Austin Dragon's Blog, page 16
April 15, 2015
The Writing “Vacation”
Ah, the Writing “Vacation.” It reminds me of old movies where the writer arrives, settles into some beach bungalow–a cool breeze blowing, the backdrop of a crystal blue ocean, and plants himself in front of typewriter (that thingamagig we used before laptops, and even desktop computers) to immerse himself typing away at his latest novel. I believe a writer should write daily until they get the first draft of their novel at the very least, then it’s the writers preference as to how many drafts and how long it takes to get it to “perfection.”
Well, maybe I can’t get away to Bora Bora in Tahiti or the Caribbean for that beach bungalow, but I can use the locales I have to “get away” for my writer’s vacation. The intrusion of life is normal and so should writing during those intrusions. I just block out an hour, ninety minutes, or two hours do get my daily writing done; more on the weekends. But I need a writing “vacation” this time.
April 4th we sent out all the prizes of our first Amazon Gift Card giveaway of the year, just in time for Easter. I had planned to make a few major announcements this month but…ah, let’s do it next month. For the balance of April, I’m gone on Writer’s Vacation. I’ll enjoy my Los Angeles locales as I work on multiple books (wait ’til you see the covers!)—both old and new series.
Stay tuned for those announcements and don’t forget, The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron is May 1st!
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April 6, 2015
First Blog Tour and Giveaway of 2015–A Great Success!
Hope everyone had a great Easter weekend.
Well, last month was crazy! But it was a good crazy with my “Nice Horrible Things” Blog Tour and $100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway. I want to thank everyone who entered the giveaway. Out of over 10,000 people, we had three winners: Ron G., Lori D., and Amy O. Congratulations!
It was our first giveaway for 2015 and it was a huge success. We also had a Blog Tour at the same time and I want to thank all our Blog Tour hosts and you can still see all the blog stops HERE. We had a lot of fun and look forward to the next one.
The Book Releases.
All this March madness was for the releases of the latest novel in my science fiction After Eden thriller series, Hell’s Menagerie; and for my debut classic horror series, Hollow Blood and, yes it’s out too, The Devil’s Patch (Sleepy Hollow Horrors, Book 1 and 2). Later on, I will combine Hell’s Menagerie with Metal Flesh to release paperback and hardcover print versions; as well as the print versions of the Sleepy Hollow Horrors’ books.
Lots done for the first three months of the year! And welcome to all our latest VIP Readers’ Club members. You couldn’t have joined at a better time.
Remember Hell’s Menagerie and Hollow Blood are 50% off until the end of this month.
Behind the Scenes: Phase II
For those fans of Marvel Comics or those who keep up with entertainment news, Marvel has phases for all its movie releases: from Iron Man, the Hulk, Captain America, the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and into the future with Ant-Man, Black Panther, and the InHumans–I believe up to the year 2020. At first felt that was a bit obsessive until I realized that 2020 is only five years away! (Am I the only one who feels that this is all a bit surreal?)
I am a firm believer in setting ambitious, but realistic goals, professionally or personally (I had a blog post earlier this year on my training to run a marathon). I have my own “phases” for all my new book releases in 2015 and Phase I is done. And Phase III will be ground-shaking, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
What is Phase II? If I were another author, my seven-book futuristic After Eden series would be played out over seven years. However, since I am definitely not the average writer, eighteen months after the release of the first book, Thy Kingdom Fall, the series will be half-way done with the release of Red Halo later this year. The final three books will be released next year.
This series will always hold a special place for me as it was the work that got me to write again after not writing a single word of fiction in over fifteen years. There will plenty of series and other genres, but After Eden will always be the first.
So I created an “introductory” novel to the entire series that I could give away to readers. Phase II will be this novel and I will be revealing the name and cover soon. Stay tuned.
The post First Blog Tour and Giveaway of 2015–A Great Success! appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
March 23, 2015
Cover Reveal and Contest
Just eight days left until the end of our “Nice Horrible Things” Blog Tour and Amazon Gift Card Giveaway, so there’s still time to enter if you haven’t done so. This is our first giveaway of 2015 to celebrate the new releases: my continuing After Eden science fiction series with Hell’s Menagerie, and the debut of my first classic horror mini-series, The Sleepy Hollow Horrors with Hollow Blood (Book 1) and The Devil’s Patch (Book 2).
Blog Tour: Already A Winner
Thanks again to one of our blog tour hosts, Rachel at Bitten By Books. We had an extensive Author Q&A with readers. Also at her blog tour stop, we offered an Amazon Gift Card giveaway prize. The winner was Debbie J! Congratulations, Debbie! Hope you’re enjoying it and your free book.
Just five blog stops to go before March 31st. Full schedule is HERE.
Cover Reveal: The Devil’s Patch
Speaking of The Sleepy Hollow Horrors, the ebook for Hollow Blood became available on March 14th and the print version becomes available March 30th along with the conclusion in Book 2, The Devil’s Patch. And here’s the cover in living color!
The post Cover Reveal and Contest appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
March 12, 2015
Ask the Author
For the blog tour, I’m featuring some of the questions I’ve been receiving from my readers:
Darlene Suber blogs at http://mouseybooks.com/
1) When did you realize that you wanted to write? Answer: I was born a writer. My first book (an illustrated six-page ‘book’ with big letters) was at 3 years old.
2) What made you decide to write thrillers? Answer: I have always like action, but the action doesn’t have to be physical. The action can also be the jousting of great dialogue between characters.
3) In writing Hollow Blood which I have to say is totally pure genius and I am so looking forward to your next one in the series, who did you draw your characters from? Or are they from the actual book itself? Answer: Brom Bones, Katrina, Old Man Van Tassel, Diedrich Knickerbocker, and Hans Van Ripper are characters from the original Washington Irving work. All the others are my own creation.
4) When can we expect the next book out in this series? Or is this a secret? Answer: The Devil’s Patch will be available on March 30th and I’ve been told it’s even better than Hollow Blood.
5) Do you have anything that gets you into the writing mood? Answer: As with any writer, some days are more prolific than others. My basic routine is to write every day until the first draft is done.
6) How can your reader contact you? Follow you? Answer: They can reach me through my website at www.austindragon.com and all my social media channels are there too.
7) Is there anything you would like to share with us today? Answer: My next wave of books will be available in the summer: a mystery/cyberpunk series, another hard science fiction series, and a young adult dystopian series. I’ll be revealing the names and covers in the next few months.
8) Where are your books located so that your readers may purchase them? Answer: http://www.austindragon.com/books-of-author-austin-dragon/
Sophie is making her way through the main After Eden novels, but her serious question applies to all the After Eden books.
Q: I’m past page 200 of Stars & Scorpions now and after reading all the section focusing heavily on the history of the Jewish people and fictional ‘fall’ of Israel you wrote of in such painstaking detail, do you or have you ever worried about extremists who may hear of your writing and take exception to what you’ve written? Especially in today’s politically correct society and in the aftermath of the attack on the offices of ‘Charlie Hebdo’ and with the evil rise of Islamic State/ISIS? I know that writing is all about expression but you have covered such heavy, controversial subjects in the ‘After Eden’ series that I just wondered if it has ever caused you to feel apprehensive at all?
Hi Sophie,
Thanks for the question and I’ll absolutely answer it for you. Firstly, even though it’s the second book of the After Eden Series, I actually wrote it first…back in 2011. I’ve been to Israel myself and have been a strong supporter of the State from since I was a child. The extremists don’t need me or anyone else as an excuse to do evil against Israel or any other nation or religion on the planet. ISIS is a new group but as one of my books pointed out, the first American President to have to deal with Islamic terrorist was Thomas Jefferson. Ironically, they were the catalyst for America’s Navy.
The After Eden series is in many ways a very painful work for me to write. It doesn’t represent what I want to happen. It represents much of what I feel will happen—and I couldn’t be more opposed to it.
As for the Fall of Israel, keep in mind that in the After Eden universe this is directly related to the Fall of Western Europe a few decades earlier. If Israel is in such peril now (and has for its entire existence), imagine what the case will be when the UK, France, and the rest of the EU become Islamic majorities—which happens in less than quarter of a century.
Chris Hooker blogs at http://readingwcats.blogspot.com/
“What type of research did you have to complete to write Hollow Blood since it’s understory is such a famous folk tale? ”
Excellent question because for many stories, the research an author does is so important to getting the “world” right and creating truly authentic characters. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is set during 1790, so there is the life of colonial America and at the center of the Legend itself is the newly fought and won American Revolution against the British. I love history and Hollow Blood (and the conclusion in The Devil’s Patch) allowed me to explore our early American history in way that I probably won’t get a chance to do again, since most of my novels will be set in the future. We see the beginnings of both the expansion of slavery and the growing abolitionist movement, the move of our nation’s capital from Philadelphia to Washington DC, George Washington isn’t in history books but he’s an “average” guy–albeit a revered soldier and our very first president–walking around (no Secret Service back then), and hand-held weapons are nothing more than single-shot muskets (sorry, no machine guns). More importantly, is that all of this and more is behind-the-scenes. It is, after all, a horror story and none of the facts or history gets in the way of this—but then nothing could get in the way of the main protagonist’s quest for the Foul Murderer of Ichabod Crane.
The post Ask the Author appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
March 8, 2015
“Nice Horrible Things” Blog Tour & Amazon Giveaway Contest!
It begins today through March 31st!
Visit. Peruse. Enter. Enjoy.
#AmazonGiftCard #Giveaway #Win
The post “Nice Horrible Things” Blog Tour & Amazon Giveaway Contest! appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
February 28, 2015
He Lived Long and Prospered: Leonard Nimoy, RIP
March 26, 1931 to February 27, 2015 (dies at age 83)
Yesterday we lost “Mr. Spock.” Leonard Nimoy was, of course, much more than that in an acting career that spanned an amazing sixty-four years. He was also a husband, father, grandfather, director, author, poet, singer, songwriter, and photographer. But he will always be best remembered as that pointed-eared, green-blooded Vulcan opposite that unconventional Enterprise captain.
Articles:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2015/02/27/leonard_nimoy_dead
http://www.tmz.com/2015/02/27/leonard-nimoy-dead-star-trek-spock-dies-heart-lung-smoking/
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/leonard-nimoy-dead-at-83/
#LeonardNimoy #StarTrek #Spock #RIPLeonardNimoy
The post He Lived Long and Prospered: Leonard Nimoy, RIP appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
February 16, 2015
Worlds of Science Fiction: After Eden Series Tek-Fall
I may never have written a word of fiction in more than 15 years, but there was never a time that the ideas were not flowing. Why this seven-book series, with at least two companion novels, would ‘force’ me to put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard), I don’t know? It’s a beast. Over seventy years in the future, covering almost forty-years of time, following not just people but groups, immersing the reader in the politics, religion, culture, and technology of this future; and if that isn’t enough, topping it all off with World War III. This is a series you do near the end of a career, not at the beginning.
I’m sure I’m not the only writer who has gone through this, but I was overwhelmed to put it lightly. It was like setting out to create Mount Everest by hand, pebble by pebble. One of the reasons I structured the books as I did, at least for the first few–one book with two distinct, but complementary sections–was for my own mind to be able to wrap itself around a million moving parts.
The best way to describe this science fiction thriller is cerebral. It will entertain you, make you chuckle a few times, but you have to pay attention, and it will make you think. The first book (Thy Kingdom Fall) also had the added burden of having to set the foundation for all six subsequent books.
Here’s some insight on the books that I have never shared before:
Volume I: The Resistance
Book 1: Sections 1 and 2
Book 2: Sections 1 and 2
Book 3: Section 2
Book 4: Sections 1 and 2
Volume II: Foundations of WWW III
Book 3: Section 1
Tek-Fall: Metal Flesh and Hell’s Menagerie
(Another companion novel)
Book 5: Sections 1
Volume III: WWW III
Book 5: Section 2
Book 6
Book 7
Tek-Fall
The reason I created the novellas, Metal Flesh (Episode I) and Hell’s Menagerie (Episode II) was not to give additional insight into the story line, spend more time with characters we liked, or foreshadow more things to come in the days of the future World War III—all which it does splendidly. Honestly, it was to create a two-book series so that I could give away for a crowdfunding campaign I was planning to do.
So marketing considerations was the catalyst to artistic endeavors. I doubt it will be the last time, but the Tek-Fall series is important in two very important regards:
1) Test Drive the Series. It’s an excellent way to introduce new readers to the After Eden Series. Maybe, they don’t want to take a chance on a seven-book series, with the first book being over 400 pages (paperback). Maybe, they’re unsure of how religious it is or how political it is. They need a little bit more of an inducement. A 100-page novella is an excellent option for a reader to be able to try out the series to see if they like it before investing the time in the entire series. For those already immersed in the Series, it is an extra treat to see previous characters again and see other plots unfold.
2) Explore Other Themes. Metal Flesh explores the concept of “living” robots—or at least that’s what they call their next-generation of autonomous, quantum robots, and Hell’s Menagerie explores “man-made” monsters. Advanced robotics, genetic engineering and manipulation, and cloning all take center stage.
The Tek-Fall duology takes place before the events of Rising Leviathan (Book #3). Also, they may be novellas of 100 pages each (combined together in the Tek-Fall novel) and meant to be a fun read, but we know that what takes place will have dramatic ramifications when World War III explodes three decades later.
One side-note: A reader asked me: “Won’t key characters be too old.” The series takes place seventy, eighty, almost a century in the future—the human lifespan will be much longer—for many, living into the “three digits” will be the norm. As one character joked in Book #1, “ninety is the new fifties.”
However, sadly, none of that will matter when their first, great Tek-war ravages the world.
The cover of the combined Tek-Fall series novel will be revealed next month in March.
Hell’s Menagerie is available for Pre-Order now. Both Hell’s Menagerie (Episode II) and Tek-Fall will be on sale 3.30.15. Metal Flesh (Episode I) is available now or you can currently get for free by joining my VIP Readers’ Club.
#AfterEdenSeries #ScienceFiction #Ebook #Preorder
The post Worlds of Science Fiction: After Eden Series Tek-Fall appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
February 9, 2015
Worlds of Horror: Sleepy Hollow Horrors
As I once stated in an earlier blog post, I like horror, but most horror today is…crap. Silly, stupid, and gratuitously gruesome are the three normal categories they fall into. In film, I have to go back to the 1970s and 1980s for ‘classics.’ In books, for example, Stephen King is a favorite, but I still think I like his earlier work better.
So back in 2013, I decided that I’d try my hand at writing in the genre. For anyone who has read my science fiction After Eden Series, I already have elements of horror (and mystery)—in addition to other genres I will be debuting this year.
For my first horror novel, I decided not to create something new, but to go back 30 years to a short story I wrote as a child of a favorite tale—The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I probably was more influenced by the 1949 Disney movie short, than the original Washington Irving book, but I read it and I clearly had read it before, back then.
My short story was surprisingly close to my 2013-2014 outline. The Sleepy Hollow Horrors duology is in four parts. My childhood short story only had the first, but the main thrust of the story was the same and so was the main character.
Julian Crane
(Note: there will be spoilers in this section!) Hollow Blood takes place ten years after the disappearance–and presumed murder–of Ichabod Crane by the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow. Not only did the town’s sole schoolmaster vanish from the Earth, but in my story, so did the Horseman.
A stranger rides into town claiming to be the representative of a wealthy businessman’s estate with the task of finding out the whereabouts of Ichabod Crane—and anyone who can help him with his quest will be handsomely compensated.
It is all a ruse. The stranger is actually Julian Crane, a US Marshal, and the nephew of the late Ichabod Crane. He’s not in Sleepy Hollow to hand out money for information—he knows his uncle is dead, but cold revenge. He’s there to hunt down and kill the “foul murderer of his uncle, Ichabod Crane.” He is even is certain who it is—but he is terribly wrong.
Originally, it was only one book that I had planned to release in October 2014, but I waited. I’m glad I did because I felt that there was a whole section I was leaving out. Splitting the book in two and expanding the second book to create The Devil’s Patch, proved that my instincts were right. I created a much better work.
Besides creating a very entertaining story, I had three aims with this two-book series:
1) Maintain the spirit of the original Washington Irving work. Clearly a 2015 version of an 1820 book is going to be updated—something Irving could have appreciated having also written the short story Rip Van Winkle—we’re in the future. He wrote a short story so I shouldn’t be writing some six hundred-page opus.
2) Keep it for general audiences. It was after all a Disney movie that the kids could go to and enjoy. It shouldn’t be some gratuitously violent, tortuous crap that passes for modern horror entertainment–not that I ever plan to write something like that.
3) Deliver a genuine work of horror. There’s violence and there’s a lot creepiness. But the horror is also the atmosphere of the world Julian enters every bit as much as his encounter with the Horseman. It’s the ever-present feeling that invisible forces of darkness are following him (and others) in his quest for the “foul murderer” of his uncle. There are strange happenings and inexplicable occurrences all along the way.
The other thing I so enjoy about being an author is working with great artists. The cover of Hollow Blood is simple, sharp and conveys that overall foreboding of evil. What’s Julian at? Answer: The thing on the cover of the second book, of course.
Cover Reveal of The Devil’s Patch next month in March.
Hollow Blood is available for Pre-Order now. Both books of my Sleepy Hollow Horrors duology will be on sale 3.30.15.
#SleepyHollow #Horror #Ebook #Preorder
The post Worlds of Horror: Sleepy Hollow Horrors appeared first on Official Website of Author Austin Dragon.
February 5, 2015
Cover Reveals and Pre-Orders
I began my latest incarnation as a writer back in 2012 after not writing a word of fiction for more than 15 years! It all started out as an item on my “New Year’s List,” wherein I pick a few new things that I will do that year. In 2012, one of the items was to write and publish a full novel. Little did I know, that it would unleash an avalanche of creativity that I am still completely in awe of. To be very clear, I am in awe of the talent, not me. I take no credit for it; other than to say I was born with it. In 2013, I did publish that novel. In 2014, I published three novels (but I actually wrote another two that I’m finally releasing next month). In 2015, I will be releasing at least six new novels, including new books in my After Eden sci-fi series and introducing new series and genres.
The publishing industry is in a state of flux and the only thing can say about it with certainty is that it will remain that way for some time. Traditional publishing has fallen a bit with the Big 6 (including the major book chains) trying to hold on to their “glory days.” Then you have the rise of Self-Publishing and independent authors.
You have the anti-self-publishing traditional publishers now trying to get in on the action by creating platforms to work with self-published authors. You have anti-traditional independents more than willing to cross over to the “dark side” (their words) and sign with a traditional publishing house. We even have hybrid authors now who publish one series with a traditional publisher and self-publish another.
Strangely, I have become my own best experiment on this new publishing landscape. In the old days, an author only one book release a year—hardcover first, paperback about six months later, and there was no such thing as ebooks. We have some authors saying they need two book releases to stay afloat. We have some authors who only release their books digitally as ebooks, completely abandoning print and bookstore altogether. We have the separate worlds of fiction writing versus nonfiction writing.
Before if you were a sci-fi author, a horror author, or fantasy author, then that is what you were as an author—period. Traditional publishers wouldn’t allow you to publish outside of your “brand.” If you did mystery, they wouldn’t want to hear about your fantasy trilogy.
I didn’t set out to do what I’m doing now as an author. Again, it was just supposed to be one book—write it, publish it, and check it off my annual “New Years’ List” for 2013.
Last fall, I updated my author website to move away from solely my After Eden series to “Thrillers in All Time and Space” listing other genres too. In 2015, I will release much more than just sci-fi, though most of my work will probably be science fiction. From an artistic standpoint, my creative energy is being allowed to run as wild as it wants to. From a business standpoint, we will see how this all shakes out in terms of readership. Again, I have evolved into a one-man writing machine—even I have wondered if I’m an android or “is this my super power.”
However, the other thing I’m anxious to do is help other authors. I’ve done training and speaking before in the corporate world and after this little experiment of mine, it would be great to share what I’ve learned. I very much would like to “give back” to my new Fellowship of Writers that I am now a member of. But that’s next year. Let’s focus on all the writing fun for 2015.
Latest Releases available for Pre-Order on Amazon and Kobo now.
Release Date: 3.30.15
Upcoming Blog Posts: The World of Sleepy Hollow. The World of After Eden.
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January 26, 2015
Featured: Upcoming New Release in Horror (The Sleepy Hollow Horrors)
I always loved the story of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow as a kid. Many will think I wrote this novel because of the American television series Sleepy Hollow. Actually it’s based on my own short-story written about thirty years ago. (Wow, being able to say that I did something “thirty years ago” is almost scarier than the book.)
The original story I wrote, back then, began and ended with what is now the first of four parts of my current version. The main character comes to Sleepy Hollow ten years after the ‘disappearance’ of Ichabod Crane—to find his murderer.
I like horror, but as I wrote in previous posts most of the horror today is crap. This is even more so when it comes to television and movies. The classics of horror—The Exorcist, The Shining, you have to include Alien (more horror than sci-fi), etc.—we have to go back a few decades. When horror works, it works brilliantly.
Most of my work will be science fiction, but for my foray into horror, I’m going to write the horror I’d like to read and see on the big screen. Violence is a given, but not the gratuitous torture horror, slasher-horror, or super-human serial killers. Not interested. Scary is good. Shocking you is good. Creepy in a good way is…good. The Sleepy Hollow Horrors have all of that and more.
Check back on February 1st for the Cover Reveal
Note: The conclusion of Hollow Blood will also be released the same day–The Devil’s Patch (Book 2). Both new titles will be available for Pre-order on February 1st. Release Day is March 30, 2015.
#SleepyHollow #Horror
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