Michael Timmins's Blog

State of my World

I know it has been ages since I blogged and I must apologize for that. I have been very busy. Since the new year I have been working in earnest to finish up the follow-up to, "The Awakening" books with its sequel, "The Gathering." I'm happy to say that I have finished it... Well, sort of. I have done what us authors like to call (or perhaps it is just me) round one of finishing. What that means is that I have finished writing the story. Now comes the fun part (sarcasm, heavily ladened on)... Editing.Editing is one of those steps that, while, it sucks all the fun out of your life, is entirely necessary. I had a colleague ask me why I bother editing myself if I am just going to pay someone to edit it. It is a good question. Well, for one, the way I look at it, nobody is perfect. Even a professional editor will miss things, especially if the manuscript is full of errors. As you could imagine, it will start to become tedious if you are fixing things every few lines and that may cause you to miss mistakes you might have otherwise caught. So, if I can go through my own story a few times, weed out all of the simple mistakes I might have made while writing, chances are, the editor will catch more mistakes easier. Plus, even popular stories still have editing mistakes and you can imagine what kind of scrutiny those works get. So, if they still miss things, both me and my editor will as well, so no reason to clean up as much as I can before it even gets to them, in my opinion.All that being said, as soon as I get done with my rounds of editing, and send it off to my editor, then I will be ready to format it for publishing.I am really excited about this release. It has been a long time coming. "The Awakening: Part Two" came out November 1st 2017, so it has been almost two years since the release of its predecessor. I took some time to write, "Prelude to the Shards" before returning to writing, "The Gathering." Writing this last book was an amazing experience for me. It turned into quite an epic story! I believe it will be loved greatly by fans of, "The Awakening" books as it takes the action and turns it up to 11. And, if I'm being honest, I have learned a lot about writing since I wrote my last book which I believe has helped me write a more engaging and amazing story.As I move closer to publishing though, I am desperately looking for beta readers and those who might be interested in joining my launch team. Those people with decent social media clout to help me promote its release. If you would be interested in joining my launch team, or would like to beta read for me, please contact me mtimmins42@yahoo.comThank you!Here is the cover for, "The Gathering"

New Year, New Fun!

Well, it's 2019 and its that time for people to make resolutions that they will just cast away in the next coming weeks. So often, our resolutions aren't realistic and that is why they fail. So, why don't you make a realistic one? How about discover a new author? Just saying.To ring in the new year, I decided to do something special for my readers. I had some difficulty deciding if I should run a Contest, or a Giveaway. In the end, I decided to do both.First, I decided to treat the fans of my Lycan War Saga. Its been over a year since I released the last installment, "The Awakening: Part Two" and I know my readers have been patiently waiting for, "The Gathering." Since I am still not done writing it, I could satisfy their patience... Or could I?I devised a little contest, one that will reward a fan, and hopefully create a new one. All someone needs to do is get someone to buy a book from my catalog (They could even purchase one themselves, though I prefer it the other way) then they post a screen grab on my Facebook Author Pagewith a tag of who convinced them to buy it and then they get added to a drawing that, if they win, they will get an exclusive look at, "The Gathering." They will be able to read everything I have written up until the point of the end of the contest! Long before anyone else gets to see it, they will know all the secrets, the twists and what happens to whom! Now, you are probably thinking, 'So, because of my friend's purchase, I get to win something? That doesn't seem fair.' Well, I thought the same thing, which leads into the Giveaway. Because, with their purchase, they will automatically be added into my Giveaway!What is the Giveaway you ask? Let me tell you. If you visit the Facebook Author Page in the link above, find the post which announces the giveaway and put your name in the reply, you will be entered into a drawing to win a signed copy of any of my books sent anywhere in the world! That's right, for the first time I am offering a signed copy to anyone, anywhere (well, anywhere that gets mail).I know what you are wondering... You are thinking, 'O.k. I followed the link, I replied with my name or I got someone to buy a book and do the post, now what???' Well, it's simple. All you need to do is join me next Saturday, 1/19/2018 at 1pm est for a live broadcast on Facebook while I am a guest author for the release party for "Revery" Just follow the link and sign up to get reminders of when it will be going on and I will see you there where I will announce the winner of the Contest and the Giveaway!Happy Reading!

The Birth of a New World

It's not easy to create a new world. Nor should it be. There are many things to consider. You aren't just coming up with interesting characters and dropping them into a known setting. No. You are creating interesting characters, and one of those characters is the world you are putting them in. It is not just the cities they inhabit, but the cities history. They may walk through countless forests, swamps and over mountains, but those landmarks not only have histories themselves, but cultural relevance to the land around them. There are governments, military, religion, socio-economics, magic, monsters and gods to consider. Or... a world that is devoid of some, or all of those things. And if it is, how do those things effect your characters? How did they effect your character's upbring?When I created the world of Ismia, I decided to take a portion of the world, the Eastern Cantons of Rowens and start from there. To tackle an entire planet was too daunting a task, and for the moment... unnecessary to my story. I began with a premise. A land in which the Witches of the Coven were the rulers. That their magic, Aspect magic, was the only magic allowed in the land. The two other magics, Blood and Essence magic had been deemed too dangerous and had all been eradicated over the years by the Witches and the Shen, the magic-hunters used by the Witches to eliminate those with the outlawed magic.With that as the background of the realm. I worked on cultivating individual stories that would reveal different aspects of the world in which the "Shards of the Coven" series and perhaps future series, would take place. In the story, "Intellect" I introduced several key aspects of the realm. I introduced Blood magic and its users, and I also hinted at the history behind Essence magic and why it might have been outlawed. I also introduced some of the Cantons which make up the Eastern Cantons and how they were run. My goal was to give enough information about the world as to give an understanding of its make up, but not overwhelm the reader all at one time with an info dump.The next story in, "Prelude to the Shards" I took an a look at the Witchguard. This story clues the reader into something of the history of the Witches and their relationship to the Witchguard. It was also a means to introduce a new element into the power structures of the world. One that I can't mention as it would give too much of the story away and I like to keep the reader in suspense. :-)The third story, "A Town Called Ghost" I dealt with several aspects at once. I introduced the town of Ghost and how it relates to the Witches and gives a little more understanding of how they run things. There is a rich history to this town that I plan on revisiting in the future. I also deal with Essence magic more and give a better understanding of how it is used and how it uses the mage in turn. We also get to learn more about the Shen and what they are capable of.The three stories are part of a tapestry that make up the book, "Prelude to the Shards." While each piece of this tapestry can be enjoyed separately. They make up part of a larger picture that has only just begun. I am excited about this world, and look forward to begin writing, "Starfall" which will be the follow-up book. This will see many of the pieces of this tapestry begin to be interwoven and it will change the picture into something altogether new.Keep reading my friends.

Well, you asked!

As a fantasy author, I am constantly asked about one thing. What are my favorite fantasy books? Good question. So, to alleviate any further questions on the subject (yeah right) I have decided to make a list of my top 10 favorite fantasy books. Now, as a general rule, I usually don't look at book series as multiple books. For me, a series is just one long book separated into many parts. So, when I list my favorites, I usually list series and not solo books. It would be hard to narrow down which book of each series I liked the most, so, I don't bother. :-)These are in no particular order, except for the first one, which as of right now, is my favorite series by far. If you haven't read it. Shame on you! You will not be the same when you finish it. It will make other works seem like children's books.1. Malazan Book of the Fallen2. Kingkiller Chronicles3. Shannara4. Song of ice and fire5. Reckoners6. Riftwar cycle7. Lightbringer8. Mistborn9. Deathgate Cycle10. Stormlight ArchivesHonorable mentions- Lord of the Rings, Runelords, Drizzt series, Black company and I'm sure there is more.I would love to hear your top 10 fantasy books(series)

Now is the time!

This book has been a little bit of a labor of love. I started writing it over fifteen years ago. I set it aside as life interfered and made writing a luxury I didn't have time to afford.When I went back to writing, I had a different story that was demanding I write it, and, "The Awakening: Part One" was born. When I finished up with, "The Awakening: Part Two" I was left with a difficult decision. Continue to work on the Lycan War Saga, or dust off my earlier work and do what I needed to do to get it ready to be published. In the end, I chose to return to my first endeavor.So, now that I have finished it, it is ready to be read by the masses. Well, almost ready. It will be released on Aug. 3rd. However, to let people know about it, and get excited about its release, I have decided to hold a Presale Marathon! So, July 10th, from 9-9pm I will be trying to reach 50 presales of, "Prelude to the Shards."To sweeten the deal, I am throwing in the chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Or you could win a signed copy of the book, or one of my earlier books!All you have to do, is stop by my Facebook event, purchase the e-book from Amazon, post a picture of the screen-shot of your purchase on the comments and you are entered to win. It's that simple.See you there!https://www.facebook.com/events/23282...

Life...finds a way.

Life finds a way. A way to get in the way. At least when it comes to writing. Writing, is a very solitary pursuit. You need quiet and to be undisturbed. You need time to get your head in the game and you need to be rested so that thoughts and ideas come unabated. This perfect storm doesn't happen easily, if at all. As a father of two wonderful young boys and with a job which sees me waking up a little after midnight to work 10+ hours these opportunities to write are few and far between. What is frustrating is that many times while I'm at work I have a flood of ideas and no means to write them.I do my best to set time aside, but sometimes that isn't enough as work has me so tired I can't or don't want to sit and write. Someday, I hope to have a readership which will allow me to write exclusively. Until then, I will try to bring you works as quickly as I can and hope you have patience to wait for the next installments of my books.Thank you for all of your support out there and I hope you keep enjoying my writing as much as I enjoy bringing these worlds to you.I am always looking forward to talking with my readers, so come find me on facebook, instagram and twitter. See you soon!

Inside the Coven

A while ago, I started writing the story for, "Intellect" and "Race of the Witchguard" though they didn't carry those names at the time. They were just seeds of ideas that hadn't had a chance to really grow and thrive. It wasn't until after I published, "The Awakening: Part One" and Part Two that I decided to return to those stories and integrate them into the same world. The world of the Coven.The coven started out as little stories I used to tell my youngest son who was fascinated with witches. Somewhere along the way, the witches would all have colors and I would begin to attach qualities to them based on their colors. The green witch used magic of nature, the red witch, magic of fire...etc. Those little stories gave me the idea for the Coven. The Coven is the ruling body of the Eastern Cantons, a collection of individual territories ruled by varying political establishments, but ultimately subject to the Coven.The Coven is made up of varying witches who use a form of magic that in the series is referred to as Aspect magic. This magic gives the witch the power to control aspects of whatever force they are attuned to. Examples of witches and their aspects:The Witch of Time: Aspect time-able to delve a person's timeline to see into their pastThe Witch of Fire: Aspect fire-able to control the element of fireThe Witch of Nature: Aspect nature-able to speak with animals and manipulate faunaThe Coven is only introduced in, "Intellect" as the main character, Quint, seeks out the Witch of Time so that she may delve his past and prove his innocence in the murder of his love.Learn more of the Coven by reading "Intellect" now, which is available on Amazon, and get the Anthology, "Prelude to the Shards" which will coming soon!"Intellect"

Start of a New Year!

I know what your thinking. It's almost March, isn't it a little late to be starting the New Year? Well...kinda. The thing is, my first novel, "The Awakening: Part One" is turning one on March 1st and for me, it's like the start of a New Year.I am so excited about what I have going on this next year, I don't know what to start telling you about first!So I guess I will just start with what is happening first.Right now, I am participating in a AMA, or Ask Me Anything Q&A. It has been great fun and I have received a ton of great questions and I hope my answers have been insightful to those who are looking to self-publish or are just interested in my works and the industry itself.If you would like to stop by and shoot me a question just click on the link below#AuthorsAMAUp next for me is Great Lakes ComicCon. I will be at Artist alley at table #422. So if you happen to be in the Warren, Michigan area and want to stop by and get a signed copy of my books, then I look forward to seeing you there!Click here for info on the con!Now one of the most exciting things coming up for me is the One Year Anniversary Virtual Party I am hosting on Facebook! I will be live, on Facebook, March 1st from 6pm to 8pm est. to host the party. There will be giveaways, book reads, and story synopsis reveal for, "The Gathering" the next book in the Lycan War Saga. I will be giving updates on where we are at in the writing of the book and will be releasing the prologue and also reading from the prologue of, "The Gathering" I will also be answering any questions about my writing and the books as there is time for. So, please stop by, and take a moment to let me know you are planning on attending at the link below.Party Invitation RSVPAnd lastly, I have just finished the first draft of the next story in the "Prelude to the Shards" anthology called, "Race of the Witchguard". Now, there will be some time before it will be released as it is now in the process of being cleaned up and edited, and cover art needs to be determined, but it will definitely be out soon. Perhaps before summer, with the follow up and last story, "A Town Called Ghost" hopefully being done before the end of the year.If you would like to pick up, "Intellect" it is a short read and is available on a wide array of platforms. You can follow the link below to take you to the Amazon site if you have the kindle reader."Intellect"

The Art of Worldbuiding

Worldbuilding is a staple for any promising fantasy writer. Well, fantasy and sci-fi writer, but since I am a fantasy writer...I'll stick with that.There is no exact science to worldbuilding. Every author does it in their own way. Some write out elaborate histories and backgrounds for their world, others build as they go. Some do a little of both. The important thing is consistency. The best way of doing this is to at least have a plan.For my new series I am writing, "Shards of the Coven" I did a little of both. I already had a story written and decided to incorporate it into the world I was creating as an introductory story, along with another story I had half written(half being generous) and a third yet to be written (except in my head) story.By incorporating this original story into the world I wished to create, it gave me a baseline, a starting point. I had places and I had races and cultures already mentioned in the story. I used those points to extrapolate out and I drew a map using those places as markers on my map and then drew around them.I have had years of experience drawing maps for my D&D group, and so, this came naturally. Drawing boundaries of countries, creating Capitols, lakes, rivers, mountains, forests, etc... Took time, but ultimately went fairly easily.Once you have your "land" that you have created, then you need your people. This, I have been doing as I go. As my main character(s) interact with other people, or view other races I create their look and culture then. Any history they might have will be added when that history is relevant to the story. This allows me to not get bogged down with extraneous information and focus on the story at hand.Governance is something else you need to deal with when building a world. Almost all people have some form of government. For me, this happened to be central to the story of the world I was building and so, I had already formulated this aspect of my world.I had decided to make where the story was taking place a collection of countries/states that were similiar to how the united states had initially been created to be like. Each state/country was subject to their own rule, but with a governing body that set laws and mediated between all of the states or in this case I decided on referring to them as Cantons, and so The Eastern Cantons of Rowens was created. Each of the Cantons are run by a seperate governing body. Some have Prime Ministers, Congress, Kings, etc... The Cantons are Midhark, Lorowill, Born, Thael and Kashtook. These Cantons, in turn, are ruled by the Coven. A group of witches that took power over 300 years ago and have ruled ever since.A system of magic is another important thing in worldbuilding. That is, if your world is planning on containing magic. In my world, there are three principle types of magic. Aspect magic, which is the magic of the Coven, is magic that carries aspects of certain spheres of influence, i.e. nature, fire, time, space, wind, etc... This is the primary magic of the realm. When the Coven came to power, there was the Great Purge, in which they eliminated all other forms of magic and with them a great deal of magical items.The other two magics are thought to not be practiced anymore, or at least, not openly. They are Blood magic and Essence magic. Blood magic is magic that requires the use of blood for potency. It in large part gives the caster power of the body, either theirs or someone else. Essence magic, is also called soul magic as it is described as channeling the power of ones own soul to cast. It is draining, but very powerful and can be destructive.So, there you have a little bit about the art of worldbuilding, both in general, and specifically how I am building the world of the 'Shards' series. Until next time.

Hey! I'm on the radio!

That's right! I'm on the radio! Well, internet radio. Come and check out my interview on the Authorshow.com, where I talk about my book and writing in general. I'm really proud of this interview and I really appreciate all the magic they made happen over there making me not sound like an idiot! Gotta love splicing! Anyways, I hope you enjoy the interview.The Author ShowFREE! FREE! FREE! FREE!Right now and for the next four days, you can download, "The Awakening: Part One" for free!Now is your chance to own the exciting first book in The Lycan War Saga!DOWNLOAD NOW