To Retcon - "Retroactive Continuity" that is - is the question. While the term was coined sometime in the late 80's/90s, there's some argument Tolkien was the first to really do it when he altered parts of The Hobbit in preparation for the publishing of The Lord of the Rings.

The Hobbit First Edition

When I published Blanchland Blues, I had an idea it might be a series, but I just didn't know enough about what I wanted it to be. Now that I am making progress in the second book, it has become clear that a few minor alterations need to be made.

My first question to myself on this was: What's the impact on the reader?

The truth is, not much. In the end some of the things are details most readers will never notice. For example, the jump time in hyperspace when John and Alvis travel to K6 may have to be altered, and the time Alvis was inactive likely needs to change.

They are small details, but they make the continuity of the series work, and so I think important. I've also made tweaks to a couple character ages and timelines that, again, only the most rabid fan might realize.

Does this mean you need to buy the new version? Hardly! It will not matter in terms of your enjoyment of the next book.

It's tricky to say if 120k words will finish the rough draft. Book One was 160k! But that was TOO long, as my agent quickly told me. (I didn't know as much then.)

I am approaching act 2 in the story, so the count feels good right now.

While June is the more realistic deadline, in my heart I hope I can finish the first draft by spring.

Every year, for as long as anyone can remember, the Cave Goblins attack the Christmas Elves on Christmas Eve at the North Pole.

This Christmas Eve, as the night grows dark and the attack becomes imminent, one small Goblin is lonely, hungry and cold.

Seeing the light and warmth of the Elven camp, he steals away for a closer look, setting off a chain of events that will leave Goblins and Elves questioning everything.

My Books

Blanchland Blues

Books You Might Like

From time to time I’ll swap promotions with other science fiction authors if they have a book I think you might be interested in.

When aliens attack, Captain Dani Devereaux flies to the rescue.
… only this time, the fight came to her.

Nose to nose with the enemy at the edge of the war zone, Dani faces the
fact that this battle might just be her last. That is, until help
arrives in the most unconventional way. Pirates.

But pirates never appear by coincidence. They have something Dani needs,
and she’s prepared to violate her own moral code to get it.

If she doesn’t, it could mean an end to the war, with humans on the
losing side.

As a mercenary during The Mechanai War, there was no shortage of work,
but Sigrid had rules. That she ignored her rules as often as followed
them wasn’t something that bothered her. A last-minute job protecting
attaché mech, TH3R, and his companion, junior officer, Tala Matapang was
a tempting payday. Their mission: detect and capture a SPDR mech alive.

The Imperium’s infiltration and assassination mechs were difficult to
find. They were even harder to capture intact. Trying to find one in an
urban metropolis was next to impossible. Tala and TH3R will need to use
all the lessons they’d learned since their first encounters with the
malicious mechs to avoid going from hunter to hunted.

Can a mercenary, attaché mech, and newly promoted officer track and
capture their elusive and deadly adversary?

Unexpected Contact is the follow-up story to Duel of Destiny (A
Mechhaven Novella) and prequel to Pax Machina (Mechhaven Book 1).

From the ashes of a dying world, a god will rise.

As an out of shape nerd, Gabriel Rivera had more pressing issues than outlandish things like godhood: Evacuating the city, joining the military, and protecting his family. Simple right?

Everything changed when the PAC invaded.

When the grim fate of his world is revealed, Gabriel joins the Reclaimer Project to save his family. A lowly F ranker, he’s weaker than even the worst recruits. Good thing he’s too stubborn for his own good.

Through blood and sweat Gabriel aims to grow stronger and rise above the rest.

Deadly traps lurk around every corner, mysterious factions move in the shadows, and dormant powers within him manifest in wild and dangerous ways.

Battered, bruised, and beaten, Gabriel refuses to stay down. For only in the fires of The Crucible are legends forged.