Epoch is officially released next week, but already I have one glowing review from Canadian Review of Materials (CM)! Check this out!
I tell you, this brightened up my day like nobody's business. Completely blew away my disappointment over the rejection of Young Nostradamus. My editor didn't think the story had a very salable hook, not like Epoch had. Epoch had the end of the world as a comedy, whereas YN has a kid with the ability to predict the future - not half as catchy. He invited me to resubmit it in four months time, by which point the numbers for Epoch will have rolled in. If Epoch does well (which it will, say it with me!) then he will reconsider his decision on Young Nostradamus.
That means Epoch must be a hit. And with a review like the one linked above, it is on the right track.
It will be a hit. A big one. I can feel it!
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Rewrites
I'm currently rewriting one of my more recent finished manuscripts, Young Nostradamus. This one's about a teenager who discovers he's a clone of Nostradamus, created by the US government to help them predict terrorist attacks. I thought it was pretty darned good, but when I sent it to Flux, they rejected it. Too much like the last book, they told me. Plus, do I always have to write about the kid who gets picked on by school bullies?
I do that a lot, I've noticed. I like writing about the picked-on people who become heroes. You could say it's a theme of mine. However, Flux didn't want another one of those stories, and felt it didn't suit the character or the story, anyway. I looked back over the book, and discovered they are right. Some things you just don't see unless someone else points it out to you.
Flux is willing to take another look, provided I make a few changes. My agent has already sent them the first three rewritten chapters, and I'm hard at work revising the rest of it.
Writing is a continuing learning experience, and I'm very lucky to be working with people who are willing to give me the feedback I need to hear.
I do that a lot, I've noticed. I like writing about the picked-on people who become heroes. You could say it's a theme of mine. However, Flux didn't want another one of those stories, and felt it didn't suit the character or the story, anyway. I looked back over the book, and discovered they are right. Some things you just don't see unless someone else points it out to you.
Flux is willing to take another look, provided I make a few changes. My agent has already sent them the first three rewritten chapters, and I'm hard at work revising the rest of it.
Writing is a continuing learning experience, and I'm very lucky to be working with people who are willing to give me the feedback I need to hear.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Epoch
I figured it's a good time to discuss my next book, Epoch, due this summer from Flux (an imprint of Llewellyn, who did my first novel, Attack of the Intergalactic Soul Hunters). The website is up, and you can find it at www.ourepochisover.com. Sorry, I don't know how to do links in posts yet. There's not much on the site yet - some art, and a countdown to publication - but I'll be adding some more stuff to it soon.
Epoch is a YA fantasy comedy about the end of the world. A 14-year-old boy named Vincent has a run-in with some fantasy creatures, and they tell him the world is about to be invaded by demons, who will wipe out the current dominant species to make way for the next species' epoch. Usually, large portals appear worldwide to allow the soon-to-be-extinct species to leave the planet, but this time around the portals are all hidden. Vincent must team with pixies, elves, a troll, a really hot new-age girl, his best friend, his brother and even the school bully in order to find those portals and get everyone through before the epoch comes to an end.
I love end-of-the-world stuff. My adult sci-fi novel, Section K, is also about an end-times plot. Epoch is different, however, in that the world will most definitely end. I even make a point of saying that in the book's introduction - Vincent and his friends will not prevent the end, but maybe they can escape it. I first got the idea reading the booklet for the Monty Python and the Holy Grail computer game. In the troubleshooting section, the authors posed the question "What if the computer is covered in insects?" to which the answer was "It is the dawning of the next great Age of Planet Earth. There is nothing you can do. Our epoch has come to an end." At least, it was words to that effect. I definitely remember the phrase, our epoch has come to an end, though. It stuck with me, and I just liked the word, epoch. And to write a book whose idea was sparked by Monty Python? Nothing like being inspired by the best.
Please check out the site (often, as I'll be updating it and adding more stuff just as soon as I learn how). The book launches on July 7, 2007.
Epoch is a YA fantasy comedy about the end of the world. A 14-year-old boy named Vincent has a run-in with some fantasy creatures, and they tell him the world is about to be invaded by demons, who will wipe out the current dominant species to make way for the next species' epoch. Usually, large portals appear worldwide to allow the soon-to-be-extinct species to leave the planet, but this time around the portals are all hidden. Vincent must team with pixies, elves, a troll, a really hot new-age girl, his best friend, his brother and even the school bully in order to find those portals and get everyone through before the epoch comes to an end.
I love end-of-the-world stuff. My adult sci-fi novel, Section K, is also about an end-times plot. Epoch is different, however, in that the world will most definitely end. I even make a point of saying that in the book's introduction - Vincent and his friends will not prevent the end, but maybe they can escape it. I first got the idea reading the booklet for the Monty Python and the Holy Grail computer game. In the troubleshooting section, the authors posed the question "What if the computer is covered in insects?" to which the answer was "It is the dawning of the next great Age of Planet Earth. There is nothing you can do. Our epoch has come to an end." At least, it was words to that effect. I definitely remember the phrase, our epoch has come to an end, though. It stuck with me, and I just liked the word, epoch. And to write a book whose idea was sparked by Monty Python? Nothing like being inspired by the best.
Please check out the site (often, as I'll be updating it and adding more stuff just as soon as I learn how). The book launches on July 7, 2007.
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