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This new world of publishing both thrills and terrifies me.

I’m thrilled because in addition to writing fun books for traditional publishers (like my Tank & Fizz mystery series for Orca Book Publishers), I can also publish my own projects and get an immediate response from readers.

The image below is a clear example:

A photo posted by Andrew Forgrave (@aforgrave) on

About an hour ago, I sent out a “rough around the edges” ebook copy of Battle of the Blocks 2: Nether Nightmare to my totally amazing group of beta readers.  Within minutes, the photo above appeared on instagram from my GamingEdus pal Andrew Forgrave.

As I type this, I know Andrew and the other kind beta readers are reading my words and forming opinions about the book. It’s amazing. And totally terrifying.

In the olden days (eg 2002), I would send a manuscript off to a publisher and move on to the next project. A few months later, the book would be published and I’d see a review or two in a magazine. That would be it.

Now, in 2015, I know Andrew is reading my words right now. And so are some of the other beta readers. And after 15 years and over 35 books, knowing others are reading my stuff RIGHT NOW makes me want to hide.

So, that’s what I’m going to do.

Let me know when he’s finished reading, okay?

Thanks.