Coming to the end of The Caein Legacy

Coming to the end of something is always a little bittersweet. It’s exciting—because I’m finally finished!—but it’s a little sad, too. After years of work, edits, revisions, seeking artwork, more revisions… It’s an amazing feeling to see a book out in the world, but it also leaves me feeling a little melancholy. Because it’s done.

Individual books are one thing, but a series? That’s a whole new level of mixed emotions.

There was a time, about four years ago, I never believed I’d be at the point with The Caein Legacy. I was feeling down on my luck then (and yes, the pandemic probably had something to do with it), but after dozens of rejections and even more non-responses while querying, I’d almost given up.

And it was August of 2020 when I finished drafting the final book, Legend. I’d been querying Exile for over a year by that time. I believed in this story, this series, these characters… But I didn’t think it would ever be in print. I didn’t want to give up, but I almost did. No one seemed interested in my “too old for mainstream publishing” protagonist and his brothers.

But in the end, I couldn’t let this story go to waste. If I wanted to read a story with a 36-year-old main character set in a fantasy world, then surely there would be others who did too. And you know what? I’ve learned that there are.

I’ve also learned that most of the stories I write will never be picked up by a traditional publisher. I don’t write to market. I write to satisfy my heart—and that’s what ultimately matters.

Fast-forward to 2022. I made the decision to give up querying altogether (who needs that additional stress anyway, when we have plenty enough without it?) I commissioned cover artwork and set my official publication plans in motion. I was not going to let this series die.

Since all of the books were written and revised a few times by then, I chose to release each book six months apart. Exile published on May 24, 2023 (the main character’s name day, as mentioned in the series.) And it has been a whirlwind since.

Now, I’m preparing for the release of the final book in the series. It’s weird to think I’ve actually come this far, that I can do this thing called publishing without an agent or a big publishing house behind me. It’s a lot of work, and I’m not the best at marketing, but I’ve sold enough copies to believe this series is a success.

And I know it’s only going to grow from here. I can’t tell you how many people has said they won’t start reading it until all the books are available (thanks to A Song of Ice and Fire, it seems a lot of people are hesitant to start a new series unless they know the ending is available.)

Well, good news for them. November 26 isn’t that far away.

You can learn more about Legend here: LEGEND. Preorders are available in a variety of locations.