A Cool Email

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I’ve been getting a lot of cool email and I really appreciate that.  It helps me know that I’m on the right track with this series of books. I’ve been out of town for a few days.  That’s my “smiling” face up there at the top taken while I was kayak fishing at Douthat State Park in Virginia.  While I was gone, I got a nice email that I have shared below.  It came from CW, but the name won’t be shared so don’t feel like you can’t contact me without risk of being outed as a fan of post-apocalyptic fiction.

Thanks for emailing and thanks for reading.  If you liked the book, tell your friends.

Franklin Horton

Mr. Horton:

I just finished “A Borrowed World” and had to write. I’ve read a LOT of apocalyptic fiction over the years because I enjoy it. My life’s work has been in the medical profession in emergency and disaster care so the genre feels natural.

Your book was excellent; far and away better than most I’ve read, especially for someone who is just starting with their publishing. (And yes, indie publishing is fantastic!) Your plot was crisp and clear, your main characters engaging, yet strong, and the sad description of what will happen to those who fail to fully grasp the signs of the times was, well, sad.

The assumption of what will happen is probably more accurate than most have depicted. The 72 hour window that many see as when society will start to devolve is going to catch too many people unaware. It was refreshing to read someone who thought through this a little more accurately.

I can’t wait to read your next installment, and look forward to finding out what happens from the threads you left at the end – excellent idea, by the way…drives the adrenalin right back up!

Best of luck to you, and keep thinking and writing!

Another Update

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I just wanted to post a quick update and let you know of some of the latest developments around The Borrowed World.  I continue to receive a lot of feedback and I appreciate your comments.  I’m glad to know that so many of you have enjoyed the book and are looking forward to the next installment.

The Borrowed World on Audio

The last few days I’ve been listening to Kevin Pierce’s excellent narration of the book.  It’s been great hearing my book read in a voice other than my own.  I think his narration is gripping and brings a whole new element to the book.  If you’re an audiobook fan, it should be available in July.  I’ll be posting updates as the release date is finalized.

The Next Book

The most common question I’m getting is about the release of the second book in the series.  I have to admit that promotion and getting the audiobook off the ground has taken some time away from writing but the draft of Book 2 is about halfway complete.  I’ve got a title in mind and I’ll release that a little later.  The projected release of Book 2 is early October.

Thanks

A lot of hands go into the production of a book.  At some point I will post more information about my journey as a writer, but suffice is to say that the journey of all writers involves a lot of frustration.  Ten years ago I completely washed my hands of the system and vowed never to write anything else ever again.  Yeah, I was pouting.

But as some point I gave up pouting and started writing again.  Part of that was due to the encouraging information shared on the websites of authors Steve Konkoly and J.A. Konrath.  They made me realize that there were now huge opportunities available to independent authors willing to publish outside of the big publishing house system.  It was impressive to me that both of these authors were willing to take their time and share information that would help other writers.  I have thanked Steve for this before and will continue to thank him.  J. A. Konrath — if you read this — thank you, too.

The First Month of Sales

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I released The Borrowed World at the beginning of May.  It took a couple of days to get word out so there were really no sales that first week.  By May 7th I’d sold about ten copies and was ecstatic to be out of the single digits.  Yesterday marked the end of the first month of sales and I was excited to see where the numbers fell.

In regular Amazon sales, I sold 2664 copies of the ebook this first month.  For the Kindle Unlimited program there were 2146 downloads for the month through that program.  Kindle Unlimited allows a customer to pay a monthly fee which allows them to download participating books for free.  The author receives a payment for that download which is less than a sale, but at this stage increases exposure for the book.  That makes 4810 total paid sales of the ebook for the month of May.  I sold 161 paperbacks, too, for a total of 4971 books sold in May 2015.  I am excited to see what the next month holds.

I appreciate those of you who have read the book and shared your comments with me.  Emails of support are pouring in from English-speaking countries around the globe with everyone asking the same question:  When is Book 2 coming out?

At this point, it looks like the beginning of October.  The storylines for Book 2 and Book 3 are coming together nicely.  Book 2 is well underway and I think it will answer a lot of the questions that I’m receiving about what happened to Alice and Rebecca.

Stay tuned for updates on the audiobook and the progress of Book 2.

Thanks.

Franklin Horton