Brian McClellan's Blog, page 4
December 15, 2021
Page Break Podcast Episode 24: Shad M. Brooks
The twenty-fourth episode of my new podcast Page Break is now out! In this episode, my guest is YouTuber and fantasy author Shad M. Brooks.
Shad is known for his massively popular YouTube channel Shadiversity, where he dives into fantasy and medieval tropes, culture, and technology. Shad also talks more pop culture and reviews over on his other YouTube channel, Knights Watch. In addition to his video content, Shad is the author of the epic fantasy novel Shadows of the Conqueror, which came out in 2019.
Shad and I talk about self-publishing, giving and receiving criticism, the sweet spot between realism and fantasy, expanding the scope of your business as a creative professional, and the process of learning and growing in public.
Listen NowPage Break with Brian McClellan is a collection of casual conversations between me and fellow creative professionals—like two friends sitting down over lunch to discuss career, craft, family, and hobbies.
Authorhood is a quiet sort of minor fame where the person behind the words is often obscured by the works they’ve created. I aim to use this podcast to find out more about my friends and colleagues.
Look forward to weekly conversations with creators like TV writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, epic fantasy author Robin Hobb, science fiction author Pierce Brown, Twitch streamer Mark Hulmes, and many more!
Listen on YouTube Spotify Podcasts Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Early Access + Ad-Free Episodes on Patreon
December 12, 2021
Promise of Blood is a Kindle Daily Deal in the UK!
Heads up UK readers: my first Powder Mage book, Promise of Blood, is a Kindle Daily Deal in the UK today!
You can pick up your copy here.
Get the Deal [image error]
It’s a bloody business overthrowing a king…
Field Marshal Tamas’ coup against his king sent corrupt aristocrats to the guillotine and brought bread to the starving. But it also provoked war with the Nine Nations, internal attacks by royalist fanatics, and the greedy to scramble for money and power by Tamas’s supposed allies: the Church, workers unions, and mercenary forces.
It’s up to a few…
Stretched to his limit, Tamas is relying heavily on his few remaining powder mages, including the embittered Taniel, a brilliant marksman who also happens to be his estranged son, and Adamat, a retired police inspector whose loyalty is being tested by blackmail.
But when gods are involved…
Now, as attacks batter them from within and without, the credulous are whispering about omens of death and destruction. Just old peasant legends about the gods waking to walk the earth. No modern educated man believes that sort of thing. But they should…
December 8, 2021
One More Week for the Holiday Sale!
There’s just one more week of this year’s annual holiday sale!
Get 20% off EVERYTHING from my store website—signed books and ebooks, bookplates, powder keg pins, and more—with the promo code HOLIDAY21 through December 14th.
Shop the Holiday Sale
Powder Mage MerchandiseAnd if you’re in the market for Powder Mage merchandise, don’t forget my new Redbubble shop for color prints of maps from the Powder Mage Universe, Adran army t-shirts, Mad Lancers baseball caps, battle flag mugs, and a ton more.
Shop Powder Mage MerchandiseDecember 7, 2021
Page Break Podcast Episode 23: Helene Wecker
The twenty-third episode of my new podcast Page Break is now out! In this episode, my guest is novelist Helene Wecker.
Helene is author of the best-selling and award-winning book, The Golem and the Jinni and its recent follow up The Hidden Palace. Helene and Brian are also debut buddies—their first books came out the same month in April of 2013.
Helene and Brian talk about writing classes and pursuing higher education for creative writing, the despair when a book just isn’t clicking, the loneliness of being a writer, and the way life can get in the way of a creative job.
Listen NowPage Break with Brian McClellan is a collection of casual conversations between me and fellow creative professionals—like two friends sitting down over lunch to discuss career, craft, family, and hobbies.
Authorhood is a quiet sort of minor fame where the person behind the words is often obscured by the works they’ve created. I aim to use this podcast to find out more about my friends and colleagues.
Look forward to weekly conversations with creators like TV writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, epic fantasy author Robin Hobb, science fiction author Pierce Brown, Twitch streamer Mark Hulmes, and many more!
Listen on YouTube Spotify Podcasts Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Early Access + Ad-Free Episodes on PatreonDecember 2, 2021
Page Break Podcast Episode 22: Joe Abercrombie
The twenty-second episode of my new podcast Page Break is now out! In this episode, my guest is bestselling epic fantasy author and personal hero Joe Abercrombie.
Joe is known for his nine books in the First Law universe where he created fan favorite characters like Glokta and Logen Ninefingers. He has also written the young adult Shattered Sea Trilogy.
Joe and I discuss video games, book tours, our most challenging books, and Joe’s background in film editing and what that brought to his writing career. We also talk about the male-centric cast of our debut novels—both where that came from, and how we developed as authors afterwards.
Listen NowPage Break with Brian McClellan is a collection of casual conversations between me and fellow creative professionals—like two friends sitting down over lunch to discuss career, craft, family, and hobbies.
Authorhood is a quiet sort of minor fame where the person behind the words is often obscured by the works they’ve created. I aim to use this podcast to find out more about my friends and colleagues.
Look forward to weekly conversations with creators like TV writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, epic fantasy author Robin Hobb, science fiction author Pierce Brown, Twitch streamer Mark Hulmes, and many more!
Listen on YouTube Spotify Podcasts Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Early Access + Ad-Free Episodes on PatreonNovember 23, 2021
Cover Reveal: In the Shadow of Lightning
Tor’s revealed the cover for the first book in my new epic fantasy series called the Glass Immortals, which will be out in June! Book 1 is In the Shadow of Lightning, and I can’t wait for you to get to read it.
Signed hardcover orders will open in January, but you can check out the cover and blurb below and preorder today at bookstores!
In the Shadow of LightningGlass Immortals Book 1
"Excellent worldbuilding and a truly epic narrative combine into Brian's finest work to date. Heartily recommended to anyone who wants a new favorite fantasy series to read." — Brandon Sanderson
From Brian McClellan, author of The Powder Mage, comes In the Shadow of Lightning, a brand-new epic fantasy where magic is a finite resource—and it’s running out.
Demir Grappo is an outcast—he fled a life of wealth and power, abandoning his responsibilities as a general, a governor, and a son. Now he will live out his days as a grifter, rootless, and alone. But when his mother is brutally murdered, Demir must return from exile to claim his seat at the head of the family and uncover the truth that got her killed: the very power that keeps civilization turning, godglass, is running out.
Now, Demir must find allies, old friends and rivals alike, confront the powerful guild-families who are only interested in making the most of the scraps left at the table and uncover the invisible hand that threatens the Empire. A war is coming, a war unlike any other. And Demir and his ragtag group of outcasts are the only thing that stands in the way of the end of life as the world knows it.
"Powerful rival families, murderous conspiracies, epic battles, larger-than-life characters, and magic."—Fonda Lee, author of The Green Bone Saga
"Engaging, fast-paced and epic."—James Islington, author of In The Shadow of What Was Lost
"Clever, fun, and by turns beautifully bloody, In the Shadow of Lightning hits like a bolt through a stained glass window."—Megan E. O'Keefe, author of Chaos Vector
November 18, 2021
Dragonsteel Mini-Con
Next week, I’ll be a guest at Brandon Sanderson’s Dragonsteel Minicon! This will be a two-day party with panels, games, prizes, and more.
Dragonsteel will be my only public appearance of the year, and I'll be there with books to sign! Take a look at the events and exhibitors, and if you’re in the neighborhood for an in-person event, I hope to see you there.
Register for the Con
November 10, 2021
Holiday Sale 2021
It’s November, which means it’s time for my annual holiday sale! Given shipping delays I’m getting this started early this year. The sale is running now through December 14th, so check it out today!
This year, you can get 20% off EVERYTHING in my store—signed books and ebooks, bookplates, powder keg pins, and more—with the promo code HOLIDAY21.
Shop the Sale
Powder Mage MerchandiseI’ve also launched a store on Redbubble in time for the holiday season!
Get all the powder mage merch you could wish for: color prints of maps from the Powder Mage Universe, Adran army t-shirts, Mad Lancers baseball caps, battle flag mugs, and a ton more.
Right now Redbubble’s offering 20-60% off items store-wide with the coupon code WHYWAIT, so take a look!
Shop Powder Mage MerchNovember 9, 2021
Page Break Podcast Episode 21: Anthony Lemke
The twenty-first episode of my new podcast Page Break is now out! In this episode, my guest is Canadian actor .
Anthony will be known to American audiences as the character of Three in the sci-fi drama Dark Matter and as Coach Marcus Gilday in the college sitcom Blue Mountain State. He has an extensive catalog of parts in television and film, and has acted in both English and French.
I ask Anthony for advice on how to read a pilot script, and we talk at length about becoming best friends with insecurity, planning out your life as a creative, an actor’s relationship with the writer of a script, and how we try to understand people they may not agree with.
Listen NowPage Break with Brian McClellan is a collection of casual conversations between me and fellow creative professionals—like two friends sitting down over lunch to discuss career, craft, family, and hobbies.
Authorhood is a quiet sort of minor fame where the person behind the words is often obscured by the works they’ve created. I aim to use this podcast to find out more about my friends and colleagues.
Look forward to weekly conversations with creators like TV writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, epic fantasy author Robin Hobb, science fiction author Pierce Brown, Twitch streamer Mark Hulmes, and many more!
Listen on YouTube Spotify Podcasts Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Early Access + Ad-Free Episodes on PatreonNovember 2, 2021
Page Break Podcast Episode 20: Kevin Hearne
The nineteenth episode of my new podcast Page Break is now out! In this episode, my guest is fantasy author Kevin Hearne.
Kevin is the bestselling author of the urban fantasy Iron Druid series and the epic fantasy Seven Kennings. He also co-writes the Tales of Pell with previous Page Break guest Delilah S Dawson.
Kevin and I chat about the mental health benefits of getting out in nature, Kevin’s epic fantasy series, the future of Iron Druid, childhood whimsy in their adult lives, travel as inspiration, and so much more.
Listen NowPage Break with Brian McClellan is a collection of casual conversations between me and fellow creative professionals—like two friends sitting down over lunch to discuss career, craft, family, and hobbies.
Authorhood is a quiet sort of minor fame where the person behind the words is often obscured by the works they’ve created. I aim to use this podcast to find out more about my friends and colleagues.
Look forward to weekly conversations with creators like TV writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi, epic fantasy author Robin Hobb, science fiction author Pierce Brown, Twitch streamer Mark Hulmes, and many more!
Listen on YouTube Spotify Podcasts Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Early Access + Ad-Free Episodes on Patreon
