Dean’s Forum
Just a quick update to let you all know that there is some great discussion going on right now over on my forum. If you haven’t stopped by to check things out, you’re missing out.
I’ve been adding a few comments here and there to the discussion, and there are some pretty big hints about where the series is going if you know what to look for inside of a few of those posts.
Dean
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Nikki
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Feb 01, 2014 07:43PM
before I buy it I wanna know at least this.. does it take up where they left off at in Riven? Cause if so than ill buy it if not than I don't wanna waste my time an money reading it when I only care about the two major charectars. Sorry but its true. please let me know right away! DYING TO KNOW!!! been waiting months!!
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Hi, Nikki.This is a difficult question for me to answer. The response has ended up being a bit on the long side and I haven't gone back and edited it (sorry—but I'm hugely behind on some key projects that really need to be done) so please bear with me.
Bound, the book that was just released the end of last month, is all about Alec and his friends in Sanctuary. That being said, it's an alternate timeline so there are some key differences. His dad isn't dead and there is only one pack in Sanctuary (Brandon and the rest are in the same pack as Alec and his friends).
A lot of my readers don't seem very enthused about the Dark Reflections (alternate timeline) books. I can understand that on some levels, but can only say that the Dark Reflections books are a key part of the overall story. There are relationships between characters in Dark Reflections that don't happen in the Reflections books, and they are pretty important relationships.
Additionally, the Dark Reflections books are going to give some additional glimpses into what is going on behind the scenes with the Coun'hij and others.
I recently did a post on my forum discussing a little more about Bound and why I wrote it that you may want to check out.
http://z13.invisionfree.com/DeanWrite...
As far as the main Reflections books go, I have a fairly ambitious goal of getting a total of six books written per year (here's my release schedule http://deanwrites.com/new-releases/). When you factor in some Dark Reflections books into the mix and maybe a Geoffrey/Melody/Lucy book into the mix, I'm probably looking at 2-3 main Reflections Series books per year. I wish I could write more than six books per year, but so far that just isn't workable for me (I'm already working 55-60 hours a week to hit the 6 books a year schedule). As the writing income continues to grow I'll look at contracting print layout, which might help a little, but for now I'm going to struggle to do more than 6 books per year.
If you've jumped out to take a look at my release schedule already, then you've probably noticed that the next couple of Reflections releases are focusing on some of the other characters from the Sanctuary pack. This was another instance where I knew that what I was doing probably wasn't going to be as popular as just writing another Alec and Adri book, but I have a very specific way that the Reflections books are supposed to develop, and it's much more complex than just a story about two characters.
Alec and Adri are still going to make some very small cameos in these other books, but I need to spend some time developing some of the other characters or they aren't going to be there to help Adri and Alec weather the storm that is headed their way.
That would be a good reason to do what I'm trying to do all by itself, but I also have some important things developing for Alec and Adri behind the scenes that would be ruined if I cut to their story too quickly. In my mind it is a little bit like what I did in writing Intrusion and Trapped. It wasn't a popular thing to do as it didn't directly and obviously move Alec and Adri's story forward, but ultimately I think that doing that helped make Alec and Adri's story all the sweeter and more powerful when I got back to them in Forsaken.
I really think most of the readers who went ahead and read those two stories are glad they did for exactly those reasons, and I really think that Bound and the rest of the Dark Reflections books (and the next few Reflections books that focus on the rest of Alec's pack) will be much the same way. They will expand on the universe, deepen character relationships and make the story I'm telling much more complex and rich.
As far as not wanting to waste your time and money on something you won't like, I can completely understand that. I had a long riff here going into more personal details, but ultimately that's probably not necessary, wanted, or appropriate. Instead I'll just say that not wanting people to waste money on something that they won't like is at least part of the reason that I've made it so that my readers and potential readers can get their hands on 4 full novels and 2 short stories for free.
I'd encourage you to at least go read the blurb from Bound and download a free sample from Amazon, Smashwords, or one of the other retailers that let you do that. If the sample doesn't manage to hook you, or if it hooks you, but not quite enough to part with your hard-earned money then I can understand and respect that, but I'm consistently being told by fans and readers that Bound and Hunted (coming in March) are some of my best work yet, so I think you'll enjoy them.
As for Alec and Adri's story, I hope that you'll hang in there with me over the next months and years as I work my way back to those two. I think every writer has two sides of themselves that they are trying to please with everything they write.
On the one side there is the practical side that knows that you've got to write stuff that will sell well enough for you to eat. The other side, the artist, wants to tell great stories and make great art just for the sake of making great art and telling great stories. If you give into the artist too much, then you tend to die penniless and miserable with no friends and family left. If you give into the practical side too much then you turn into a 'soulless hack' who writes stories that you hate just because that is what you think will sell.
Once I finished up Riven, I could have jumped right into another Alec and Adri book, and I'd probably have made a lot more money than I actually did this year, but those stories wouldn't have been as good as the one that I'm still hoping to tell, and I wouldn't have been able to do justice to what is happening with some of the other people in Sanctuary that I've grown to know and love. I want to know what happens with Rachel, I'm rooting for Jasmin and Ben, and I'm curious about what is in store for Jess and Wyatt.
For me, there is a third aspect of things that I also worry about. I want to please my fans. I'm not curing cancer or realizing world peace--I'm just an entertainer, and I recognize that I can't do this without the people who've helped me get this far by parting with their hard-earned money in exchange for my books.
I want to do right by my fans and give them what they want, but I also know that sometimes as a consumer that I didn't know what I wanted until I actually saw it. Kind of like the story of Steve Jobs and the original ipod. I think that Reflections—the way that I want to write it—is one of those things, and I've put quite a bit on the line to try and make that happen, both for myself and for my fans.
you are a great writer and the fact that you listen and take the time to write back just makes you even better! I hope one day your books will be a movie or tv show series that would be awesome. im curious why isn't your books like hardback you know like harry potter was? I bet teenagers in highschool would love to read your books. I know when I was in highschool after HP ended there wasn't really anything good. too bad your books weren't around lol. but maybe you would make more money if you did publish it instead of just online. I know id buy it off the shelf. you know this way you could go on book tours and introduce your book to the world. but you should keep up the good work!
Thank you for the kind words. I would love for my books to end up as a movie and/or a TV show at some point--we'll just have to see what happens.I've started getting trade paperback copies of my books out. You can find Broken, Torn, Splintered, Riven, and the 4 Guadel Chronicles novels available in print on amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Dean-Murray/e/B...)
Unfortunately getting something formatted for print is a relatively time-consuming and expensive process, so it is slow going as I have to do it around writing new books (which is what is currently paying most of the bills at the Murray house).
Getting hardbacks out will require going through a different printing company, and will have another learning curve associated with it, so that will probably have to wait until I have more time on my hands or am making enough money to afford to hire someone else to do it.
Book tours and the like would be fun, but for now they just aren't very feasible. Maybe when I have a bigger fanbase :)
My mailing list is about 4400 people. New releases generate much less in the way of sales than that.To make a book tour worthwhile I suspect I would need a fan base in the hundreds of thousands or even millions :)
I know you can do it! You can be the next J.K. Rowling but don't quit writing cause then you'll have an angry mob on your hands lol.. I'm not even joking! What is your favorite book and your favorite Author? I think mine is as today speaking other than you and your series. It would be Stephen king and R.l stine. Also fond of Rick Riordan. If Cassie Edwards left her naughty side out of her books lol I would think she would make a great movie haha You probably have no idea who I'm talking about but if you do you'll get it lol ... Besides I think in a few more years, you'll get a huge fan base. Hopefully it wont be too long.
Hi, Nikki. I definitely don't want any angry mobs :)I'm not sure I can pick out just one book or just one author, but I can give you a list of some of the books/authors that I've loved over the years.
I love The Wheel of Time/Robert Jordan, and Brandon Sanderson (Mistworld and The Way of Kings). I've enjoyed a lot of David Webber's books (Empire from the Ashes and Honor Harrington).
The Thinblade books have been great so far--I'm really excited to see how they end. I'm about 1/3rd of the way through the Spinward Fringe series and loving it.
Harry Potter, and the Twilight books were great too. I enjoyed what I've read of Vampire Academy, The Mortal Instruments, and Hunger Games as well.
There's dozens--maybe even hundreds of other great books out there that I've read, but you get the idea :)
I really hope that you're right about the massive fan base that is headed my way, and that it's not that far away :)
I'm incredibly grateful for all of the great fan's I have so far, but a few million more would go a long way to guaranteeing that I'll be able to continue to write full-time until I finally kick the bucket.
I love reading! I just cant stand when the series ends. Cause I wouldn't want to turn into Kathy Bates from Misery lol I just wish I could get my grandma to read more lol! It would make conversations more fun than about the latest news on The walking dead.
I didn't hear about the Vampire Academy till last week lol when I watched the movie! But I did get all the books So Soon when I get some quite time I'll finish it. Which wont take long at all, maybe just a week.
Have fun writing!
