April 8, 2023 - Update

Hi!

This week I was reminded about the differences between how I view the story and how readers do. Specifically, I worry less about things because I already know how it turns out and when that will happen.

That can be dangerous for a story as the author sometimes can’t tell when he has taken something too far. Book one is a great example of this, as I knew what Ruwen would become, and I wanted to show that growth from his humble beginnings. If I had it to do over again, I probably would have had him get competent a little faster. Oh, and I would not end the book mid-scene.

So this week, some of the early reviews of book seven, coupled with some comments in discord and on Patreon, combined to bring an issue into sharp focus for me. Namely, progression.

Even though not much time has passed for Ruwen, a lot has happened, and I am already in book 8. The ironic thing was, sitting here in my own world, I had planned to make book 9 about getting the items needed to advance. So real progression would likely not have happened until the end of book 9 or somewhere in book 10. This week I realized what a massive mistake I was making.

So I changed my plan. I spent most of today trying to salvage my outline for book 8 after adding the things that my gut tells me need to be there. As I don’t have all the motivations and scenes tied together the way I want yet, I feel a little anxious, but I know I’ll get that worked out this weekend.

This week’s chapters contain everything I love about this series: old friends, call backs, foreshadowing, and characters with real lives. I think part of the reason this series is enjoyed by many is because of chapters like this. I hope you agree.

I opened up chapters 16, 17, and 18 for Root.

I opened up chapters 19, 20, and 21 for Harvester.

I added chapters 22, 23, and 24 for Step Master, Blapy’s Favorite, and Divine.

Enjoy!

Again this week, you were instrumental in keeping me on track. I welcome and appreciate your feedback. Please don’t hesitate to let me know how you feel. You are here because you love the series, and I know that when I read your comments. Thanks for being here with me.

Take care,

AFK

PS-For the Facebook and Reddit readers, you can read weekly chapters for a $3 a month and help shape the series. I’ll post a link to my Patreon in the comments. Thank you.

PSS-I activated the “Notify Patrons of this change” when opening up chapters to new tiers. Let me know if you like that or if it caused too much spam.