The Convention Run is Complete! For Now...

I've been a little spotty in my posting, but it has been a real whirlwind during the shorter weeks with the 6 week convention run that I've been on. It concluded last weekend at MidSouthCon in Memphis, which was the exclamation point on what has been a really enjoyable and successful run of conventions/events.

I am truly grateful to all the hard-working folks who put on ConNooga, MystiCon,Metropolis SuperCon,Troy Book Lover's Festival, Millennicon, and MidSouthCon. I've met so many wonderful new individuals, and also got to spend a great deal of time with many that I harbor a great affinity for. We had Swordbearer screenings at all of the events, and I can say that the new movie has been well received so far.

Needless to say, I owe everyone some reports on the last two weeks. I've been a little behind, but I want to give both Millennicon and MidSouthCon their own posts. Keep an eye here, as they are going to be put up here pretty quick, in rapid fire style!

In addition to the conventions, I've been keeping up with work on the 3rd Rising Dawn Saga book. I am pleased to report that Amanda has been very happy with the text so far, indicating that it is the cleanest copy I have handed in yet. I feel that this book is a rocket ride of action, though the course takes a darker edge as things escalate in Terra, the Middle Lands, and perhaps a foray into the Abyss... ;)

I've also been very involved with the release of Jackie Gamber's Redheart, the new Seventh Star Press title that kicks off the Leland Dragon Series. It is SSP's first YA title too! I've been assisting with the outreach and launch of the book. More will be contained in my report on MidSouthCon, but the launch party there was a great success.

So get ready for a procession of reports before this weekend is out...I will leave things with a couple of images that I just got today, from a dear reader and friend, Robin B....turns out that her daughter Grace chose to decorate her wall with the cover art 8X10's that I give out at signings and conventions, and Robin also sent me a shot of her new bookshelf, regarding a particular section of it... :)

I LOVE getting notes and pics like this from readers, and am going to gather up what I've got and put a gallery on my site, and perhaps my facebook page, as I'm always so appreciative when reader-friends do something like this, and take the time to send me a picture.


(I'll caption this one: Now Gracing Grace's Wall! )



(Some fine choices at the Z-end of her bookshelf, don't you think? All the softcovers, plus a Storm Guardians Limited Hardcover...one of just 50 in existence!)



(And last, but certainly not least, I want to introduce you to my reader/friend Robin's daughter Grace, who has the 8X10's on the wall)

Troy Book Lover's Festival Report! A Good One!

(me with Sue Cantrell, of Around About Books and the leader of the Troy Book Lover's Festival. She's got some pretty cool Fires in Eden and Thrall buttons on in this pic too!)

Had another adventure this weekend, this time at the Troy Book Lover's Festival in Troy Ohio. I thought getting to Dayton from Lexington was going to be quick, and for once the weather was clear, but lo and behold, a semi truck broke down on the bridge into Cincinnati, and construction issues clogged up the passage through Dayton. This extended what should have been a 2 1/2 hour trip into a 4 hour one!

I did get to the event on time. I checked out Around About Books first. They are the folks that put on the festival, and they have a really superb independent bookstore right by the central town square in Troy. It is a 2 level store, and they have entire rooms devoted to both fantasy/sci-fi and horror, which I thought was really cool.

The event was held in the Franklin Masons Lodge, and featured about 20 authors from all genres. I was so glad to see Bonnie Stewart, an Ohio based horror author that I had met back at Scarefest last fall in Lexington. Bonnie's quite the rockstar, lively, engaging, and full of flair! Her sister was with her helping out with things, as Bonnie was recovering from a recent surgery.

Bonnie unveiled a new t-shirt for Dark Days Publishing, done by Joe Garcia from Fast Custom Shirts, the same gang that does the great shirts we have at Seventh Star Press. the new shirt looked awesome, and I hope Bonnie is going to sell them at FandomFest, as I definitely would buy one.

I met some fantastic other authors, such as Stephen Hines and Terry Ervin. Stephen's got some great things going in the graphic novel area, and Terry's bookcover for Flank Hawk features a WWII era German Stuka flying right towards a dragon!


(Me with author Terry Ervin)

(Me with authors Stephen Hines and Bonnie Stewart)

I got a chance to screen Swordbearer on Friday night, and participated in a panel on Fantasy/Horror on Saturday. We then had a three hour signing/selling period, at which I met some great new reader-friends, and sold several books. Many thanks to those that picked up books and are diving into the mayhem of my fantasy worlds!

The festival provided wonderful hospitality, including a welcoming dinner on Friday, breakfast Saturday morning, and a dinner to end the day on Saturday. I really enjoyed meeting Mike and Dave, two guys from Around About Books who were very instrumental in the festival. I'll end with this cool pic of myself with these two, as the week beckons, and Millennicon is right ahead in Cincinnati next Friday through Sunday! :)

Midweek Update-Jackie Gamber's New Book, Metropolis SuperCon, and more

The week has been a whirlwind, with lots of writing on the third Rising Dawn Saga book and helping out with the introduction of fellow SSP author Jackie Gamber's new book Redheart.

Metropolis SuperCon last weekend was an adventure. Metropolis is a small town just across the border from Kentucky, in Illinois. They have definitely embraced all things Superman, ranging from a giant statue of the Man of Steel to a museum, and even an annual Superman-themed festival.

For my part, I was focused on the Con, since this was my first foray into the town. I got there very early on Saturday morning, leaving Lexington about 4am and making the 4 hour plus drive to arrive there close to about 8:30. I forgot about the time zone shift, so I ended up being there at 7:30 local time.

This was a smaller show, and I was arranged next to writer Bobby Nash, and across from artist Sam Flegal. Both guys are friends of mine from the circuit, and they seem to be able to put up with me, which is always good.

There was a room adjacent to the vending area where screenings and some panels were taking place. I participated in a screening of Swordbearer, and an author's Q and A that featured Bobby Nash and myself.

I really enjoyed meeting the people that attended, such as Carson, Aimee, Justine, Kristina, Patrick, and several other wonderful individuals. Kristina ended up being a major highlight of my weekend...she had stopped by my table on Saturday, and had said that she wanted to give The Exodus Gate a try. She sounded enthusiastic, but I did not expect to see her on Sunday, having already read a big chunk of the book and wanting to get The Storm Guardians. That was some of the fastest reader feedback I have ever received during a con!

On the Saturday night, I went with Ken and Myra (who are the honchos at FandomFest/Fright Night Film Fest, and who also help run a number of other smaller shows), to a house where some die-hard horror movie fans that they know wanted to treat us to a steak dinner. And treat us they did...Josh, the guy cooking the food, is evidently an aspiring restraunteur, and he served us a phenomenal steak dinner.

We had a blast hanging out, and because of Josh, Brandon, and Ben, I will never see the Eric Roberts movie Best of the Best in the same light again.

Over the weekend, we also made the discovery that Myra Daniels can evidently make magic hotdogs, the eating of which produces immediate sales results. I am not kidding, in that the three hot dogs that I had over the course of the weekend immediately preceded sales of books, almost instantly, following a few slower stretches. Michael Gordon, a comic creator who came down with Bobby, tested Myra's Magic Hot Dogs himself...lo and behold, he made an immediate sale after consuming one of the hot dogs. No more proof needed! Unfortunately, Myra ran out of hot dogs, otherwise I might have been able to reach the New York Times Best Seller list if I could have eaten enough of them. I have asked her to stock me up with the Myra's Magic Hot Dogs before all of my future Cons! LOL

Sunday went smoothly enough, as the Con concluded and I made the trip home in some of the calmest weather I've been in for quite some time.

This week is rushing by fast. I have been working to help get the word out on Jackie Gamber's new book Redheart, a fantastic YA Fantasy adventure that is the first book of her Leland Dragon Series. She's a fellow SSP author, so I consider her family, but I can say with the utmost of confidence that she is one gifted writer. She won the very respected Mary Shelley Award, among others.

Matthew Perry did the cover art and illustrations. I will post them below so you can take a peek at it all.







I encourage you to pre-order one of the limited edition versions of Redheart. They are going to be very beautiful hardcovers for sure. Check out the packages here, at the Seventh Star Press online store.

You get far more value than the amount you pay, without a doubt.

Well, I have to get back to work, as there's lots to do, including getting ready for my 4th event weekend in a row, at the Troy Book Lover's Festival in Troy, Ohio. Thankfully, the drive won't be too far (just outside of Dayton).

I'll be checking back in shortly.

Six Straight Weeks on the Road....

As seems to be the norm, this week has been quite busy again. A lot of preparation going on, as I will be hitting the road pretty extensively the next six weeks.

Each of these events will have a showing of Swordbearer. I will also have a table/booth at each event for those that would like books or collectibles (and I will have copies of Steven Shrewsbury's new one Thrall available for the first time on the Convention circuit!).

This weekend is ConNooga, in Chattanooga TN, it will be followed by MystiCon in Roanoke VA, Metropolis SuperCon in Metropolis IL, the Troy Book Lover's Festival in Troy, Ohio, Millennicon in Cincinnati, and finally....MidSouthCon in Memphis, TN.

Quite a run, but it is what you have to do when you want to do this fulltime.

I have had a little fun this week...got a card swiping setup through Intuit (the folks behind TurboTax, Quckbooks, and other accounting software). It works with Android based phones, so I am finally coming into the 21st century with my new mobile device. It will be a G2.

Thankfully, I've been with the same carrier for 8 years (T-Mobile) so I was able to get a manager to approve a great deal on the phone. It will bring some convenience to people that stop by my booth who want to use credit cards or debit cards. I'm looking forward to having this option, as there have been many times that people have been unable to get a book because I could only take cash. I hope this will help some new reader-friends get underway, and of course every little bit helps me scrape through the travel costs on these events.

Work continues to progress on the next Rising Dawn Saga book. Really enjoying this one alot. There's a big quest to look forward to in this one... :)

Also excited about a forthcoming announcement of a new SSP writer...who brings a whole new dimension to SSP! :) More on that VERY shortly, but this person is really first class, as an individual and as a writer. The family continues to grow! :)

That's about it for now...gotta get back to sorting, packing, preparing! LOL