Thank you!

I Am Legion was, for many personal reasons, an incredibly difficult project. I started this book towards the end of the pandemic at the peak of my (then untreated) depression/ADHD combo, benched it through a period of crisis and homelessness that turned into a transcontinental adventure in a van with two cats, picked it up again after buying a house, promptly got sick with long covid... on and on and on. But each time I resigned myself to never finishing it, a bestial figure would loom from my imagination, teeth bared, and demand that I complete this project. That it is worthy, even if it is not perfect.

That inner Noodles was correct. I Am Legion is far from a perfect book. But it IS worthy. And that is the nature of competition, of fighting. Seeking perfection is rarely rewarded in life or sport.

It took just over three years to get this novel down. But I did it, and the next books will be a lot easier... mostly because I battled through this one and didn't quit, and now I know where the story has to go.

I am delighted to say that Aethon Books will be publishing I Am Legion in its corrected, edited, more-perfect form either late this year or early next year. I don't have a date yet. Until then, I will be continuing the series here, on this page, until such a time as Kindle Unlimited requires me to take it down. Book 2 of Brute Force will continue from the end of Chapter 69. I will hopefully be able to post that about a month from now, so please bookmark the story if you want to be notified.

I have some other exciting news. I was selected to work on a project related to Dungeon Crawler Carl, and will be starting that in August. More details to come, as I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to say about it yet, but I am beyond thrilled to be working with Matt Dinniman and Soundbooth Theater on this phenomenal series. DCC is not only one of the best series in the LitRPG genre, but Matt is one of the best people I know.

I'll be aiming to produce one Archemi book and one Brute Force book per year until both series are completed in 2026. Yes, one book a year. I'm no George RR Martin, but I am a slow writer by the standards of the self-publishing industry. There is only so much Adderall I can safely consume. 

What I can and do promise my readers is that every series I start WILL get done. Yes, even if it doesn't sell. I continued to write and publish Archemi while homeless in my vehicle because they will get done. If I get sick and have write from a hospital bed, they will still get done because I may be slow but I'm also extremely willful. For that reason, I highly recommend following me here, on Facebook, or by joining my discord server. That way you'll know when my publishing dates roll up.

If you want to know if I feel guilty about the IAL cliffhanger, the answer is no. I am a horrible sadist whose soul - which is actually just a rogue Canada Goose - is nourished by human anguish. I AM sorry that I made you all wait so long for the full book. To those of you who stayed on or came back for this story, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Fans like you are why authors like me write. I'm also grateful for all the incredible feedback this novel has received, and for the views and comments that helped make it a breakout success on Royal Road.

Thank you all for your support and encouragement. Onto Archemi 7!

[Until the next realm, gladiator.]

James Osiris Baldwin.