In July, I wrote about how The Boy With Two Heads (originally published in 2012) has become Book 1 of The Connection Trilogy. I stated titles and timings, all of which I have since had to change (though not the ISBNs) - a lesson from my professional days that I'd forgotten: 'schedules are guides, not laws'. So the evolution of the trilogy continues, and this is an update on its progress.
Although I now wear two hats, the author’s and the publisher’s, unfortunately I have only one head (unlike the original title of my book!). And my one head is that of a perfectionist.
So the many enjoyable (to me, at least) processes involved in metamorphosing The Boy with Two Heads into The Boy in Two Minds, and preparing his sequels to be consistent as a trilogy, have been progressing rather slowly. Mind you, this year, The Boy has gone through two title changes, one text revision, one cover change, and still awaits a tweak to his styling. This is truly ‘learning through doing’. And the 'doing' is very different from when I was a professional editor and later publisher in an ‘in house’ department in the last century!
I have also been preparing the other two books in the trilogy. These are the three draft covers … My enduring thanks to Kate, my collaborator on these. We will eventually get there!
My thanks, too, to those who have bought The Boy in his present state as print and ebook, both of which will be marginally (literally!) updated in the new year.
During the autumn, my single head and mind were distracted from writing and publishing because at last I was able to travel to Greece. There I experienced the joy and excitement of the birth of a new family member, and I managed to visit a couple of locations that come into the story in Book 3, the Heraion of Perahora (lots of guessing as to what it was really like), and the Diolkos (an amazing remnant of an ancient 'railway'!).
The Diolkos is the drag-way used by ships along approximately the same line as the Corinth Canal from around 600 BCE. What a sight, to see a ship gliding on land up the gentle gradient (hauled by oxen perhaps?), and then 'floating' down the other side, back to the sea!
(Nowadays, nearby, a reproduction Poseidon stands guard by a modern basketball court, 'protecting' the area around the western mouth of the Canal. Surely, in its heyday, he had a temple at each end of the Diolkos?)
So my fictional Boy and Girl often wait in line for my attention. And although The Girl in Two Worlds's original July publishing date has been pushed into 2022, she is well on her way - on a trireme, no less!
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| from greekerthanthegreeks.com |
A different kind of ship has ushered in the celebrations for the winter solstice and Christmas in Greece for centuries. Traditionally, decorative ships appear in early December (this was in Aristotelous Square in Thessaloniki some years ago) and similar boats have been decorated in homes and villages since ancient times, often now alongside the more modern Christmas tree.
This one is here to bring my readers my best wishes for your joy rather than frustration over the holidays in these bewildering times.
I wish you a joyfully Merry Christmas, and thank you for reading!
