There’s a long list of things I didn’t think would ever happen when I first decided that writing fiction was going to be ’my thing’. Obviously, getting one of my books optioned and meeting an academy award screenwriter weren’t on this list because I hadn’t even conceived of that possibility at the time. 

That being said, I’ve always wanted an audiobook of one of my projects. What would that sound like? How would my characters feel coming out of someone else’s mouth? And an audiobook felt out of reach but still within the realm of possibility. Something to hope for without ever planning for it to happen. 

Well, today is the launch of the Audiobook for The Life Engineered. Produced by Blackstone Audio, featuring the amazing voice of actress Amy Landon and available on Amazon, Audible and probably several other places where audiobooks are usually purchased. 

It feels weird guys. I’ve listened to the sample on Amazon but I haven’t taken the plunge yet. I’m nervous. I’m 100% confident in the work that Amy did on the book (she is a veteran of over 200 audiobooks) but this is a milestone. Do I listen to this casually in the car? Do I set aside some time and enjoy the over six hours of audio in the dark with my eyes close? Just drinking in every detail, good and bad? 

If you’re looking for a way to experience The Life Engineered anew, maybe learn how to pronounce some of those complex names I picked for the characters, then hop over to your favourite purveyor of audio literature and get yourself a copy. If you’ve never been on Audible, there are countless ways of getting your first book for free and frankly, that might not be a bad one to start with.

If you want to learn more about the audiobook making process, Paul Inman and I had Amy as a guest in our latest episode of WriteBrain and it was fantastic having her on.

As always, thanks for your support. None of this would have happened without you. 

JF

NOTE: I should really update the header with the new cover image...

Dear readers of Nowhere Else I Want to Be:

I’ve begun hearing from you about your reactions to my memoir. I’m grateful for comments that assure me you’re making a thoughtful read of material that, I know, can be challenging.

If you are like others who tell me the book is thought-provoking and that it made you check your assumptions, you may be interested in Exploring the Themes: two courses - one free, the other only $10 - in my new online school, Forum for Growth in Service.

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Click HERE for EXPLORING THE THEMES

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Here’s what you’ll find in these courses:

1. LECTURE VIDEOS on the four main themes of "Nowhere Else I Want to Be" -- transformation, race and diversity, dealing with addictions, and living with death and dying.
   
2. SUPPLEMENTARY RESOURCES such as links to relevant articles and suggestions for books to read, as well as downloadable, original documents in pdf format.
3. DISCUSSION AREA for sharing thoughts and ideas with fellow readers.
4. QUESTIONS for reflection, journaling and discussion.

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  Click HERE for EXPLORING THE THEMES

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I am still so very grateful for the support you gave to this book to get it into readers’ hands. Thank you, thank you.

Best wishes, Carol

WEBSITE          FORUM FOR GROWTH IN SERVICE

May I present you Maxan - former thief, city guard, “Shadow of Crosswall,” and the hero of my novel “The Animal in Man.” 

I tend to think of the creatures in Herbridia as having almost entirely animalistic features - fanned ears, fangs and claws, bushy tails, triple-jointed hindlegs, things like that - while the proportions of their bodies are almost entirely human - shoulders, waists, arms and legs, walking upright, the capacity for speech. There’s a reason this book isn’t 100% “Watership Down.” (Richard Adams, RIP.) There’s a reason that although the world and all its inhabitants appear as your typical ‘Fantasy’ expectations, the book is listed on inkshares as Science Fiction.

There’s always more than what there appears to be.

This brilliant work of concept art (the first entry in a series of visual aids I plan to flash in front of your eyes this year) was created by Paco Guidice. I’m so absolutely lucky to have stumbled across Paco’s work when I was searching for just the right artistic style to capture the vision I had in mind when I wrote The Animal in Man. I came across his portfolio site HERE. Fellow inkshares authors, you’d do yourself a favor to seek Paco out if you ever thought to commission art for your own project(s).

More art on the way, including everyone’s favorite Wolf Sorcerer Feyn (featured prominently in chapter one), and Hawk Knight Sarovek (also featured in chapter one, where she gets skewered on the serrated teeth of the hyena’s wicked sword).

Until next time, Animals.

Dear friends and followers,

It is now three weeks since we won the Full Publication deal with The List. The manuscript for "Murder at the Veterans’ Club" was submitted two weeks ago, and now it is a matter of waiting for an editor to be assigned to me. This could take a while; here’s the article about the publishing timeline, in case you missed the last update: I know there are a couple of new faces among you since then.

So, what lies ahead?

Well, I am currently halfway through working on a story-game project for Choice Of Games. I expect to see it come out some time in the latter half of this year. (I encourage everyone to check them out. I’ve enjoyed their stuff over the past few years, and I’m excited at the possibility of seeing myself in their lineup.)

There is also the matter of what to do with the Peterkin franchise. With the publishing timeline being somewhat longer than I expected, and with the additional time required to properly fund a campaign ... plus the sheer chutzpah it would require for me to begin asking for orders on a second book before the first book is even in anyone’s hands.... If I plan on getting the Full Publication deal on something, I should probably start the funding campaign after the launch of this current book, which means it could be two years or more in between books. That seems ... likely to result in an overall loss of interest.

So, I’m toying with a couple of ideas.

One: start a new campaign anyway, for the short story collection "Peterkin Investigates the Anthology"--but aim only for the 250 orders required for the Quill imprint. It won’t get all the services of the Full Publication deal, but then it isn’t a sequel and it isn’t a full-length novel, and it will be out there and available within a year after "Murder at the Veterans’ Club".

Two: take that collection apart and publish the stories individually via Kindle Direct; say, one every two months.

I haven’t quite researched these options yet, nor have I decided on a course of action. It seems the adventure is only just beginning....

GOODREADS!

Hey Campers! 

Sunshine is Forever is now on Goodreads! What does that mean? You can now mark the book as "Want to Read" so that you can be the first to review Sunshine is Forever when it comes out! Reviews on Amazon, Barnes and Nobel, and Goodreads are essential to exposure. 

Head here: https://www.goodreads.com/KyleTCowan then click "Follow."

After, head here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33534889-sunshine-is-forever and mark as "Want to Read."

Don’t have a Goodreads account? It’s so freaking easy to create one. Simply login with your Facebook account, and Ta Da! You now have a Goodreads account!

Thanks so much for the support! I look forward to your feedback after the book comes out on August 15, 2017!

Kyle T. Cowan

Dear E-Readers, and all others.

Today the e-books of Tears of the Assassin were released.  If you pre-ordered an e-reader, then check your e-mail for the arrival of your story.  Paper copies are set for distribution Feb. 7th.  E-readers can now enter the world of David Diegert. A world of intrigue, danger and betrayal, in which a young man must find his way with an underdeveloped moral compass that is spinning out of control.  The challenges before him will draw you into his heart and mind, where you will feel the frustration, the anger, the hope and the triumph of a man forced into conflicting missions.  Only a sharp, focused mind, with a heart of steel and a quick trigger finger, will survive and succeed in Tears of the Assassin.      

William Schiele

What is this madness!! An update on Tuesday!!?

Why. Yes. It’s officially publication day!

Even the Audio Book is live today. It’s AWESOME! (might be biased). If Audiobooks are your jam, you can totally find it here: Seventh Age Audio Book

Also, if you can, please share that with other people who might like the Audio Book. 

In other news, on Launch Day I’ve got two great links! 

An amazing review of the book: Click Here

A feature article on Dread Central! Avalon over at Inkshares nailed the perfect place to feature the book. 

Just in case you DON’T have your book yet, and I know many of you still haven’t gotten them yet; (particularly super readers); You can always email Hello@Inkshares.com and double check that it was shipped. It should be any day now. 

So now... enjoy the read! Let me know what you think! I’ll be asking for reviews in a month or so. I’ll even do an entire update about the importance of them and why it’s critical that readers leave them. 

Otherwise.... maybe you can spot me, or the booth imp, at a con!