Progress Report
Over at Vox Day’s website, a reader named Brad Andrews posted a question for me:
“It would be nice to have some indication of the status of future efforts in your series, especially the Count to a Trillion one. I could not find anything specific when I looked around earlier.”
As of the time of this writing, the first three books are in print: COUNT TO A TRILLION, THE HERMETIC MILLENNIA, JUDGE OF AGES.
The next volume, ARCHITECT OF AEONS, is sitting on the editor’s desk, awaiting his corrections, revisions, advice. He will send it back to me after the copy editor redpencils it. Months will pass. The publisher will send me galley proofs. Months will pass. I am not sure when the schedule for publication is.
The next volume THE VINDICATION OF MAN, currently is on my desk, and has been stalled at chapter four for roughly seven months while I worked on other projects or stared idly at drifting clouds, or skipped nude on tiptoe through floral meadows, flabby belly bobbing energetically albeit uncouthly, plucking the scented blooms, chasing the errant butterfly, and singing arias, to spend the evening in the drunk tank at the local constabulary.
The final volume COUNT TO INFINITY exist only as an outline and a phantom bubble of daydreams, images, hints and notes.
The publisher, despite all entreaties, obdurately refuses to print the words TO BE CONTINUED at the end of each volume, leading the unwary bookbuyer to believe the apparent sudden death of my unkillable hero in the midst of his misery is, in fact, the postmodern ending of the story. Imagine what the readers of FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING would have thought if the orc attack that scatters the fellowship were presented as the end of the story, or, better, the attack by the giant spider, apparent death, and capture by the enemy of Frodo at the end of THE TWO TOWERS.
“Though see if you can keep them from raising the price of the next book even more. Each book in that series is about $4 more than the one before. I guess they figure they will hook you….”
As a Christian I am forbidden to indulge in the dark and dread arts by which one might summon up Moloch or great Dragon from the infernal night older than all worlds. Lacking such impressive yet unlawful necromantic powers, I have no influence whatsoever on the publisher’s pricing decisions.
You should not be asking me, but the reverse. Prices are set by the buying decisions of the public: I should be asking you to lower my asking price by buying more of my wares.
About John C Wright
John C. Wright is a practicing philosopher, a retired attorney, newspaperman, and newspaper editor, and a published author of science fiction. Once a Houyhnhnm, he was expelled from the august ranks of purely rational beings when he fell in love; but retains an honorary title.
