I leapt into publishing my story with a great deal of enthusiasm, some angst and considerable naivety. Fortunately, there are many kind and helpful people here on SOL who suggested I not proceed as I had planned.
Rather, they pointed me at Patreon - a site where I could post my story in draft form and receive feedback in more controlled circumstances. Once the story was finalised, I could then post the story back to SOL on a regular schedule.
So, having listened to people (readers and authors), that is what I am doing. I have posted the first two chapters that are available here to my patreon site as public posts. From chapter three onwards, I will post these chapters as tier1 (friend) posts.
My patreon site is https://www.patreon.com/posts/30618201.
I hope to see you there and, again, my thanks for the feedback and advice I have received here.