This is a draft of the book cover that my sister in law Gill Bowditch-Cooper is in the process of doing for my new book Alice’s Secret.
Alice’s Secret is the second book in the trilogy that I’m writing about the different generations of the same family. It has themes of relationships, family, hardships and diversity. Elen is the first book. You can find it at:
http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01911AE8Q
I am in the process of editing Alice’s Secret which is a drawn out process to say the least! Here’s an extract from it, due out in July 2016.
Prologue
July 1874
Sara was sure that she had already walked by this neck of the woods; yes, she could see the old piece of farm machinery sticking out of the ground, just to the right of the lane. It had sat in the ground half buried in the soil ever since she could remember, so that anyone passing may not have seen it. Except for me, Sara thought. I should know this lane very well; I have walked around here enough times with Henry. So, why did she feel so lost? She looked behind her at the unfamiliar stretch of woods, as they curved around the corner, out of sight. She looked forward again, coming closer to the rusted old piece of machinery. It looked different to what she remembered. It was not the same, but just looked like it. This piece had rusted spikes which had become exposed in the rain. No, it was not the familiar piece. It was then that panic bubbled inside, as she realised that she was lost. She looked up at the sky, as a large drop of rain descended onto her nose, followed rapidly by another. She pulled her shawl around her as the heat of the day had rapidly turned into the chill of the night time. There was a quick movement up ahead; rabbits had come out to play as the dusk was falling, jumping around the grassland looking for their dinner.
A gust of wind blew around her dress, and pulled the shawl off her shoulders. She wished that Henry had come with her today, but he was needed up at the Mackenzie’s Farm. She groaned at the unfairness of it all. He should be here with me! She thought. The shawl blew across the road, and onto the branches of an old oak tree. She ran over to retrieve it, trying to get it free from the gnarly fingers of the tree. It seemed to be stuck fast, and she knew that her mother would leather her if she had snagged it; Alice had only just finished making it for her. It was made of the soft wool of the merino sheep that they kept on their farm and was fine and soft to wear. Sara set the shawl free, and adjusted her bonnet which had come off her head and was dangling down her back, allowing the soft curls of her hair to come loose.
Just then, as she was setting herself right and wondering which direction was the best to take, she heard a twig snap in the woods set to the right of her. A flock of birds suddenly decided to take flight just up ahead; an indication that something or someone had disturbed them. What was there, hiding in the woods?
‘Who’s there?’ she cried out. ‘Don’t hide from me, I can see you.’
There was the sound of more twigs snapping, and a rustling, which seemed nearer now. Sara could make out no one in the rapidly dimming light; even the rabbits seemed to have disappeared as the rain started to come down more forcefully. Sara was starting to feel soaked through; she would be in for it when she got home.
The noise from the woods was now just metres away, and she could just make out a form amongst the trees, and then a hand appeared pulling back some particularly dense bushland.
‘Oh, it’s you,’ she uttered in a confused tone. ‘What are you doing out here? Did my dad send you? Do you know the best way to get back to the farm? I’m lost you see, and would love some help.’
The only reply was the sound of the rain dripping onto the trees, and the gurgling of the rivets of rainfall as it pooled around her.
*
Copyright: Suzanne Bowditch, 2016
June 23, 2016 at 12:01 am
You have my interest in this segment so it sounds like it will sell.I am still looking for a platform to self publish my own book. Any new ideas?
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June 23, 2016 at 2:13 am
I use blogs and FB but any social media device works. Good luck 🙂
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June 22, 2016 at 2:02 am
Reblogged this on suzannebowditch and commented:
I am so excited to announce a date for my next book!! Alice’s Secret, the second in the saga A Celtic Trilogy, will be out July 10th 🙂 as an ebook.
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April 19, 2016 at 9:38 am
Oh this is wonderful, I love the cover art!!
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April 19, 2016 at 12:38 pm
Thank you! my sister in law is an artist and did this cover for me. She on Instagram and Facebook 🙂 Gillian Bowditch-Cooper. She also did the book cover for my first book Elen. The books are part of a trilogy I’m writing called A Celtic Trilogy. http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01911AE8Q
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April 17, 2016 at 8:35 am
Do you by any chance follow the “Chris, the Story-Reading Ape” blog. It often has a lot of pots that look helpful for people who are self-publishing books. 🙂
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April 17, 2016 at 8:36 am
Forgot the URL. It’s https://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/. 🙂
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April 17, 2016 at 11:14 am
Thanks for the link I will check it out 🙂
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April 17, 2016 at 3:12 pm
You’re welcome. 🙂
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April 13, 2016 at 3:02 pm
I have just looked at Kindle Scout in which readers nominate your book for publishing, over a 45 day period. I am looking further into that, will keep you posted 🙂
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April 13, 2016 at 2:54 pm
I am not sure . I will investigate further and let you know. Thanks for the alternate idea.
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April 13, 2016 at 2:59 pm
Thank you. The self publishing world is a total minefield, would appreciate any info. 🙂
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April 13, 2016 at 12:21 pm
Thanks. Do you know anything about Lulu.com as a choice for self book publishing?
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April 13, 2016 at 1:23 pm
No I don’t. Is it better than Amazon Kindle, that’s what I used for my last book.
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April 12, 2016 at 2:27 pm
I am curious about the editing process for aspiring book writers. Any insights to share? Thanks.
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April 13, 2016 at 12:18 am
It’s a total learning process, involving reading your work, then reading it again, then checking it again! It helps if you have an editor (or even a friend) to look at it with ‘fresh eyes.’ Hope this helps 🙂
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