Here. Have a flower.
Dear humans,
The female has had a lot of comments lately asking (or quietly grieving) that the next Vigilante Magical librarians book has a 12-18 month release window. I know, I know. Waiting sucks. It does! But, as we of the Furred and Frond management do enjoy being transparent, we’re going to take some time to talk shop with you, so readers know what and when to roughly anticipate upcoming books:
The female is tentatively considering moving the release of Wild Wolf from December to January. Preorders will remain intact, and there is no penalty for a singular move of up to 30 days. She will know by November if she will change its release date.
Yes, this is a ‘safe the author’s sanity’ move, and it will only be done if her and her editor cannot guarantee the book will be perfectly ready by its original predicted release date. Wild Wolf was chosen because it has the fewest number of preorders at current of the three books scheduled for December.
Note: this will only be done if and only if the female cannot make her brain do the work required to launch on time.
We’re blaming COVID. (Because realistically, it is COVID’s fault.)
Unfortunately, the male’s aunt passed away from COVID recently, and because she lived in Canada and they have very strict quarantine requirements, the humans cannot attend the services, which will be held in early September. (Long story short, please wear your masks, please take extra special care with your aging loved ones, and for fuck’s sake, please take COVID seriously.)
Let’s just say the female has had many readers and friends who have been sick with COVID, who are recovering but aren’t well even after they’ve tested negative, and this illness is no joke or conspiracy theory.
Anyway, that’s the story of how the female has been delayed on getting things done. Her emotional and mental state isn’t bad all things considered, but right now is hard.
So, let’s discuss the Vigilante Magical Librarians series. In the end of Booked for Murder, it was announced it would take 12-18 months for the next book to release. There is a good reason for this.
In 2020, the female will be releasing the following books: A Chip on Her Shoulder, The Flame Game, Murder Mittens, License to Kill, and Wild Wolf. In January, she will be releasing Dirty Deeds with Faith Hunter, Devon Monk, and Diana Pharaoh Francis. In March, she will release the first of a Mag Rom Com spinoff trilogy involving the Devil. In May, she will release Catnapped.
That is a lot of words to write, and despite common belief, the female is not a machine. She’s a very tired living being who works very hard.
It took six months to write Booked for Murder. There is zero reason for the female to believe that the next Vigilante Magical Librarians book will take less than six months. As such, the 12 month estimate is really and truly the absolute earliest she can produce the book.
While the female is prolific, she is only prolific right now because she works seven days a week for often fourteen hours daily.
She does not wish to work that schedule any longer. It is brutal, it is destructive to her health, and she does not earn enough per book sale to even come close to warranting the stress and strain put on herself.
Yep, we’re saying it, humans: $5.99 per copy sold, of which the female only receives 70% minus transfer fees, is not worth seven days a week, fourteen hour a day days. It’s just not. And while we realize it would be ridiculous for her to charge much more than what she’s doing for a book, she’s happy with her current pricing scheme; it balances her need to pay the rent and the bills, and it makes the books accessible to most people… and those who can’t afford the books can inquire with their public libraries about copies. (Please do. Libraries are wonderful.)
As such, please be patient. In 2021, the female is moving to no more than five days a week and eight hours a day.
No more twenty to thirty days in a row of working without a single day off. No more working from when she gets up to until she goes to bed. Her current work street is 30 days without an actual break. Yes, she worked while she went camping, somewhere around five hours a day. The one day, she worked closer to twelve, because the male was reading and so she took advantage of his desire for quiet time to write. In good news, she did (mostly) work on a fun side project.
We appreciate how much you enjoy her books and your enthusiasm, but in 2021, the workload will be decreased. Five days a week with eight hours a day is fair.
What is happening now is not fair.
What she is currently doing is destructive and not fair. She made promises, so she kept them. She will not continue to work as hard moving forward.
As soon as the current commitments are fulfilled, this is how preorders will work.
Three months after the book is completely finished, the book will release. This will allow the female time to handle the pre-publication work, from scheduling promotions to having the audiobook versions produced if the book will be getting one, and getting paperbacks done. This should allow for audiobooks to release substantially closer to ebook editions.
It will significantly lower her stress levels, too.
Please note that audiobook production will be on a case-by-case basis. Once the book has 2,000 ebook sales or preorders, assuming it does so within a month of its release date, the book will be queued for audiobook production. Why 2,000?
That’s roughly how many preorders of the ebook copies are required for the female to cover the costs of audiobook production and make enough to put some food on the table and help pay the rent. After the first month of sales, truth be told, backlist sales become a much smaller portion of the female’s income, which generally means the new releases need to carry paying the rent, staff, and bills.
This is non-negotiable; she isn’t even going to consider audiobook production on a book unless it has at least that many preorders or sales, and only if it does so early in the book’s life. That means some series will not be getting audiobooks.
Booked for Murder and a Chip on Her Shoulder will be getting audiobook editions, as both titles have reached these numbers. The Flame Game and Murder Mittens, when they release, will be queued for audiobook editions.
It is unlikely the Royal States series will have immediate audiobook production done, as they rarely reach that many sales near release. (They’re closer to the 1,000 mark in terms of preorder sales, and it is questionable if they will perform well enough to hit the threshold. It will be approached on a case-by-case basis.)
This does put audiobook production in a position to be completely reliant on the ebook portion, but the female cannot continue accruing a huge amount of debt on gambles that won’t pay back, and at least this way, the gamble is being buffered by the success of the book getting the audiobook version. So, in the future, if there isn’t an audiobook version available, it is because the ebook didn’t sell enough copies around its launch.
She just can’t afford to keep flinging money at a product that isn’t going to sell or earn back its production costs. We’re sorry. We know some of you enjoy audiobooks for various reasons, but the bills associated with their production are lethal.
This is the best compromise she could come up with for those who enjoy audiobooks. At least this way, the ebook will have made enough where the female can produce the audiobook and still pay her staff, the rent, and so on.
That’s probably not what you wanted to hear today. Again, we’re sorry. The female does not have the energy or willpower to deal with crowdfunding, patreons, or anything else of that nature.
She wants to write books.
She doesn’t want to need to write 80,000-120,000 words a month for all eternity. Something has to give, so yes.
The female will no longer be maintaining this brutal place. We hope you are patient, but the reality is, she wants to be happy, too–and being pressured to write 80,000-120,000 words a month, plus time required to edit the books, plus time to market the books… is just too much.
So, the next time a new preorder is announced, it will be sometime in 2021, it will last for three months, and we’re sorry to the readers we disappoint. If you need new authors to try because my updated schedule makes you unhappy, starting on September 8 or so, we will be running a book faire to thank authors who have just been awesome people and helped the female… we are sure you’ll find some books you can fall in love with there.
But enough is enough.
The female deserves to be happy, too–and that means saying no to 7 days a week, 14 hours a day.
Which is what is needed to give you one book a month.
So the next time you wonder why an author writes only one or two books a year… it is because they have a life.
Right now, the female does.
There are only books.
The next book coming out is A Chip on Her Shoulder, releasing September 1. We really do hope you love it. It’s the female’s current favorite.
I am so sorry for your loss. Thank you for releasing awesome books that allow your readers to escape from the chaos in the world right now. And thank you for prioritizing your health and sanity, because we all need to do a bit more of that.
Go for what keeps you happy and sane. I, for one, would rather see you write books for the next 20-30 years than burning out in the next two. (Hey – those of you who complain – take a look at many of the “name” authors who write 1 =ONE book every 18 months. A dozen books a year? Nah… )
Patience is a virtue that Covid is helping all of us learn to cultivate, however reluctantly. Your readers will eagerly devour each book upon release while (trying) to remember that a healthy author = an author who is still writing. So please take care of yourself!
First and most important is your health. Looking at it selfishly, we need you healthy to get more books!
Second, do you have a Patreon account that I can contribute to?
I don’t use Patreon because it’s just too much extra to have to do, and I don’t want to have to deal with the platform. It’s just exhausting, because Patreon typically requires some form of monthly ‘perk’ for people who subscribe. It’s just not something I can realistically add to my plate without going *mad.*
I am sorry to hear that Patreon doesn’t work better. I do support some authors that simply do a post a day or so early with Patreon. I just would like to support you (other than buying the books, which I do!)
A great way to support, and this is what I do with my favorite authors, is buy the same book on several vendors. I buy my favorites on Amazon, Apple, Kobo, *and* Barnes & Noble. That way I have it on whatever device I happen to be using. Sometimes, if I REALLY love them, I get a copy on Google Play. If they’re Amazon only, I pick like four or five friends and basically make them accept the book ROFL
And while that’s ultimately super silly, I know they get a boosted paycheck, and that makes me happy. <3
Delay Wild Wolf. You can’t keep up this pace without hurting your health. We will wait. Enjoy your time with The Beard and the kitties. Watch out for excessive stress!
I really, really do not want to delay Wild Wolf, because it means I will have to rush Client from Hell and/or possibly delay *that*, too. It’s a snowball effect I really, really do not want to deal with. Delaying is a great deal more stressful than just finishing on time. SIGNIFICANTLY more stressful.
Please do have a life! But if you can clone yourself in the future, please consider it.
Yeeeesss, I do want a life. I have a bunch of little craft projects I really want to work on, but I haven’t had the time lately. 🙁
I’m so sorry for your loss!
Having a life is important, and you’re working worse hours than my worst projects as a consultant. I know you clearly know this – but I tell all my coworkers that that is not a sustainable pace!
Will I miss having a new book in my greedy hands as frequently as I do now? Yes, yes I will, especially as I’m among those who want the sequel to Booked. But realistically I read a *lot* of authors because traditionally published tend to be on a book a year schedule (Nora Roberts is considered unusually prolific with her 3-4 a year) and I don’t consider the pace most self-published are following to be sustainable. I’d rather you slow down than burn out entirely!
I’m a hardcore INTJ personality type. I am NOT happy unless I’m working on my goals. I actually get really cranky if I don’t work. So, I have to find a balance. I’m utterly, utterly driven to write… but I’m also easily provoked when people complain I’m not writing/working fast enough. It’s an odd thing.
So, yeah. I have to set boundaries, and hard ones… because I want time to read books, play with my scratch art, or maybe crochet! or paint! or other things!
I’m so sorry for your loss. I completely understand the stress of your impossible schedule. I look forward to whatever you publish whenever you do. Some of my other favorite authors only publish once every two years..
Until then I’ll be waiting patiently just keep writing please. Thanks
I totally agree the female’s health is THE most important thing. I will miss getting the books as quickly as I have in the past but I have other books to fill in while I wait. I was sorry to hear about your loss. I don’t know how I would handle being unable to be with loved ones during this time but my thoughts are with you and your family.
I LOVED Booked and will be looking forward to reading the next one but I can wait so take care of yourself. Thank you for so much joy with your books.
OMG !!! If an office job required those hours people wouldn’t be complaining non-stop. Just coz you love your job doesn’t mean you should drive/write yourself to the edge.
More time to do what you want (other than writing) means you will be happier. When you’re happier I’m sure your writing will be more fun as well.
If we have to wait longer then so be it. Your health is important and you can’t write if your dead. At least I don’t think you can LOL
A while back, I had a release cycle where I had one new book every 2-3 weeks for a while. People still complained I didn’t write fast enough. (This was accidental chaining; just happened to finish everything at one time and published as I finished editing, back when I would do surprise releases. I really didn’t like surprise releases. They were so stressful.)
I have not yet tested my ability to write from the grave, and I’m in no hurry to!
Glad you’re slowing down. While I love your books and am thrilled with 12 per year I know this is unreasonable. Just like expecting your doctor to work 14 (or more) hours a day 7 days a week. Everyone needs down time and it keeps your creativity up and running. Looking forward to the next books this year and next! ?
It is okay to slow down to s less insane pace. Six books a year is perfect.
I’m so sorry about the death in your family. And yes, while I am very eagerly looking forward to Wild Wolf, I would rather wait for it a bit longer. As soon as it was available for pre-order I ordered it. I love the Witch Wolf world. I have all of them and really look forward to those next 2 books. But please, slow down and breath. Your fans will still be here waiting, but if you aren’t healthy and happy you can’t feed our voracious appetite for your books. Pet your cats, let them purr your blood pressure down. Have a good day!
I long ago accepted that I can read much faster than an author can write, even under the most ideal (from my perspective) conditions. I just appreciate that you are happy enough -and driven enough – to keep producing material. I would never want you to burn yourself out. Take care of yourself.
Also, I have found that when I spend time knitting (my favorite craft), problems I was struggling with miraculously solve themselves without my conscious input – so really, you’re still working!
You publish more than any of my other beloved authors! Please don’t kill yourself ? I would miss your talents I can wait, you are worth waiting for.
I am so sorry for your loss. It is horrible not to be able to be there and grieve with family. Your family is in my prayers.
On to the book news.. As much as I love your books, I would rather you be happy and stress free as possible. It is ridiculous for us, your readers, to expect you to work insane hours to please us.
I was shocked to learn of your horrific schedule! No one should have to work like that! I very much enjoy your books, but I am certainly willing to wait for them if it means you have a life.
Thanks so much for all your hard work. Please take it easier. I look forward to your next book written in a reasonable amount of time.
All the best – Anne
Hello-
That writing pace is brutal and ooohh so wrong. You need time to enjoy the next TA White, Patricia Briggs, or Illona Andrews book. Wild Wolf gets moved to January? It will help distract from paranoid imaginings regarding 1/20.
Covid 19, no, BAD! You do NOT want! Wear a MASK!
Sympathies on you and your husband’s loss, especially with regards to not being able to go to the funeral. A number of funeral homes are live streaming funerals now. I hope you can participate that way at least.
Thank Goodness that you have drawn a line in the sand. A lot of readers are so focused on what they like or what they want that they forget that their favorite authors are human and need a life beyond satisfying these same reader’s very selfish wants. They do not realize (or are too selfish to realize) that if you collapse from exhaustion, there will be NO more books.
I am so pleased that you will relax your writing schedule enough so that you have a life and can pay the bills. Let the chips fall where they may. People will whine no matter what you do. When I need a lift, I re-read one of your body count/Royal States books. I look forward to your next stories but I can also wait for them. I can also read other favorite word scribes. See, no whining. Just encouragement that you are taking back control of your career. Go for it!
Most authors have long waits between releases. Better to take care of yourself, this will make each book better. Sorry for your loss and anxiety, take small steos, you will get there!
It really won’t change how the books are written. The books will be precisely the same no matter if I cram it in three weeks or three months. It’s just a me thing. So, yeah… I keep rolling my eyes because the whole thing about writing slower makes higher quality… is absolutely not true.
Do take care of yourself! I LOVE your books, and will fill in with cozy mysteries while patiently waiting for the next book for me to fall in love with to come out… Or re read my wonderful world of Royal States again for the umpteenth time , or go back to to the beginning with Ilona Andrews to find out if there are new books there?
Faith Hunter I will need to re read to understand where the new ones there come in… Soooo, stay zany and safe, and hopefully out of the fires raging!
On the subject of Royal States… I still don’t understand why they aren’t as loved… People are strange! Wonderful characters, that you want to re visit again and again… A story line that has meat to it, that promotes thought… And humour to boot, should be cherished! And magic!! What more can you ask for???? ADD in horses too and I’m in my particular heaven, until I get yelled at from my own mare… Wanting to know what happened to dinner, breakfast, the inbetween requirement she wants!
I am with you. Much as I love the other series, Royal States is my absolute favorite!
+1
First of all, thank you for all the books you have written, I haven’t read all of them but I have bought and read quite a few. I will continue to buy your books at whatever pace you produce them. Please take care of yourself so that we can all continue to enjoy your work for many years. Speaking as someone who also works seven days a week for twelve hours a day, it’s hard to keep up that kind of pace without burning out. I would imagine that since your work requires a lot more creativity than mine that it is especially mentally exhausting. Slow down a little and enjoy your life, you deserve it and we will all still be here eagerly awaiting your books.
Losing family is hard, and under these circumstances brutal. I am so sorry for your family loss. R. J., you and your health is more important to me than getting a book every month. Enjoy your life! Take a walk(when it’s safe), play with your kitties, and do your crafty things. I want you writing a long time. You bring laughter and joy to my life, and I want you to have it, too.
So sorry for your loss, my heartfelt sympathies to you and your husband. I totally understand your need to adjust your writings and releases. You deserve time for yourself to do the things that you like. Take care of yourself first.
I don’t blame you for cutting back! Your health is a most important thing and you need to take care of yourself! Every book you put out is very gratefully received, you are one of a very small number of authors whose books I go back and read again and again and again (I think I’ve read the Royal States series 1/2 a dozen times???.) But all readers should respect their authors and refrain from bugging them for more, what you give is (for me) incalculable pleasure and an escape from the grim times. Thank you, and stay safe ?
Kath
Take care of yourself first. I have waited up to four years on an author. You spoil us. I am so sorry for your loss.
I am sending you and The Beard virtual hugs. Having lost my last parent in late March I completely understand the stress.
I adore your books but the hours sound beyond brutal and I would imagine really affects every part of your life. I want and encourage you to have a life and be able to enjoy having 8 hour work days with weekends.
Best wishes on trying to manage your need to work in the coming months.
P.S. I found a author really similar to your writing style — Audrey Faye has a Ghost Mountain Series that has no sex that I thoroughly enjoy.
Yay! I am so happy that you are scheduling more time for yourself. Your books are worth waiting for.
I will be emailing Jeff at Amazon. Pulling a book without serious infractions is ridiculous.