The month of August has become a big handle turning exercise. September augurs more of the same.
The reason being is that 35 of the 100 chapters of Soulwaves are now narrated. I make no bones about it, it is a huge task and big ask, with no shortcuts.
While it might sound like a lot of hard work, it does feel I am taking my hands off the wheel and coasting down hill to a glorious destination. Apart from anything, I am really enjoying reading my own book back and remembering things I’d forgotten I’d wrote.
Reading a book out loud is simply the best and most thorough way to proof read a book. Here’s why:
#1. If I can read it out loud, a reader can’t read it ‘in loud’. It won’t scan well.
#2. I am spotting forward references I set up in earlier chapters I wrote many months ago that I can pick up and develop subtly in later chapters.
#3. You spot errors even the best editor/proof reader may not have spotted. I’ve found loads and suspect there are more.
August also saw two weeks off with some family support commitments. Due to ongoing support commitments, I plan to have the next third of the book narrated by the time I blog next and the final third completed by the end of October.
This will lead to print and ebook production in November which in turn means publication should be early December.
One of the tricks I use, which is also one I use in writing, is to record the very ending words first. This is the poem I wrote many years ago to describe the essence of what a Soulwave is. It wraps up the book but there’s no spoiler alert as it gives nothing away about the actual ending. Merely it describes how Soulwaves are the fabric of the Universe.
Several blogs ago I set my stall our to post once a month as a bread crumb trail of what was going on in my life – the original purpose and format for a blog perhaps.
Something happened at the start of this month which means I should break with this tradition and sneak an extra blog in – my meditations on Insight Timer hit the 2 million listens mark, after three years.
What does this mean?
Firstly, what was something I played and experimented with has gone mainstream. People seem to enjoy each new meditation I post.
Secondly, I have hit a groove where there is no limit. I post two to three free pieces of audio a month – a meditation, a podcast and a short story. The sales revenue from Insight Timer courses mean I can relax and release more and more free stuff, which in turn helps with sales. After 15 years of pretty continual content creation, I have found my metier.
Thirdly, it means I can really devote the time my forthcoming novel Soulwaves requires to create a Big Splash.
Eternal thanks to the team at Insight Timer and all those souls who helped me get to this milestone.
Now I should state that I am really not a fan of Formula 1. To me the prospect of watching paint dry is more compelling.
That said, I am a big fan of analogy and metaphor and the concept of taking a pit stop and changing tyres for a new road ahead seemed to be very fitting to this point in my path.
My pit stop has taken more than a few seconds though. This one has stretched from May right through to the beginning of August as two events unfolded. First, my editor has been going through my novel Soulwaves and the manuscript has now been batted back across the Pond and is in my hands. Second, we at last sold our house in Surrey and can now move full time into our new eco-home.
The observant will note that the timing of these two events cannot be coincidental … especially as it means I can retire, put my slippers on, watch day time TV and play golf when I want to (the eco-house happens to be on a golf course) …
… I could alternatively move up several gears !
Space and Time
An excellently detailed edit has given the novel a new depth and expansiveness. The space I have had away from it has given a new objectiveness. Authors often fear the suggestions of editors, perhaps because it reminds them of homework at school being marked. I have been relishing receiving the perspective of another human being and plan to take it all on board PLUS being I have a new found confidence to push the boat out still further.
So this new re-tyre-ment means that I can really devote myself full time to making the novel the best it can be. I have been fortunate to stumble across, by accident, someone who has made a cover I am really proud of. Now it’s time to make sure the inside of the book comes up to the same quality.
… as both space and time are themes I play with in the book, this only seems fitting.
What kind of tyres do I need?
Formula 1 teams bear a few factors in mind when selecting their tyres in a pit stop. They think about the conditions ahead, is the track wet or dry? They consider how many laps there are to go, and if they can possibly avoid yet another pit stop. They might not even fill the car entirely up with fuel to make it lighter.
For me, I know the road ahead and am fortunate that I am not in a race. The book has taken many years to form and if it comes out by the end of this year, I will have achieved more than I ever thought possible.
So the next few laps, probably until the end of August, will involve me editing the edits. For this I will need ‘wet’ tyres that help me stick to the track and not come off the rails. Going over five chapters a day is my aim.
Another pit stop will be then required, as I slip into a new gear. September will be the month of audiobook production – also the best proof read an author can do. If I cannot say a sentence out loud, the reader will not be able to read it ‘in loud’. This will need ‘dry’ tyres as it involves a lot of handle turning and consistency and the road is pretty straight and long, with no corners, just a beginning, some re-fuelling stops and an end.
October will be a time to pull in and hand the files over to the production team for publication. A new vehicle will be assembled with a whole range of new capabilities. This vehicle will have no wheels – it will be self-powered and able to levitate – much like the spacecrafts mentioned in the book.
Like the chariot in the Tarot, I will not be the driver, but the passenger, and will allow it to take me to new pastures in bounty-full lands. My hands will be off the wheel.
This month I did something I have never done before in the middle of a big project. I took a month off. Well not exactly, I packed up a house I’d lived in for 20 years and had a week’s holiday on a wide beam 64 foot long canal boat on the Kennet & Avon.
Part of the reason for a break (or is that brake?) from the project is that Soulwaves is being edited. I did however get a new iPadPro and used iMovie to create the trailer below for Soulwaves.
So I took a dose of my own advice, taking the foot well of the gas has given time and space for so many doors to open – and to open fully wide.
Onwards & very much upwards … more on this next month 😎
The two pillars in the High Priestess card in the Tarot represent Involution and Evolution.
Involution is like a winding down, or curling up, and it leads to evolution when it unfolds again.
Reflecting on this natural cycle, the High Priestess sits on a Cube (more on this coming up over the next few months) and holds the scroll of Tora, which contains all wisdom.
It’s no coincidence that this last month has seen much involution as the next phase of evolution is about to arrive.
Just for Today
After nearly four years of writing them, and two years of having them illustrated by the wonderful Siri Stiklestad Opli, the last Just for Today will be posted today. Is that the end of them though? No way! They begat from a meditation and every month going forward I’ll be publishing a new meditation based using the words “just for today” as the seed.
This is the meditation that started them off – eponymously called Just for Today …
You can listen to the others for free on Insight Timer
and just sharing my favourite illustrated JFT again here (must get that T-shirt done!)
Non-fiction to fiction author
Soulwaves will be back from the editor today and I’ll be spending the next three months getting it ready for publication. This will involve incorporating the edits, updating the science (thanks brother John) and narrating the audiobook as the final process of the edit. If I can’t say it “out loud”, readers won’t be able to experience it “in loud”.
I’ve also been learning about how to get a book made into film or TV. This book would need a serious rewrite so I’m looking at either an adaptation, or a new series of sequels/prequels written for telly using the principles of soulwaves as a seed. Black Mirror is my muse!
Surrey to Wiltshire
After over 20 years in our wonderful house in Surrey, this month it came under offer and we’ll (hopefully) be permanently moving to the new ‘passive’ and eco-friendly house in Wiltshire in July. This passing represents a huge transition too, from living in a 100 year old energy inefficient house to one which virtually runs itself and in Summer sends energy to the grid.
With much less energy drain, finances free up too. In addition, my latest courses on Insight Timer are now providing a decent sleeping income. All of which means, I will be free to write 24×7 (ideas come in dreams too).
What goes around, comes around … listen to this podcast for a summary of the journey so far.
NEXT MONTH : How cogs whir when pebbles are dropped in the pod … and you keep a quiet mind to allow the ripples to come back.
This month sees a couple of new crossings over. One of them was planned and the other unexpected and accidental.
Crossing #1 : Non-fiction to fiction
The first planned crossing is from non-fiction author to post-dystopian cyberpunk novelist as the first draft, at 100k words, is now with the editor. It started 14 years and 16 books ago and I’m now turning th handle on the publication process. I am hoping ebook, audiobook and print book will leak out into the world between June and September this year.
To signify this first crossing, I have assumed the de plume Töm Evans, in memory of my Irish godmother Eileen who often called me “Thom”. This will be the fictional author name going forward – a kind of soft and subtle nom de plume which I hope doesn’t come across as being slight affected.
The book covers are also in production, featuring Valles Marineris on Mars and a special kind of non-spherical supernova – both key elements in the plot.
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Crossing #2 : Selling Time to Providing Content
It’s the dream of any artist to make money while they sleep so that they can focus on their art. The arrival of my second course on Insight Timer seems to have helped me make that crossing, somewhat unexpectedly.
What’s more the feedback for my new Mindfulness for Busy People Course, surpasses even my expectations and has encouraged me to start thinking about the next course (and the next work of fiction)
“Some days I feel like you’re sitting next to me at the kitchen table, sharing a nice cup of tea, and musing on life. Each meditation is exactly the right thing I need to hear on exactly the right day. Bless you, Tom.”
“The title of your course jumped off the screen at me and I was hooked. As the saying goes, when the student is ready the teacher appears, so I thank you sincerely. I am on day six, and am loving this.”
“I know I’m going to sound funny saying this but it’s like this guided meditation course was made exactly for me. Every word was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment. This path of meditation and awareness is still fairly new to me and it’s so easy to let the ego and negative moments in my life to take over. This course is exactly what my soul needs. Thank you Tom.”
“Dear Tom, you have one of the most amazing voices here on Earth. I’ve listened to you quite a bit and I’ve become familiar with the tone of your voice, which means that I am now instantly relaxing within seconds after starting any of your meditations.”
The two pillars in the High Priestess card in the Tarot represent Involution and Evolution.
Soulwaves will be back from the editor today and I’ll be spending the next three months getting it ready for publication. This will involve incorporating the edits, updating the science (thanks brother John) and narrating the audiobook as the final process of the edit. If I can’t say it “out loud”, readers won’t be able to experience it “in loud”.
After over 20 years in our wonderful house in Surrey, this month it came under offer and we’ll (hopefully) be permanently moving to the new ‘passive’ and eco-friendly house in Wiltshire in July. This passing represents a huge transition too, from living in a 100 year old energy inefficient house to one which virtually runs itself and in Summer sends energy to the grid.
This month sees a couple of new crossings over. One of them was planned and the other unexpected and accidental.
Crossing #2 : Selling Time to Providing Content