Michael Shotter's Blog, page 2
April 2, 2023
"500" and its Place in The Nod/Wells Timelines
As many of you already know, my new novel "500" will be released very soon, with the paperback and hardcover editions available on Tuesday, May 2nd, and the Kindle edition available on Friday, July 7th!
What you may not be aware of is where this new book sits along The Nod/Wells Timelines as my original post about them was (intentionally) a bit vague regarding that.
So, without further ado, I present an updated iteration of the timelines with a few little tweaks and enhancements.
As you can see, there is only one book left to "complete" the timelines as I originally conceived them, which will be announced and released in early 2024. That being said, I'll have more to share about some future works related to the timelines as part of that release.
For now, my focus is very much on "500" and the pivotal contribution it will be making to the overarching narrative, even as it retains the standalone nature customary of my previous works.
Until next time, happy reading!
500 (via Amazon)
January 1, 2023
The Post Mortem Report
As an author, it can often be quite challenging, not only to make potential readers aware of one's works but to pique their interest in said works to the point where they feel compelled to acquire and read them. As you might suspect, nothing beats a ringing endorsement from a trusted third party, such as the following video, which recently featured one of my books, "The Nemesis Effect," in addition to several others you might find interesting.
Of course, such things, wonderful as they are, can rarely be predicted. Consequently, an avenue that established authors often pursue is the creation of a podcast. Those efforts have a lot of potential benefits, allowing authors to ideally connect with new and existing readers alike on a regular basis, providing them with a better sense of who the authors are as people while possibly becoming more interested in engaging with their works as a result.
It's for this reason that I recently started a podcast with fellow speculative-fiction author Ronald McGillvray called "The Post Mortem Report." In each episode, we talk about various social media posts and topics that we both find compelling, often featuring books, films, music, TV shows, and video games.
With five episodes under our belts and a sixth about to be released a few days after this post, I feel fairly confident suggesting that we've managed to create something pretty special with this show, which I believe has the potential to appeal to a wide range of people, regardless of their level of familiarity with our accomplishments as authors.
Thus, I present the following YouTube playlist, which features all the current episodes of the show from newest to oldest. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy watching them as much as we enjoyed creating them!
The Post Mortem Report - Official Site - YouTube
Of course, such things, wonderful as they are, can rarely be predicted. Consequently, an avenue that established authors often pursue is the creation of a podcast. Those efforts have a lot of potential benefits, allowing authors to ideally connect with new and existing readers alike on a regular basis, providing them with a better sense of who the authors are as people while possibly becoming more interested in engaging with their works as a result.
It's for this reason that I recently started a podcast with fellow speculative-fiction author Ronald McGillvray called "The Post Mortem Report." In each episode, we talk about various social media posts and topics that we both find compelling, often featuring books, films, music, TV shows, and video games.
With five episodes under our belts and a sixth about to be released a few days after this post, I feel fairly confident suggesting that we've managed to create something pretty special with this show, which I believe has the potential to appeal to a wide range of people, regardless of their level of familiarity with our accomplishments as authors.
Thus, I present the following YouTube playlist, which features all the current episodes of the show from newest to oldest. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy watching them as much as we enjoyed creating them!
The Post Mortem Report - Official Site - YouTube
February 7, 2022
The Nod/Wells Timelines
I've talked quite a bit over the years about the ways that my books directly and indirectly relate to one another despite being self-contained stories specifically designed to be consumed in whatever order a reader might prefer but I've never really visualized that in a tangible way... until now.
Thus, I present the first publicly-available version of "The Nod/Wells Timelines," which not only illustrates the ways that my first five novel-length books correlate, but additionally offers some insights into how the next two releases I plan to announce in 2023 and 2024 will fit into that structure.
As my published works become more plentiful and widely read, I'm increasingly asked questions like "What order should I read these in?" and the fact is that there's no "correct" answer. In my mind, it would be just as valid to read everything in the order of its publication, or following the above timelines, or even reversing or randomizing them. Granted, that would undoubtedly provide a very different experience as readers would encounter characters, events, settings and other narrative elements in significantly-different ways that would almost-certainly alter their perceptions of them but I see those potential variations as part of the fun inherent in this project's unique construction.
Having said that, I will list the books below in their order of publication for anyone interested in contrasting that with the above timelines:
"The Big Men" (2017)"309" (2018)"Shards" (2020) - includes "Academic Displacement" (originally published in 2019) "The Nemesis Effect" (2021)"Big Man Down" (2022)TBA in 2023TBA in 2024 - will include "Mr. Perkins Goes to Hell" (originally published in 2021)
Hopefully, everyone finds this information helpful, or at least interesting, but in any case, the thing I really want to emphasize is that (as far as I'm concerned) there is no right or wrong way to read these books in terms of sequence and readers should always feel free to come to their own conclusions about that. Of course, this being the internet, at least some folks will undoubtedly feel compelled to share their own thoughts about the subject, and various other aspects of the things I've created, but again, I feel that's part of the fun.
Until next time, happy reading, everybody!
Michael Shotter's Amazon Author Page
Thus, I present the first publicly-available version of "The Nod/Wells Timelines," which not only illustrates the ways that my first five novel-length books correlate, but additionally offers some insights into how the next two releases I plan to announce in 2023 and 2024 will fit into that structure.
As my published works become more plentiful and widely read, I'm increasingly asked questions like "What order should I read these in?" and the fact is that there's no "correct" answer. In my mind, it would be just as valid to read everything in the order of its publication, or following the above timelines, or even reversing or randomizing them. Granted, that would undoubtedly provide a very different experience as readers would encounter characters, events, settings and other narrative elements in significantly-different ways that would almost-certainly alter their perceptions of them but I see those potential variations as part of the fun inherent in this project's unique construction.
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Having said that, I will list the books below in their order of publication for anyone interested in contrasting that with the above timelines:
"The Big Men" (2017)"309" (2018)"Shards" (2020) - includes "Academic Displacement" (originally published in 2019) "The Nemesis Effect" (2021)"Big Man Down" (2022)TBA in 2023TBA in 2024 - will include "Mr. Perkins Goes to Hell" (originally published in 2021)
Hopefully, everyone finds this information helpful, or at least interesting, but in any case, the thing I really want to emphasize is that (as far as I'm concerned) there is no right or wrong way to read these books in terms of sequence and readers should always feel free to come to their own conclusions about that. Of course, this being the internet, at least some folks will undoubtedly feel compelled to share their own thoughts about the subject, and various other aspects of the things I've created, but again, I feel that's part of the fun.
Until next time, happy reading, everybody!
Michael Shotter's Amazon Author Page
January 21, 2022
Big Man Down
Today, I'm very pleased to share a few details about my latest novel, "Big Man Down," which will be available to order as a 6x9" paperback or hardcover on March 1st in anticipation of its Kindle edition release on March 18th, 2022.
"Big Man Down" is my fourth novel-length book since "The Big Men" back in 2017 and as with all my other published works, it ties directly into the overarching literary universe I've been creating while still standing alone as its own, unique and self-contained story.
That said, fans of "The Big Men" and my short-fiction anthology, "Shards," will no doubt be particularly interested in the events that unfold throughout "Big Man Down" and there are certainly a few elements in it that readers of "309" and "The Nemesis Effect" may find compelling as well.
Additional information can be found on the book's Amazon page and in this recent interview I did with "Feed My Reads." Please also note that the cover reveal for "Big Man Down" will be taking place at "Linda's Book Bag" on January 31st, 2022!
The past five years have been very exciting and fulfilling for me as I've worked to establish myself as an author. There's been no shortage of challenges along the way but I've always been, and continue to be, encouraged by the ever-growing support you as readers have shown for my works. As always, I remain extremely thankful and grateful for every bit of that support.
Until next time, happy reading, everyone!
"Big Man Down" is my fourth novel-length book since "The Big Men" back in 2017 and as with all my other published works, it ties directly into the overarching literary universe I've been creating while still standing alone as its own, unique and self-contained story.
That said, fans of "The Big Men" and my short-fiction anthology, "Shards," will no doubt be particularly interested in the events that unfold throughout "Big Man Down" and there are certainly a few elements in it that readers of "309" and "The Nemesis Effect" may find compelling as well.
Additional information can be found on the book's Amazon page and in this recent interview I did with "Feed My Reads." Please also note that the cover reveal for "Big Man Down" will be taking place at "Linda's Book Bag" on January 31st, 2022!
The past five years have been very exciting and fulfilling for me as I've worked to establish myself as an author. There's been no shortage of challenges along the way but I've always been, and continue to be, encouraged by the ever-growing support you as readers have shown for my works. As always, I remain extremely thankful and grateful for every bit of that support.
Until next time, happy reading, everyone!
