Tim Rangnow's Blog, page 2

Indomitable out now!

Book 2 of the Guild Series is now available.

Indomitable Pre-Order

Book 2 of the Guild Series is now available for pre-order. Release date is May 18, 2020.

Indomitable editing in process

My editor got her pass of the second book back to me a few weeks ago. The day job is still keeping me crazy busy, doing tech support every single day for people now working from home and often using VPNs for the first time ever. But I’ve managed to carve out some time now and then, and completely finished going through her suggestions between work yesterday.

The good news is that I only need one more pass over the manuscript before I feel like it’s ready to publish. I’m going to start that this week, and at my current pace it should be done by end of month. Woo! I’m still well on track for my self-created publishing date. Early May.

At that point, the only thing I’m waiting on is cover art. My artist is dealing with the same slowdown in work due to Covid-19, but I did get a rough sketch last week that I really liked. Hoping he’ll have a more finished copy to review this week or next. Once editing and the cover are complete, it’s ready for publishing so everyone can read the continuing adventures of Erik Frost and the Vagabond crew.

COVID-19

I hope everyone is practicing social distancing and doing what they can to stay safe. So far I seem to have avoided the sickness, despite being in an “essential job” that has increased my contact with people. If you do feel like you might have it, get yourself tested! I have a few friends waiting on results after almost two weeks, but hopefully they’ll figure out how to get that done faster.

On the subject of my writing, I’ve had to put things on hold for a while. My day job has me working long hours, and by the end of each day I’m so drained I can barely even stay awake, much less create or edit. I still hope to have book two out sometime in May, barring major catastrophe. Let’s hope people are still needing something to read while they’re stuck at home by then.

A new series?

If you’re reading Vagabond, or have already finished it, and can’t wait for the second book, don’t worry.  Book two is being edited now, and book three is in the process of being written.  On track for publishing in May and July, respectively.

But…when I write I can’t just stick to one series.  When I finished writing Vagabond, I knew I needed a break from the story before delving into book two.  That’s why I tend to write something in a different genre between books.  First I wrote a fantasy novel, with dreams of it being a fun trilogy that harkened back to books I read in the 80’s and early 90’s when I was growing up.  However, reading it after writing book two of the Guild Series left me feeling disappointed with it.  So it went into a “look at it later, maybe next year” folder and I started something new.

That book became an urban fantasy.  A world full of supernatural creatures living among us, disguising themselves as human.  Jack Dahlish is one man able to see them for who they are, and helps to track down those that go rogue.  When a woman comes to him asking that he find her missing grandaughter, he uncovers a trail of missing kids.  A reporter who first noticed the connections works with him to track down the culprit, with the help of a police officer that has worked with Jack since a devastating personal loss ten years ago.

I don’t have a title yet, but it’s been written and I’ll start my first edit of it once I finish book three of the sci-fi series.  I’m hoping it generates enough interest to justify more books, because I have ideas for at least six of them.  Let me know what you think.

Indomitable status

The second book of my Guild series has been sent off to my editor.  She takes about 3-4 weeks to look over the manuscript and give me a really detailed report on possible issues and suggested changes.  She does awesome work, and I can’t wait to hear her thoughts on it.  Once that report is back and I finish whichever story I’m working on at that moment, I’ll start working on my 3rd draft.  I usually do a 4th a few weeks later, because it’s amazing how many grammar and incorrect word mistakes you can pass over while you’re reading through it looking for them.

If you’ve bought Vagabond, I hope you’re enjoying the read.  If so, please leave a review on Amazon!  Even if you’re not liking the story, let me know there.  It’s the best way for me to find any weaknesses in my writing, or know what people are enjoying the most so I can do more of that.  It’s also important for other readers, so they know if they want to check out the book when they come across it.

This is going to be a trilogy, but I’m hoping the interest will be there for a second trilogy that I’ve already worked out in the same universe.  More details on that this summer.

Vagabond out of pre-order!

Vagabond is now out of pre-order and you can grab a copy of the ebook.  Or read it free if you have Kindle Unlimited.  I hope those of you who buy the book enjoy it, and look forward to the next in the series.

Speaking of which, I wrapped up my first edit of the second book on Saturday.  It has been sent off to my editor, and I hope to have it back in 3 or 4 weeks so I can look at all of her suggestions and do a deep dive on the manuscript.  If everything goes well, Indomitable will be released in early May.

Vagabond available for pre-order

My first book, Vagabond, is now available for pre-order.  The ebook is releasing on March 2, and will be available to read for free if you are a Kindle Unlimited subscriber.  It is already available in paperback, in case you prefer the feel of real pages.

This science fiction story is set in 2075.  Humanity has small colonies on our moon, Mars, and half a dozen asteroids.  Earth is split between the political Coalition and corporate Syndicate, enduring a cold war between the two superpowers after a brief war two decades earlier.  The asteroid colonies are independent, governing themselves and profiting from the ores and minerals pulled from the rocks they inhabit.

In the midst of it all is the Transport Guild, a collection of freighters that ship goods between the far-flung pockets of civilization.  Erik Frost, captain of the freighter Vagabond, gets offered a job with few details and a large payout.  He’s left with large debts after his father’s death four years earlier, so he pushes aside any reluctance and takes the job which will take his ship and crew into a dangerous situation they never could have expected.

Professional Edit Complete

I got my professional editorial report back on the first book early this week. I have to admit that I was surprised that she had some good things to say, and far fewer critiques than I had expected. It was an awesome experience for me. She pointed out a few areas that could be improved, and some things that needed to be explained better. Sometimes it is hard for an author to remember that readers won’t know everything that is in their head when they’re writing the story down.

I’ve been working hard to clean up the manuscript, doing a final edit. Once that is complete then I’m only waiting on the cover art before I can set a publishing date. The art is coming along, with the artist sending me a few possible rough sketches this week as well as giving some font options to choose from. My hope is that the cover will scream sci-fi, and entice readers to click on the image and find out more.

Hopefully, by next weekend I’ll be able to set a hard date. Right now, I’m hoping for mid-April so that I can get some advertising running before it releases.

Cover Work

With the first novel in the process of receiving the professional touch with an editor, I figured it was time to start getting a cover started. I don’t know if any of you have read Becky Chambers’ excellent series, starting with The Long Way To A Small, Angry Planet but the cover art for that book and it’s sequels drew me in immediately. I didn’t even have to read a description to know that I wanted to read that book. So, when I found the artist listed on Reedsy I just knew I had to get him to create a cover for me.

I was very happy that the artist was willing to do the work and had availability to work on it soon. His name is Christopher Doll, and you should check out some of his fantastic art: http://www.christopher-doll.com/