Spinward Fringe On Smashwords: January Coupons!

After dealing with many distributors, Smashwords has become my favorite. Mobipocket is still a great place to release a book, but thanks to the Digital Rights Management Copy Protection, glut of XXX covered erotica, periodical down time that denies readers access to their libraries, and growing negligence on the corporate side, it was in my best interest to look somewhere else.

Along came Smashwords, a place for Indie authors to release their work in many formats DRM free. It's a friendlier place to be with large book samples available for download or online viewing. I first discovered them when I was trying to find a way to release my work on the Stanza Reader, a popular iPhone eBook reader app.

How have things been going with Smashwords? They've been going well enough for me to offer The First Light Chronicles Omnibus there for free (over 6,700 downloads since August), and to list the entire Spinward Fringe series there as well. The only complaint I've had regarding Smashwords is that their system doesn't allow for navigation menus inside eBooks, and I'm told that the feature is coming. They'll roll it out when its ready and anyone who bought the books previously will be able to update to the indexed version. For now I use word search to return to "Chapter ?" (replacing the ? with a number), whenever I intend to continue reading from where I left off. Most quality eBook readers also have a book marking system so you can mark your last page or even create your own index. I'm too lazy when I'm reading on my iPhone, to be honest, so I word search for chapter numbers.

On the positive side, one doesn't have to worry about compatibility if they move to a new device or need one document on two platforms. With no DRM and multiple versions available when you buy a book you can use that piece of property wherever you like. You can also download each version and back them up so you never have to visit the book's site again, or add them to your online library. To me, that's actually a fair trade for limited formatting and no indexing. I strip formatting from most of the ebooks I read anyway. I like to read text my own way using features in Stanza so the book suits my device properly, not as determined by some over zealous designer. There are other reasons why I like Smashwords as a reader and as an Author, but I'll get into that in a future post.

Now, on to what many of you are here for; coupons for the Spinward Fringe series. This is an experiment, so I don't know if I'll be offering them in the future. These expire on Feb 2, 2010.

First Light Chronicles Omnibus: Free!
Spinward Fringe Resurrection: No coupon, the price was reduced to $1.99 instead.
Spinward Fringe Awakening: No coupon, the price was reduced to $1.99 instead.
Spinward Fringe Triton: [From $7.95 to $4.99] RE56H
Spinward Fringe Frontline: [From $7.95 to $4.99] BG73S
Spinward Fringe Fracture: [From $7.95 to $4.99] MH48Z

Click here to go to my bio and full book list at Smashwords.

A few of you may be asking where my fantasy novels are and why I haven't adapted them to Smashwords yet. Well, the Fate Cycle books; Dead of Winter and Sins of the Past (Click here for the Mobipocket Links), aren't going to be sent over to Smashwords until The Sons Of Brightwill is out, which will launch on Smashwords first.

The Sons of Brightwill is a stand alone fantasy novel that is unrelated to my previous works, and in an effort to keep them separate the Fate Cycle books will not be launched on Smashwords until later this year when Fate Cycle: Exodus, the last book in that set is ready.

I hope you enjoy reading my work, please feel free to leave a comment or rating whenever you like!

RL

Now, back to work on Spinward Fringe: Fragments and the Sons of Brightwill.

Other Books By Randolph Lalonde

The Spinward Fringe science fiction series has outsold everything else written by Randolph Lalonde, holding the top spot on Amazon.com's Mobipocket eBook sales site for over a year in the science fiction section.

Before work on that series began on January 1, 2008, Randolph Lalonde wrote fantasy, horror and strange fiction. Three books in those genres have been made available to the public. Here they are in chronological order:

Fate Cycle: Dead of Winter
Past the Northern Reach in the Lands of Athoul there is a tradition called the Promise March. It is during this tradition of matchmaking that A young soldier in training named Deih Utonin meets Celeste, a Young Lady favored by her people. As just another in a line of Suitors, Deih is left with the task of proving himself as more than just a Soldier from a powerful House. Other, more pressing matters threaten to interrupt them as conflict in the south brews and Celeste’s Mentor calls her back to her side. The young pair are faced with making decisions That will effect them for the rest of their lives.

Note: This is the most light hearted work available from Randolph Lalonde. Written in more of a fairy tale style, this book functions as the prequel to Fate Cycle Book I: Sins of the Past. It can also stand on its own for people who prefer light hearted character driven fantasy.

Sorry, this book is no longer available. A re-release is in the works, but no date has been set.




Fate Cycle Book I: Sins of the Past
Three thousand years have passed since a sorceress and her companions exiled the corrupt City State of Caydor to the far off realm of Rikaam. After the Caydorians have fallen from history to legend, a portal has opened on the lands of King Gavat Lorridge. The King sends one of his best military leaders, Warlord Deih Utonin, through to discover the fate of the Caydorians. Meanwhile, the young King is left with his sage advisor, the Lord of the Winds, to aid him with a kingdom on the brink of war. On the other side of the portal the descendants of Caydor discover a portal of their own and send an expedition to explore. A new clash of cultures and kingdoms is about to begin, the scale of which none have ever seen.

Note: This is the first of a set of two. The upcoming second half to this saga is called Exodus, and will be available in 2010. Regardless of being the first part of a pair, the main plot concerning Deih Utonin and his wife Celeste is complete. It`s not necessary to read Fate Cycle: Dead of Winter before reading Fate Cycle Book I: Sins of the Past.

Sorry, this book is no longer available. A re-release is in the works, but no date has been set.




Dark Arts: Rising
Now for the horror. In 2009 a serialized short called Dark Arts: Rising was written as a proof of concept. Work on other horror novels will continue in 2010, including the Dark Arts, which will be expanded into a full novel named simply: Dark Arts. For the time being Dark Arts: Rising is available as a free eBook from Smashwords.

Here`s the synopsis:
The resurrection of Zachary Ellison has brought on a series of events that are changing the world forever. Maxwell, one of the last surviving members of a secret Order of occultists, has failed to catch him in time and is tasked to begin reviving the Order while attempting to minimize the damage his old foe is set to cause. Terrors unseen for thousands of years threaten to emerge if he fails.

Note: Dark Arts: Rising was an experiment made to test a new writing style, setting and story. Thanks to reader response, a full length Dark Arts novel is planned for 2012.

Sons of Brightwill

More on this book (including the cover image), will be available soon. This is a one shot fantasy novel slated for release in 2012.

Spinward Fringe Frontline: The Wait

So, the 1st of May is almost upon us and Spinward Fringe Frontline is still with the editor. I could give you a lengthy explanation with a few excuses mixed in but I'd rather just come out and say it; it's my fault.

Some books take longer to put out, it's true. There are a lot of reasons for it, and thankfully there are a few simple ones behind the delays with Frontline. This is a large book for the series in size and plotline scope. Some of the characters undergo subtle transformations, others aren't so subtle. The story takes a new turn and you get to discover a lot about why things are the way they are, who was involved and even where the story might be going. In terms of actual physical size this book currently stands at 419 pages and there's still a chance my editor will tell me to expand in certain areas that move more like a high budget action film than a novel. Then again, she may just tell me to keep everything as is (with a few gramattical tweaks I'm sure).

I am sorry this book isn't coming out tomorrow, and I hope to have it out by the middle of the month, but if we need more time to polish this so you'll enjoy it more, we're going to take it and I'll make sure you know about it. My fingers and toes are crossed as I hope this draft passes muster. I like this one so much I've lost all objectivity, but that's why I'm thankful I have a good editor and you can rest assured that anything she does will only make things better.

The book is coming, it's my favourite of the series right now, and that's saying a lot. Frontline is epic in scope, our characters get into more trouble than ever and if you've been reading along so far this is one to look forward to.

Spinward Fringe Frontline: Nearly At An End

Spinward Fringe Frontline is unlike anything I've ever written. I'm almost finished my last draft and my editorial pass and I've tried to call this book a war novel, an adventure novel, a hard core science fiction novel and even a space opera novel. After reaching page 370 of 410 the best conclusion I can make is that it's a Space Opera novel that contains strong aspects of all those other things.

This book is 410 pages after cutting 68 pages out and without the last chapter. I've also scrapped three prologues, two of which were good enough to be prologues, one of which was good enough to be its own short story, but none of them were what I wanted. I have a 1.5m by 2m story board covered in post its that failed to contain what was happening with all the characters, the details of the plotlines and the overall movement of this piece. I'm not saying that writing and editing this book was a nightmare or that it's a mess, but it certainly was an unprecdented challenge for me. Thankfully this book came together as a very linear, clear telling of intertwining plotlines.

Before taking on the topics and stories of Frontline the largest book I had written was a fantasy novel called Fate Cycle: Sins of the Past. That book covers several weeks worth of events and builds a world complete with a history, system of mysticism and several other basic components nessisary to a conventional fantasy world. In comparison Spinward Fringe Frontline is much larger and yes, it addresses the weeks between it and Spiwnard Fringe Triton, the timeline of Frontline covers a week or less. In contrast to the fantasy novel I put out five years ago Frontline doesn't have to establish a universe or introduce a multitude of characters, so the four hundred ten pages (so far), are all plot, character development and action. In terms of television, this book would take about six full length hour long episodes to cover and you could easily stretch it to eight with the right special effects budget. (GRIN)

A lot of our favorite characters grow over the course of this book. At the same time the whole thing occurs during a period of adjustment, things are still developing and I enjoy some of the unexpected challenges the characters face. Other characters embark on a journey that changes them in a lasting way. I have to say that I enjoy this book, partially because of its differences from everything else I've done.

I love the dialogue in this book because it's beyond being functional, the characters are really asserting differences in their manner of speech. The story in Frontline goes a great distance to advance things while it brings a lot from the past into focus. I've lost all objectivity again and that's why I'm so happy to have a good, honest editor who will be able to tell me if my work is done or if I have to do another draft. My test readers will be able to sound alarms if I'm missing something or going in the wrong direction.

Having said that, I certainly hope she and everyone else enjoys this book as much as I have. It's complex, it's epic in scale and I'm at the same time looking forward to finishing the drafting and editing process as well as dreading the end because leaving this book behind is hard. I've lived in it for over five months now and the longer you spend with a work the harder it is to let it go.

Having said that, I hope that in a few days I'll be posting my editor's approval as well as an opinion or two from a test reader. If the feedback tells me I have more work to do, I'll tell you as soon as I know and I'll pin down another release date. I'll see you then!

RL

What are you looking to see in Spinward Fringe Frontline? Leave a (spoiler free) comment below!