Writing News
Hello Dear Readers!
First, let me wish all of you the best in this holiday season and my hopes for joy in the new year.
DREADNOUGHT AND SHUTTLE, book 3 in Halcyone Space is done! (Well, the writing part, anyway. . . ) The manuscript is now out with beta readers and the next steps include a revision or two before it heads over to the editor and then into production. Look for book 3 to be out early Summer 2016.
When Ro Maldonado, a reckless young computer programmer, resurrects the damaged AI on a long dormant freighter, she and the accidental crew of Halcyone expose explosive secrets from a war they were taught ended decades ago.
Now, charged with protecting the location of Ithaka, the heart of the resistance, Ro and her friends must learn to lead double lives within the Commonwealth. But their plans to hide in plain sight disintegrate when an old enemy returns and threatens revenge. As they track him down, each course they plot endangers the life of his hostage and threatens to reveal Ithaka, brand them traitors, and reignite a war that could destroy them all.
My wonderful audiobook producer, Bill Burrows, has finished the audiobook of ITHAKA RISING and it joins DERELICT on audible, itunes, and amazon. So if you prefer to listen to your stories, head on over and pick up a copy!
Offers
Call for Beta Readers.
If you would like an early peek at DREADNOUGHT AND SHUTTLE, I am still looking for beta readers.
What does that mean? The term comes from the software world where programmers ask for folks to test their work before it gets released to the world. For the story, this entails being willing to read a draft of the manuscript and give feedback on how the overall story holds together. I'm NOT looking for typos, editing, or sentence level feedback at this time, just your reaction as a reader to the big picture.
Beta readers will be publicly thanked in the acknowledgments, get an ebook copy of the finished work, and an added surprise - a 'dragonbelly' mini mug (*Scotch not included!), made by yours truly.
So, if you're interested, and can read and provide feedback by the end of January, please reply/send an email and let me know what format you prefer to read. (doc, docx, mobi, epub, pdf)
Speaking of audiobooks, I have some free download codes for ITHAKA RISING available! I'll send a free audiobook version to each of the first 10 folks who reply to this newsletter!
Recommendations
In July, I recommended a book by the South African writer, Masha Du Toit, called CROOKS AND STRAIGHTS. This is how I described it.
It reminded me of what you might get if you mixed the coming of age essence of A WRINKLE IN TIME with the ethereal and painful beauty of PAN'S LABYRINTH. Quite honestly, this goes as one of my top reads of 2015. And thankfully, there's a sequel. (WOLF LOGIC)
I'm happy to report that I loved WOLF LOGIC and found it written just as beautifully. So these books are definitely part of my 2015 year end picks! (And they are both currently only $.99 each for the ebook versions.)
Other books I highly recommend from my 2015 reading:
I devoured Episode 4 of Rick Wayne's THE MINUS FACTION (BLACKOUT) and loved it. Honestly, I adore these books and I'm not someone who tends to read serial fiction. I'm too impatient and want the whole story. But, I'm willing to nibble at the crumbs, here, because they are so very tasty! Part superhero story, part thriller, part adventure, one hundred percent addictive.
(Full disclosure: I struck up a friendship with Rick via GooglePlus and we will be co-writing a book in 2016 that I can't wait to tell you about!)
A fun take on time travel with a 1940s noir twist, I thoroughly enjoyed Richard Levesque's TAKE BACK TOMORROW. Just a lovely romp through what I loved about golden age SF from my childhood.
If your taste runs more to urban fantasy/horror, I recommend MALUS DOMESTICA, by S.A. Hunt. A modern witch hunter who is a youtube sensation, returns to her home town to confront both her past and the witches who terrorize the town.
And lastly, if you enjoy a good space opera, you can't go wrong with a tale by Nathan Lowell! IN ASHES BORN is the start of a new series in the universe of his Golden Age of the Solar Clipper series. And it's a great entry into his worlds, even if you haven't read the prior series.
Ultimately, the greatest gift a reader can give a writer is to recommend their work to others. Do you have a friend/neighbor/librarian/relative you would like to introduce my work to?
I would be happy to send a free eBook copy of any of my books to a reader of your choice.
Please either reply to this email, or email me separately with:
- your name
- the name of the person you'd like to recommend
- their email address
I'll send them a single email with a brief description of each of my books and give them an opportunity to choose one.
In line with my no spam, ever, policy, I won't subscribe them to this list, or send them any unsolicited email.
(top of page)
If you enjoy my work, I would very much appreciate it if you would recommend my writing to a friend, forward this newsletter, add one of my books to your Amazon wish list, or write a review.
Thank you!
|
