All,

Maria and I have been talking about a writing project that is a little different from what you may have been used to on these Forums.

It is not a role play kind of project but one which would lead to the publication of a novel at the end of it, with the proceeds being shared equally by all those who participate, including AW, as the hosting site for this interactive project.

We are basically looking for four writers in all (including myself as lead editor and the key driver behind this) who can contribute their ideas, thoughts and scenarios in a Chapter by Chapter format that will be thrashed out on these forums, with a final Chapter being published on this site, once the team agrees. As the lead editor, it will be my job to ensure a consistent writing style and the key here is the ideas / research and other material that others will bring to the table.

At a high level, this is how this project will work, in order to be successful and as I envision it, from its conception, through the writing of the material, to editing and finally on to publication, marketing and so on.

First step: I will post a story line / plot / concept at a fairly high level that will outline in brief what I have in mind with regard to the novel (target word count : between 100K to 125K words)

This plot or concept will cover the following :

a) Themes that we seek to portray in the novel

b) Story line or plot - beginning, middle and end

c) Key characters / timeline

Second step : Writers will be invited to participate from this group or for that matter, any group.

A selection of the three writers will be made based upon the following criteria :

1. A sample of your original writing - could be anything - a one or two page sample should be adequate to evaluate your writing style. [I will be one of the judges as also Maria, who has graciously agreed to collaborate in this project]

2. A commitment to pursue this project to the end - this means, until actual publication of the novel.

Assuming that our finished novel would be around 100K words, I would estimate that we may need around 20 Chapters of 5K words.

This would be a fairly long project in that sense, as it would take say a month per Chapter or 20 months to come up with the first draft. Editing and writing promotional material, making a cover design and then shopping around for a publisher may take a little longer. So, I would estimate that a minimum period of 2 years would be required for this project, with a possible publication date around Christmas, 2007.

I realize that a number of you may balk at this kind of commitment and I can understand. However, writing is always a time consuming affair and as many authors would attest, it does take years to complete a novel.

However, this is also an opportunity for those who have always dreamed of writing a book and a chance to get published.

Finally, this project will generate a lot of buzz, I'm sure of that, once we start publishing our chapters and may generate excitement too if our material / storyline is really good. It is also a chance to use our collective talents in a group forum and also help not only AW but also those who are passionate about Rome and want to talk about it and express their own ideas through the characters. Above all, the end result would be something to be proud of, as millions would have access to our work, once it is published.

As regards the organization / working of the group that will be involved in the writing, we will share equally in the fruits, with AW getting a fifth share. In other words, everyone would get 1/5th and our status in the group would be as equals, as we do not want egos to get in the way of our objective or end result, which is to publish a great book.

In case this idea or project of mine interests you, please post your comments here, so that we can gauge interest in this kind of a venture. The actual publication of the individual chapters, once each is finalized, will be done either in the Q&P group under a separate section or we may even create a separate group for this purpose.

Any questions can be directed to me here or via email {skarrone@gmail.com}

Skarr