The Eclipse and the Book

"The brightest source of light on this earth is the human soul, and no soul shines brighter than a child’s – an absolutely crucial truth within the story of Oliver Swallow."

When asked about "The Eclipse and the Boy" I'm never sure how to describe it.
Do I just describe the plot?
A young family is dealing with the loss of their grandmother when moths begin haunting the family amidst their grief.
Do I describe my process?
I wrote it over the span of 6 months during the summer and fall of 2020 writing every day and deleting something every other.
Do I just talk about how I feel about the book?
I really like what I was able to make and I think the story holds up. Editing really saved the book from being too unpolished. It's not perfect but it's mine and I'm proud of it.
Or do I just deny its existence?
What book?

So instead, I'm writing this so you get everything in a digestible and entirely optional read. "Eclipse and the Boy" was created from such a novice and honest place that the story feels high energy and experimental to me. This is mostly a good thing as I can really say I was going all out with this story, but that also means there's so much of this story that remains unrefined. I break so many conventions that I didn't know existed and I really like how some of those choices come out while I feel as though other parts are a bit underdeveloped.

The editing process felt incredibly exciting. Taking this story and seeing all the potential that it had and then cutting and adding and polishing to what was already there felt similar to the joy I get in cleaning. Everything is there and beautiful, I just had to arrange some things and clear the dust. I wanted to be careful though, editing over the span of a year created a huge temptation to change the story into something that I didn't intend to write. As strange as it sounds, I didn't trust myself to respect my own original idea so held myself back when editing from altering the skeleton. I improved on what was there and put my new ideas and motivations into the next projects.

The publishing process felt just as long as the writing and I haven't mastered the process but I've learned a lot. First off, people will actually listen if you have something to say. So many people have reached out asking questions about this book and I realized that publishing this book really does mean sharing it as well. This book belongs to the audience just as much as the author because if you've read anything then you've had your own experience with the material. It's a wonderful feeling knowing that I have created something with that power.

The second thing I learned was that I am not going to do everything correctly on my first try. I published this book almost a month before I wanted to and have had to change the entire way I market. I thought I knew all the steps and I was stressed I'd fail to do them correctly. I have failed to publish this book the way I wanted but that doesn't mean my book has failed. People are reading it and I've published a book. I really have to remind myself that I've actually done that part.

If you haven't checked out "The Eclipse and the Boy" and would like to feel free to purchase the book here on whatever platform you choose.