Tomorrow, I bring some of the grandsons to see the latest Spiderman movie. What is this, the ten millionth Spiderman movie? Well, the oldest grandson is boycotting the film because he’s reached Marvel saturation. And I can’t blame him. I feel that no matter how many multiverse iterations they manage to shoehorn into the plot, I’ve already seen before what will be flashing across the screen. But, regardless, I can’t pass up the chance to hang out with my younger descendants in their own element. I can buy popcorn and their carbonated sugar water of choice and be one of the kids at least one more time. What’s better than that?
And afterward, Camera Girl has promised them their favorite meal; spaghetti and meatballs. We will gather around the dining room table and I’ll see what they have to say about Summer 2026 which ends for them next week. And I’ll tread carefully because mentioning school would be highly insensitive. I remember only too well how critical it is to forego the s-word this close to Labor Day. But I am interested in hearing what they enjoyed most this year. But I also want to just hear what’s on their minds. They’re growing by leaps and bounds and I almost don’t recognize the little kids they were in the teenagers that they’ve become. So, it’s important I keep some continuity in the relations so I don’t feel too disoriented by their rapid metamorphoses.
So, I’ve sold over four hundred copies of my book. Hmmm. Not exactly a national best seller by any stretch of the imagination. And in the last ninety days I sold a little more than ten thousand pages on Kindle Unlimited (KU) which equals about fifty full books. And based on the royalty data that means a book equals about a dollar of royalties to me. Well, all I need is nine hundred, ninety-nine thousand six hundred more sales and I’ll be a millionaire. In your face Elon Musk! Seriously, it apparently takes a lot more than what I did in order to market a book successfully. It’s a little humbling but I still want to pursue finding a larger audience for the book so since the ninety-day window of Kindle Unlimited ends today, I’m going to suspend KU so that I can include “The Sniper” on the next Based Book Sale. Getting the book in front of right-leaning sf fans seems like the right way to grow its audience. We’ll see how that works out. But regardless of my lack of millionaire author status. I think I’ll start the sequel after the summer. I have had some complaints that I need to provide closure on a number of plot and character situations. I think the biggest complaint is that Mel needs to be explored to find out how this AI came about and where she leads to in the story and in Cutter’s life. Personally, I’m more intrigued (and befuddled) about how Connors is going to stabilize his organization after the events of the nuke attack on his underground facilities. I think I’m going to devote considerable thought to how he decides to influence the future shape of social/commercial/political life in the radically altered American landscape.
Well, that’s enough. Enjoy Tuesday.