Timeline update...

I just got off the phone with my publishing consultant. My "author's copy" of the book is still in the print queue, but she's going to try to "expedite" the printing process.

So, it looks like it's going to take a minimum of 4 to 5 weeks just for me to get a copy of my own book for inspection (this in a world where Amazon -- the publisher's parent company, by the way -- can get a book in my hands the next day). Then, it's going to take another 4 or 5 weeks for them to get me any books I may subsequently order to send out for reviews! That takes me to the middle of July. Then, I need to mail out the books, and, hopefully, the reviews come in over the next 2 months or so. That August and September before I can start advertising effectively.

It's really disgraceful. It, unfortunately, strongly advances the case of POD critics, who say the industry exists solely to profit from fees collected from and services sold to authors desperate to see their books in print, with little or no serious interest in actually selling books.

On a more positive note, the Little Birdies! manuscript has advanced to 89,000 words. I wrote 21,000 words this month, an all-time best. And no, I will not be placing that book with this publisher...