Kayl Karadjian's Blog, page 7

Update 9/10

It’s here guys! Woohoo! I now have physical copies of my first book, Broken Blades Don’t Sing, published by Hawkeye Publishers! Not only is it published as a physical copy, but the cover was redone and looks much better now. It’s beautiful, feels good to hold, and best of all IT’S A PHYSICAL BOOK LIKE OMG!!!!!!111

I’m so excited to have it out. It’s one more step to achieving the dream. You can find it on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Broken-Blades-...

Or you can ask me to send you a copy directly, in which case I would be able to sign it!

On the other front, I’m still working on getting an agent for Dragonsoul, but it’s proving to be a difficult task. Expected, of course, but here’s to hoping for some good things in the future.

‘Till next time!

Update 8/1

Back with another update, y’all! Just finished Dragonsoul, which means its off to beta readers and feedback time. Once I get it to as pristine as possible it’s off to the agents to (hopefully) get recognized and published.

I’m super duper close to getting a print version of Broken Blades Don’t Sing going, and should have it ready in the next couple of weeks. If all goes well I plan to storm every book store I can and ask them to put it on their shelves!

‘Till next time.

Update 7/5

It’s been quite a while since my last update, being busy with life and all. But I have updates! Halcyon’s Dream: Tales of Ashkar Book Two is finally up for pre-order on amazon! You can find it here https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HYPXSQG#navbar

It feels really good to have the next chapter in the story almost out. After BBDS came out, I wanted so badly to rush out Halcyon’s Dream as well given that I was on a roll. I’m glad I didn’t though. Taking my time allowed me to really polish Halcyon’s Dream, and I’m very happy with the result.

Speaking of on a roll, I am about 75% finished with my ‘little’ project Dragonsoul. I’m actually thinking of changing the title to something more suitable for the work, and once I’m finished with it I’ll be hammering out all the kinks and sending it to all the agents I can to hopefully have it published.

On top of that I will resume my work on Silent Requiem: Tales of Ashkar Book Three, which I will release next year sometime in the fall.

Last year was the first step, a small yet proud one in writing and publishing my first book. This year I hope to push even further. They say a series often piques more interest than a standalone, and if I were to get Dragonsoul published the old fashioned way then I can only imagine the kinds of exposure I’d get.

‘Till the next time.

Warcraft: Chronicle

Not quite an update, but I’m thinking of offering my thoughts on books that I complete regularly. The latest book that I’ve read is Warcraft: Chronicle by Blizzard, and is more of an encyclopedia than an actual novel.

I’ve been a fan of Warcraft for a good part of my life, and throughout the years I’ve seen the lore stumble because of terrible choices driven by World of Warcraft, the popular game. Judging from Warcraft: Chronicle, it appears that Blizzard is at least trying to rectify plot holes and some weird lore choices.

The entire book chronicles the beginning of the universe up until the events of the first warcraft game, and consolidates everything in a nice package while filling in all the loose ends and tying up the plot holes.

Without spoiling it, there are major changes that Blizzard has made that completely change how the story began and how it’s going to end. Sargeras, a character that is the driving force behind a lot of the games, is shown for the first time. His motivations, which before have never been shared, are also elaborated on.

Some people may come to hate Blizzard’s decision, but at least we know what’s behind his choices.

Another great thing about the book is that there is a host of great artwork sprinkled throughout, depicting the Titans, the Elemental Lords, and ancient Azeroth. It’s really well done, and a nice touch between the text.

I give it a 5/5 because it’s well written, well drawn, and accomplished what it set out to do. There are two other chronicles in the series, I think, and I look forward to reading Blizzard’s revision and consolidation of more current events.

Update 3/13

Back again with another update. So, finished another round of editing on the second novel in the Tales of Ashkar series last week. It is the *final* draft, and I’ve sent it to my beta readers to get their feedback. As of now I am still on target for the planned October release.

Until I hear back from my readers there’s only one thing to do: look forward. Earlier this year I announced a title tentatively named Dragonsoul that is not a part of Tales of Ashkar. I will be focusing in on that, but also continuing Tales of Ashkar by working on the third installment.

My current plans for the standalone novel is to have it done and fully edited by the end of this year. Unlike Tales of Ashkar, however, I will push for Dragonsoul to be published traditionally rather than going the self-publishing route. In that way I can seek multiple avenues as an author rather than being stuck with one.

Speaking of standalone novels, I’m one-upping myself by starting on another novel not connected with Tales of Ashkar. If Dragonsoul is super secret, then this one is super duper secret. No title, no sneak peak. It’ll be all hush-hush until it’s out, and I also plan to publish it traditionally. As to when? Well, I am hoping to have it finished sometime next year.

As for the third Tales of Ashkar novel, I also plan to have it finished by the end of this year but I imagine the editing process to spill over into 2017 for an October release. As the pattern suggests, the plan is to release a Tales of Ashkar novel every year, and I will continue to self-publish them.

So, on the slate there are now three novels. It certainly seems like a daunting task, but I’ve found myself thirsting to branch out in my ideas and even in genres. I have also found that putting away a draft for a bit and picking it up again helps immensely in the editing process, and I think that cycling between works will actually be a benefit.

And if they don’t get published right away? Not a big deal. I can continue to work on Tales of Ashkar instead of putting all of my eggs into one basket until they find the right agent/publisher. Either way, stories will be continued to be made and I’ll be as content as a cucumber.

Update 1/10

It’s been a few months since the release of Broken Blades Don’t Sing, and I’m very happy with it. Overall, its reception has been pretty solid. Being a published author after so long is a great feeling, but there’s a lot more to come.

Now, with the holidays over and the new year here it’s time to look ahead, buckle down, and get back to work. So what exactly is ahead? Right now I am in the editing process of the second novel in the Tales of Ashkar series, and despite finishing the first draft early last summer, I realized that there is still much work to be done on it.

So much so, in fact, that I felt that the rough draft needed more than just quick edits and polishing up that I had initially anticipated. So far, it is nearly 15% longer than its first version, and that added writing comes mostly in the form of character development that I felt some characters direly needed. In other words, there are no drastic changes to the plot/story.

Anyway, the tentative release for the second novel is set for October of 2016, and while that may seem far away for a book now in its editing stage, I’ve realized that the editing stage takes far longer than actually writing a novel. A good edit/polish is what separates a mediocre book with a classic hit. What’s a few extra months, then?

I will also be concurrently writing the third novel in the series, and even on top of that, I am announcing a secret project.

What?! A secret project? It is tentatively titled Dragonsoul, and is entirely independent of Tales of Ashkar. What is it exactly? Well, keep those imaginations free and those eyes open. There’s plenty of magic to come.

 

Update 10/5 RELEASE!

It’s here! Check out Broken Blades Don’t Sing, the first installment of the Tales of Ashkar series, on Smashwords FOR FREE!

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/582673

You can also find it an Amazon for only .99 cents

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01668ZTLY?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

Again a big thanks to everyone that supported me. If you happen to get through all of it, I would appreciate it if you dropped a review at either smashwords or amazon, or both! Next on the list is editing the second book, and I am shooting for a december release assuming everything goes well.

Update 9/28

Alright, folks. This is it. After grinding away and polishing book 1 to the point where I can read it with even a modicum of satisfaction, it is finally ready to be released. Broken Blades Don’t Sing will be released next Monday, October 5th! It will be released on both Smashwords and Amazon, and I will make a post Monday on where to find it exactly.

I’m super excited to finally have it out, but that doesn’t mean I’ll have time to rest. Immediately I will be shifting my attention to editing the second installment while continuing to write on the third. I’m on track to release the second some time in december, and I will also have completed the first draft of the third by then.

Update 8/13

Super late update this week. Not much in terms of new updates, but my gf is leaving for Canada next week for reasons neither of us are particularly happy with, which means I haven’t been as diligent with this stuff. I also was comparing my cover to others and how they are formatted for smaller screens, and I realized that it is very difficult to read the last word of the title, which means I have to get that fixed first anyway.

As far as updates on the writing goes, I’ve realized that rushing it won’t do me much good. And I say ‘rushing’ when I’ve spent nearly a year just writing the second/editing the first. Even still I don’t feel the first is ready (I’m super, super close), so with a tinge of regret I am withdrawing any definite dates to continue working on it. I get just one chance (Moreso in regards to the first entry of this series), which means there is no screwing it up.

Though it is unfortunate that I am pushing everything back yet again, at least I can state with absolute certainty that what I put out will be as good as can be.

Update 8/2

I wanted so dearly to have the book already released yesterday, but I decided to push it back just 1-2 weeks more to really hammer out the small stuff. By now, I’ve probably have gone through ten or so drafts. Each time, it gets faster and faster to get through, and I feel the book gets better and better. Not too long to go!