Of Imprint, Erasure, and the Writer/Reader Partnership

Right, then. After kick-starting my blog last week, it's time to write about one of the many topics I have buzzing around by brain. I think it's only fair to start with what brought me here to begin with: my debut series, Of Imprint & Erasure.

When I left off two years ago, I'd written most of the second book, Tethers of the Present. I struggled with the pressure of delivering a sequel, of moving the story forward, of developing existing characters while introducing new ones. I chose a new location, Chicago, which I'd lived in for five years in the 1990s and still visit often. Despite that, I was in unfamiliar territory.

I was more nervous about the second book than the first, and still am. I can't market it independently. No one will read it unless they've read Imprints of the Past first. Not only does it have to stand on its own merits, it has to bring something new and intriguing to the series. I think I succeeded and it's probably the book I'm most proud of.

By the time I published Tethers of the Present in May 2024, I had a much clearer idea of what I wanted to do with the series as a whole. There was enough lore, characters, and story threads in play that I could have written a fourth or even fifth book. Every detail could be explored further, along with the nuances of how each character developed. But I didn't want to do that. I didn't need to do that. I could tell the story I wanted with one more book, and leave some of the details to the reader's imagination. 

I think that is so important, and it's certainly a strategy I intend to continue with future stories. When I wrote the finale of the third and final book, Echoes of the Future, I wanted you, the reader, to be satisfied while giving you room to decide for yourselves what had actually happened. I wanted to form a partnership between me as a writer and you as a reader.

Think about the oral tradition, of storytellers weaving their words around campfires or taverns, in the living room or at a child's bedside. The interaction between teller and listener breathes more life into the tale. It's harder to form that partnership with the written word, and harder still with TV and movies. But if an author tells the heart of a story and allows the reader to fill intentional gaps as they wish, I think it brings the two closer together.

I published Echoes of the Future in May 2025. I'm thrilled to have actually finished something, to have a complete series for people to read and buy. No more promises of "the last one is on its way, honest!" But it's also bittersweet. I spent six years with these characters. I feel like I know them. I'll miss them, but we all have to go on with our lives. 

To D. To Rosalind, Jess, Jamal and Izzy. You'll always be my first!