Michael J. Sullivan's Blog, page 48

You have questions? I'd like to know what they are.

My publisher, Del Rey, and I are creating bonus material in preparation for the Age of Myth release. One of the things we didn't have a chance to put together for the book itself is a Q & A section (which has been quite popular in my Orbit releases). Apparently people like learning about my writing experience, publishing, and also enjoy asking questions about my past or future works. We have a number of questions already, but thought it would be nice to open it up to readers and writers who might have their own inquires. So, here's your chance!

Just go to this link before March 31st and ask away. If you submit a question, then you'll get a copy of the finished ebook and you can even have your name added to the acknowledgements (if you wish). I'm game for anything so don't be afraid. After all, I'm a big believer in there is no such thing as a stupid question. Hopefully I won't give any stupid answers ;-)

Legends of the First Recording

Meant to post this earlier, but it's been a busy week...

We met in a tiny Italian restaurant in the East Village. Robin and I had walked down  from our hotel near Central Park. We maneuvered by the trendy dog walkers, through the mobs of midtown, past the student- and art-laden NYU campus, down into the Village to this quiet unassuming little place at the end of a nondescript block. There, in a dimly lit booth was Tim Reynolds waving us over. 

For those of you who don’t know Tim, you should. He is the voice of Riyria having narrated all the Riyria books and nominated for several Audie Awards—one of those for his work with Royce and Hadrian. The success of the audio versions of my novels is a testament to Tim’s talent and skill as both a narrator and actor. 

This last Sunday evening, I met with him the night before he was slated to begin recording my new series: Legends of the First Empire. He had already read the first book Age of Myth, and I wanted to make certain he didn’t have any questions about the characters, but I also just wanted to take him out to dinner to say thank you. 

We chatted about many things and Robin and I gave him some necessary spoilers. So right now, Tim knows more about the new series than anyone on the planet besides my wife. As lovely as it was, we couldn’t stay out late. Tim as it turns out, is a very busy man, and narrators need their rest. 

The next morning we met him at the studio where Tim’s wife, Abby, was set to direct his session. 



Robin and I sat in the back listening and monitoring. According to Abby, we were also directors, so I’m going to hangon to that title. 



As Tim read, we followed along and stopped him when he mis-pronounced a word. This strikes me as utterly ridiculous given the words are made up. At one point Tim read the phrase Gula-Rhune. He said “Gulla-Rhune” instead of “Ghoula-Rhune” and I stopped him. I explained how I wanted him to change the pronunciation, and he actually looked at me through the booth glass and said, “Oh, of course.” As if he’d made an actual mistake, as if I hadn’t both, made up the word, and its pronunciation. Things like this mess with my mind. 

People speak of Royce and Hadrian as if they are real people, going so far as to argue with me that, “Hadrian would never do such or such a thing.” I find it interesting how people adopt characters as real people, although perhaps I shouldn’t. Characters in books have just as much evidence of existence as people who we learn about second hand. 

The character profiles I sent Tim were—at least in one case—misleading and I found myself uncomfortable with his interpretation of one character. After a whole scene I had to mention it, and Tim was wonderful about it. He understood the problem and went back and did the whole scene over again. I hate imposing like that, but the voice and the dialog didn’t fit for me. The rework was so much better. That alone was worth the train ticket to New York.

The remaining crucial characters, Tim nailed on his first try. Like Riyria, there are certain beloved characters (beloved I discovered during the taping is three syllables: be-love-ed, rather than two: be-loved) that need to be perfect, and I am confident now that they are. It’s amazing what Tim can do with the most subtle change in his voice. 

Abby is amazing as well. She verbally slaps Tim around for mistakes while complimenting and reassuring him at the same time. She does all this smiling and slipping from an Irish to Scottish accent—neither of which are hers—and singing the opening guitar riff from the 1963 Surfaris hit single Wipeout, and handling the engineering audio board with fluid ease while eating cereal from a bag. 



The two are a great team. 

I did my Author’s Note on Tuesday morning. 



Abby was very patient with all my mistakes. I am getting better. I went through four pages and it was still morning when I finished! And everyone insisted afterward that I did not sound like a chipmunk caught in the a wood chipper. So that’s—you know—good. The bad side is that those of you who listen to the audio version of Age of Myth, will be forced to hear me talk at you again. My apologies for that and I should remind you about skipping to the next chapter.

We had to leave to catch our train Tuesday afternoon, but by then Tim was rolling along and didn’t need our meddling. 

Having heard the first five-and-a-half chapters, I can say you’re in for an audio treat this summer. My only regret is that they didn’t save the outtakes. One in particular  amused me. Tim had trouble reading a passage, not because he stumbled, or lost track, but because he started laughing. 

“What’s wrong?” Abby asked. 

“Nothing,” Tim replied. “It’s just—I know what’s coming next.”

He tried again, and laughed again. 

“Sorry,” he said. “I just find this part so funny.”

Since it was supposed to be funny, I couldn’t help smiling. Making your narrator unable to read your work because you made him laugh is only beaten by making it impossible to read because they have tears in their eyes. Maybe I did that too, but we couldn’t stick around for that part of the book. 

Thanks Tim and Abby, until next time. 

Blowing into the Windy City - my C2E2 Schedule

It's a busy travel week for Robin and I. We JUST got back from New York (where we were sitting in on the recording for the audiobook of Age of Myth and tomorrow we set off for Chicago for the C2E2 . Del Rey books is going to be giving away around 600 Advanced Reading Copies over the three day event, so please stop by the booth to pick up a copy.  Also, I'll be on a number of panels and will of course sign any book put before my face -- even those by other authors ;-)
So what's my C2E2 Schedule?
 Day TimeTypeDetailsFri  2:30 - 3:30 PM  Signing DelRey Booth #417 - Age of Myth ARC Sat  11:00 AM - Noon   Signing DelRey Booth #417 - Age of Myth ARC Sat  1:45 - 2:45 PM   Panel What's New from Del Rey Books S402 Sat 3:00 - 4:00 PM   Panel Deleted Scenes S405A Sat 4:15 - 5:15 PM   Signing Autogaphing Table #21 S405A Sun11:00 AM - Noon  Signing   DelRey Booth #417 - Age of Myth ARC
Here's some further details on the panels:

WHAT'S NEW FROM DELREY: Join Michael J. Sullivan (author, Age of Myth), Claudia Gray (author, Star Wars: Bloodline), Tricia Narwani (Editorial Director, Del Rey) and Elizabeth Schaefer (Senior Editor, Del Rey) as they discuss upcoming novels and answer questions about writing and publishing.DELETED SCENES: The process of writing a book may seem like magic, but it involves a lot of hard work behind the scenes. Join a panel of SFF authors as they share some of their favorite deleted scenes from their works, and discuss why they decided to edit their work in such a way. Participants: Bishop O’Connell, Mark Tompkins, Bradley Beaulieu, Michael J. Sullivan, Steve Bein, Rachel DunneWe wil be arriving on Friday and leaving on Monday so if anyone wants to get together, even if you don't have tickets to C2E2, drop me a line and we'll see what we can do.

The Rise of Tim Gerard Reynolds

In six days, I'll be one of the happiest people in the world, because I'll be sitting in a recording studio in New York, listening to Tim Gerard Reynolds bring the characters of my new series, The Legends of the First Empire to life. Being the first to hear the narration makes me a very fortunate person and one of the best perks about this whole "being an author" thing.

Tim's career has really taken off in recent years, I'd like to think I had something to do with it, but the reality is Tim did it all on his own by providing some amazing narration of some wonderful properties.  And the listeners agree.  On audible.com's Top 100 Best-selling Epic Fantasy list he currently has 8 titles...and that includes spots #1 and #2!! But Tim has also made his mark in Science Fiction and has 4 titles on the Top 100 Best-selling Contemporary Science Fiction list including two in the top 10.






















Here's a little bit about the books on those best-selling lists.  Just look at those ratings and reviews!

Genre | Rank | Book | Author | Series | Book # | Length | Rating | | Reviews

Fantasy | 1 | Son of the Black Sword | Larry Correia | Forgotten Warrior | 1 16 hrs and 26 mins | 4.6 | 2,646

Fantasy | 2 | Theft of Swords | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Revelations | 1 & 2 | 22 hrs and 37 mins | 4.5 | 8,738

Fantasy | 4 | Dawn of Wonder | Jonathan Renshaw | The Wakening | 1 29 hrs and 51 mins | 4.7 | 331

Fantasy | 16 | Arawn Omnibus | Edward W. Robertson | Cycle of Arawn | 1 - 3 | 66 hrs and 1 min | 4.3 | 3,497

Fantasy | 20 | FREE: The Jester | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Chronicles | 2.1 | 54 mins | 4.0 | 4,053

Fantasy | 22 | The Red Sea | Edward W. Robertson | Cycle of Galand | 1 | 16 hrs and 55 mins | 4.7 | 619

Fantasy | 23 | Professional Integrity | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Chronicles | 2.2 | 1 hr 18 mins | 4.5 | 2,192

Fantasy | 58 | The Death of Dulgath | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Chronicles | 3 | 13 hrs and 57 mins | 4.6 | 1,185

Fantasy | 68 | Heir of Novron | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Revelations | 5 | 631 hrs and 49 mins | 4.7 | 6,544

Fantasy | 72 | Rise of Empire | Michael J. Sullivan | Riyria Revelations | 3 & 4 | 26 hrs and 30 mins | 4.6 | 6,635

Sci-Fi | 4 | Morning Star | Pierce Brown | Red Rising | 3 | 21 hrs and 50 mins | 4.8 | 3,651

Sci-Fi | 6 | Red Rising | Pierce Brown | Red Rising | 1 16 hrs and 12 mins | 4.6 | 9,153

Sci-Fi | 11 | Golden Son | Pierce Brown | Red Rising | 2 | 19 hrs and 2 mins | 4.7 | 6,812

Sci-Fi | 91 | Shift | Hugh Howey | Silo Series | 2 18 hrs and 22 mins | 4.3 | 2,556

And those are just a few of Tim's body of work. Consider some of his other notable speculative fiction titles:

The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

Dust (Silo Saga #3) by Hugh Howey

The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) by Michael J. Sullivan

Age of Myth (Legends of the First Empire #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

The Viscount and the Witch (Riyria Chronicles 1.5) by Michael J. Sullivan

Barbarians at the Gates (The Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire #1) by Christopher G. Nuttall

The Liar's Key (Red Queen's War #2) by Mark Lawrence

The Shadow of Cincinnatus (The Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire #2 by Christopher G. Nuttall

Prince of Fools (Red Queen's War #1) by Mark Lawrence

Dawn (Legend of the Galactic Heroes #1) by Yoshiki Tanaka

Against All Things (The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant #3) by Stephen R. Donaldson

The Highwayman by R.A. Salvatore

The Secret (A Broken Empire Tale) by Mark Lawrence

Ice Forged (Ascendant Kingdoms Saga #1) by Gail Z. Martin

Otherworld Nights by Kelley Armstrong

A Song for No Man's Land by Andy Remic

War of Shadows by Gail Z. Martin

The Hurricane by Hugh Howey

The Infernals by John Connolly

Domnall and the Borrowed Child by Sylvia Spruck Wigley

Forces from Beyond (Ghostfinders #6) by Simon R. Green

Spirits from Beyond (Ghostfinders #4) by Simon R. Green

The Creeps by John Connolly

Enki (Lord of Earth #1) by V.R.R. Richards

Hell Ship by Phillip Palmer

Patchwork by David Tallerman

A Taste of Agony by Tim Marquitz

As you can see, Tim has been a pretty busy guy. In fact, he recently told me that his success has made it so that he can do narration full-time. Something that is VERY good for all of us ;-)
So, if you are looking for a good listen, please consider checking out one of these Tim Gerard Reynold's titles. I'm sure you'll find something you'll enjoy. I know I always do!

Readers Helping Authors: Unfettered Auction to benefit Grim Oak Shield

As some of you may know, Shawn Speakman recently dug himself out of a huge (more than $200,000) medical debt that he amassed during his second fight with cancer.  It was due to an incredible anthology called Unfettered that a bunch of authors (including yours truly) donated stories to.

Well, Shawn Speakman is paying it forward by starting Grim Oak Shield, a non-profit foundation similar to Stephen King's Haven Foundation. It works a safety net for authors who find themselves in dire straights due to high medical bills.

500 copies of a truly special edition were created and signed by all the contributing authors. They holdout almost immediately, but Shawn kept a few back so he could auction them off from time to time to benefit Grim Oak Shield.  The first action is running now. And if you want to get your hands on one of these amazing books, you can bid on it here. But you better hurry - there are only 5 days left! Can't afford to beat the bid price?  No problem, consider buying an ebook copy of Unfettered. It's only $7.99 and all proceeds from it go to Grim Oak Shield as well, so you'll be helping authors with medical debt even if you can't get your hands on the special limited edition copy.

As for the book itself, let me tell you a bit about it. There are twenty-three tales in this incredible collection (and a few bonus stories in the limited edition copy). Ss the title suggests, the writers were free to contribute whatever they wished. Here is the table of contents:
Foreword by Patrick RothfussIntroduction: On Becoming UnfetteredImaginary Friends by Terry BrooksHow Old Holly Came To Be by Patrick RothfussThe Old Scale Game by Tad WilliamsGame of Chance by Carrie VaughnThe Martyr of the Roses by Jacqueline CareyMudboy by Peter V. BrettThe Sound of Broken Absolutes by Peter OrullianThe Coach with Big Teeth by R.A. SalvatoreKeeper of Memory by Todd LockwoodHeaven in a Wild Flower by Blake CharltonDogs by Daniel AbrahamThe Chapel Perilous by Kevin HearneSelect Mode by Mark LawrenceAll the Girls Love Michael Stein by David Anthony DurhamStrange Rain by Jennifer BosworthNocturne by Robert V.S. RedickUnbowed by Eldon ThompsonIn Favour with Their Stars by Naomi NovikRiver of Souls by Robert Jordan & Brandon SandersonThe Jester by Michael J. SullivanThe Duel by Lev GrossmanWalker and the Shade of Allanon by Terry BrooksThe Unfettered Knight by Shawn Speakman
As for the piece I contributed, it is indeed a Royce and Hadrian short story and I'm very proud of  how it came out. Here is the introduction to it:
The characters of Royce and Hadrian came to me during my self-imposed ten-year hiatus from writing. After crafting twelve novels and spending a decade getting nowhere, I had determined that publication was hopeless, and I had vowed never to write creatively again. But they kept invading my mind, and as hard as I tried to silence them, I finally gave in, on one condition: that I would write a book that I wanted to read and forgo any thoughts of publication. What a fun time I had bringing these two rogues to life. My wife decided to circumvent my plans and got the books published, and hence Riyria was born.

The six books of The Riyria Revelations were released by Orbit in three two-book omnibus volumes, and while I thought that would be the end of Royce and Hadrian, readers clamored for more. Because I didn’t want to “tack on” to a carefully choreographed ending, The Riyria Chronicles were born to explore adventures that occurred during the twelve years the pair were together before Revelations began.
The short story I’ve provided is a Chronicles tale. It takes place after the events of The Rose and the Thorn and before those of Theft of Swords. Even so, it’s a stand-alone story and no prior experience with any of my books is required to enjoy it to its fullest.

Crafting a work for Unfettered was quite a daunting experience. I wanted to help Shawn and his cause, but how could I not be intimidated by the esteem of the authors I’d be sharing the pages with? Like Riyria, I hope that I rose to the challenge, and that you’ll be entertained by “The Jester,” a story of adventure, bonds of friendship, and a recognition that the choices we make dictates the future we find.


If you're a fan of Riyria, or any of the amazing authors I encourage you to go get an ebook copy. If you have some money in your pocket and want to get a truly special book, then by all means place a bid.  You'll get a great read and Shawn's charity will get some additional cash to do good works with. Seems like a win-win for all involved!

Theft of Swords Audiobook just $5.95 for 3 days!

Audible has put a few hundred of their best-selling, top-rated books on sale including 35 Sci-fi and fantasy titles. I'm pleased that the sale includes Theft of Swords .

The sale is available to current Audible customers and all books in the sale are just $5.95.  Plus, since  Theft of Swords  is actually an omnibus edition containing two full-length novels (The Crown Conspiracy and Avempartha),  that's and even better deal. In total you'll get more than 22 hours of listening bliss.

I say listening bliss because the books are expertly narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds.  And if you've not heard Tim, you're in for a real treat. He's become "the voice" of Riyria and not only does he do the voice for the eight Riyria novels, but he also has recorded three short stories, two of which are available for free on Audible right now.  So if you're not sure if you'd like  Theft of Swords   checkout The Jester or Professional Integrity. They are both under one hour and absolutely free. Just click on the covers below to get your own copy.



If you are looking for even more savings, here's a complete list of the titles in the Science Fiction and Fantasy Category. I listed them based on number of reviews and you can see their ratings and regular prices. I hope you find something that's a perfect fit for you.

Book Series # Author Narrator Length Rating Reviews Reg Price
Theft of Swords | Riyria Revelations | 1 & 2 | Michael J. Sullivan | Tim Gerard Reynolds | 22 hrs and 37 mins | 4.5 | 8,698 | $41.99

Lock In | N/A | N/A | John Scalzi | Wil Wheaton | 10 hrs 0 mins | 4.3 | 5,240 | $19.95

Spider's Bite | Elemental Assassin | 1 | Jennifer Estep | Lauren Fortgang | 11 hrs and 59 mins | 3.9 | 3,339 | $24.95

Ark Royal | Ark Royal | 1 | Christopher G. Nuttall | Ralph Lister | 13 hrs and 55 mins | 3.9 | 3,067 | $24.95

Rendezvous with Rama | N/A | N/A | Arthur C. Clarke | Peter Ganim , Robert J. Sawyer | 9 hrs and 4 mins | 4.2 | 3,011 | $24.29

On Basilisk Station | Honor Harrington | 1 | David Weber | Allyson Johnson | 15 hrs and 40 mins | 4.1 | 3,007 | $24.95

Into the Storm | Destroyermen | 1 | Taylor Anderson | William Dufris | 16 hrs and 16 mins | 4.1 | 2,840 | $29.99

Son of the Black Sword | Saga of the Forgotten Warrior | 1 | Larry Correia | Tim Gerard Reynolds | 16 hrs and 26 mins | 4.6 | 2,574 | $29.95

The Second Ship | The Rho Agenda | 1 | Richard Phillips | MacLeod Andrews | 11 hrs and 39 mins | 4.1 | 2,512 | $13.99

Death World | Undying Mercenaries | 5 | B. V. Larson | Mark Boyett | 12 hrs and 58 mins | 4.6 | 2,172 | $24.95

Jumper | Jumper | 1 Steven Gould | MacLeod Andrews | 10 hrs and 49 mins | 4.2 | 1,697 | $24.95

A Canticle for Leibowitz | N/A | N/A | Walter M. Miller | Tom Weiner | 10 hrs and 59 mins | 3.9 | 1,604 | $23.07

Rise of the Werewolf | Lycan Fallout | 1 | Mark Tufo | Sean Runnette | 11 hrs and 23 mins | 4.4 | 1,566 | $24.95

Wormhole | The Rho Agenda | 3 | Richard Phillips | MacLeod Andrews | 13 hrs and 11 mins | 4.4 | 1,516 | $13.99

The Dragon's Path | Dagger and Coin | 1 | Daniel Abraham | Pete Bradbury | 17 hrs and 22 mins | 3.9 | 1,468 | 34.99

Three | Legends of the Duskwalker | 1 | Jay Posey | Luke Daniels | 13 hrs and 1 min | 4.2 | 1,436| $13.99

The End of All Things | Old Man's War | 6 | John Scalzi | Multiple | 11 hrs and 24 mins | 4.2 | 1,268 | $24.95

A Wizard of Earthsea | The Earthsea Cycle | 1 | Ursula K. Le Guin | Rob Inglis | 7 hrs and 16 mins | 4.0 | 1,198 | $25.87

Necronomicon | N/A | N/A | H. P. Lovecraft | Multiple | 21 hrs and 1 min | 4.3 | 1,176 | $45.47

Gatefather | The Mithermages | 3 | Orson Scott Card | Emily Rankin , Stefan Rudnicki | 11 hrs and 26 mins | 4.0 | 1,165 | $24.47

Circle of Reign | The Dying Lands Chronicle | 1 | Jacob Cooper | Michael Kramer | 20 hrs and 13 mins | 4.3 | 1,129 | $29.95

Mark of the Demon | Kara Gillian | 1 | Diana Rowland | Liv Anderson | 12 hrs and 26 mins | 4.1 | 1,126 | $21.95

Bloodfire Blood Destiny | 1 | Helen Harper | Saskia Maarleveld | 9 hrs and 6 mins | 4.1 | 1,123 | $27.99

Nexus | Naam | 1 | Ramez Naam | Luke Daniels | 13 hrs and 12 mins | 4.1 | 1,102 | $13.99

Under a Graveyard Sky | Black Tide Rising | 1 | John Ringo | Tristan Morris | 13 hrs and 49 mins | 4.3 | 990 | $24.95

War Crimes | World of Warcarft | Unknown | Christie Golden | Scott Brick | 13 hrs and 31 mins | 4.5 | 947 | $22.67

Dead Spots | Scarlett Bernard | 1 | Melissa F. Olson | Amy McFadden | 9 hrs 0 min | 4.1 | 903 | $13.99

Aurora | N/A | N/A | Kim Stanley Robinson | Ali Ahn | 16 hrs and 55 mins | 3.9 | 876 | $28.33

Destroyermen | Straits of Hell | 10 | Taylor Anderson | William Dufris | 17 hrs and 34 mins | 4.5 | 688 | $27.99

The Last American Vampire | N/A | N/A | Seth Grahame-Smith | MacLeod Andrews | 14 hrs and 17 mins | 4.4 | 663 | $24.50

Have Space Suit - Will Travel | N/A | N/A | Robert A. Heinlein | Mark Turetsky | 8 hrs and 53 mins | 4.0 | 634 | $20.97

The Fifth Season | The Broken Earth | 1 | N. K. Jemisin | Robin Miles | 15 hrs and 31 mins | 4.2 | 529 | $23.60

The Mechanical | The Alchemy Wars | 1 | Ian Tregillis | Chris Kayser | 15 hrs and 45 mins | 4.2 | 431 $24.55

The Grace of Kings | The Dandelion Dynasty | 1 | Ken Liu | Michael Kramer | 21 hrs and 37 mins | 4.0 | 241 | $28.34

Cast in Honor | The Chronicles of Elantra | 11 | Michelle Sagara | Khristine Hvam | 16 hrs and 43 mins | 4.4 | 241 $33.07

The Jester hits a new milestone.

Audible.com tells me that 100,000 copies of my free short story, The Jester , have been downloaded.  That's incredible news.

You know, long, long ago Robin asked me to tell her how many people had to read my stories before I would consider myself a success. I replied, "Fifty...but...they have to be people who I don't know."

Robin thought she could beat that number, and I guess she was right.

I really enjoyed writing this story for The Unfettered anthology, something that I also did for free. So even though I've not made any money on The Jester, I still think it was a good thing to do.  I can't begin to count the number of people who mentioned finding this short story either in that anthology, or through the free audible version and then went on to read my full-length novels. I know that was one of the things Shawn Speakman hoped would occur for people in the anthology (it was created to raise money to get him out of a huge medical debt).  Not only is Shawn now debt free, but he's also started a fund to help pay for other author's medical bills.

If you haven't read (or listened to) the short, I'll be more than happy to send you an ebook - just drop me an email  and I'll send out and ebook version. Better yet, listen to the short - Tim Gerard Reynold's narration really shouldn't be missed.

Thanks all for the amazing support.  I'm glad people are enjoying the tale and have told their friends and family as well.

Royce and Hadrian Go Graphic

I'm pleased to announce that a Riyria graphic novel is in the works!  The announcement went public a few days ago on Newsrama, so sorry about the late posting. Robin and I were on the road (went to do some presentations at a college up north) and as such we are really behind on posting a whole bunch of good news -this being one of them.
The artist will be Nigel Raynor who has worked for  Mavel, Dynamite, 2000AD, and Dark Horse. The publisher for this project will be Dable Brothers Publishing who is also working with Kevin Hearnes for his Iron Druid Chronicles and Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series. Here's some concept art of Limited Edition print which will be available soon.

Anyone recognize the scene it depicts?  I'll give you a hint it's from one of the Revelation books. As I said, a lot more news about this in the near future. But as I'm already behind on posting the news I at least wanted to get something out right away.

Ten 2016 SF/F Releases with Killer Elevator Pitches

Looking for some interesting books coming out in 2016?  Barnes an Noble just published their list of 10 books they thought had intriguing premises. I'm glad to see Age of Myth made the list. Here's the full list so you can check them out for your self. Hopefully you'll find something that piques your interest as well.



A Criminal Magic, by Lee KellyRuntime, by S.B. DivyaInfomocracy, by Malka Ann OlderThe Impostor Queen, by Sarah FineThe Raft, by Fred StrydomThe Forbidden Wish, by Jessica KhouryAge of Myth, by Michael J. SullivanUnited States of Japan, by Peter TieryasWorlds of Ink and Shadow, by Lena CoakleyWe Are the Ants, by Shaun David Hutchinson

An Update on The Legends of the First Empire

Hey all, Robin and I have been so busy working that I realize I've not said much about the new series that is coming out in June. So, here's what's going on.
Age of MythAs most probably already know, Marc Simonetti has created a great illustration to grace the cover. It depicts Magda (an ancient tree in the Crescent Forest).  Del Rey's artistic director (Dave Stevenson) has been working with us to come up with the other aspects of the cover (font, title name, author name).  After several attempts, we finally have it nailed down.  So here is the cover that will be released.

I LOVE the way it looks, and it was no small task finding a font that myself, Robin, Tricia (our editor), and Steve (the art director) liked. Del Rey's team was so accommodating and really went above and beyond with all the options they went through.

Robin, whose mind is constantly working, has come up with a way that you can get signed copies if you pre-order.  More on that in a future post. For now, we are going to limit how many of these signed copies we are committing to and if you want to be notified once they are available, here is a sign-up list .

Also, the proof for the book has come in and both Robin and I are busy reading it. It looks great and marks yet another milestone toward the release.  There should be ARC (Advanced Reading Copies) in hand shortly, and I'll do some drawing for people who want to read them ahead of time.

Last update on this...the recording of the audio book will start March 14th. And yes, the amazing Tim Gerard Reynolds is don the narration.  We are going to New York on the 13th, will go out to dinner with Tim and then sit in on the first few days' recordings. If you are as excited as we are about the audio version of this book, please pre-order it now , or the next time you have audible credits available!

Age of SwordsI finished by second edit of this book back in November. It's been sitting, waiting for Robin to read and provide commentary to. She's already been through this process once before, and the book was in really good shape, so this shouldn't take too terribly long. Robin just needs to GET to it.  Three things are in front of her.Finish shipping The Death of Dulgath Kickstarter rewards.  She is close on this.  So far we have all the books and t-shirts out.  Now it's just down to Bags, Mugs, Posters, and maps.  That sounds like a lot but compared to the books and shirts it's not nearly as time-consuming.Finish editing The Making of The Death of Dulgath ebook.Finish proofing of Age of Myth.Once she gets through it, and assuming she doesn't haven't anything major for me to edit (which neither of us suspect will happen), the beta read will start.  The beta readers will fall into a few categories.Those that beta-read Age of MythThose that didn't beta-read Age of Myth but will get a copy of it before the betaThose that haven't read Age of MythIf you are interested in beta reading, you can sign up here.
Age of WarI finished up the second edit of this book in December. It is also sitting waiting for Robin. What a slacker!  (Okay, don't throw rocks at me we all know I'm kidding with that comment. Robin is the hardest working person I know). I don't see the beta read starting for this anytime soon. And Robin will be more than busy with the beta read for Age of Swords.  Again, this book had very few changes from Robin's original alpha read, so I don't expect much additional work on this.
Age of LegendsThis is what I'm working on now, and have been for the last several weeks. Unlike Book #2 and Book #3, this one did require MAJOR work based on Robin's first alpha read.  That's the bad news.  The good news is I have (a) figured out all the changes, created a new outline, and figured out all the problems introduced by the changes (b) have been writing it for several weeks now.  The original deadline I set for this was end of February, and that's not going to happen. I got started late because I was helping Robin ship Kickstarter stuff. But I do think it'll be done sometime in March, which isn't that much of a delay.
Age of EmpireThis also will need some major work based on Robin's alpha read. The good news is (a) it's not nearly as extensive as the work to book #4, and (b) getting book #4 straightened out will make book #5 go much more quickly.  At this point I still think April or May (which was my original deadline for myself) still seems doable.

Wow, that's a lot.  See, I knew it was a long time since I've updated people on this. The Death of Dulgath has been the focus of most of my posting as of late, but with it finally "out and about" it's time to start looking at the project. I'm very excited to hear what people think of it.