I’m gearing up to go “wide” with Glitches of Gods this September. Right now, the e-book is exclusive to Amazon Kindle, but that’s about to change—assuming I can get the other platforms to play nice with me.
Just last night, I tried to get an Apple ID. As someone who’s never been in the Apple ecosystem, I found it a nightmare. Errors everywhere. “Cannot create an account at this time,” “Your request could not be completed,” and, of course, the ever-reliable, “Something went wrong.” After nearly an hour of my time and calling upon Apple support, I now finally have an Apple ID. But uploading the book? Not happening yet. Apple is probably busy running a background check on my entire financial history.
On the other hand, I’ve made some headway with Google. Maybe it’s because I’m more familiar with their ecosystem. I’ve uploaded my book and cover and filled out all the metadata. The only hiccup? My bank account info is still pending verification. I’m supposed to see a test deposit in my account, but—no surprise—nothing is showing up. I expect that something went wrong again.
And that’s just two platforms. I haven’t even touched Kobo, Barnes & Noble, or any of the others yet. I knew this wouldn’t be easy, so I gave myself three weeks to get it all sorted out.
Preparation is everything. And so is flexibility.
Because nothing ever goes smoothly.
I’m writing this while hopping from one Caribbean island to another—20 countries, 30 islands, 60 days. From Curaçao and Grenada to Antigua and Sint Maarten, with almost every island in between. If this trip has taught me anything, it’s to prepare but stay flexible.
Is my flight or ferry still on schedule?
Will my eSIM work on the next island?
Do I need to fill out an immigration form?
What currency do they use over there?
Where exactly is my accommodation?
How do I find the car rental company?
I once showed up for a ferry scheduled for 10:00 a.m. (according to my ticket), but it had already left at 7 a.m. Nobody had told me they’d changed the departure time, of course. And they charged me extra for changing my ticket to the next day. On the next island, the rental car agent had voided my reservation without a refund (I hadn't shown up after all) and then tried to make me pay for a new booking. (No need to explain I went ballistic.) You quickly learn to double-check everything.
As I write this, I’m in a coffee bar on the British Virgin Islands, starting week eight of a nine-week journey. I’ve switched driving sides seven times already—right side on Curaçao and Bonaire, left side on Tobago to St. Lucia, right in Martinique, left in Dominica, right in Guadeloupe, left in Antigua, right in St. Maarten, and now back to the left in BVI. I’ll finish up on the right in the Dominican Republic and Aruba.
The only reason I’m not losing my mind? I prepare and I stay flexible.
Assuming that Apple Books, Google Play Books, and the others will eventually stop sending me from left to right and back again, Glitches of Gods should be available on all major platforms by September 7, the gods willing.
