AIRICKA PHOENIX

Well, Castiel, it’s not because I want to. Really. No author ever sets out to emotionally devastate and ruin their readers. It’s not like we wake up in the morning and think of ways to crush your hearts and make you wish to physically maim us. We’re not demons, after all. I think there’s a very strong misconception about the way authors work…

Okay, fine. Maybe we do.

I will be the first one to admit that when I see an author announce the release of a new novel, in my head, that shiznet is set in stone. I will mark it on all my calendars and even carve the date on my arm (that’s right. Bet you thought you were the only hardcore reader on the block). Okay, that last part may be a slight exaggeration (it’s actually my leg), but it’s safe to say that I will sit up all night, refreshing Amazon until it’s been released. But when the unthinkable happens … when that author crushes and destroys that single ray of light glistening in the horizon … *deep, calming breath* Seriously, nothing brings out the Beast like an author changing the date on a release.

Oh yeah. It’s frustrating. It brings out parts of us that only the mailman ever sees when a book delivery isn’t on time. It’s a side of us that we reserve for moments when we need to shove our way to the front of the line at a Backstreet Boys concert. What? That was only me? Oh well … this is awkward. Moving on!

The point I am trying to make here is that it happens. Whether you are indie, or traditionally published. Authors will change dates. Some might move them up (YAY ^_^), while others will reluctantly move them back weeks, or even months (I hate you. Just kill me already!). The point of the matter is it’s not because the author wants to torture you. Sometimes, unavoidable circumstances occur and it’s no one’s fault.

I know I’m guilty of this (*cough*Touching Fire*cough*), and I can tell you from personal and honest experience that it feels horrible for us authors. We feel like crap for putting our readers through the wait, for letting you guys down, even though if it were up to us, you would have had that book ages ago.

Some of the reasons a book could be delayed could be anything. I’ll try and give you some common reasons.

1) Rewrites — I can’t speak for other authors, but I can tell you for me, I will happily postpone a release rather than put out a book I am not 100% proud of. I will never put out a book that I don’t feel is my best work.

2) Edits — The worst injustice an author can do to his/her readers is by putting out a badly edited novel. An author will never rush her editor, even if the book is to be released in three days, they will postpone and make sure that book is so shiny that it blinds traffic.

3) Unforeseen Circumstances — I would give you examples, but as they are unforeseen, it can be anything from personal issues to publisher issues. It could be that the cover wasn’t as finished as they thought, or something wonky happened with the formatting. But the point of it is that it was unavoidable and the book will be released as soon as these matters are seen to.

4) Other Books — This is one I’m really bad for. At the beginning of the year, I make a list of all the books that will be released in the next twelve months (call it my new year book resolution). I will roughly put a month/date to each book and work very hard to accomplish it. But then I’ll be working on a book that will take longer for some reason to be finished, which will disrupt the entire order of my publishing list because now I have to push everything back a month. *grrrrr*

So this is my plea, please, please, please, before you kidnap and chain an author to your basement and shatter their knee caps with a sludge hammer, please remember that behind the scenes, we are working tirelessly to make sure you don’t have to wait for too long, that we’re doing everything we can to make sure you get that book as quickly as possible.

Until next time, always remember, read, review and properly pimp your favorite authors!