Ask the Author: Eliza Crewe
Answered Questions (16)
Eliza Crewe
Hi Despoina! I'm so glad you enjoyed my books. I am working on some things, but excruciatingly slowly. I've had two kids and have been promoted at work since I wrote Cracked--all good things but they don't leave a lot of spare time (or mental energy!) for my hobbies. Now that my littlest is (mostly) sleeping through the night, I'm hoping I can squeeze in some writing time. Thanks for your kind note!
Eliza Crewe
Hi Clara, I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to respond! Thank you so much for your kind words and I'm so glad you've enjoyed my books. I'm working on a couple books, but nothing that's close to being published I'm afraid. I had a baby boy this spring, and between him, my toddler, and my day job I haven't had a lot of free time left to spend writing. I hope to get back to is soon though!
Eliza Crewe
Thanks Steven! I’m so glad you enjoyed Meda. As to whether I have anything in the works--sort of. I’ve got two stories I’m working on, but nothing imminent I’m afraid. I took an unofficial break to have another baby, and between my day job, the kiddos, and the sleep deprivation, I end up drooling on my keyboard more than typing on it. I hope to get cracking back at it soon!
Eliza Crewe
Hi Betty! I don't have any plans to write a book four, except perhaps a novella or two about her and Armand. I have toyed with writing some spin-offs with different main characters, with Meda making an appearance, but none of these plans are immediate. Thanks for asking!
Eliza Crewe
Hi Lola! Yes, but it's in hold for now--I had a baby last week and it's all I can do to keep my sanity and the little guy fed! I hope to pick it up once my real life is back under control :-).
Eliza Crewe
Thanks Chloe, I'm so glad you enjoyed them! I am (very slowly) working on a new book about a socially-awkward, morally-ambiguous boy genius who has to befriend the most popular girl in school as part of an initiation test to enter a super-powerful secret society, but it's on indefinite hold--I had a baby last week and the little guy is devouring all my free time. I hope to pick it back up soon, though!
Eliza Crewe
Sadly, no. That's the kind of thing you need a publisher for, and mine filed bankruptcy after publishing Cracked--I self-pubbed Crushed and Crossed.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Stephen,
I'm so glad you liked Crossed! Unfortunately, as of now, I don't plan to write a fourth book. I loved writing this series, but I'm a little ready to try something new. I've only ever written four novels and this series makes up three of them! I also would like to get a publisher again because self-publishing takes up SO MUCH TIME with formatting & administrative stuff, and I can't get a publisher midway through a series. All that being said, I do think I may come back in the future, maybe with Meda, or maybe with a side character (you may remember the weirdly named Exo Greer from book 1--she has a whole backstory in my head). I also would like to release a short story from CRUSHED that takes place during the time that Meda and Armand are on the lamb getting in to all types of shenanigans. There are so many stories I'd like to write and just not enough time to get them all onto paper. So, short answer: I will be writing more, but not about Meda for the foreseeable future.
I'm so glad you liked Crossed! Unfortunately, as of now, I don't plan to write a fourth book. I loved writing this series, but I'm a little ready to try something new. I've only ever written four novels and this series makes up three of them! I also would like to get a publisher again because self-publishing takes up SO MUCH TIME with formatting & administrative stuff, and I can't get a publisher midway through a series. All that being said, I do think I may come back in the future, maybe with Meda, or maybe with a side character (you may remember the weirdly named Exo Greer from book 1--she has a whole backstory in my head). I also would like to release a short story from CRUSHED that takes place during the time that Meda and Armand are on the lamb getting in to all types of shenanigans. There are so many stories I'd like to write and just not enough time to get them all onto paper. So, short answer: I will be writing more, but not about Meda for the foreseeable future.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Cookiemo, Nah, nothing major. Maybe a few typos.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Celeste,
I'm so glad you like the cover! And your question isn't silly at all. The short answer is that the Indian version is coming out first, frankly, because I have editorial and marketing teams over there handling all the details whereas here I have to do it myself. The long answer....well for starters, once the Indian editors are done, I will need to do my own copy-editing (the Indian version will be copy-edited using Indian grammar and spelling, which is a little different). Then I will need to format it for all the different ebook platforms. Kindle, Nook, and ibooks all have different formatting requirements (and it. is. so. tedious. formatting each of them!). Then I need to upload them to all the individual sites (plus GooglePlay and Kobo, which fortunately, use the same formatting as Nook, if I'm remembering correctly), and each site requires a page or so of metadata. It's not hard, but it just takes a bit of time.
Once the e-version is done, I will need to format it for print. I use a program called InDesign, which lays out each individual page. I'm getting a little faster at it, but it's a complicated program (at least for me!) and I'm still learning.Then I will need to order a proof and make sure I didn't make any stupid mistakes (which I always do). Then I'll have to fix those and order another proof (each proof takes about a week to print and ship), until I get one I can live with.
After all that, I'll need to start marketing. I'll schedule a blog tour and write guest posts and answer interview questions. I can't get started too early on all of this because leading up to the release in India, I have tasks I need to do for Penguin, too. At each stage in their editorial process (copy-edits, pdf proof, then print-proof) I review it (again, again, again) as well as write any interviews/blog posts they would like from me.
Then there's all that regular life stuff--a job, a house that won't clean itself no matter how much I beg, and a hubs and tot that like to see me occasionally, so I have to be realistic about how fast I can get it all done.Two months sounds like a long time, but when you can only count week-day lunch hours, weekend toddler nap times, and the hours of sleep you're willing to give up each night, trust me, it doesn't feel long at all! Plus, I like to sneak in a little reading of my own :-D.
As for your other question, I guess readers could order it from India, but it's more hassle than it's worth. The e-versions are limited by territory (I think the sites use the location of your credit card), so that really only leaves the print version. Shipping's crazy pricey and/or slow (it takes about a month for me to receive anything from Penguin that they don't rush), so it's really just makes more sense to wait.
WHEW, that is probably more information than you bargained for, but there it is! Thanks for your question, and I hope you enjoy Cracked.
E.
I'm so glad you like the cover! And your question isn't silly at all. The short answer is that the Indian version is coming out first, frankly, because I have editorial and marketing teams over there handling all the details whereas here I have to do it myself. The long answer....well for starters, once the Indian editors are done, I will need to do my own copy-editing (the Indian version will be copy-edited using Indian grammar and spelling, which is a little different). Then I will need to format it for all the different ebook platforms. Kindle, Nook, and ibooks all have different formatting requirements (and it. is. so. tedious. formatting each of them!). Then I need to upload them to all the individual sites (plus GooglePlay and Kobo, which fortunately, use the same formatting as Nook, if I'm remembering correctly), and each site requires a page or so of metadata. It's not hard, but it just takes a bit of time.
Once the e-version is done, I will need to format it for print. I use a program called InDesign, which lays out each individual page. I'm getting a little faster at it, but it's a complicated program (at least for me!) and I'm still learning.Then I will need to order a proof and make sure I didn't make any stupid mistakes (which I always do). Then I'll have to fix those and order another proof (each proof takes about a week to print and ship), until I get one I can live with.
After all that, I'll need to start marketing. I'll schedule a blog tour and write guest posts and answer interview questions. I can't get started too early on all of this because leading up to the release in India, I have tasks I need to do for Penguin, too. At each stage in their editorial process (copy-edits, pdf proof, then print-proof) I review it (again, again, again) as well as write any interviews/blog posts they would like from me.
Then there's all that regular life stuff--a job, a house that won't clean itself no matter how much I beg, and a hubs and tot that like to see me occasionally, so I have to be realistic about how fast I can get it all done.Two months sounds like a long time, but when you can only count week-day lunch hours, weekend toddler nap times, and the hours of sleep you're willing to give up each night, trust me, it doesn't feel long at all! Plus, I like to sneak in a little reading of my own :-D.
As for your other question, I guess readers could order it from India, but it's more hassle than it's worth. The e-versions are limited by territory (I think the sites use the location of your credit card), so that really only leaves the print version. Shipping's crazy pricey and/or slow (it takes about a month for me to receive anything from Penguin that they don't rush), so it's really just makes more sense to wait.
WHEW, that is probably more information than you bargained for, but there it is! Thanks for your question, and I hope you enjoy Cracked.
E.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Ashley, thanks for the question! There are only three books currently planned, but as to whether there could be more, well, that really depends on who I decide to kill off in this last one...:-D
Eliza Crewe
Thanks for the question, Cookie. Since I don't have an editor anymore, I need to sort out the cover design (and, more importantly, the cover designer) on my own. I'm working on all that now (along with the cover blurb), but it probably won't be ready to reveal until about April-ish.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Kat! I'm working with my Indian editor right now to nail down the schedule, and hopefully (for once!) it'll release both places at the same time. So, while I'm not sure, I'm thinking August at the latest, so ARCs going out sometime around June.
Eliza Crewe
Hi Keith, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to respond--I somehow missed these questions!
I think you do want to cancel your order for the SC edition just to be safe, but it probably doesn't matter since that book's never going to be released anyway. Preorders are always good for the author, but in this case, I'm not going to have enough time to set it up for preorders before the books are released, since I'm working on such a short timeline, so it's not going to matter. Thanks for asking though, I really appreciate the support, and again, so sorry for not answering sooner!
I think you do want to cancel your order for the SC edition just to be safe, but it probably doesn't matter since that book's never going to be released anyway. Preorders are always good for the author, but in this case, I'm not going to have enough time to set it up for preorders before the books are released, since I'm working on such a short timeline, so it's not going to matter. Thanks for asking though, I really appreciate the support, and again, so sorry for not answering sooner!
Eliza Crewe
I'm so glad you're enjoying Cracked!
So, a bit of bad news--my everywhere-but-India publisher, Strange Chemistry, went out of business about a month ago, so Crushed is not going to come out on August 5th like it was supposed to (it's already out in India, where I have a different publisher). However, I am still going to publish it--probably myself--hopefully around the beginning of September. The good news is, I'm pretty sure I can pub it in whatever formats I want, so I'll be sure to include it in the Apple iBookstore.
So, a bit of bad news--my everywhere-but-India publisher, Strange Chemistry, went out of business about a month ago, so Crushed is not going to come out on August 5th like it was supposed to (it's already out in India, where I have a different publisher). However, I am still going to publish it--probably myself--hopefully around the beginning of September. The good news is, I'm pretty sure I can pub it in whatever formats I want, so I'll be sure to include it in the Apple iBookstore.
Eliza Crewe
Hey Lauren--Nope, not in the least! I am still going to publish them, I'm just not entirely sure how or when just yet. Most likely I'll self-pub Crushed within the next couple of months. There's also a third book that I'm in the drafting stages of right now, and that will most likely come out August-ish of next year.
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