It’s been another year since my last post. After putting MILK RUN down for a while, I’ve returned with a fresh set of eyes to continue the project. I just completed a round of major changes with a professional editor. The story remains the same. But corrections were made to: remove obvious typos and punctuation issues; smooth out the prose; get rid of story distractions, repetitions and those awful dense paragraphs. Yep a general clean-up, not a comprehensive copy-edit. That comes later.
Next steps . . . the dreaded query process. I have to admit; this is not one of my favorite things. I don’t mind rejections (well, I do but I accept those things will happen). Rather, I’m bothered by the echoed silence from agents as they drag themselves through hundreds (some say thousands) of queries. It’s to be expected, I guess. These days, anyone with a word processor is now an author.
So, I got to find a way to attract readers. Producing a short video promo comes to mind. I can show some eye-catching action scenes from MILK RUN. There’s a lot of AI inspired graphic special effects software out there that when combined with tools like Adobe Premiere Pro can do some amazing things at a reasonable cost. Heck, if it works out, I might even make a full-length movie and run Hollywood out of business –well maybe not. But what do you think?
On the good side, I got some raving reviews from MILK RUN beta readers saying things like “plenty of action and tension that pulls you in” and “vivid descriptions” with a writing style that is “crisp and maintains good pacing.” It’s always good to hear encouraging and constructive comments from readers while I wait to hear from an agent or producer.
So, let me know if you want to read the complete and updated DRAFT manuscript of MILK RUN (complete with some rough illustrations). I’ll send you a free PDF copy. I only ask that you tell me what you think of the book.
Interested? Then click here and fill out the request form to get your copy. I promise not to sell your contact information or bug you with a lot of emails.
Meanwhile, below is a quick overview of MILK RUN that I used in my queries to agents. Speaking of which, any referrals to agents, publishers and producers would be appreciated. Just leave a note in the message section of the request form.
THE HOOK:
Mutiny, sabotage, and an ex-fiancée hooked on the enemy’s telepathic drug is the surest way to lose a four-dimensional space battle.
SUMMARY:
Earth’s war against the Telrachnids is going badly. A new SpaceComm battle strategy is needed against a formidable enemy whose sting injects an addictive drug to telepathically control human beings.
Newly commissioned Captain Toby Nathanael Louis is on his first mission to deliver a secret weapon prototype, the ‘Crowbar,” a device that can open access to a fourth spatial dimension, to a star base. The mission should have been easy for the inexperienced captain, a ‘milk run’ they told him.
Instead, he encounters a Telrachnid gunship and it seems SpaceComm’s secret Crowbar is not so secret. The gunship is armed with a stolen and much improved version of the weapon—the same weapon that destroyed half of SpaceComm’s fleet! To Toby’s additional horror, he discovers that his ex-fiancée, hooked on the Telrachnids’ powerful telepathic drug, commands that gunship.
Now Toby must find a way to turn his ex-fiancée’s strengths against her and build an alliance with a mutinous second-in-command as he leads a much older crew in an aging spaceship against an enemy out to destroy him and all of humankind.
MILK RUN is a 62,700-word “Sci-Fi grounded in reality” novel in the vein of Tom Clancy’s SSN-STRATEGIES OF SUBMARINE WARFARE; Orson Scott Card’s ENDER’S GAMES; and James S. A. Corey’s (Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) THE EXPANSE. Fans of the WWII submarine vs destroyer sea battle movie, RUN SILENT RUN DEEP will see how that old black & white motion picture inspired my writing MILK RUN.
Happy Holidays!
