I was looking at Scifan.com (sort of an IMDB or Allmusic.com for SF&F authors, novels and the like) a minute ago and realized that I've been added to the database! For some reason it says that the book isn't actually available for order until early September (I think it may have something to do with the information released originally by the publisher) but they already have a link to the Amazon and Alibris pages that list it for sale. You can look at it here.
To quote The Jerk, "it's this kind of random publicity that can really get your name out."
Anyway, I was excited, so I thought I would share.
Also, the Characters page has been updated with a pic and brief description of Elyas. I'm hoping to expand the descriptions at a later date, but Mark did a great job on the background and the coloring. Check it out!
I just got back from my first ever interview. It seemed to go pretty well. It lasted for around an hour and a half, and covered everything from my favorite authors to where I get my inspiration. I felt a little odd, really, but overall it was a very nice experience. Stephanie, the girl that did the interview, was very professional and asked what I thought were good, sound questions.
The interview will be in Blount Today sometime in the next three weeks. The publication is brand-new and is being given away. It will be mailed to some 23,000 residences in Blount County, with another 2,000 or so being placed in local businesses. I assume you can find it in the same places you'd find the Metropulse. That is, if it doesn't get mailed to your home. Of course, I really don't know how many people that read this live in Blount County.
Anyway, that's about all I have for now. I promised to let you all know how it went, and now I feel my promise is fulfilled. If anything else exciting comes around, I'll be quick to post it.
Also, while the site still isn't finished, please look around and let me know what you think. If there is something you'd like to see (or something you'd like to see more/less of) please let me know.
Well, things are starting to look pretty finished around here. But rest assured, they aren't. There are still more updates coming, and coming soon.
I have my first interview ever tomorrow morning. It's with a woman named Stephanie (I can't seem to recall her last name) from Blount Today, a new weekly publication focusing on the residents of Blount County. I'm a little nervous, as I'm not really sure what to expect. I'll let you know how it goes.
Not too much else going on right now. I took bookmarks around to most of the local bookstores, though there were a couple I forgot and am meaning to hit in the near future. Feel free to drop by Hastings, Borders, Barnes and Noble, B. Dalton, or one of the other local booksellers and check them out, maybe even pick one up.
If this is your first visit to the site, I want to welcome you and ask for your patience as we continue building everything up. We're getting very close to having everything done, but there is a lot of graphical work left to do as well as a little bit of rearranging.
Feel free to look around, and please check back often as there will be constant updates over the next few weeks as we get everything in line.
Well, things are coming along nicely. We've got the brunt of the site up, but it's still not done. The links to the left work now, though you'll notice a few oddities on the different pages. Mainly subtle differences in page width/height, but those should be taken care of soon. The Characters page has Jamis listed twice, which should be fixed pretty soon, too--hopefully in the next day or so.
I want to thank both of the Trotters (Jason and Mark) for helping me out with all this stuff. Without Jason there wouldn't be any other pages, and without Mark I would have crappy little sketches of the characters that wouldn't be worth looking at. They're both extremely talented, and I'm happy to have them as friends.
I also want to thank Larry for letting me host the site on his server. He's a great brother, and he takes way better care of me than I deserve.
Let's see... what else? There are still plenty of pages that have to be fine-tuned, but I'm very pleased with the way things are coming. Hopefully it will all be finished before too long.
I'm rapidly approaching the 86,000 word mark on The Crystal Skull. That's a bit of a milestone to me, since Forgotten Prophecies was just over 86,000 words. I still don't think it's going to be finished anytime soon, but I did just have a break-through on part of the story, so I expect things to start going a little more quickly now. I have to say, though, I'm already dreading the editing process. I know there's going to be a lot I'll have to rework in one fashion or another.
The bookmarks I ordered for Forgotten Prophecies should be in today, finally. I plan on placing them in most (if not all) of the bookstores here locally. I hope they'll help generate interest in the book and the website.
Anyway, I think that's about all I have for now. I'll let you all know as more updates happen.
So, I've just spent the better part of three hours working on the look of this journal. I'm trying to get it in line with what the rest of the site is going to look like. It didn't turn out exactly as I had imagined, but I think it looks decent enough and still has everything it needs for now. There will be more upgrades coming soon, so keep a look out. The big hold up right now is graphics, but they're starting to come in slowly.
Don't try the links to the left... they don't work yet.
Anyway, I'm up way past my bedtime, so I'm going to call it a night. If anyone has comments or suggestions about the look of the site, please let me know. I want it to be as enjoyable for the people that come here as possible.
So, farewell and adieu, you fair spanish ladies...
As I was dropping off my stack of library books last night (don't you just love the library? All those books for free, as long as you bring them back on time. What a wonderful invention...), I decided to donate a copy of Forgotten Prophecies. The woman behind the counter seemed really excited by the prospect, and gladly took it to be entered into their circulation. I have no idea how long it will take to actually be available, but if you really want to read it and can't swing the cover price, check it out from the Blount County Library. I plan on donating one to the Knox County as well, but I haven't had a chance yet.
As a shot in the dark I sent a message to Mr. Neil Gaiman, one of my favorite writers of all time. He's responsible for giving us the DC Comics' Sandman tales as well as several great novels (American Gods and Neverwhere are my two favorites). Well, I asked if he would be interested in receiving a copy of my novel, and--believe it or not--I got an email yesterday from the Fabulous Lorraine, his personal assistant. (And let me tell you, she is fabulous. Not only is she beautiful, but she's in a Gothic Bluegrass band, too. How cool is that?) She said that Mr. Neil Gaiman would love to receive a copy and would love (as his busy schedule permits) to read it.
I am so stoked I can hardly type.
Anyway, I FedExed it to him this morning. Everyone please cross your fingers and hope that he reads it and (more importantly) likes it. If he does, that could really help me out, especially if he mentions it anywhere on his website. Regardless, though, I'm just thrilled to know that one of my favorite authors will actually have a copy of my novel on his bookshelf.