When I announced Demon Siege, the fourth book in the Pacts Arcane and Otherwise series, I called it the final one. It certainly wraps up the story arc that revolved around the demon imprisoned under the desert, leaving no major plots unresolved, so it will provide the satisfying read of a completed series. At the same time, with the world of Kinyal complex and vast, there could many more stories told, those involving Kamira and Veelk as well as other characters and other places.
Will Kamira and Veelk return?
The simple answer is: they could. But that’s up to numbers, and I’ll be honest with you: they don’t look good enough for the adventurous duo. Kamira and Veelk have devoted fans, and I’d love to offer them more of their stories, but the business side of publishing is merciless, and the numbers have to add up. As I’m my own publisher, the cost of editing and covers is on me, and I have to make the harsh decision based on the sales. In a series where you have to start at book 1 to make sense of the story, the follow up books can only appeal to fans which means that there has to be enough of them to keep any series going.
If you ever were upset by a publisher cutting the series before its conclusion, I feel for you: it’s frustrating and often damages your trust. At the same time, I understand the other side as well. I’m not a big publisher, so I could afford to take the risk with the series and deliver my promise to the readers: to finish the full story arc for a satisfying read, but if I want to continue writing and publishing books, I need to let Kamira and Veelk go, at least for a time being.
The mundane reality is that publishing requires investing—at minimum—in covers and editing, which means the previous books have to earn enough to first cover their own costs and then to ensure an investment into the future installments. Without it, no series can continue.
So… Is this a definite end?
No. You can help bring Kamira and Veelk back on another adventure by sharing your enthusiasm for the series. If your trust toward unfinished series was damaged in the past and you were holding off getting Pacts Arcane and Otherwise, you can now be certain you’ll be able to read the whole story.
If you already have the books, you can help spread the word about them: any post on social media, any review left on Goodreads (even as simple as one sentence telling why you enjoyed the book), StoryGraph, Readerly, or online stores, and any mention to other fantasy fans might help to get the cruel numbers in favor of Kamira and Veelk. You can also recommend the series to your library: the books are available in many library systems both in paperback and ebook (including Overdrive, Libby, Hoopla, and BorrowBox). It might seem counter-intuitive since library books can be checked out for free, but many readers take a chance on new authors this way and become fans.
What’s next?
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Pacts Arcane and Otherwise will find enough fans to grow into a bigger series, but in the meantime, you can check out my new series, Shadows of Eireland. If contemporary fantasy set in Dublin with a not so epic scope of story is something you might enjoy, the preorder for book 1 in the series is now available as well as sample chapters. As always, you can expect some fun characters, friendly banter, and a promise of an ending that might make you smile. What’s more, the books in this series are more stand alone, so you can dive into book 1 without feeling the story is unfinished.
