I thought it was about time I updated you on the work I’m doing to relaunch Fiji’s book, Paws for Thought. I have now finished all the changes I wish to make to the manuscript and have moved onto my final few tasks before submitting the text to my amazing editor, Melanie Harvard, of Harvard Ink.
You may be wondering what those final tasks are. I am deciding what images to include in the new parts of the book and am creating image descriptions so that any of my readers who are unable to see the pictures can also get a sense of how cute my beautiful girl was.
Then it will be time to send the manuscript to my beta readers. Their job is to help me pick up any errors in the text and give me feedback on what I’ve written. This is an important part of the process for me, though I find myself remembering Fiji’s blog comment on what she called the human stuff that she simply didn’t understand.
Then, after making any changes suggested by those self-same beta readers, it’s off to Mel with the manuscript for yet one more set of eyes to help me weed out any mistakes I might have missed. This may seem like overkill, but I know that I improve the book every time someone else takes a critical look at it.
After that, I will be entering the final straight and getting ready to publish. I will be asking for ARC Readers (advanced review copy) and preparing the manuscript to go onto Amazon. I will also need to start chatting to my local printers to organise print copies for anyone in South Africa who would like a copy.
But there is one more important decision that I’d really like your help with, whether to change the sub-title of the book or not.
Please let me know which of the following you prefer:
1 Paws for Thought: Seeing the World Through the Eyes of a Guide Dog,
Or
2 Paws for Thought: The Complete Story of Guide Dog Fiji.
Thanks so much for taking a moment to give me your input. It is highly appreciated.
