This time last year, I sat down to organize my notes and figure out what was going on. FB reminds me of anniversaries of interesting events. I have my own in the calendar.
January 7, 2015.
My world kinda turned upside down. I had previously published Beyond the Mirror, Vol 1 and Vol 2. Two collections of fantasy shorts and epic poetry. Late in 2014 (early Dec, I think) I dropped Volume 3: Alternate Worlds, which was the first collection of SF. At the same time, I published the first Javier novella, The Science Officer.
So far, so good. People (who are not blood relatives, even) were actually buying my books and enjoying them.
January 7, 2015, Science Officer exploded.
It went from selling 2-3 copies on a good day to 70-90. Stayed that way for a while. I frantically finished the second in the series: The Mind Field, so I could sustain traction. Managed it.
I was already starting to transition to novel writing, so I kept it up. 2015 was a pretty good year.
2016, I decided to try some new things. Not all of them worked. I personally love White Crane, but not many other people do. And I understand that it is book one of a trilogy, and most people won’t touch it until I finish the other two. Your loss, by the way. 🙂
In 2017, I am going to publish a number of other stories in the same (Modern Gods) universe. People with super-powers, coming to grips with it. And Society coming to grips with them.
And you know me. Fabulous Publisher Babe(tm) has correctly identified my underlying literary theme as “sticking it to the man.” So the new stories are not epic battles to stop evil being from destroying the universe (except when they are), but stories about the little people who are involved.
The first story is scheduled to come out in the third CampCon Anthology: “Steam. And Dragons.” It will be published in March, and be available for pre-order in February. More than a dozen folks this year, writing fantasy, science fiction, steampunk, horror, as well as post-apocalyptic stuff.
I wrote a silly story about a breakfast dragon.
In June (if not earlier), I will actually be editing a bigger superhero anthology tentatively entitled “Hiding Behind The Cowl.” I asked my writers to give me longer stories (10-20k instead of 3-6k) and have gotten some really great stuff. Hoping it sells enough that I can convince them to do it annually or bi-annually. TBD. But poke them and let them know you want MORE…
Just sent off a stand-alone (#3) story to my first readers to review. Again, minor character with barely any power, trying to find herself and her place in a world that she doesn’t understand, and doesn’t understand her. Probably come out in the fall.
And #4 will be a (superhero) short-story collection I just started of extremely short pieces (2500-3500) wrapped around a common theme of food and cooking. Have the first done, and twelve plotted. They don’t take long, and they make me giggle.
But back to 2016 for a moment.
The Third Javier story came out: The Gilded Cage.
The Fourth Jessica: Goddess of War.
Plus more Alexandria Station Stories with Doyle/Piper (Demigod), and Vo Arlo (Siren).
White Crane, the first of Kai Di’s trilogy. Fairchild, the beginning of Dani’s series.
I even made more money in 2016 than I did in 2015, which is always a good sign. Not enough to walk away from the day job, or even schedule a date when to walk away, but getting closer. (If sales of the latter two novels had been better, we’d be in better shape. That’s what I get for having too many series not developed enough. Lesson learned. And I promise not to start writing what I hope will be my grandest SF epic yet (The XXXX XXXXXXX) until I get some of the others done. I might write them anyway, and just not publish them until much later. Or not.
Because I haven’t said it enough times: Thank you. I would still be writing without the support of the fans, but it would be in spare time, and not doing anything with it. (Like the last 30 years.) That I can possibly make enough money to live on is because you like my words enough. But it starts with you.
I crossed 1,000,000 sellable (modern) words in the middle of 2016. Took me 2.5 years. Hoping to do the next million in a shorter period, but I have a day job, so I consider the 415,000 words I wrote in 2016 to be pretty damned spiffy. Goal is more every year, Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise.
So, back to 2017.
More fantasy short pieces coming. I’m trying to fill in some of those series from Mirror 1 and Mirror 2 and move them all along. (Brak: Feet of Clay) Adding new series and characters when I must. Many that make me giggle, including Akahana.
In Feb and April, two new Beyond The Mirror volumes (4 & 5): Dramatic Worlds. Four plays about Cisco in Vol 4. Two plays, two monologues, and a comedy sketch dialogue in Vol 5. Maybe eventually publish them all individually. Maybe not.
Just sent the fifth Jessica Keller novel off to first readers yesterday. The Flight of the Blackbird. Scheduled for late spring or early summer.
Working now on the fourth Javier story. The Pleasure Dome. TBD.
Dunno what comes next. Not that worried. Won’t run out of ideas before the world collapses.
Anything you want to see?
And as a reward for actually reading this: want me to send you an ebook? I have several nobody has read yet. You can be first. I could not do this without you.
shade and sweet water,
bd
West of the Mountains, WA