R.A. McCandless's Blog, page 5

Riverside Dickens Festival & You & Me

Not to scale!
As I vaguely vagued to y’all about ten days ago, I’m doing a thing. I signed the contract yesterday to have a vendor booth at the Riverside Dickens Fest—25 Years of Wit and Wisdom. (Please Note: No actual wit or wisdom was harmed in the making of this festival.) Here are the details:
Where:Downtown Riverside
When:Saturday, February 22nd & Sunday, February 23rd
What:Selling and Signing books, talking about books, and reading books
Which Books: The Clockwork Detective, Tears...

Short-Listed!

I'm sure he died of natural causes!
Helluva weekend, folks!
The big news today is that THE CLOCKWORK DETECTIVE was shortlisted by Chanticleer International Book Awards for the OZMA, “. . . emerging talent and outstanding works in the genre of Fantasy Fiction.” You may recall that previously, the novel survived the slush pile to move into the long list. 
I actually held my breath when I started scrolling through.
The next stage is semi-finals, so fingers crossed for that.
In the meantime, I’ve...

ENMU Graduate, Award-Winning Author Discusses 20 Years of Writing

Clues everywhere!
Last week, I received a request for an interview from my alma mater. They saw the blurb that went out about me in the alumni magazine.
RobRoy McCandless, who received a Bachelor of Science in Speech Communication from Eastern New Mexico University in 1996, has been a writer for over 20 years and published his fourth novel, "The Clockwork Detective," last spring.
The award-winning author, who was a 2015 EPIC eBook finalist and winner of the 2014 Best Science Fiction and...

Something for Everyone—Hopefully!

"Necromancer" by vityso
As promised last week, here’s an update on all the projects that will hopefully release in 2020:
The Clockwork Detective audio book—For all those who have been asking for this, I’m working with the award-winning Joanna Teljuer to bring Constable Aubrey Hartmann to life.
Relics of Purgatory—Marrin fans get their very own standalone adventure in this post-COMPANY OF THE DAMNED tale with our favorite seven-foot tall Nordic drink of water.
Beneath a Fearful Moon—This free—yes,...

Clean Shirt, Clean Shoes

And I don't know where I am goin' to!
Stay tuned for some interesting news regarding the many and various projects coming out this year, and events that I’m going to be attending. 2020 is shaping up to be pretty spectacular.
Speaking of events, I’m super-duper excited by the purchase I just made from SteamEraProduction. Appropriately, they're located in the UK! I'll use this for steampunk/Victorian-themed conventions, readings, and whatnot (see picture). I’ve had my eye on this outfit for some...

Not Today, Pal!

You can have my steampunk when you pry it from my cold dead hands!
Of course, once you’ve done that, you’re gonna wanna read it, and the next thing you know you’re buying your first pair of goggles to put on a bowler hat, and you’re wearing a pocketwatch/time machine.
So really, steampunk will never die.
That said, I did make this article, Year in Review: Steampunk in the News about the winnings and failings of the steampunk world:
BOOKS• The Clockwork Detective , the first book in the Constable...

Aubrey Speaks Out!

It's pronounced "wrench" you cretin!
We've known each other for a while now and I think we both feel a deeper connection. I think we're ready to take this to the next level, and dive into how the metric system to works.
Or maybe I just update you on the latest and greatest for THE CLOCKWORK DETECTIVE:
Aubrey, and all her friends, frenemies, nemeses (plural of nemesis—I had to look it up), and flat out enemies will all soon have a voice. That voice comes in the form of the very talented and...

Five Bucks!

Carefully numbered for your convenience!
Welcome to 2020, where all the technological advances Hollywood ever promised have finally been delivered.
You want a flying car?  We’ve got your flying car right here!
You want a wearable computer/phone that helps monitor your health? Tech on your wrist is ready to go!
You want to take a trip into space. Book your flights now!
In celebration of the Roaring 2020s, I’m cleaning out my stock of books to make room for more. Ok, ok. I’m not making room for...

Deborah J. Ross Review and Interview

Deborah J. Ross reviewed THE CLOCKWORK DETECTIVE and apparently liked it:


The last couple of years have brought a slew of wonderful steampunk adventures with resourceful, kick-ass heroines, and this one by McCandless is a worthy addition. Aubrey Hartmann is a veteran of recent war, having lost the lower part of one leg, and now works as a constable. Her prosthetic is a clockwork device that needs to be rewound regularly and isn’t a perfect fit but does keep her mobile, if in pain. As a result,...

Ringing Out 2019

Did someone say "steampunk"?Happy Holidays! Seasons Greetings! All that Jazz!
I received an early present from Chanticleer OZMA Book Awards that I wanted to share with everyone. It won’t spoil your festivities!
In the award category for Fantasy Fiction (there’s a sub category for steampunk) THE CLOCKWORK DETECTIVEhas made the first cut. I'm out of the "slush pile" and in the running for a major award.
A MAJOR award!
It’s not winning, but after a couple of months of riding the author roller...