An under-appreciated benefit of today’s publishing model – which allows an author to make unlimited and instantaneous revisions – is that multiple versions of a book can be released, each tailored to the interests of a different readership. There can be a Christian version, a smutty edition, more or less politically correct versions (although differential marketing might be a challenge), a Reader’s Digest-abridged type of publication, and so on. The market will not, of course, support an infinite number of variations; booksellers can scarcely move the inventory already on hand. That limitation noted, when there is a consistent and vocal demand to provide an alternate version of a book, that feedback should be respected.

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The original How I Made $3,200,000 from My Hobby is concurrently under publication. Apparently there is an audience for the detailed character development found in that book. And it’s humorous. But many readers said that they wanted to move more quickly to the rip-snortin’ thriller that occupies the second half of the book. Hence, this edition. The sections developing the character have been condensed.

 

This could be the best of all worlds for the author and publisher: Some of those who read this version will wonder what they’ve missed and will pony up the cash for the longer novel. A twofer for us. But that’s not the primary reason for this edition. The intention here is to focus on the plot and fast-paced action that many readers felt was the more engaging part of the story.