The Birthmark Murders is Now on ElevenReader

Friends and fellow travellers,
Big news: The Birthmark Murders is now available on ElevenReader! I spent the weekend listening to it, half-expecting my decades of radio theatre experience to be assaulted by synthetic weirdness, but you know what? I’m impressed. Is it as nuanced as a trained actor or a pro voice-over artist? No. But it’s close—shockingly close. As an old hand who’s worked with some of the best (and worst) in the voice game, I don’t say this lightly. AI narration has come a long way; for most listeners, it’s now at the “good enough to forget it’s a machine” level. And honestly, that’s both exciting and slightly terrifying.

Editors are a rare thing

Switching from delight to the world-weary: let’s talk about editing. If you’re an indie author, you already know the pain. Finding a reliable, skilled, and available editor feels a bit like hunting unicorns while blindfolded. Sure, platforms like Fiverr and their ilk are packed with “professionals”—except, well, most of them are just shit. (Sorry, Mum.) Most want your money far more than they care about your work. The genuine passion for storytelling, the willingness to dig in and make your book better because they care? Vanishingly rare. It’s a crowded marketplace of “experts” and “consultants” who, if you’re lucky, might even open your manuscript before sending you the invoice.

Good reviewers are even rarer

Which brings me to the next irritation: paid reviewers. Here’s a trade secret no one wants to admit—most paid reviewers don’t bother to read your first page. They use AI (badly), reword your blurb, toss in some generic adjectives, and bill you for it. The few times a “professional reviewer” has approached me and I’ve asked them to actually read the book first, their interest in my work vanishes faster than an editor’s availability the week before a deadline. It’s not just lazy; it’s unethical.

But it’s not all darkness on the road. Slowly, surely, good things happen. Every so often, a real reader finds my book, sends a message, and posts a review that proves they actually read it. A few more copies sell. The book passes from hand to hand—sometimes digitally, sometimes physically. It’s a long-haul flight, not a sprint, and as long as I feel good about my stories, I’m happy to keep writing them. I just wish more people felt the same urge to read them. Maybe, just maybe, you’re one of them.

Stay curious, keep wandering, and if you have a moment, give The Birthmark Murders a listen on ElevenReader. Maybe you’ll hear something real in that synthetic voice.

Here is my latest video update.

—Janus Lucky