I have got to update my website.
And, of course, you’re wondering, “But Mr. Horne, you already updated your website this past summer. You hired a professional and everything.”
And you’re right. I don’t need to update any of the new stuff—the landing page or the blog or what have you.
What I need to update are my status pages. Those are a mess. Things like “Works in Progress” are so outdated they’re practically ancient history. Because the time has come to start building hype for the Secret Sky multi-volume story in a new way.
That’s right, folks: it’s sequel season!
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
My to-write list is going to be a lifelong burden. I have resigned myself to this.
But I can promise you that following up my current books is my number one priority. I am not going to get distracted from finishing a series by the allure of, say, writing a largely unrelated HBO show taking place in the same universe but with none of the same characters.
A result we can all be happy with, right Mr. R. R. Martin?
Regardless, I am coming down from the high of releasing a new book and starting a new series. And after the whirlwind of publicity and marketing, I’m buttoning down and getting back to work.
Perhaps there is a reason why November has been designated “National Novel-Writing Month”. Something about this time of year clears the air and prods an author into doing his duty.
In any case, work has already begun on the sequels to both Secret Sky: The Young Universe and Advent 9.
Also, I can promise that each successive release will be bigger and better than the last. You know how I can promise that?
I Can’t Tell You
Sorry. It’s a secret. And no matter how much you beg or plead, I won’t spill the beans.
All right, I’ll tell you: I did things with the first Secret Sky book that few other independent authors can do. The resources at my disposal allowed me to hire a publicist, print beautiful hardcover copies of the book, and fill that book with gorgeous illustrations.
(And that’s before we even get to the audiobook.)
And I’m not going to lie: both the releases of Advent 9 and Secret Sky: The Young Universe involved throwing a lot of money at the wall and seeing what stuck. Though I can admit that the latter release was a great deal more strategic than the former. Also I have more money now than when I started (weird how that works).
What I’m trying to say is that almost any other author at this point in his career would have nothing left in the tank for the next release. Whereas I’m just getting the ball rolling.
Prepare for me to become even more outspoken and unavoidable.
Seriously, prepare. It’s going to get so bad that you’ll have to tell ten friends to buy my book just to get rid of me. I don’t think you’re ready for how crazy things are going to get.
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