Boxes of books arrived the other day – four boxes of The Shame of Innocence.  I stacked them on the sea chest in the dining room and gave the cat strict instructions not to go anywhere near them.

Publication day is just over a week away, and the launch event at the Black Swan Art Gallery in Frome is a week later, so I’ll need some copies for that.  Somerset Libraries will put a few copies into stock, and I’ve already contacted local bookshops – though I know it isn’t easy for an unknown independent author to be accepted.

The launch event on November 18th isn’t only for The Shame of Innocence – it’s also the launch of Silver Crow Books, the initiative of Frome Writers’ Collective, developed over the last couple of years, to support aspiring writers in the Frome area.

Okay, so there’ll be some copies in local libraries and bookshops.  And I know I’ll sell copies at the launch.  But then what?  Of course, the whole point of ‘print on demand’ or POD is that, as an author, you don’t have to commit to printing a hundred books and then stack them in your spare room until you’ve sold them all.  I’ve only had as many printed as I think I’ll need for the time being – for face-to-face sales at events and talks.  Any other orders – through Amazon, for example – are fulfilled by publisher SilverWood Books, so I don’t have to worry.

The Shame of Innocence has been four years in the writing, editing and rewriting.  Now it’s done and in print, I just want people to read it.  Read it and enjoy it, and want to read the next one.

I can’t hope to be a bestselling author (well, I can hope!) but as long as I can introduce DI Jeff Lincoln and his team to a few more readers, I shall be happy.

The paperback and eBook of The Shame of Innocence are available on Amazon from 11th November.