HARDBACKS & THE HARD PART

It's been a while! Over the last month or so I have been busy with the (almost) final proofreads for The Worth of Scars. As a result, I haven't had much time for anything, let alone social media or website updates, something I hope you can forgive. I'm sure I'll more than make up for it over the next few months as I spam your feeds with more and more promos during the build up to release and beyond. Apologies in advance!

For it is exactly six weeks to go until publication, a phrase that is as exciting as it is terrifying for me to say out loud (or on a blog). To mark this milestone, hardback copies of The Worth of Scars are now officially available for pre-order from most major book retailers. As I've said before, while any idiot can upload an ebook, print editions are a little more tricky, and take a lot longer to sort out. Even now, some UK stores are still yet to upload the cover, Amazon have decided to disappear the hardback from its UK market, and Blackwell's claim it is 'out of stock' (strange, given it's a pre-order and they shouldn't have any stock yet). Not to mention I still have a few details to iron out with the cover, though they're all very fixable. Anyway - takes deep breath - for the most part, all seems to be running smoothly and pre-orders are working on most sites.

You can find links to a few of the major retailers here: https://books2read.com/worthofscars

The other big update is that I have now sent out advance copies of the novel to reviewers. This, for me, is the hard part. As of now, over thirty people are making their way through The Worth of Scars in the hopes that they will post a review and generate buzz for the novel upon its release. At this point (bar another quick proofread or two before publication), I have done all I can. It's in the hands of readers (and the gods), and I can only hope that they enjoy it.

The novel is not for everyone, so I am hardly expecting universal praise. It's long and dark and gruesome, and takes a while to get going. However, if a few people can appreciate the effort and vision and relate to the characters, I'll be happy. If such glowing praise from the author whets your appetite (lol) and you'd be interested in receiving and reviewing an advance copy, there's still plenty of time so do let me know! If you're unsure over whether you want to read or buy the whole thing, I have updated the free excerpt of the novel to the opening six chapters, which you can find here: https://BookHip.com/SQGBFHA

So for now I just have to sit and wait. As unbearable as that may be, at least I have a bit of time to do something other than stare at my own work for weeks on end (I'm really selling the book here, aren't I?), as well as maybe update you all with a few more sneak-peeks and promos as the release date looms ever closer.

Cheers!