2007-03-25 [Fizban]: I never export mine lol..and now I have a good excuse...

2007-03-25 [Paul Doyle]: Well, exporting the wiki is part of my platform to (hopefully) sell this book and its forthcoming series (there will be five novels, in a grand epic). Also, I think this ability to be not logged in and comment is part of [Hedda]'s central strategy to bring in more people to Elftown, which is a very good thing. Of course, with enhanced features there's bound to be problems along the way. so I reported this on the ET Bugs forum, leaving those stupid porn-site links up so maybe something could be done to keep those spammers away from any part of ET.

2007-03-25 [nokaredes]: ...they're not up anymore...

2007-03-26 [Paul Doyle]: [Hedda] helped out. I didn't remove those last two spamming comments :)

2007-12-14 [Hendercrazy]: Congrats on your achievements thus far Paul! Keep it up! :) - Derek

2007-12-14 [Paul Doyle]: Thank you :) I honestly need to get my butt in gear once the holidays are over (and maybe even sooner). It's true that real-life things have priority, and I think I did the right thing by shelving all of this stuff temporarily when my family needed me the most---but I can't let this go for too much longer.

I very much support the idea of having one's feet on the ground and one's head in the clouds at the same time. I constantly, consistently try to be this way. But sometimes this twinned ambition can take its toll, and I guess I needed a chiropractor there for a while. Stretching to the clouds while keeping your feet on the ground can cause lower back pain and other discomfort, after all. :p

2007-12-14 [Hendercrazy]: Yes. :P The art of balance is definitely a tough thing my friend. :)

2008-07-10 [Paul Doyle]: Currently re-reading a second copy of this novel (printed out about ten days ago) and re-learning the finer details so I'm that much more knowledgeable when I am talking to agents/publishers. So much has happened in my life over the past few years, and I am sorry I've neglected and short-changed this project for so long :/

2009-02-15 [Paul Doyle]: All right, the unsolicited-query approach did NOT work. Not quite an "epic fail", mind you, but it's certainly time to start looking for literary agents. I'm just trying to be real. An agent gets a cut of your royalties, obviously, but without a literary agent it's damn hard to get noticed in the world of commercial publishing. Yes, part of me does see dollar signs. A lot of them. Captitalism runs deep in my bloodstream, though I'll be damned if I get so greedy and foolish I become a sellout. So sue me.

2009-02-17 [Hendercrazy]: Have you ever thought about self-publishing?

2009-02-17 [Paul Doyle]: I have, but in too many instances self-publishing is a scam because often you have to pay exorbitant fees . . . and since you have no professional representation (the literary agent) nobody really notices , and you wind up with a good part of your garage filled with unsold copies of your novel, even after your friends and family have already bought some (out of sympathy?) and you've made endless attempts to get the local bookstores to sell them.

Between subsidy publishing (which is only good if you are a college professor and you have a buit in audience---your students---to buy your expensive textbooks) and places like www.lulu.com, I'm frankly skeptical of self-publishing.

If worse comes to worse and I absolutely cannot get this stuff sold the old-fashioned way, then I'll consider the alternatives (including online publishing, which I absolutely do not want to do). I don't give up to easily, unless logic and reality says otherwise.

2009-02-18 [Hendercrazy]: You just have to get really extremely creative, advertise and slowly build a fan following. There are places that offer POD (print on demand) and you can sell your book in their online store; so there's no overhead/inventory to sit on. Granted, you likely won't make much money unless you happen to sell a mother load. The fact is, nowadays, you have to build up a body of work to get noticed and if you never get to that point... then you'll always just have your very first book stored away on file at home never to be read by anyone. Besides, having two or three finished books printed and physically in your hands make for a great presentation about you being a serious writer. Just think on that for a bit. ;)

2009-02-18 [Paul Doyle]: That is good advice! Thank you. :-D

2009-03-18 [organicparadox]: meticulous nature pays off when it comes to documentation. that's a big accomplishment man, grats

2009-03-21 [Paul Doyle]: Thank you . . . now if only I could have less real-life worries to contend with (not the usual worries, but stuff like bill collectors, Kathy's unemployment killing us in the wallet, my not succeeding at landing a secondary job at work, shutoff notices and threats of eviction/repossession, etc etc etc), so I can truly get my sorry ass in gear. I'm not trying to be overly whiny, but that's precisely why I've moved slower than great-granny in Wal-Mart at 7 AM :P

2010-03-06 [Paul Doyle]: The bottom pictures were uploaded through this page, merely as a convenience, but are still relavant since they are sketch ideas for possible future illustrations.

2010-03-06 [Paul Doyle]: . . . and, in regards to the 21 March 2009 entry: fuck this bullshit (much of which is still happening), full speed ahead!

2010-05-01 [Hendercrazy]: Keep at it Paul! :)

2010-05-02 [Paul Doyle]: Getting onto Chapter 3, Page 67 overall, here in a few minutes. I really ought to revamp this entire wiki, as well as make an equivalent on Facebook, until I do in fact open my own website. Earlier I took a few related photos, so as much as I question the usefulness of Elftown (given the decline in artistic members and so forth) I really ought to update here, as well.

2011-07-17 [Mortified Penguin]: When can I expect to receive my signed copy of Book One?

2011-07-17 [Paul Doyle]: Patience, Padawaan . .. (Page 346 of Book Two now, though I've been on a minor hiatus of late due to it being summer, and also because of real-life concerns)