#YAneedsmore, The Mark of Noba and Steven Universe-Thoughts on Self-publishing

Read our first chapter of "The Mark Of Noba" on Wattpad!

So we jumped on the bandwagon and joined Wattpad! 

It's an awesome social network for writers to gain audiences for their work. It's truly for everyone. Four authors that I follow and read myself are up there(to name a few Justina Ireland, Marissa Meyer, Heather Heffner and Red Harvey).

We're still in the middle of editing our first work under GL Tomas. But we wanted to start sharing our unedited work. 

Also take in mind, the cover up there, is an untouched, unedited, definitely not going to be the cover, cover of the book. Before we found our artist soul mate Alice Bessoni(which if your nosy, you can find it snooping around) =) We commissioned covers, not sure of what we wanted.

But an awesome cover pays for itself, and our actual cover is FREAKING AWESOME!

We'll be revealing an unedited chapter a week for Act I of "The Mark of Noba."

"The Mark of Noba" follows the exploits of Sterling Wayfairer, who finds out he is spiritually linked to Sai Liber-Tetraphirmaportacheeq(Don't worry, he can never pronounce it either!) aka Tetra.

They share a connection known as a "Bond" which results in them sharing each other's soul, and enables them to manipulate elements, known as "riding."

If you didn't get a chance to gander at them a few weeks/months back, when we featured them during our Twinja Book Reviews Favorites Month, and at any random given time that we felt like it...Here is how we picture Sterling and Tetra!

Follow the link below!

Diversify Your SteamPunk Day 5: Welcome Back Balogun Ojetade!

During our month of highlighting diversity back in December of 2013, we introduced our audience to Balogun Ojetade for the first time. Clearly with his followong he doesnt need to be introduced, but we couldnt think of a more deserving candidate to end our first week of Diversifying our Steampunk.
1. You've been here before, so while we don't require an introduction, our new followers do! What can you tell us about yourself the person, the author and the steampunk innovator?

My name is Balogun Ojetade. Although my name  is Yoruba, I am descended from the Ateke people of Gabon and the Seminole Nation of the Southeastern United States. I am a husband, father of eight children – seven girls and one boy – and I am also a grandfather twice over.

I am author of six novels, one non-fiction book, several articles and short stories I wrote are in anthologies and magazines and I am contributing co-editor of two anthologies. I am also a filmmaker and fight choreographer and I have created two short films and two feature films and choreographed three films, thus far.

When you dont enjoy a book you're reading you promised to review :(

I( as in guinevere) am a quarter into a book. It's self published and I have to say I want to like it. Most people don't invest their time to read a book with the intention of disliking a book. With what little time most people already have, wouldn't in be much easier to invest in reading something you know you will enjoy?

I feel as if I'm at a fork in the road, as I want to like the book but there are just too many editing errors to enjoy it. :(

Libby left a review for the book, and it was honest, but I believe the author has taken her honesty the wrong way. The author has been nice about her review(thank god). But I'm having a hard time finishing it because there are errors on every page. It effects the pacing so much that I have to put it down a lot. I want to be honest but I fear the author does not want honesty. Just 4 and 5 star reviews.

I fear my review will be taken for viciousness. And it's not like that. I believe if the story had the right editor, some people would probably enjoy it. But I don't think it's fair to a new reader to lie about it being spectacular, when its not properly edited.

I know people just want their book out there, but as a self published author, should it be more important that its published or more important that its published correctly? 

I will soon be amongst the many whom have dived into self publishing. As much time and money as it costs to be at the forefront, I don't think anyone can afford to not have your work edited by someone whom isn't themselves. Sure it's an expensive route. But it's costing you more, as people may not be buying it based of people not being honest. Telling someone their work needs proper editing shouldn't be an insult. It's just making you aware that you're a writer first. You may not have the eye to look for your own mistakes.

An author's book I haven't started, just made a comment I can't help but agree with. You can't look at your own work objectively. Someone has to look at it with an eye for mistakes. If you don't care about making grammatical errors, maybe it should just be for the eyes of people whom won't judge it so harshly. 

I don't know how I should go about the book. I want to finish it, but it's difficult to as it slows down the pacing. What do others think?