Let’s Do This

Posted on by Nathan

January has been a cold car with a half-dead battery. Every once in a while I try to crank it over, but all I get is a few half-hearted groans before the starter just clicks.

That’s the bad news. The good news is that I’m getting a few more groans each time I try. The battery isn’t magically charging but there seems to be a trickle of juice coming from somewhere. I keep trying, hoping that maybe the beast will roar to life with the next turn of the key.

Status

Salt – Book 1 of The Barbarians
My editor has it. It’s a long book and I expect she’ll need some time to get through it. My co-author is working on the cover. The mock-up looks great. Magic 8-Ball says “February looks good.”

Dark Knight Station: Origins
Ebook is out. Paper is coming – eventually. Audio depends on Podium and I don’t have the dates from them yet.

You may not have noticed that the “Course Corrections” signup widget is missing from the sidebar and bottom of the post. I took it out because it didn’t work right. Never did. I set up a new landing page and linked it to the “Newsletter” tab on the menu above. If you’re not already subscribed, but would like to try it, come on in. The water’s fine.

Next Steps

I’m working on the next Ishmael book. It’s something to do with the academy and a new ship – the Marva Collins. Also some new characters. It’s setting the groundwork for a new series – three? four? I don’t know – of books featuring the fearsome foursome.

On deck after that is The Wizard’s Cat. I’m getting a lot of suggestions of how it should go. I’m still cogitating on how this will roll out, but I think you’ll be pleased with the result – even if I don’t take any of the suggestions.

I may have to go back to Finwell Bay for another story about Otto. I didn’t think that I needed to, but I keep being drawn back to the sound of the surf and the slow beating heart of the tides.

Then we’ve got the next volume of The Barbarians. That’s going to take a lot longer because we’re only barely done with book one. We’ve got some mythology and folklore to develop to make the next books work. Stay tuned on this one.

What Am I Reading?

I’ve been getting serious about reading this month. While it may seem counterintuitive, if I’m reading a lot, I’m more likely to be writing a lot. It’s kind of like setting the table with the good china. I’m more likely to cook something nice.

I’ve read a lot of Women’s Paranormal Fiction this month, a ton of space opera, and I’ve just picked up a GameLit title by Dustin Tigner. I know Dustin from an online group and we’ve been teasing him unmercifully for months about “going to write a book” but never doing it. He’s finally done it and he satisfied the first criteria. I got through the sample and hit the Buy Me link at the end.

I hate the title, but it’s funny, quirky, probably appeals more to me as a gamer than a reader. If you’ve wanted an introduction to the GameLit, rpgLit genres, you might grab a sample of Wrong Divinity.

Last Words

It’s still winter here on the High Plains – both literally and figuratively – but I think I’m beginning to smell spring in the air. I’ve written more in the last week than the last three months. I don’t like a lot of it, but they’re the first trickles of new work and it makes me happy that things feel like they’re moving again.

Fingers crossed that it’s not just a January thaw before being plunged back into the icy grip of February. I’m cautiously optimistic.

Until next month, safe voyage.

17 thoughts on “Let’s Do This”

  1. could you share some titles and authors of the space opera you are reading?

    what are your favorites?

    there is a lot out there and it’s hard to make a choice. personally i am looking for stories that don’t focus on armed conflict. that’s what attracted me to the ishmael books, and i am hoping to find more like that.

    greetings, horatio.

    1. All the space opera I read last month was in the military category. I read a lot of authors new to me that I enjoyed but couldn’t recommend.

      But I highly recommend anything by Glynn Stewart.

      Also the Karma Corps series by Audrey Faye. It’s got a lot of fantasy elements, but it’s definitely space opera. The first book is Destiny’s Song. Grab a sample and see what you think.

      1. I tried Glynn Stewart on a recommendation on your Facebook group page. My husband and I are both hooked now. ( I keep introducing hubby to the books I find. He reads faster than I do)

        1. It’s always fun to recommend books to people and watching them enjoy those recommendations! 🙂

  2. Have you tried any of the Savage Universe books by Kevin Steverson and friends? Savage Title is the first book. Space opera in the military category, but the good guys win and start a universe for refugees. Quick and easy reading. I don’t know if the military stuff is accurate, but the space shoot them up is good opera.

    1. That’s cool.

      I haven’t the focus to read long form fiction on my computer so these web novels go right past me but it’s cool that I’m inspiring another generation of authors! 🙂

  4. Was wondering if you were planning on any follow-on books to “The Wizards Butler”? I’ve enjoyed the book immensely and was hoping it was popular enough to be worth the time for a sequel.

    1. Yes. We’ll be going back to Shackleford House with The Wizard’s Cat. It’ll be on my writing desk after I finish this next Ishmael book.

  5. Hello Nathan,
    Ever since I found Quarter Share years ago I have been a huge fan of your work and the universe you have created around that original series. I listened to that first podcast many years ago (and still often do) when it was free on apple podcasts. Over the years I have bought your other books thru amazon for my Kindle and also on Audible to listen to. I thought I was supporting you and other authors by buying thru them however I just learned this is not the case. I just watched a you tube video from another sci-fi creator I follow (Spacedock VS Audible | Boycott). I did not realize how poorly Amazon treats the creators that use it’s platform. Nathan is there another platform I can use to buy your books or audio books where you or any other creator is treated more equitably? wishing you the best in health and creativity.

    1. A couple of points.

      Short answer: No. Amazon and Audible are the only platforms you can get my work from. Amazon is the only reason I’m able to be a full time writer.

      Longer answer:
      1. Amazon is the only economically viable platform for me. I have *never* been able to get traction in other markets. In 2015 I stopped trying. Amazon is the biggest bookstore on the planet and it’s on everybody’s desk. Something over 7 out of 10 novels sold in the US are sold through Amazon so – for all its flaws – it is absolutely the most viable path for readers to support writers. Every other market combined is smaller. I understand why some authors don’t want to use Amazon and some readers won’t buy from them. I have to take a more pragmatic approach because Amazon is the only way I can reach the number of readers that I do.

      2. Audible has a problem with the way it treats self-published audio through ACX. It’s a mess. By the same token, Audible – because of Amazon – has the lions share of the audiobook market. The specialist publishers that list on Audible (usually exclusively) do not have the same issues as those titles published through ACX. I’ve had a problem with ACX for years. It’s one of the reasons I signed with Podium so the audiobooks could get to listeners without having to screw around with ACX and their ridiculous systems. So, again, while I appreciate that people don’t want to use that platform for audio, I can’t afford to not use it. Without it, I couldn’t get the books to as many people as I do.

    2. I just tracked down that video from Spacedock.

      He makes valid points but slides over a couple of important distinctions.

      ACX is a subsidiary of Audible which is a subsidiary of Amazon. Yes, ultimately Amazon is responsible for that chain but by painting Amazon as the Great Evil, he’s skipping past a large number of players.

      ACX has been a hot, exploitative mess since its inception. It offered a terrific opportunity for self published audio the same way KDP offered ebooks to writers. The reality is that it has *never* delivered that. This isn’t something new. It’s always been a way for Audible to exploit DIY producers. It’s why efforts like Draft2Digital’s partnership with FindAWay voices got started. There are others out there for producers if they want to avoid the ACX swamp.

      But here’s the point I want to make.

      If you’re concerned about the way creators are treated, stop buying books from traditional publishers.

      When it comes to exploiting authors, the publishing industry wrote the book (no pun intended). ACX learned from the way every big publisher treats writers – as replaceable cogs in the machine to whom they owe nothing, including accurate reporting or timely payments. Publishing houses – large and small – siphon off the majority of revenue leaving only small fractions (often less that the 13% that Spacedock finds so pitiful) for the creators.

      Yes, ACX is a crap deal. There are ways around ACX for DIY audio. All of trad publishing is a crap deal for writers, but the exploitation doesn’t start at Amazon. Like a multistory outhouse, the crap just falls down to the writers at the bottom.

  6. Hi Nathan
    I am a audiobook fan rather than a reader. I am currently halfway through Home Run. Will there be any more to this series in the future.
    Thank you for such amazing work.
    Russ

    1. I’m not anticipating any more Smuggler’s Tales, but there’s a lot of their story that plays out before we meet Natalya and Zoya again.

      I don’t give a hard “no” on it, but it’s unlikely.

  7. Hi –
    I just discovered you. I’ve just started reading ‘The Wizard’s Butler’. I’ve only gotten to page 5? to the line,
    “Naomi cast him a glance that—miraculously—failed to shatter the heavy crystal glass in his hand.”
    and I had to stop for a moment, find your webpage and let you know that I am deeply in love. LOL
    I’m going to finish this one and then find all your other books and read them too.
    Thank you for being amazing.

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