Ask and you shall receive

It has been almost a month since the Amazon Sales Anomaly began. I want to thank everyone who read the books and liked them (or hated them) enough to come to this site. I would also like to thank Pixel of Ink for sending so many people my way. If you need a good source for information about bargain ebooks, you really ought to check that site out.

There has been a tremendous amount of excellent feedback from my readers, and it is clear from both my positive and negative reviews that there is one obvious area for improvement: Editing. Well, pending a bit of paperwork, it looks like I’ve earned enough money to get a professional to smooth out the wrinkles in Book 1 of The Book of Deacon. It is a lengthy process, so don’t expect a new edition to drop tomorrow, but unless something unfortunate happens, the chances are good that an effectively typo-free revision should be available in the fall.

In the meantime, I’ll be rereading and touching up the other titles as best I can so that people nice enough to pick up the second book don’t run into a train wreck of typos after a clean first installment. I’m under no delusion that sales will remain strong enough for me to afford an edited edition of the rest of my books any time soon, but I’ll do my best. Until then, thanks again for reading.

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8 Comments

  1. I’m not sure how that works for us Kindle users. Will we automatically download the new version? I suspect not… I’m guessing that we’d have to manually download it again?

    1. Okay, I asked Amazon, and they said that when I upload a revision, I can inform them, and they will send an email to all customers with an earlier version to inform them of the change. They cannot push an automatic update, because the new edition will remove highlights, last page read, and bookmarks. It will also alter the structure of the book, which would shift the positions of notes. They claim they need permission before updating to a new edition. It makes sense, actually.

  2. As near as I can figure, you will indeed need to manually download it again to get the new version. I’ll see if I can get a definitive answer before the professionally edited version drops, which looks like it will be mid to late September.

  4. *** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***
    Just left you review (which you responded to) on amazon. Was surprised and happy to see a prompt response, not something normally gotten from an author. Surprised as well to see you in my same industry (IT). Happy to read the series and I like what I’ve read so far. Looking forward to more installments.
    Please don’t take this the wrong way, but this is a wishlist of fictional acts I’d like to see (aka feature requests):
    Ivy teaches Myn to speak Northern
    Entwood branches out and sends emmisaries in this time of unease, while facing the prospect that one of their own was murdered by another citizen of Entwood. (and, is there a plot by this murderer to trade magic for gold and power in the new world?)
    As well, would be nice that other nations be allowed to build embassies in Entwood for magical training of their own people.
    Deacon deals with his changing hand and it’s spread to the rest of his body.
    Whatever happened to the original wizard that trained myranda? Is he an old fool, or a clever man?
    Deacon and Myranda married.
    Ether learns new tactics, but briefly becomes undeniably human and thus, mortal.

    What hooked me on your books? Free. The whole “first one is free” thing made me take the chance. It’s a good story line, lots of depth, and can go any number of ways. You could literally write dozens of books with these characters, and still have a plethora of material remaining. Understandably, you’ve got a lot on your plate so I can handle a wait for the next one. My email is listed here, if your in need of an informal focus group so to speak, feel free to contact me. Else, I’ll eagerly await your next installment.

  5. *** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***
    Wow, requests! Let’s see how much I can say without giving too much away. Well, I’ve got a short novel out now called Jade that takes place some undisclosed number of years after the events of the Book of Deacon trilogy. If you read that, having read the trilogy, you’ll find indications of at least some of your requests happening in the intervening years, though they may or may not happen as you envisioned them. On the other hand, some things you are looking for are very unlikely to happen, but nothing is set in stone. Most of the major characters are plotted out for at least one more appearance, so there are plenty of opportunities to see them grow and develop. As for minor ones? Well, you mention Myranda’s first teacher, Wolloff. He was a favorite among the group of friends who helped me get the trilogy finished, so I wouldn’t doubt that we would hear from him again.

    “First one free” was certainly a breakthrough. I know that there is a great deal of bad literature out there. It’s asking an awful lot of someone to throw away a few dollars on a self-published unknown who you’re not sure you’ll like. The least I could do was give everyone a risk-free taste of what I had to offer to help make the decision a little easier. It took FOREVER to get Amazon to make it free, and it is still only temporary, but the Smashwords (and Barnes and Noble, Apple, Kobo, Diesel, Sony, etc.) versions should remain free for the foreseeable future.

    Thanks for the comment!

  6. I just wanted to stop by and give some credit where much credit is due! I think you’re an amazingly talented writer! I love the way you play on language and your use of words. It makes your stories fun and easy to read. I’ve read the trilogy and just from browsing your site am truly excited to learn I haven’t heard the last of Lain or Deacon, my favorites. Anyhow, thank you for your tales 🙂

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