Off Balance Series FAQ

There have been many questions and concerns in regard to the Off Balance series and the final book since they were removed from Amazon in December of 2019. I’ve collected a lot of the questions and opted to write a Q&A for readers to reference. I hope this addresses questions relating to the series as a whole, and the final book, Dismount.

Thank you so much for your time and support. It means more to me than I could ever explain.

Do I have to read this Q&A before reading Dismount?
No, you absolutely do not have to. I’m asked daily about the changes I had to make to the series and how it will affect the final book. I decided to put something together that may be helpful to those who’ve been reading the series since the first book and had questions after they were removed from Amazon.

If I read the original books and jump into Dismount, will it still make sense? Or will the ages/years/timeline/etc. no longer add up? Do I needed to reread the books?
You do not need to reread the previous books again to read Dismount. I worked really hard to not touch the original storyline while revisioning the four books so it still makes sense. No one should be able to notice the revisions. The new revisions actually added up well, honestly.

Is the Off Balance series still going to have the same angst and feel as before?
This is difficult to answer as reading is subjective. The writer in me wants to say yes, that the updated, safe versions will have the same effect as the original versions. The reader in me says it comes down to the reader if they feel it’s still angsty as before. I believe it is. I only revised the necessary parts in order to make them safe for publishing.

Is it going to be an age gap? Still be taboo?
There is an age gap, and it’s still very present. So is the taboo aspect.

How many changes did you make to Dismount, and will it affect the story?
There was a fair amount of changes made to Dismount in order to match the new revisions made to the four previous books. However, I made it a point to not alter the actual storyline and give the readers what had always been planned to end the series.

Does it bother you as a writer to have to make changes to your books?
Yes, very much so. At the end of the day, it’s a fictional romance story. I’d never tell anyone how to write their story. If I didn’t agree with the content of a book (or movie or song) I’d keep moving on with my day. Write a review, don’t try to ruin someone’s life over a fake story.

Will you release a non-censored version of Dismount?
No. There will only be one version of Dismount.

I have the original eBooks. Will they change?
No. If you previously purchased an ecopy from any online retailer prior to the release of Dismount 2020 it will not be changed.

Are the original versions that are unedited still going to be available in paperback?
The original, unedited paperbacks and ebooks will only be available on my website. All online retailers will have the updated editions.

How do the changes affect the storyline?
The storyline itself was not affected during the revisions. There were extensive changes made that caused a ripple effect with each book, but thankfully they did not affect the original storyline.

Did you change the characters age?
The only character whose age changed was the main character, Adrianna. Originally Balance began with Adrianna being fifteen and turning sixteen in the novel. In the revised, safe edition, Adrianna beings at sixteen and turns seventeen.

Did you change the location of the story?
Yes. The story moved from Florida to Georgia. I seem to have a fondness for Georgia… I now have seven of nine novels set in Georgia. Location names have been changed and revised.

Why did you change Adrianna’s age to only be a year older?
Georgia’s age of consent is sixteen. Because of that, Adrianna is sixteen when Balance begins.To keep the story authentic, I kept her age as close to a gymnast of her stature as possible. It is not realistic in the least for her to begin the Olympic process at eighteen, or in another country.

What are the new details?
The story moved from Florida to Georgia. The Rossi home is on the east coast in Palm Bay, and World Cup is now on the east coast two hours south just outside of Florida. The entire story takes place in Georgia in a fictional town along the east coast.

Palm Beach, Florida, is now Palm Bay, Georgia.

Palm Bay is a fictious town located in Savannah, Georgia.

Palm Beach Island, is now Amelia Island.

Cape Coral, where World Cup Academy of Gymnastics is located, is now two hours south of Amelia Island on the east coast of Georgia.

Will the sex scenes stay the same? Their love making is the best I have read! Hands down nothing compares.
Thank you so much! No steamy scenes were altered during the revisions. They all stayed the same. I made very minimal changes.

Do you plan to put the Off Balance series back in KU?
Unfortunately none of my books will be going back into Kindle Unlimited. They will be available on Amazon, Nook, Google Play, iBooks, Kobo, Eden Books, and on my website for instant download so the reader can keep novel.

What changes were made other than the obvious age that would require revisions? Was it the fact that you just had to go through the book and rewrite certain parts that may have referenced her age? I am the type of reader who doesn’t focus on all the intricate details that authors include in their books. Does this edited version, in any way, change the story or the characters personalities? How different from the original book will this be, and will we need to purchase and reread before last book comes out?
You will not need to purchase the updated, safe versions, and you will not be confused when you read Dismount. I made sure of that with the help of five incredible women who worked close with me to make sure the original storyline wasn’t altered.

The revisions caused a serious domino effect in all five books, which called for many extra revisions I did not anticipate. It’s why the publication of Dismount was pushed back so far. There were numerous refences to age for every character, many locations and scenery references that needed to be revised, real cities and highways were changed, seasons were edited, colleges mentioned and new ones added, state laws, words that I feared would trigger someone to report me. Multiple lines of dialogue that could be deemed offensive. Avery and Sophia now have a slight southern accent to fit the new location. These seem small, but in the grand scheme of things, they ended up being much bigger. That being said, a reader most likely won’t recognize them.

Will the copies I already have on my kindle change? Will they automatically update?
Any kindle book in the Off Balance series that was purchased before December 2019 on Amazon, will not change.

The books previously purchased on Amazon cannot be updated. Sadly I have zero control over that. Amazon has blocked the titles from me being able to update anything. Any and all Off Balance kindle books published to Amazon after December 2019 will be the safe, edited version.

Will I still be able to order paperbacks of the books before revisions?
The original versions – both paperback and eBook – will always be available on my website for purchase. That is the only place the original, unedited versions will be found.

Are you going to stay only with Amazon or find a way to not have to be so restricted with your stories if you find a different publisher?
Since I’m in an indie author — I am my own publisher — but with zero control.

This is the unfortunate side of being an indie and not having a traditional publisher. There is not one single indie author who can control if their book is blocked by Amazon and removed the way mine were. Any person can report an indie authors book and have it removed. It doesn’t take much. Sadly, indies are not granted the same treatment as traditionally published authors.

Being that I don’t have a personal contact at Amazon like some other indie authors, they refused to communicate with me after I reached out to them numerous times asking for help so I could make the proper changes to avoid my novels being removed again in the future. When I asked, all they did was send vague, generic emails as a response, the same one over and over. They knew absolutely nothing and would not help. They had no idea what happened to my books and could not give a reason or suggestion on what needed to be changed. I took a chance and revised what I thought could be the issue.

With that being said, I had to learn the hard way that I cannot only rely on Amazon again. I will place my books back on Amazon, but not in Kindle Unlimited.

Will there be changes in the dialogue and scenes in all the books?
Yes, some dialogue was altered. Changes were made to all five books in various parts. Some of the changes were small, some were extensive. If you read the series prior to the update, I highly doubt you’d be able to pinpoint which changes I made. I did my absolute best to only revise what I had to.

Is Dismount being published based on the original story, or was it written to reflect the changes you had to make?
Dismount was actually written before my novels were removed from Amazon. The plot itself was not revised, however, due to the changes made to the previous four books, I did have to make substantial changes to some scenes in Dismount.

Did the changes affect the way you wanted to end Dismount?
Partially. I’d already written Dismount, but when I was forced to revise the fictional story, it affected what I’d originally written resulting in additional revisions.

That being said, I’m truly satisfied with the story in the end. I honestly love it.

This concludes the FAQ. I hope this gives you a better understanding of the changes and editions. 

If there is something I didn’t address, please email me at luciafranco@authorluciafranco.com. I’d be happy to answer for you.