Christopher H. Jansmann's Blog, page 17

Four Books!

…four books out in one year? Who would have thought it?

As I write this, Peril has gone live on all editions — Kindle, paperback and hardcover. It’s hard to believe it was a little less than a year ago that Blindsided appeared, and though Peril is actually the seventh book written, the chronology of my series required that it sneak out as the fourth book published. (You can find out more about why that happened here and in the Author’s Note inside Peril.)

Looking back on this past year (as most of us tend to do when the calendar shifts toward January), I realized it has been a pretty successful run so far. I’m not a New York Times bestselling author — yet — but all of my published works have, for the most part, outperformed my expectations this early in the process. Blindsided remains the most popular book in my catalog, with Outsider slowly closing in on it; I’m especially excited at the pre-order interest in the third book of that series, Downhill. Sean Colbeth appears to be a popular character, and I look forward to continuing to share him with everyone in his fourth book — Canceled — due out late next year.

Vasily Korsokovach wound up being the lead in three of the four books I wrote in 2021. He is such an intriguing character for me — and so different from Sean — that it’s hard for me to put him aside. His first book, Pariah, has been a slow burner, taking a bit longer than I expected to catch on with readers — though there were a few shocking points on the calendar when Pariah broke the top 100 books on Amazon, the most recent being early December:

What an amazing 2021 — and what a way to end it!

As much as I love our first outing with the SoCal surfer, I’m pragmatic enough to understand he might not be the right cup of tea for everyone (so to speak). Still, there are plenty more stories to come from his neck of the woods, so Vasily’s not going anywhere anytime soon. We’ll see two more books from him in 2022 — Ditched and Bygones — both of which take a deeper look at his background (and, maybe, just maybe, allow him a bit of happiness, too).

I did actually write four books in 2021, and have plans to keep up that pace in 2022. While those stories are still in their most nascent form, I’m pretty excited at the adventures we will share together in the coming months. Stay tuned to my blog for updates as we enter the New Year.

Pools and Sizes

Photo by Jim De Ramos on Pexels.com

I’ve mentioned before that I swam competitively when I was younger — though I hasten to again point out I was nowhere near as good as my two main characters, Sean Colbeth and Vasily Korsokovach. Having grown up in the sport, I’ve kept up with the changes to it over the years, from the full-body suits to pool designs that help increase the odds of yet another world record being set. My time in the pool these days mostly revolves around doing laps purely for fitness purposes, but each time I hit the water (or, perhaps, once that very recognizable scent of chlorine accosts my nose), I know my own experience as a swimmer informs how I present both Sean and Vasily’s perspective on the sport.

But that can only take me so far, of course; adding to that base, I spend far more time than you can imagine pouring over the latest information I can find; it’s a huge advantage when the Summer Olympics roll around every four years, for the in-depth reporting from that event (and in the months leading up to it) often contains compelling tidbits that will often find their way into the backstories of my characters or enhances their own take.

Thinking about that recently reminded me that a reader had reached out while reading Blindsided with a question about the pool Sean and Vasily visit fairly early in the story. For context, here is how I described it in the book:

The short hallway connected to another door that had been propped open to the pool deck.  I followed Vasily in and we worked our way around the controlled chaos a swim practice in session generated.  I’d used the facility myself from the age of eight and was well acquainted with the two pools: one fifty-meter by twenty-five yard medium depth pool and a smaller, twenty-five meter by twenty-five meter diving well that doubled as the venue for the water polo team.  Both pools were in use, with the larger set for fifty-meter long course.  As we entered the men’s locker room to retrieve the gear we’d left, I paused to watch a young diver launch himself off the ten-meter board and cleave the surface of the diving well with nary a splash.

Blindsided — Chapter 3. (Christopher H. Jansmann)

I’ve had the chance to swim in quite a few wondrous facilities over the years, and the one that I created for the University of Eastern Maine is a bit of a composite of a few of them. Any elite college program — especially one that turns out Olympic-caliber athletes — would look pretty similar to what I described, but if you are new to the sport (or Sean and Vasily are the first swimmers you’ve ever encountered), it’s quite likely you might not quite be able to fathom the measurements I’ve snuck into the prose.

For example, I noted that the larger pool was fifty-meter by twenty-five yards — that is to say, the length of longest side of the rectangle is fifty meters, and the width is twenty-five yards. The sport generally refers to this as an Olympic-sized pool, for it allows athletes to train/compete using the distances recognized by the Olympics (i.e. races that take place in fifty-meters increments — 50 Freestyle, 400 IM, etc.). This generally allows for five to eight lanes when the pool is set for long course workouts, depending on how well the pool manager is carving up the aquatic real estate.

Colleges and private swim clubs in the United States make use of the shorter, twenty-five yard side of the pool as many local swim meets will compete in what we call short course. In fact, the high school I swam at actually only supported the twenty-five yard distances, which is pretty typical in non-NCAA competitions.

For schools that support either a diving program or a water polo club (or both), there will often be a smaller twenty-five meter by twenty-five meter pool that is quite deep; this allows for the platform diving you often see at the Olympics but also provides a space for the water polo players to practice such that they are unable to touch the bottom. I tried my hand at diving just once — standing at the edge of the tall diving platform can give even the most composed person a case of vertigo; my experience with water polo extends only as far as the one time I paddled around in an inner tube back in fifth grade.

As the diving team often shared the same practice times as my swim club, though, I did come to know a few talented individuals as well as gain a true appreciation for just how tough that sport is. It’s also why a new main character in Ditched happens to be a diver, too… but that’s another story for another day…

Getting Closer

I’m down to putting the finishing touches on the X-Ray for Peril. It’s usually the final step before the Kindle version goes live; the paperback and hardcover editions are already put to bed, slumbering until the date they awake and begin to ship. In some ways, it’s my favorite step — one last chance to add a little more polish to the finished manuscript, one last way to create a bit more magic for something that would normally be considered (as my UK colleague often says) done and dusted.

One last way to connect to something that’s been a number of months in the making.

I often wonder how many people use the X-Ray feature, though. Honestly, I didn’t know it existed until I became an author; sure, I regularly looked up a word or two in the embedded dictionary that I assumed all e-readers came with, but this notion that the writer might leave behind some additional Easter eggs — well, that’s just a pretty cool feature, if you ask me. For those of you who have taken the time to check out the history I plugged in for Vasily or were a tiny bit curious where, exactly, the University of Eastern Maine might be, kudos for taking the time to peruse my bonus content.

Of course, now that I do know about the function, I’ve been rather obsessive about checking out what other authors have done with it; the results are about as varied as the authors I have in my library, to be sure, but I’ve yet to be disappointed in what I’ve come across.

So one the X-Ray is done, it’s off to Downhill… if I can pull myself away from finishing Canceled…

Southern California Holidays

I’m taking some much-needed time off and spending a few days with my wife visiting friends in SoCal. Living in Arizona as I do, I’m still amazed at the weather we get to experience while here. The skies have been deep, deep blue; the temperature a comfortable swing between chilly in the morning and pleasantly warm by the afternoon. Plenty of strolls have already taken place along with more than a few kilometers of running; I’m sure more are in store, especially as we hit Thanksgiving and the inevitable guilt over having indulged in just one roll too many.

I’ve always felt this is the gateway holiday to the rest that follow through the first of the new year; whether you celebrate one or none, I hope you have your own special people close at hand.

Peril is Done!

I’ve just received my paperback proof for the latest Vasily adventure, so it’s feeling a bit more like the story is finally done. For a book I never expected to write, it’s been one of the most interesting tales I’ve crafted yet – and, clocking in at 300+ pages, my longest.

There are a few more final edits to do — some shifting here and there — but other than that, time for me to focus on getting the next installment — Ditched — ready for its February, 2022 release.

I admit to being a bit distracted as I’m simultaneously working on the fourth Sean Colbeth story; it’s been a while since I’ve had Sean roaming around in my head, but it’s been a refreshing change of pace. I love both of my characters but there’s something special when I get to expand on my original creation.

Eight isn’t enough

It’s early September as I write this, and I’m just beginning my prep work for my next novel in the Sean Colbeth Investigates series. I found myself taken aback slightly, though, when I realized it would be the eighth novel overall (and fourth one featuring my Windeport Chief of Police).

Have I really written seven novels? Apparently, the answer is an unequivocal yes, though several are still in the publishing pipeline and won’t see the light of day until later this year or early next. Still, it’s pretty cool to consider how many words I’ve managed to get down on paper, and how I’ve been able to grow my little fictional universe.

Admittedly, Vasily has taken up more of my time as of late; he’s such a complexly interesting character, it’s been hard for me to resist telling stories from his perspective. Considering he’d originally been envisioned as just a sidekick for Sean, it’s quite the upgrade — and one I’ve been very pleased to see happen.

Book eight, though, returns to my original creation, someone who has also grown over the course of the three novels he’s appeared in so far. Loosing his best friend at the end of Blindsided was only partially offset by his meeting Suzanne Kellerman; it’s changed Sean in ways that he’s only beginning to understand, creating a journey for him nearly as interesting as the one Vasily embarked upon when he bolted for California.

I also know now that I am far from finished telling the stories of these two characters. Eight books in and I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface; I’m so excited to see where I go from here — and incredibly happy to have you along for the ride.

Want an Early Peek?

I’m in the final stages of editing Peril and am looking for a beta reader to replace one of my regulars who is not available this time around. If you are interested, send me a message using the form below!

Submit a form.

Rain

We’re just beginning what we call the monsoon season here in Arizona; a few months of afternoon and evening thunderstorms that light up the sky and give our plants a much needed drink of water. Having grown up on the East Coast, I still find it remarkable how many days of sunshine we experience, which in an interesting way, make the grey, gloomy days — though rare — something to anticipate. I never felt that level of joy back East, for rain meant the lawn was going to grow faster than my poor mower would be able to handle.

Our dog let us know the other day how he felt about this unexpected precipitation; he took two steps from the front door, looked at us, and immediately turned around to wait it out from the comfort of his pillow. I couldn’t blame him; no matter how welcome the rain might be, I’m still not a fan of wandering around in a downpour.

There is a magic to rain, though. Especially in how it can dramatically shift an otherwise familiar environment into something entirely different; colors also seem more saturated, more vibrant, more real. I’ve used a storm or two as a dramatic background in a story — or a reason for main characters to hang out together and linger just a bit longer over a cup of coffee. It can be a magical, wonderful change of pace.

Hiking

I’m editing book six at the moment and there is a scene where Vasily is hiking in a rather beautiful national forest area of California. The activity is one that harkens back to my youth when many a weekend was spent scampering around the backwoods of Maine for one reason or another. I can’t say it was ever my favorite activity for I honestly have few memories of good times communing with nature.

It doesn’t mean I don’t have a deep appreciation for the great outdoors — far from it. But unlike some of my friends from back then, I had other interests that were decidedly closer to home and didn’t require close encounters with black flies or other wildlife. Vas seems to be channeling that part of me as I write these scenes, for he is rather awed by the spectacle he encounters but doesn’t let himself be distracted from efficiently completing the task at hand.

Eleven Things: Bonus

Today’s the official release for Pariah, so I thought I’d celebrate with a bonus tidbit about Vasily.

Why is Vasily’s favorite color blue?

It’s the primary color for the swim team Vasily was on when he won his first international gold medal in butterfly… and the team where he met Sean Colbeth. While he might not have Sean in his life any longer, having the color around reminds him of what once was, and what might have been.

Not, perhaps, the best thing to do when you are trying for a fresh start…