Mark Stone's Blog

AUTOGRAPHED PRINCE LESTAT

I'm hosting a giveaway for an autographed copy of Prince Lestat. Comes with a certificate of authentication.


Want to know more?

SEE THE BLOG POST HERE

GIVEAWAY - MISTBORN TRILOGY

Let's talk Fantasy. Brilliant Fantasy. By best-selling author Brandon Sanderson, who has few equals in developing worlds and magic systems, then bringing those to life.

The book Elantris served as my introduction to him. Riveting. It's about a city that at one time was a place of incredible magic. Inhabitants from long ago could heal people with a wave of the hand until a cataclysmic event known as the "Reod" cursed the Elantrians and the city was subsequently sealed off from society. To this day it features some of the best characters Sanderson has created, though the Mistborn trilogy isn't too far behind in that department and is superior to Elantris in terms of world-building and magic. Probably an easier read, too, given that Elantris was Sanderson's first full-length novel. Readers of that thought they'd discovered an amazing writer in Sanderson.

The Mistborn trilogy proved them right.

And, now, here's your chance to find out if you've never read Brandon's work. If you have, well, this is your chance for a free reminder. Through May 11th I'm sponsoring a giveaway for the Mistborn Trilogy Boxed Set (paperbacks). The winner will be announced May 18th.

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY HERE








MISTBORN
For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the "Sliver of Infinity," reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler's most hellish prison. Kelsier "snapped" and found in himself the powers of a Mistborn. A brilliant thief and natural leader, he turned his talents to the ultimate caper, with the Lord Ruler himself as the mark.

Kelsier recruited the underworld's elite, the smartest and most trustworthy allomancers, each of whom shares one of his many powers, and all of whom relish a high-stakes challenge. Only then does he reveal his ultimate dream, not just the greatest heist in history, but the downfall of the divine despot. But even with the best criminal crew ever assembled, Kel's plan looks more like the ultimate long shot, until luck brings a ragged girl named Vin into his life. Like him, she's a half-Skaa orphan, but she's lived a much harsher life. Vin has learned to expect betrayal from everyone she meets, and gotten it. She will have to learn to trust, if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed.

THE WELL OF ASCENSION
The impossible has been accomplished. The Lord Ruler – the man who claimed to be god incarnate and brutally ruled the world for a thousand years – has been vanquished. But Kelsier, the hero who masterminded that triumph, is dead too, and now the awesome task of building a new world has been left to his young protégé, Vin, the former street urchin who is now the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and to the idealistic young nobleman she loves.

As Kelsier's protégé and slayer of the Lord Ruler she is now venerated by a budding new religion, a distinction that makes her intensely uncomfortable. Even more worrying, the mists have begun behaving strangely since the Lord Ruler died, and seem to harbor a strange vaporous entity that haunts her.

Stopping assassins may keep Vin's Mistborn skills sharp, but it's the least of her problems. Luthadel, the largest city of the former empire, doesn't run itself, and Vin and the other members of Kelsier's crew, who lead the revolution, must learn a whole new set of practical and political skills to help. It certainly won't get easier with three armies – one of them composed of ferocious giants – now vying to conquer the city, and no sign of the Lord Ruler's hidden cache of atium, the rarest and most powerful allomantic metal.

As the siege of Luthadel tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.

THE HERO OF AGES
To end the Final Empire and restore freedom, Vin killed the Lord Ruler. But as a result, the Deepness---the lethal form of the ubiquitous mists---is back, along with increasingly heavy ashfalls and ever more powerful earthquakes. Humanity appears to be doomed.

Having escaped death at the climax of The Well of Ascension only by becoming a Mistborn himself, Emperor Elend Venture hopes to find clues left behind by the Lord Ruler that will allow him to save the world. Vin is consumed with guilt at having been tricked into releasing the mystic force known as Ruin from the Well. Ruin wants to end the world, and its near omniscience and ability to warp reality make stopping it seem impossible. She can't even discuss it with Elend lest Ruin learn their plans!

The conclusion of the Mistborn trilogy fulfills all the promise of the first two books. Revelations abound, connections rooted in early chapters of the series click into place, and surprises, as satisfying as they are stunning, blossom like fireworks to dazzle and delight. It all leads up to a finale unmatched for originality and audacity that will leave readers rubbing their eyes in wonder, as if awaking from an amazing dream.

Gunslinger Greed: A Weird Western Tale Now On Wattpad

Well, what the Sam Hill...?

Ah yah, as promised a couple days ago on my blog at WordPress, this here's the new release of Gunslinger Greed, free on Wattpad. Now, Earl C. Wade, gunslinger he is, he ain't for everybody. Ornery cuss. Ill-tempered. Twisted. Dark. Sick. Bad man, though he's not the scariest thing you'll come upon roamin' these pages.

Not by a long sight, mister. Or miss. Misses. What have ya.

C'mon. Welcome to stay as long as ya like. Or don't like. How's your constitution? Can't rightly say the temperature's easy on a body nor the environment, but I can promise you'll be entertained. Might want to keep a bucket handy.

Ya know, case the feelin' comes over ya of needin' ta upchuck.

Click the cover. Should ya dare ta venture on.

New Blog

Recently bit the bullet and became a premium member of WordPress. AM LOVING THE FEATURES.

Stop by if you get the chance.

Words by Calasade

GET A FREE EARLY COPY OF CALASADE: BLOOD ISLE

Calasade: Blood Isle

GET A FREE EARLY COPY OF CALASADE: BLOOD ISLE

Getting the woman can return him the past. Saving the girl stolen will gain him a future. Should he choose one, the other loses everything.

EXCERPT

The question, “Have I bedded you?” pushed for voice. In addition to the embarrassment of having to ask, there was the propensity of learning he had been inside a woman other than his murdered wife. The guilt of gaining that knowledge could send him back down the spiral staircase.

Smarter to avoid cataclysmic subjects. Caderyn nodded to himself. “I think we should learn if any townspeople might recall seeing Indrasena the night of her disappearance. While in Polus you mentioned a painting of her. Might I show it around Floridus?”

“If your arms could stretch so wide,” Jana spat.

“What do you mean?”

“Verum, I had no idea your stupidity reached such depths. Figure out what it is I mean. When you do, invite the townsfolk to come here. Line them up single-file starting at the atrium and continuing here on the lawn and there on the road. Charge admission. People would pay were they told of the art’s sheer lewd size. Or why he had it created. Let each gaze in solitude upon the painting in all its excruciating detail and marvel as I did and do and must and witnessed you doing the same. You shall have more chance of shining light on someone’s recollection should their memories have dimmed. That I rather doubt. No one could possibly forget seeing her.”

The outburst and how Jana had said art, he, and her reeked of jealousy. Caderyn colored green, too, wondering whether Jana’s envy based itself in desiring Lepidus when the proconsul had directed his affections elsewhere. “We need smaller replicates. Are there artists—?”

“Query Lepidus,” she uttered through clenched teeth. “In the tablinum.”

“Jana…” He reached for her arm.

“Dare not touch me unless the touch leads to intimacy.”

His hand dropped.

“I see,” she mumbled. “It is the dance of hither-thither. Please go.”

SUMMARY

Having fallen from noble status, Caderyn Fortis is now a broken man trying to hang onto a semblance of sanity as his addictions to gambling and drink worsen day by day. The grip he has on his last thread of survival is tenuous until he gets an offer that will return to him some respect and buy a better tomorrow. All he has to do is rescue a young woman kidnapped from a proconsul's villa. Caderyn takes on the assignment thinking it rather easy. He never accounted for who took the girl or what falling for Jana might mean not just for himself but all involved.

He learns too late that for every action there is a reaction, and in some cases, the reaction rips asunder lives no less than earthquakes do the ground.

ABOUT CALASADE

Calasade is a Greco-Roman Fantasy world that was in development for over five years. The world of Calasade has enough in common with Ancient Rome and borrows enough from Greek and Roman mythology that it will seem familiar, but also offers plenty of its own lore so that it is something new and different, the latter especially true when the world of Calasade and its tales are compared to Fantasy taking place in worlds based on Medieval Europe. Don't get me wrong. I love Fantasy tropes, but it was of the utmost importance to avoid most of them and come up with something rather unique. Here you will find neither the knight in shining armor nor the never-do-good evil sorcerer. In truth the people of Calasade are not so different than us in that they belong squarely inside the gray box of existence. As such, each and every one is capable of heroic acts one moment and dark ones the next depending on what's at stake and the means available for acquiring their goals.

Thank you for taking the time to check out Calasade: Blood Isle. It is my sincere hope that you join me on an exciting, fresh journey.

ABOUT BLOOD ISLE

Blood Isle is an illustrated novel. While part of a series, it is like all Calasade stories and can be read as a stand-alone. Blood Isle is a mixture of Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, and Paranormal Romance.

A FEW ILLUSTRATIONS

ADVANCED READER COPY DETAILS

An unlimited number of advanced reader copies are available for download for Kindle, EPUB devices, and PDF until the publication date of 05/18/2015. While I will understand if you cannot post your review on that date due to this short notice, I ask that you post your review on Amazon as soon as possible thereafter. The URL for posting the review is listed within the copy you download.

GET YOUR COPY HERE

ARC - Calasade: Blood Isle

Advanced reader copies of Calasade: Blood Isle are now available. It is a Fantasy Paranormal Romance set within the Greco-Roman world of Calasade. Publication is set for 5/18/2015. Due to the short notice reviews don't have to be made on that date, but as soon as possible for you thereafter.

Attend the Goodreads Event to get your copy.

For more information, go to my WordPress Blog.

FREE GRAPHIC NOVEL - CALASADE: WAYWARD

Like Fantasy? Like Horror? How about graphic novels? Better still if you like all three because Calasade: Wayward is available online for free at http://www.authormarkstone.com. The story takes place in the land of Calasade, a Fantasy world based in part on Ancient Rome and a bit of the medieval era.

More information:

https://calasade.wordpress.com/2015/0...

Photoshop CS6: Nondestructive Lighting Tutorial w/ Burn and Masks

Photoshop is perhaps the most powerful graphics tool out there. In this post, we’ll be looking at how to create nondestructive lighting with some burn (darkening) painted in.



Full tutorial is on Wordpress at http://wp.me/p2q1SD-23.

SANTA MARÍA DE ESPAÑA

The weekend before last I witnessed one of the most amazing traditions I’ve ever seen. While I’m not religious by any means, I can still appreciate the beauty and the effort that was put into honoring this particular tradition, especially since my home country, the United States, has no real history. The U.S. is, after all, only two hundred and thirty eight years old; those years taking no more than the blinking of an eye to countries such as Spain, many traditions of which are centuries older than the United States itself.

Here, in the small town of Beas where I reside, they celebrate the appearance of the Virgin every year. This celebration lasts a weekend and entails almost everyone in this small town traveling by foot, horse, or tractor-driven wagon across the countryside to Sotiel Coronada, the region where the Virgin Image is located. To see what occurred left me speechless, so I’ll simply let the pictures and videos speak for the occasion.

What follows before the pictures and videos is the history of this event, translated by Cinta Garcia de la Rosa.

Full blog at http://calasade.wordpress.com/tag/san...

THE HOBBIT 2 REVIEW

Hallo, fellow movie-goers!

My fiancé and I saw The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug last night. When I began watching the Hobbit trilogy I had MANY reservations. First of all, the Hobbit series has a tough act to follow: the Lord of the Rings, which is — in my opinion — the best trilogy to ever be filmed, a veritable modern-day masterpiece. Second of all, as with any book I have read that is made into a movie, I go in knowing the movie can almost never live up to or surpass the book. There is a third and a fourth and a fifth of all, but why bother you with more needless backstory? We need to get to the gist, the main question, which is:

How does The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug rate as a movie?

The rest of the movie review is on my personal blog at: http://authormarkstone.com/Blog.aspx