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Stories Matter

Why I Went Indie

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So, last week I wrote a short post expressing some gratitude to Amazon for creating a place where independent fiction can thrive. Today I figured I’d talk a little bit about why I went independent in the first place.

A little bit of history to start:
I’ve been writing for as long as I’ve known how to. Someday, I’ll share with you some of the first stories I wrote in second grade. They are of course, beyond horrible, but they’re pretty funny.
But even though I’ve always written, I’d never, ever considered a career as an author. In hindsight, maybe I should have, but I focused on education and youth work, and worked in those fields for over a decade. Through it all though, I kept writing, just for myself.

I’d have to go back and check my files, but Nightblade was either the second or third full-length novel I wrote. However, it was the first one I liked. But even after writing it (in 2012), I didn’t even consider publishing it. It was just a good story. I wrote another novel afterwords, which was also horrible.
To make a long story of discovery short, I came upon the Self-publishing podcast. I read their first non-fiction work, Write, Publish, Repeat, and for the first time I thought to myself that perhaps there was something to this idea of independent publishing.

After a substantial amount of debate with myself, I made the decision to go independent. There were a few reasons for this.

First, I hadn’t really expected to make a career out of it. I was dissatisfied with my other work in life and was looking to figure out how to work from home, but I was focused much more on consulting and freelance writing. I figured if I could make an extra $50-$100 a month through Amazon, why not? Being as I wasn’t looking at making a career out of it, I figured there was no point going through the traditional publishing cycle of rejection. I’d just make something as nice as I could and put it out there.

Second, I liked the idea of control over your work and your success. With independent publishing, there’s no one else to blame but yourself. I got to pick the cover and decide how the story ended. Anything good or bad about the book is entirely in my hands – and I liked that idea.

Finally, I liked the idea of connecting with fans directly. With independent publishing, there’s no one between me and readers, and I thought that was great.
To say the story took some twists and turns is an understatement, but I’m glad I went independent!

Cheers,

Ryan

My Thoughts on Seveneves

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For those of you who pay attention, you’ll notice that I’m often way behind on all the popular books. It’s true – I try my best, but I just can’t keep up with everything I want to read.

Anyway, this week I finally finished Seveneves. I’ve been wanting to read this book for a long time, and I was excited when I finally got the chance.

Seveneves is by Neal Stephenson, and in a lot of ways, is reflective of a lot of his work. The man is a genius with an incredible imagination. His stories are always combinations of technical know-how and rational speculation, and this book is no different.

It’s hard to write about a book like this without spoilers, but I’ll try. The book begins with a simple premise: what would humanity have to do if the moon blew up? What follows is a long, detailed look at a possible outcome.

For fans of Stephenson, everything we love about him his present. Technically detailed, realistic sci-fi injected with a mega-dose of imagination. Many readers might consider it dry (and in many parts it is), but it’s very interesting to see one man so thoroughly explore this problem. As the story moves farther away from the first page, the more imaginative it gets.

The critiques of the book are fairly unanimous: this isn’t a character driven story, but a technically driven one. It’s a huge book that feels like it could have been split into more. There’s a lot of backstory and dry technical information.

None of the critiques are untrue, and I would agree that Seveneves certainly isn’t for everyone. If detailed descriptions of orbital mechanics sound like torture to you, it might make sense to avoid the book, but if a hard, scientific look at a purely speculative problem sounds fascinating, you won’t find anyone who does it better.

Seveneves, in my mind, is a triumph of knowledge and imagination. It’s certainly not for everybody, but I’m an unashamed Stephenson fanboy, so I’ll acknowledge my bias, but his fiction is still in a league all its own to me.

Ryan

The Humbling Experience of Becoming a New Author

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Hello everyone, Bryce again.

As I mentioned in the last post, I finished my first fiction novel last week. The rough draft came in at about 125,000 words. I’m incredibly proud at the moment, but I’m sure a harsh dose of editing will bring me back down shortly.

I just wanted to share a few things I experienced during the writing process. These were things that I didn’t anticipate at all. I have written 10,000 – 20,000 non-fiction books before, but the process is so different that they hardly compare.

By far, the most frustrating aspect was maintaining the story line throughout the entire book. It took me roughly seven months to complete, and in that time I had a baby and started a new job. I was a completely different person when I started the book! I managed, but it was a struggle to make sure I was writing the same story at the end as I was at the beginning.

Another interesting thing happened to my writing mindset. I no longer thought I was going to finish the book, but I wrote with every bit of passion and interest I started with. I literally thought that I would be writing the book forever. Oddly enough, I was OK with it. I was invested so much in the characters that I didn’t mind visiting them every day. I don’t view this as a bad thing, but I had to remind myself that there was indeed an end goal.

Lastly, as I reached about 80% completion, I began splitting my time looking in to publishing ideas. I researched cover art, launch strategies, Pokemon Go, key words, Amazon algorithms, and a the list goes on. At first, I didn’t think anything of it. Then I realized that my progress halted completely. I refocused my energy on finishing the book. I had to fight my urge to look too far ahead.

In the end I finished the thing. I enjoyed myself the entire way. There is nothing quite like finishing something you have written for so long. I hope everyone can experience it at some point!

I’m sure the editing will be a different story… With me luck!

Thanks,

Bryce

Introducing Primal Dawn

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Top of the morning, everybody!

It’s been quite a while, and I’m grateful for your patience.  I’m excited to announce today my new book, Primal Dawn.  It should be up for pre-order on Amazon within three weeks, with the actual release date soon after.

I’ll be writing in the near future more about the story itself (it’s about a clash of civilizations in a brand-new, sci-fi universe), but today I wanted to talk about how the book came to be.

After writing in the Nightblade universe for several years straight, I decided I wanted to take a little bit of a break from it.  I love the Nightblade world, and I never want it to become a chore for me to write in it.  I had an idea for a series of shorter stories that had been bouncing around in my head for a while, and I decided to take some time to actually write one out.

Cheers,

Ryan

Waterstone Media in 2016

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January has been an excellent month for me, and it’s hard to believe that it has already almost gone.  I’ve been diving deep into The Wind and the Void, and I’m excited to bring this story to its conclusion.
I wanted to both say thanks and to keep you updated on what is happening behind the scenes here at Waterstone Media.  First, I do need to say thanks, to all of you.  Your support and kind words have been welcome, and I’ve enjoyed the emails, tweets, and facebook questions and comments.  It means a lot to me to be able to tell stories for a living, and you make it all possible.
2016 is shaping up to be a pretty big year for me here.  I will definitely be switching over to writing fiction full time, and I’m excited to be able to put more stories out this year.  Here’s the short version:
1.  My first and most important job is to finish The Wind and the Void and get it into your hands.  Right now, it looks as though it will be sometime in the month of March, but I should be able to commit to a firm date within the next 2-3 weeks.
2.  The Audiobooks from the Nightblade series are also in production.  I expect World’s Edge to be released in the first half of February, and The Wind and the Void to be released a month or two after the digital release.  I will let you know when they are finished!
3.  I do plan on seeking a traditional publishing deal this year.  It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, and I’m hopeful that someday you’ll be able to see my work on your local bookstore shelves.
4.  Finally, I plan on writing and releasing at least three other stories this year, independently, in addition to wrapping up the Nightblade series.  I’m excited to write in some other worlds, and I hope you all will enjoy the stories!
Take care all, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re interested!
With gratitude,
Ryan