Under the deluge

 

Yes, under a deluge, and I don’t just mean the tail end of Hurricane Gert putting a few drops of rain over Ireland at the moment and sending temperatures up to the balmy heights of 23C (74F). Next thing you know, the grey squirrels will be passed out from the humidity and the red squirrels will take back their country… but that’s another story for another day and another age group!

Writing of ‘Midland’ has been progressing, but this week it will come to a temporary slow-down. I spent several days in Berlin last week for my daughter’s birthday and to get my travel fix in before the school year starts again over here. Now, I’m in the middle of doing some big artwork commissions that need to be completed by the end of the month and unfortunately they have to take priority over writing.

The good news is, it will only be for the week, and then I can finish the last parts of ‘Midland’ and get that out to you folks once final editing has signed off on it. Added to that is school goes back in this part of the world next week, giving me more freedom and not having to entertain my little one for most of the day (does that make me a terrible parent for saying that)?

Now back to the art (with some writing in between renders)… considering each render can take between 2 – 12 hours, with the majority close to 4 hours followed by an hour or so of postwork, I can still get in some writing. Just not as much as before while I work through the commissions for interior illustrations, cover art, and a convention poster.

 

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A mini-update

 

The writing continues and it is getting closer to a release of ‘Ensign Vanderbilt 02 – Midland’ later this month.

As an aside, I’ve been playing with some ship models when circumstances haven’t given me opportunity to write. This is a version of the ship I am using on the covers these days, and the image below gives you a good impression of the scale and size of an Artemis Class vessel.

The model is not by me, but by a 3d Artist called Rane at Daz3d. I’ve simply rendered the model and added the extra scenery. In time, I’ll get around to re-skinning the ship away from the green and camouflage. Down the road (probably September), I’ll also look at putting some deckplans up here for anyone interested.

A long overdue update

As the title says, it’s time for a long overdue update.

I’ve changed countries from Ireland to going home to Australia, and then returning to live in Ireland again after a few years in Oz. In between changing jobs and  supporting a young family… everything came to a stop until this year. It’s been an interesting few years, to say the least but I won’t bore you with those details. I’ve wanted to write and continue the stories I’ve begun to share, but… but there is no excuse. It never happened.

For anyone reading this that has been waiting all that time and wondering if I had kicked the bucket over the years, you have my sincerest apologies. Real world problems and challenges got in the way and I’m sorry about that… at least things are back on the right path of creativity and innovation again.

Suffice to say, my writing is back on track and books are forming up in an orderly queue to be finished and released, with ‘Ensign Vanderbilt 01: Georgia’ first off the rank at the end of June 2017.

Other books are in progress this very minute, including the long awaited ‘The Artemis Files Book 4: Liberty’ and two more ‘Ensign Vanderbilt’ books. The original list of books planned back in 2013, four of which have already been written are on the back-burner. Reading through them now, the quality is not something I could unleash on the public, not honestly! I still want to release them, but they need serious re-writing and tidying up before seeing the light of day and getting published. Those books were written more than ten years ago, and as the saying goes until you have written a million words, you need to keep writing are true… I cringe when I see what I wrote then, but at the core is a thrilling saga I want to refine.

The funny thing is that the original Artemis Files series was meant to be a lead-in to that epic saga… but it will now star a different protagonist. As The Artemis Files gained traction, and a certain character from the FSA took hold in the series, I wasn’t able to reconcile what would happen to them in that big unpublished saga… she was never in it. Rather than kill her off, it’s easier to change the protagonist to fit the saga, something which will work for a stronger series when it is cleaned up. ETA – I wouldn’t even want to guess at this stage, there are other books I need to do first including several books completely outside my normal setting as a tie-in to a 3rd Party Publisher (more on that as it develops).

Over the coming days, this site will be getting a revamp and tidy up to match my current art & illustration skills. So stay tuned, and thanks for reading. More to come!

If you haven’t read Georgia yet and you’re browsing this page for some curious reason, here is the link. It is available at all good ebook websites. This is the Amazon link (I will add others later when I start work on the site tidy up): https://www.amazon.com/Bradley-Warnes/e/B009LKVURM/

So what’s happening now?

Just an update as March draws to a close and Winter has its last gasp over here in Ireland…

I’m currently working on ‘The Artemis Files Book:4 – Liberty’ with an aim to get several chapters of that out the way and bring it to about a third done. At the same time I’m working away on ‘Bedel’s Honour’, also getting close to a third of the way through that… again ‘Dancing with the Witch Queen’ is a little pushed for time and suffering while I work on those two… I’m hoping to get that out soon but my Release Schedule is already looking challenged! (I think I need a holiday so I can sit down and focus just on the writing)

At the same time, I’m also working through new edits and formats of the original books, while aiming to get an Omnibus Edition out in April (time permitting). Once the Omnibus is finished, I’ll upload it as an ebook and paper version containing the newer format for print and reading. This book will contain Lexington, Elysium, Talisman, and Durendal in one volume.

 

No rest for the writer…

Now that Durendal is finished and available at the usual outlets, I should be resting and gathering my strength for the next few books. However, there’s never any true rest for a writer and so here we go…  a sneak peak at the cover for one of the next books coming down the line in Spring/Summer.

If you’ve read Durendal, it will take one of the characters from that book  on further adventures of their own. It’s going through outline and preparation at the moment, and I’ll post updates as it nears the light of day. There are sure to be a few surprises in store for you in ‘Bedel’s Honour’, as well as expanding more on the Durendal system for a time… (if you’ve ever done RPG’ing & Traveller or D&D, this is where the GM/Referee would cue his evil laughter).

Durendal is Finished

 

At long last, I can say The Artemis Files Book 3: Durendal has been completed and uploaded to the publishers. It is being made available as I type this post now, through Amazon (in the next few hours), Smashwords (available now), and Apple, Nook, Kobo, Diesel, etc… in the coming weeks as it filters through to them.

For now, let me say that this turned out larger and more intricate than I originally planned, with the characters taking me into a different direction to the original outline… however I think they enjoyed themselves getting there. I’ll let you be the judge, and if you’ve picked up a copy, please feel free to leave a review saying what you liked about it.

Now it it’s time for a week’s break and then onwards to  Book 1 of the Taslian Knights to write!

Links for Durendal will be added to this post as they become available. Happy reading!

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Durendal-The-Artemis-Files-ebook/dp/B00BODHK2I/

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Durendal-The-Artemis-Files-ebook/dp/B00BODHK2I/

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/291762

Book Updates – Lexington and Durendal

As the month of January rolls closer to an end, I’m giving a quick update about where things are at with the books. The good news is that I’ve just released ‘Lexington’, a lead-in to the Artemis Files series covering some events occuring before Elysium. It is approx 24,000 words, so a novella, and depending on your e-book reader settings about 150 pages.

It is available right now at Smashwords with Amazon processing details now & making it available in the next few hours.

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/277917

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Lexington-Artemis-Files-Universe-ebook/dp/B00B4UDYMQ/

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lexington-Artemis-Files-Universe-ebook/dp/B00B4UDYMQ/

The bad news is that Durendal is delayed… I am progressing well through it and see it close to halfway, with an expectation of early February for release. Sorry for anyone urgently waiting to find out what happens after Talisman! Good things are in store with that book, and some hairy adventures soon to be on your screen.

A Christmas Market vacation, New Year vacation and home/work life all contributed to the delay, plus the urgent need in my head to get Lexington out which has been sitting there on the hard drive for some time waiting to be finished off.

I’ll throw another update as we get closer to the final release of Durendal with defined dates.

Talisman is Finished

Today the final version of Talisman was signed off and is now launching with the different retailers. It’s currently available at…

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/264136

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Talisman-The-Artemis-Files-ebook/dp/B00AMKGORG/

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Talisman-The-Artemis-Files-ebook/dp/B00AMKGORG/

With Apple, Sony, B&N, Diesel, etc… over the next couple of weeks as they get through their pre-Christmas uploading rush. In about a week, the printed version will also be made available on Amazon US/UK/etc….

If you liked Elysium, you should enjoy this as it develops the setting and characters even further with a different style of adventure to the first book. Next on the schedule is to finish the third book ‘Durendal’ leading into a different style adventure yet again and revealing more of the setting and universe, plus answering some of the questions teased in the the first two books. That’s targeted for mid-late January at this stage and while progress continues, I’ll update up here from time to time.

I hope you enjoy… now for a short vacation in the snow!

Talisman Update

So here we are one month since I threw this site up on the web… and the latest update is that Book 2 of the Artemis Files: Talisman is in the very final stages. My estimated date for release is within the next two weeks at the usual outlets… although with the Christmas publishing frenzy, some of the distributors are not guarenteeing books in their stores unless they receive the proofs by the end of the first week of December. We’ll see how the timelines work out between writing, proofing, feedback and my other job.

As part of Talisman, the preview chapter of the third book, Durendal, has been written and will be included. Some interesting things are coming up in that release and as I finish up on Book 2, other elements are being written into Book 3’s outline and initial chapters… the Durendal release is planned for late January, followed by a different series as you’ll see on this site with Dancing with the Witch Queen. After that’s released, the two series will alternate until I’ve finished the story arc planned out for the Artemis Files.

Just to give you an idea of my workflow… I typically finish a chapter (or two), proof it next day, and then add it to the pile of other completed chapters. Once a suitable number are done they get sent out for feedback from a small group. At the same time that I’m working on one book, you’ll typically find me with fingers in the pie of a couple of others as well… so if one stalls, I can jump into a different one for a spell.

Anyway, I’ll update up here once the latest book has hit the stores for release… Happy Reading!

Brad

Welcome

This site will keep you up to date with the works and news for the books by Bradley Warnes.

Over the coming weeks I’ll add more content up here, but my main focus is on getting the next few books out there so postings may be few and far between. Any questions, just drop a note through and I’ll get back to you.