News on the release of The Labyrinth of Flame

A lot of you have been waiting a long time for news about the release of the third and final book in my Shattered Sigil trilogy, The Labyrinth of Flame.  Ever since Night Shade Books (publisher of the first two novels) nearly went bankrupt last year and got bought out, I've had people asking about the book's status and my plans for release. Finally, I've got something to share.

On the advice of my agent, I've decided to put out The Labyrinth of Flame myself rather than seeking traditional publication for it.  This isn't for monetary reasons.  I'm lucky in having a day job that I love, so I don't care much about my royalty percentage or anything like that.  Ordinarily I'm all about traditional publishing, because I'd rather write (or skate, or ski, or climb mountains) than do book production.  But in this particular case, when my agent and I reviewed options, I ended up deciding that self-publication was the better path for Labyrinth.  Why?

1) I can get the book out to you faster.  Traditional publishing has long, looooong lead times.  This book's taken me long enough to write; I don't want you to have to wait another year or more to read it after I finish revising it.

2) I can make sure the look and quality of the book matches the first two.  I know those of you who buy physical books often prefer to have books in a series be a "matched set."  I've already talked to the cover artist for the first two novels (David Palumbo) and one of the previous cover designers (Martha Wade), and they are willing and able to do cover work for Labyrinth.  Similarly, I intend to hire an interior designer, editor, copyeditor, etc, so that the quality of this third book will be equal to the beautiful editions that Night Shade put out for the first two.

3) I plan on doing a Kickstarter to fund the production work, which means I can potentially offer all sorts of fun bonuses.  Related short stories! Interior art! Maps! (Not sure what a Kickstarter is?  Check out these examples from fellow authors Brad Beaulieu and Michael J. Sullivan.)

"Okay, okay," you may be saying.  "You're going to self-pub, I get it.  But WHEN?"

The plan: first and foremost, I've got to finish my revision. At my current rate of progress, I'm hoping to have the book done by summer's end.  Assuming that happens, I'll run a Kickstarter in the fall, probably mid-October.  Ebook versions of Labyrinth would be sent to backers as soon as the editing and file conversion process is complete - say, a month or so after the Kickstarter finishes.  Print editions will take a little longer to produce and ship.  (How long depends on printer scheduling, whether or not interior art is added, etc - but say on the order of 2-3 months after the Kickstarter finishes.)  After all the print copies are shipped, I will officially release the book on the various online retailer websites (Amazon, B&N, etc).

So. Sometime this winter, I hope you'll be enjoying the conclusion of Dev and Kiran's story at long last.  Oh gosh, I'm so excited about this book, you all.  If you get even half as much entertainment out of reading it as I have in writing it, that's all the success I could ever want as an author.

In the meantime, if you want to stay updated on the book's release - see the cover art when it's ready, get notified when the Kickstarter begins, stuff like that - be sure and shoot me an email at courtney (at) courtneyschafer (dot) com, and I'll put you on my Labyrinth of Flame mailing list.

The Tainted City (a.k.a. Stadt der Magier) releases in Germany

Die Chroniken von Ninavel continues in Germany, hooray!  Today's the release date for Stadt der Magier ("City of Mages"), the German edition of The Tainted City.  Hope German readers enjoy it as much as they seem to have Die Blutmagier ("The Bloodmages") / The Whitefire Crossing.  I'll admit I have fun practicing my (rusty) German by reading the occasional blog reviews auf Deutsch that Google alerts sends to me.

In other news, Reddit's r/Fantasy forum put together a 225-book ranked list of "Under-read and under-rated fantasy", which also got featured on Tor.com - and The Whitefire Crossing is #3.  Sweet!  Seriously, it's great to know that those who've read my book feel strongly that more people should read it. Whitefire is in some pretty stellar company there, too. If you're looking for great fantasy to read, the list is a terrific resource.  My own TBR pile has sure gotten a heck of a lot longer.

In other other news, I'll be making an announcement soon about plans for The Labyrinth of Flame's release (at long last!) - so stay tuned.  And now, back to revision I go...

New Releases I'm Dying to Read, May 2014 Edition (plus, revision update!)

Labyrinth of Flame revision update: Between the need to address some behind-the-scenes business stuff plus running into a few scenes that needed a LOT of work, I didn't make as much forward progress in revision as I was hoping for in April.  That said, I'm nearly at 80K now, closing in on the halfway point, so progress was still made.  Also, the book now has a back-cover description, which I've put up on Labyrinth's Goodreads page and my website.  (Description is very spoilery for previous book Tainted City, but hopefully not very spoilery for Labyrinth!)

Haha, and in the classic authorial rite of passage, I noticed that the book already has two ratings, even though I'm not done writing it. A 4-star, and a 1-star.  The 4-star actually cracks me up the most.  Most times you see people either rating unreleased books as 5-star ("OMG I can't wait!") or 1-star ("The existence of further books in this series offends me.")  But when I see 2-4 star advance ratings, I can't help but wonder...does it mean, "I'm sort of excited about this book, but not really"?  Or did the person just poke the wrong part of their phone touchscreen?  Ah, the mysteries of authorhood that will never be answered....

And now, onward to the books I'm excited about in May:

1. Jeff Salyards's Veil of the Deserters (ebook release May 19, print release June 3)

I thought the first novel in Jeff Salyards's Bloodsounders Arc (Scourge of the Betrayer) was pretty darn great; needless to say, when offered the chance to read an ARC version of Veil, I didn't hesitate. I liked it just as much (maybe even more) than the Scourge, so I happily blurbed it: "Veil of the Deserters builds upon the promise of Scourge of the Betrayer, continuing Salyards's unique blend of gritty realism, brutal action, and thoughtful introspection even as the story deepens with a host of intriguing revelations.  If you've any taste for military fantasy, read these books."  I mean that last line, by the way, so don't miss out.  I myself will be heading for the bookstore to snag a hardback copy when release day comes.

2. Douglas Hulick's Sworn in Steel, release date May 6

This one I haven't read yet, but I've been waiting eagerly for it ever since finishing Hulick's debut novel Among Thieves way back in 2011.  I'm a sucker for a sardonic, streetwise first-person protagonist of dubious morality, and Hulick's protagonist Drothe is that in spades.  Can't wait to read his next adventure at long last!

3. Stephanie Saulter's Gemsigns, release date May 6

I've seen some glowing reviews of this one from bloggers whose taste often aligns with mine, so my interest is piqued. Looking forward to reading Saulter's take on genetically engineered humans and the ethics thereof.  

4. Merrie Haskell's The Castle Behind Thorns, release date May 27

I've heard great things about this middle grade reworking of Sleeping Beauty; I'll be interested to see how it compares to Helen Lowe's excellent Thornspell.  I love it when authors can take a seemingly familiar story and put their own unique spin on it such that the tale speaks in a whole different way to the reader.

Others releasing in May that I'm adding to the TBR pile: Trudi Canavan's Thief's Magic, Michael J. Martinez's The Enceladus Crisis, Brian McClellan's The Crimson Campaign, and Will McIntosh's Defenders.

New Releases I'm Dying to Read: March/April edition

On the authorial front, it's the same song, same verse: Still revising The Labyrinth of Flame (just passed the 60K mark). Still no news yet on an official release date.  (Sorry, everyone! Publishing is sloooooow.)  I'm going to make a big push on the revision during April, which means I'll be around even less than usual.  I'll still respond to emails and @-replies on twitter, but other than that, it's gonna be all crickets all the time.

But before I vanish into the wilds of revision, I wanted to take a moment to highlight some of the books releasing this year that I'm really excited about.  Mostly because half the novels I'm dying to read never seem to show up on the lists I see at high-traffic sites (like this Buzzfeed one, which covers a disappointingly narrow slice of fantasy).  In my small way, I want to give the books I'm anticipating some more love.  Originally I thought I'd do my own version of a full "books of 2014" list.  Then I started writing down all the novels I'm looking forward to, and realized the list was so long it'd take me days to write the post - days I'd much rather be spending on revision right now.  Instead, I decided to only post about novels releasing in the next month (or in this case, novels from both March and April), and just make it a recurring monthly feature.

So! What books releasing in March and April had I already pre-ordered and am using as rewards when I meet revision goals? 

1. Catherine Fisher's The Slanted Worlds (Chronoptika #2), release date March 18

The first in the series, Obsidian Mirror, was one of my favorite reads last year. Wildly imaginative YA that mixes tropes from science fiction (time travel! dystopian futures!) with fantasy (faeries and changelings!), and includes a whole range of characters who distrust each other yet are forced to make alliances - yeah, sign me up.  I pretty much devoured Slanted Worlds the moment it released (see my Goodreads review here). 

2. Elspeth Cooper's The Raven's Shadow (Wild Hunt #3), US release date March 11

 



I love epic fantasy, so Cooper's Wild Hunt series sits firmly in my sweet spot as a reader.  Lovely prose, diverse characters, plenty of magic - bring it on, I say.  First book is Songs of the Earth. 

3. Katherine Addison's The Goblin Emperor, release date April 1

Addison is a pen name for fantasy author Sarah Monette.  I've enjoyed what I've read of Monette's work, so I was already interested upon hearing she had a new novel coming out - and my interest has only grown after seeing several glowing reviews for the book.  I'm looking forward to seeing if I am as enraptured by it as others have been.

4. Elizabeth Bear's Steles of the Sky (Eternal Sky #3), release date April 8

The first two books in this epic fantasy series - Range of Ghosts and Shattered Pillars - were right up at the top of my favorite reads of the last two years, so it's no surpise I'm salivating for the conclusion to the trilogy.  Love the characters, love the Mongolian-inspired setting, and Bear has a deft hand with plot that keeps me guessing every time.  It kills me that this series hasn't gotten the massive level of attention it deserves.  Read it!  Read it now!     

That's it for my March/April pre-orders, though a few other books have also caught my eye: Glenda Larke's The Lascar's Dagger, Mark Smylie's The Barrow, and Jon Sprunk's Blood and Iron.  They've gone on the TBR list for the day I finish my revision and can indulge in a month-long reading binge. May that day come soon!

Holding Pattern

Yeah, it's been quiet around here.  Very, very quiet.  Revising Labyrinth of Flame remains my top priority, which doesn't leave much chance for blogging.  In case anyone wonders why the heck revision takes me so long, here's an sample of my process:

1) Take messy first-draft version of chapter and rewrite it to the point I'm willing to let my critique group read it.  This means cleaning up prose, but also rethinking action, character reactions, dialogue flow, sometimes even a blank-page rewrite if something's changed significantly in the story after rewrites of previous chapters.

2) Hand out chapter to critique group.  Get feedback pointing out issues (often relating to tension, pacing, or depth of emotional interaction).

3) Tear hair and gnash teeth trying to figure out a way to address problems.  Think of an idea, get halfway through rewriting scene, realize it still doesn't help.  Think more.  Despair.  Eat cupcake, or (preferably) do something outdoors.  A-ha!  Sugar or adrenaline rush leads to way better idea, one I can see immediately will address issues and make story 100% better.

4) Realize brilliant new idea means rewriting entire chapter from scratch (and maybe the one before it, too).  Weep copiously.  Save old scenes to "deleted scenes" file and go back to step 1.

Outdoor exercise and plenty of sleep do much to speed up steps 1 and 3.  Sadly, as a parent I don't get the chance for nearly as much as I'd like of either.  But: good news!  This weekend, I'll be enjoying both.  My awesome boss invited me and some other friends up to her house in ski country for a little "ladies ski weekend," and my equally awesome husband agreed to take off work and wrangle our son solo so I can spend Thurs-Sat in mountain heaven.  I don't know what's more exciting: the idea of skiing hard all day long in chutes and trees, or the idea of sleeping an entire night through without a little voice going "Mommy, I'm scared..." at 3am.  And yes, I'm bringing the ol' laptop and plan on getting some quality revising time in addition to the other fun.

The best aid to revision ever.  As long as you ski wearing a helmet (which I do). 

So wish me much powder and much progress, and may your weekend be as fun as mine promises to be!        

  

So you think not many women write epic fantasy/sword & sorcery?

I've been busy busy busy with revisions on The Labyrinth of Flame (now approaching the 50K revised mark!), a big day job project, and yes, more than a little skiing.  Yet amid all that, I haven't been ignoring the internet entirely.  So when Teresa Frohock posted on her blog about the challenges she's faced as a female author of SFF, and then Mark Lawrence ran a poll asking his readers whether their decision to buy his book would've been different if it'd said Mary Lawrence on the cover, not Mark, and then on Reddit's r/Fantasy forum a huge discussion sprang up about Mark's poll...I followed the conversation.  And after I saw about the fifth instance of someone saying, "Well, but not many women write epic fantasy..."  I couldn't take it anymore. 

I marched over to my bookshelves and scribbled down 40 books written by 40 different female authors that could be categorized as either epic fantasy or sword and sorcery, and posted the list in a thread on Reddit.  (Note: since people on Reddit appeared to be using a fairly broad definition of  "epic fantasy," so did I.  I included alternate histories with significant magical elements, though I did NOT include sword-and-planet SF, or dark/mythic fantasy, or YA fantasy). 

I was delighted at the response!  Hundreds of commenters added more names and said how excited they were to have new books to try.  I know it's a drop in the bucket of this weird invisibility that female-authored novels seem to have in online fandom, but it's a drop that makes me happy and renews my hope that things are changing. 

And speaking of reviews and visibility, my absolute favorite kind of reviews are long, detailed, thoughtful ones.  Like this one Tainted City recently got from Renay of Lady Business.  (The hilarious GIFs are just the icing on the cake!  Also, I am totally using the pull quote "Courtney Schafer is THE WORST." :D) The best part of all is that the comments continued the discussion.  It is surreal but also 100% awesome to see people analyzing my characters and story and discussing their reactions, no matter whether those reactions are positive or negative.)

And now, back to radio silence and revisions...



 

Thursday Adventure: Routeburn Track (Southern Alps, New Zealand)

The last weeks have been a bit difficult around here, thanks to illness and other trials.  The saddest thing was the death of my last remaining grandparent, my father's mother.  She was 91 and hadn't been in the best of health (she'd been suffering dementia for years) so it wasn't unexpected; but still.  I treasure my memories of summer weeks with her and my grandfather in their home in the Appalachian Mountains.  I adored my grandmother: she made terrific pancakes, let me watch whatever I wanted (I first saw Star Wars, The Black Stallion, and many other great movies at her house), and let me explore the woods behind their home with no companion but their Australian Shepherd (a dog that I fiercely loved, especially since my parents wouldn't let me have pets).  Scrambling around the steep, heavily forested valley behind their house was my first experience of exploring wilderness, and it was the foundation for my lifelong love of the mountains.

So in honor of my grandmother and the love she instilled in me, today I share one of my favorite mountain adventures of the last decade: walking the Routeburn Track over New Zealand's Southern Alps.  The Routeburn Track is a 32km trail that starts near the end of Lake Wakatipu, crosses a high saddle, and drops down the range's other side to end not far from Milford Sound.  My husband and I decided to do the Routeburn instead of its more famous cousin the Milford Track on our trip to New Zealand in 2006 because we'd heard the views were better and the track spends far more time in high alpine terrain (always a plus in our book).  Also, no sandflies: even bigger plus!

Robert and I and our good friend Catherine took a bus from Queenstown to the start of the track, enjoying gorgeous views of Lake Wakatipu along the way.

Lake Wakatipu

At the start of the track: Catherine, Robert, and me

The track starts in mossy forest, crossing a stream by means of a swing bridge.