Coffee, Continuity, and Ken Burns

Wednesday, January 7, 2026 — Orlando, Florida

Hey there!

I’m running a little behind this morning, thanks to Florida’s version of winter casting everything in a cool, gray haze. I’m still feeling pretty tired—even after a rushed breakfast of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and two cups of coffee. There’s a hint of chill in the air, but my bedroom is cozy enough out here on the quiet, almost rural edge of Orlando.

I ended up staying up past 1:30 AM last night after stumbling across a small but irritating continuity error in Comings and Goings – The Art of Being Seen while working on the omnibus edition of the Jim Garraty stories. It wasn’t anything major—you’d have to squint to notice it—but once you’ve been a copy editor, you never really stop being one. These things stick in your brain like a pebble in your shoe.

So, swallowing my pride and feeling a little sheepish as an author, I made the fix and uploaded the revised version to Kindle Direct Publishing just after midnight. Once the update was complete, I logged off for the night, knowing it would be a while before KDP notified me that the new Kindle and paperback editions were live on Amazon.

Of course, I was still buzzing from the adrenaline of that late-night editing session, so instead of heading straight to bed, I put on “In Order to Be Free (May 1754–May 1775),” the first episode of Ken Burns’ The American Revolution. I made it through the section on the end of the Seven Years’ War and its ripple effects across Great Britain and the thirteen colonies. I’ve been wanting to watch it since I bought the documentary in November, but eventually the long day caught up with me. I turned off the TV and finally got some sleep, not waking up until just after 8 AM.

So, what’s on tap for today?

When I finally checked my AOL inbox this morning, I found a note from KDP confirming that the revised Kindle and paperback editions of Comings and Goings are officially updated. The changes—along with the new pricing—should be live within the next 72 hours, depending on how quickly everything propagates. That’s a relief. At least now I can stop fretting over the little fixes and know the novelette is in solid shape.

I’ve still got a few hours of tinkering ahead with The Jim Garraty Chronicles, the omnibus that bundles together Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, and Comings and Goings. I’ll be honest: there are moments when I want to shelve the whole project and chase something new. But I’ve poured too much time and heart into these stories to walk away now. I’ve done that before with other novels and screenplays, and it always left me feeling pretty shitty—at least until I finally buckled down and wrote Reunion: Coda, which I published last April.

A fresh idea is calling to me (and yes, it even has a working title), but I know I can’t dive into it until I finish the audiobook for Coda and wrap up the omnibus. One step at a time. That’s the only way forward.

A small favor, if you’re willing

If you’ve enjoyed Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, or Comings and Goings, or if you’ve been meaning to pick them up, they’re all available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble Online. You can also order them through any bookstore that has access to KDP’s Extended Distribution.

And if you already have the books but haven’t had a chance to leave a review yet, I’d be incredibly grateful if you’d consider sharing a few words. Even a short, honest note makes a real difference for an indie author trying to keep these stories alive and visible.

Thanks, truly, for reading—and for walking alongside me on this long, strange, rewarding creative road.