Since my book was published as an ebook, see http://www.theonesaga.com, I have had the utmost difficulty in finding people to review it. Most say let me know when the paperback is out and I'll read it for you which seems odd in a day when ebooks are supposedly selling in such droves. Surely the reviewers are keeping with the times? Off course I hope to be able to send out some printed review copies but they do not come free so I can see myself getting a job just to pay for books and postage. Are ebooks as popular as they pundits would have us believe or is it all hype?
There are now so many types of ebook readers out there that it is dizzying keeping track of them, so I don't. I've tried the iPad, not impressed, fine until you go out in the sun. Anything with e-ink works brilliantly and in general the lack of extra toys on these devices serves to keep us less distracted from what we sat down to do - read. It is like when I'm writing (like now distracted by a blog) the computer has so many other things that I'm easily distracted by that I am seriously considering getting something with no internet connection so that I have to get on with the task at hand. I used to write longhand and then type it up later. The problem there was that when the action heated up my writing became unreadable so I had to guess at what it said or just re-write it.
SO back to my first point, distracted again, what I need are reviewers / reader of fantasy who would like to review my novel. The only criteria is that you can do so on some form of E-reader, I can send you, via email, many different file types just let me know the prefered one.
Thanks for reading.
Thursday, 27 January 2011
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Sealed with a kiss
OK, so it's two posts in one day. This little piece is from, The Cord, part three of my saga. The Cord is all about covenants, contracts and trust. The first strand of The Cord, if you like, is the tryst of a marriage and looks at how do you deal with a doubt and the result of following gossip. That and good deal of battling orcs and stuff. So without further ado here is the closing chapter of the first section of the book.
To help you three characters are: Emun, the husband of Lo and main hero of the saga, Lo, the prophet wife of Emun and daughter of Arrborn the priest.
Sealed with a Kiss.
Lo had cast away the words of Accuson, those that had haunted her thoughts and driven to the edge of sanity. She had listened to the whispers of the dark lord that would soon proclaim himself a god before mortals, words carried on the backs of insects that crawl among the filth. Like the words of a gossip poised upon the tip of the tongue always ready for the eager ear to catch. Lo had heard the whispers in her sleep and in the loneliness of her thoughts she had allowed them to take root and fester. She shuddered involuntary as she recalled how readily she had taken the words to heart and acted upon them without once stopping to seek the truth.
Lo walked up the worn pathway to the door of the home that Dorn had given them as a wedding gift. She took a deep breath and turning the handle she opened the door and went inside. Emun looked up from his plate of food and smiled, his lip trembled softly as he tried to speak her name. Arrborn, who had made himself a second home with Emun jumped from his seat and rushed to embraced his child.
"What's in the sack lassie, is it treats?" Lo swung the bag carefully out of Arrborn's reach.
"I'm afraid not," Lo looked at Emun with a heavy heart. "I know about Dorn," she looked down at the sack then back at Emun. "I am so sorry for all that I have done these past few weeks. I ... I," her tears mingled with Emun's hair as he pulled her close and embraced her. He took the sack from her hand and placed it carefully on a chair. "I ... listened," Lo said between sobs.
"It does not matter, I have you home now," Emun kissed the tears from her eyes then from her face. He placed he placed his lips delicately upon her trembling mouth and kissed her softly. They never saw Arrborn take the sack from the chair or heard him close the door.
The afternoon soon became evening as two lovers renewed their covenant. A hesitant knock at the door followed by a gruff cough reminded Emun and Lo that their father-in-law had been outside for most of the day. Lo pulled herself from Emun's arms and opened the door to find the dwarf standing with his arms piled with food and gifts, his reddened nose and sparkling eyes peering over the top of the stash. "Is it safe yet?" Arrborn asked almost dropping his bounty.
"Off course it is safe, why would it not be?" Lo asked then grimaced as the reasons why came to mind. Arrborn set his bags on the table and went about preparing something to eat.
"Is there any word from mother, Emun has told me of her journey north?" Lo put the plates in a pile in the middle of the table together with knives for the bread and meat that Arrborn had tossed over to her.
"None as yet, but don't worry about her. I pity any fool that messes with your mother she is not as delicate as she looks," Arrborn tore off a hunk of bread and rammed a thick slice of meat into it which he flattened between his hands before biting of a sizeable piece. Lo leaned across and picked out the crumbs from his beard. Arrborn winked at her as he took another bite then playfully stuck out his chin to have it groomed again.
"I should think not," Lo said drawing away in mock disgust, "there's something living in it," she said tugging at his beard.
"Something!" Arrborn blinked wide eyed, "a great many things I shouldn't wonder," and with that he proceeded to devour the rest of his supper in huge mouthfuls washed down with a flagon of mead. Arrborn yawned, stretched out his arms and belched, "that's better," he said.
"I'm sorry about my father he's a dwarf," Lo looked at Arrborn with a frown.
"He's in a class of his own," Emun quipped.
"Kids," Arrborn growled through another mouthful of bread and mead.
See you all again soon.
ps my current read which I heartily recommend to anyone who likes Terry Pratchett or Tom Holt is Pogrom
by Clive Newnham.
To help you three characters are: Emun, the husband of Lo and main hero of the saga, Lo, the prophet wife of Emun and daughter of Arrborn the priest.
Sealed with a Kiss.
Lo had cast away the words of Accuson, those that had haunted her thoughts and driven to the edge of sanity. She had listened to the whispers of the dark lord that would soon proclaim himself a god before mortals, words carried on the backs of insects that crawl among the filth. Like the words of a gossip poised upon the tip of the tongue always ready for the eager ear to catch. Lo had heard the whispers in her sleep and in the loneliness of her thoughts she had allowed them to take root and fester. She shuddered involuntary as she recalled how readily she had taken the words to heart and acted upon them without once stopping to seek the truth.
Lo walked up the worn pathway to the door of the home that Dorn had given them as a wedding gift. She took a deep breath and turning the handle she opened the door and went inside. Emun looked up from his plate of food and smiled, his lip trembled softly as he tried to speak her name. Arrborn, who had made himself a second home with Emun jumped from his seat and rushed to embraced his child.
"What's in the sack lassie, is it treats?" Lo swung the bag carefully out of Arrborn's reach.
"I'm afraid not," Lo looked at Emun with a heavy heart. "I know about Dorn," she looked down at the sack then back at Emun. "I am so sorry for all that I have done these past few weeks. I ... I," her tears mingled with Emun's hair as he pulled her close and embraced her. He took the sack from her hand and placed it carefully on a chair. "I ... listened," Lo said between sobs.
"It does not matter, I have you home now," Emun kissed the tears from her eyes then from her face. He placed he placed his lips delicately upon her trembling mouth and kissed her softly. They never saw Arrborn take the sack from the chair or heard him close the door.
The afternoon soon became evening as two lovers renewed their covenant. A hesitant knock at the door followed by a gruff cough reminded Emun and Lo that their father-in-law had been outside for most of the day. Lo pulled herself from Emun's arms and opened the door to find the dwarf standing with his arms piled with food and gifts, his reddened nose and sparkling eyes peering over the top of the stash. "Is it safe yet?" Arrborn asked almost dropping his bounty.
"Off course it is safe, why would it not be?" Lo asked then grimaced as the reasons why came to mind. Arrborn set his bags on the table and went about preparing something to eat.
"Is there any word from mother, Emun has told me of her journey north?" Lo put the plates in a pile in the middle of the table together with knives for the bread and meat that Arrborn had tossed over to her.
"None as yet, but don't worry about her. I pity any fool that messes with your mother she is not as delicate as she looks," Arrborn tore off a hunk of bread and rammed a thick slice of meat into it which he flattened between his hands before biting of a sizeable piece. Lo leaned across and picked out the crumbs from his beard. Arrborn winked at her as he took another bite then playfully stuck out his chin to have it groomed again.
"I should think not," Lo said drawing away in mock disgust, "there's something living in it," she said tugging at his beard.
"Something!" Arrborn blinked wide eyed, "a great many things I shouldn't wonder," and with that he proceeded to devour the rest of his supper in huge mouthfuls washed down with a flagon of mead. Arrborn yawned, stretched out his arms and belched, "that's better," he said.
"I'm sorry about my father he's a dwarf," Lo looked at Arrborn with a frown.
"He's in a class of his own," Emun quipped.
"Kids," Arrborn growled through another mouthful of bread and mead.
****
See you all again soon.
ps my current read which I heartily recommend to anyone who likes Terry Pratchett or Tom Holt is Pogrom
by Clive Newnham.
Welcome to my world
As this is the first post here I'll explain a few things.
I am a fantasy writer, not the erotic kind but the the Tolkien, Steven Donaldson, kind. I write the kind of books that I like to read though I do review books for a couple of websites for whom I read any kind of fantasy with an open mind.
My current work, The One Saga, can be viewed over at my website http://www.theonesaga.com the first part has been published by Vamplit Publishing and is currently available through Smashwords.com, Apple ibook store, Sony book reader, and a few others. Previous to the saga I used to write horror, my first ever book , The Rising, is available on Smashwords for free. I am an active member of a local writers group, The Horsham Writers Circle, and live with my wife and three children in West Sussex, England.
I will from time to time post some of my current work in progress here which you will be free to comment on.
I look forward to hearing from you.
I am a fantasy writer, not the erotic kind but the the Tolkien, Steven Donaldson, kind. I write the kind of books that I like to read though I do review books for a couple of websites for whom I read any kind of fantasy with an open mind.
My current work, The One Saga, can be viewed over at my website http://www.theonesaga.com the first part has been published by Vamplit Publishing and is currently available through Smashwords.com, Apple ibook store, Sony book reader, and a few others. Previous to the saga I used to write horror, my first ever book , The Rising, is available on Smashwords for free. I am an active member of a local writers group, The Horsham Writers Circle, and live with my wife and three children in West Sussex, England.
I will from time to time post some of my current work in progress here which you will be free to comment on.
I look forward to hearing from you.
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