fact that Bk1 came out a year and a bit ago, current thinking was that the future of ebooks was in the short novella. My series is going to be as long as it takes but easily 5 or 6 books anyhow, so I split it short.

Now, things have changed to the point where it is clear that actually what readers want is full-length novels, which leaves me in a slightly problematic position as the first one is too short to put out in a paperback by itself. So I rearranged the bits of the story and put the next part of this story strand to follow book 1 and make it up to full-length. So far, so good... only there are a whole load of people out there who already have book one and will want book 2, but who will feel a bit cheated if to get book 2 they have to buy both 1&2.

Hence I'm bringing out Book 2 as a separate for those who've got book 1, putting both together for the paperback and ebook accompanying the paperback for new readers, and as soon as I've brought out Book 3 and people have had a chance to get hold of Bk2 if they want it, I'll discontinue the separates and go with full-length from 3 onwards.

TBH I was a bit dubious about the serial thing, too, but that was the thinking back in Jan / Feb 2011....
all you can do after that is fix it going forward.
< sigh... >
JAC

Smart move... then, eventually you can migrate sales to that and quietly drop the two separate books.

Good luck.

MTM

That's what I'm hoping! We'll see, anyhow.

It occurs to me that I may well owe you a mail from about 2 months back!! Will go have a look.
JAC