On Writing and Storytelling: The Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t

The Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t

(A Funnier Follow‑Up)

So, remember how I said I fixed the Kinloch Park reference in Reunion: Coda, and everything was good and tidy and ready for KDP?

Yeah. About that.

It turns out Jim and Mark’s elementary school wasn’t just mentioned once in the Prologue. Or twice. Or even three times. No, no — it was apparently the Where’s Waldo of my manuscript. I found six references sprinkled across the first 240 pages like confetti tossed by a very confused party planner.

Word handled the replacements in about four seconds. Kindle Create, on the other hand, behaved like I was asking it to perform delicate neurosurgery with oven mitts on.

So back to KDP I went. Again.

At this point, I’m convinced that every time I upload a corrected file, another hidden Kinloch Park reference materializes somewhere in Chapter 17, whispering, “You missed me, sucker.”

But honestly? This is the glamorous life of an indie author. Some people imagine book signings, movie deals, and inspirational quotes about creativity. Meanwhile, I’m over here wrestling with Kindle Create like it’s a boss fight in a 1990s RPG.

Still, the Garratyverse deserves accuracy. If Jim and Mark went to South Miami Elementary, then by God, they went to South Miami Elementary — even if I have to upload this book so many times that KDP starts sending me holiday cards.