Writer
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| December 23 |
| Freehold has just been sent to www.bookshare.org to be transcribed for the blind. It will shortly be available as a free download for audio or Braille output. |
| December 22 |
| Freehold hit #1624 on Amazon.com (out of 3 million books). Thanks to all my fans for putting their money out to get me there. |
| December 16 |
| The Hero is now listed on Baen's schedule, and should be on Amazon any day. It's lead title for the month (both my books have been :-D) and is hardcover, to be followed by PB release later. I have cover art for The Scope of Justice, and it's stark and intimidating. I like it. Scope has a listing on Amazon, but there's nothing there besides an ISBN. Yet. Back to the salt mines. I'll still be broke until some royalties hit in about a year. Oh--basic premise of The Hero: Recon team on an enemy planet finds an artifact of the Aldenata--they who created most of the galaxy's modern races and gengineered them (incompetently) for their purposes. The Posleen have been civilized through attrition (any who couldn't grasp that attacking us was bad died, as did most of the human race). The other races are still flawed and dealing with it. So once this artifact is found, a battle starts for possession (among the team). The Darhel is a sensat (empath), but cannot kill and cannot even eat meat due to the genetic manipulation--it causes a psychotic cataleptic reaction (enforced pacifism. And you thought YOU had issues). The humans involved have better weapons, but are not empathic and are wounded. The local life forms are largely insectoid, with chitin that is akin to kevlar--it stops most small arms fire. Some are carnivorous. Some are the size of rhino. Then there's that Tslek (enemy) base a few kilometers away... There's just no good way to get out of this. Did I mention that food and water are limited, and the automated extraction ship will leave in ten days, with or without any occupants? Did I mention that said artifact is worth about a BILLION on the black market? |
| December 15 |
| The Hero is now listed on Baen's schedule, and should be on Amazon any day. It's lead title for the month and is hardcover, to be followed by PB release later. I have cover art for The Scope of Justice, and it's stark and intimidating. I like it. Scope has a listing on Amazon, but there's nothing there besides an ISBN. Yet. |
| November 13 |
| I should have my author's copies of Freehold any day. If you wish, you may order a copy directly from me, and I will autograph it. It may arrive a day or two earlier than the Jan 1 release date, too. Email me for details. |
| October 15 |
| The first Target: Terror book has been renamed, "The Scope of Justice" to avoid confusion--there are too many works entitled, "One Shot, One Kill." Also, it's release has been set as July 2004, with the Avon imprint of HarperCollins. This, of course, is subject to change. I am slowly releasing snippets of "Hero" on Baen's Bar, and they will be collated at the Dahak site for your reading pleasure. The first 14 chapters of "Freehold" are up and linked through Baen's catalog page. |
| August 02 |
| Don't you wish you had my job? So, after 5 16-hour days at GenCon, a complete unload of the van, a complete reload if the van, a 56 hour, 1800 mile trip from here to Nashville to pick up photographer Oleg Volk, to Fort Benning to visit the US Army Sniper School for research on a current writing project, to Knoxville for a photo shoot, back to here, oil changes on both vehicles, fuel pump, sensors and starter on the Grand Am (232,000 miles), axles on the van (165,000 miles) and another attempt to sell off the Pontiac wagon (400,000 miles), a replacement of the trailer wiring kit on the van, I am ready to go to Pennsic. Today, I'm loading my entire shop--forge, anvils, grinders, buffers, hand tools, all the merchandise from Cloak & Dagger, a 400 sq ft tent, food, Viking era garb and supplies for the 402.3 mile trip tomorrow (I've done it a time or two), 14 days there, then return. Then I have a week to unload, clean, store, reload for the Indianapolis Gun Show. Then I leave the morning after that for Toronto for the 61st World Science Fiction Convention, where I'll be teaching a new writers' class and running or participating in several panels on military, political, gender and religious issues. Somewhere in there I have to do 25,000 or more words to finish up ONE SHOT, ONE KILL for the Sept 1 deadline. That's why they pay me those big bucks, which, after car repairs and rent will buy me a cup of coffee. Luckily, I don't drink coffee so it can go in my daughter's piggy bank. |
| July 18 |
| John made some very favorable comments about "Hero." He's done with his edits and the publisher has it. The first chapter of "Freehold" can be found online at Dahak. Other chapters will follow. So you can start reading now. First hit is free, folks. ;-) |
| July 11 |
| Hero is with John for review before it begins publication process. Scheduled publication date is June, 2004. We should have cover art shortly. The first Sniper novel is more than half done. I'm planning for the end of July as a completion date, so I have time to make changes during the scant few days I have in August. 30 July, Oleg Volk and I will be visiting the US Army Sniper School for research. Ideally, we'll also do an article from this for one of the firearm magazines. |
| July 02 |
| I'm halfway done with the first Sniper novel. Everything is laid out and I'm filling in the words. As Pennsic and Worldcon will interfere with the delivery date, I'm planning to finish by Aug 1. So I've got to turn out 3,000 words a day between now and then. Freehold already has an Amazon rating (sales rank) on pre-orders, and is the number 2 choice if you simply search for "Freehold." By all means feel free to help boost my rating. |
| June 21 |
| FREEHOLD is listed on Amazon. You can make advance orders. Or, you can advance order from me for the same price and I'll autograph and personalize your copy for free. For details, email me. |
| June 19 |
| Cover art for Freehold is finalized. It's in the bibliography section. David Mattingly does amazing work. Go take a look. Work continues on the Sniper novels, and on the 3rd and 4th books in the Freehold universe. |
| June 12 |
| I've got about 20,000 words of notes for "Rogue," a sequel to "The Weapon." It's awaiting time and/or a contract to write. I've also teamed up with Australian/American political newspaper publisher, Leo Champion, to put together notes for a near future SF story set in a fragmenting Indonesia. This will be part of the basis of the Freehold universe. |
| June 09 |
| "HERO" is done, and has been sent back to John for edit/review/comments. More on that as I find out. I have seen the initial cover art for "Freehold," and it rocks! I mean it's really, really good. David Mattingly is a fantastic artist. As soon as it's finalized, I'll get it posted. I'm back at work on the sniper trilogy, and possibly some non-fiction articles on weapons. More soon. Kids, enjoy summer. Parents, send them to camp. |
| May 21 |
| David Mattingly, www.davidmattingly.com, who is doing the cover art for Freehold is done reading. He sent me a very flattering letter in regards to it, both as a reader and as a professional illustrator. I should see some initial sketches of cover art soon. |
| April 25 |
| One year ago today I signed the contract for Freehold. Since then, I've acquired 5 other novel contracts and have one pending. Not a bad year if I say so myself. I should have some preliminary sketches for the cover art for Freehold shortly. |
| April 19 |
| I hope everyone enjoyed Tax Protest Day. I understand a few people even paid their taxes, although the protest was far more important. The first Target: Terror book, "One Shot, One Kill" is 20% done. I made extensive notes while working on other projects, so the actual writing is very straightforward. It's also a lot easier using an existing universe rather than creating a new one. |
| April 07 |
| The Very Secret Diary of George Bush, General Tommy Franks and Saddam Hussein |
| March 22 |
| My "Amazing Beliefs" article was reprinted in the NRA's "America's First Freedom" magazine in January. It was misattributed, but a correction was printed in March and I was compensated rather handsomely. Thanks to the editorial staff for their gracious discovery of their own error and the correction. |
| March 18 |
| I like to maintain a rigid state of flexibility. With that said, "Freehold" has been pushed back to 1 January. This is what happens when you're the new guy, and though it's a bit frustrating, it's part of paying your dues. Work progresses on "Hero," and we're about half done. |
| March 12 |
| I'm about half done with my part of "Hero." I've also started making notes and outlining a sequel to "The Weapon," with the working title of "Rogue." I use simple titles to keep track of things. We may come up with something snappier later. |
| February 16 |
| Award winner David Mattingly, www.davidmattingly.com, is the cover artist for "Freehold." As well as book covers, he's done CD cover art for Michael Jackson and the Commodores, matte work for Disney and a variety of other interesting projects. We should have the art around May. |
| February 09 |
| I spent most of January ill, and in and out of hospital. More tests in a couple of weeks. Nothing serious. My writing was inconvenienced, though. The collaboration with John Ringo, working title "Hero," is close to 1/3 done. How long it will take will depend on several factors, so no completion date yet. The contract requires it be done by the end of September. I also have an outline for "One Shot, One Kill," and am doing more research on Pakistan/Afghanistan to ensure I get details correct. |
| January 07 |
| It's official. I've signed the contract for the "Target: Terror" trilogy, to be released by Harper-Collins starting next year. These are present-day military novels about a sniper stalking terrorists. More about these later. |
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