BOATK Post Release: Random Thoughts And What's Next

So as most of you know, Bear, Otter, and the Kid came out yesterday (what, you mean you couldn't tell through the egregious amount of fb posts I had?).  Yesterday (and the night before when all of a sudden I was notified it when on sale at nine o'clock that night) was nerve wracking.  I chided myself for watching so closely, thinking that IF anyone did buy it, that there was no way I'd be getting a reaction out of it so quickly.

Boy was I wrong.  Remind me never to doubt people's reading abilities ever again.

At ten yesterday morning, I received an email from a woman who'd read the book already.  She wanted to let me know how much she loved it and how much it had affected her.  I was shocked: one, that she had finished it already, and two, that she had even written me to begin with.  That blew my mind.  And then I got another email.  And then another.  And another. 

But what was so cool about it was that they came from all over the world: The UK, Bahrain (!!), Germany, Australia.  I guess my tiny little brain never even though about people reading it from outside the US.  Shows how small I was thinking.  I hope my american voice translated well for them.

It seems to be selling well.  The book has climbed up the Dreamspinner Bestseller page steadily  and it'll probably break into the top ten today.  That's so strange to think about.  And it's only day two!   I really hope it's not like one of those summer movies that has a great weekend and then nobody ever talks about it again.  That would suck.  To all those that bought it, thank you.

There wasn't really a whole lot going on with the book over at Goodreads before the release.  I think maybe like 7 or 8 people marked it as to read.  That kinda exploded yesterday and now a shitload of people are reading it or will be doing so.  I need to stay away from goodreads.  Forever.

So it's out.  I'm still pinching myself.  We'll see how well it does in the long haul, but I'm so very pleased with it so far.  And for those already asking for a sequel? Someday.... I don't think I'm done with Bear, Otter, or the Kid.  We'll see how long it takes for them to start speaking to me again.

And next (cuz that's the second thing people seem to want to know).  Well, next is something completely different.  In February/March 2012, my second novel will be published.  It's the start of an urban fantasy trilogy and its big (almost 200K words) and dark and nasty.  There was some honest glee I felt from going from BOATK to this new world where people weren't nice and the streets were grimy and gross.  It's called This Is How We Burn The World and here's the unnofficial blurb:
*****
My name is Felix Paracel and when I was nine, I became angry at my mother and killed her with fire that shot from my hands.
And so begins the story of Felix, an Elemental capable of controlling fire and wind.  After that black night fifteen years ago, Felix and his father went into hiding. Felix's father has done his best to protect his son from the forces in the world bent on finding and controlling Felix and his abilities.  They've been able to keep their heads low and a careful eye at their backs, but everything is about to change.

Felix is Findo Unum—the Split One—and his coming has been foretold for generations.  The position of the Split One is well known throughout the Elemental world, but even with the joy it brings, it is also meant to signal a coming darkness.  And no one knows this more than a mysterious man named Seven; Seven, who'd rescued Felix from that horrible fire so many years before and then disappeared into the night; Seven, who's now come back to claim what's rightfully his: Felix's heart.  But even as Felix begins to trust Seven and his own feelings about his place in the world, the darkness reveals itself, leading to consequences no one could have predicted.

Set in a world that closely resembles our own, This Is How We Burn the World tells a story of redemption and betrayal, of family and sacrifice, all of which lead to the one of life's greatest questions: How far would you be willing to go to save the ones you love?
*****
So, it's different from BOATK, right? Want a sneak peak?  A small one, then:

He holes up in a cheap hotel in Idaho and lays deep in fever, murmuring to himself as he rocks in a room where the furniture is faded, where the bed sheets are scratchy, where angry yelling is heard late at night through the paper thin walls.  A woman screams.  A man shouts.  Shadows pass in front of the dingy curtains.  He shoves stale vending machine crackers in his mouth.  He drinks water from the rusted bathroom tap.  He pays for another night.  And then he falls back onto the bed and floats away.  Thirteen days go by.

Stay tuned.....

TJ