Hello to all the folks who have journeyed to this part of the internet. If you’re reading this post, then chances are that you’ve read my book and hopefully enjoyed it enough to see where I might be going with it next. It’s no secret that I burnt out by bashing my head against the wall that is traditional publishing, and decided to use this series as a bit of a brand-building exercise instead.
The bad news for me is that I wasn’t quite able to drive the activity that I was looking for to consider tools like Patreon, Paypal, or Kindle Unlimited to really make the effort worthwhile. The good news is that I have enjoyed this process enough to usher in another installment with this series.
So, while one adventure might have ended, another is about to begin in…
Faith has become infectious.
Two and a half years after the events of The Hollowing, Liam Fenix spends his days in the comfort of Cheyenne Mountain, and Leah has returned to Pandemonium to claim it as her own. Both live under the tenuous peace that has been established.
…Until a mysterious cult known only as “the Beholders” attacks Liam’s sanctuary, convinced that his healthy body can be used to usher in the end of days.
Now, Liam and Leah must once again work together to defeat this new threat. Though the two are not alone for this fight, the Beholders prove more dangerous than they first appear. Their charismatic leader bends others to his will with a mind-altering power seemingly guided by divinity itself. Allies and enemies alike soon fall under his spell, and the very fabric of their post-Hollowing society begins to break down, paving the way for the Beholders’ dream to transform their world into true Armageddon.
Some relevant updates:
- I’m posting the Prologue for The Beholding on Friday as a tease, but I’m taking next week off to do some clean-ups / overdue site maintenance here.
- I’m posting two chapters per week instead of just one, on Mondays & Thursdays respectively.
- The Hollowing will continue to be free from now until the heat-death of the universe, but the same cannot be said for The Beholding. I may need to take it down at some point in the future as I consider alternate routes to publication, such as KDP Select. I will be sure to give as much advanced warning as possible via this blog.
- The Beholding is as self-contained as The Hollowing, and once again has all loose ends tied up.
On a personal note, it is a bit of a bummer that I haven’t quite landed the traction that I was hoping for with this series, and this had led me to a crossroads of sorts. While I will have the remaining sequels fully completed at some point, the question that I have been wrestling with lately is the timing. If my goal is to build my brand by publishing my first few novels for free, then I have to be pragmatic about the marketability of the stories I’m investing time in. To this end, resolving the remaining sequels past The Beholding may not be the best use of my time, energy, and emotional investment, at least for the immediate future. I can potentially expand my catalog with more mainstream options and circle back down the road once I’m more established.
So herein lies both the accelerated timing with The Beholding as well as a delay of a week to really weigh my options. Obviously, I would love nothing more than to spend the next 6-12 months fleshing out this series in full, but my ability to hold a day job while producing full-length novels will forever be stymied until I can consider monetizing my work in a realistic way.
I hope this does not leave anyone disappointed, and that the story is enjoyable enough in its current state.
Again, continued thanks for everyone who has been lending me their time.
-Martin 🙂
LISN
Leah & Liam are very engaging characters.
I’m looking forward to “The Beholding.”