Today is launch day. September 1st, and my first psi-fi novel, Reluctant Android is officially launched as an ebook. I had the novel all edited and formatted, with the cover ready to go in July, and I thought at the time, why did I set the launch date so far out in the future?

Turns out, that was a smart choice, because “done” is never done in the world of writing. I vowed that I would not fuss with the text, as writers are wont, but things happen. I found a printer’s (graphic designer’s) error on the cover that had to be fixed. I found an egregious typo in the text that could not be overlooked. I decided I should label the book as “First in the Newcomer series.”

Many changes were necessary, all of which had to be retrofitted into the three production versions (Kindle, Smashwords, and KDP) then re-uploaded and re-proofed. I didn’t get it all done until late in August and I thought, Thank goodness the launch date isn’t until September first!

The delay also gave me time to do whatever pathetic “marketing” efforts I could muster, although in truth, marketing is the Achilles’ heel of self-publishing. It’s difficult even for commercial publishers to get anyone’s attention.

I don’t have a massive mailing list of people I can annoy with my egocentric accomplishments nor a population of cheering Facebook “friends.” Today, on “Launch Day,” I am not starting a book tour but looking forward to watching the Dbacks vs. Dodgers game.

Nevertheless, the Reluctant Android is now officially out of the bag. As android Andy Bolton would say, “What bag is this? I am not aware of a bag of androids.”

I believe Reluctant Android will eventually accomplish his mission, which is to alert ordinary people, sci-fi readers and others, to some of the deep mysteries of the human mind.

Find Reluctant Android at:

• Kindle: bit.ly/RA-kindle
• Smash: bit.ly/RA-smash

The ebook is also available through iTunes, Nook, Kobo, and other distributors. And in paperback too, on Amazon.