Question

My people. GOOD MORNING.

Okay, so this is what's happening at Casa Painter:

1. Computer virus. Hooray!
2. Work. (So #1 is interfering, obvs.)
3. Cleaning madly for visiting holiday relatives. (Who knew a 13-pound dog could create dust bunnies the size of a small ottoman?)
4. Thinking about "Stay Awhile."

I'm sure you're like, "but Alysia, you're typing on a computer right now, right?" It's true. But it keeps shutting down, every few minutes, meaning I'm scrambling to blog and work and Google "computer repair Los Angeles" while it is up and running.

So your next question is "but Alysia, why in the h are you at the Wilfair site, blogging?" GREAT question. And this is why: I was up last night mulling my next step with this book. You can tell I'm in a mully mood, since I wrote an overly introspective, mega-long post yesterday. Eesh.

And this is what I want to think about over the long Thanksgiving weekend (when I'll be potentially computerless). "Stay Awhile" is set to go to its formatter/publisher around the first day of December, meaning, if there are no gremlins gnawing at the inner workings (which is very much what I'm grappling with today) it will be live probably Christmas Week.

But I got to thinking about my post yesterday, and how the different thing with this book is, indeed, you. And I thought "why can't the people who come here and support what I'm doing get an advance reader copy? A PDF?"

Why not, indeed?

If I did this, and I'm pro-and-con-ing it madly, I might delay sending it to the formatter/publisher, lest you see a typo or two I can fix. (By the way, "Redwoodian" has a fantastic typo -- a total wrong word -- that still hasn't been caught. I do want to fix it but I like it, too. It's like a tiny crack in the book, and, to me, tiny cracks add character.)

Let me add this would not be beta-reading, which can be very active, unrelaxing reading. You wouldn't need to consider arcs and dialogue and motive in a scholarly way (unless you really are into that). The book has been beta read (we'll get to that next week). It has been very strictly and thoroughly edited. You'll be reading the final version, the one for publication, and it will be 1000% pleasure reading, just for fun. I want you to become deeply involved in the story and in the world. And if you happen to see an "a" where I meant "an" you can tell me at the end.

(This is very tempting; I can fix typos after publication, but there is a price to do so and it isn't instantaneous.)

The fact that Google alerts will now tell people the book is live, and I won't have time to quickly typo-check them post-publication like I did with "Wilfair" and "Redwoodian," also weighs on me a bit. I want it to be perfect, with only a few hairline cracks, which are par for the course, when it goes up.

My only con with this wacky plan is this: If there are a few typos to fix, and I expect there will be, then the PDFs out in the world will be slightly different than what goes to publication in January. The differences will likely be so small (I hope) that they'll only stick in my craw.

But I've said it before: I love a good calculated risk, and an adventure, and I rarely opt out of trying something different.

The other con, the one I can't fully embrace today, because this computer virus is stressing me out, is if one of you writes me a very sad and long letter about how there's this much bigger issue with the book. That is when I shut the curtains, take to my couch, clutch a dram of whiskey, curl into a fetal position, and weep hot tears. (Okay, that was a wee joke. I can handle. I'm already knee-deep in this Wilfairian journey and loving it, good parts and the happily infrequent less good parts.)

I'm not saying you'll love all of it, but here's the truth: I wrote this book to be a vigorous, big-hearted equal to "Redwoodian." I filled it with spirit and joie de vivre, so I hope you do love most of it, and can live with the stuff that doesn't ring your bell.

So, ladies, I'm going to weigh on this over Thanksgiving weekend, when I will probably be computer-less and have some time and room to mull. (Mr. Painter has a computer, I should say, and since he is a marvelous human being who never minds sharing, I will likely set up shop there.)

If you want to do this, let me know, but if I opt to go to publication, please don't be sore.

There are a few other cons. Like I wonder if reading it on a PDF is as elegant an experience as an ebook. Also, I don't want to hurt any feelings if I send out a few PDFs and miss those fantastic readers who have been lurking and didn't want to decloak. (To my lovely lurkers: If I go the PDF advance copy route, and you don't get one, PLEASE write me and demand a free copy of the book when it is live. I mean it. I'm a lurker on a lot of blogs, so, as your fellow co-lurkee, I'm reaching out.)

In the end, I only want everyone to win and nobody to be sad.

Okay, this system wants to freeze again so I'll sign off. Sorry the '80s music week is on hold while I fix stuff. And, dang gum it, I really wanted to post a picture of my favorite Brussels sprouts for Thanksgiving.

Comment or email and let me know if you're into this. If not, I'm fine with keeping to the track everything was on.

Off to mull, fix this issue, collect dust bunnies, and gently coax Mr. Painter out of his computer chair.