About the Second Book....

The year has officially started and I'm on it. I had a question come up again, and I thought I would take a minute and give the best answer I can.

"Hi Laura! All the readers I gifted Alvor to are asking when the sequel comes out. They've read and reread -- loved it -- Alvor, and are looking forward to the next edition."

First of all, for those of you who have read Alvor- thanks and good on ya.

The publishing journey Alvor has taken has had a lot of twists in the road. To more fully explain the answer to the question, I will let you in on where I've been.

After signing the contract for Alvor, I sent the first three chapters to my publisher for the second book in the series. The idea was to get a teaser put in the end of the first book for the second book. A few weeks later my publisher informed me that they don't sign second book contracts with new authors. They would wait to see how my book sold.

Like many things with my publishing company, they don't always tell it like it is. Not only do they sign second books with new authors, they did exactly that at the same time for another new writer. Hmmm.

So, I finished writing the second book, all the while feeling like I would find another home for it. I did ask my publisher if they would be willing to give me an advance for my second book, and they told me to go ahead and shop around. I don't think that they wouldn't take the second book in the end, I just think I would end up with more of the same.

In November my book fell out of the Barnes & Noble stores and Costco. I don't have all the details as to why it happened, but while the brick and mortor circulation is limited to Deseret Book, Seagull Book and a few independant shops, it has no hope of ever taking off. Sure, you can still find it online. It's cheaper there too.

The answer, finally, is that I am shopping publishers. I'm currently waiting to hear from one publisher and when I get the yes or no, I have one more in mind that I'll try.

I can only expect to have the same distribution power if I stay with the same publisher. In the end, I will let the world know when I've settled this. I think the second book is a very fun ride. I like it even better than the first book.

In the meantime, I've jumped off the fantasy wagon and I'm writing something else for now. Details on that later.