M.G. Darwish's Blog, page 2

The Weeping Titan – Part 1

Thousands of years ago, Titans roamed freely in the world. They weren't feared as the history books would have you believe, instead, some were respected, and their council was most valuable for the King. Save for one Titan. Rodairon. Self-proclaimed King of the Titans at that time...

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The Weeping Titan

Thousands of years ago, Titans roamed freely in the world. They weren't feared as the history books would have you believe, instead, some were respected, and their council was most valuable for the King. Save for one Titan. Rodairon. Self-proclaimed King of the Titans at that time...

The post The Weeping Titan appeared first on M.G. Darwish.

Titanlord: A Thousand Ashes is Published!

It’s been about 2 years since Titanlord: of Death & Sacrifice, and it’s a bitter sweet moment for me to write this but the story continues! It picks up right where the previous book left, so if you were wondering what happened for the last 2 years, well wonder no more. 

Titanlord: A Thousand Ashes is here. Paperbacks are available worldwide and are coming to more stores soon (comment down if you’d like to see a hardcover version as well). In Bahrain, paperbacks are available in Neo Books & Coffee, in Riffa. 

The ebook will remain exclusive to Amazon for the forseabile future, but I’d love to know if you’d like to see it on more stores (let me know which ones too). 

I’ll leave you with the official colored map of the Titanlord world, blurb and links. Remember: Quell the Titans. 

P.S: Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter here (I’ll be sharing a few stories exclusively there that relate to the map and how it came to be). 

Map of the Titanlord Series


















THE TITANLORD IS HERE

Still your hearts, set out once again to a world that ended in death & sacrifice, and let it by the Sword rise through a Thousand Ashes.

All wailed and shouted against a tyranny unlike any they have ever seen. None, dared to step foot into that hall save for a few. The Titans fought the new children, and lost.

Now the Titanlord… has come.

Nigh, is the time of sacrifice.

Nigh, is the time of the strength and wisdom.

Nigh… is the time of the Sword.

No one thought the Gods would descend. Plucked from his reality, Griffyn never thought that the Gods would be so terrified of him even when a Titan stood before them. The Red Hand entrusted him with the only sword that allows him to fight back: the Masamune.

Now that the Gods have sworn to eliminate humanity, the Empire has fallen, ravished and turned to dust. The Magmars are no more, and he alone holds the key to salvation.

He has endured many losses, but will he succumb and accept his fate? Or will he rise from beneath a thousand ashes?

To win, he must quell the Titans within him and tame them. But every time he uses their power, he risks losing himself.

Book 2 of the Titanlord Series. A direct sequel to Titanlord: of Death & Sacrifice

Click here

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Official Titanlord Series Map

The official titanlord series map is here

The official map of the Titanlord Series is finally ready. Such an exciting thing to unveil today! Go ahead, and look at how roads connect, and why certain characters avoid The Barren Lands and choose to go through Robrin’s Pass. Try to guess where the next book will be taking place and much more. Be sure to sign up to my newsletter as well, as I’ll be discussing a lot of lore in this map (certain events that may or may have not happened).

Click the image to enlarge. Can you guess why Hollow Land is well… Hollow? The Twin Islands are right next to it, but it seems that no life can grow there. What about Snodia? Or Dragonhead? I would love to know what you guys think about this, and the places that are yet to be mentioned in the books!

VEDA. POLLUS. MAGNUS.

The Magmars rose in rebellion against the rule of Titans, casting them into forgotten legends and myths. Then the lies began, and just as they rebelled, another gave them a taste of their own medicine when he waged war upon them. He was called the Red Hand.

The Red Hand knew something others did not, and so was branded a traitor and an outcast, that did not stop anyone in Palleria to speak of his deeds and whisper his name in secret. “Within his grasp laid a deadly sword that is said to rival the power of Titans,” or so it was spoken.

Yet power alone was not enough. The Red Hand lost, and the rebellion was quelled. Now the tyranny of the Magmars eclipses that of the Titans themselves.

VEDA. POLLUS. COLOSSAL.

No one thought the Gods would descend. Plucked from his reality, Griffyn never thought that the Gods would be so terrified of him even when a Titan stood before them. The Red Hand entrusted him with the only sword that allows him to fight back: the Masamune.

Now that the Gods have sworn to eliminate humanity, the Empire has fallen, ravished and turned to dust. The Magmars are no more, and he alone holds the key to salvation.

He has endured man losses, but will he succumb and accept his fate? Or will he rise from beneath a thousand ashes?

To win, he must quell the Titans within him and tame them. But every time he uses their power, he risks losing himself.

Buy on Amazon
















Pre-order on Amazon



















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Bedouin Banter – Quelling Some Tales & Talking About Titans ~ With Bahraini Author M.G Darwish

We talk about Titans, tomatoes, a penguin uprising and books. I had a blast doing this, even though it technically was my first time on a Podcast. I’ll leave you with the timestamps to give you an idea about the content (huge giveaway including T-Shirts, Mugs, and more E-Books):

00:00:58 Titanlord “A Thousand Ashes” – Preorder Trailer.

00:03:06 Darwish telling us what Titanlord is all about.

00:06:52 Who is M.G Darwish really? And what is he about?

00:09:50 Why write a traditionally western genre? Where are the brown people?

00:11:00 What got Darwish into writing books of this genre in the first place?

00:13:00 The struggles of finding a readership in Bahrain and abroad.

00:20:11 Would writing in Arabic be more appealing or would it be too limiting?

00:25:00 Are local writers restricting themselves? Why don’t we tap into our pre islamic mythology?

00:27:00 The Umm Humar (Mother Of Donkeys) origin story.

00:29:06 How does Darwish deal with negative reviews?

00:31:25 Things Darwish doesn’t trust…

00:33:57 Writing communities & self publishing; The good, the bad, & some of the scammy.

00:46:48 Traditional publishing houses & the realities behind it.

00:50:40 Why are some people so proud that they don’t read? Is it the writers fault or theirs?

00:54:52 How come it was easier to find a readership overseas then locally?

00:58:00 Why authors go through writer’s block, and how some authors resist the solutions.

01:01:37 The JK Rowling drama, global pc culture perspectives, & some out of context cunts.

01:15:30 The importance of using the power of the internet to reach a global audience.

01:19:00 Darwish and his journey of dealing with the naysayers and the comparers

01:20:15 The story of Dragontooth and meeting Darwish for the first time.

01:30:33 Putting Darwish in the hot seat!

01:33:00 The Final Question!

01:36:00 Outro

Click here

The post Bedouin Banter – Quelling Some Tales & Talking About Titans ~ With Bahraini Author M.G Darwish appeared first on M.G. Darwish.

Titanlord 2 – Cover Reveal

The Titans are calling!

Do you hear them? Do you hear the Titans humming?

They all whisper in secret… They could not face the wrath of the  new children, so in turn they turn to those foul beings… discarded by humanity into the pits of abyss.

But something’s changed… The Titans are signaling their Lord to come… 

Mighty mighty, be his sword in hand…

STAY TUNED, and QUELL THE TITANS.

The post Titanlord 2 – Cover Reveal appeared first on M.G. Darwish.

Interview: The Long Night Audiobook Narrator – Tremaine Davies

An interview with Tremaine Davies, Narrator of The Long Night Blood Will Be Served. Going through the many auditions, something about Tre really just stood out. It was the way that he brought the character Alfred to life that truly fascinated me. He has been incredible throughout 8 months of production:

Q1. What was it about The Long Night that made you think “I want to narrate that.”

A1. It’s always nice to work on something you really enjoy. The thing about The Long night that appealed to me the most was the main character, Alfred. From the first time I saw the cover art of the book I wanted to know what drove and motivated him.

Q2. How was the experience of giving voice to the main character, Alfred? And what did you think/make of him?

A2. Before The Long Night, I’d never done an entire book in character before, so that was a bit of a challenge at first. I’m glad I was able to voice Alfred, he has a very commanding presence in the vampire world but also has some very human elements about him that I hope I was able to bring out in the narration.

Q3. Were there any parts that gave you a pause before recording the lines?

A3. There are a few graphic parts in the book which are easier digested if you see them from the viewpoint of a vampire.

Q4. You actually voice a lot of characters, how did they compare to Alfred? Was it easy to shift into those characters as well?

A4. Some characters are easier to transition into than others.I think the most difficult ones to go between were the ones that were the most similar to Alfred.

Q5. Who was your favorite character to voice? And who did you have the most fun with?

A5. I’d have to say Alfred was my favorite to voice, though I also really enjoyed Fenrir.

Q6. Could you describe the experience of narrating The Long Night? Were there any specific habits or rituals that you did prior to recording -in general

A6. As with most audiobooks, recording The Long Night was kind of like running a marathon, it’s a lot about pacing yourself but it was also a lot of fun. There’s a few things I do before recording. The first thing I do is make a nice warm cup of herbal tea. Aside from that, I always keep water, carmex, and mouth spray in my studio. The most important thing is to stay hydrated.

The Long Night: Blood Will Be Served Audiobook

Vampires were cursed from the moment they were brought into this world. 

Everyone hid in the shadows as they accepted whatever fate the Elders deemed worthy for them. But then I became Fortier, proclaimed the strongest vampire amongst all undead. 

I started by quelling a long standing feud between the two prominent vampire houses. No one thought it could be done, but I did it. Now my goal is to find them.

I didn’t end the long civil war between vampires just to accept being slaves of the Elders. If they intend to keep their throne; they must first spill my blood.

Find your favorite retailer

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The Long Night: Blood Will Be Served – Audiobook

The Long Night: Blood Will Be Served - Audiobook






















"The Long Night: Blood Will Be Served has it all like action, fighting, vampires, werewolves, blood and gore with twists and turns around every corner."





Nancy
The Avid Reader
























They say only the strong collapse because the weak are always on the ground.

Vampires were cursed from the moment they were brought into this world. 

Everyone hid in the shadows as they accepted whatever fate the Elders deemed worthy for them. But then I became Fortier, proclaimed the strongest vampire amongst all undead. 

I started by quelling a long standing feud between the two prominent vampire houses. No one thought it could be done, but I did it. Now my goal is to find them.

I didn’t end the long civil war between vampires just to accept being slaves of the Elders. If they intend to keep their throne; they must first spill my blood.

I can’t believe that it’s time for me to announce the official release of The Long Night: Blood Will Be Served, Audiobook. This is my first time publishing an audiobook and needless to say, it was both exciting an a thrilling experience to work with a talented narrator (Tremaine Davies – an interview with him is coming up soon).

For all your listening preferences, you can now grab the audiobook on all major retailers (links below). If you haven’t already checked out the novel, click here.

I’ll be doing a few giveaways as well. So be sure to sign up to my newsletter!

Kobo


















Apple


















Scribd

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Switching From MailChimp To MailerLite

Why I Switched From MailChimp To MailerLite

There are many mailing list providers out there, but MailChimp is among the best ones to start out with. Throughout this post, I’ll be discussing how I started to build my newsletter, and the thought process behind me switching to MailerLite from MailChimp.

First of all, when it comes to starting out: MailChimp is superior to any other tool out there (provided you are at the beginning of building your newsletter and can’t monetize it or justify the expense yet). MailChimp provides all the needed tools to start out. It’s free until 2000 subscribers (with a limit of 12,000 emails per month – and as of writing this, 2000 emails per day).

Getting to the point of 2000 subscribers is another story. However, once you reach closer towards 1500-1800 you begin to realize the true limitations of MailChimp’s free offer. While MailChimp has great tools that help you understand your list, their interests, ages and even when is the best time to send them emails, they are all hidden behind a paywall.

It’s understandable that when you reach the 2000 mark, MailChimp expects (and so should you) that you are somehow generating some form of income. But the reality is far from fiction, as that depends not only on the industry but also on the niche that you’re in.

Why Switch to MailerLight?

That decision did not come lightly. There were many things for me to consider prior to switching from MailChimp to MailerLight. I signed up for a free trial first and to my delight, MailerLite unlocks all premium features for you for up to a week. This is designed to ease you into it and give you a fair taste of all of their features.

Taking into consideration all the features, the potential to grow without restrictions eventually made me switch to MailerLite (without reaching the threshold). The process to my surprise, was very smooth. There were a few differences that I needed to get my head around but regardless, the process was very easy and smooth.

Importing From MailChimp

MailerLite allows you to import your subscribers directly from MailChimp at the click of a button. The only main difference I saw is that MailerLite calls Audiences, Groups. So the first thing you will want to do is create a main group that has everyone, followed by another group for your onboarding procedure/segmentations.

There was really no hassle or any trouble at all at this stage. All I had to do, was then back up my data on MailChimp and delete my account with them (pausing your account is also a paid feature -go figure).

Onboarding Process

Almost immediately, I began working on my onboarding process and MailerLite offers exceptional conditioning and onboarding utilities that help ease subscribers and introduce yourself to them without overwhelming them. To be fair, MailChimp provides powerful tools as well, but -you guessed it- they’re all paid features.

One of the features that separate the two, is the conditioning feature that MailerLite offers. You can sequence a set of emails if any condition is met (if the email was opened, but not clicked…etc). This definitely allows you to understand your subscribers easily and automates a lot of the work that you would normally do manually.

Delivery Based on Timezone

This is one of the features that can be considered exceptional in MailerLite, unfortunately, my first experience with it wasn’t all that great. This might’ve been because it was the first time I used it right after importing my list (therefore, MailerLite didn’t have any data to compare) but I set it up to be sent at 10 AM. The idea is, that it will be sent at 10 AM to everyone no matter where in the world. On paper, this sounds extremely powerful, however, when it came to practice, it just assigned everybody to my own time zone because it didn’t detect theirs.

Comparingly, MailChimp has a feature that sends the newsletter to every receipt when they are most likely to see it. There are many reports on when is the best time to send an email (and honestly, I’m still experimenting with this) but generally it all depends on the type of email it is.

Conclusion

MailerLite is far from perfect, but still remains one of the most effective mailing list providers out there. The value they offer versus the price just makes sense and would be more than suitable to any freelancers, independent authors, or small businesses.

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BOOK REVIEW: The Delinquent Crown

Book Review: The Delinquent Crown





















Rating





 4/5

This was definitely not my usual read. But I’ve been wanting to delve into the Sci-fi genre for a while now, and when the opportunity came to get an ARC for this, I jumped on it -and boy was I glad I did. This story, although not as “dark” as my usual reads -don’t judge me- definitely offered a great world, with a solid plot and enough intrigue to keep me reading throughout. This review is also part of a broaded blog tour that I participated in. Check it out here.

 

It took me out from a long reading-slumber, and for that I am grateful. This should’ve been an easy 5 star, however, there was about too many characters for me to connect with in the beginning. During the first act, the story began a bit slow and introduced the everyday life of Nick and Miri, but once the action started, it didn’t stop.

 

There were info-dumps, but they were just enrichening the story. It’s very obvious that the world of Olexia had so much to offer than what I read in the books, and the author provides “Age of the Gods” as a bonus to anyone who reads the book.

 

Nick and Miri get to the world of Olexia through a portal and venture off on a journey to retrieve a magical artifact that everyone in Olexia (including the Council) were after. Garrant and Zekta, were brought forth in an ominous fashion and I enjoyed their characters.

The way I see it, this read was amazing and I enjoyed the characters. The main cast of the story were fleshed out well, and the story flawed seamlessly -I never felt taken out of the experience. There were only a few issues I faced in the beginning as I mentioned before -the number of characters introduced just… confused the better portions.

 

Overall, I did enjoy the book and I did finish it. This is a perfect read for exactly who it was meant to be: young adults.

Grab this on Amazon

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