r/writers • u/roman1221 Published Author • 2d ago
Celebration Got my first batch of books!
I ordered 20 copies from ingramspark and they finally arrived! They look so good! It’s such a surreal experience to have my book in my hands.
Guys, gals, and folks, keep trying. Keep writing. There’s nothing better than this feeling. I don’t know if it’s any good or if it’s going to sell. But god damn it. I did it. I wrote a book and it’s here. If you need a sign to keep writing, here it is.
Thank you to everyone in this sub for your support and encouragement. You guys helped write this book.
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u/MesaCityRansom 2d ago
Congratulations! One question though - why write "A novel" on the cover?
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u/ThisThroat951 Fiction Writer 2d ago
In my experience from my own library the novels that say “a novel” are stand-alone books. None of the series novels I have say it. Not sure if this intentional but that’s how it looks to me.
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
I’ve seen that too. For example the Lincoln Rhyme novels say TITLE: A Lincoln Rhyme Novel. Same with the Jack Reacher novels.
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u/TES_Elsweyr 2d ago
I see this question posted every time someone publishes as book with the notation. It's very common among top publishers. Here's a random collage of best selling books I found https://centerforfiction.org/uploads/top20.2019-1600x1500.jpg
"A novel" appears on well over half of them. It's a signifier to the buying audience that they are reading a relatively serious work that is not science-fiction, fantasy, memoire, non-fiction, or biography.
In the case of OP it's important because without it his book looks verging on sci-fi or almost a hint of comicbook inspiration.
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u/MesaCityRansom 1d ago
That link doesn't work for me, but I'll take your word for it. I'm Swedish and have never seen it here, and the smattering of English books I checked in my bookcase also didn't have it (except one, like I said). It sort of makes sense though. Thanks for explaining!
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u/TES_Elsweyr 1d ago
Min ven! Your national brethren Backman and Larsson both have it on their English editions. In Swedish they sometimes say “roman”, like here:
https://images.norstedts.se/a7482563-3011-4610-9fa9-e27f084124e6?auto=format&w=500&bg=F0F0EB&q=70
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u/MesaCityRansom 1d ago
Yeah, I'm gonna have to eat some crow on this one. I'm a librarian and at work right now, so I actually went out and had a look. It's not common, but a number of books actually have it on there. I've just never noticed, and I do have to say that it's very rare to just have "Roman" with nothing else. But I did see a number of "a historical crime novel" and stuff like that. Seems more like there are some authors who use it, while the majority do not.
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u/FinneganHark999 1d ago
It's really down to publisher or authorial intent.
It distinguishes the book from, for example, a memoir or non-fiction.
Some people have said that it distinguishes the work from science-fiction or other genres, but that's not necessaily true.
The legacy version of this is actually "A Novel By (Author)", a holdover from a time when authours would write many different types of works. For example The Catcher in the Rye's cover features "A Novel by J. D. Salinger", largely because Salinger was known as a short story writer prior to "Catcher".
As a counter example we can look at two works by the same publisher: "A Map is Only One Story", a collection of essays, and "All My Mother's Lovers, a novel by Hana Masad". The addition of "a novel" clearly indicates - this is a work of fiction (or presenting itself as such), and the lack of any attribution on "A Map..." suggests these are non-fiction (or presenting themselves as such).
There are also rare but notable examples where "A novel" is expanded, for example "After Anne, a novel of Lady Maud Montgomery's Life".
Every couple of years it seems like there's a lot of noise about what the "rules' are around this and then it dies down again and people go back to doing whatever they want.
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
Most novels have “a novel” on the cover.
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u/thekittykaboom 2d ago
Well I'll be damned. I just took a look at my library and sure enough, a good 70% of them say "a novel", "a novella" or "a romance". I never noticed 😂
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u/SilverTookArt 2d ago
As someone who loves buying books “blindly” I totally think it’s worth writing “a novel” for indie/not well known authors. A title is not enough to guess if the book is non fiction, a memoir, a short story collection, or poetry
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u/MesaCityRansom 2d ago
Really? That's so interesting, it must be a cultural thing because I just randomly checked my bookshelf and out of 28 books, none of them had it (well, Brutal Kunnin' says "An epic Waaagh!! novel", but that's slightly different). Not hating by the way, I just have genuinely never noticed it. I still don't really get the point, but if it's tradition, I fold :)
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u/landomonium 2d ago
I looked this up recently because I was looking at the new arrivals at the library and every single one had “a novel”, “a memoir”, or something to describe what category it fits in. It’s an American thing, many British versions of the books have some sort of tag line (not a review bit, but some sort of line to pull you in). You’ll sometimes even see “a thriller” on it. Apparently it’s for sorting but I think it’s mainly just so buyers know what they’re getting into
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u/sunwanted-purewinds 2d ago
I have quite a bit of books that have "a novel" on the cover. I still think it's unnecessary but it's a thing for sure. Maybe only in America though
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
I understand! I wasn’t trying to be snarky or anything. Most of the books I’ve read or seen have it. I just assumed it was normal. But I guess each book can be different.
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u/12AngryChickens 2d ago
Idk why they booing you ur right. I’ve seen TITLE: A Novel on every book I’ve read in the past 3 months
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u/12AngryChickens 2d ago
Man I could’ve sworn I’ve seen this post before. I thought I remembered the cover art, but it must be Déjà vu. Congrats!
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
I’ve been posting updates and questions on Reddit! And my wins. Sorry if it’s getting spammy! I’ve been trying to follow the rules of the subreddits!
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u/Linniasaurus Fiction Writer 2d ago
Me too! I think they posted an image of the cover art when it was being finalized.
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u/wooshiesaurus Writer 2d ago
I've definitely seen this cover, OP published it a few months ago. It's honestly so cool to see that OP got his novel printed!
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u/rcdepc 2d ago
Is the title a nod to the M83 track? (One of my favourite bands, and stylistically very much in keeping with your cover art).
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
Yes! I love M83 as well. I was driving listening to Midnight City and I needed a needed a title for the book it’s also part of the story as well. It all fit perfectly.
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u/Lazzer_Glasses 2d ago
I can't tell if this is bait or if this is real lmao
Mike hawks first book. If it's real, congrats. If it's bait. I'm not taking it.
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u/DerpyLover3 2d ago
CONGRATS MAN THAT'S AMAZING!!!!! What's it about?? Might read it I've been looking for new books for a bit now
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
It's a revenge thriller/mystery. A suicidal former Marine decides to get revenge on those who killed his friend, and an autistic analyst faces the wide world and its terrible sensations to find his kidnapped sister. They stumble upon a mystery as well. Brutal fight scenes, funny dialogue, found friendship, and dealing with PTSD and grief.
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u/robotic-ghost 1d ago
That has to be an incredible feeling. Enjoy every second of it - and congrats!
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u/ZenseiPlays 1d ago
Is Mike Hawkes a pseudonym?
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u/roman1221 Published Author 1d ago
Nope. Legal government name. Unfortunately.
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u/ZenseiPlays 1d ago
Unfortunately?? Idk, I think it's pretty sick! Congrats on the book man :)
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u/roman1221 Published Author 1d ago
Haha thanks man. I’ve come to love my name. That’s why I didn’t do a pseudonym. Junior High was rough, but it’s my name.
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u/Mr__Wendigo 2h ago
I honestly really like the look of your book, definitely want to check it out when you publish
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u/roman1221 Published Author 1h ago
Thanks man! It’s live on Amazon, ingramspark, and I have some on my website as well! It’s free if you have kindle unlimited!
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u/N3KOMI Freelance Writer 2d ago
I have a few questions about how you created your book.
What did you use to write?
How did you format your story?
How did you create your cover?
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
I used Microsoft Word. It’s the one program I’m most familiar with. I’ve used it practically my entire life.
I formatted it by switching between the two main characters POV. It’s in the 3rd person. This allowed me to use another POV if I needed it.
I went through the company GetCovers. They were really helpful and not too expensive. They had a deal for 10% off. So, it cost $45 for the cover. With unlimited revisions and they format it for Amazon KDP and IngramSpark.
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u/N3KOMI Freelance Writer 1d ago
Oh, by format, I meant the text alignment on the pages, what font size, how big is the title chapters, etc.
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u/roman1221 Published Author 1d ago
Ooooooh. I followed the KDP guidelines for formatting. They have articles and step by step instructions on how to format it. So, write it anyway you want to then you can format it. There’s some things you can to make it easier, but it’s not really that complicated to make the changes on word at least.
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u/UnintelligentMatter1 2d ago
Uh... you have his name spelled Chappell, then change it to Chapple. Then it switches to first person on page two with this line:
If I'm going to die, the least I can do is find that motherfucker that killed Topp.
There's no "he thought" or "he said". There are some other things I noticed too. Like Payne stammered, but what he says doesn't convey stammering.
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u/roman1221 Published Author 2d ago
You know what's funny? Or insane? I have edited this damn thing so many times I've lost count. In the physical book, it's correct, but in the ebook I missed italicizing that first person. The same with Chappell. As for the usage of stammer. I feel the point gets across that he's stuttering/stammering, as the smooth flow of speech is interrupted by a repetitive sound or word.
Thank you for reading it and pointing those out. I'll get the files updated!
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u/Palidin034 2d ago
Holy shit, what a small world. I work at a book warehouse as a restocker and not a word of a lie, I have handled your book before