This week I’ll go over some of my goals and plans for the new year. Before I do that, I’ll digress a moment.
It’s been 5 years since Neil Peart of Rush died. His writing, whether in his lyrics or his books, still resonates with me and I haven’t yet gotten over his passing. You can expect the What I’m Listening To section to be only Rush over the next month, as is true every January since 2020.
Anyway, let’s talk about the future! My first goal of 2025 is to clean up and republish the Irina series that began with I Am A WondrousThing. I have 4 books finished, but they’ve been unavailable for a bit because of some false starts along the way.
So, I’ll be re-editing those first 4, plus writing Book 5, the conclusion, throughout the year. My goal is to rapid release those starting somewhere like September and October, finishing the series in early 2026.
Now that I’m done with the Foresters series, I’m probably going to write some new science fiction short stories. I have a number of ideas that might turn into series, and I haven’t written as many short stories in the last couple of years. I’m going to try and put out 4 of them in 2025.
One of those may be another Nick Patara, PI stories. I’ve written 3 of them and they need re-editing, plus I might put them out along with a 4th one as a set. Maybe set it up as a serial in a different type of publishing. I’d like to see other options.
Meanwhile, I’ll continue with the Okkorim stuff as long as Luke and Matt will let me. I love what we’re doing there and can’t wait until we have stuff start rolling off regularly, which will happen this year. Ideally, I can also get another client or two in the gaming world.
Overall, my aim is to get more words out than I ever have before, which means something like 450k. I count edited words in this, but only at 1/4 word, by the way.
I have been working with the Anthony Chamber of Commerce for a few months now. My big goal here is to set up regular processes that don’t rely on a single person. This will help me make the events Anthony has work better. Obviously, I’m investing a lot of my future in this town, and I want to keep contributing here.
On the personal side, now that things are actually settling into a routine, I want to add consistent workouts and losing weight. Obviously, that’s been a goal for a while, but things have been wonky.
My wife and I have never taken a vacation. Yes, we’ve traveled 1000s of miles together and done a bunch of awesome things, but that’s all been part of the SCA, or a thing for either one of us. I’d like us to go somewhere like Venice, Florence, and Rome. Something like that. Maybe that happens in 2025, maybe 2026, but it needs to happen.
I expect I won’t get all of that done in 2025, but these are reasonable things to shoot for. Whatever i get done, I’m excited about how much I get to do!
What I’m Listening To
Closer to the Heart, Rush. I’m no plowman, but I’m trying to be a philosopher who knows my part.
Quote of the Week
Happy birthday to another musical hero, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin.
This particular quote resonates with me as I sit here on a snowy day in Anthony. We took a chance coming here. It was the right decision both based on what we knew and where we are now, but it was a chance. I’m glad we’re here.
“So many people are frightened to take a chance in life and there’s so many chances you have to take.”
– Jimmy Page
Rob’s Works in Progress
Sowing Spring’s Wrath (3,213)
Upcoming Events
ChattaCon, January 17-19, Chattanooga, TN chattacon.org/ I’m the Toastmaster!
Pennsic War, July 25 – August 10, Slippery Rock, PA pennsicwar.org/
New Releases
This week we have Hero’s Shadow, the second book in Fred Hughes’ Heroes of Britannia series. Admiral Julie Adams has been tasked with ending the Teddy Bear problem, but it won’t be as simple as she—or anyone else—might like! Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0DRZ6WBB3.
This week’s pre-release is Blood of Her Father by Kacey Ezell and Marisa Wolf, the fifth book in the Ashes of Entecea series. If you’ve read anything by either of these authors (which I have to imagine everyone on this list has), then you know it’s going to be great. When last seen (in The Conqueror’s Promise), Isonei was a spoiled brat who showed promise. Will she live up to that promise? Surrounded by people with their own motives, though, perhaps a better question is, “Will she survive to her majority?”
Tracked Items
My Weight Today: 363.8lbs
Updated Word Count: 2,087
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Obviously, this week wasn’t any shorter than any other, but it felt that way as I lost three whole days to health stuff. It’s nothing serious, and most of that reason is a standard checkup procedure to make sure I’ve got no unseen issues, it just takes time out of a week.
That being said, I was pretty productive this week. In The Feasting of Vengeance I pulled out some threads from the main document. This allows me to focus directly on those threads and take them basically to the end of Act II and into the final big battle. I haven’t calculated the total words over all three docs, but it’s thousands more on the total with a bunch of cleanup of dead brush. So major progress, IMHO.
Responsibility of the Fleet
Don’t forget, Responsibility of the Fleet by G. Scott Huggins, third in his Endless Ocean series, comes out in two weeks!
I’ve been working on a larger scale project in Okkorim, however, and I needed to get that finished. I uploaded it for the mechanic to make sure I got the game stuff right yesterday.
This particular chunk had been difficult as I hadn’t had a good way to create game rules without making some things out of balance. The mechanic (his name’s Zach by the way), gave me a thought and what had been a slog at the end of last week was a torrent this week. I wrote 5k just on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Of course, this is DragonCon weekend!
There are a bunch of CKP authors there. I’m sure I’m going to miss some, but I know Kacey Ezell, David Shadoin, Marisa Wolf, H.Y. Gregor, Trisha J. Wooldridge, Melissa Olthoff, and Jon R. Osborne all come to mind.
Also there are a bunch of CKP-adjacent authors such as Joelle Presby, Shami Stovall, and Lydia Sherrer.
In other words, if you want to talk to a bunch of cool authors, there’s little better chance than at DragonCon.
I can’ t go this, year, but I did have a consolation prize. Fred Hughes did an interview with me. I’m not sure when it’ll be released, though of course I’ll let you know. We recorded it yesterday and I think it went really well!
In any case, I think that’s all for now. I’m still fatigued from all the stuff earlier this week, so I’ll sign off. Have a great week everyone!
What I’m Listening To
Steeleye Span’s version of King Henry. Steeleye Span is really cool English band playing medieval and traditional music. Their Saucy Sailor is one of my top 20 songs of all time. While this isn’t to that level, it’s still one I listen to quite often.
Quote of the Week
Happy birthday to John Locke, born on this day in 1632. I’ve read, and admired, much of his writing, and I encourage people to take a look if they’re philosophically inclined, as I am.
“I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.”
― John Locke
Rob’s Riddles
Like challenges? Think you’re smarter than me? Then see if you can answer my riddles!
You can find them by signing up for my Patreon here: patreon.com/rhodri2112. Not sure what I mean? Then check the sample riddle and see if you get the answer!
First Line of Current Riddle:
I am a thing of whimsy wildly careening
New Mythology Works in Progress
So much happening!
Responsibility of the Fleet by G. Scott Huggins comes out September 13th.
Then a trilogy by H.Y. Gregor starting with Reka’s Grasp on October 18th with another November 22nd and the third on December 27th. This is set in Jon R. Osborne’s awesome Milesian Accords series.
And there’s more on the way. The open call from June is bearing fruit and I look forward to tell you of some awesome stuff from that.
Rob’s Works in Progress
Sowing Spring’s Wrath (3,213)
The Feasting of Vengeance
Upcoming Events
ChattaCon, January 17-19, Chattanooga, TN chattacon.org/ I’m the Toastmaster!
Pennsic War, July 26 – August 11, Slippery Rock, PA pennsicwar.org/
New Releases
Your pre-release this week is War Criminal, the 11th book in P.A. Piatt’s Abner Fortis, ISMC, series. For those who’ve been following the series (and if you haven’t, why not?), you can pretty much guess that good ol’ Abner will be up to his armpits in trouble as he and Jocko Bender go into the Free Sector to track down two of the war criminals behind the peace rally attack. Remember the world-killer bomb that disappeared? It’s back, too, and fully in play. Will Abner be able to recover it before it goes “boom?” You probably just answered that question wrong… but you’ll have to grab it to find out! Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0DFFPZCFX.
Tracked Items
My Weight Today: 357.4lbs
Updated Word Count: 205,201
Firehall Sagas Archives: 758 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
My goodness, what a week! Around 7,000 new words in a number of projects, plus so much else going on.
I got some great feedback on Where Now the Rider. Check out this review: “I shouldn’t have started this book at 2230. I should have known better. I do know better. All three of these have done violence to my sleep, and I did it willingly. I look forward to another.”– Greg Gagnon, KU Reader.
The first story I ever wrote was in 1997 and it was done only to fill a quire in the program for Neocon 8. It was, at the time, wretched and required a goodly amount of hubris to put it there.
Still, it filled the quire almost exactly and now that it’s been edited after all this experience, I’m quite pleased with it. Thanks to Nick Steverson and Marisa Wolf for including it in Thirteen Stories of Horror, which comes out tomorrow!
Stay tuned tomorrow for both the release link and details of a fun podcast with a bunch of the authors on Saturday evening at 7pm Central.
I’ll be there for part of it, but I’m going to be pretty busy on Saturday. It’s Anthony’s Fall Fest and I’ll have a booth in front of Pack N’Flavor restaurant. Come get books from me and some of the great cookies they sell there.
We made huge progress on our personal library this week, which is basically a long hallway extending from my den, which is behind my desk in the bookstore. I also got a big step up on the bookstore layout, plus put up new lights in the store. I’m making progress actually putting books on shelves. The vast majority of them are in stacks of their categories. Next week will bring a bunch of labels, more organization, and my checkout counter.
Oh, and stay tuned for cool new logos coming next week.
We’re starting to get a whole bunch of things in their actual place!
Oh, and we have a new assistant.
Bella
What I’m Listening To
The Chiefs beating up on Denver. Man, the Broncos simply aren’t a good offense. I don’t know what their overall problem is, as I don’t really study them, but they’re just not good.
Happenings in Anthony
Fall Fest 2023
Anthony Fall Fest! Click the thumbnail for the larger image.
Well, Team Nobody of Consequence didn’t, quite, defend their title at trivia last night. We were just too far behind after the music and entertainment categories. However, we almost made a miracle comeback, running the entire last category and getting a full 16 points. Lost by 2, 37 to 35. We’ll get ’em next week.
Quote of the Week
On this day, in 322, Demosthenes died. Demosthenes was one of the world’s greatest orators. I don’t have time here to give more than a quote, be he’s well worth looking into.
And, of course, you can read Jack McDevitt’s excellent A Talent for War to get a perspective on Demosthenes.
In any case, this is perhaps the most true quote I’ve ever posted, and something we all have to work against.
Nothing is easier than self-deceit.
– Demosthenes
Rob’s Riddles
I have a Patreon where I write Old English style riddles and provide snippets of my work. You can find it here: patreon.com/rhodri2112, along with a sample riddle.
Your pre-release this week is a new series from a new author! It’s Final Assembly by Dennis M. Myers, the first book in his Rise of the Automated Empire series. This series is set in a post-scarcity society on the moon in the distant future, where no one lacks for anything, and everyone gets along. Right? Not so fast… Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0CKVFR1PL.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 355.8
Updated Word Count: Did too much to do that full accounting, but will try to do so next week.
Firehall Sagas Archives: 743 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
It’s Wednesday, which is about right. I need at least a few days to recover from the awesomeness that is LibertyCon. I hated missing it last year, but I suppose I made the right choice. I am still married, after all.
Anyway, before I get going into my weekend, I want to take a moment to thank all the crew at LibertyCon. Brandy Hendren is a rock star among rock stars, and her crew is the single best organized con crew out there. I deal mostly with Rich Groller (programming) Matthew Fanny (gate) because I never get a chance to go to the best con suite around (Vonn Gants and crew), the art show (Ann Robards), or the game room (Misty Kat Gutierrez-Waller). And that doesn’t count all the behind the scenes folks.
That crew is amazing, but it’s not really a surprise. We often talk about how much LibertyCon is a family, and this is the core of the family. They’ve all done the job for a while, helping their family members have a great time.
I thank them all the time, but it’s really never enough.
Anyway, I was so ready for LibertyCon that last Tuesday night I couldn’t sleep. It was like Christmas Eve, so I gave up the ghost, got up at 430am and was on the road by 5 to Murfreesboro, my stop on the way. It’s good to have friends to crash with, especially when they make chicken and mashed potatoes for a weary traveler.
I got to the hotel early on Thursday and did a bunch of work in the room before heading down to the lobby.
The lobby at the LibertyCon hotel on Thursday night is a trap. A great trap, a wonderful trap, a trap worthy of Grimtooth, but a trap nonetheless.
There are friends there I haven’t seen in at least a year, lots of them! I flitted from friend to friend, getting snatches of conversation, talking business, the past year, beer, writing, and all the other things in swirling conversations that make the Thursday night at LibertyCon one of the single most important days of the year professionally.
We closed down the bar and then went to a room party. This was an oft-used plan by many at the bar. Marriott might want to reconsider closing the bar right at midnight.
Friday was breakfast at the City Cafe. Sadly, they’re being forced to move a few blocks away. It’s a shame as it was only a block away from the hotel and it is really good.
Then I got into panels starting at 1pm. This was the Out of the Trailer Park anthologies panel led by William Joseph Roberts. He’s a really smart dude and the driving force behind Three Ravens Publishing. If you haven’t checked that company out, do so. They’re really good.
Anyway, I’m not saying I committed myself to writing a redneck version of Beowulf, but I committed myself to writing a redneck version of Beowulf for a future anthology.
After that, I was generally off until 8pm and my Author’s Alley stint from 8pm to 10pm. I was really pleased with how this went. I only sold 4 books, but I talked to a bunch of folks and that’ s a big part of why I do those slots.
More importantly, I had bought a rolling toolbox to make setup and teardown go smoothly. It holds 4 stacks of books, so about 40 or so without difficulty. It also came with a smaller case that holds promo and setup stuff like the Wandering Signature Chart and the big d20. I can bungee two racks on top and it was really easy, so that’ll be a help going forward.
I was originally scheduled to be on Author’s Alley until 11pm, but the CKP Year Ahead panel went from 9pm to 11pm, and I skipped my last hour (actually I donated it to Cedar Sanderson, who couldn’t make the con) to go do the New Mythology portion of the presentation.
And that’s where I lost my name.
I showed up to find they were mostly through the New Mythology portion and that Kacey Ezell had impersonated me. Apparently, she’s a better me than me.
A Hope In Hell
So I took her tiara and tagged in. I got there in time for not one, but two cover reveals. The first was for A Hope in Hell, the conclusion to the Heirs of Cataclysm trilogy by Christopher G. Nuttall. This comes out on July 11th and it’s the post-magical-apocalypse swords and sorcery series you didn’t know you’d love but you will. The art, by the way, was done by Laercio Messias.
Then came the most exciting part of the presentation. I’m re-releasing all of my books under New Mythology Press starting with A Lake Most Deep on July 25th. This is the first of the Edwardsaga, the fantasy mystery series.
The Firehall Sagas schedule starts like this:
July 25th: A Lake Most Deep
August 29th: The Eyes of a Doll
October 3rd: Where Now the Rider
November 7th and every 5 weeks afterward for a good while, something else.
No surprise that I’m excited. These books have updated art, maps, new edits, and a better layout. Basically, I’m taking all that I’ve learned over the last decade and refreshing them. I’ve said a number of times that while I love A Lake Most Deep because I created good characters, a great setting, and a challenging mystery, I didn’t execute the writing well. No surprise there, it was my first novel. Now, however, I’m as proud of the writing as I am the story and this is true for all the rest.
A Lake Most Deep
Did I mention art? Here’s the other cover reveal. This art is by J. Caleb Designs, one of my favorite cover artists around. I think you can see why. It’s much the same cover as before, but it’s so much more energetic and strong.
On top of this, I’ve been pleased to get a couple of blurbs from other authors. Glen Cook, yes that Glen Cook, the one who wrote the Garrett, PI series, said A Lake Most Deep is “a damn fine read.”
Yes, my head exploded when I got that email.
Also, at LibertyCon, Larry Correia gave me a writer blurb: “Rob mixes intrigue, murder, and magic in to his own cool blend.” Plus, Dave Butler agreed to get me a blurb as well. I’m honored by their trust and hope to live up to everything they expect of me.
Back to LibertyCon. Following the CKP panel, we had a CKP YouTube internet thing. This was a hoot. I sat in the back and heckled, not that it needed my heckling to be hilarious. Check it out here: youtube.com/watch?v=x35cP0ir34M. Uhhh, not safe for work, or your ribs from laughing too hard.
Saturday started with the brunch. We had a fun table including Gary Shelton the donut god, Ann Margaret Lewis (who’s releasing her first CKP title soon), and Scott Huggins, writer of the Responsibility series.
The theme for our table was, “Dammit, Scott!!!” The banquet was set up so each table would go up in succession, with the table number drawn randomly. Scott said he had terrible luck with this sort of thing and we’d go last, so every time another table was called, we yelled, “Dammit, Scott!!!” Then Scott McIntosh-Mize got in line and we yelled it at him too. He was appropriately confused. Then they said the last table to be called would get a prize, so we yelled “Dammit, Scott!!!” when we were second to last. We may have had to wait, but we had more fun than all the other tables.
Scott’s working on book 3 in his Responsibility series right now, by the way.
At noon I had a reading with Patrick Chiles. He’s a hard SF author writing with Baen and his first reading reminded me of Inherit the Stars, at least it had the same sort of awesome puzzle from James P. Hogan. That’s still one of my favorite books, even if some of the scientific basis hasn’t entirely held up in the nearly 50 years since it came out.
For myself, I read the new first chapter of A Lake Most Deep, which is much stronger then the first chapter of Farewell, My Ugly.
Then I had another long break until panels at 7, 8, and 10pm. The first was a panel on Writing from the Perspective of a Historian. In general, I enjoyed the panel, and David B. Coe did a good job of moderating it.
I think the key thing to remember about this topic is that history doesn’t have to make sense, but fiction does. Also, there’s always another level to the history, and at some point you have to cut that off in fiction to keep the reader in the story.
Then there was another panel on history, this time writing for history, and again moderated by David B. Coe. It wasn’t an exact reply, though, as it was focused more on worldbuilding.
He asked what 3 things we start with, and my answer is that all the worldbuilding has to provide kinetic energy to the story. Hence, I start with foundational stuff like the magic system and also the ancient history that is hidden in the epic fantasy quest. Then I start with regional stuff to create trade routes, political tensions, and such. Then I mention my Wikipedia random article process to create a database of ideas for characters, places, and events.
Then came the Great Tiara Exchange of Ought-23 and me getting a new name.
On the schedule it was the Valkyries panel where a bunch of authors in The Valkyrie Protocol anthology talked about their story. Kacey Ezell introduced herself as Rob, so I took her tiara again. This, by the way, was a huge blue-stone studded tiara as opposed to the simple circlet from the previous night.
I rocked it the rest of the night.
But I’m getting ahead of myself, as the Joelle Presby introduced herself as Rob. Then Melissa Olthoff introduced herself as Rob. So I introduced myself as Kacey Joelle Olthoff to much rejoicing.
All the while wearing the tiara balanced on my head. Did I mention it didn’t fit? It was just perched there, but I never once had it fall off.
Back to the panel, which had some business moments. Marisa talked about the plan to keep writing in that world, and that a number of books were coming out along these lines, ultimately concluding with an Avengers-like book with all the characters kicking ass. I don’t have time to write a book, but Vigdis hasn’t saved her last soul.
Side note: www.irocktiaras.com is available and I might need a new website.
Following the Valkyries panel, we retired to the bar to close it down. Then went to room parties. Then we went on an excursion!
I skipped right over the part where Trisha J. Wooldridge was at her first LibertyCon with her brand new release, Shadows, Ash, and Prophecy. She seemed to have a great time and is a great addition to the CKP crew. She’s also working on book 3 in that series right now.
Shadow, Ash, Prophecy
Here’s the cover, by the way.
She was staying at a neighboring hotel, so we formed a party amoeba and escorted her home. Then we returned to the room party.
I usually do my major night of reveling on Thursday, but apparently I was too hyped to stop. I closed out the room party, then spent time helping Nathan Balyeat edit a story. A drunk editor can be good, but he either sacrifices his editing skill or his ability to phrase things nicely. Fortunately, Nathan didn’t kill me, but I was like a director yelling, “cut, cut, cut!”
Then I realized it was 6am and I had planned to drive to Fayetteville, AR after the con.
Ooops.
Well, I packed my stuff up except just what I’d need and took it down to the car. Went to the breakfast buffet, which opened at 630. Then I caught a few hours of sleep to join the Kaffeeklatsch.
After that was the Four Horsemen panel and suddenly, the tables turned.
They started the presentation and were introducing all the people up on stage when they came to an empty chair. Kacey Ezell’s chair.
Yes, I jumped up and did my best Kacey impersonation. To be fair, she’s a much better me than I am of her. I apparently can’t do a soft, higher-pitched voice without doing it in Southern. Still, it was a lot of fun and most of the crowd had been to the previous panels so was in on the joke.
At that point, I got out of Dodge as quickly as I could because I was already tired. I figured if I got out early, I could stop for a nap or two, which I did. However, leaving LibertyCon is not a fast process, something I appreciate. Lots of people to hugs, lots of goodbyes, and even a homemade cookie.
The trip home wasn’t terribly eventful, though I did make a detour when I saw the weather going through the middle of Arkansas. I ended up going north around it and getting a hotel in Mountain Grove, MO instead of stopping at a friend’s house in Fayetteville. Ah, well, I got home safely.
Overall, LibertyCon was as awesome as usual, maybe even more so since I’d missed it last year. Never again, unless I can’t help it.
All the business things I’d hoped to cover got covered, and more. I got to hang out with a people I haven’t had much of a chance to before, including Patrick Chiles, Howard Andrew Jones and the Holos. I met a bunch of new folks, too.
So, can we go back next week? I already miss my family.
Over the next two weeks we have books coming out that have some of the best cover art I’ve yet seen. They can’t both be my favorite, so I’m struggling which to pick.
You tell me. Which one do you all like better?
Heart, Wings, and Fire
A Murder of Wolves
Heart, Wings, and Fire starts a new series, the 27 Kingdoms, and starts it off with a bang. The story includes a princess fighting her way to freedom and find her true past.
The cover art for this was done by J Caleb Designs, who’s done a bunch for us in the past.
A Murder of Wolves is the 9th title in the Eldros Legacy and is by Jamie Ibson. CKP readers know Jamie well, especially from the fun We Dare anthologies he edited. This cover was done by Laercio Messias.
You might recognize his style from the cover of The Chimera Coup, by Christopher G. Nuttall, which came out last week. Because I like vaguebooking, not only has this release gone extremely well, there’s more fun stuff in the works in this universe.
Responsibility of the Crown
This week, I finished my edits on Responsibility of the Throne, which is the sequel to Responsibility to the Crown. G. Scott Huggins is one of the most talented writers out there, and you’re going to love this book.
This weekend is going to be a football weekend for me. My sweetie is off to see her mother and some relatives for a quilting retreat and the house is mine, all mine! I’m watching every football game I can.
Time to go make food that’s far too spicy for my sweetie to like it.
What I’m Listening To
I’m on another of my every so often listen to all the Rush. Currently, it’s Subdivisions, which was one of the most important songs I heard growing up.
Quote of the Week
Happy birthday to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. May you all have some windmills worth tilting at.
“Look there, Sancho Panza, my friend, and see those thirty or so wild giants, with whom I intend to do battle and kill each and all of them, so with their stolen booty we can begin to enrich ourselves.”
– Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
As mentioned, The Chimera Coup by Christopher G. Nuttall came out a week ago Tuesday. It’s a mix of post-apocalyptic and swords and sorcery. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BFLV4TH8.
The Four Horsemen Universe returns this week with World Enders by Chris Kennedy & Marisa Wolf. This is book 2 of The Phoenix Initiative, and you can get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BG19B753.
Your pre-release this week is Vendetta Protocolby Kevin Ikenberry. This is actually a re-release of Kevin’s first series and it’s fantastic. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BGN41SY7.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 330.0
Updated Word Count: 158,132
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
First, welcome to all the new readers. I was able this week to finally get all my updates from Pennsic and FenCon uploaded. Thanks to all of you who joined up. If you have any questions about what all I’ve got going on here, just send me an email at rob@robhowell.org.
And wow, what an amazing week it’s been. Let’s start with the first new release, The Chimera Coup by Christopher G. Nuttall.
This came out on Tuesday and is a post-apocalyptic swords and sorcery world with technology added. It’s fast-paced, as you’d expect from Chris, and you’re going to love it. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BFLV4TH8.
I contributed a story in here about a Valkyrie working her job on the mean streets of St. Louis. After 1500 years working for Odin and Freya, she thought she’d seen everything. She was wrong. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BF8NMWXK/.
But wait, there’s more! The Pain Bearer by Kendra Merritt came out on the 13th. This is the 8th of the Eldros Legacy and is probably my favorite novel so far in this series. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BDTWRP9W/.
If you’re keeping track at home, and I am, this stretch of 4 books I contributed to in 14 days is a personal record.
I was also on 3 different podcasts: Cursed Dragon Ship and Inside CKP both had all the Eldros Legacy authors on. Then we did a Dudes in Hyperspace episode. Click on the show names to watch or listen to all these episodes and so much more.
And what did I do to celebrate? I went to FenCon and had a great time with Larry Correia, Chuck Gannon, and Rob Hampson (all Guests of Honor there) along with fellow CKP authors Mark Wandrey, Bill Webb, Kayla Krantz, Sandra Medlock, and Fred Hughes, plus a bunch of other awesome people.
Frankly, it felt like LibertyCon Lite and I need it, having missed LibertyCon itself.
This week I’ve been editing Responsibility of the Throne by G. Scott Huggins. This is the sequel to Responsibility of the Crown and is excellent. Dragons, halfdragons, intrigue, and boarding actions.
I’ve been nibbling at some story ideas too, though I’ve had little time to write them. September has routinely been my worst month as I’ve come out of Pennsic and all the summer cons, and this year is no different. That has meant October is one of my best, though, and I anticipate it will be.
One last thing, it’s time for a cover reveal from one of my favorite covers so far. Heart, Wings, and Fire by Trisha J. Wooldridge comes out on the October 4th and here’s the cover. This starts her amazing 27 Kingdoms Universe, which you’re gonna love.
Princesses, dragons, and fey, oh, my!
Now I need to let you all go so I can get ready to record the first Dudes In Hyperspace Podmail show. There are so many questions, we’ve had to move that to its own regular episode.
What I’m Listening To
I came back recharged in many ways, and popped right back into setting my playlist to all Rush songs.
Right now it’s Distant Early Warning off of Grace Under Pressure. I remember distinctly getting this album at about the time I was most interested in the Cold War and the Soviet military, so even if it hadn’t have been Rush, I’d have loved it.
Quote of the Week
Happy birthday to Joan Jett who, let’s just say, I especially admired when I was a teenage boy.
“I saw him dancing there by the record machine
I knew he must have been about seventeen”
– I Love Rock’n Roll, as performed by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
This week we have The Chimera Coup by Christopher G. Nuttall. This is a post-apocalyptic swords and sorcery world with technology added. It’s fast-paced, as you’d expect from Chris, and you’re going to love it. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BFLV4TH8.
The Valkyries Initiative, a new set of stories set in the Hit World universe edited by Marisa Wolf, came out on Friday. I contributed a story in here about a Valkyrie working her job on the mean streets of St. Louis. After 1500 years working for Odin and Freya, she thought she’d seen everything. She was wrong. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BF8NMWXK/.
Your pre-release has the Four Horsemen returning this week with World Enders by Chris Kennedy & Marisa Wolf. This is book 2 of The Phoenix Initiative, and you can get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BG19B753.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 331.8 (I’ve been traveling and not eating well. Since coming back, I’ve re-focused on eating better. Time to get back on the downward path.)
Updated Word Count: 157,349
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Yes, there are still ten days left in September, but so much has gone on that I really need to do an AAR. Plus, October looks like it’ll be just as busy so I don’t know when I’ll get this done, and as I look back a monthly AAR sounds like a pretty good regular post.
No Game for Knights
This month started off with a huge bang when No Game For Knights came out on the 6th. This is the noir-themed science fiction and fantasy anthology edited by Larry Correia and Kacey Ezell and follows up Noir Fatale, which was also really fun.
My story in here was entitled The Incomparable Treasure, and it continues the adventures of Edward Aethelredson. If you’ve read The Eyes of a Doll, you want to read this as it follows up some of that story there.
The Pain Bearer
Then, on the 13th, New Mythology released The Pain Bearer, by Kendra Merritt. This is my favorite of the Eldros Legacy novels so far, including my own The Door Into Winter.
On the 16th, The ValkyriesInitiative came out. This is an anthology in the Hit World universe edited by Marisa Wolf.
The Hit World is what I call genre gumbo. It has everything: aliens, magic, gods, myths, James Bond-style espionage and assassinations, intrigue, and if it doesn’t have it now, it will someday.
Really fun.
The Valkyries Initiative
My story in here is actually in many ways like my story in No Game for Knights. It’s hardboiled and has more than a bit of noir influence. It’s about a valkyrie who’s been doing the bidding of Freya and Odin for some 1500 years now. She’s currently working a job in St. Louis and, spoiler alert, everything goes sideways.
I like putting characters into difficult positions where no choice is good, and this was one of my favorite bad situations so far.
The Chimera Coup
Today, we released The Chimera Coup, which starts a new series called The Heirs of Cataclysm. This is post-apocalyptic, swords and sorcery and tech and is full of action as one would expect from Christopher G. Nuttall.
If you haven’t read Chris’s stuff before, you should. He’s got a bunch out there, including some other fantasy series, plus a bunch of great mil SF and space opera. We’re honored to have the opportunity to publish this.
Books 2 and 3 in this trilogy will come out soon, and you’re going to love how he wraps this all up.
I’ve also been a part of a number of podcasts. The Eldros Legacy crew did an interview on the 7th on Inside CKP. We did another interview with Cursed Dragon Ships on the 13th. Between those, the Dudes in Hyperspace had their NFL preview show on the 8th.
Click on the show links to check out all three of those.
Whew, that’s 4 books released and 3 podcasts recorded in 2 weeks!
But wait, there’s more! I also just got back from FenCon in the DFW Metroplex.
Larry Correia was the guest of honor, Robert E. Hampson was the science GOH, and Chuck Gannon was the toastmaster. Man, that’s a heck of a list and it drew out a ton of people. I heard, though I haven’t confirmed it, that FenCon drew almost as many people this year as it had done in the previous two pre-pandemic years combined.
Again, I’ve got no confirmation on that, but it sure seemed hopping to me. I was only on two panels, one on Indie Publishing and the CKP Look Ahead, but both were very well attended. Thanks to all who come out.
I also had constant traffic in front of my dealer’s table. I sold more than I expected, which is always nice, but I also got to really talk to a bunch of great people.
The author next to me, Tim Gilliland, was brand new. This was his first con ever, whether to sell or not. He’s in his 60s and finally getting to do what he’s always wanted to do. I predict he’ll do well, given how enthusiastic he was.
This was actually a theme, as I was aware of more people who said this was their first ever convention than I can recall at any other con. Great to see all the new blood.
But truly, it was the old blood that made this con for me. Because of the guests, there was a huge percentage of attendees who I usually see at LibertyCon. Since I missed it this year, I was ecstatic to have sort of a LibertyCon Lite. Yeah, yeah, I do realize it was probably the wise choice to be at my own wedding instead of the con, but I still missed my friends.
I had a great conversations with old and new friends, which is really the best part of cons. Selling books is great, and I love panels, but it’s the people that matter.
Among friends I had good conversations with were Larry, Rob, Chuck, Sarah Hoyt, Cedar Sanderson, Jonna Hayden, C.V. Walter, Dan Hoyt, Karl Gallagher, Sean CW Korsgaard, Mark Wandrey, Lloyd Behm, Joy Wandrey, William Alan Webb, Sandra Medlock, and Toni Weisskopf. I also met Fred Hughes and Kayla Krantz, two newish authors in the stable, plus a bunch of people like Tim Gilliland, David Birdsall, and Greg Gagnon who I expect to get to talk about when they get their own writing careers going.
What a fun crew.
I came back with a number of new ideas and looking forward to going to the next FenCon.
What’s left in September? Well, to be honest, prepping for October, plus we’ve got our Dudes in Hyperspace podmail episode coming out this week.
On October 4th, we have the release of Trisha J. Wooldridge’s Heart, Wings, and Fire. This is another new series set in her 27 Kingdoms world.
This story is really something new for New Mythology Press, something I’ve been wanting to see. It’s full of action, but less in the way of swords and more in the way of standing up to challenges. It’s also set in an Asian-inspired setting. I love all sorts of myths and legends from across the world and I want to see more of it.
Then on October 11th, we have the 9th Eldros Legacy novel, A Murder of Wolves, from Jamie Ibson. This is set on Daemanon and is a neat take on druids.
There’ll be more from the Dudes in Hyperspace, of course, and maybe more still yet to talk about.
September 2022 rocked, and I can’t wait for October.
So much going on this week. First, we have the release of Kendra Merritt’s The Pain Bearer. This is the 8th novel in the Eldros Legacy and it’s set on Noksonon.
It is also, thus far, my favorite of the 8 novels we’ve published so far, so get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BDTWRP9W.
Tuesday, I and the other Founders of the Eldros Legacy were on Cursed Dragon Ship‘s 20 Questions podcast. This was a hoot, though sadly lacking in Dwarven Death Metal.
Also, it’s only a little more than a week since No Game For Knights came out. I’m still basking in this, especially since it’s still ranked 6th on Amazon for SF Anthologies. Thanks to all who’ve bought it so far.
And, of course, there’s FenCon. I’m already in Dallas and raring to go. One reason I got here last night is so I could go to the Baen signing at Half-Price Books. This was a lot of fun and I’m really glad I went.
FenCon starts tomorrow. I’ll mostly be in the vendor’s room selling books. I’m also on a couple of panels, one about indie writing and then the Chris Kennedy Publishing Look Ahead.
Mostly, though, I’m excited because while FenCon isn’t LibertyCon, there’s a solid crew of friends I would have seen at LibertyCon. I’ve missed these folk and I’m excited to see them.
These folk include Cedar Sanderson and Sarah Hoyt, both of whom took time out to help teach me back when I was just getting started. They weren’t the only ones so generous with their time, but taught me some of my most memorable lessons.
Setting up, by the way, is why this is coming out so late in the day. Well, not really setting up. It was the hanging out with some of these friends.
Time well spent.
What I’m Listening To
Right now, I’m in a diner listening to the hum of people chatting.
However, let’s talk about what I listened to on the way down. I love the combination of Larry Correia’s Hard Magic series when narrated by Bronson Pinchot. Yes, that Bronson Pinchot. I’ve said this is my favorite combination of story and narrator for audiobooks.
They now have competition.
I got The Adventures of Cadfael, which is actually several of the novels in an omnibus, so it’d be a good value for one credit on Audible anyway.
However, it’s narrated by Derek Jacobi. Yes, that Derek Jacobi, the one who played Cadfael on the great BBC TV adaptations.
It’s perfect.
Quote of the Week
Happy birthday to Agatha Christie, who’d be a spry 132 today.
She is one of those writers who I’ve drawn on for inspiration. I don’t write her style of mystery, but I couldn’t write my style without her example. Especially with my favorite, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.
“Books are a habit-forming drug.”
– Agatha Christie
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
Hey, look, a placeholder: Current Schedule of New Mythology Press
I’m setting up a website to keep track of all the amazing fantasy coming out with New Mythology Press. It’s starting to really stack up, and I’m honored to get to work with all these amazing authors.
Out today (since I’m getting this email out after midnight Eastern) is The Valkyries Initiative. This is a great anthology edited by Marisa Wolf set in the Hit World universe created by Bill Webb. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BF8NMWXK/.
And guess what, I’m in here too with one of my favorite stories to write, a hardboiled story about a Valkyrie doing her job in the mean streets of St. Louis. Sometimes, you just can’t please your bosses, even after being on the job for 1500 years.
We had my personal favorite so far of the 8 Eldros Legacy novels come out this week. That’s The Pain Bearer by Kendra Merritt. Get that one here: amazon.com/dp/B0BDTWRP9W/.
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
We talked on our recording of Dudes in Hyperspace tonight of a concept Larry and Steve on The Writer’s Dojo call “sharpening the saw.” (Side note: that’s a great podcast for writers wanting to learn the craft). Sharpening the saw is taking a break so that your mind, body, and soul can recharge. I’ve phrased this as a reason, not an excuse.
Anyway, that’s what this week is for me. I learned some time ago that Pennsic, especially the last few days, tear down, and drive home, are hard on me. I have, in the past, thought I could just come home and start right back up on work like normal, but that’s simply not possible.
So this week I’ve done little except recover, recharge, and reorganize. I kept up with the stuff that has to be done on a timely basis, but I’ve written almost nothing since last Thursday.
Embers & Ash
That’s perfectly fine since I’m using that time to get myself ready to go next week. Losing a week to recharge is much more preferable to digging yourself into a depression cycle fed by fatigue, imposter syndrome, and all the other things writers do themselves. I’ve lost about a month that way, and I bitterly regret it because I should have known.
Still, there was the release of Embers & Ash, by Marie Whittaker, the 7th novel in the Eldros Legacy. It’s a great coming of age story of princess fighting to keep her birthright against the Never-Aging Man.
This is especially fun for me as it opens up the last of the 5 continents. Now you can see all the fun differences in each.
Daemanon: The theme centers around demons, abominations, and other creatures.
Drakanon: The theme centers around dragons.
Noksonon: The theme centers around light, dark, and shadow.
Pyranon: The theme centers around fire and volcanoes.
Shijuren: The theme centers around legends and myths.
No Game for Knights
Also, there’s been major progress on the details of The Chimera Coup by Christopher G. Nuttall. It’s a great honor to have him join New Mythology, and you’re going to love his new series, The Heirs of Cataclysm.
I came home to an awesome surprise, my author copies of No Game for Knights, my first Baen Books credit. It’s an anthology edited by Kacey Ezell and Larry Correia of speculative fiction combined with noir, and I contributed a new Edward story.
This anthology comes out on September 16th, and we recorded an episode of the Baen Free Radio Hour on Monday with most of the authors. It’s a heck of a lineup as you can see from the cover, and I’m blown away to get to on Team And More here along with Chris Kennedy and Scott Huggins. Keep an eye on the Baen site for when that episode airs, it was a lot of fun with some amazing people.
Speaking of Scott, I’ve been editing Responsibility of the Throne, the sequel to his Responsibility of the Crown. I loved the first, but this one’s even better.
Also, we recorded not one, but two episodes of the Dudes In Hyperspace. We had the awesome pleasure to have Kevin J. Anderson in for an interview, and that’s already live. I’m literally typing out this week’s email after recording another show, this one with Joe Deleone talking about the upcoming college football season.
Grill/Griddle
Finally, I was able to finally get my birthday present from my mom, a grill/griddle combo. I got the floor model (at a nice discount), so that’s why there’s some rust on the griddle itself. However, that’s an easy fix, far easier than assembling it.
I can now make eggs the way I learned at Jimmie’s Diner way back when without fighting a damn small pan. Breakfast is going to be awesome this weekend.
And with that, I’m going to spend some time with the sweetie. We’ve had some time together, of course, but there’s been lots of catching up to do after being apart for three weeks.
Have a great week.
What I’m Listening To
I put Rush on random again. We had KJA on for the Dudes as I mentioned, and obviously I had great fun listening about his friendship with Neil.
Right now, it’s Peaceable Kingdom from Vapor Trails.
Quote of the Week
In 1227, Genghis Khan died. You all know the quote from Conan which includes “lamentations of their women.” That’s simply one translation of a Genghis Khan saying.
He had a number of other sayings, some of which are actually good words of wisdom. This is one of my favorites.
“An action committed in anger is an action doomed to failure.”
― Genghis Khan
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
It must also be a fantasy story. Any type is welcome, urban, epic, high, western, gothic, whatever, it just have to have magic. Finally, it cannot have been published anywhere else before.
I’m currently working on The Chimera Coup by Christopher G. Nuttall, which comes out in September. This starts a new series, The Heirs of Cataclysm, and it’s full of action and energy.
First, Embers & Ash from Marie Whittaker. This is book 7 in the Eldros Legacy and is a coming of age story where a princes fights for her birthright against the Never-Aging Man. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0B9HZNMZ8.
Next is a much-anticipated Four Horsemen Universe novel, The Lyon’s Pride by Chris Kennedy and Marisa Wolf. Get the real story behind the Lyon and Lyoness here: amazon.com/dp/B0B96JZB1B.
By the way, this novel starts a new 4HU subseries, The PhoenixInitiative. Phoenix is important here, as this novel is designed to be a new starting point in the 4HU. The 4HU is certainly a big hunk to bite into, and this gives a way to get into it from the middle, so to speak.
Also, I’m going to start announcing the upcoming CKP Friday release as a special to readers of this email. Kevin Ikenberry’s Sleeper Protocol release date is actually tomorrow, but you can get it early here: amazon.com/dp/B0B9WGHFV2/.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 328.6 (I’m steadily falling though, as I often gain weight on the drive home)
Updated Word Count: 150,156
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Irina, Ausartxango, Valentin, and Geirr chase him to Svellheim, a land of ice and secrets as old azs the mountains themselves.
The wounded Giant, filled with wrath, is aided by his old and faithful servants, corrupt nobles, and those ruled by greed, hate, and rage. He awaits his pursuers, setting a trap to claim his vengeance.
His pursuers are mighty, but they are merely human. Will their prowess prove enough against the greatest enemy Shijuren has ever known? Or will the Giant bring back an evil thought destroyed two thousand years ago?
It is, of course, the fourth book in the Eldros Legacy. If you haven’t started the series, you can get Khyven the Unkillable by Todd Fahnestock, then read them all!
Outside of the release, this was another foundational week. Getting caught up on submissions, and the overall quality is impressive. Cool new series coming your way in the summer and fall.
Also, this week, the fabulous Marisa Wolf interviewed me about my story in her upcoming Hit World: Valkyries novel. I was actually the supporting actor here because my cat Wynnifred surely stole the show. You can watch my video here: youtube.com/watch?v=lIS9Iaqs9v0.
This is actually the first video on the Chris Kennedy Publishing YouTube channel, so not only do you want to see me (along with my amazing co-star), you want to subscribe to this channel.
This next week I’ll be getting back into the writing groove with Sowing Spring’s Wrath. Time to get some of these ideas on the page.
But for now, I’m basking in another release! Thanks to all who helped make this possible, including my artist Patrick McEvoy, my editor Jonathan A. Miller, Quincy J. Allen for the layout, and a host of others who helped along the way. Thanks everyone!
What I’m Listening To
Take a Chance on Me by Abba.
You’ve caught me. I’m actually a fan of Abba. To be honest, there’s a lot of disco era music I really enjoy. Don’t tell anyone, OK?
Quote of the Week
What the heck, it’s release week, so you get a quote from The Door Into Winter. This is a line toward the end of the book by Geirr Stronghair in the final battle.
“He lifted the flaming sword over his head. ‘You want vengeance, Skadi, come and take it! Else I shall take your winter from you!'”
– The Door Into Winter
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
It must also be a fantasy story. Any type is welcome, urban, epic, high, western, gothic, whatever, it just have to have magic. Finally, it cannot have been published anywhere else before.
I’m currently working on The Door Into Winter, my next novel.
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
This was one of those weeks where I did a bunch of work, but it’s not something that turns into specific product yet. Lots of editing, some small projects, and so on.
However, that all changes this weekend with Planet Comicon. I’ll be in booth 1746 all weekend, and I look forward to chatting with so many people.
These kind of big comicons are exhausting, and I’ll be dragging on Sunday, but they’re also inspiring and give me a great creative push, at least once I can get my head back above water.
I’ve a bunch of friends there too. Todd Fahnestock, James Young, Jennifer Stolzer, and a host of others. That’s part of the fun, and it’s been way too long since I’ve seen a bunch of these.
The Door Into Winter comes out on the 10th of May, and of course, that’s also exciting. Release dates are kind of like Christmas, in that you have to wait to open the presents, or in this case, the response.
I’m going to cut it short for now, because I set up today and we also recorded another Dudes in Hyperspace podcast, and I’m beat.
What I’m Listening To
The clacking of my mechanical keyboard. I’m so tired I didn’t put on my headphones to listen to anything.
Quote of the Week
Yesterday I got to see Primus for the first time. They’ve been on my list, and this was especially the concert for me as they played all of Rush’s A Farewell to Kings. They did really well, and it’s been a while since I had a Rush quote. This one’s from Madrigal, which is not one of Rush’s more well-known songs, but I love these lyrics.
And I’m so lucky to have finally found the “you” mentioned in the last line.
When the dragons grow too mighty
To slay with pen or sword
I grow weary of the battle
And the storm I walk toward
When all around is madness
And there’s no safe port in view
I long to turn my path homeward
To stop awhile with you
– Rush, Madrigal
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
I’m currently working on The Door Into Winter, my next novel.
Giveaways
None this week so you can take a break. As one subscriber said, I’m running out of time with all this awesome free stuff! More to come next week, so better catch up quick.
New stuff in the Fallen World! Among the Embers is a new anthology with Kevin Steverson, Marisa Wolf, Jon R. Osborne, and, of course, the universe founder, Christopher Woods, plus a bunch of other great authors. You can get it here:
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 322.6
Updated Word Count: 136,524
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
This was a discombobulated week. In order to help the sweetie’s parents, I had to drive up to North Dakota and back essentially over the weekend. 13 hours each way plus hotel stays will take a bite out of a week, that’s for sure.
Still, I was productive this week. I sent off a story last week, got it accepted and edited this week. My story is entitled “Chooser of the Slain,” and it’ s going to come out in the Hit World anthology entitled “Valkyries” edited by Marisa Wolf. I had a lot of fun combining a valkyrie with Sam Spade and the crazy fun that is Hit World. That anthology will come out in the summer or early fall, I believe.
I also made progress on some editing. I hope to have the current editing project out the door this week, despite losing essentially 4 days.
And I’ve been kicking butt with The Door Into Winter. All told, I added about 7000 words, though the editing process killed about 2000 of what I had already.
When I write, if I know I’ll need a chapter to do a certain thing up ahead in the narrative, and I don’t really know what to write directly in the narrative at the point where I’m at, I will go ahead and scribble a very rough draft of that scene. Raw material more than anything. I’m at the point where I’m integrating a number of those into the narrative because I’ve gotten that far, which means some of the raw material goes away.
But it’s a great sign when I catch up to those points, because it’s another sign I’m getting close to the end.
What I’m Listening To
Lots of Sabaton this week. It’s been quiet around the house and I’ve wanted high-energy stuff.
It’s hard to pick just one, but one can’t go wrong with Winged Hussars.
Quote of the Week
Today is Chuck Norris’s birthday, and I’m not about to risk a roundhouse kick to the face by not having him provide today’s quote. Besides, I really like this one.
“The only time we fail is when we stop trying.”
– Chuck Norris
We have no current open anthology calls but will have a new one announced at FantaSci.
Keen Edge of Valor is out to the advance readers. Deadly Fortune goes out to the advance readers next week. I’m currently editing something new, and I have to say, it’s awesome.
And this is really cool. Kevin J. Anderson curated a bundle of fantasy novels, and he included the first book in the Eldros Legacy, Khyven the Unkillable by Todd Fahnestock. You can get this bundle here: storybundle.com/fantasy. It’s a great honor for one of our books to be included and I hope you all take advantage.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 322.4
Updated Word Count: 24,104
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
This has been my best writing week in ages. I have a short story due on Monday. I’d had it laid out in my mind, and that layout was so spot on, I started this past Monday with 1000 words and four days later have 12000.
As I said, I knew the basic plot after conversations with Marisa Wolf, the editor, at Superstars. However, I didn’t entirely know the tone. Along the way, I discovered exactly what I needed.
Really pleased with this one, and I’ll give details when I can.
But that wasn’t it. I also cleaned up another bunch of The Door Into Winter, adding 3000 to it too.
That’s nearly 15000 since last Thursday. It’s been a long time since I did that.
Apparently, my time with Dudes in Hyperspace is getting some attention. I have not one, but two guest appearances on podcasts in March. One, alongside Mark Stallings, is on the 2nd with Super Geeked Up Future Shenanigans, hosted by Jeff Burns
Join us at 9pm Central next Wednesday, the 2nd, to see Mark and I in a geeky Whose Line game. Find out more, including where to watch, here: supergeekedup.com/about.html.
We’re shenaniganating!
The other is on the 29th from Kelly Colby and 20 Questions for Writers. Their twitch channel is here: twitch.tv/curseddragonship.
I also got the first 100 pages of a novel by a new writer to New Mythology, entitled A Sundered Throne by Philippa Werner.
Folks, this book is amazing. I usually don’t talk specifics about stuff this early in the process, but man, are you going to love it.
Whew! Like I said, one of the best weeks in a while. Time to go do it again.
What I’m Listening To
John Tams, Over the Hills and Far Away. This is the theme song of the BBC Sharpe series, which if you haven’t watched, is amazing. Let me put it this way, the character of Richard Sharpe is so tough, even Sean Bean doesn’t die playing him.
By the way, if you have watched the Sharpe series, John Tams portrays Rifleman Hagman, and you can hear him sing there quite often. Such a smooth voice.
Quote of the Week
Anyway, here’s a lyric from Over The Hills and Far Away.
Then fall in lads behind the drum
With colours blazing like the sun
Along the road to come what may
Over the hills and far away
– John Tams, Over The Hills and Far Away (Sharpe version)
Updated Word Count: 8,089 (March is going to be huge here)
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
I’m at Superstars this week and learning a ton. I mean, when I can breathe at 6000 feet of course. Yeeesh. And you know, a bit of humidity never killed anyone either.
But I am learning a ton, as I said. I took a great class on pacing from Jonathan Maberry and another from James Artimis Owens about cover art.
I spent a goodly amount of today trying out a technique from Maberry to speed up the pace of my writing in The Door Into Winter. I am much happier with my opening chapters as I think they really pop.
The best part of conventions, of course, is getting to hang out and chat with writers you’ve looked up to, new writers who are looking to get started, and every other type of writer in between. The sessions here have been great, but the random chats are always where a bunch of actual work gets done.
No Game For Knights
The big news this week is the cover reveal for No Game For Knights. I’m beyond ecstatic to have an Edward story in this anthology, which is a collection of noir SF/F PI stories. As you can see, I’m honored to be included in this anthology with some of the biggest names in the business. Many thanks to Kacey Ezell and Larry Correia for selecting me.
Side note, I can’t wait to finish The Door Into Winter so I can write the next Edward novel.
I made some progress on The Door Into Winter this week, when not prepping for travel. Mostly, it’s been edits to get me back into the flow, but a bunch of new ideas are already cropping up.
I also started a new short story based for the Hit World universe by Bill Webb. I may have mentioned it last week, but I’ve been able to really get some cool stuff going this week with conversations with Marisa Wolf, the anthology editor.
What a great week, and now I’m getting back to writing.
What I’m Listening To
I’m listening to Todd Fahnestock chomping on snacks left over from the Eldros Legacy party last night and pounding away at the sequel to Khyven the Unkillable. There are worse things.
Quote of the Week
The perfect quote for Superstars Seminar, from William Allen White, whose birthday is today.
“Dip your pen into your arteries and write.”
– William Allen White
This week is another book by the amazing J.P. Chandler, Revenant. It’s another installment is this Fallen World and you can get it here: amazon.com/dp/B09RPC1F5F.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 317.0
Updated Word Count: 5,066
Eldros Legacy Archives: 813 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Monday I head to Colorado Springs to go to my first Superstars Writing Seminar. Going to be a chance for me to level up, I think. The teachers include such names as Jim Butcher, Kevin J. Anderson, Jonathan Maberry, Jody Lynn Nye, and the one, the only, Chris Kennedy.
For those paying attention to the Eldros Legacy, I’m the only one of the Founders, including Mia Kleve, our primary editor, who hasn’t been part of the program there, and I rectify that this year. We’ve got a talented group.
Speaking of talent, we’re getting close to setting a firm release date for Deadly Fortune, the next Eldros Legacy novel, this one by Aaron Rosenberg. This is set in Shijuren and it’s go pirates, treachery, swordfights, and murder. What more could a reader want?
If you haven’t read Aaron, you’re in for a treat. He’s a prolific writer with a ton of shared universe credits to his name, including Stargate, Star Trek, and Warhammer 40K. Yeah, he’s a rock star and we’re ecstatic to have him.
Tonight we record our next Dudes in Hyperspace podcast. This one will focus on our writing process.
By the way, we have some very exciting news about Dudes in Hyperspace. Details on this next podcast, which should be available in the next few days. Thanks to all who listen to us, because without you we don’t get to do this big reveal.
I’ve gotten back into the groove a bit with The Door Into Winter. Getting sick and needing to get both Deadly Fortune and Keen Edge of Valor out the door took me away from writing, but I had a good day yesterday. Since it had been a bit, I went in an edited chunks to remember exactly what I was doing.
I also started a new short story this week for Marisa Wolf. This one is set in Bill Webb’s Hit World series, which is yet another fun shared world from CKP.
And I think it’s time to get back to writing. I have a character to kill…
What I’m Listening To
This week it’s Signals by… you guessed it, Rush! Yeah, I’m still on my Rush kick.
Quote of the Week
Today is the 63rd anniversary of the day the music died, so here’s a lyric from American Pie.
Oh, and there we were all in one place
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again
So come on, Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
‘Cause fire is the devil’s only friend
– Don McLean, American Pie
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
It was a very productive week here. I finished the first pass through Embers & Ash, the third book of the Eldros Legacy. This one is by Marie Whittaker, who’s a fantastic writer.
I also finished Fleece Navidad, which will be going out to my subscribers on Saturday. I really do appreciate all of you who have subscribed to my mailing list, and I hope you enjoy these Nick Patara, PI stories.
I got about 5k in The Door Into Winter. That’s not really reflective of how easy this story is to write. I’m having trouble finding time to write on it during the holiday season with so much going on, but man I’m chunking out words whenever I do. I really like where it’s going.
I also started the real editing for The Keen Edge of Valor, the next of the Libri Valoris anthologies.
My sweetie and I went on a big hunt this past weekend. The game? The right loveseat and couch for the big TV room downstairs. Wednesday night is date night, and more often then not we enjoy watching BBC mysteries together. We’re such party animals. However, we hadn’t really had a way to sit together. But we found a great set, on clearance, and it comes tomorrow. It is exactly the right thing for us, and we both got in our steps on Saturday and Sunday hunting for it.
Plus, of course, all the Christmas prep. We’re not doing a huge thing, in part because it’s just me, my sweetie, my mom, and my stepdad. Still, I’ll grill steaks, we’re cooking a ham, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and a bunch of other fixins. The sweetie has decided to make not one pie (blackberry, her favorite), not two (bourbon pecan, not quite my favorite, but close), but three pies (she found just the right lemons at CostCo to make her special lemon pie.
So much for my carb count. Ah, well, it’s the season for eating… errr… I mean giving. Anyway, I hope you all have a great holiday season.
What I’m Listening To
Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd. I had a chance to see them with the Marshall Tucker Band in Wichita a little more than two years ago. I’d never seen them live before, and I’m really glad I went, as it was a heckuva show.
Quote of the Week
This is one of my favorite quotes, by one of my favorite people. If you want a fun story about Charles Schulz, by the way, go look up the time that Stephen Pastis, who writes Pearls Before Swine, fanboyed him.
“Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone.”
― Charles M. Schulz
The latest show includes an interview with Emily Bernson of the USO, our memories of 2021, and what we’re looking for in 2022. Side note, Ian definitely hadn’t gotten the memo of my plans for 2022.
This week’s big new release is Ally, the next 4HU novel, by Kacey Ezell and Marisa Wolf. The Depik are back! And they brought friends. Get it here: www.amazon.com/dp/B09NN53QLN.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 331.8
Updated Word Count: 382,460
Eldros Legacy Archives: 804 entries (expect this to jump next week as we get close to Seeds of Dominion)
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
My editor has returned None Call Me Mother so we’re in the final stretch! Hence I can announce that I’ll be releasing it on the 24th of November! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
I’m incredibly excited to be at this point. It has been a heck of a road, but not only did a learn a ton, I made a story that makes me weep at the end, which is always a great sign.
I also made nice progress on the anthology this week. Several stories are done, edited, and ready to go. It’s going to be great.
I’ve been working on my story for it, and it’ll probably be done next week. I really like where it’s going, with a main character I never expected would ever be a main character.
Now to get None Call Me Mother to the advance readers. By the way, if you’re interested in being an advance reader, let me know. You get to read my books ahead of time after all.
Hope you all have as a great a day as I am having.
What I’m Listening To
“Nocturne” by Rush. This is actually the perfect song for the moment.
Quote of the Week
It’s perfect because it’s about dreams and what they mean to us. This particular quote describes writing a novel perfectly.
“Set off on a night-sea journey
Without memory or desire
Drifting through lost latitudes
With no compass and no chart”
– “Nocturne,” by Rush
News and Works in Progress
The Ravening of Wolves (32,068)
KAT (3,743)
CB (8,418)
AOOE (1,030)
Cynewulf (8,642)
Gato (2,312)
Recent Blog Posts and Wiki Additions
A ton of new wiki additions. It’s making huge progress.
New Releases
This week’s spotlight is on the 4HU, with Mark Wandrey and Marisa Wolf giving us Night Song. I will not make any puns about Marisa’s last name. None at all. Despite the fact, this one stars some Zuul. You know, the aliens who are very Wolf-like? No, I’ll not make any real puns about her last name. Not because I’m generous. No, it’s the simple truth that my last name is, in this context, not without risk.
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
And here’s Kevin Ikenberry, who’s not only part of Trouble in the Wind, but he’s also Peacemaker Six in the Four Horsemen Universe. He’s a fantastic writer who was very helpful to me as I was writing The Feeding of Sorrows.
Interview: Kevin Ikenberry
Kevin Ikenberry
What is your quest?
To seek the…wait a minute. I’ve seen this movie! The whole writing thing came around fairly late in life for me. I’d been told I was a good writer in high school and college, but I never really did anything serious (trying to get published) until 2009. I’ve always been drawn to science fiction – as a young Army officer two different books found their way into my hands: The Forever War by Joe Haldeman and Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein. They were two huge influences on me and I eagerly passed them on to cadets when I had the opportunity to teach ROTC about ten years ago. When I started writing, I wanted to write stories about human beings finding their place in the universe and fighting for the right to survive and explore. I’m thrilled that I’ve been able to do that with both The Protocol War series and especially the Peacemaker books in the Four Horsemen Universe. Working with Chris Kennedy, Mark Wandrey, Kacey Ezell, and Marisa Wolf has been an amazing experience and I’m honored to be a core author for the series.
What is your favorite color?
The thing that changed my writing career, in a very literal sense, was learning the key between story structure and character development. There are dozens of story structures out there, some following classic approaches like The Hero’s Journey and others following screenwriting theory (Save The Cat, My Story Can Beat Up Your Story). Those structures are great, but without very clearly defined characters and their goals, a structure can only get you so far. The difference in understanding that relationship and applying some screenwriting theory was that the very first book I ever wrote (now published as Runs In The Family) took me a year and a half to write and it was a mess. The second book I wrote (my debut novel Sleeper Protocol) took me seven weeks. Since then, I’ve been able to keep my first draft timeline to around three months from start to finish. It’s a tremendous process and something I teach often at writing conferences.
Granted, I do a lot of pre-writing (plotting, scheming, etc.) but when it’s time to sit down and write a book, I have a solid idea of where everything is going and that saves time and mental gymnastics in the middle of a manuscript when, as a writer, I think everything sucks. That light at the end of the tunnel isn’t a train and when I get the draft out of my head I can do the next part – fix it. That’s much easier with a detailed plan.
What is the average flying speed of an unladen paint brush?
The biggest challenge I faced as a starting writer was staying positive. Rejections are part and parcel of this business, and there were several times that I wrote stories that were good stories in the eyes of my initial readers, contest judges, and my critique partners only to be rejected. The frustration wasn’t that I’d been rejected, there was frustration in understanding that just because one editor/magazine/market didn’t like the story didn’t mean it wouldn’t sell elsewhere. The first time that happened, I walked around in disbelief for a few hours. Now, a rejection doesn’t bother me. I package the story up, file it away in my virtual footlocker, and move on to the next project. One day, that story will find a home.
From a creative failure standpoint, I very stupidly tried to self-publish Runs In The Family in 2013 when neither the manuscript, nor myself, was ready. I had oodles of problems with creating the correct file types and I didn’t do the due diligence to really make that book what it should have been. It lasted online maybe a week before I took it down, which proved to be the best thing for it. It was picked up by a small press called Strigidae Publishing and when it released in 2016, it went gangbusters for eight months until the small press closed unexpectedly. Fortunately, Chris Kennedy’s Theogony Publishing Imprint picked up the book and re-released it in 2018 where it has continued to do well and even is now available on the Baen Book’s website. What I learned was that this publishing thing takes a team. I have a team of readers now. I have a website team. I have a marketing team. I have a creative team. I have a team that goes out for beers or whiskey. Don’t get me wrong, these are the same folks in many cases. I learned that we creators have to stick together. That’s another huge benefit of working in the Four Horsemen Universe. I have a band of brothers and sisters there that I wouldn’t trade for anything.
What are the powers of your personal Holy Hand Grenade?
Writing in someone else’s universe is pretty challenging. I had the chance to write some licensed short fiction in the G.I.JOE: A Real American Hero universe on Kindle Worlds before it shuttered this year, and that was the first time I stepped into someone else’s playground. I found it challenging and a lot of fun. Little did I know that it prepared me to take the Four Horsemen Universe “bible” and write a short story for the anthology A Fistful of Credits that led to the Peacemaker novels. Granted, I don’t always get the details right and Mark/Chris edit and chastise me endlessly, but I’ve enjoyed getting to play in the 4HU and feel like I’ve made a solid impact on the overall storyline with Jessica’s story. I recently wrote a modern-day thriller with my friend Nick Thacker in his universe, too which was a fantastic learning experience.
Aside from my books, I’m most proud of three short stories in three different anthologies because they were three unique experiences. In Extreme Planets, I wrote a story called “Maelstrom” in two days over my lunch hour because I had an old idea (guy jumping into a tornado in one of those “flying squirrel” suits) merge with the concept of exploring an exoplanet. For the anthology Dragon Writers, I took the theme to an extreme and did a re-telling of Puff The Magic Dragon where Puff was an exospheric EB-77 Dragon bomber with a callsign of Puff Zero Alpha. I didn’t think “Salvation, On Painted Wings” had a chance until the editor called. Finally, for the recent anthology Avatar Dreams, I was sitting with my friend and mentor Kevin J. Anderson when he looked at me and said he needed a story in two weeks. Could I do it? I gave him “That Others May Live” in a week and he loved it. All my crazy ideas eventually come to fruition and some push the boundaries – and I know now that I can do them quickly if I need to – that’s a huge confidence boost.
Lightning Round
Favorite Muppet? Kermit
Crunchy or Creamy? Crunchy. Extra Crunchy if you please.
Favorite Sports Team? College: Mississippi State (Rob’s Note: Moe Cowbell!!!!) / Professional: I still pull for the Cubs and the Braves – my mom would be proud.
Cake or Pie? Pie
Lime or Lemon? Limon? Wasn’t that a thing in the 80s?
Favorite Chip Dip? Guacamole
Wet or Dry? Wet
Favorite Musical Performer We’ve Never Heard Of? Jeremy Kay
Whisky or Whiskey? Whiskey – I’m from Tennessee, you know.
Favorite Superhero? Iron Man
Steak Temperature? Medium Rare
Favorite 1970s TV show? CHiPs, Dukes of Hazzard, Emergency
Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? Fall – I miss fall in East Tennessee particularly.
Favorite Pet? My dog when I was growing up. We named him Shandy. He was an American Spitz that never met a dog he didn’t know he could whoop. I miss that feisty little bastard.
Best Game Ever? Cards Against Humanity. I’ve never made it through a game without my stomach hurting from laughing. I’m fairly certain there’s a handbasket with my name on it.
Coffee or Tea? Coffee, with a touch of creamer. No sugar.
Sci-Fi or Fantasy? Science Fiction
What question(s) would you like to ask me?
What technique (process or practice) have you learned that has influence your own writing the most, and why?
Rob’s Answer: Hmmm. One that you mentioned above is important, and that’s the creation of a team. The analogy I use is a race car driver. At the end of the race, the winner gets photos, prizes, and all that sort of thing. However, he doesn’t get there without good mechanics, pit crew, and all the people involved in a race. My team is good, and getting better all the time.
Another important thing is keeping track of what’s working and what’s not. I often say, “There’s one true way of writing and it’s what gets words on the page.” If you are not productive at some point, change something. Anything. Your music. Your chair. Where you write at. For me, that will increase my productivity and then I have to change it up. Writers will always have slow periods, I think. Just keep plugging away.
One specific technique that I’ve added to my process is to read it out loud from a printed copy. Toni Weisskopf said in a panel once that editing from printed copies is much more effective than on the screen and she had studies to prove it, as well of course as experience at Baen. I also find that if I read something out loud the clumsy writing jumps at me because it will not roll off the tongue. It will feel clunky. Yes, that’s tedious. It took me four 12-plus hour days to do this with Brief Is My Flame, yet it was dramatically better because of it.
Tell me again where we can find your stuff?
My website is www.kevinikenberry.com. We’re headed for a major site overhaul soon, maybe in time for SphinxCon, but there’s information there on how to sign up for my reader’s group – The Reaction Squad – and a bunch of other stuff. There will be goodies (a free short story namely) when the new site goes live.
I’m on Facebook with an author page and my Twitter handle is @TheWriterIke. That’s about it for social media right now.
And where can we find you?
MileHiCon 50 (October, 2018)
SphinxCon (November, 2018)
Superstars Writing Seminar (February, 2019)
PensaCon (February, 2019)
FantaSci (March, 2019)
Phoenix Fan Fusion (May, 2019)
LibertyCon 31 (May, 2019)
DragonCon (August, 2019)
Do you have a creator biography?
Kevin Ikenberry is a life-long space geek and retired Army officer. A former manager of the world-renowned U.S. Space Camp program and a space operations officer, Kevin has a broad background in space and space science education. His 2016 debut science fiction novel Sleeper Protocol was a Finalist for the Colorado Book Award and was heralded as “an emotionally powerful debut” by Publisher’s Weekly. Kevin is the author of the military science novels Runs In The Family, Vendetta Protocol, Peacemaker, Honor The Threat, and Stand Or Fall. He is an Active Member of SFWA, International Thriller Writers, and an alumnus of the Superstars Writing Seminar.
Final question for you: What should I have asked but did not?
You should have asked what’s next for me. Well, at DragonCon we announced that I’m writing a Tales of the Four Horsemen Universe book with my good friend and amazing author Quincy J. Allen. The novel will follow an Oogar Peacemaker named Hr’ent (from the pages of STAND OR FALL) and should be out in mid-late 2019. It’s going to be a hell of a ride!
Thanks to Kevin for taking the time to answer my questions.
If you have any suggestions or comments about this interview format, let me know so I can keep tweaking it.
Also, thanks to you for reading. If you’re interested in any of the other interviews I’ve done, you can find them all here: https://robhowell.org/blog/?cat=326. If you are a creator, especially an independent creator, and you want to be spotlighted in a future interview, email me at rob@robhowell.org.
Finally, if you want to join my mailing list, where I’ll announce every interview, as well as what’s going on in my life, go to www.robhowell.org and fill out the form (Name and Email Address) or drop me an email and I’ll add you.
I’m home. The overall trip was over 4000 miles. There were a bunch of highlights, and you can find my Gulf Wars AARhere.
The cap to it all was FantaSci. This was the first year of the con, but you really wouldn’t have known that if you weren’t told. They did have some advantages, like pulling from a former con (HonorCon) and having it be a major event for two different fan groups (The TRMN and the 4HU Mercenary Guild). However, that doesn’t ensure success, and it was a very successful con.
I’d like to stop for a moment to thank Lyons and his staff for doing a great job. If the name Lyons sounds familiar in the context of the 4HU, it’s because he has been tuckerized as the owner of the Lyon’s Den merc bar, which provided the impetus for three anthologies of short stories. He and his crew had things organized well. As I said, one could not tell it was the first time with this con, as the issues I saw are the issues one usually finds at any con, like issues with the hotel and its bar and restaurant.
Another side note, I rather enjoyed the hotel. The food was pretty good, not terribly expensive, and the bar had an IPA on tap. The rooms were also much cheaper than one normally finds at a con. I hope they stay there.
I was in a lot of panels, which is just the way I like it. On Friday I was in a fun panel sponsored by Ian J. Malone, which discussed sports in SF and fantasy writing, such as baseball in the Honor Harrington universe and the like. Sports has been a part of humanity since we became a species, and it will continue in space and exist in fantasy worlds, just like it did it in the Middle Ages.
My next panel was a discussion of writing in shared worlds. I’m getting a taste of this in the 4HU, and have plans to open up Shijuren for at least some anthologies, so this was a valuable one for me to listen and learn, as well as comment.
Saturday was a huge day for me. I started with a panel discussing Alternate History Change Points. This was actually a major treat for me, as one of my favorite authors, Steve White was on this panel. Also included were Kacey Ezell and Christopher Woods, so it was a lively panel.
Then I went into a stretch of four panels in five hours, starting with a panel on pantsing. Pantsing, if you’ve not heard the term, means writing from the seat of your pants. The other end of the spectrum is plotting. It was a huge thing for me to discover that pantsing was an accepted and normal form of writing, because that’s what came naturally to me. I tend to plot more than I used to, but generally only in vague terms. It still makes more sense to see what the characters do rather than forcing them into a certain path.
Immediately was the Chris Kennedy Publishing panel where Chris talked about all the things that are coming. I got to talk about the Feeding of Sorrows and see a bunch of things coming down the pike. Kennedy is amazing. He has done incredible stuff and made a bunch of opportunities for other writers.
After an hour break, I was in a panel on genre blending, which of course I talk about a goodly amount given the Edward novels.
Finally, I was on a whimsical panel about the messiest ways to kill undead. This panel was designed to go off the rails, and off the rails we went. Lots of fun.
Saturday night was the highlight of the event. It was perhaps the best single experience I’ve had in the con scene as a writer. The 4HU Mercenary Guild held a Dining Out. If you’re in the military, you know what this means. It is a ritual dinner, with a number of specific toasts and ceremonies. I was generally an observer, asking questions of the vets at my table and learning. I was also smart enough not to create a reason that I needed to drink the grog. A certain Minion, on the other hand, fought the grog and the grog won. Much hilarity has and will ensue on that.
After the Dining Out was a number of fun things. Saturday happened to be Kacey Ezell’s birthday, and also she and Marisa Wolf had a bestseller on Amazon to celebrate. Then there was floating to some parties, including going down to karaoke, which was a lot of fun. I even sang some Dropkick Murphys. Then we ended the night chatting in my room until late, even getting security to tell us to be quiet.
Sunday was much more laid back. I didn’t have any panels, though I did go to closing ceremonies. This was the first con where I was “featured” in any way, and I made sure I was at the ceremonies. Lyons paid me an incredible honor with that, and I can’t thank him enough.
Mostly what I did on Sunday, though, was get out my laptop and offer to update wiki entries. Many of the attendees to the con are redshirts in the 4HU, and I added fun things to a number of entries.
Then I was in a quandary. I had plans to eat with my aunt and uncle around 5pm. However, I *really* wanted to get home. I canceled and left around 2 to try and get past Nashville on a Sunday night. I made it to Clarksville, despite losing an hour to construction in Knoxville. It’s a good thing I did, because I was pushing through a bit of flu yesterday and I might have lost a day coming home. Given that in two days I set up at Planet Comicon, I really couldn’t spare the time. Side note, I feel much better this morning, even to the point of keeping food down.
FantaSci was an amazing con. Truly one of the best I have ever been to. LibertyCon level, even. I ticked off all the professional goals I had, enjoyed myself, and met a bunch of new friends.
It was also the launch of the 4HU Mercenary Guild fan group. You can find it here: www.mercenaryguild.org. I know I’m only a bit player in this universe, but it’s still cool to be a part of it. If you like the 4HU books, sign on up. I’ll be starting up a Foresters unit when the time comes.
I may not get to go next year because of timing, though. I think it’s on the second weekend of Gulf Wars next years, so I may have to make a choice.
However, I’ll go back every year I can. It’s on the list.
Benjamin is another author I’m looking forward to chatting with at conventions. He’s quite thoughtful, as you’ll see. Also, he said he really liked “Where Enemies Sit,” my story in For a Few Credits More, so clearly he’s a smart man.
Interview: Benjamin Smith
Benjamin Smith
What is your quest?
My favorite stories are the ones that feature cool characters in an awesome setting, fighting against the odds with their fists and their wits. And you can find that in just about any genre, but especially in the realms of fantasy and science fiction. I started off reading Arthurian legends when I was a kid, and playing games like Final Fantasy II (IV in the correct numbering system) and Betrayal at Krondor for the PC. When I learned that Betrayal at Krondor was based off a book series by Raymond Feist, that’s what got me into reading as a full-time hobby. Looking back on it, the world of Midkemia is still my go-to example of what world-building looks like, and it’s what I try to emulate with my own stuff.
So, yeah. Cool characters in an awesome setting. With the Four Horsemen Universe, we’ve already got an awesome setting, so that’s half the work right there. It’s my hope that the characters and situation I came up with in “Return to Sender” are cool enough for the readers to enjoy! And if they do enjoy reading about Jackie and her Justin Timers, then let Chris know! I’ve got some good stuff already in the works.
Writers that I really enjoy include Raymond Feist, Brandon Sanderson, Larry Correia, Robert Jordan, David Eddings, Dan Abnett, and — more recently — Mark Wandrey, Kacey Ezell, Marisa Wolf, Kevin Ikenberry, and the rest of the 4HU crew.
What is your favorite color?
I’d like to think I strike a good balance between action, dialogue, and description in my scenes, even scenes that are sometimes little more than the characters sitting around a table formulating a plan. By mixing a little bit of action and description into a conversation, it keeps readers engaged and makes the scene seem more alive. If all you’ve got is dialogue, it’ll basically just be talking heads in a white space. But, if you put too much description in, you’ll either wind up with paragraphs describing how a chair looks or loads of background information that’ll grind everything to a halt. A lot of writers call this the dreaded exposition dump. I try to describe just enough for the reader to get a sense of where and who, then through action and dialogue fill in the what and why.
What is the average flying speed of an unladen paint brush?
My biggest failure early on was not pushing the emotional envelope far enough. I’m pretty laid back and reserved in real life, so tapping into extreme emotions (Whether sadness or rage or whatever) can be a little bit of a challenge. I thought it would alienate readers, and yet that’s what readers are wanting. It wasn’t until I read David Farland’s “Million Dollar Outlines” (Gimmicky title, but whatever) that I realized just how important emotional connection was in stories. I’d never really thought about it, but it was what I was most interested in as a reader.
I’ve gotten better about it in my more recent stories, but I think a huge reason why a lot of my earlier stuff went through the submission/rejection mill was because of this weakness.
My advice for anyone dealing with this is: take a risk! If a character needs to fly off the handle or fall to pieces, write it to the max, then dial it back in editing if you need to. When it’s raw, it’s real. And when it’s raw, it can be refined.
What are the powers of your personal Holy Hand Grenade?
I’ve always heard that I’ve got a knack for dialogue in my stories, so I try to play to that strength. Rather than focusing on a lone wolf character, stories will usually feature a team of at least three individuals, most likely more. Witty banter between different characters makes scenes a joy to write, and hopefully to read as well!
That said, my rough drafts tend to be dialogue heavy, so any editing is usually spent trimming out unnecessary dialogue and creating a better balance between description and action.
I spend a lot of my pre-writing time coming up with backgrounds and personalities for a story’s main characters. In “Return to Sender” I’ve got fairly extensive backstories figured out for the lead character Jackie Warren, her right-hand man Marcus, and the team sniper Sayra. It’s my hope to flesh the others out as the story progresses, and to add in some new characters. In addition to a dropship pilot, I think Jackie’s team needs a dedicated driver for when they’re on the ground, not to mention a finance guy and logistics expert.
Another thing I try to nail down early on in story planning/writing is the flow of the plot. Larry Brooks writes about the 7-point plot format in his book “Story Engineering,” where he describes 7 key points in a narrative that have to occur to achieve a dynamite plot. He’s not the first to come up with this idea (K.M. Wieland talks about it, as does James Scott Bell, etc), but he was the first one I read where it really made sense to me. And once I started planning out my stories a bit better, more of them started getting accepted.
Lightning Round
Favorite Muppet? Do Rigel and Pilot from Farscape count as muppets?
Crunchy or Creamy? Crunchy chips. Creamy soups.
Favorite Sports Team? The Midway Monsters from Mutant League.
Cake or Pie? Cake serves as a vehicle by which buttercream icing gets into my body.
Lime or Lemon? Lemon on fried catfish. Lime in pie.
Wet or Dry? Both. Dry rubs for home-smoked ribs and pulled pork, then slathered in barbecue sauce once at the table.
Favorite Musical Performer We’ve Never Heard Of? Does Hatsune Miku count? She’s a little on the artificial side, but what singer isn’t these days?
Whisky or Whiskey? Bourbon-infused chocolate pecan pie. Oh, and barbecue sauce.
Favorite Superhero? All-Might from My Hero Academia.
Steak Temperature? Gray enough to know it’s dead, pink enough to be edible.
Favorite 1970s TV show? Dukes of Hazzard
Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? Fall.
Favorite Pet? (provide pictures if you want) Long live the Calico Countess!
Best Game Ever? For console RPGs, gotta be Chrono Trigger for the SNES with Final Fantasy VI and Shadowrun as close second and third. For PC RPGs, my favorite is still Betrayal at Krondor by Sierra, followed by Baldur’s Gate and its many clones (Icewind Dale, Planescape, etc).
Coffee or Tea? Sweet iced tea, and nothing else.
Sci-Fi or Fantasy? If I can only have one, then fantasy. Anything from sword and sorcery like Conan the Barbarian or Record of Lodoss War, to epic fantasy like Wheel of Time or Mistborn, with some urban fantasy like Dresden Files or Monster Hunter International. I like pretty much all of it. With sci-fi, I prefer the action-oriented and character-driven rather than the overly technical, and fantasy elements never hurt. Warhammer 40000, Shadowrun, Star Wars (Before the prequel and sequels). Basically, I like to know how a hyperdrive or ion cannon works, but not if entire chapters are spent dissecting one, unless it’s integral to the plot.
What question(s) would you like to ask me?
1. What’s your pre-writing and writing process for short stories and novels? I’m always refining mine, so any tips would be helpful!
Rob’s Answer: If I have a setting or a theme, I wallow in it for a week or two if I can. I started doing this with different medieval poetic types. I have written a bunch of SCA scroll texts, which I usually write in a poetic style to reflect the recipient’s persona. So, I might get one that would want a Shakespearean sonnet followed by something in Norse drottkvaett and then maybe something Mongol.
Whether or not I was familiar with the genre, wallowing in it helps make the writing process flow. Every genre or culture has word choices and rhythms that are sort of expected. Not having them jars me as a reader, so I believe it’s important to other readers. It would be like going to an Italian place and finding they’d never heard of basil.
What I’m looking for in any short story is a bit of a twist. The ending has to be at least a little unexpected. The writer who did the best in my opinion was Randall Garrett. Once I have the twist, and the feel, it’s merely a process of putting words into that particular hole.
Novels are trickier. I usually start by creating a few interesting characters and a situation they have to deal with. I’m not good at outlining, but part of character creation is my expected end result for those characters. I don’t lock myself into those endings, because sometimes the story demands otherwise. I had a character in I Am a Wondrous Thing that I designed to be a longer term character but, uh, well, uh, I could never figure out a way not to kill them.
2. Mind giving us a tag line for your story in the “Luck is Not a Factor” anthology coming out next month? I really enjoyed “Where Enemies Sit” in “For a Few Credits More.”
Rob’s Answer: Thank you very much. I’m actually awful at taglines. I tend to explain too much. So, just for a change, I’ll try to explain too little.
“A Sword for Striking”: What story will your choices tell?
Tell me again where we can find your stuff?
My blog is at BenjaminTylerSmith.com, and there you can find links to the short stories I’ve had published over the years, as well as updates for the couple of books I’m working on. I try to post a few times a week (The operative word is “try”), mostly about books, audiobooks, games, and anime. Feel free to post comments! I’m always happy to discuss whatever I write about, or to take the blog in different directions.
I’m also on Facebook as Benjamin Tyler Smith, and on Twitter as @BenTylerSmith. And I’m following Chris Kennedy’s guide to indie publishing by getting my Amazon author page up, so you can find me there, as well.
A few of my most recent publications can be found in the following places:
“Return to Sender” in Tales from the Lyon’s Den in the 4HU. Sci-fi action. “When an emergency weapons delivery goes sideways, a young and tenacious arms dealer stops at nothing to save her team, her client, and her bottom line.”
“A Salt on the Rise” in Issue 30 of On the Premises Magazine. Dark fantasy, in my own universe featuring an undead city called Necrolopolis and all the shenanigans that go on within its walls. “An overworked necromancer struggles to prevent a war between opposing factions of undead.”
“Bag of Tricks” in the Sha’Daa: Toys horror/dark fantasy anthology. This one is also dark fantasy, about a magician who wields magical paints and holy .357 magnum rounds against demons and mindless college kids threatening to destroy his hometown.
And while it is still seeking publication, my short story “Ash-Eater” (Set in the same fantasy world as “A Salt on the Rise”) earned itself a finalist spot in the 2018 Baen Fantasy Adventure Award contest. So, if you enjoy “A Salt on the Rise”, please look for “Ash-Eater” to appear somewhere at some point in the timeline! Wish I could say something more definitive, but it is getting shopped around.
And where can we find you?
Barring any sudden life changes, you’ll always find me at LibertyCon in Chattanooga, TN. It’s a bit of a drive, but well worth the journey! It’s where I first found out about the 4HU, so that alone makes it worth the journey!
Do you have a creator biography?
By day Ben earns his bread keeping track of the dead with digital cemetery maps, and by night he corrals the undead into whatever story he’s working on next. While the focus of his writing is typically in the realm of fantasy, he has a taste for science fiction, and the more action-packed the better. Married to a saint of a woman, ruled by a benevolent calico countess, he can be found at BenjaminTylerSmith.com.
Final question for you: What should I have asked but did not?
The lightning round should include the greatest of all internet questions: “.45 or 9mm?” I can only assume you didn’t include it because it’s largely a rhetorical question, as .45 is the one true answer. (Rob’s Note: I’ll add it in the next version)
And the obligatory “What are you working on now?” question is always a good one. To answer that, I’m working on an unnamed Jackie Warren novel. In it, the fate of an entire planet will rest in the hands of our young, yet resourceful arms dealer. This has not yet been accepted, and I haven’t even completed the proposal for it yet. But, it’s in the works, and if the Lord is willing, the book will get finished and hopefully there will be more to come!
I am also working on a novel set in the aforementioned Necrolopolis universe. It will be titled “A Soulful Job” and the tag line is: “Souls are vanishing from the city of the dead, and it’s up to an overworked necromancer to find the culprit before he gets the blame!”
Thanks to Benjamin for taking the time to answer my questions.
If you have any suggestions or comments about this interview format, let me know so I can keep tweaking it.
Also, thanks to you for reading. If you’re interested in any of the other interviews I’ve done, you can find them all here: https://robhowell.org/blog/?cat=326. If you are a creator, especially an independent creator, and you want to be spotlighted in a future interview, email me at rob@robhowell.org.
Finally, if you want to join my mailing list, where I’ll announce every interview, as well as what’s going on in my life, go to www.robhowell.org and fill out the form (Name and Email Address) or drop me an email and I’ll add you.
This was not my best week, at least in terms of writing. There were a variety of reasons for that, and they’re all good, though. I got to help my mom and a friend of hers out. I got to do some major work around the house. I get to see the proto-incipient step-daughter this weekend. That all adds up.
So I’m not going to chat much more as we’ve got plans.
Current Playlist Song
Sober by Tool. What an amazing song. It’s one of those that made me love a band immediately.
Quote of the Week
Today is the 243rd birthday of the US Navy. This week’s quote is actually my favorite John Paul Jones quote, though it’s not the one everyone thinks of first.
“I wish to have no Connection with any Ship that does not Sail fast for I intend to go in harm’s way.”
– Captain John Paul Jones, 16 November 1778
This week’s spotlight is on more of the Four Horsemen authors. Check the Recent Blog post section for the complete list.
Today’s Weight: 384.4
Updated Word Count: 214,609
Shijuren Wiki: 874 entries
Four Horsemen Wiki: 435 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Marisa is another person I met at LibertyCon. She is chock full of awesome, as you will see here.
Interview: Marisa Wolf
Marisa Wolf
What is your quest?
To write stories that people can’t put down, to imagine what the future could look like (both in a “yaaay!” and a “yeee-ikes” sort of way), and to write characters people think about after the books let them go…
What is your favorite color?
Characters that feel real – thinking about how they might react in all kinds of situations that never make it to the story so I have a better idea of their life choices. Thinking through the emotional response I’d like to provoke. Sometimes that means reading out loud to make sure what was snarky-funny in my head lands outside of my actual head. Sometimes it’s writing a fight scene to Immigrant Song so I get the mood right. Sometimes it’s brainstorming gut-punch moments with authors who are really, really, really good at such things (coughKaceycough) (Rob’s Note: Kacey Ezell’s interview is here: https://robhowell.org/blog/?p=1470).
What is the average flying speed of an unladen paint brush?
Whewwww the voice in my head is an ASSHOLE. Can we curse here? (Rob’s Note: Don’t hurt my saintly ears)
I feel like you curse when you go hurtling off the bridge, and also that voice is the equivalent of being thrown from the bridge in the middle of your grail-quest. Right, the voice – the one that tells me I’m not good enough, that people are going to notice I don’t belong with all these amazing writers, that I should probably not bother to write because no one’s going to like it…UGH that voice makes setting and keeping a writing routine hard. (Rob’s Note: That voice deserves to get cursed at)
What are the powers of your personal Holy Hand Grenade?
Character development – where they end up is not where they started, even if they deny that growth to themselves (I’m a big fan of characters in denial about something, which maybe says something about me? Unclear). This is for sure a skill I developed through fanfiction, where I had characters I wrote for yearsssss.
Lightning Round
Favorite Muppet? Cookie Monster. The right answer.
Crunchy or Creamy? Creamy. Except when I want crunchy, and then crunchy.
Favorite Sports Team? Bad News Bears. Hufflepuff’s Quidditch team. (for real I was raised on Boston sports and so believe firmly in the underdog and then my teams did all the winning and it’s an identity crisis, I tell you #hardproblemstohave)
Cake or Pie? Peanut butter pie, then everything else = yes, please, excellent runner up
Lime or Lemon? Someone already made the lime in the coconut joke, didn’t they?
Favorite Chip Dip? Cheese.
Wet or Dry? #thatswhatshesaid
Favorite Musical Performer We’ve Never Heard Of? #imnotahipster #basicmusicaltaste #idontcareitssogood
Whisky or Whiskey? YES, please and thank you.
Favorite Superhero? Kitty Pryde #shehadaDRAGON
Steak Temperature? Medium rare, I will accept only rare-r temperatures as valid answers.
Favorite 1970s TV show? Not gonna lie, all the ones I thought of were 80s. Early 80s, but…yeah.
Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? …all you have to do is call! (dammit now that song is in my head) (Rob’s Note: My job’s done here)
Favorite Pet? I can’t pick a favorite, or I will be haunted by all the good boys and girls who went before. All dogs are the best. All cats are also the best. Even the jerks.
Best Game Ever? Either Uno or Apples to Apples with my family (each side has claim to one) – there is always loud arguing, snorting, attempts at cheating that are immediately seen through, and so much laughter I’m honestly sore the next day.
Coffee or Tea? Coffee. Unless I want tea, and then tea. But for real: coffee.
Sci-Fi or Fantasy? YES. Also you have a typo, ‘or’ should be spelled a-n-d.
What question(s) would you like to ask me?
What was the first book/story that GOT you? The one that made you catch your breath and need to read and re-read and maybe also re-re-re-re-read it?
Rob’s Answer: Well, I would probably have to say the Hardy Boy books. For a while, they were my babysitter when my parents both had classes to teach at the same time. They would buy me one that I didn’t have, which usually took me about 2-3 hours to read. That meant I got a lot of them one semester when I was five.
I’d also like to toss out The Ghost of Dibble Hollow. I read that book like a zillion times in 4th grade. I still have a copy and I might just read it again this weekend.
Marisa Wolf is the author of “Under the Skin” in The Good, the Bad, and the Merc, and the co-author of Assassin, with the fabulous Kacey Ezell. With more to come in the 4HU, she’s also co-authored a short story in another universe with Kacey (“Underneath” in Sha’daa: Toys, from Copper Dog Publishing), and has apparently decided to have five or more projects going at the same time all the time.
She was born in New England, and raised on a healthy diet of Boston sports teams, Star Wars, Star Trek, and the longest books in the library (usually fantasy). Over the years she majored in English (in part to get credits for reading which…partly worked), taught middle school science and history, was headbutted by an alligator, built a career in education, earned a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and finally decided to finish all those half-started stories in her head.
She currently lives in Texas with three absurd rescue dogs, more books than seems sensible, and one deeply understanding husband.
Final question for you: What should I have asked but did not?
You should have asked what nerd property do you desperately want to see come to some sort of media life in a very high quality way? That way I could have answered Dragonriders of Pern. Now! Please and thank you.
You should have also asked if there will be a sequel to Assassin so I could mention that Hunter is coming soon.
Thanks to Marisa for taking the time to answer my questions.
If you have any suggestions or comments about this interview format, let me know so I can keep tweaking it.
Also, thanks to you for reading. If you’re interested in any of the other interviews I’ve done, you can find them all here: https://robhowell.org/blog/?cat=326. If you are a creator, especially an independent creator, and you want to be spotlighted in a future interview, email me at rob@robhowell.org.
Finally, if you want to join my mailing list, where I’ll announce every interview, as well as what’s going on in my life, go to www.robhowell.org and fill out the form (Name and Email Address) or drop me an email and I’ll add you.
Greetings everyone, with a special shout out to all of those I added this week. Thanks for joining me here.
It was a busy week, highlighted by Planet Comicon. I had a great time, and it was my best year yet. You can find my full AAR at: https://robhowell.org/blog/?p=950.
One result from Planet Comicon is discovery of some more regional cons. You’ll see that I’ve added O Comic Con, an Omaha convention to my list. I’ve got several others I’m looking at in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Salina, and Hutchinson. Going to be a busy summer.
Sometimes the exhaustion of a busy con like Planet Comicon can help me think through things. I don’t have a solid number of words on Brief Is My Flame this week because I’m in the midst of switching something around. Basically, I had characters coming at something in one direction and that was fighting me. By flipping the direction, everything falls into place. The good news is that all the work I’ve done will go directly into None Call Me Mother.
I didn’t get a chance to do much writing on anything else. I did some work on the Wikis, but essentially this last week was about Planet Comicon and nothing else.
However, after I recover from a successful convention, I tend to get enthusiastic about where I am and what I’m doing. Sometimes writing is just a slog, but you gotta push through that. Not this week.
In fact, it’s time for me to get back to work.
Current Playlist Song: “Peaceable Kingdom” by Rush. Now Rush has effectively called it quits, but we thought that might be the case in the late 90s after a couple of tragedies made it so that Neil Peart didn’t want to play anymore. However, he came back and Rush gave us three brilliant albums: Vapor Trails, Snakes & Arrows, and Clockwork Angels. This one is from Vapor Trails.
Quote of the Week
Today is the birthday of Anthony Daniels. You might know him better as C-3PO. Here’s a quote from the man himself.
“I have a greater appreciation for kitchen appliances, having played one.” – Anthony Daniels
Today’s spotlight is on a just released novel in the Four Horsemen Universe, Assassin by Kacey Ezell and Marisa Wolf. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079YTRLFN/
Today’s Weight: 384.0
Updated Word Count: 14441
Shijuren Wiki: 738 entries
Four Horsemen Wiki: 159 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Have a great week, everyone.
Rob Howell
Author of the Shijuren-series of novels
