Arthur woke up not in the Avalon or the body he had fallen asleep in. He may be younger, but he knows that something strange has happened to the land he once was trying to conquer, and he recognizes the woman who has come back to try and set things back to the way things were.
And that is all he knows. Everything else is strange and different and new. And he does not like it.
Today in working through the TBR pile, some super villain stuff! Because I need to get a bit more up to date on modern super hero books as research for Cloned Evil.
Vicious follows Victor Vale on his quest for revenge. In college, he and his roommate, Eli Cardale, attempted to give themselves super powers and make themselves ExtraOrdinary, or EOs. They succeeded, but Victor ended up spending the better part of the next decade in jail while Eli went on a quest to murder every EO he could find.
Neither Eli or Victor come across as good people, and I am a fan of it. Victor is selfish and is ultimately driven by his obsession with Eli. His journey to get powers was largely based around his need to be an equal to Eli, and his subsequent revenge has him pointing all of his attention on him.
Conversely, Eli’s motivation is one of a twisted self-righteousness. He thinks he’s been given this power by God and he is doing good work, even as he’s going around and murdering people who have not done anything wrong. He doesn’t really seem interested in Victor so much as the idea of what he represents.
Other characters are more sympathetic. Both of Victor’s companions, the small child and the thug with a heart of gold, are lovely people that help temper his darker impulses and provide a little levity and perspective to the two leads.
The world building is interesting and there’s a feel to it like this is the start of a larger universe. I don’t know if that’s the intent, but with the way the exposition goes into the theory and detail of how someone becomes an EO and why their powers manifest one way or another, it feels like setup for a much larger series than the one that’s being told right now.
The narrative is also a little jumpy. It flickers back and forth in time, telling many distinct stories on top of one another to give you a fuller picture of everything that is happening. It makes sense together, though there are moments where a chapter will end and you’ll have to wait a while before the action picks back up again.
Overall, though, I really liked the story. Definitely worth at least checking out if you like superhero stuff on the darker side.
Let me save you guys a lot of time and just go through all of the points in all of these How to Indie Author books. I’ve read a lot and they are very repetitive. I will add a disclaimer here and say that these techniques do work if you follow them to the letter. It’s just that I’ve decided that this kind of success is ultimately not for me. Here’s what’s in every single one of these books:
So if you’re wondering how these guys who are selling the same how to guide over and over again with a new paint job.
Near as I can tell, it’s selling pricey courses and coaching to other authors. The books almost always have at the very least a link to a mailing list that will sell you their courses, if not a direct pitch for their courses. Doing the math on how much some of these courses and coaching sessions cost, I can see how they hit 6 figures. On top of that, books on how to be a successful indie sell well!
They follow all of their own advice. They write to market ((Indie authors)), write a whole series of these books to put out quickly, and hang out with their target audience as experts in the field ((These guys are constantly in indie author groups)). The techniques absolutely work in a lot of cases, but I’d argue that this is not an amazing revelation. This is largely Marketing 101 reframed for selling books on Amazon. And, as someone who has also made a thing targeted at authors, I can confirm that targeting authors is a good business decision.
It’s probably time for a progress report. After releasing Gentle Current Into Danger and leaving everyone like that, I’m sure you want to know when you’re going to see the rest of the series and what happens next. We’re getting so close to the end, so when will you see it?
I’m working on the last two! They are on their way! I don’t want to rush them, but I do have tentative release dates for myself that I’m aiming for so that I can get them out by the end of the year.
All Mad Here I am aiming to have out for August 25th!
The unnamed final book of The Looking Glass Saga I’m hoping to have out on October 20th!
Now all I have to do is get them done. Wish me luck!
Another month, another roundup of the quote graphics! I have far too much fun making these! All of these are from the latest release, Gentle Current Into Danger.
In today’s microfic ((I’m doing this as 250 characters or less)) of The Looking Glass Saga, a quick look at Alice’s father living with a child like Alice.
Whenever she read there were flowers. When she dreamed, the flowers talked. From the walls, through the floors, growing from nothing. It wasn’t normal.
There would be no madness in this house. No more dreams. No more stories. He would make her normal.
Today is the day! Book 8 of The Looking Glass Saga is out!
If there was one thing Alice was good at, it was lying.
When Alice swears that she is done with Wonderland, Adrianna wants to believe she is telling the truth. Alice has stopped going to Wonderland, stopped vanishing at a whim, stopped ignoring her teachers in class. It’s like she’s a whole new girl, one that is ready to move on with her life and start working toward her future.
But there are cracks appearing in the mirrors–and in Alice’s facade. There is more to that growing illness than she is letting on. But Adrianna has other problems, from Arthur blackmailing her into a relationship to her brother still being possessed. It’s only a matter of time before Wonderland comes knocking again, and someone will answer its call.
Peter Pan came to Wonderland after Neverland went from his dream to his nightmare. He may still be a child at heart, but his home is no longer a place of safety and fun, and slowly he’s learning that maybe it’s time for him to grow up. Maybe he’s been a child for long enough, and it’s time for someone else to take his place.
Another day, another reading! This time I opted to try the one for the first chapter of Return to Wonderland!
For anyone currently looking for a soundtrack to listen to while you’re getting ready for the release of Gentle Current Into Danger next week, I got you covered! This is the playlist I’ve been listening to while writing, so you might enjoy it while you’re reading!
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