Under the Sea

I spent a good deal of time snorkeling when I was young. We were always on the water, every weekend and even on weekdays sometimes, and all summer. Now, I'm exploring a whole new ocean: Amazon! Badge, Tie, and Gun went live February 1st on #Kindle, and then February 3rd in paperback (well, sort of--I'm now dealing with long delivery times and trying to find out why my buyers are waiting six months to get the book). Just before the publishing date, I was excited about my 8-year long writing project in front of people. There was just one problem. Or, I should say, there are 3.5 million problems. That's right, as of the end of 2022, close to four million #books are on the market in Amazon. Around 70% of all #American readers purchase their books on #Amazon. I'm pretty sure it was Sebastian the Crab, in The Little Mermaid, who sang praises of the ocean, saying "Darling it's better, down where it's wetter, take it from me..." Perhaps. But, I'm not snorkeling in eight feet of water. I can't even see the bottom--I'm in an ocean of authors, surrounded by millions upon millions of books, all of them clamoring for attention. The second day online, I ranked #1 in the "Law Enforcement Biographies" category, and just as quickly, I was #26. So this stuff fluctuates, like the tides and currents, like vast schools of amberjack, flashing to and fro in the deep blue of what is apparently an ever-expanding sea. New experiences, new things to learn. All part of life on this blue-green planet.