A Different Approach

Now that I've set a timeline to self publish Antigone, I've been working like crazy editing and learning all of the things I need to know to self publish. I even decided to get my cover designed and, after much research, am going with Deranged Doctor Design (DDD). Their covers look phenomenal and original and, it would appear from their web site, that they have a great sense of humour.

But, in the process of telling DDD about my book so they could make their design, I realized how unwieldy the story had become. Kind of epic, actually. And epic is not quite what I was looking for in a first novel for a young adult audience. I think that putting the plots of all three of Sophocles' Oedipus plays plus my own retelling and drama into one book is just too much. I'm over 108,000 thousand words and the average novel these days is 65,000. I didn't realize how long it had gotten and how much actually happens. A lot, to say the least.

The solution: break up the novel into three parts, with each part being based on one of the plays. There are natural breaks in the novel and enough material to easily make three novels. I'm hoping this will make the work, as a whole, more approachable.

I'm excited about the change because I will be able to really concentrate on each part as I publish it, giving each of them more time and energy.

It feels like the right decision and I'm learning to trust my gut feelings on these things.

The first installment will come out this fall, hopefully in October. It shouldn't be too long between installments because the whole thing is written, and will only have to be edited to fit the new format.

Now, to figure out a title for each book...