LiquidSilence

As promised, the free-to-download eBook version of Leaning Weightless on the Breeze is now available.  Use this link or click the "PDF Version" link in the navigation menu to the right.  This is basically the same as the print version of the book with the margins reformatted and published to PDF.  I haven't yet tried to convert it as a Stanza document (the eBook reader I use), but I'll post an update later on how that goes.  In the meantime, download it.  If you like it, great.  If you don't, feel free to delete it and recycle the bits.

A bit about the book to help you decide if you want to download it or not.  It's a book of poetry... 99% of which is "free verse" style.  Here's the preface:

The works collected here are the product of a tumultuous season. It was 1999. In October I met someone that made me re-evaluate the course my life was on. We were both in complicated relationships and neither of us was ready for what we found with each other. At that time I had already been writing sporadically for almost ten years. For the next three months, however, I felt compelled nearly every single day to put the thoughts that were consuming me to paper. And then she was gone. These works follow the timeline of a forbidden new romance, uncertainty and the anguish of loss.

Update on Sunday, November 8, 2009 at 9:47PM by R Keith Smith

I've added a download link for the ePub version that should be readable on most eBook devices.  The formatting is pretty weird to me in Stanza... the title is repeated at the "top" of every page even though the page breaks are somewhat inconsistent.  I don't know much (i.e, anything) about converting files to eBooks.  If anyone has any ideas or advice, I'd love to hear it.  Thanks.

Update on Sunday, November 8, 2009 at 10:25PM by R Keith Smith

I reformatted the epub file to remove some odd page breaks that were leftover from the print version.  It still looks really odd on the desktop version of Stanza, but it looks more or less OK on the iPhone.  Calibre seems to do the best job of all of displaying it most accurately.

The Paperback

The proof has been approved.  That means the book is now available for purchase.  You can use this link, or click the "Buy Now" button wherever it appears on this site.  It has also been submitted for distribution.  That means within the next few weeks (6 - 8) it will begin to be available at the online sites like Barnes&Noble and Amazon.  Of course, they do take their share, so anything you order directly from Lulu is the better deal for me.  But, this was never about making any money, so I'll be happy no matter how you get a copy... which brings me to the next point.

The Digital Download

I still have a few things to iron out on the free download, but I hope to have it up and available within the next couple of days.

The Thank Yous

I'd like to say thanks to everyone that has been supportive for me throughout this process, particularly my wife, Gina.  Without her, I would never have followed through on it.

Just got home from the office to find my proof copy of the new book waiting for me on the doorstep.  Fortunately, it was neatly shrink-wrapped and safely tucked into a cardboard box.  At first glance everything looks good.  Of course, I'll have to take some time and go through it thoroughly.  But, if that goes OK it's just a matter of time before the digital download is available and the book can be ordered online.  Woohoo!

My first impression is that the cover looks even better than I expected.  The overall quality of the book seems very good.  It's softcover and the binding is very sharp.  Inside, the layout looks as I had expected.

The BookHopefully everything is OK and I can approve this thing.  Here's a snap I took with the MBP's iSight cam.