Tag Archives: dystopia

October 18, 2016 · 10:07 pm

Distant Horizon – Read the First 7 Chapters!

Distant Horizon is set to be published October 27th, and as a teaser, I’ve got the first seven chapters (20% of the book) available to read for free! Any more than that, and you’ll have to buy the book. 😉

But please, if you like dystopias or stories with superhero elements, take a look! There’s extensive world building, a complex magic system, and a conspiracy underlying it all. I hope you enjoy the sample chapters. 🙂

Distant Horizon - Sample Chapters

Click here to download a PDF (based on the print edition) of the first seven chapters!

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And if you want to participate in the upcoming book blitz with YA Bound Book Tours, click here !

I hope you enjoyed this post. 🙂

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October 6, 2016 · 8:01 pm

Sneak Peek of Distant Horizon – Chapter Two (Sections Two and Three)!

As we get closer to the release day of Distant Horizon (October 27th!), I’ve been working on the final touches! I’ve been reading the printed proof copy for errors…

dh-proof-copy-1 dh-proof-copy-2

See? There’s the book!

And I’ve been setting up promotional items for the upcoming book blitz that will take place once Distant Horizon is published.

(Want to participate in the book blitz? Click here!)

And, of course, I like to provide teasers of the upcoming book. So here’s the second part of Distant Horizon, Chapter Two, for your enjoyment. 🙂

(You can read the first chapter by clicking here.)

(Or you can read the first section of chapter two by clicking here.)

Chapter Two

(Section Two and Three)

“Come on, Jenna—this is perfect. You need the points; I get a good name in, and if the commander remembers me when I graduate, he might recommend me to international Special Forces!” With a smooth swipe of his hand, Lance pushed the straggling strands of his brown hair from his eyes and then brushed his shirt free of wrinkles. I took a step back, eyeing him cautiously. Lance stood straighter, more proper than before.

“Well, what do you think?” he asked. “Think I’ll make a good impression?”

“You look… nice,” I said halfheartedly. “I’m sure he’ll consider you.”

Lance beamed. “Awesome!”

“Yeah, awesome,” I mumbled. I shouldered my backpack uneasily as Lance headed for his security class. He could probably get into a regional team and be charged with the wonderful task of protecting gossipy leaders, but regional agents were stationed all over the world. If he got recruited, I might never see him again.

I hunched my shoulders and hurried to calculus. I could almost swear the agents wandering around campus were watching me. Throughout class, when I should have been focusing on logarithms, all I could think about was the agents’ dark visors, their stern postures, and how they were tasked with protecting the Community against all kinds of threats, including theophrenia.

I pictured the agents escorting Galina into the back of the van. What if I never saw her again? What if she couldn’t be cured?

Needless to say, I bombed the calc test.

I returned to my dorm room, dejected, and switched my materials to the Basics of Agronomy and Horticulture. At least this was a class I enjoyed. When I lived at my parents’ house, I spent what free time I had in the backyard or the community garden cultivating herbs and vegetables. Whenever I was worried about how I’d do on my core graduation tests, gardening was the most efficient way for me to relax.

I trailed my fingers through the leaves of the potted spider plant on my desk. If only plants could understand people. Plants wouldn’t tell anyone about not taking the pills, or failing a computer class, or—

The stem of a spiderette wrapped around my finger and wriggled beneath my palm. I yelped and yanked my hand away.

The plant just moved.

Not only that, but spiderette stems were stiff, not malleable like a vine. They shouldn’t be able to wrap around my finger even if plants could move of their own accord.

I stared at the plant, but it seemed the same as before. Just a normal stem in a normal pot.

I swallowed hard. I could not be hallucinating. Not this close to the Health Scan. I grabbed my bag and stuffed the books inside, then rushed out the door. I was stressed and needed lunch; that was all.

Downstairs, the spicy aroma of sloppy joes mingled with the antiseptic stench of cleaning supplies used in the cafeteria. My stomach churned. Bad idea coming to the cafeteria. Really bad idea. I should’ve just taken the pill and been done with it. Maybe I would’ve gotten accustomed to the lack of focus. I could still go back and take the pill. Maybe—

I stopped short at the lunch table.

“You okay?” Lance stabbed his fork into a half-eaten sandwich. “You’re pale. Maybe you should see the nurse.”

“No!” I gripped the loose ends of my backpack tight. Lance gave me a puzzled look. I shut my mouth, then set my backpack in its proper place under the chair. “It’s just… I failed the calc test.”

He cocked his head with a knowing grin. “Sure you did—you won’t have the results until after the Health Scan. You know, you’re starting to sound like Tim.” His smirk turned into an amused smile. “Want me to get you a plate?”

“Go ahead,” I said, and he left me alone at the table. I traced the spot where the stem had wrapped around my finger. My blood pounded in my ears, mingling with the messy roar of the cafeteria. The stress of the upcoming scan was getting to me—bad. Hallucinations were the first sign of theophrenia. If someone had theophrenia, they’d have hallucinations and delusions of grandeur, and eventually, they’d die. But theophrenia was supposed to be a thing of the past. Contained.

“Jenna?” An elbow brushed my shoulder and I jumped. Tim stood beside me, holding a plate of steamed broccoli. “Are you okay?”

Not really, no. But I couldn’t tell him the real reason I was worried. “I bombed the calc test,” I said.

Tim cringed and took his seat. “Ouch.” He stirred his fork through the broccoli, wrinkling his nose and making a face. But I’d never seen him put something back if it was good for him, and he took a bite. “Lance said you can make up yesterday’s points.”

“Maybe, if I get an audience.”

Tim pulled his tablet from his pocket and sat it beside the plate, then flipped through the screens with a swipe of his finger. He showed me a photograph of the commander next to his transport ship. “Do you think he’ll autograph this for me?”

I nodded weakly. I never did understand autographs, though most E-Leadership members were happy to give them. Lady Winters never signed them, though, and when Master Matoska made a rare appearance, he only did so if the signing was on his schedule.

A plate of food slid in front of me. “I got you extra broccoli,” Lance said.

Warmth flooded my chest. Unlike Tim, I actually liked broccoli—and Lance knew me well.

I smiled. “Thanks.”

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After lunch, I excused myself early to slip outside. I had a few minutes before the next meeting, plenty of time for a walk to clear my head. The sun stole through the clouds in the courtyard and lent warmth to the chilly afternoon. Students swarmed the flagpole at the center of campus, waving tablets and books in the fresh air.

A tell-tale safari hat rode across the crowd and my breath caught in my throat. Unlike Lady Black, who often used her revealing outfits to stand out from the rest of us, Commander Rick did not flaunt his “attractiveness.” He always went for regal attire—except for that safari hat he always wore—and his word was absolutely, positively good. If he said he would do something, we could bet our efficiency points he’d do it—not that betting was in any way efficient.

I took a step back, my chest tight. I wasn’t ready to ask the commander questions. What if I got the interview, but they had to do the scan first?

I turned to take the long way around campus, but nearly collided with a confident woman as she passed me on the sidewalk. She nimbly stepped aside, then glanced at me, surprised. Wisps of dark hair tickled her face, and her green eyes were complimented by the antique, diamond and brass pendant she wore on her chest, the same kind of pendant members of international E-Leadership wore.

“Lady Black?” I stared at her, dumbfounded. She had to have been cold. Her dress was impractical—it twisted and shimmered in a harsh gust of wind, and her skin was pale where the silky black dress revealed far more of her chest than normal citizens would ever show. She opened her mouth to speak, but I skittered away before any words could be exchanged.

I didn’t check to see if anyone had seen us before I ducked into the closest building. Once inside, I pressed my hands against the stone wall and caught my breath. Too close. What if I’d said something about the pills in a moment of panic? I half expected an agent to come waltzing through the glass doors and ask why I hadn’t reported my earlier hallucination.

I took a deep breath, ignoring the puzzled stares of passing students. Though I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching, no agent came to question me. I waited for my nerves to calm, and then headed back to the dorms for the afternoon meeting.

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Like what you read? Want to find out what happens next?

Pre-Order Distant Horizon today!
Amazon – Amazon UK – B&N – Kobo – iTunes – Smashwords

You can also find Distant Horizon on Goodreads.

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I hope you enjoyed this post. 🙂

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September 30, 2016 · 6:23 pm

Thoughts on Publishing- DH Proof Copy Ordered, New Author Photo, and Next Sneak Peek from Distant Horizon!

I got the proof copy of Distant Horizon ordered! Woot!

I should get the printed proof sometime next week, which should give me enough time to do a final proofread before uploading the final files, sitting back… and working on promo materials. Well… it’s a start. 🙂

I would have had the proof copy ordered a couple days ago except that Createspace apparently doesn’t do well with transparent PNG images in PDFs (I’m testing out transparent images in the ebook files, and had simply let them transfer over. That didn’t work out well, as they turned into gray blocks). So I went back and redid the divider images, which ended up being easier than I thought because I found an article explaining how to find and replace images in Word. But be warned: those conversion problems don’t show up on the digital proofer until after you submit your files for review. So it’s a good idea to check the digital version again before ordering a print copy.

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In other news, Isaac and I now have an author photo!

Isaac and Stephanie Flint - Author Photo

I already had one for myself, which I used in Magic’s Stealing, and that’s the same one that I use for social media. But I wanted one that showed both Isaac and myself for our joint projects.

So we went to the same area where we shot my first author photo, waited for the golden light of the day (and mostly missed it, due to my temporarily breaking the tripod while trying to extend one of the legs), and set up the camera on a (fixed) tripod with the timer. I wore the same outfit I wore for the previous photo, which I’ve also started to wear when I go to various events.

So… look for our new author photo on our website, Infinitas Publishing, as well as in the author section of Distant Horizon. 🙂

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Since we’re rapidly approaching the release date of our upcoming book, I thought I’d share another sneak peek from Distant Horizon. I’m planning on releasing the first six chapters over the course of the pre-release period. 😉

(You can read the first chapter by clicking here.)

Chapter Two

(Section One)

Brisk October air snapped against my cheeks. Gray clouds obscured an even grayer sky, casting a dull shadow across the courtyard and the stone buildings, which loomed overhead with their tall domes and steep, towering columns.

I always admired the imposing structures because they had survived the plague. So many things hadn’t. But these bits of history I could touch with my fingertips: statues worn smooth with time, their copper turned green from rain, and best of all, the ivy that snuck through the cracks of a time-ravaged campus.

Lance and I were headed for our first morning class when a low, steady drone rumbled overhead. Lance yanked my sleeve. “Look!”

A well-decorated airship peeked through the heavy clouds. Brass, gold, and bronze ornamental railing adorned its gondola and complimented the high, arched windows. Elegant frames decorated the rotors with artistic flourishes. The symbol on its side was the Lady of the Cog: a crimson half-cog rising like a sun, embellished with the silhouette of a lady perched across the spoke-like rays.

My breath caught in my throat. The only people who used the Lady of the Cog belonged to International E-Leadership—the highest-ranking officials of the Community. Maybe Lady Winters was paying us a visit. She was one of the few leaders actually worth the speeches she gave. As Head of Efficiency, she made sure the Health Scans were thorough and that our international laboratories advanced. Maybe she was coming to tell us that she had made an advance against the plague, and I wouldn’t have to worry about the Health Scan anymore.

“That’s Commander Rick’s airship!” Lance grinned, his cheeks rosy from the wind.

I raised an eyebrow. “The commander?”

“Maybe he’s coming to visit. Let’s get to class—we might find out more there!” He dragged me down the sidewalk through the early crowd. Once inside, we took our seats in the second row. The first row was already filled—apparently in similar anticipation.

Professor Dragomirov smiled at everyone’s enthusiasm and put an image of the seventy-year-old commander on the giant touch screen at the front of the classroom. The chatter quieted as she spread her hands along the wrinkles in her uniform and puffed out her chest with pride.

“Tomorrow, Commander Rick is delivering a speech to our university regarding the upcoming Health Scan. Be advised, I will assign extra efficiency points to those who can secure an interview with the commander and produce a two-page report regarding his efforts in the security and efficiency of our modern society.”

More chatter erupted at the news. Lance grinned and nudged my shoulder. “It’s your lucky day.”

Lucky? If I accidentally let slip that I didn’t take the pills around the commander, I would not only be booted out of college, but out of the Community.

“Miss Nickleson?”

I jerked to attention at my name. Professor Dragomirov tapped the screen beside her. On it was an image of a tower with a gleaming set of windows. The whole thing was shaped like an absurdly unsafe letter “F.”

I blinked. “Yes?”

“Where was the final rebel base in Australia located when Commander Rick ended the resistance against the Community?”

Two locations popped into my head at the mention of Australia, and I knew Sydney wasn’t it.

“The Northern Territory?” I suggested. Hopefully she didn’t want the name of the actual town.

The professor smiled, switching the image on the touch screen to reveal a map. “Correct. Located near what used to be Birdum, Australia, the tower and its surrounding city thrived from those who threatened the Community’s security.”

She went on to repeat the same history lesson we’d heard since primary school: how our founding father, Lord Black, died infiltrating that tower, and how Commander Rick took his place, stomped out the Oriental Alliance and the remaining rebellions, declared world peace, and became the living embodiment of the Community and its virtues.

Nice resume, if I hadn’t heard it a dozen times before. I would’ve preferred that we spent our class learning something new, like who developed the treatment for theophrenia. I glanced at my book, then at the professor. She was paying more attention to her lecture than to the rest of the class, so I flipped to the back of the book, searching the index for “t” until I found theophrenia listed with a dozen page numbers.

I already knew that the first known treatment for theophrenia came shortly after EYEnet’s formation and that once the Community was established in 2027, the treatment was made routine. Occasional outbreaks of the disease—like the one that killed my grandparents—were common. While most of the book had information I’d read before, it added that Lady Bridget Winters had a hand in creating the most recent treatment—the one which effectively contained the threat in 2065.

A few pages later, I found the answer to my question. Apparently, Lady Winters’ predecessor, Doctor Sanders, had developed adominogen with funding from international E-Leadership—the original founders of EYEnet. The book went on to discuss the Community’s rise across the globe, but offered little else regarding the treatment.

I frowned and rested my cheek against my knuckles. Theophrenia was supposed to be dormant, but the book said the plague was only contained. That explained how Galina failed the scan. But most diseases only needed a single vaccination to offer a lifetime of immunity, so why did we take the pills on a daily basis? Did the pills have to be adjusted for various strains of the disease?

I flipped to the next passage, only half-listening as Professor Dragomirov went on about Commander Rick’s military prowess. It was thanks to his leadership that theophrenia was contained five years after he took power. He understood how people with theophrenia thought, and he personally assembled the best teams to seek out the last rebel hideouts. Despite my grandparents’ preference not to talk about their past, I’d managed to weasel a few pre-Community stories from them. Their tales about those who were infected mostly ended in chaos and destruction. The infected were paranoid and hard to catch. Crazy. They thought they could command the elements, and often took extreme measures to try manifesting their beliefs. They’d light themselves on fire, leap from tall buildings to prove they could fly…

I closed the book as the professor wrapped up her lecture. There was nothing about why we took the pill daily. The book was only a history book, and all it told me was the same lesson I’d heard since my year four teacher explained that E-Leadership created peace in the world, and that we should all be thankful the days of the plague were over.

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Like what you read? Want to find out what happens next?

Pre-Order Distant Horizon today!
Amazon – Amazon UK – B&N – Kobo – iTunes – Smashwords

You can also find Distant Horizon on Goodreads.

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I hope you enjoyed this post. 🙂

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September 20, 2016 · 2:07 pm

Distant Horizon Cover Reveal!

The day has finally arrived–the day of the Distant Horizon cover reveal! That’s right. This cover, which has been waiting two years to be revealed (Seriously, I created the near-final version in early 2014) now gets to be seen by the light of day–or the computer screen.

*Ahem.*

Now, for the reveal, which has been organized by the wonderful Lola’s Blog Tours! 😀

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Distant HorizonDistant Horizon (Distant Horizon #1)
By Stephanie and Isaac Flint
Genre: Dystopia with superhero elements
Age category: Young Adult
Release Date: October 27, 2016

Blurb:
The Community is safe.
Unless you have superpowers.

Sixty years ago, a hallucinogenic plague annihilated half the world’s population, leading to the formation of the Community—an international government that promises its citizens safety, security, and efficiency. Every day, Community citizens swallow a mandatory pill to ensure their immunity to the plague. A year after graduating high school, they take the Health Scan.

Most pass, and continue with their lives. Others disappear.

Eighteen-year-old Jenna Nickleson hasn’t taken the pill since her senior year in high school. She feels more alive without it, and she hasn’t shown any signs of infection—at least, not until two days after a surprise Health Scan is announced and Special Forces arrive at her university campus.

Spurred by the recent string of hallucinations, Jenna searches for any inkling of what happens to those who fail the scan. Rumor has it that they’re sent away for treatment and, once cured, receive a menial job. But when she uncovers the cruel truth behind the plague, her ideal world is shattered.

Underneath the illusion of safety, Special Forces agents harbor a dark secret.

The plague is a lie.

You can find Distant Horizon on Goodreads

You can pre-order Distant Horizon here:
– Amazon
– Amazon UK
– B&N
– Kobo
– iTunes
– Smashwords

Excerpt:
There was a fifteen minute break between classes. Since the two buildings were right next to each other, that was plenty of time for me to browse EYEnet. My primary question regarded the old man’s warning that I’d fail the scan. I focused on the blog from my friend in high school—the one whose sister failed.
According to Galina’s posts, she’d been afraid of failure early on, and on the day of the Health Scan, she’d made another post reiterating the same fear. She’d been having hallucinations that liquids would shape themselves from images in her thoughts, and she was sure she had theophrenia.
It’d been almost a year since Galina left, but I wasn’t sure how long the recovery effort lasted. I checked the last active day she was on her account. There was nothing since the day of her scan.
I checked other blogs, searching for any references to fear of failure. One girl thought she could fly. Another guy swore he could read his professor’s mind. All signs of advanced delusions, and in each case, they didn’t return.
Three years passed. Five. Nothing.
A chill ran through me. The old man said to try controlling vines and grass. That was crazy. Impossible. And yet… I’d felt that stem move. I’d seen it move.
My phone chimed a one-minute warning before class. Students stirred and finished their conversations, and I stared at the small screen of my phone. Only one person, out of the entirety of blogs I’d found, had ever come back.

Stephanie and Isaac FlintAbout the Author:
Stephanie and Isaac Flint met at the University of Central Missouri, where they discovered a common interest in world-building and tabletop role-play games. Distant Horizon is their first joint world, the result of a role-play game Isaac ran in the summer of 2010. After graduating with Bachelors of Science (Photography for Stephanie, Psychology for Isaac), they were married in 2012. Together, they plot stories, torment each other’s characters, and enjoy the occasional cosplay.

You can find and contact Stephanie and Isaac here:
– Author Blog
– Publisher Website
– Facebook
– Twitter Stephanie
– Twitter Publisher
– Author Goodreads
– Stephanie Goodreads
– Newsletter

 

banner Lola's Blog Tours

 

Want to check out the other blogs who are participating in this tour?

SCHS Best Books Blog
Bookworm for Kids
Redd’s Reads
Lilly’s Book World
Outlandish Reads
The Silver Dagger Scriptorium
shannonbookishlife
We All Make Mistakes in Books
Pippa Jay
Katie’s Clean Book Collection
Their Vodka
The Phantom Paragrapher
Books and Kats
Scott Umphrey
A Leisure Moment
Kindle and Me
Mello & June, It’s a Book Thang!
TMBA Corbett Tries to Write
Amanda’s Book Nook
The Writer’s Inkwell
Mel’s Shelves
Diana’s Book Reviews
Leila Tualla: Bookshelf
Cheyanne Young
YA Book Divas

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September 7, 2016 · 9:02 pm

Announcement – Sign-ups for the Distant Horizon Book Cover Reveal are now live!

Do you have a blog? Want to take part in a cover reveal for Distant Horizon?

If so, head over to Lola’s Blog Tours, where sign-ups are now live! 😀

( http://www.lolasblogtours.net/cover-reveal-distant-horizon-by-stephanie-and-isaac-flint/ )

The cover reveal will take place on September 20th. 🙂

Distant Horizon is a young adult dystopian novel with superhero elements. It’s the first in the series.

The Community is safe.
Unless you have superpowers.

Sixty years ago, a hallucinogenic plague annihilated half the world’s population, leading to the formation of the Community—an international government that promises its citizens safety, security, and efficiency. Every day, Community citizens swallow a mandatory pill to ensure their immunity to the plague. A year after graduating high school, they take the Health Scan.

Most pass, and continue with their lives. Others disappear.

Eighteen-year-old Jenna Nickleson hasn’t taken the pill since her senior year in high school. She feels more alive without it, and she hasn’t shown any signs of infection—at least, not until two days after a surprise Health Scan is announced and Special Forces arrive at her university campus.

Spurred by the recent string of hallucinations, Jenna searches for any inkling of what happens to those who fail the scan. Rumor has it that they’re sent away for treatment and, once cured, receive a menial job. But when she uncovers the cruel truth behind the plague, her ideal world is shattered.

Underneath the illusion of safety, Special Forces agents harbor a dark secret.

The plague is a lie.

In the meantime, Distant Horizon is available for pre-order at Amazon, and will also be available from Smashwords distributors, once it finishes the approval process.

Distant Horizon, by Stephanie and Isaac Flint, will be released on October 27th, 2016.

***

Coming soon: I’ll be posting a blog about Isaac’s and my new co-author photo, as well as writing our usual monthly Infinitas Publishing Status report. There’s a lot going on during the next two months! 😀

 

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April 25, 2016 · 10:51 pm

Thoughts on Writing – A Blurb For Distant Horizon

Isaac and I are preparing to publish our YA/NA science fiction novel, Distant Horizon, and one of the many things that must be completed is a shiny blurb for the back of the book (and the Amazon storefront).

This particular blurb has been through many incarnations, especially seeing as how it started as a query letter (which went through many revisions on Absolute Write’s forums). Of course, the story changed over time, and some of the query letters became obsolete… even when they sounded half-way decent.

In a query letter, you want to give a little more information than a blurb (though you don’t typically reveal the end in either), and as such, I wasn’t sure what should stay and what should go.

How much information is too much?

If I reveal a certain plot point, is it a spoiler, or does it intrigue the reader?

I’ve read some blurbs that pretty much went all the way to the climax of the book, or ran through each major plot point without room for deviation. I’ve read some blurbs that didn’t tell me much at all.

Needless to say, I’ve started to avoid reading blurbs again once I’ve actually started reading a book, that way I don’t start waiting to see when the next plot point shows up. But I’ve also noticed that it takes a really good blurb to hold my attention and make me read it word for word, rather than skimming for key words that catch my interest.

That being said, let’s take a look at what Isaac and I currently have written for Distant Horizon.

The Community is safe, unless you have superpowers.

 

Eighteen-year-old Jenna Nickleson resides in an efficient, secure society that’s recovering from a hallucinogenic plague. So when Special Forces agents arrive at her university prior to a mandatory Health Scan, Jenna’s paranoia—and recent string of hallucinations—prompt her to find out what happens to the students who fail. Rumor has it that they’re sent away for treatment, but when she uncovers a cruel government conspiracy, her ideal world is shattered.

Terrified, Jenna flees her home under the protection of a ragtag band of freedom fighters. The rebels offer her refuge on their rusty airship and claim her hallucinations are elemental plant powers. She’s not so sure she trusts them, but when she comes face-to-face with a cruel telepath in charge of the government’s darkest secrets, Jenna realizes she’ll need more than special powers to escape with her mind and body intact.

This particular blurb has a tagline: The Community is safe, unless you have superpowers.

(There’s an explanation on the difference between a tagline and a logline here, and a quick explanation here.)

We’re briefly introduced to our protagonist (Jenna), our setting (an efficient, secure society), and a conflict (Society is recovering from hallucinogenic plague. Jenna’s been having hallucination. Societal enforcers show up, making her wonder what’s going to happen to her). We also learn there’s a government conspiracy and get information that gets us just about halfway into the book (when she first meets the telepath).

Analyzing this, I wondered if the conflict could be made clearer from the get-go, and if there’s more we should know about Jenna to make her an interesting character right from the start.

I thought about trying to write the blurb in third person, but offhand I could only think of one book that did this well (Delirium by Lauren Oliver), and I think that worked so well in part because it captured the feel of her writing style.

In one article I read about writing a blurb, the author suggested that introducing the setting before the main character was important in science fiction and fantasy. I checked this theory. This holds true for both Hunger Games and Divergent, and to some degree, Matched (the tagline sets up the world).

Given that the world plays a huge role in Distant Horizon, I’m now considering setting up the world first. (In a world where super villains won the day and dismissed super heroes as delusional misfits with a hallucinogenic plague… All right, all right, I won’t start with “In a world”… And I’m fairly certain that “super villains” and “super heroes” are trademarked terms. *Sigh.*)

Based on the idea of setting first, I came up with this rough blurb:

Ever since a hallucinogenic plague wiped out half the world’s population, the Community has been a haven for its citizens. The people of the Community are safe, secure, and efficient. They take a daily pill to ensure their immunity to the plague, and when the time comes for them to enter the work force, they take a mandatory Health Scan. It’s their duty.

But underneath the illusion of safety, the Community’s Special Forces agents enforce a dark secret.

The plague isn’t real.

Eighteen-year-old Jenna Nickleson is a freshman biology student with a secret of her own. She hasn’t taken the pill since her senior year of high school. She feels more alive without it, and she doesn’t show any signs of infection—until just two days before a surprise Health Scan is announced and Special Forces agents arrive at her university. Jenna’s paranoia—and recent string of hallucinations—prompt her to find out what happens to the students who fail. Rumor has it that they’re sent away for treatment, but when she uncovers the cruel government conspiracy behind the scans, her ideal world is shattered.

I’d be tempted to cut it off here, but I’m not sure that it shows enough about what Jenna will do next. What are her goals? What are the stakes?

This is the amended blurb (though maybe a bit lengthy…):

Ever since a hallucinogenic plague wiped out half the world’s population, the Community has been a haven for its citizens. The people of the Community are safe, secure, and efficient. They take a daily pill to ensure their immunity to the plague, and when the time comes for them to enter the work force, they take a mandatory Health Scan.

It’s their duty. But underneath the illusion of safety, the Community’s Special Forces agents enforce a dark secret.

The plague isn’t real.

Eighteen-year-old Jenna Nickleson is a university biology student with a secret of her own. She hasn’t taken the pill since her senior year of high school. She feels more alive without it, and she doesn’t show any signs of infection—until just days before a surprise Health Scan is announced and Special Forces agents arrive at her university.

Jenna’s paranoia—and recent string of hallucinations—prompt her to find out what happens to the students who fail. Rumor has it that the students who fail the scan are sent away for treatment, but when she uncovers the cruel conspiracy behind the scans, her ideal world is shattered.

Terrified for her life, Jenna flees under the protection of a ragtag band of so-called “freedom fighters” whose arrival coincided with that of Special Forces. These rebels offer her refuge and claim her hallucinations are elemental plant powers, but she’s not so sure she trusts them. Still, her curiosity gets the best of her, and when she comes face-to-face with a cruel telepath in charge of the government’s darkest secrets, Jenna realizes she’ll need more than special powers to escape with her mind and body intact.

Eh… it’s a work in progress.

Let’s look at the taglines real quick.

The current one I have is:

The Community is safe, unless you have superpowers.

An alternative tagline I’ve considered is:

The Community is safe, secure, efficient.

At least, that’s what we were supposed to believe.

Or simply:

The Community is Safe.

The Community is Secure.

The Community is Efficient.

It is our duty.

The first tagline introduces part of the Community mantra, and also brings in the idea of superpowers (which is nice to for attracting the attention of readers who enjoy superhero stories). The downside I’ve considered is that it may not be clear whether the Community isn’t safe for people with superpowers, or if the Community isn’t safe from people with superpowers.

Or both.

Technically, it’s both, but the potential problem is a concern I have.

The second tagline introduces a condensed version of the Community mantra, and instantly sets up that things aren’t as they seem (yay, tension!). Downside… no mention of superpowers.

The third tagline is a bit lengthy, but it clearly shows the Community mantra, which is repeated several times and places a huge role throughout the book. Should be a tad discomforting for the reader, but the downside is that it doesn’t reveal superpowers or and other form tension/conflict.

But what do you guys think? Which tagline do you like best, and why?

What do you think about the blurb? Are there any blurbs you’ve particularly enjoyed reading?

I hope you found this post helpful. 🙂

___

By the way, as a way to say thanks for reaching 1000 Twitter followers, I’m currently running a giveaway for two ebook copies (.mobi file or Smashwords coupon) of Magic’s Stealing!

Click here if you’re interested in entering the Rafflecopter giveaway, and good luck! 😀

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June 15, 2015 · 8:00 pm

Thoughts on Writing – Consistency of Style

With Magic’s Stealing out to beta readers, I’m trying to avoid working on that story line until I get the collected thoughts of the readers. That way I can evaluate all the comments and figure out how best to apply them. In the meantime, I’ve switched gears. I’m working on Isaac’s and my Distant Horizon story line. The first book is written and mostly polished, so I’m working on plot consistency in the second book. To do that, I’m rereading the first book to refresh my memory on what changes were made. (Seriously… my notes suggest I’ve read the first book twenty times. Granted, some of those rounds only involved skimming for minor edits, but some of those included major overhauls, and needless to say, I’m starting to get a little tired of rereading it.)

During my read-through, I realized that there’s a shift in the writing style from the first few chapters to the later chapters. There’s less description, more every-day action, and the slow set-up of things starting to go wrong for the protagonist. Events are happening, but I’m worried that they aren’t as enticing as they could be. Now, one possibility is that I’ve read through these first few chapters so many times that it’s all kind of a gray blur. I know the plot too well, but the story may be fine as-is. The other possibility is that there’s a definite shift in writing style that needs to be corrected, or risk turning away readers who might otherwise be interested in the story.

When the story first starts, its sounds very much dystopian:

The first time I flushed adominogen, the oblong capsule tumbled from my hand and bounced off the bathroom sink, once, twice, then fell into the toilet with a finalizing plop.

Gone.

I waited all day for someone to ask why I didn’t report accidently losing my pill. But no one did, and I didn’t have any of the hallucinations that I might have had for not taking adominogen. Instead, the world around me felt so much more alive. My attention improved, not that it was bad to begin with, and I could think clearer. Be more efficient.

After that, I stopped taking the pill. I graduated high school and moved into my first year of college, no sign of theophrenia. But when our hall advisor announced that the annual Health Scan would take place in two days, I panicked.

I needed three things to graduate: excellent grades, as many efficiency points as possible, and to pass the scan. It wasn’t often that someone failed, but it did happen. One of my friends in high school had a sister who failed. Galina. She took the scan at the clinic downtown, and Special Forces escorted her away, all while assuring her everything would be fine.

I didn’t want to end up like her, so right after the announcement yesterday, I took the pill. It was like throwing a clear, plastic tarp over my world. I couldn’t concentrate, but I couldn’t go to the doctor for the symptoms.

Not taking the pill was an international offense.

And a little bit later, still in the same style:

After the incident with Lady Black, I had this constant, nagging feeling that someone stood right behind me, watching me. Stalking me. If this was the plague, then I could only guess this was the onset of paranoia, the delusion that I was somehow important enough to warrant special attention.

Or I maybe I was just paranoid; the Health Scan was less than twenty-four hours away.

My bedroom door rattled and I looked up from my biology book. Faint, golden light traced my desk, highlighting the leaves of my plant and trailing along the edge of my bookcase.

The doorknob rattled again, followed by a new, chinking sound of metal.

I scooted from my chair, then sidled against the wall before checking the door’s peephole.

No one was out there.

Maybe the air pressure was playing with the hinges.

I opened the door and stuck my head into the hall. A couple students passed by, but they’d been too far back to affect the door.

But, as the story progresses (leaving act one into act two), the style shifts, bringing on more description:

Pops led us into a dark, narrow hall, a far cry from the neatly glowing dorm corridors. What might’ve gleamed with bronze reflections was now a dull, dented bit of metal. Yellow lights ran the length of the ceiling in small round inlets, casting a weird, brownish glow over the area. One of the lights was burnt out, and another was completely missing, the socket bare.

We headed up the second flight of stairs. The elevator we passed had a piece of yellowed paper with a DO NOT USE warning taped across it.

“We’ve been running on minimal repairs,” Pops explained. “We have decent funding, but we haven’t had a chance to resupply, and Crush only has so much time to work. He usually monitors the computers for signs of enemy activity.” Pops stopped at a plain, bronze door at the top flight of steps. “This is Jim’s office. My room is across the hall.”

Inside, a dusty world globe sat on the corner of an ornate, wood desk, obscured by various file folders and papers. Books were piled high, their spines haphazardly stacked like a puzzle game. An ancient, faded rug lay beneath the desk, so worn that its vibrant, geometric shapes and numbers were barely distinguishable. Bookshelves surrounded us from floor to ceiling, organized and decorated with models of antique stealth planes and trinkets. A giant, arched window graced the far wall, overlooking the night sky, and two red, plush chairs sat opposite the desk, where a reading lamp blanketed the room in a warm glow.

Later, part of an action sequence:

I followed Lance, since he was closest, and we huddled in the leaves, taking shelter from the fight. A local rushed the monster, and the beasts grabbed him by the throat and yanked him from the ground. Bones snapped and his screams fell short.

“We’ve got to help,” Lance said.

I wasn’t sure if it was his heart or mine pounding double-time in my ears.

No wonder Inese gave me her gun.

Behind us, there was no sign of Jack or Matoska, and I couldn’t hear anything more than a mingled mass of screams and shouts. Ahead, more beasties darted through the field, half-loping, half-running. One was lanky and pale, what little clothing it wore hooked over its bony waist. Crusted blood and clods of dirt plastered its skin. A feline eye stared my direction, while the other was swollen shut.

Other beasts were bulky and heavily muscled, swinging swords or metal clubs, bashing in the locals’ skulls if they got too close. A large glob of water hovered around a beast that stood straighter, more human than the others. The creature lunged at a man and water splashed onto the electric spear. Static traversed the metal shaft. Both man and beast crashed to the ground as electricity coursed over the beastie’s water-slick skin.

In the long run, I see a potential benefit of keeping the story the way it is because, as the style shifts, it suggests that the main character, Jenna, opens her eyes and really starts to see the world as it is, not how it’s portrayed by the sheltered Community. The story goes from being light on description to heavy on description, and the writing style includes thicker paragraphs. In addition, at least in the examples I’ve posted, the character goes from reflecting on the world around her (distant), to becoming heavily involved, a participant. Which might not be a bad thing. I won’t know until I have it available for readers to read.

I hope you enjoyed this post (and the sneak peek at Distant Horizon), and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you experienced any issues with keeping the style and tone of a story consistent? Have you read any books where the style shifted subtly, or even dramatically?

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June 14, 2013 · 6:00 am

Ashes – Short Story Now Available on Kindle

“Ashes,” my prequel short story to “Socks” (1000 Words project) is now available on Kindle. I’ve been meaning to upload it for some time, but never did. Until now! So, not only can you find it on Smashwords, you can also find it on Amazon for 99 cents. 🙂

A 7,500-word young adult, post-apocalyptic romance: When rebels attack the city, two teens race to save the last existing library before it is destroyed.

Find “Ashes” on Amazon

Find “Ashes” on Smashwords

 

SBibb - Ashes Cover - Blog

An Excerpt:

The sky is darker than I remember, and a shape forms above me, blurry. “Matthew?” I ask. My head smarts. I cough, tasting acrid smoke, and my fingers touch a sticky warmness on my forehead. There’s a cut there; I don’t remember why. The gray metal of a helicopter glints in the fire from the building a block away. The warning system is playing repeatedly, but for the life of me, I can’t tell what it says. A firm hand grips mine and then it’s Cory who yanks me to my feet, not Matthew. “Come on!” he says. “We’ve got to get inside.”

What else is there to do? He half drags me into the lobby of a restaurant. Traces of fresh pancakes and hot maple syrup and pungent coffee smells mix with the ashy gunpowder odor from outside. The place is astonishingly empty for the morning hour. We navigate past upturned chairs and coffee stains, broken mugs lying forgotten on the floor.

Then we’re in the kitchen, where thick ceramic tiles block out the sounds of chaos. Cory grabs the handle of the bunker and twists it, praying for it to turn. He pulls me to him, holding me tight as another explosion rattles the foundation. My head against his chest; his heart beat competes with the explosions like a drum.

“You okay, Serena?” he asks.

I’m not sure. “What happened?” I can’t seem to remember why Cory is here. All I know is that I trust him more than Matthew, and there’s a sickness in the pit of my stomach at the thought of the other.”

 

“Socks” is available on Smashwords for free

Enjoy. 🙂

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May 2, 2013 · 1:00 am

Guest Interview: Author Sarah Dalton

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of beta-reading a novella by Sarah Dalton, a member of the Absolute Write forums. (For those who don’t know, Absolute Write is a great place to find information and improve your writing craft, whether you write science fiction, literary, romance, or pretty much any genre you can think of). We got to talking about her self-publishing process, and much of the information sounded like it’d be really useful for others to know as well. So, I asked if she’d be willing to do an interview with me regarding her latest novella, The Fractured: Maggie (released yesterday!) and the approach she’s taken in regards to her book series. The Blemished. Lucky for us, she agreed. Without further ado, an interview with Sarah Dalton!

***

This is her most recent novella, the second of The Fractured series. Not my cover, but I wanted to share it, none-the-less. 🙂

Sarah Dalton - The Fractured: Maggie

 

Tell us a little about yourself. 🙂

Well, I’m from the UK and live in Yorkshire.  I grew up as a country bumpkin with lots of horses and chickens. The Blemished was my debut novel, but I have been published in short form prior to that, with stories in Apex, PANK and the British Fantasy Society anthology. I’m most definitely a chocaholic and for the most part believe animals are better than humans. 🙂

What kind of books do you enjoy reading? Have any of them been particularly helpful in your recent series?

I’ve always read a diverse range of genres, from literary to science fiction to horror. I had a huge thing for Victorian Gothic classics such as Dracula and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Then, I started reading a lot of dystopian books such as Margaret Atwood’s MadAddam trilogy and JG Ballard’s novels. I think Atwood is a particular inspiration; I love her feminist themes and genetic mutations. Her books are incredibly clever and insightful.

Then I discovered the Hunger Games and it opened up a while other genre for me – young adult. In Britain we didn’t have a YA section before the Hunger Games, there were children’s books and adult’s books with nothing in between. I loved the drama of being a teenager coupled with the post-apocalyptic setting.

When I was a teenager I loved to read Point Horror and Goosebumps books and now that I write books for teenagers I’ve realised that I would love to be a similar kind of author.

What was your inspiration for the Blemished series?

I wanted to write a book for teenage girls with a heroine they can look up to, and with a love interest worthy of that heroine. It was really important to me for feminist themes to be brought to young adults. When I look around and see the models and beauty industry it makes me feel like I already live in a dystopia. It made me think about what else I could cram into a novel, what do girls need to know? And that was when I thought up the idea of control and choice. The Blemished is about choice being taken away and women not having control over their bodies. In the Blemished it is the women who are sterilised, not the men, because that has always been typical to the way the world works. Mina is the person who stands up and thinks to herself that this isn’t right, and she doesn’t want it to happen to her. She’s just not sure how to go about changing things.

But I also wanted to write something entertaining that has you reading it with a torch at night. So there’s lots of action and adventure. Throughout the series Mina and the gang get into lots of trouble, discover different ways of living and just how nasty human beings can be. On the flip side they discover how wonderful human beings can be, what it’s like to love and be loved, and how you can find a family in unexpected places. There’s something for everyone, and boys can enjoy it just as much as girls.

When did you first start writing the Blemished series?

I think it was just over two years ago. At first I tried to write a novel set on a different planet. It went a bit wrong so I decided to give myself an easier ride, keeping just one thing from the original idea – superpowers. But at first Mina had the extraordinary sense of smell, not the telekinesis. It made the book a bit boring so I changed it!

Tell us about your latest/upcoming novella, The Fractured: Maggie.

Maggie is about Mrs Murgatroyd from the first novel – The Blemished. She’s a very nasty woman who vilifies Mina and Mina’s choices. She’s not exactly a girl’s girl! J I wanted to write about her story in order to show her human side. I don’t believe in evil and good, and I think that even the most horrible of people have something inside that we can sympathise with. It was a long and hard road for Maggie, she didn’t become Mrs ‘Murder-Troll’ Murgatroyd overnight.

What made you decide to write the Fractured novellas?

There were a couple of characters whose stories I couldn’t quite finish, or forget. They appeared in the first book but didn’t make it to the second, and whilst I always planned to bring them back, I wasn’t sure how much ‘page time’ they’d get. In the reviews of The Blemished, Elena always seemed very popular, and I really liked her too. I figured she deserved a story, and some romance.

 

What’s your favorite part of writing this series? Any favorite characters?

Ali is hands down my favourite character. He’s the kind of guy I want to be best friends with. He’s just a chilled out rock star. In the third book we learn more about Ali. He has hidden depths.

My favourite part of the series is writing little civilisations, like the Perthans. I like thinking up ideas for societal structure – so in The Vanished there is the Glasgow cult who keep women as slaves, but then the Perthans where the women rule and the men take on historically ‘feminine’ roles; then there’s the Moorlanders and Dales folk coming up in The Unleashed. In The Blemished we have the Slum people who live in the Areas but outside the law.

 

Why did you decide to self-publish?

I decided to do it after getting a few rejections from agents. For me it was about timing, and going down the trade route could have taken too long. I knew that YA dystopia was popular now so thought I’d best get it out there while there are readers wanting to buy it.

How has self-publishing worked out for you?

It’s definitely a long game, because you don’t have a publisher behind you to help with marketing, you have to make a name for yourself and that takes time. The first few months were slow but the reviews were encouraging. You have to work out how much you want to spend on your marketing, and how much you need to spend on editing and cover art. There is only so much you can do yourself, and I’ve learned the importance of beta readers, and of people who support you and your book, such as bloggers and reviewers.

I’m really happy with what I’ve achieved so far, but as my goal is to support myself as a full-time writer, I’ve still got a long way to go.

Has it worked out well having beta readers help edit for you? Has there been much of a difference? How many do you typically ask? I know some people go the beta route, others go editing.

Betas are really important in my opinion. They’ve helped me to shape the relationship between Mina and Daniel, to make sure that characters are well-rounded, and helped a great deal with grammar and typos. I usually ask two or three beta readers to read my book and send me their comments.

In an ideal world I think a combination between beta reading and editing is best, but when you need to be frugal, betas are essential. Especially trusted writers. It can be hard to know what advice to take and what to dismiss, but you get used to trusting your instincts.

I’m using Betas as a necessity at the moment. I can’t really afford to pay for editors, as much as I’d like to. I think betas do a fantastic job but I must admit there’s always a part of me in a slight panic over spelling and grammar, especially grammar. But even professionally edited novels often have tiny mistakes in them so you have to learn to switch off that panic.

 

What is bookbub?

Bookbub is an email subscription service telling readers about kindle deals. They have thousands of sign-ups and you can pay them a fee to email their subscribers details about your discounted book. I was lucky enough to be picked by them and it really worked for me. http://www.bookbub.com/home/

 

At what point did you submit to Bookbub, and how long did it take to accept your book? Did it help with sells/reviews? 

I went to Bookbub in February. I think they responded in a week. There might be some info on the site about how much notice to give them.

To be honest, I feel as though I owe all my sales since February to Bookbub. On the first day I sold 300 books which tripled the amount of sales I’d gotten in the first five months of publication. Since then, even after putting the price of my book back to 2.99, I’ve had really good sales.

I noticed you have a Wattpad account. Have you found it to be a useful tool? How have you used it?

Actually, no! I probably don’t spend enough time on there, but not many people read my stories. It seems more geared towards One Direction fan fiction! I know some people find it a great place to post their work, and I do like adding stories that were not good enough to sell. At least then someone gets to enjoy them.

Your book covers are beautiful (and so are the promotional materials you have posted on Facebook). Who did you have do your covers? They look really well done. 🙂

My cover designer is Najla Qamber, she’s the in-house designer for Inkspell Publisher and a really lovely person to boot http://www.najlaqamberdesigns.com/

I have a go at image manipulation from time to time and experiment with covers and promo bits and bobs but Naj is the real talent.

Have you found having the promotional banners to be helpful? What sort of promotional tools do you use?

I tend to use whatever is free and inexpensive – posting images to facebook, using social media, contacting bloggers, setting up blog tours… I don’t tend to spend a lot of money on adverts. I have tried Goodreads and Facebook adverts but they don’t affect sales.

I have some bookmark designs but until I find myself at a writer’s conference I don’t think I’ll bother getting any printed.

Do you primarily use the internet to promote your books, or have you done any book signings or other author events?

Just the internet for me! I’m a bit shy about book signings but would like to once I have a few more sales and maybe more books. I’d love to team up with another writer in my genre and maybe share a table at an event. Perhaps in the next year or so.

Does having your own specialized website help promote your books? Did you create it yourself or hire someone to make it for you?

My partner is a computer programmer so he did it for me! I’m very lucky to have him around.

Do you plan on continuing to self-publish, or do you hope to trade publish as well?

I’ve really enjoyed the experience but I must admit I would like a trade contract. I think my ambition is to be both trade and self published. If I can get at least one book to a bigger audience, then hopefully my sales would increase for the other books, and I’d get to keep 70% of the royalties from the self published books.

Or another ideal would be to have a print deal and retain my ebook rights. Some of the authors who have had amazing success at self-publishing – Hugh Howey, Bella Andre – have done this. It would be amazing to walk into a supermarket and see your book on the shelves.

I saw on goodreads you had a few short stories trade published (congrats on getting into Apex, by the way). Do you think being located in Britain versus the US has had any difference on your market/target audience?

I’m not sure about the Britain/US thing. I tend to read US based YA so I think my books are heavily influenced by the US trends. But at the same time I write in British spelling and set my books here, so that might actually work to my favour for a US audience. I think we’re pretty popular in America at the moment, what with Harry Potter, Doctor Who and One Direction. Most of my sales are in the US. I find my home country the hardest to sell to!

 

I saw on your Amazon page that FeedARead is listed as your publisher. Can you tell us a little more about them and how they work, and if they have been useful to you?

Feed a Read are a Print On Demand service for British writers and funded by the UK Arts Council. They pretty much offer the same service as Create Space but work as a smaller company. I’ve had no problems with them at all and am very happy with the royalties and the quality of the book.

I went with Create Space for my second book so I could compare. They are a lot quicker and the direct link to Amazon is really helpful, but the royalties aren’t quite as generous. When I first published The Blemished, Create Space didn’t have direct bank transfer payments for UK authors (another reason for choosing Feed a Read) but now they do, which is much easier.

For the third book I’m not sure which way I’m going to go. Amazon is my priority for sales, so I’m drawn to Create Space.

Any suggestions for authors considering going the self-publishing route?

I’d say have a go to anyone. As long as you research everything and get a really kick-ass cover (and have a good story) then there’s no reason why you can’t have some success. One key factor is releasing more than one book. That’s one of the reasons I decided to do novellas, so readers wouldn’t forget about me when waiting for the third book. It does put a little bit of pressure on the turnaround time, but I work part time so have been able to handle it so far.

Check out Kindleboards Writer’s Cafe if you want to know more. (http://www.kboards.com/index.php/board,60.0.html)

 

I understand the novella bit. It was something I’d wondered about doing. Actually, I’d wondered about splitting novels into self-contained “episodes” that were novella length and releasing them within a period of five months or so, but I wasn’t sure how well that would go.

The episodes thing worked really well for Hugh Howey and Wool. I think it’s a good idea when self publishing because regular releases bump sales. One thing I’ve noticed from the people who earn their living through self publishing is that they write fast and they release often.

 

On the topic of suggestions for self-publishing, was there anything you found particularly useful or not useful when you started promoting your books?

Kindleboards Writer’s Café and Absolute Write are really useful forums to learn more. I love reading other people’s experiences with selling their work.

Having a good cover is really important, and it needs to represent the genre you’ve written.

Goodreads – excellent for finding reviewers and building up a good relationship with people enthusiastic about your books.

I saw that you had advanced reader copies available for reviewers when you published the Vanished. Have you found ARCs to be useful in getting reviews? How early do reviewers like to have their copies to read?

I got some advice from a publicist before I published my first book (she was kind enough to stop by my blog and offer advice) who suggested I send ARCs out about a month before the release. I don’t always make that deadline.

Anything you’d like to add (either about the books or self-publishing) before the interview concludes?

Just that you’ll come across many cautious people who make you feel like you’re doing the wrong thing. Sometimes people are right and sometimes they are very wrong. It’s a learning curve. You have to learn who to listen to and who to ignore. When people begin to tell you their way is the right way alarm bells ring in my head.

***

And that’s a wrap. To find out more about her books, take a look at the links below. I hope you the information proves useful, and perhaps you’ll even find an intriguing book to dig into. 🙂

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sarah-DaltonAuthor/152388908154545

https://twitter.com/sarahdalton

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4720363.Sarah_Dalton

http://theblemished.com/

http://sarahdaltonbooks.com/

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/sarahdalton

http://www.amazon.com/Sarah-Dalton/e/B004S7FQE6/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

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October 27, 2012 · 2:12 pm

“Ashes,” Prequel to “Socks,” is now available on Smashwords

Wow, this past month has been busy. I have a couple new book covers I’ve been meaning to post for a while, and I have an exciting announcement: I finally got “Ashes,” the prequel to “Socks” uploaded to Smashwords! Yay 😀

So, first off, the book cover. In keeping with the tradition of “Socks,” I made the covers to resemble each other.

SBibb - Ashes Cover

Now, for a bit about “Ashes.” It takes place a bit before the events in “Socks.” As in, the rebels have just attacked the city, and now Cory and Serena are desperately racing to save the contents of the last existing library before it’s destroyed. The story is 7500 words long, quite a bit longer than the flash fiction, 1000 words of socks. Right now I only plan to place it on Smashwords as an ebook, since I’ve been having some technical difficulties with Kindle lately. But don’t worry, you can still get it for your kindle through Smashwords.  It’s currently available for 99 cents.

Find it here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/249071

Meanwhile, a side note about my 1000 Words project. Socks has the most reviews out of the nine short stories available for free, but has the fewest downloads. (Find the short story here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154150)

Dreamkeeper has the highest amount of downloads, but no reviews. I wonder if it has to do with audience, the description, the cover, or some other factor.

Either way, just wanted to make the announcement. 🙂

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