To Decide a Release Date

I was so ecstatic about releasing my novel on Independence Day 2013!  I figured that the subject matter -- our nation becoming free from tyranny for the second time in more than that many hundred years -- warranted such an awesome publication date, one that could be easily remembered.  But to release it on that day is still doable as far as putting out a finished, though not refined product.  In other words, the storyline will still be there, but the revisions will not be complete.  It would be similar to owning a diamond in the rough.  Sure, it's very valuable.  But it is so much prettier after it has been cut, shaped, and polished for fashionable wear.

I plan to be done with the complete first draft of the novel by July 4.  But my revision process is very detailed and thorough.  So far, after I have finished one part of the novel, I have proofread that whole part to make sure that I conveyed everything the way I meant to convey it and not left any essential items out of the text.  So far, I have done this with the first three parts of my novel.  After I complete this final part of the novel, I plan to revise it as well.

But this is not the only editing being done on the novel.  My aunt, Brenda Morgan, is kindly taking the time to proofread the novel for me as well.  This is so very important, because it is a fresh set of eyes...someone who has not already experienced the text at all.  So far, she has completed the first part of the novel.  I've yet to go through it and consider her revisions, most of which I am sure I will approve.  Right now, she is currently reading the second part.  I expect her to finish up within the next couple of weeks, at which time I will send her the third part.

The editing is a major issue, but there are also one other major issue I need to fix.  My novel will contain map diagrams showing our nation at various stages leading up to and during the 2nd American Civil War.  I tried my hand at photo editing a blank map I found, but it ended up looking like the east end of a westward-bound mule.  So I need to tighten up these graphics, and this will take time as well.

So for me to release the novel by the Fourth of July, I will be putting a novel on the market with the following flaws:

• Only half of the novel will be polished in the manner that Tom Clancy or Stephen King would have done before releasing their novels.
• Crappy, amateurish looking graphics that will not represent me in the serious manner of which I wish to be represented.

My novel is only going to cost $2.99 on Amazon Kindle.  I know that is not a lot of money.  And many of you reading this may think:  What the hell, go ahead and release it!  The readers are not paying that much anyway!  But I simply cannot release anything other than a perfect product for this very important reason:  This is my breakout novel!  This one will make or break me.

Please don't get me wrong.  I'm not saying that I'm only going to release what I feel is a perfect product only this first time.  Because that is not the case at all.  However, this first time, it is more important than ever that I get it all right!

So being that Independence Day is out of the question, I have chosen to release the novel instead on Labor Day.  After all, since the beginning of this year, this manuscript has been a true labor of love for me.