Anvil on my head.

Sorry I haven't written anything in a few days. Kind of had a big life event that has thrown me for a loop. After much pondering, I've decided that it is a black swan event and not something I want to distract from the way I'm living my life. Suffice to say, I'm fine, my wife and kids are fine, the store is fine. Everything is fine.

So after 45 days, "Deadfall Ridge" is starting to turn back into a pumpkin. That is, I think it won't be long before it is selling at more or less the same pace as my other books.

My most recent review is a pretty good summation of how it works:

"A Very Pleasant Surprise. Didn’t know the author, never heard of the book but took a chance. It was an excellent story and hard to put down."

See, that's just it. "Didn't know the author"--and who does? "Took a chance"--and who does? Then the actual reaction to the book itself...

I don't know if there is any way around that. People need reassurance--so they gravitate to the authors they know, or at least authors they've heard good things about. I'm not sure that will ever change.

BookBook is an equalizer for sure, but it's pretty hard to get accepted. 

It was fun to watch.

Meanwhile, I've decided to forego my pride and try to get the major publisher to do something with the book I sold them. I've offered to buy it back. I've offered it under my own name at a much smaller advance. I've offered it to them to do whatever changes they choose.

The sticking point is at this point in my life I don't want to get bogged down in doing major rewrites of a book I finished 3 or 4 years ago.

But it doesn't seem to matter. I get no answer, even though they've paid me a significant chunk of money at the first advance. To give them the benefit of the doubt, maybe they're ultra busy, or maybe they've had an "anvil on their head" too. Heh. 

My writing has definitely slowed down. I knew it had to happen eventually. I was at a fever pitch for two years, then very steady for another year, then diligent for the next two years. Without diligence, I too turn into a pumpkin. 

But Oh My, I really got a lot done there for awhile.