Finally, an update.

Last July, after I finished Motive of Man for Cirsova, I fell into my usual post-partum inactivity. And I'll be honest, when Motive of Man was rejected I was a tad demoralized, even if it was rejected for reasons practical, not aesthetic.

Still, the sheer duration of my subsequent inactivity was a little unusual. I simply, emphatically did not want to write.

Only the nearing of the next Cirsova cycle charged me up at all. Luckily, I had a manageable short I could write in time. I started it in June (maybe late May). It's done. I'm down to the scattered, word-level tweaks.

It's called 'Twas Bato Did It. Stylistically it's the same old me, and it's hardly realism (unless the gods are real), but it is empty of all science fiction. Hardly unprecedented for me, but rare.

It's lighthearted but not a comedy or spoof. It is set in the Roman Empire. Thankfully it's only 4.5K words, so there should be no practical barriers this time.

To say I've been "inactive" these past months, while true as regards "production of new fiction," is untrue as regards my "career." You may have heard I had a Kickstarter this past June. Then again, given the response to it, maybe you didn't hear.

It was my first and I really misjudged and miscalculated a lot. I had been monitoring other Kickstarters and thought I had some handle on what I should do and how it would play out.

Not so much.

In the end I fell just short of breaking even. One could call that "not a failure," in that, without the Kickstarter, I would have been even more in the red on Volume 3 of Stellar Stories. But of course the Kickstarter created its own costs, which would not have otherwise existed.

What was most disappointing is that, even with wonderful boosts from significant Twitter friends, I only got 15 backers (17 if you count two relatives). I didn't expect 100. But 15 is sad.

The only consolation is that, contrary to my expectations, the majority of sales were for the Omnibus hardcover. Not the most profitable item for me, but it's a wonderful product (not least in its content, of course), and 10 people will henceforth possess it.

And I am grateful for those 15 backers.

I am unlikely to do another Kickstarter. While I surely have no data on why people passed me over, I am confident that my lack of a following as an author is to blame.

You can do all you can in the writing and the marketing, but if no one already likes you as an author — as a guy shitposting on the internet — your books will not be of interest.

And I am never going to get a following. It's not in my nature to cultivate an internet presence. The whole business makes me anxious, just as does cultivating my real-life presence. There's a reason I have no wife and no friends and no following. I am what I am.

Volume 3 of Stellar Stories, though it sold no copies through my Kickstarter, will still be released some time soon; likely in September. It's really good with a nifty cover. It's visible under My Works.

It contains Motive of Man, by the way, and one of my best Chandlers in Space: Hamlin Becker #5, A Devil's Intuition.

Yes, I am still planning Hamlin Becker #6, the untitled novella (or novel!). That's next. Assuming my post-partum period after 'Twas Bato Did It does not last indefinitely.

And if you're curious about there ever being a Volume 4 of Stellar Stories... Nothing is planned. I literally have nothing worthy that isn't now collected (apart from 'Twas). I write so slowly that to get the ~eight stories for another volume will take me four or five years minimum.

Like and subscribe and we'll see what happens together.