Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Would you like to receive Hollow World a month early?

Last July, I did a pre-order campaign for the release of The Riyria Chronicles. It was very successful and people seemed to enjoy the free signed bookmarks and bookplates. So I thought I would do the same for Hollow World. The really nice thing is that because I control the ebook rights for Hollow World, I can send the ebook a month before the official release, and for those who pre-order audio or print editions, the ebook is provided for FREE. So here's a list of bonuses for those that pre-order the book:

  • Receive the ebook 1 month before the official release
  • Receive a signed (and if desired dedicated) bookplate*
  • Receive signed bookmarks (for you and your friends)*
  • Your choice of bonus short stories
  • A chance to win one of three Hollow World Posters

* NOTE: Physical bonus materials (bookmarks & bookplates) are shipped only in the United States. I will ship internationally for those who pay $1.50 to cover costs. Poster winners will be shipped free of charge to any country.

As far as where you pre-order from, that's entirely up to you, and all versions are eligible (print, ebook, and audio). That said, if you buy direct from me, I receive a much bigger cut of the purchase price. Plus I offer a 15% discount and you can have print books signed and dedicated. Here are some links to make pre-ordering easier:  (NOTE: Amazon does not currently support pre-orders on kindle titles unless released through a major publisher. If you need this format, please order directly from me.)

US Audio

Here's a look at the bonus materials:

Bookmarks & Bookplate


Poster (drawing to win 1 of 3)


To receive your pre-order bonuses, please follow these instructions:
  • Complete this survey
  • Send an email to
  • Make sure the subject reads: Hollow World Pre-order
  • If you did not purchase directly from me, attach your pre-order receipt.
  • If you purchased from my store, all I need is your transaction ID.
  • For non-US delivery of physical products, send $1.50 to cover postage via PayPal or AmazonPayments to
This pre-order promotion will end March 14th, 2014 and is open to residents of any country. Ebooks will be mailed March 15th, 2014 and if you buy a print book from me, it will be sent out as soon as I receive copies. I'm really excited about Hollow World's release and am thrilled to get copies out to people a full month ahead of schedule.  I hope you will enjoy the read!

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Unfettered Released in the UK

I'm a few days late on this but Unfettered (an anthology short story from myself, Patrick Rothfuss, Terry Brooks, Brandon Sanderson, and a whole lot more is now released in the United Kingdom. For those that might not know, this was originally put together to help Shawn Speakman pay off a huge medical debut -which he now has!!

The UK publisher who picked up this work (published in the US by Shawn Speakman's Grim Oak Press) is none other than Orbit.  You can read more here.

And...if you want to win a free copy of the audio version of this book - I still have a contest going on for a few more days - ends February 28.

This UK edition even has a bonus story written by Shawn and to sweeten things even a bit more, Orbit has put it out at a special introductory price.

My story  in the anthology is called, The Jester. It follows Royce and Hadrian while they escort a pig farmer and a candle maker on an expedition that should be easy, but as always they find themselves in too deep. Here's a bit about my story:

If that sounds interesting, you can listen to the audio version of The Jester for free. It's narrated by the incomparable Tim Gerard Reynolds who has narrated all 8 of the Riyria books.  Here are some links for easy access: US | UK
As I mentioned, The Jester is just one of the stories in this great anthology. Here is a full list of all the awesome contributors:
  • Imaginary Friends by Terry Brooks
  • How Old Holly Came To Be by Patrick Rothfuss
  • The Old Scale Game by Tad Williams
  • Game of Chance by Carrie Vaughn
  • The Martyr of the Roses by Jacqueline Carey
  • Mudboy by Peter V. Brett
  • The Sound of Broken Absolutes by Peter Orullian
  • The Coach with Big Teeth by R.A. Salvatore
  • Keeper of Memory by Todd Lockwood
  • Heaven in a Wild Flower by Blake Charlton
  • Dogs by Daniel Abraham
  • The Chapel Perilous by Kevin Hearne
  • Select Mode by Mark Lawrence
  • All the Girls Love Michael Stein by David Anthony Durham
  • Strange Rain by Jennifer Bosworth
  • Nocturne by Robert V.S. Redick
  • Unbowed by Eldon Thompson
  • In Favour with Their Stars by Naomi Novik
  • River of Souls by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
  • The Jester by Michael J. Sullivan
  • The Duel by Lev Grossman
  • Walker and the Shade of Allanon by Terry Brooks
  • The Unfettered Knight by Shawn Speakman
  • The Twilight Dragon by Shawn Speakman (bonus story for UK edition)

Friday, February 14, 2014

Hollow World Audiobook Available for preorder

I'm very excited and pleased to announce that just like the print edition, anyone who pre-orders the audio book will receive the ebook version (in whatever formats you desire) for FREE!  This is one of the reasons I retained the ebook rights to this title. I feel strongly that if you have purchased a royalty producing version such as the print or audio book, then you already compensated me and I don't want you to have to pay twice to get the book on your ereader.  But the thing that is even least to me.  Is if you pre-order then you get that free audio book a month before the official release.  Yep, for those that can't wait they can get their ebooks on March 15th rather than April 15th.

For those that are REALLY anxious, you can get the extended preview (first four chapters) right now.

Some people may be a bit shocked not to find Tim Gerard Reynold's name as narrator. Don't be. This in no way reflects any break or displeasure with Tim who is without doubt "The Voice of Riyria."  In fact, we are already talking to Tim about some future projects and we love him and the amazing work he does.

The issue is that Hollow World is a very "American" book. It's main characters are from the midwest and while Tim's accent adds a great flavor to the fantasy world of Elan, we wanted someone that reflected the setting of this book.  The really cool thing, is when signing this contract we negotiated narrator approval. For Riyria we got REALLY lucky that Tim was assigned to the project, but we weren't sure that such lightning would strike twice.

When we finally got the compiled short list one name was at the top: Jonathan Davis...and we were thrilled when he agreed to join the project.

To say Jonathan is experienced would be an understatement.  Here is just a few of his accomplishments

  • 10 Audie Nominations (the "Grammys" of audio books)
  • 3  Audie Wins (2007, 2009, 2011)
  • Narrated 30 audio books of the Star Wars franchise, including several iconic movie tie-ins
  • 267 Audio books available on
  • Earned accolades from The New York Times, Publisher's Weekly, American Library Association, Booklist, Audiobook Publishers Association, AudioFile Magazine,and USA Today. 
  • 2009: Ben Franklin Award nomination for Blindness by Jose Saramago
  • Narrated  films and programming for National Geographic Television, National Geographic Channel, VH1, NOVA and PBS.
  • His voice and image was used in the Max Payne video game, Star Wars Old Republic, and several others
  • A small sample of the authors whose works he's recorded include: Neil Gaiman, Gene Wolfe, John Steinbeck, Kurt Vonnegut, Cormac McCarthy, O. Henry, Neal Stephenson, R.A. Salvatore, Glen Cook, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Hugh Howey, Paolo Bacigalupi,   C. S. Friedman, Fritz Leiber, William Gibson, Drew Karpyshyn, Matthew Stover, Mike Resnick, Timothy Zahn, Sean Williams, Greg Keyes, Tobias S. Buckell, D. B. Jackson, Jodi Picoult, Jackie Collins, Junot Diaz, David Baldacci,  Michael Connelly
In fact, his recording of The Descendents by Kaui Hart Hemmings (made famous by the movie starring George Clooney) is current the #1 bestselling title on

A few weeks ago Robin and I went to New York to meet with Jonathan, and we sat in on the first two recording sessions of Hollow World.  More on that in the near future.

So if you are an audio book enthusiast and interested in Hollow World, go pre-order now then send me a copy of your receipt to  I'll send you the full ebook on March 15th.  I can't wait to hear the full completed version.

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Thank you all for the amazing support

The Audible First in Series Sale continues for about another week.  There is a lot to choose from, 206 titles to be exact, including more than 40 in the various fantasy categories. With so much to choose from I was amazed to find The Crown Tower topping the epic fantasy list, so I just wanted to say thanks for everyone who is taking this opportunity to give the prequel a try.

When looking at the larger Sci-Fi & Fantasy list of more than 10,000 titles The Crown Tower is #3 followed at #4 by The Jester which for those who don't know is a free Royce and Hadrian story from the Unfettered anthology. So if you know someone who you think might like to spend some time in Elan, ask them to give a listen, it's less than an hour and costs nothing.  If they like it, then it might be a good time to catch The Crown Tower while it's still on sale.

Monday, February 10, 2014

The Crown Tower on Sale $4.95 at - Part of "First in Series" Promotion

I woke up today to a nice  surprise today.

The Crown Tower is being called out by Audible as one of the current Sci-Fi & Fantasy Best Sellers. It is also #6 Bestselling of ALL titles. Right behind Patterson ;-)

This is due largely in part to it being on sale for $4.95 as part of  "First in Series" promotion that is going on until February 19, 2014 @ 11:59PM (EST).

Besides, my Riyria book, there are a lot of other great books on sale, and I picked up quite a few:

Epic Fantasy
  • Across the Nightingale Floor: Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn (Narrated by Kevin Gray, Aiko Nakasone)
  • Bitter Seeds: The Milkweed Triptych by Ian Tregillis (Narrated by Kevin Pariseau)
  • Cast in Shadow : Chronicles of Elantra by Michelle Sagara (Narrated By Khristine Hvam)
  • Dark Prince : Author's Cut Special Edition by Christine Feehan (Narrated By Abby Craden)
  • Dead Spots by Melissa F. Olson (Narrated by Amy McFadden)
  • Dead Until Dark: Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire By Charlaine Harris (Narrated By Johanna Parker)
  • The Dying Earth by Jack Vance (Narrated by Arthur Morey)
  • Fury of Fire : Dragonfury by Coreene Callahan (Narrated By Benjamin L. Darcie)
  • Kushiel's Dart By Jacqueline Carey (Narrated By Anne Flosnik)
  • The Mane Event : Pride Series by Shelly Laurenston (Narrated By Charlotte Kane)
  • Quicksilver: The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson (Multiple Narrators)
  • The Reluctant Swordsman by Dave Duncan (Narrated by Donald Corren)]
  • Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire (Narrated by Mary Robinette Kowal)
  • Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey (Narrated By MacLeod Andrews)
  • Secondhand Spirits : A Witchcraft Mystery by Juliet Blackwell (Narrated by Xe Sands)
  • Silence: Queen of the Dead By Michelle Sagara (Narrated By Alexandra Bailey)
  • Thieftaker by D. B. Jackson (Narrated by Jonathan Davis)
  • Wicked : The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch By Gregory Maguire (Narrated by John McDonough)
Fantasy: Paranormal
Teen Fantasy

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Signed Blood of Thieves Hardcovers Available for Direct Ordering


This book includes the two books of The Riyria Chronicles:
  • The Crown Tower
  • The Rose and the Thorn


Thursday, February 6, 2014

Hollow World Giveaway: Posters, ARCs, and Extended Previews, oh my

The general audience release of Hollow World is fast approaching (April 15, 2014) so it's time for another giveaway! No purchase is necessary and you don't need to be a member of Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, or any other site to enter. All you need is an email address. Here is what I'm giving away...

Posters - 5 winners


 This incredible depiction of Hollow World was created by the incomparable Marc Simonetti. He's the amazing artist that has created works for:
  • The French edition copies of my own Riyria Revelations
  • The French editions of Patrick Rothfuss's Kingkiller Chronicles
  • The Mexican version of George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones
Just to name a few. This 36" x 24" (91 x 61 cm) poster was previously available only to those who contributed to the Hollow World Kickstarter campaign, and it is beautiful and suitable for framing. Five lucky winners will be chosen.


Advanced Reader Copies - 3 winners


Three lucky winners will receive a signed and dedicated advanced reader copy of Hollow World, and the best news is they'll receive it a full month before the official April 15th release date. Most of the advanced reading copies are electronic these days so there are only 100 copies of the ARC's to this is your chance to get your hands on something that will be kind of rare.

Something Just For Entering

Everyone who enters will receive an extended preview copy of Hollow World so they can get a head start on reading. This contains the first four chapters (60 pages) of the book and will be sent in multiple electronic formats, including a print friendly version for those who prefer to read from paper.

Bonus Contest for Goodreads Members

If you are a member of goodreads (and live in the US or Canada) there is another contest where you can enter to win.

 So that's all the details...oh except for the link to enter at. Good luck and early congratulations to the winners.

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Hollow World lending a hand

From time to time I'm asked to contribute some writing to a collective work for a good cause. In the past I've provided...

  • My short story, Traditions, to an anthology to help victims of Hurricane Sandy
  • My short story, Burning Alexandria, to an anthology (The End-Visions of Apocalypse) to highlight some new writing talent from the sffworld forum
  • My short story, The Jester, to help Shawn Speakman pay off his medical bills through sales of the Unfettered Anthology
The other day I was asked by the fine folks at Sci-Fi Saturday night if  I could provide something for a bundle they are doing to highlight some of their favorite authors. Since it has a very short duration (just 14 days) I agreed, and so Hollow World is being offered as part of  StoryBundle's Sci-fi Saturday night group. 

The way this works is pretty simple - you can decide your own contribution ($3 and up) 
  • Pay at least $3 and you'll receive DRM free copies of the first four books
  • Pay at least $10 and you'll receive DRM free copies of all seven, including Hollow World
The really cool thing is you can decide how much of your contribution goes to:
  • The authors
  • The people who run StoryBundle
  • Or to one of two worthy literary-based charities
Since it is still 2 months until Hollow World comes out, this is a chance to get the book early - and hopefully find some other writes that you'll want to read more from. I'm hoping that adding Hollow World to the bundle will help boost the overall sales.

Speaking of sales, unlike the other projects I spoke of, where 100% of the money went to others, I will be receiving a bit of income from this.  (Basically all the authors divvy up the income that is attributed to "the authors" (amount/3 for donations $9.99 or less and amount/7 for those contributing more than $10).  I should note, however, that income wasn't my consideration for being included. In fact, I'll actually make much less per copy than un-bundled copies. As I mentioned, the whole point of being in a collective is to hopefully unite some authors and readers who might not otherwise get together.

While I'm happy to lend a hand for this, I don't want to inadvertently hurt Tachyon Publication's sales by having the ebook available for a short window earlier than their print version. So I'm going to make up for it by offering a pretty sweet deal on print.

If you were planning on buying the print book, but picked up the bundle to get Hollow World early, I'll sell you a copy of the print book at a price lower than you'll find anywhere else. Specifically,  I'll sell you a copy "at cost."  That's 50% off the list price!  Since I buy my copies from Tachyon at the same price bookstores do, this means:
  • Tachyon Publications will get their "full cut."
  • Readers will get the print copy at a lower price than anywhere else (as all other venues will want to make SOME profit)
  • Since the book will come from me, it can be signed and dedicated if you wish.
I can't tell you the "exact" cost of the print book at this time as I have to wait until I get copies so I can calculate shipping costs...but as there is no profit going to me or a retailer it should be a deal that no one else can beat.

To get the discounted print book, send an email as follows:

Subject: Story Bundle Discounted Print Copy of Hollow World
Body: Your shipping address - and any instructions regarding signatures - (signed only, dedicated, blank)
Attachment :-Copy of your story bundle receipt

Once I have the books with me and know the shipping costs, we'll make payment arrangements, and I'll send them out. I'll be offering Paypal, Amazon Payments, Credit Cards, and echecks.

So there you go.  For the next 13 1/2 days Hollow World is available early in a bundle with a bunch of other great books.  I hope you take advantage of this amazing offer, and most importantly that you'll discover some new authors to enjoy!

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Hollow World Available Now Through NetGalley



