women’s fiction | Joynell Schultz

Sound the trumpets!

I finished a short prequel to Love, Lies & Clones that I thought was a lost cause.

It’s called Subject 23. Here it is:

Subject 23

Alice Taylor poured her heart into the advancement of science. It wasn’t until she connected with a surrogate mother, Subject 23, did she begin questioning what path science was taking her down.

This is a glimpse into June’s father’s cloning experiments. Meet June’s mother, Alice, and watch her struggle with the ethics behind the project.

You can download a copy HERE.

I had started writing it back in January with hopes of using it to entice readers to pick up the full novel, but abandoned the project because it contained spoilers, and I couldn’t figure out how to get the spoilers out of the story.

What a shame to have a story mostly finished and not be able to let people read it…that was until I had an idea last week while writing the post for my 1000 “true” fans blog series.

I finished this 5000+ word story up and am marketing it as a prequel best enjoyed AFTER reading the full novel. I mean, that’s better than letting it sit on the virtual shelf, unread, right?

If you’re interested, it’s a standalone story. You can read it if you’ve read Love, Lies & Clones, don’t intend to read the novel, or don’t really care about spoilers.

I kept a similar cover to Love, Lies & Clones, just to keep it easy. Hopefully, that doesn’t make things confusing.

Have a great day, everyone! Thanks for sharing my journey.

–Joy

Maybe the question should be, “Is this blog series done yet? Ha Ha! No. Not yet. There’s so much information I want to share. Check out PART 1 or PART 2 of this series if you’re just joining now.

The question I’ve been asking all week, “How long did it take you to write your most recent book(s)?” My official answer to that question is this:

I wrote Love, Lies, & Clones in 8 or 9 months, but I was also working on two other novels in that time that will come out in 2017 (“Blood & Holy Water” and “Superhero Wives”). I get tired of one project and need something else to take my mind off of it, so I can come back with a fresh eye.

But how long should it take me? What if I want to keep my “fans” happy?

I’ve been overhearing that the best way to have people notice your novels is to write another…and another. Keep giving them new material to read. In this article HERE, it says many authors publish four books a year. Wow…but ouch!

I ask, what QUALITY were those books? I’m sure many authors are completely capable of producing four fantastic, well-written novels per year, but I am not. And that’s okay.

I say it’s a balancing act. Keep getting fresh material out in the world, however long it takes you, so that you don’t sacrifice quality. A fan will be happier waiting for a well written novel than reading the next hacked-together installment quickly. But that’s just my opinion–one I need to keep telling myself as I (slowly) plug away finishing my works-in-progress.

Now, if you’re looking to have writing be the method in which you earn your living, then four novels a year is probably a necessity. I imagine, the more you write, the easier they get.

Okay, here’s the fun part. Some authors speak out on how long it took to write their novel(s).

Today’s Spotlight: ROMANCE / WOMEN’S FICTION / ANTHOLOGIES Authors

Note: You can CLICK any book cover below to learn more. You may find your next novel to read!

QUESTION: How long did it take you to write your most recent book(s)?

Kyla Stone: I’ve had the idea bouncing around in my head for over a decade. From outlining/plotting, through the rough draft, revisions, final, editing, etc. took six months.

Marissa Marchan: With this novel, My Runaway Bride, it took me a little over three months. But it actually took longer to edit the book than it did to write it. Even after I got it back from the editor, I still went through a round of self-edits until I finally satisfied. All in all, it took me eight months before I entered it to Kindle Scout.

Laura Greenwood: My most recent published is What Lies Beneath the Mask, which I started in late January and published on the 1st December. It took me about 2 1/2 months to write the first draft, around my day job and other commitments. However, the last novel I wrote, Siren’s Storm, took just under a month (I had a slow start to NaNo!) So that’s pretty much the benchmark now!