Happy new year to all!

I'd like to start by apologizing for so much time passing since my last post, when I explained that my next novel, Opportunia, was in the hands of "beta readers" for their feedback. Well, they certainly delivered!

The strongest and most common reaction to Opportunia was that I needed to tone down the story's main character, Gordon Yates. Gord was supposed to be a self-absorbed, egotistical, narcissist, but I made him so unlikeable, that my feedback team thought my readers would close the book and walk away before the end of Part One - long before Gord's eventual redemption.

It took several weeks to re-write major sections, making Gord more palatable, and showing glimmers of hope for his reformation. I'm happy to say that Opportunia is more readable and flows much better now. I am indebted to my beta readers for their wonderful feedback.

When I had made my edits, I sent my story to Kevin Miller. He's a professional editor who worked his magic on all three of my previous "Kelvoo" novels. He did a great job of tightening up the story and adding the polish it needed for publication.

Kevin finished his work in early December. So the next step was to send my manuscript to agents. Unlike my previous books, which were self-published, I've decided to try and get Opportunia "traditionally published". The first step is to find an agent to represent my work. Unfortunately, agents and publishers tend to shut down every December, so I decided to wait for the new year.

So, here we are in January 2026. I've sent my manuscript to two agents out of my list of 105  who represent sci-fi and/or speculative fiction. Each agent has very specific requirements, so I have to tailor my query letter (my pitch), and the accompanying files to each agent's specifications. My plan is to query two or three agents per day over the next several weeks.

Agents can take up to six months (sometimes longer) to reply to queries, and many of the busier ones never reply at all. So going forward, I'll be on tenterhooks while I wait for replies, wade through rejections letters, and maybe, just maybe, if the stars align and my book resonates with an agent, I might just end up with a professional agent who will pitch my book to the big players.
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I'm delighted to announce my next novel, "Opportunia". As someone who doesn't like to announce things before they're certain, I've waited for this announcement until my first draft was completed, self-edited, and sent to "beta readers" for feedback.

Yesterday, I sent the manuscript to the beta readers and I eagerly await their feedback, due at the end of September. After that, It'll be another round of self-editing, then it's off to a professional editor. I'll keep you informed as I progress.

In the meantime, here's a synopsis of the story: