Okay, now that’s just cool.
First off, thank you everybody who responded to my request for critiques in the last post. I got a lot out of it as well as many of the comments made on Amazon. As you can see from the neat screenshot above, Young Sentinels is doing marvelously–indeed the sustained sales numbers after two weeks are more than I hoped for. It tells me that a lot more readers have been patiently waiting for YS than I had ever expected, and as you can see from the ratings the reaction has been good. Not Knocked Out of The Park good, but good.
On a humorous note, I seem to have sparked an interest in Oz! The Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought bar on Wearing the Cape is showing this bright green cover…
And now, announcements!
First, the paperback edition of Young Sentinels has been formatted and submitted; everyone who wants to add it to their bookshelves should keep their eyes on Amazon, where it will appear in a few days. I completed the formatting on time to order a box of copies to take with me to the Las Vegas Comics Expo (Sept. 28-29), so I will have all my books at my table and I’m really looking forward to it.
Also, due to your comments I have taken the step of doing a minor edit of Young Sentinels. First, I should have listened to my editor when he suggested that indicating POV with the character symbols might not be enough. Apparently when someone is reading fast the eye tends to skip/ignore anything that’s not actual words. Accordingly, I have gone back over the final draft and put the POV character’s name at the beginning of each chapter and at each scene/POV change inside each chapter. You can see the difference through the “Click to look inside” function on YS’ Amazon page. I have also taken the liberty of adding a sentence to Shelly’s early-story conversation with Mal over hamburgers, foreshadowing her lack of REDACTED REDACTED. Readers were right: I didn’t properly load and prime that particular Chekhov’s Gun.
Since I have uploaded the updated draft to Amazon, it is now available for all readers who have already purchased the book. I have sent KDP notice of the changes and am trying to talk them into sending an email blast to all purchasers to let them know of the update and give them the option of loading it into their archives with the click of a button (doing that wipes all bookmarks and highlights, so it’s not automatic).
Everyone who wants the update immediately can get it by going into the Manage Your Kindle part of your Amazon account and going through Kindle Help (top right part of your screen) to the Contact Us tab. Following the directions will take you to a screen where you can chat/call/email a request. Give the book’s name and ASIN (B00ES4C6WY) and state that the book has been updated and you want the updated edition in your archives. You will get an email response letting you know that updating will wipe all notes and highlights and asking if you’re sure you want to do that. Reply that you are, and in 24 hours you should be able to redownload the book and see the changes. I’ve tested this myself, but let me know if anyone has any trouble.
That’s it for now. Again, thanks everyone! Now I’m going deep into the next book, but may actually be able to post here on subjects other than My Stuff. I hope so.
M.G.Harmon
Marion G. Harmon, A Writer in Vegas. 
George:
I am in the middle of reading YS and enjoying it. Thanks for the change in the chapter headers!! i thought maybe I was a little dense (my wife says, “yes”!), so it is nice to see I am not alone in finding that hard to manuever. I will give my review when I am done….right now I am just savoring your latest.
BTW….the hell with Marvel….Hope should have her own movie!!!
David Balderson
Yeah! The plot is way better than anything Marvel/DC have come up with in years. Not to mention it actually makes sense.
Slight spoiler in this article if I’m not mistaken… I’m not finished reading the book yet, have a care!
Vaguely spoilery, sorry. I’ve “redacted” the details.
Good stuff. Really enjoying the book so far.
I’ve read the books many times on my kindle and hope to get all the books at the Expo. What is your table number?
Don`t know yet…
Okay, now I know: I’ll be there with Imagined Interprises Inc., and we’ve picked up two adjacent tables in Artist’s Alley (#160 and 161).
Howdy
I’m really enjoying your work. I’ve read everything up to Young Sentinels. I’ll be buying it within the hour.
The funny thing is I was getting burned out reading urban fantasy and turned to reading about superheroes only to have one be a vampire. 🙂
V^^^^V
Never thought I’d be writing about a vampire, either.
It seems like vampires are everywhere. There is no getting away from them.
Did you know there is another Vegas author that wrote a series about superheroes? Her name is Vicki Pettersson(Showgirl) Her series is called SIGNS OF THE ZODIAC. You might see her at a book con or something.
I have just started YS and I’m liking it very much.
V^^^^V
Mr. Harmon –
Stopped by after finishing Y.S. to see what else was on the horizon (fearing that it would be the last book of the series). I’m officially an addict, having read the entire series (including Bite Me) within a week of discovering the first book. Looking forward to the next book, and admittedly hoping to see some more of Artemis. Which I find amusing, as I’m not a fan of vampires in fiction, but she’s just too awesome not to love.
I think that Y.S. is probably the strongest of the series thus far, and even had me a bit teary-eyed at times. Very well done. Also, thank you for including the character names in the change of POVs – it helped on the few occasions I got confused as to sudden passages not making sense.
Sorry for the broken parsing of this post – I’m writing via less-than-optimal means. I just wanted to write while the thoughts were fresh.
Cheers.
Wow, four books in one week. Admittedly they’re not doorstoppers but assuming you are also gainfully employed that’s still quite the achievement and I’m glad you enjoyed them. Hopefully time was taken to eat, shower, interact with loved ones, etc.
Eat…? Shoot! I knew I forgot to do something this past week!
Well, as you said – none of them are particularly huge, but they are page turners, and the dynamic nature of the characters is engaging. Even some of the background characters show change throughout the stories, and there’s always questions left behind on “What will happen with character X?” and “Will we encounter character Y again?”
Really, they are quite compelling novels, and I’ve enjoyed thinking about the possible permutations to explain events near the end of “Young Sentinels.” And I found the emotional component there to be more in line with the human condition and personal expectations compared to an analogous event from “Villians, Inc.” (I’m trying to not reveal anything to those who haven’t read either/both books). But both events are realistic given the different personas involved. So much to think about and mentally digest!
Not to mention all the wondering about what’s happened in New Orleans since “Villians, Inc.” concluded.
As I said – page turners that provoke thought and hypothesis.