Hellscapes II Now Available on eBook Format, Plus New Contest and Blog Activities!

Hellscapes, Volume II is now available in eBook format. here are some direct links to the Kindle, Kobo, and iTunes versions, Nook should be live shortly.

You can get Hellscapes, Volume II for $2.99 at the following links:

Amazon Kindle

Kobo

Apple iTunes

Nook version will be live shortly.

Also, there's a big blog tour underway! here are some links to some of the early posts and activities, some of which include the brand new contest featuring a Fire HD 8 as a grand prize! :)

Beauty in Ruins: Guest Post from me about writing horror and how it has helped me grow and expand my literary horizons

Kentucky Geek Girl: Brand new interview talking about my favorite horror movie, music, and themes in Hellscapes II

Shells Interviews: A guest post from me about the concept of levels or dimensions of Hell and personal hells, and how that applies to the new book.

Sinister Scribblings of Sarah E. Glenn: Guest post about my favorite childhood Halloweens.


Check them out and be sure to leave a comment at the places you visit! :)

Cover Art Reveal for My Latest, Hellscapes, Volume II

Really excited to share this, the cover art by Aaron Drown of Aaron Drown Design for Hellscapes, Volume II.  The eBook arrives on Monday, to coincide with a big blog tour that includes a contest featuring a Kindle Fire HD8 as a grand prize.  Going to be a lot of fun, I'm working up some good posts for many stops, doing interviews on others, and there will be several reviews.   Definitely looking to be a busy week.  But hope you all find this cover cool! I feel very strongly about this latest installment, as does my editor on this one, Scott Sandridge, and I'll be looking forward to hearing what the readers think! :)

Synopsis: Return to the nightmarish, shadowy realms of Hell in the latest installment of the Hellscapes series by Stephen Zimmer. Six brand new, macabre tales of the infernal await you … but be that you only visit these realms, you do not want to share the fates of the inhabitants you will encounter!

Included in the pages of Hellscapes, Volume II:

In “The Cavern”, a man finds his way into a nightmare, subterranean world that leads to an even greater, and more devastating, revelation.

A police officer takes pleasure in violently executing his duties and it appears to be open season in “The Riot” when he is part of an operation sent to crack down on a gathering of people protesting an economic summit nearby. But this is an operation that is going to take a very different kind of turn, one that opens his eyes to a new reality.

A woman finds herself stranded on a high, rocky ledge, along with many other men and women, surrounded by a frothing sea in “Above as Below”. Shadows glide beneath the surface and soon she will discover what lurks within the depths.

“Spots Do Not Change” tells the story of a man who has never had any qualms lying, cheating, or deceiving the women in his life. A reckoning day looms as he comes to understand that his actions have harmed the lives of many others, actions that in the realms of Hell take on forms of their own.

Having spun webs of intrigue and personal destruction at the heights of national politics throughout his life, a man finds webs of another sort to present grave danger when he finds himself lost within a strange wilderness in “Weaving Webs”.

Many are drawn to “The Club” in the heart of the decaying, shadow-filled city of Malizia, hoping for some entertainment and release, or even safety from the monstrous dangers lurking in the darkness. One man struggling against amnesia finds his way to the seemingly popular establishment and its confines give him momentary hope; until he discovers the nature of this night club and those who run it.

Heart of a Lion trailer and eBook debuts today! The First Rayden Valkyrie Novel!

It is definitely a day to celebrate, the release of the eBook and video trailer for Heart of a Lion, the first Rayden Valkyrie novel and Book One in the Dark Sun Dawn trilogy! We are gearing up for the celebration of the print version this Saturday at 5pm at Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington, KY, but those with eReaders can dive right into Rayden's world today.

The video trailer was created by the incredible Kylie Jude of Frozen Creek Studios.  She has composed Rayden Valkyrie theme music as well, which is included in this trailer.  

As far as the book itself, here are the direct links to the Kindle, Nook, and Kobo versions.  The synopsis is below.  The cover art was created by Bonnie Wasson and my editor on this one was Scott Sandridge, both of whom I want to give a big shout out too! :)    If you enjoy dark fantasy/sword and sorcery, you will find all the goods in here along with a wonderful heroine! :)  Kindle Version Kobo Version Nook Version

Synopsis: Rayden Valkyrie. She walks alone, serving no king, emperor, or master. Forged in the fires of tragedy, she has no place she truly calls home

. 

A deadly warrior wielding both blade and axe, Rayden is the bane of the wicked and corrupt. To many others, she is the most loyal and dedicated of friends, an ally who is unyielding in the most dangerous of circumstances. 

The people of the far southern lands she has just aided claim that she has the heart of a lion. For Rayden, a long journey to the lands of the far northern tribes who adopted her as a child beckons, with an ocean lying in between. 

Her path will lead her once more into the center of a maelstrom, one involving a rising empire that is said to be making use of the darkest kinds of sorcery to grow its power. Making new friends and discoveries amid tremendous peril, Rayden makes her way to the north. 

Monstrous beasts, supernatural powers, and the bloody specter of war have been a part of her world for a long time and this journey will be no different. Rayden chooses the battles that she will fight, whether she takes up the cause of one individual or an entire people. 

Both friends and enemies alike will swiftly learn that the people of the far southern lands spoke truly. Rayden Valkyrie has the heart of a lion. 

Heart of a Lion is Book One of the Dark Sun Dawn Trilogy.

Hellscapes Available for 99 cents today on Kindle, Nook and Kobo

Hey everyone, this is just a quick note to let you know that my themed collection of horror short stories Hellscapes, Volume 1, is available on Kindle, Nook, and Kobo for just 99 cents today.  Very different stuff from my other work, but it shows my love and influences from writers such as Clive Barker, Dante, and John Milton.  The stories are very dark, visceral, and macabre, but there is a moral element to each of them, even if in the form of warnings.

Please check it out, and even if you don't like horror, gift a copy or two to friends.

thanks in advance!

Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/Hellscapes-Stephen-Zimmer-ebook/dp/B00F01WWKA

Nook:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hellscapes-volume-1-stephen-zimmer/1116848055?ean=2940148672951

Kobo:
http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/hellscapes

Desert War eBook Short Story Now Available!

As if the new short story collections, Chronicles of Ave, Volume 1, and Hellscapes, Volume 1, were not enough for a release week, I also had a new short story addition for the Annals of the Rising Dawn Collection!  Been quite busy this past week with these releases, but wanting to make up for some lost time this summer.

This particular story is a stand-alone, but readers familiar with the Rising Dawn Saga and the short story "Temples Rising" will discover some very interesting things within it!  It also has a very eerie relevance to world events happening today, especially with regard to my take, represented in fantastical fashion, of elite interests who foment wars in foreign lands under the banners of things like "nation-building" and "regime change". Below is the cover and official synopsis.  Really hope you enjoy it! It is just 99 cents and is now available on Kindle, Nook, and iBookstore (with Kobo at any time, just waiting for that version to go live)  

Kindle Link: http://www.amazon.com/Desert-Annals-Rising-Dawn-ebook/dp/B00F26IOSW

 Nook Link: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/desert-war-stephen-zimmer/1116861462?ean=2940148369455

iBookstore Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/desert-war/id703024646?mt=11

available shortly on Kobo


Synopsis:  “Desert War” tells the story of Saif, a man from the Order tasked with getting an ancient, powerful artifact out of Libu before those serving the Convergence can take it themselves. The nation of Libu is crumbling fast around him, as militant religious zealots backed by the political elite of the Convergence carry out the overthrow of the current regime. The insurgency is just one part of a much wider design, one that has been advancing over millennia, and the artifact must not fall into the wrong hands. With the streets of the capital filled with murderous, brutal insurgents, and being hunted by powerful enemies wielding supernatural arts, Saif has to find a way to get the priceless artifact to safe harbor. “Desert War” is a stand-alone short story that is part of the Annals of the Rising Dawn, a growing collection of tales set in the same history and world as the Rising Dawn Saga novels from Stephen Zimmer.    

Chronicles of Ave eBook Links! Available Today!

Chronicles of Ave is now available in eBook formats!

The Kobo and iBookstore versions should be going live at anytime, but the Kindle and Nook versions are available. If you are thinking of getting a copy for the Kindle, please give some thought to picking it up today so that we can make a little bit of a splash over there on Amazon on release day.

here are the links for Kindle and Nook:

Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Chronicles-of-Ave-ebook/dp/B00EYNPRYI

Nook
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/chronicles-of-ave-volume-1-stephen-zimmer/1116818186?ean=2940148525844

The print version will be 328 pages and will be out next week!  I'll post when those links are available. :)

Big Giveaway Contest Including a Kindle Touch 3G!

Welcome to my first hosted contest, which features a number of wonderful prizes including a Kindle Touch 3G as part of the grand prize!  Prizes include bundles of eBooks, signed softcovers, an Amazon Gift Card, and more!

Now for the formal stuff.  I will be fulfilling all eBooks and book prizes relating to myself and Seventh Star Press authors directly, as well as the Kindle Touch 3G and the Amazon Gift Card.  The additional eBooks from other authors will be fulfilled by the authors themselves, directly.  The authors donating the additional eBook prizes, JH Glaze, Dianne Gardner, Gwen Perkins, Rachel Hunter, and David Guyton assume all responsibility for fulfillment and delivery of their titles to the prize winners.  I have asked them to provide prizes within the week following the close of the contest on September 9th.

eBook and book prizes can be awarded to international residents, but Grand Prize and Prize #2 are to be awarded to US/Canadian residents only.

Also, this promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. We hereby release Facebook of any liability.

I am using the RaffleCopter system where you can earn extra entries merely by liking the Facebook pages or following the Twitter accounts of various authors and some bloggers.  I encourage you to get as many entries as possible!

Here is a full list of the prizes!

Grand Prize: A Kindle Touch 3G, plus 3 Stephen Zimmer eBooks of your choice, 4 additional SSP eBooks of your choice (choose between Jackie Gamber, D.A. Adams, Michael West, H. David Blalock, Steven Shrewsbury, and R.J. Sullivan), and 9 bundle of eBooks from participating authors:

J.H. Glaze: 5 pack including The Spirit Box, Northwest, Forced Intelligence, and The Horror Challenge Volumes I and II.
David Guyton: Mighty Hammer Down
Rachel Hunter: Empyreal Fate
Gwen Perkins. The Universal Mirror
Dianne Gardner: Deception Peak

Prize #2: $25 Amazon.com Gift Card plus , 3 Stephen Zimmer eBooks of your choice, 4 additional SSP eBooks of your choice (choose between Jackie Gamber, D.A. Adams, Michael West, H. David Blalock, Steven Shrewsbury, and R.J. Sullivan), and bundle of eBooks from participating authors JH Glaze, David Guyton, Rachel Hunter, Gwen Perkins, Dianne Gardner (titles included in description of grand prize).

Prize #3: Signed softcover of your choice: The Exodus Gate or Crown of Vengeance

Prize #4: Signed softcover of your choice: The Exodus Gate or Crown of Vengeance

Prize #5: Choice of all 3 available Rising Dawn Saga eBooks (The Exodus Gate, The Storm Guardians, The Seventh Throne), or all three available Fires in Eden series eBooks (Crown of Vengeance, Dream of Legends, Spirit of Fire) from Stephen Zimmer

Prize #6: Choice of all 3 available Rising Dawn Saga eBooks (The Exodus Gate, The Storm Guardians, The Seventh Throne), or all three available Fires in Eden series eBooks (Crown of Vengeance, Dream of Legends, Spirit of Fire) from Stephen Zimmer

Prize #7: The Seventh Star Singles from Stephen Zimmer, eBooks include Lion Heart, Land of Shadow, Into Glory Ride, and Temples Rising

Prize #8: The Seventh Star Singles from Stephen Zimmer, eBooks include Lion Heart, Land of Shadow, Into Glory Ride, and Temples Rising



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Recap and Spirit of Fire eBook info

Blog Tour Recap and Spirit of Fire eBook info

The Spirit of Fire Blog Tour is underway, the eBook version is now available, and Fandom Fest is coming up in just a few weeks.  Yes, things are very busy as always, but I hope that everyone is enjoying the latest tour stops.

Unfortunately, I was unable to make it to ConCarolinas this weekend. Circumstances on the homefront were unavoidable.  As most of you know, my mother has a very unstable health condition, and there's only myself and my sister to keep a watch on her.  When I'm out of town my sister keeps a close watch on her, but the new vehicle that my sister got spent most of the last week in the shop, had a breakdown less than a couple miles out from the place she got it that required me to go get her, etc.  With the uncertainty swirling around her vehicle, I just could not leave town.  I hope everyone understands the situation, as I hate having to cancel anything on my calendar. 

On better news, the blog tour activities have had quite a mix of things.  I just had my first video interview for the Soliloquy Blog site, I've done guests posts on a few different topics, I had a very extensive interview on the Ginger Nuts of Horror site, and even had a character interview of Mershad from the Fires in Eden series.

For a recap of the first few tour dates:

May 29: Introductory post for the tour at Fantasy Book Review in the UK

http://www.fantasybookreview.co.uk/blog/2012/05/29/a-new-release/

May 30: BIG interview on the Ginger Nuts of Horror site

http://thegingernutcase.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/interview-with-stephen-zimmer.html

May 31: Character interview at Alexx Mom Cat's Gateway Book Blog

http://alexxmomcatsgatewaybookblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/character-interview-of-mershad-shahab.html?zx=156b2b4ca4129ffc

June 1: Guest post at Splash of Our Worlds on the artwork of the Fires in Eden series

http://splashofourworlds.blogspot.com/2012/06/spirit-of-fire-tour-artwork-of-novels.html

June 2:  Video interview for Soliloquy.  

http://kaitlinmichelle.com/spirit-of-fire-by-stephen-zimmer-author-interview/

June 3:  Guest post on war in fiction for Alexia's Chronicles

http://alexiachronicles.blogspot.com/2012/06/blog-tour-spirit-of-fire.html?showComment=1338737783663#c1921648153622380345

Please check them out, and leave a comment if you enjoy them.  The bloggers always love to hear from the readers that visit their sites.

As far as the eBook version of Spirit of Fire, you can get it at the following links:


Amazon Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Fire-Fires-Eden-ebook/dp/B0087P0EOW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1338744598&sr=1-1 

Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spirit-of-fire-stephen-zimmer/1111326652?ean=2940014724975

It is just $2.99, the same price as Crown of Vengeance and Dream of Legends in eBook format.  

We will be doing a big Amazon Kindle promotion with Crown of Vengeance this Tuesday and Wednesday, so please be sure to check back and help us spread the word to help introduce more readers to the series. 

:)

Spec The Halls: A special charity appeal

Note: Today I wanted to pass along a guest post from Steven Saus, a great author, eBook wizard, and all-around good guy who has a very worthy project this holiday season. Please give this a read and consideration! Steven's the real deal as far as good folk in the small press/self-publishing world! :) thanks!
-Stephen Z

Spec the Halls

My name is Steven Saus; I'm an author and publisher. I run Alliteration Ink, where I both publish original work and also provide publishing services. This year, I've taken up the mantle of running Spec The Halls from Abra Staffin-Wiebe. There's both a writing contest and a charity fundraiser. Right now, I'm doing a bit of a blog tour to support the fundraiser; each entry talks about something different, so you'll want to stop by them all. You can see a full linklist of the guest posts at specthehalls.tumblr.com and read more about the whole project (and get the charity eBook) at specthehalls.com.

I've already been asked a few times why Spec The Halls is only going to be available in digital formats.

First, I want to point out that if you get the eBook from our website, not only will more of the purchase price be going to charity, but you'll get more formats. You will get a PDF as well as the ePub (iBooks, nook, Kobo, Sony) and Kindle formats. Basically, if you have a computer, you'll be able to read it.

Second, it means that more of the money can go to charity. If I printed the book (about 150 pages if you made it a trade paperback size), it would cost a few dollars a book - and that's not counting what the retailers take. Because the authors donated the stories, Kathleen Tennant donated the cover art, and I do eBook conversions myself, there are neither up-front or per-unit costs. More money for Heifer International!

Third, this eBook is only available for a short time for the fundraiser. When the fundraiser is over, I won't have excess inventory to worry about!

Finally, digital distribution means that we can do innovative things with the book - like accepting reciepts for donations that people make on their own instead of requiring people to pay me directly.

It's that kind of flexibility that made it obvious that this project required digital-only distribution.

This year's edition of Spec The Halls is only available for a limited time, so act quickly to get your copy!

Kindle and Nook versions of The Seventh Throne: live at $2.99

I am going to write a nice long post about the hometown launch event of The Seventh Throne, last Friday in Lexington at Joseph-Beth Booksellers, but I'm a couple of days behind on posting the Kindle and Nook links for The Seventh Throne.

Links are now live for both versions, and both are priced pretty nicely at just $2.99

Here's the Kindle link:

http://www.amazon.com/Seventh-Throne-Rising-Dawn-ebook/dp/B005I4ZPVC/ref=sr_1_1_title_1_ke?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1313861511&sr=1-1

Here's the Nook link:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-seventh-throne-stephen-zimmer/1104002005?ean=2940012990754&itm=1&usri=the%2Bseventh%2Bthrone

Pass them along to your friends that have Kindles and Nooks and encourage them to give this series a look! :)

New Crown of Vengeance Review from Watch Play Read

Will be getting a full report on DemiCon with pictures shortly. The weekend went very well, and I already miss my Iowa friends!

I just got the good news that a very nice new review of Crown of Vengeance went up on the Watch Play Read site. They reviewed Crown of Vengeance to prepare for their review of Dream of Legends, which is coming soon.

The review link is here:
http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/ebooks.html

The eBook sale that includes Crown of Vengeance will be going on through mid June. Please spread the word about it, as Crown of Vengeance and The Exodus Gate are both available for just $1.99, as well as Jackie Gamber's Redheart and Steven Shrewsbury's Thrall.

the eBook sale link is here:
http://www.seventhstarpress.com/documents/ebooks.html


The DemiCon report will be coming very soon!

DemiCon and a Brand New Interview at Up Around the Corner

To say things have been busy is an understatement. As many know, I am an active part of the public relations outreaches for Seventh Star Press, working with C.C. and the others who help in this area. This month involved the launch of Jackie Gamber's Redheart, the first YA fantasy novel for SSP. As most of you probably know, YA, or Young Adult, literature is huge. The outreach took a herculean effort to reach out to the great number of potential reviewers and sites with possible media opportunities for Jackie.

All of that was piled on top of doing full time hours for the broadcast team at Keeneland, working hard every morning on the third book of the Rising Dawn Saga, and duties as the programming director for the Writers Track at Duckon and the Literary Track at Fandom Fest.

Has been a little crazy, the average night of sleep was around 4 hours, and I apologize for being sporadic lately on the blog. Thankfully, Monster Energy keeps me rollin'! :)

I will be hitting the road hard again starting this weekend at DemiCon in Des Moines, Iowa. The four week run at Keeneland wraps up this week and I am heading out for my second visit to DemiCon. This Con was superb to me when my mother went into the hospital with an emergency health matter last spring and I had to cancel with only a few days notice. They invited me back, and we're first class and understanding about my situation. I just love this crew for how cool they've been. A couple of them, Mandi and Rachelle, even got together a large number of SCA clothes to lend to the production of Swordbearer!

I am looking forward to seeing two very special author friends, Lettie Prell and Shirley Damsgaard. Lettie hosted me on my trip west to Beaverdale Books for a signing later in the summer last year, and Shirley has been a very dear friend, and a person that I consider a mentor in many ways. Shirley's just a great lady, and she's got some big things on the horizon. It will be a lot of fun to see both of them!

There will be a screening of Swordbearer on Saturday, and I will be doing some panels and a booth this weekend. Can't wait to get back into the DemiCon groove. if you are in the area, and can make it, I recommend this Con a lot. Very enjoyable and run by some really first rate individuals. www.demicon.org is the address.

I also wanted to post a link to a brand new interview that went up today at Up Around the Corner. It is a really nice interview, with a good overview of my work and some excellent questions, given to me by fantasy author Terry Ervin. If you do check it out, please leave a comment to let Terry know that you stopped by!

here's the link: http://uparoundthecorner.blogspot.com/2011/04/interview-with-sffantasy-author-stephen.html

Don't forget to keep passing the word out that the Seventh Star Press eBook sale (Try Seventh Star Press for Two Dollars) is still going! Just $1.99 for Crown of Vengeance and The Exodus Gate (as well as Jackie Gamber's Redheart and Steven Shrewsbury's Thrall), and $2.99 for The Storm Guardians and Dream of Legends. And that's for all formats...Kindle, Nook, iPad, and Sony.

here's the link to the sale:
http://seventhstarpress.com/documents/ebooks.html

That's all for now, but i will check in shortly with some DemiCon posts!

Big eBook Sale: Try Seventh Star Press for Two Dollars

My report on MidSouthCon is about done and ready, but I needed to get this post up about a new Seventh Star Press eBook sale. Here's the official info from the SSP site, but suffice it to say that if you haven't tried my books and wanted to, OR you like YA or Heroic fantasy, there's a great sale going on now at Seventh Star Press with $1.99 titles. My Book 2's, Dream of Legends and The Storm Guardians, also have a special price of just $2.99. Please help me spread the word on this special sale. Thanks!



Try a Seventh Star Press Title for Just Two Dollars!

What is your favorite flavor of fantasy? Do you like character-driven YA Fantasy? Do you like heroic fantasy with loads of action? Do you like epic fantasy with a wide cast of characters, lands, and lore? How about epic scale urban fantasy?



To celebrate the launch week of Jackie Gamber's Redheart, we're announcing a very special sale. The good news is that we've got a title in each of the above areas of fantasy, so that you can try Seventh Star Press eBooks out in this special sale that will be running through Mid-June. What are you waiting for? Just two bucks and you'll be on a grand adventure. Find out what readers around the world are discovering...there's a growing constellation of quality titles at Seventh Star Press!

Click here for titles and other information at the SSP site

New Crown of Vengeance Video Trailer

I am a bit behind on my blogging, but am getting untracked, and I will do a 2009 in review post shortly. I wanted to make sure that anyone taking the time to visit here was able to find the new video trailer for Crown of Vengeance. This is my first book trailer, produced by filmmaker Aaron Champion, to whom I am incredibly grateful. As mist is a major element in this kickoff to the Fires in Eden series, Aaron designed a very nice presentation that really showcases the illustrations included in the book (which were done by artist Matt Perry). Please visit the trailer, embed it, and let me know what you think of it!



I will have some more news posted shortly. In a nutshell, 2010 is going to be very, very busy, with appearances, the next books in my 2 series, and a return to filmmaking. There will even be some more editions of the 2 novels currently out, as a hardcover edition of The Exodus Gate should be out in February, along with Kindle and eBook editions of Crown of Vengeance. Be sure to check back!