Author Update: Echo Island, Subterrania, and More

About fifteen months ago, I finally built up enough nerve to self-publish my first book. I’ve only sold a little over a hundred copies since publishing, but honestly, that’s so many more than I ever expected. That said, I know many of you are wondering when I’ll get book two out. Don’t worry, I have some answers for you, but first, I want to explain some things.

If you’re someone that just wants the dates and info, you can scroll to the bottom, but if you’re someone wanting to follow the journey, this next part is for you.

Like I said, I don’t think I was expecting to sell too many books. I thought I’d get some cousins, grandparents, and close friends to buy it and that’s about where it would stop. Somehow, that wasn’t the case. Even today, as I meet new people, it is incredible to see how quickly they see my work and purchase it.

The truth is, writing a book takes a lot of work. It requires mind power, focus, and constant drive. When I first started writing, I was naive. I thought I’d pump out a book in a few weeks, send it to a publisher—and BOOM! I’d be raking in some extra cash. Turns out authors are rarely so lucky.

The truth of getting published is a lot more complicated. In fact, last Fall I spent a great deal of time researching the topic and writing my senior thesis on it. In my mind, there had to be some sort of formula for success. If I could just discover it, I could make it. For months, I read as many books as I could, watched podcasts, researched the stories of how authors achieved success, etc. My conclusion—In almost every case, it requires hard work, time, and a couple truck loads of persistence.

That brings me back to where I am now with one book published and a couple more on the way. In almost every case I studied, authors didn’t make it big on their first book. How many do you think they had to write?

Take a second, stop reading, and guess. Do you have an answer?

In my findings, many authors had to write somewhere between ten and fifteen books before they started growing a following large enough to support them financially.

So, let me come full circle. There are two things I need to be successful as an author. First, I have to love it. I have to enjoy writing so much that I can write thousands of pages for free. Fortunately, I can assure you that I have that love. The second is an outward source—it’s those who support me along the way.

It started with just one person. My wife told me I could do it. She made me believe in myself when I got lost in my writing. She stood by me as I received over fifty rejection letters from literary agents. Then, when I finally published my first book, I watched as that support grew from a few people in my inner circles to friends, family, colleagues, and even strangers I’d only met and spoke with once or twice.

In other words, I truly believe that your support has brought me to where I am. All this said, allow me to shed some light on exactly what I’ve been up to:

• Echo Island: This is a big one. It seems everywhere I go, people are quick to ask me when book 2 will come out. My answer? Hopefully by the end of this summer. As of right now, the rough draft is already longer than book 1, and it’s only about 75% complete. Fortunately, I’ve found a good editing flow that works well for me. So, after I finish the first draft, I expect it will be about a month before I polish it up and send it out.
• Subterrania: Many of you might have seen when I first wrote Subterrania. To be honest, that endeavor was one of the most difficult things I ever achieved. I wrote over 400 pages in just 30 days back in December of 2023. Since then, it’s been on and off the back burners. While I originally published it for free on royalroad.com, I decided to take it down and meticulously rework it. It should also be available by the end of the summer, as I’m currently on my final round of editing.
• Cover art: I’ve been doing a lot of thinking on this point. Generative AI has made creating covers easier than ever. The cover for Echo Island is a great example. While I didn’t solely rely on AI for that cover, I did use it and I’m starting to have a problem with that. As a writer/creator, I think it’s becoming increasingly important to retain the human element in art wherever possible. For that reason, I’ve been working on redesigning Echo Islands cover along with these new titles without the help of AI. As these two new books launch later this year, you can expect to see a new and unique style associated with my books.

Ok, I know that’s a lot of information to take in, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knows how grateful I am for their support, and how much more there is to come. Thanks to each of you for helping me keep my fuel level up. If you want more updates about the books, you can subscribe to my mailing list below. Thanks for reading and more updates to come!