Tag: Writing a First Novel
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You a Story of…Waiting for ‘Reunion: Coda’ to Arrive (and My Fondest Wishes for the Novel)
Late Morning, Thursday, April 17, 2025, Miami, Florida It’s a sultry, gold-hued subtropical morning here in South Florida. Right now, the temperature stands at a pleasant 80°F (27°C) under a mostly sunny sky. With humidity at 56% and a gentle breeze blowing from the east-northeast at 9 MPH (15 Km/H), it feels more like a…
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Behind the Cover: Why I Chose a Text-Free Front for Reunion: Coda
When designing the cover for Reunion: Coda, I wanted something that felt unique yet true to the story within. After much deliberation, I made the bold choice to leave the front cover free of text—no title, no name, just the striking image of New York City at night. Here’s why. First, NYC at night isn’t…
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Reunion: Coda Progress Update: Great News on the Cover Front!
Dear readers, I’m excited to share some positive progress on the journey to bring Reunion: Coda to life in print form! After tackling a few technical challenges with DPI (dots per inch) and resolution, I’ve finally found a cover image that not only works perfectly for the paperback edition but might also be a great…
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Behind the Scenes of Publishing My Debut Novel
Late Afternoon, Thursday, April 10, 2025, Miami, Florida It’s a gray, gloomy, and somewhat sticky South Florida afternoon. Outside, the skies are shrouded in a blanket of gray-white clouds. For a while, it seemed like there would be light rain showers, but they never came—at least not to Coral Terrace. My room feels as dark…
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Reunion: Coda—Reflections on a Writer’s Milestone
Late Morning/Midday, Thursday, April 10, 2025, Miami, Florida Writer’s Log, Stardate 2504.10 Twenty-five months ago, I began drafting Reunion: Coda, fulfilling a solemn promise I made to my mom as a teenager: that someday, I’d write a novel. With its roots in Reunion: A Story, my existing novella, this new work set out to expand…
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Reunion: Coda (Print Edition) Update—A Tale of DPI Drama, ISBN Shenanigans, and Sleepless Nights
Ah, self-publishing—the glorious path where passion meets the occasional pothole. While Reunion: Coda’s Kindle edition has been available since April 5, print aficionados (and me!) must exercise the fine art of patience for just a few more days. Why? Because the journey to put ink on paper isn’t exactly a jaunt through a field of…
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You a Story…with My First Novel’s Afterword
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Life in Madison (NH), Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Life in the Tampa Bay area, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: Coda, Writing a First Novel, Writing as a CraftOn Wednesday, April 2, 2025, I finished writing the main body of Reunion: Coda, the second book of my Reunion Duology and, more importantly, my first novel. Yesterday, I added the first two sections of the book’s “back matter”: the Afterword and the Acknowledgments page. I still need to complete three additional sections for the…
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Writer’s Shop Talk: Ending My ‘First-Time Novelist’ Journey with One Last Scene for ‘Reunion: Coda’
Midday, Tuesday, April 2, 2025, Miami, Florida “Finish the book. The world is full of first chapters.” – Julia Quinn Upon returning from my usual midday break, I will sit down in front of my computer, stare at the blank page on my Word app, and type the opening line to Scene Four in Reunion:…
