500 Copies Later
Wow. Just… wow.
When I started writing “Empire of the Void,” I had literally no expectation for it. I was sitting in a hotel room in Maryland just messing around with some fun ideas. I’d been working on the same fantasy since fourth grade that had never gone anywhere. I didn’t really have any thoughts that my work would ever be truly published.
But last month, just after the one year anniversary of publication, we hit an incredible milestone: 500 copies sold of “Empire of the Void.” That’s how many “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone” had in its first print.
I could not be more grateful for all the support I’ve received for this book which has gotten me thinking; I didn’t really thank enough people in my acknowledgements. I say his because I just picked up an ARC for a copy of “Fate’s Tether” by Jade Nimoa and saw how long her Acknowledgements page was. Honestly, it puts me to shame. It made me realize how many individuals actually helped make the book a reality. So now, better late than never, thank you to everyone who made “Empire of the Void” a book I’m truly proud of.
In no particular order:
-To J.T. McGee, thank you. J.T. was one of the first people to read any of “Empire.” I sent him the first three chapters early on to make sure the story was engaging and on the right track. He sent back the pages with plenty of red pen edits, but also a ton of encouragement. I couldn’t be more happy to be working with him now on “Thrall,” “Enthralled,” and all of our upcoming books.
-To Valarie Haynes, thank you. Val gave me my first signing event. I had no idea what to expect that day, but she let me post up at her store, Play it Again in Aviation Mall. It was a video store so I didn’t have the highest of hopes but to this day I still sold more copies in a single sitting there than any other event yet. It was the perfect start to what has so far been an amazing career. Also, thank you for letting me watch movies on the job. And all the discounts.
-To Chandler and the Saratoga Barnes and Noble team, thank you. I didn’t realize how huge the writing community was in my area until I went to my first book festival. You could probably throw a rock in Saratoga Springs and it’d hit someone who was working on their next book with the hope of a publishing deal. Yet with all the requests I’m sure you get to put self-published work on your shelves, you took a chance on mine. I’m not sure how many copies have sold through you, or how many times you’ve sold out of copies, so it seems like a chance worth taking. You accepting “Empire” really gave this endeavor a sense of validity.
-To Jade Nioma, thank you. Marketing is a very, very hard thing to do. Exposure is easy, but getting people to actually pick up your book and read it is a monumental challenge. That’s where ARC readers come in. They are people who want to support you, whether it's for the sake of free books or because they think the book genuinely sounds good. Since starting Valenza Publishing, Jade has been unwavering in her support, eager to read any and everything we send her and leaving honest reviews. More than that, she never stops hyping us up and resharing our stuff. Jade, I cannot wait for Fate’s Tether’s release and my own signed copy!
-To my filmtok boys, thank you. Parker, Broen, Chris, Jason, Stephen, Leo, and Dustin, you have all been in my corner from day one. You’ve created more promos than I could have asked for. Sometimes I feel bad about coming into your live streams because you always see me, pull about my book, and tell people to go buy it. You don’t have to do that! But I love that you do.
I think I got the rest in the paperback. It’ll definitely be a longer list though with the next book, the third in the Empire Marathon.
