WHEN FREEDOM CAME
We are so close to having the work done, and yet still, we must wait to ensure that all the different parts come together perfectly for a great reading and historical experience.
Illustrations: – While 98% of the illustrations are done, after reviewing the interior of the book, my wonderful illustrator, Sky, and I agreed that we needed to add a couple more illustrations.
- Since the book opened with a scene with tension, we decided to add an illustration of the narrator as a soft opening.
- Originally, we were not going to have illustrations for chapter 6, as we did not want to call attention to the trouble makers at the polls and distract from the story of the book. However, while flipping through the pages, it just seemed odd to not have pictures there when pre and post chapters do.
- In our first conversation, Sky had informed me that it would be best to do all the interior illustrations before deciding on the cover picture. Well, even though I had decided on a cover picture after discussions and confirmation of the interior pictures, once Sky delivered the finished work of the interior pictures, I really fell in love with the illustration for Chapter 5, even though Sky had already done the cover picture. Thankfully, Sky was willing to go back to the drawing board and create a colorful version of the Chapter 5 picture. So, the new cover is under construction.
Editing & Formatting: – Although I’ve had friends and beta readers go through the book, it is undergoing final edits and formatting. If anyone has published a book through CreateSpace or other publish-on-demand printers, you know it is quite an undertaking formatting your book for publishing. The page layout, margins, gutter, headers and footers all need to be in place before the book can be printed.
Learning Activities: – Currently developing discussion topics and activities that would lend well to lesson plans for teachers and parents.
Once all the above are in place, hopefully within the next week, then we can send off our final product in PDF for CreateSpace to test and give feedback. If all goes well and we are satisfied with the proof from CreateSpace, then we will give them the green light to finalize the product and our masterpiece will finally be available to all.
