Brett Armstrong's Blog, page 4

TOMORROW’S EDGE TUESDAY: NEW LOOK

Hello there!

First off, Happy Pi Day to all my fellow math nerds! (For those who aren’t, 3/14 goes with 3.14 which are the first digits of the constant pi, which is the ratio of the circumference of the circle to the diameter and appears all over nature).

That said, I don’t want to scare anyone, but this is my second Tomorrow’s Edge Tuesday post in a row! There’s no major news like the last couple posts, but I do want to share something quickly.

When the previous publisher for the Tomorrow’s Edge series closed, the rights to the book covers reverted to the cover designer. That meant not only did the books need new covers but the logos I had been using for both Project Alexandria and MetaDonia suddenly were off limits too. I had used the logos on pretty much every bit of my custom promotional graphics over the years, which means if I want to post anything related to the series going forward I would need new ones. The logos made by the cover artist were interpretations of logos mentioned in the book so that left me free to make my own…and…well…here they are!

PROJECT ALEXANDRIA LOGO

BEFORE AFTER

METADONIA LOGO

BEFORE AFTER

The newer ones are of course closer to what I had always imagined, since I’m the writer, but the originals will always have a special place in my heart. That being said there’s one more logo still to come, this time for the new organization that is featured in Book 3, THE BABEL INITIATIVE. I’m hoping to share it with everyone soon, but till then, what do you think of these remakes?

QUEST OF FIRE FRIDAY: THE NAME GAME

Hello there! Welcome to the first Quest of Fire Friday in quite some time. As I mentioned in my last post, things have been kind of busy for me and I regrettably couldn’t keep up with posting. I’m still not sure how consistently I’ll be able to now, but I do want to share updates and lore as I’m able. I have a couple cool things I’d like to talk about today. The first is that I’m deep into writing the next Quest of Fire novel, Resurgence at Dawn. Because of the delay in completing Silent Stars for the Tomorrow’s Edge series, the release of Resurgence at Dawn got pushed back to 12/12/2023. I’m sorry for the delay, but the benefit the extra time has made and is making for both books is really worth it. Hopefully, I’ll have some sketches of scenes from Resurgence at Dawn to share soon.

The next thing is I’m opening up the opportunity to help choose a character name for Resurgence at Dawn. This time the character is for a race in the series that has been alluded to before but is finally making an in story appearance for the first time: elves. The elf in question lends some much-needed aid to a protagonist. Here’s a quick sketch I made of how he looks in my imagining.

As you can tell he’s got a warrior nature and some style callbacks to Lord of the Rings. Unlike LotR, elves in Quest of Fire aren’t bound to a humanoid form. They can blend into fire, kind of like the Sombra in the series do shadows. They also can shape-shift to a degree, so the human-like appearance is the one most commonly seen by people of the Lowlands but not necessarily their “true” form. That all being said, here are the names I was considering for this fairly important elf:

So, what do you think? Feel free to vote here and on my other social media platforms. Thank you for being patient with the delay, hanging with me as I explore the Lowlands, and the encouragement you give me from reading what the Lord guides me to write (even though I still don’t do His inspiration justice).

Have a hale evening and may the Lord bless and be with you always.

TOMORROW’S EDGE TUESDAY – COMING SOON

It has definitely been a bit since my last post. For those who follow my social media accounts, you know I first broke silence last week when the novella I submitted for The Near Distant novella collection was announced to be a finalist for a Selah Award this year! I had planned to share that day what I have today, but that news definitely took precedence. If you haven’t yet, go check out the new The Near Distant page on this site:

THE NEAR DISTANT

It has some info about the collection and the novella I submitted, plus links to read the prologue and first chapter of each novella in the collection for free.

That being said, on to my delayed big news… at the end of February, I submitted the manuscript for the final book in the Tomorrow’s Edge series to the publisher! For those of you who have been reading and waiting ever since the release of Day Moon—the story of digital deceit and the quest to restore the truth played out against a deceptively tranquil near future dystopian backdrop—it’s coming to its conclusion! And what a conclusion it turned out to be. The series is filled with twists and turns, betrayals, and an engrossing look at a world not so different from our own. This entry lives up to its predecessors and has some surprises that have been waiting in the wings since Book 1 and completes the arcs for the major characters. It also includes culmination of the thematic meaning embedded in the series title, Tomorrow’s Edge, along with some heart-wrenching moments.

Not to leave everyone on a cliff, but it also represents the answer to a question that I’ve pondered as a writer for a long time: Can a dystopian story have a happy ending? It’s something I’ve struggled with as I came to love the characters and series. I can’t look up at the sky and see the moon in the day without feeling the call to return to the story world of Day Moon, Veiled Sun, and, now, Silent Stars. But at the same time, does a dystopian story resonate the same way if everything turns out okay in the end?  

There will be more info coming soon, along with a cover reveal, but I do have one other unfortunate bit of news to give now. Originally the release was planned for July 4, 2023. Because it took longer than planned to finish the book, it’s now set to come out Tuesday, September 26, 2023. Still this year, but two months later. I hope you find it worth the wait and the story as deep and rich and sweeping and challenging and encouraging as I did while writing it.

For those new to the series, here are some links to check out the first two entries in Tomorrow’s Edge and read their first chapters free:

DAY MOON

VEILED SUN

For those who have hung with me the whole time. As I mentioned, more is to come along with some special things for those who have enjoyed the series most.

And for everyone who has read this far, thank you for stopping by, and may the Lord bless and be with always.

THE NEAR DISTANT – RELEASE DAY

Hello there, it’s been a bit since I’ve posted with any consistency and part of it has been I’ve been extra busy of late on some projects. One of which was doing a final review for my contribution to this: The Near Distant.

I haven’t mentioned it much because of all the other things going on late this year for me and then prepping for next year (I seriously need prayers to meet all my deadlines), but I absolutely have to make a huge deal of this now:

Because it’s releasing today!Because it’s a novella collection with the other entries by two incredible authors I got to work withBecause this is one of my favorite things I’ve ever writtenBecause this is vying for the most ambitious thing I’ve ever written

So, items 1-3 probably need no additional explanation, though I will mention that C Kevin Thompson is a Selah Award winning author and Erin Howard is also an acquisitions editor for my publisher Expanse Books who happened to be the one to first say yes to Quest of Fire.

So, my #4. The Near Distant features three stories of college students searching for the mysterious and finding themselves on harrowing journeys in other worlds that will challenge and shape them and leave them with a new understanding of what home means to them. A common prologue sets all three characters off onto the adventure of his or her respective novella. In By Far and Away, my character Tyler has spent years trapped on the planet he’s arrived on. He’s given up hope of getting home and living among a race of super advanced aliens who’s lives are dictated by a super AI, he is barely struggling through each day. That is until he uncovers something sinister that threatens not only the world he’s trapped on, but Earth as well.

It’s a pretty ambitious story. It’s got a world-level threat to face, a novel take on the portal story genre, my first foray into space-based sci-fi, and is a reflection of the Biblical Book of Esther. All in less than 30,000 words. Like I said, ambitious. I’ve loved writing this story and think you will too. The best part is that the novella is complemented by two other incredible stories that visit other worlds and should thrill and excite all while pondering the very intrinsic question of “Where do I belong?”

I’m nervous, excited, and hopeful to be sharing this with everyone. I hope The Near Distant engages, entertains, and resonates as deeply with you as it did with me. You can use the links below to preview the prologue and each first novella’s first chapter for free or jump straight to the Amazon page:

PROLOGUE BY FAR AND AWAY – CHAPTER 1 EYE OF THE BEHOLDER – CHAPTER 1 UNDER THE STARS – CHAPTER 1 GET YOUR COPY NOW!

QUEST OF FIRE: DESPERATION BLOG TOUR

In the US it’s Election Day, but a far less contentious happening today is the start to Quest of Fire: Desperation‘s blog tour with Just Read Publicity! It’s always an honor be on tour with the great team and bloggers with Just Read and from now until November 12th there will be spotlights, interviews, and reviews for the latest Quest of Fire entry. Today, there was an especially cool review on Blooming with Books. This deep into a series you really hope readers are invested in the story and want to see where it heads next. That’s the sense I carried from this review and it was super encouraging.

In addition to the tour stops, there’s a really cool giveaway for those who join in on the tour. Along the way if you have any questions about the series and especially about what Desperation is like, feel free to comment here or on the individual tour stops and I’ll be happy to give my–spoiler free–answers. For those who haven’t yet, now is a great time to JOIN THE QUEST OF FIRE!

TOUR STOPS

Launch Page at JustRead

November 8
Blooming with Books
FINCHNWREN
Heidi Reads…

November 9
Lisa’s Reading
The Lost Review Of Odd Books
The Adventures of a Travelers Wife

November 10
Books Less Travelled
The Caffeinated Bibliophile
Hallie Reads

November 11
Library Lady’s Kid LIt
A Modern Day Fairy Tale

November 12
Happily Managing A Household of Boys
Woven by Words
Reading Is My SuperPower

TOMORROW’S EDGE TUESDAY: RELEASE DAY

Today is a pretty special day! Veiled Sun is re-releasing today and it feels fantastic getting to hold it in my hands again.

When the publisher for Tomorrow’s Edge closed earlier this year, I was especially sad because Veiled Sun had only released in January 2020. With how intense work was during the pandemic’s peak, it didn’t (and still doesn’t) even feel like it had been two years.

I feel really guilty about how little I did to get out word for this book. But I was so swamped during that time period; some days getting up, starting work, finishing work, and going back to bed with almost nothing in between. The amount of effort and time for marketing this book is definitely inversely proportional to how much it means to me.

It’s really ironic that I got to work so little on spreading word about it, because I definitely put in a lot of work on edits and trying to make it everything the Lord laid on my heart. In fact, I discovered what an ocular migraine is from working late into the early morning hours to complete the edits for it. Veiled Sun has been called a “rollercoaster ride” and a “heart-stopping adventure from start to finish”. It’s filled with “romance”, “suspense”, “adventure”, and left one reader with a summary of “Wow.”

But most important, readers also caught on that in the midst of plot twists and Shakespearean betrayals is the steady reminder that “God is always near.” Perseverance amidst great suffering and strife is central to the story and how Elliott clings to his faith to survive all the storms that come his way really makes the story something more than just another dystopian novel.

I don’t normally gush about the things I write like this, but I really feel blessed that the Lord gave me this story. If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll give Veiled Sun a chance and find it as touching and impactful an adventure as while reading it as I did writing it.

SNAG A COPY

READ A SAMPLE

TOMORROW’S EDGE TUESDAY: VEILED SUN

I seem to be doing a great job of releasing my posts right on the edge of being past their special day. In this instance I can somewhat blame a cold that has just descended on me for being behind. I almost didn’t post, but I have to because I got the fantastic news that the re-release of Book 2 in the Tomorrow’s Edge series, Veiled Sun, is live for preorder now! It still doesn’t quite feel real that the Tomorrow’s Edge series slipped out of print and is already almost back. Better than that, the manuscript for the final installment is quickly coming to completion, so soon, Lord willing, the entire series will be complete!

It’s been a long journey and I definitely didn’t expect all of the ups and downs along the way. God has been immeasurably good to me along the way. I’ve had opportunities to teach a workshop about world-building in dystopian fiction at the WV Book Festival (a dream of mine), had an article about Day Moon in WVU’s Daily Athenaeum (the school where I first began dreaming of the book), and met some great readers whose feedback on the books so far have been invaluable encouragement along the bumpy road of publishing. My wife reminded me recently it’s important to remember how far you’ve come. At the same time, the Apostle Paul exhorts us to have the same mindset as he did in the faith and to:

“press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14, ESV)

So, I’m going to try to take that to heart and never stop following Christ and pressing forward, and as I do remember all the many blessings that He’s lavished on me along the way. I suspect some days it will be easier than others and sometimes the future seems bleak, but much like Elliott in Tomorrow’s Edge, there is not other path I’d rather be on and life apart from Christ feels like existence rather than living. Which makes sense, because Christ came that we “may have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10b, ESV)

With that in mind, I present one of the many blessings of my life, the new edition of Veiled Sun, the 2021 Selah Finalist in Speculative Fiction:

AD 2040: Every day the world slips further into lies.

Seventeen-year-old Elliott knows that better than most. Project Alexandria is rewriting history, shaping the world according to sinister goals. To stop it, Elliott must assemble the “Veiled Sun”, a secret program written by his grandfather. The only people he can count on are siegers–outlaws who use their coding skills for purposes almost as nefarious as Project Alexandria. Overcoming the schemes and betrayals all around him, he’s the world’s best hope to save reality, if he doesn’t lose hold of it himself.

For everyone who pre-orders a copy and messages me with an address to send it to, I’ll send a signed bookplate along with a thank you message. I don’t tend to hype the things I write, but Veiled Sun is definitely an exciting roller coaster read and worth checking out!

SNAG A COPY

NEXT UP:

Be sure to check in next Tuesday for a special event… Day Moon‘s story begins on Tuesday, October 4, 2039, so I’ll be celebrating the next Tomorrow’s Edge Tuesday as DAY MOON DAY! There will be some special things going on and prizes to win, so come check it out!

QUEST OF FIRE FRIDAY: LORE – STORMRIDGE

Good evening!

      It’s late on this Quest of Fire Friday, so thank you for joining me. Recently I’ve been talking about the newest Quest of Fire release, Desperation, but today I wanted to dive back into the lore of the Lowlands. Every time I start to root through the annals of the Lowlands history I discover so much. This time I was investigating Stormridge, a city of ENORMOUS importance to the Quest of Fire series. Here are some stats and hints at both stories told and those to come in the series so, I hope you’ll enjoy diving into this with me.

STORMRIDGE

Inset Map of Northwestern Lowlands, Middle Era

Founded: 2160 Ancient Era (small settlement), 1300 Middle Era (when Ordumair II rescued it)

Population: 1.2 million (1605 Middle Era)

Political Affiliation: Capitol of Stormridge County, Libertias

Economy: Rare mineral and metals exports, textiles, luxury goods, weapons, and early machinery

History:

Like much of the Northwestern Lowlands, the history of Stormridge before the Middle Era is somewhat murky. It began as a small village at the foothills of the Iomvaire Mountains, founded by early explorers from Tyreenes during the late Ancient Era but was abandoned until well into the Middle Era because of wyverns which nested in the mountain range nearby. The place was known then as Bailewyvern and retained the name for centuries. At some point during the dark period in its history witches inculcated in the arts of Tislatna’s cults came to reside in the boggy microclimate north of the mountains. There they used the naturally occurring and rare carmine berries to produce their elixirs and potions for their dark arts.

Unaware of their presence, a group of Ecthel explorers created a semi-permanent settlement deeper in the mountains. After discovering iron deposits and an abundance of game in the mountains nearby, a permanent town was chartered by Ecthelowall. By 1165 Middle Era the town had about 100 residents.

However, the witches north in Carmine Glades became aware of the town after a small hunting party stumbled on the bogs. Using their potions, they turned the hunting party into carrion. Victims had no control over their wits or actions beyond fulfilling the commands of the witches. They seemed impervious to pain and relentlessly battled on behalf of the witches. The witches descended upon the town.

Surrendering to the witches’ rule, Bailewyvern’s people were tortured and exploited in cruel and despicable ways for nearly a hundred years, their first glimpse of relief came when a band of Knights of Light from Ecthelowall came upon the town. The Knights drove out the witches for a time, but eventually the Knights had to depart. Even so, the experience was a breath of fresh air to the people of the town and ever after that they had at least one Knight among their own number who could help hold the curse of the witches at bay. This tenuous balance on the edge of chaos continued until 1300 Middle Era when Thane Ordumair II, ruler of the dwarfs of Ordumair and Knight of Light came across Stormridge on his route back to Ordumair after his long, brutal campaign against Ecthelowall.

The Thane heard the townspeople’s plight and brashly acted against the counsel of his fellow Knights of Light and stormed the witches’ enclave at Carmine Glades. There he slaughtered every last one of the witches and then continued on his way homeward.

What he didn’t know was one witch before dying conferred a dread curse upon her son and entrusted him a portion of the ancient Tislatnean spells. The son escaped to plot his revenge and deepen with his own dark, twisted schemes for the Lowlands.

With the wyverns and witches gone, the small town of Bailewyvern renamed itself Stormridge and began mining the mountains. In addition to iron, deposits of gold, tin, copper, gypsum, quartz, and marble were found. Positioned between the capitals of the budding Vogteremark and Rehalcy, the town became a city of great prominence and an enormous trade hub. When the war of independence from Ecthelowall began among the colonial counties, Stormridge joined and supplied a steady stream of cash and goods to the armies which ultimately allowed the Ecthel colonies to succeed and form Libertias. Preeminent among Libertian counties, Stormridge continued to thrive and grow so that by the 1600’s of the Middle Era it was perhaps the largest city in the Lowlands.

The county seemed poised for still greater things when its enormously popular count, Eidolon, came to power. The first non-noble born to hold the title, he furthered his prestige by marrying Fiona, the aging Count Rylant of Falconcleft’s daughter. The combined power of the allied counties surpassed that of the rest of Libertias collectively. The Vogteremark to the north was starting to shown signs of weakness, offering potential for conquests and northerly expansion. Still untapped riches lay within the mountains that surrounded Stormridge and as a hub of learning, innovation, and culture, no heights seemed to high for it to soar to, higher even than famed Tislatna dared.

But then disaster struck. Accounts differ and historians are divided on what the proper sequence of events leading to its cataclysmic destruction (read Shadows at Nightfall for a description of what transpired). What is known for certain is that within a span of days the entire city of Stormridge was destroyed. It’s supporting villages and operations ground to a halt and disbanded. Some fleeing in fear of a curse that was blamed. Others because of the sudden war that erupted between Ecthelowall and Libertias. The outcome of which ensured that decades passed without

Stormridge seeing a single person’s return. Centuries went by and still none have dared to tread the ruined grounds of Stormridge again. The storms for which it got its name seem to have grown too fierce and the rains too heavy to make even crossing past it to reach its mines feasible. In time other great cities arose and alternate routes of trade and abundant caches of resources replaced the need for Stormridge’s wealth. And so, it sits, abandoned, a gigantic scar on the Lowlands history and landscape. It’s secrets and dangers hidden until discovered in 350 Modern Era, by one who would use the relics of its dark past for sinister ends.

I hope you enjoyed reading about the history of Stormridge. There’s still more to discover for this troubled town which will be revealed in due time. For now, here’s some pictures of real world places that remind me of aspects of Stormridge and of course some sketches from Shadows at Nightfall of scenes which take place there:

QUEST OF FIRE FRIDAY: DESPERATION

Desperation has been out for three days. Years of walking the solitary paths of Ecthelowall and the Isle of Geists and now I get to share them with others! It’s an incredible blessing. One I certainly don’t deserve and requires immeasurable patience and loving kindness from the Lord (I’m a fairly coarse and stubborn brush for Him to use).

The idea for Desperation started from two images that became key scenes for the book back while I was still editing The Gathering Dark. The first was from a free sketch I made of some warriors on a battlefield. The more I drew the clearer it became the battle had gone terribly for the warriors in the picture. I already knew it was the good guys who were on the losing end and that it was in the Quest of Fire world, but when had it happened and why? Well, the answers are now in the first three chapters of Desperation.

Next came the very striking mental image of a young boy and girl standing on the rocky coast of an island. The scene was very grey with heavy fog and both of the children were clearly worse for wear. A dark shape approached through the mist and turned out to be a boat with help onboard. The children were the only survivors on the island of something terrible.

By now you can probably guess Desperation has some darkness to it. I will say that it was pretty close to Shakespearean tragedy on its first drafts, but as I worked on the story and the characters developed more a resonant chord of hopefulness rose up amidst the dark and I think that characterizes the series theme of hope carrying the characters through the darkest hours of their lives.

I’ve shared this before, but here’s a little about the book:

Guarding his nation’s last hope, a teen must escape enemy lands.
While Anargen, Caeserus, and Bertinand are held captive in Stormridge, the war to restore Ecthelowall’s Commonwealth has been waged for months. Their friend Terrillian is on its frontline and hopes are high.

For Barons Fenwrest and Sornfold the fight is too close to their children, whose union represents the only viable challenge to the Monarchists claim to Ecthelowall’s ancient throne. Enter Thomas Fenwrest, an orphan and page to Sir Hurstwell, who is captain of Baron Fenwrest’s guard. The pair must escort the teens to Castle Yerst expecting boredom to be their only danger. Everything quickly spirals out of control when the Monarchists somehow deliver a devastating blow to the Restoration army and Thomas and Sir Hurstwell face the increasingly difficult task of keeping their charges alive. Ancient sorcery and bitter grudges combine to ensnare them. As desperation sets in for the Restoration and Thomas, to where will they turn for hope?

In the free time I had leading up to release I drew some pictures of the main characters. I had to after they all became some of my favorites I’ve ever worked with. So, here are Thomas vs. an Emeralan captain; Mia, Delia, Gregor; and Thelxipeia:

TOMORROW’S EDGE TUESDAY: THE BIG REVEAL

I’ve been wanting to do this for some time now, but welcome to the first Tomorrow’s Edge Tuesday! As you might have guessed, I’m going to try to become at least somewhat consistent about posting on Tuesday things related to my dystopian sci-fi Tomorrow’s Edge series. Day Moon, Veiled Sun, and Book 3 news; article links and takes related to tech in the real world that appears or is precursor to what’s in Tomorrow’s Edge, and artwork, behind the scenes, and personal meditations from the series. This is super ambitious for me, because consistent posting isn’t my forte and right now I’m under some major deadlines. Which I guess is a good segue into today’s major news…

#1 TOMORROW’S EDGE HAS A NEW HOME

I’ve kept kind of quiet about it, but a few months ago, the publisher for Tomorrow’s Edge, Clean Reads, announced it was closing. As you can probably guess I was pretty crestfallen. Tomorrow’s Edge had lost its publishing home. I haven’t yet tried indie publishing, so that made me super anxious. Should I try sending it to another publisher with two out three books already published? Would anyone want it?

 I prayed about it some and drafted a query letter to my publisher for Quest of Fire, Expanse Books. Linda the owner has always been a huge supporter of speculative fiction and the parent house, Scrivenings Press, had even celebrated Veiled Sun being a Selah finalist in 2021. Expanse has been really good to me, so I thought it would be a good fit. I sent the letter and waited and prayed some more.

Well, this is my announcement that Linda and Expanse said yes! Over the past several months we’ve been quietly working on a new release of Day Moon for September 20th and a new release of Veiled Sun for October 18th! So, here is the new cover art for Day Moon:

It’s been five years since Day Moon released so in that time there are some things I’ve wanted to tweak and tighten. I didn’t want to change it too much though because it’s a story I loved. Expanse was gracious enough to support me on that as well. There will be more about both re-releases including Veiled Sun‘s cover art coming soon. But first, the next bit of big news…

#2 BOOK 3 IS COMING IN 2023

For those of you who have patiently waited on the conclusion to Elliott, Lara, and John’s quest to stop Project Alexandria’s sinister manipulations, thank you so much! I know the normal publishing schedule for series these days is a year per book. While I’ve been blessed to meet that so far with Quest of Fire, Tomorrow’s Edge has had a rockier road to walk and really needed that extra time to steep in me. But now is the time to let you all know that Silent Stars, the concluding entry in the series was also picked up by Expanse Books and is set to release July 4, 2023!

Which means I need prayers, because I have two huge deadlines looming, as both Silent Stars and Book #5 in Quest of Fire are supposed to release in 2023. I’ve done multiple books in a year before, but that was a novel and novella at opposite ends of the calendar and for this year two novellas. This will be two full length, sweeping, action and intrigue, and deeply resonant novels months apart. Am I insane? Sure looks that way. But the Lord has been with me along my writing and publishing journey from the start, and I’m going to lean on Him. Because in my weakness and insufficiency, He is strong and able to do more in me than I could ever hope on my own.

So, please keep me in your prayers. And check back often. Lord willing, there will be lots more to come for Tomorrow’s Edge, Quest of Fire, and some other things TBA…