17,115.

That sounds like a big number, and I suppose it is. However, it’s far less than the 30,000 word goal I had set for myself for NaNoWriMo this year. I came up 12,885 words short. I have four and a half chapters worth of stories about being a nerdy kid. The book is about halfway done, especially considering I have done little to no editing or revision yet.

I will be perfectly honest, writing the second book has been much more difficult than the first. When writing the first, I expected the book would make some decent money, and that kept me motivated to spend some late nights and put down the Xbox controller, iPad, or paintbrush to work daily. But sales have been disappointing. To date, I have made about $150 from the Kindle version, $25 from paperback sales at Amazon, and around $200 from autographed copies sold in person. That seems pretty good on the surface, but when you think of the hundreds of hours of writing, editing, rewriting, the submission process, and promoting the book, it’s a very low monetary return for my time investment. Less than minimum wage, for sure. And that made staying on target with my 30K words goal such a struggle.

Still, I have a book half done, and it would be foolish to stop now. I will keep writing throughout this month, and beyond, until it is done. Until then, here is a final sneak peek for you.

I spent every spare moment and more than a few dollars worth of quarters in that Cracker Barrel over the following days. When it came time for us to head to the World’s Fair, I was honestly disappointed. The campground had free movies and Ms. Pac-Man, and I was unsure what the World’s Fair could offer that would compare. My parents talked it up, telling about all the displays and such from countries all around the world. To me, that sounded more like a museum than a fair. The theme was supposed to be energy, which sounded boring as well. I would have strongly preferred a bear racing theme or something like that.

Despite my misgivings, we, along with many other travelers, loaded up on a Greyhound bus early in the morning for the three hour drive to Knoxville. This is where I would like to explain to you, dear reader, about how despite my misgivings, the World’s Fair was a magical, one-of-a-kind experience that would hold a special place in my heart forever. But the sad fact is that I have very few memories of the World’s Fair at all. I guess in the long run, my lack of enthusiasm was merited. My adult brain is full of old Transformers episodes, pages from comic books, and Star Wars trivia. But there are only four memories remaining in my skull from the World’s Fair, and those four are quite shallow.