(Si quieres leer este post en español, click aquí.)
Hello, reader! It’s already been a month since I made the test of putting my new novel, From Now, Forever, for free for three days. When I made the announcement, I didn’t explain where this idea came from, so let me tell you that story now: I was wandering through my beautiful city, walking down streets at random, when I came across the following scene at the doors of a publishing house that specialises in art catalogues:
You might not know this, but I venerate Apollo in my daily life. I mean religiously. I pray to several Greek gods (and others), but Apollo is the one I feel most connected to. His light guides me and his beauty inspires me, so when I came across his name in the street, right next to the message “all books free”, I took it seriously.
I thought about giving away a copy, maybe running a little raffle; but no, the sign said all. So, despite my nerves, I decided to give the book to anyone who wanted it. The result was staggering: 411 digital copies were claimed in three days, and since then the book has continued to be read and bought regularly. I suspect the algorithm learnt what sort of people might enjoy this novel, and now knows whom to recommend it to.
I know that compared to authors who sell thousands or millions of copies, 400 seems like nothing, but it isn’t nothing to me. I don’t have an agent, I don’t have a publisher. I do my own editing, translating, design, layout, promotion… I believe in my books, and the reviews I’ve received have always been very positive, but with so much competition, it’s hard to find a way forward.
It’s very likely I’ll do this again. Not constantly, not excessively, but on special occasions. In a month we’ll have a couple of days devoted to Death, so I’m considering putting The Houses of Death up for free to go with the celebrations. It will be a relaunch with a brand-new cover, as I don’t feel the current one reflects how beautiful that book really is, so if you’d like to buy it with its present cover, do it before Halloween, because afterwards it will become a limited edition!
And then, in November or December, there will be a new book. It’s already finished, so the publication date depends on the progress of the cover. The commissioned artist, T-Kali (who did the covers for Found in Erebus, The Ironlight and Revolution Reign), is diligent and tireless, but I don’t like rushing my artists. I respect their creative process and the ups and downs of life. As soon as we have a release date, you’ll be the first to know.
So, which book is this? Heroes Falling, of course! It’s the project I’ve mentioned in past months: an anthology centred on characters from Greek mythology at the moment of their downfall. It’s a pocket-sized book, very brief, but one that strikes hard with every word (or so my test readers have told me, though I’ll admit, in my not-so-humble opinion, that it’s one of my best works to date).
I still don’t know how much of it I’ll share here, or in what way. I usually post at least one chapter of every novel I publish, but this book is very different, each story is self-contained, so it will require more thought. If there is one you would like to read as a test, let me know!
Finally: what am I working on now? What’s next? Well… as I write this, I’ve got two stories tugging at me. Revolution Reign: King, the second part of the duology, deserves to be finished. Reign has waited patiently for over a decade to have his story completed. On the other hand, there are two tertiary characters in his novel who are insisting I tell their story.
It’s tempting. This second project is shorter, and I’ve already mapped most of it out, since what happens in it lays the foundations for Revolution Reign. But… it’s another romance. Even if it’s quite different from the ones I’ve written before, I feel a slight resistance to jumping into another romantic novel so soon after finishing From Now, Forever.
So I go back and forth, working a bit on one and then the other. I know I need to commit, but I’ve got several things in my life pecking at my attention, so I’ve reached the day I needed to publish this update without having made up my mind (oops, it’s now one day late, my bad!). The next summary will be at the end of the year, where I’ll tell you which project I’ve chosen, how long I expect it to take, and what else I’m planning for 2026. But we’ll see each other before then, with the announcements for The Houses of Death, Heroes Falling, and whatever I decide to share from them.
We’ll be reading each other again very soon!
B. Sylphaen
B. Sylphaen 