*Originally posted 3/6/19 on the Weber Forums.
PLEASE NOTE: This post will contain a few vague references to parts of The Gordian Protocol‘s plot and characters. I’ll do my best to keep from spoiling anything, but those who wish to experience the novel without any spoilers of any kind should avoid this post in its entirety.
Though, honestly, if you’re reading this, are you really trying your best to avoid spoilers? 🙂
Now, onto the story.
It’s spring of 2017, I’m deep into writing my scenes for The Gordian Protocol, and I come across a…problem. Not a big problem, mind you, but more of a “Hmm, how best to handle this?” kind of situation. I was quickly approaching a scene where I needed to get a key character onto the protagonists’ time machine. And the character (let’s call him “Jimmy”) had to board the time machine willing. That’s the important part, and I need to be snappy about it, because the story was on a serious crescendo, and I wanted to maintain that forward momentum into the climax.
Problem is, there’s a lot tying Jimmy to his native place in history. A lot.
This is a man for whom duty runs thick through his veins, especially to his…goldfish. (Okay, you know it’s not his goldfish, but I’m rolling with this as part of my anti-spoiler tactics.) He needs a Very-Good-Reason to leave his goldfish behind. He and that goldfish have been through some tough times together! Granted, our protagonists have that Very-Good-Reason, but their story isn’t the easiest one to digest, and Jimmy is no fool, especially when the needs of his goldfish are concerned. There will be questions. There will be discussions. There will be…delays.
Hence, I had a problem.
I took a step back and reviewed David’s notes. This was often my first step when I wasn’t quite sure how to proceed. Between the alternate history notes and deep character background, I had over 40,000 words of material to pull from when writing my scenes, and those notes almost always provided the guidance I needed to support David’s vision for the novel.
So, I looked up David’s notes on Jimmy and… Aha! This particular goldfish wasn’t named here! It only listed that Jimmy…found a second goldfish, long after the untimely passing of his first goldfish. (Have you figured out what the goldfish is?)
Well… 😜
Let me segue for a moment here and talk a bit about the collaboration process. As the junior partner on a project, I view it as my responsibility to support the senior partner’s overall vision for the novel while also contributing my own original ideas. Balancing the two can be tricky at times, so I was always keen to identify which parts of this story I needed to strictly follow David’s lead and which parts were my sandbox to explore.
The lack of a name for Jimmy’s second goldfish was like a bright green flag waving in my mind. We were in sandbox territory here! Yes! I could do whatever I wanted with the goldfish!
I pondered how to approach the problem with this newfound narrative freedom. And then it hit me. Jimmy’s goldfish couldn’t tie him down…if it wasn’t around anymore!
So I blew up the goldfish during one of the novel’s action set pieces. Little smoking pieces of fish strewn everywhere. Thus Jimmy was free to board the time machine without hesitation, and the plot could move forward efficiently. The engineer in me was quite pleased with how I’d dealt with the problem. KISS principle, you know? (Keep It Simple Stupid)
Sometimes it’s easiest just to dynamite the obstacle.
I went on to finish my portion of the novel and hand it over.
A little while later, David reviewed my work, and we had a conversation that went something like this (heavy paraphrasing to follow):
DW: So, you know Jimmy’s goldfish?
JH: The first or the second?
DW: The second. The one you blew up.
JH: Sure, I do. I’m the one who blew it up, after all.
DW: Right, about that. You do realize I had a story planned for that goldfish in the sequel.
JH: …You did? 😬
At this point, my internal dialogue looked something like this: Oh, &%#$! Oh, &%#$! Oh, &%#$!
DW: Yeah, you mind if I rework those scenes?
JH: What? Oh, uhh, no, not at all! Please, be my guest! Edit away! I wasn’t sure how best to approach that part anyway!
A little while later, I received David’s next set of revisions. And boy, was I in for a surprise!
You see, he didn’t take the goldfish death out. In fact, he ended up making the death scene even WORSE! He didn’t just blow it up! He mangled the goldfish’s body, had it flopping around on the floor, gasping for air, and then had it die in Jimmy’s arms!
I remember reading it, thinking to myself, “Wait a second. Isn’t the goldfish supposed to live?” And then a little bit later, “Huh. Guess not.”
And, wow. I absolutely loved the changes he made. He took a scene I wrote out of a desire to move the story forward as cleanly as possible, reworked it here, massaged it there, and then cranked the emotional impact up to eleven! It was a fantastic scene, but it’s also one he wouldn’t have written if I hadn’t killed…the goldfish…when I shouldn’t have. A small misunderstanding ended up blossoming into something neither of us would have written on our own, and it’s moments like this that make collaborating with another author such an awesome experience.
That said, I told David afterwards we should probably establish a “Thou Shalt Not Kill These Characters” list for future projects. 🙂
Speaking of which, I think I’ve procrastinated enough today. Time for me to get back to work on the sequel to The Gordian Protocol. I’ve got a lot of [REDACTED] to blow up this week. 😄😄😄
Holo Books
Interview with Keystroke Medium!
Earlier tonight, David Weber and Jacob joined Josh and Steve over at Keystroke Medium to chat collaboration, publishing, and The Gordian Protocol. Check out the interview below! 😀
And of course, for more interviews and writing insight, visit Keystroke Medium’s website and YouTube channel!
Also, LESS THAN ONE DAY TO GO, Y’ALL! 😀😀😀
Booklist on The Gordian Protocol!
The early review train is chugging along! Here’s what Don Vicha at Booklist says about The Gordian Protocol!
In the present, Benjamin Schröder, a history professor in South Carolina, has a mental breakdown dealing with the sudden appearance of a second set of memories as real and compelling as what he thought of as his normal life. Then, as he nears recovery, Raibert Kaminski appears at his door. He claims to be a historian from the thirty-first century with a story of how sixteen alternate histories have been bound together in a Knot—which Schröder holds the key to unraveling. If Schröder can’t help, each of those universes will come to an explosive end. But the cost to Schröder is less abstract and incredibly monstrous, and soon the two are facing a ruthless threat that shows no respect for the denizens of the past. The usual Tom Clancy-esque exposition of technical details that readers expect from Weber are leavened by absurd humor and bloody action. Echoes of Robert Heinlein mix with the inventiveness of Charles Stross and lots of exploding temporal spaceships and bodies. Weber and Holo must have had a ball writing this action-packed temporal/multiverse-travel novel.
Can confirm; David and Jacob had an ABSOLUTE ball. 😁
Read the Review on Booklist Here!*
*Review is behind paywall.
The Gordian Protocol in the May 2019 Monthly Baen Bundle!
Baen Books is a cool publisher in that it has a lot of options for fans who are really impatient for release dates. 😀
For example, there’s its eARC collection, for readers who don’t mind upcoming releases with a few typos. There are also the Monthly Baen Bundles, wherein you can buy a handful of upcoming Baen eBooks in one chunk for the nice, wallet-friendly price of $18!
The Gordian Protocol‘s eARC has been out for a bit, and now the final form is available in the May 2019 Monthly Baen Bundle, along with titles from other such authors as Larry Correia, Kasey Ezell, P.C. Hodgell, Elizabeth Moon, David Drake, Steve White, Charles E. Gannon, and Thomas T. Thomas!
Both will only be available until the book officially releases on May 7th, so if you want these versions, be sure to click fast!
*Also, thanks to reader David Macfarlane for reminding us that we hadn’t shared this yet! 🙂
Buy the eARC Here!
Buy the May 2019 Monthly Baen Bundle Here!
FantaSci 2019 Con Update!
With the May 7th release of Jacob and David Weber’s The Gordian Protocol (from Baen Books) and a contract already signed for the sequel, 2019’s looking to be a big year for us. It’s only appropriate, then, that our 2019 con season kicked off with a big start!
FantaSci in Durham, NC is one of the sister cons that sprang up from the The Royal Manticoran Navy’s now-defunct HonorCon (R.I.P.), in the form of a multi-fandom con with emphasis on the works of David Weber and the ever-growing Four Horseman Universe helmed by Mark Wandrey and Chris Kennedy. This being its first year, it was small, but what it lacked in numbers it made up for in sheer heart and brilliant company.
For us, though, the excitement began before the con even started. Since FantaSci’s location was so close to Baen Books’ main offices, Baen invited us up for a tour and to meet some of the people responsible for transforming David and Jacob’s manuscript into its final form. Assistant Editor (also an author) Christopher Ruocchio first showed us where the general magic happens; it involves a lot of bookshelves, cubicles, and most importantly, TWO CATS EACH WITH THEIR OWN PERSON-SIZED CAT TOWER. (In my excitement, I forgot both their names, but both were gracious enough to bless me with their squishy bellies so I am forever grateful.) Senior Editor Tony Daniel (also also an author) then continued the tour, showing us the podcasting station where he records The Baen Free Radio Hour (one of my regular listens), and finally Executive Editor Jim Minz and shipping extraordinaire Grace Borger treated us to a spontaneous lunch at local haunt Over the Falls (which was delicious). And then, on Mr. Minz’s recommendation, I tried out Wake Forest Coffee Company, which it turns out makes an iced caramel macchiato to rival my favorite coffee shop’s back home. (It was a coffee miracle!)
But that wasn’t even the end of our Baen adventure—or food adventures. That evening, all the Baen authors at FantaSci were treated to a lavish dinner at NanaSteak, so we were privileged to sit at the same dinner table with the Baen crew from earlier, as well as Timothy and Anna Zahn, Steve White (and wife, whose name has been lost to my con haze! Someone remind me!), Robert E. Hampson, and of course, David and Sharon Rice-Weber—and also to taste the best Mac and cheese I’ve had in my entire life. Seriously, if you are in downtown Durham and don’t try NanaSteak’s Gruyere “Grand Cru” Mac & Cheese, you are not living your best life.)
Joking aside, it was mind blowing to be sitting at the same table as some of the bestselling authors who inspired Jacob to write—and not only that, but on the invitation of the publisher who had released so many of those inspirational works. There were parts of this weekend that felt too incredible to be real, and this was one of them.
All this to say, Baen’s hospitality was amazing, and if the people alone are any indication, we couldn’t have landed at a better publisher. Many thanks to Christopher, Tony, Jim, and Grace for the warm welcome. (And to Toni Weisskopf, Marla, and Corinda, we regret that we didn’t get to see you. 🙁 Maybe next time!)
Now, on to the con itself!
Our SphinxCon panels were so well-received that we repeated many of them here, kicking off Friday with Collaboration with an Author, which I moderated while David and Jacob discussed the process of collaborating on The Gordian Protocol. We followed that with Self-Publishing for Shy People, which, it turns out, was a hard panel to fill for this con because apparently none of the authors in attendance were shy (or were too shy to want to be on a panel about shyness 😆). So Jacob joined me at the last minute for a discussion on how to fake being an extrovert for marketing purposes.
Baen brought another bang to our Saturday morning, starting it off with the Baen Traveling Roadshow. The Roadshow has always been a con favorite of ours, with its perfect recipe of author chats, behind-the-scenes glimpses at upcoming releases, and free books galore. In previous years, we’ve always watched longingly from the back row.
So when Baen invited David and Jacob not only to speak about The Gordian Protocol, but to start the program with it, needless to say we were pumped—and also maybe slightly nauseous. Turns out that a round of applause can do wonders to relieve nervous nausea, though, as we found when the audience cheered to greet Jacob! And when a Gordian Protocol ARC was the first free book chosen by an audience member. (We might have been misreading the room, but it looks like people are excited for this book! 😀)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvXRx76g9rw/
Once we’d recovered from the Roadshow, I joined author wives Sharon Rice-Weber, Joy Wandrey, Sheellah Kennedy, Wendy Woods, and a whole bunch of margaritas, which are becoming traditional for The Care and Feeding of Authors panel, wherein we discussed what it takes to support an author husband.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvXWwpdA3Kd/
After that, what FantaSci lacked in shy authors it made up for with chaotic plot pantsers, as Christopher Woods, Ian J. Malone, Jason T. Graves, and Rob Howell all joined me for Writing by the Seat of Your Pants.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvXvvYlgbNq/
Then, after a well-earned nap, Jacob and I jumped back into a panel room for Chaos of Creation: Balancing World Building and Story, in which we discussed how our two wildly disparate senses of plot and worldbuilding came together to make The Wizard’s Way.
Finally, Sundays tend to be the dead days at cons, but that was far from the case on FantaSci’s Sunday. Our hotel room was perfectly positioned to hear the carnage of not one, but two packed party rooms, and this made us wonder if literally anyone would be conscious enough to come to a 9am panel the following day. But the Jump, Jive, and Write panel ended up having such an impressive crowd for that hour that we panelists ended up giving the audience a round of applause! That’s dedication! Afterward, moderator Ian J. Malone led us, Jason Cordova, and Jason T. Graves in A Discussion of Music and Creative Inspiration that resulted in everyone’s writing playlists exploding. (I have never been so grateful to be a Spotify subscriber.)
Soon after, Jacob ended the con with one of his most exciting panels, Crafting Time Travel Rulesets. The crazy thing about this panel? One of the books that inspired Jacob to write in the first place—in fact, the fateful book that set off this whole adventure—was In Death Ground by David Weber and Steve White.
Who was Jacob’s fellow panelist? Steve White.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvaJcBjgFux/
Have we mentioned that this weekend felt nothing short of surreal?
Surreal elements aside, FantaSci was also great con for getting back in touch with what’s quickly becoming our con family. Though it’s incredibly exciting to finally be traditionally published, one of the biggest perks of the whole experience has been the people we’ve befriended along the way, so without further ado:
Thanks to Angi and Phil Clayton for carrying our books at the Weber Universal Outfitters booth and generally being awesome. The same goes for Katie and Greg Barnette, who are still our friends even after I accidentally punched Greg in the teeth in the midst of an over-excited flail. 😆 (That’s true friendship right there.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvXX9G9AV3N/
Thanks also to Rayanne and Arasin Staubly for Jacob’s fancy new bowtie, and to Wendy Woods for my glamorous kitty ears!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvU7jnbghLe/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvXQdKYAvAA/
Thanks to Jonny Minion for being hilarious whether sober or sick on 4HU grog.
Thanks to other author buds Terry Maggert, David Alan Jones, Alan Isom, and Alex Rath, whom we didn’t share panels with, but should have because they are awesome.
And finally, thanks to Joel Lyons and crew for putting together a truly fantastic convention. We had an absolute blast this year and look forward to returning next year! 😀
***
Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
FantaSci Panel Schedule!
Hey, readers! Our 2019 con season is kicking off this weekend at FantaSci in Durham, NC!
Here’s a list of our panel appearances and fellow panelists:
COLLABORATING WITH AN AUTHOR
FRIDAY, March 22nd @ 3pm – Camellia
Writing by oneself is a journey, but collaborating with an author is a whole other kind of adventure! We’ll discuss the perks and challenges that come about when two heads come together (sometimes literally).
Panelists: Jacob & H.P. Holo, David Weber
SELF-PUBLISHING FOR SHY PEOPLE
FRIDAY, March 22nd @ 4pm – Camellia
For many aspiring authors, being an introvert is almost synonymous with being a writer…but unfortunately, that doesn’t sell books. We’ll discuss how to get the word out about your writing when all you want to do is hide behind your favorite notebook.
Panelists: H.P. Holo
CARE AND FEEDING OF AUTHORS
SATURDAY, March 23rd @ 11am – Camellia
The role that wives, significant others, family and friends have in caring for the writers that we love so that they can focus on creating the stories that we love.
Panelists: H.P. Holo and other author spouses
WRITING BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS
SATURDAY, March 23rd @ 1pm – Rose
Pantsers unite! Some writers like to chart their story’s course and follow it to the letter. We are not those writers. We’ll discuss tips for writers who want to wander…without getting lost.
Panelists: H.P. Holo, Christopher Woods, Rob Howell, Terry Maggert, and Jason Graves
CHAOS OF CREATION: BALANCING WORLD BUILDING WITH STORY
SATURDAY, March 23rd @ 6pm – Rose
Sometimes you create a world so vast, you can’t possibly fit it all in a readable story. How, then, do you decide what to keep? We’ll discuss how to write a fascinating world while keeping readers engaged through plot and character.
Panelists: Jacob & H.P. Holo
JUMP, JIVE, and WRITE: A DISCUSSION OF MUSIC AS CREATIVE INSPIRATION
SUNDAY, March 24th @ 9am – Rose
The great philosopher, Plato, once said that “music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” Come hear a panel of authors discuss their musical influences growing up, as well as the songs, artists, and themes that drive their writing today.
Panelists: Jacob & H.P. Holo, Jason Cordova, Jason Graves, and Ian Malone
CRAFTING TIME TRAVEL RULESETS
SUNDAY, March 24th @ 11am – Magnolia (Main Room)
Time travel writing is fraught with paradoxes and endless potential for plot holes. We’ll discuss how to design a time travel system that doesn’t break your universe.
Panelists: Jacob Holo and Steve White
Schedule is subject to change so, check out the website or Facebook page for the most up-to-date info.
See you this weekend! 😀
Publishers Weekly on The Gordian Protocol!
Early reviews are beginning to roll in, and Publishers Weekly has good things to say about The Gordian Protocol, especially that:
“time travel enthusiasts will enjoy the moral dilemmas, nonstop action, and crisp writing.”
Not a bad start, if we say so ourselves! 😀
Read The Full Review Here!
Author Spotlight – Annie’s Bookstop of Worcester
The Gordian Protocol‘s release date is drawing ever-closer, and Annie’s Bookstop of Worcester’s shining an Author Spotlight on it, featuring an interview with David Weber and Jacob!
Visit their blog for the full interview to read some insights on how Jacob and David met, how The Gordian Protocol came to be, how they worked together, and more!
Read It Here!
The Gordian Protocol has a release date! Also, an eARC!
It’s been a long time coming, but The Gordian Protocol, Jacob’s collaboration with David Weber, finally has a release date!
Coming May 7, 2019 from Baen Books, The Gordian Protocol is a novel of bent timelines, alternate history, militarized time machines, exploding universes, and explosions in general.
(So basically, everything you’d expect of a Jacob Holo and David Weber novel.)
Naturally, it’s also available for preorder, so if you’d like to go ahead and jump on the time travel train, visit any of the retailers below (or your favorite local bookseller)!
Preorder Here:
Baen Books – Weber Universal Outfitters (SIGNED AND INSCRIBED COPIES) – Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Books-a-Million – IndieBound – Half Price Books
But perhaps best of all, you don’t even have to wait until May to read it, as the eARC is already available for download from Baen’s website!
What’s an eARC, you ask? An eARC is the next-to-final, un-copyedited version of the book. It may have a few minor formatting or typographical errors (which we and Baen are working to smooth out as you read this), but it’s essentially The Book – available early for those who just can’t wait to read it! 😀
Buy eARC Here:
As we near the release date, more updates will be forthcoming, so if you don’t want to miss out, be sure to join our mailing list!
Until then, enjoy this clean version of the cover art, illustrated by Dave Seeley:
SphinxCon 2018 Con Update!
Last weekend we hopped over to Atlanta, GA for the inaugural SphinxCon, a con run by The Royal Manticoran Navy, the Official Honor Harrington Fan Association. Given that said universe was created by Jacob’s esteemed co-author, David Weber, it was a perfect whirlwind of a weekend to spread the word about their upcoming collaboration, The Gordian Protocol (*more on that in a month or so, which is when we’ll officially be able to spill the beans. SO MANY BEANS).
We approached SphinxCon differently from cons we’ve attended in the past. Previously, we were tiny indie minnows in a huge author pond, swimming through Dealer’s Rooms and Artist’s Alleys just to get the word out about our books. Now that we’re slightly less tiny minnows (albeit swimming beside a whale of the sci-fi world), we moved into panels – and in doing so, met a slew of awesome new fans and fellow authors.
Being that The Gordian Protocol is a time travel adventure, Jacob naturally moderated a panel on Crafting Time Travel Rulesets, along with fellow writer William Alan Webb.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpz3maMF8KI/
That conversation continued even outside the panel, though. The engineer and physics nerd in Jacob had a riotous time crafting the rules for the world of The Gordian Protocol, going as far as to create a mathematical formula to predict the likelihood of certain time travel-induced changes in the world. (There are spreadsheets. LOTS of spreadsheets.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpr1HY6hQVD/
H.P. moderated several panels, too, including Self-Publishing for Shy People with Jonathan Brazee and Michael J. Allen and Writing by the Seat of Your Pants with both them and Christopher Woods. Jacob joined her for Chaos of Creation: Balancing World Building With Story and then Jonathan Brazee and David Weber, of course, joined us for Collaborating with an Author.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpvCXyulY02/
Some of the wildest panels, though, were those where we joined crowds of other authors for round table discussions of such topics as World Building (about…world building) and Science Fiction vs. Fantasy: Why not both? (about combining science fiction and fantasy in a single world). It was crazy to be able to sit on panels with such names as Chris Kennedy, Mark Wandrey, and David Gerrold (WRITER OF “THE TROUBLE WITH TRIBBLES,” YOU GUYS), in addition to those we’d already joined.
Of course, we can’t go without mentioning The Care and Feeding of Authors, wherein author spouses (H.P. here) chatted about what it takes to keep an author sane and fed, but mostly drank INCREDIBLE margaritas.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpz2JGGlcvn/
The panels were fun, but perhaps the best part of the convention was actually getting to hang out with fans. That’s something that doesn’t necessarily happen at larger cons or in hurried Dealer’s Rooms, but small cons like these provide the perfect opportunity to just chill in a hallway and discuss books and cats and food with people who, previously, we’d only communicated with on our Facebook fan page, if at all!
Best of all, we’re now even more pumped to continue our current writing projects – The Wizard’s Circus for H.P. and the SEQUEL to The Gordian Protocol for Jacob – until we come up for air again at the next con! 😀
We’re on YouTube! (Or, Q&A #1: “Who does your cover art?”)
Hey, fans! A while ago, we asked our readers on Facebook for their burning questions, and now, we’re proud to present 1) our new YouTube channel, and 2) the Q&A video series!
We kick it off with one of our most frequently asked questions:
Who does your cover art?
Check out the video below for introductions to each of our illustrators, and be sure to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel if you’d like to see more. Thanks for watching! 😀
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hswk1W962I&w=560&h=315]
Introducing the Pug of War!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BSHI7gcBBcu/
Sometimes a piece of fanart comes along that digs into your brain and won’t let go.
Last year at SC ComiCon, Phouthong Phimmarath surprised us with this little beauty, plopping the beloved pug butler from The Wizards Way into a fierce suit of Crusader armor from The Dragons of Jupiter.
You’ll recognize Phouthong’s work if you’ve looked at the logos or squinted at the fleurons inside the print editions Seraphim Revival books. He’s already done fantastic art for us, and so it was an easy decision to commission a cleaned-up, graphical version of that initial brilliant sketch. He does a lot of sharp, graphical superhero art, too, so if you’d like to see more of this greatness, check out his art page.
Anyway, his Crusader Pug was a combination we never knew we needed, and the more we stared at it, the more we realized, we needed it on a shirt. And a poster. And a sticker. And a bookmark. And a mousepad. AND EVERYTHING. And quickly we realized that this little dude wasn’t just a doodle. He had mascot potential.
And so now we bring you the new face of Holo Writing:
The Pug of War
Sweet, snuggly, and loyal, there’s no pug you’d rather have by your side. Especially when threats like giant robots and alien bugs and evil wizards show up. When he can’t solve a problem with snuggles…well, that’s what the Gatling gun’s for. But snuggles are his preferred method of attack. I mean, just look at his squishy squish face! 😀 😀 😀
No one knows from whence he came or why, but he will be there when the world needs him.
On a related note, we’ll be bringing Pug of War swag with us to cons, but if we’re not coming to a con near you, never fear! That’s what our new loot shop is for!
Here you’ll be able to find shirts, posters, signed books, and other miscellaneous Holo Writing swag! We’re still waiting on a few more products to post before its ~ Official Launch ~ but until then, feel free to swing on by and check out some adorable, awesome stuff! 😀 😀 😀