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! 😀
Holo Books
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! 😀 😀 😀
EXCITING NEWS involving Jacob, David Weber, and a NEW BOOK!
I have a funny Liberty Con story: My fellow authors and I were gathering for our Sunday panel last summer, proudly displaying our books so everyone could see what we’d written. Suddenly the author next to me sees The Wizard’s Way. His eyes go wide and starry (I may have imagined this) and he asks, “You wrote a book with Jacob Holo? Is that the same Jacob Holo that’s writing a book with David Weber?”
So now I am mildly famous by association by association, which is funny. But not actually the point of this story.
The point of this story is that Jacob indeed WROTE A NOVEL WITH DAVID FREAKING DADDY OF HONOR HARRINGTON, CREATOR OF SAFEHOLD WEBER.
ACTUAL PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BhFzPU6lj3P/
By this point, it would be more correct to say that David and Jacob just signed a contract for the novel with Baen Books and are working on the final draft, so it will be happening later rather than sooner.
Until then, I imagine you probably want to know more about this mysterious book.
Once upon a time, Jacob told me he’d never write a time travel novel. Well, when David Weber asks you if you want to write a time travel novel with him, you change your mind. Unfortunately, we can’t reveal more than that until closer to the release, but rest assured, it’s a novel in which lots of things explode because, hello, look at the authors.
We don’t have a projected release date yet, but a perfect way to keep up with the book’s progress is to join our mailing list. More news of this exciting project will reach you as soon as we have it!
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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.
The Time Reavers Blog Tour Kicks Off!
Time Reavers is on its first audiobook blog tour, and thus far, the praise is flowing!
Dab of Darkness calls Time Reavers “a hell of a fun ride” with “great narration!” Meanwhile, The Literary Apothecary gives it 4.2 of 5 stars, and Macarons & Paperbacks is “impressed with [reader Tess Irondale]’s narrating skills.” (We agree. Her voices are magnificent!)
Links to all tour stops are posted below if you’d like to get in on the adventure – and even if you already know you love Time Reavers, there are plenty of reasons to follow. Many stops feature audio excerpts and interviews with Jacob, as well as a giveaway in which you could win a signed copy of the print edition, so go check them out!
Finally, a big thanks to Audiobookworm Promotions for arranging this tour. They’ve done a fantastic job putting everything together for us, and we couldn’t have asked for a better tour partner. 🙂
Read on for more reavery goodness!
Time Reavers Blog Tour Stops
September 20th
Dab of Darkness Audiobook Reviews (Review, Giveaway)
Lomeraniel (Review, Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
The Literary Apothecary (Review)
September 21st
Jazzy Book Reviews (Audio Excerpt, Interview, Giveaway)
Macarons & Paperbacks (Review, Interview, Giveaway)
September 22nd
It’s Novel to Me (Review, Author Interview)
Notes From ‘Round the Bend (Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
September 23rd
Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm (Audio Excerpt, Interview)
Blogger Nicole Reviews (Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
Twisted Book Junkie (Review, Giveaway)
September 24th
Adventures Thru Wonderland (Review, Giveaway)
September 25th
Buried Under Books (Review)*
September 26th
The Book Addict’s Reviews (Review, Audio Excerpt, Interview)*
Pregnant, Barefoot, in the Kitchen (Review)*
*Specific links will be updated as posted by the individual blogs. Links last updated on September 24th, 2017.
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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.
The Reavers are back! (In your headphones.)
One of the most frequently-asked questions we hear at cons is “Do you have audio books?” We’re proud to announce that we can finally answer “YES!”
Earlier this month, we started production on the audio book adaptation of Time Reavers! We’ve been working with the immensely talented Tess Irondale to capture the time-twisting thrills and general mayhem of our favorite monster robot bugs and super-powered teen pest control.
The audiobook will be available for download Summer 2017 on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peak at the first 10 minutes:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXKK9B5J5Mc&w=560&h=315]
Keep your eyes peeled for the cover reveal, coming soon! 😀
The Wizard’s Way Playlist – Part 2
Welcome back for Part 2 of The Wizard’s Way Playlist series!
Here’s Part 1 if you missed it (or if you have no idea what you’ve just stumbled upon), and the YouTube playlist if you’d like to listen:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IpLV7PB5aY?list=PLo3lKhIPo_aTUVVxNmjCM-KIROSf5dYqt&w=560&h=315]
Part 2: Wizard
“The Gravel Road”
by James Newton Howard (The Village)
The “Chaucey is Sad, but also Analyzing and Overanalyzing Things” theme for Chapters 11-12. After all, how else is one to handle murders and shop fires and general wizard stress?
“Tightrope”
by Janelle Monae (The ArchAndroid)
While it’s not specifically relevant to her appearance Chapter 13, the ideas and enthusiasm of the song match Elsa well, so it seemed appropriate for her general theme.
“The Goose and the Abbot”
by Bruno Coulais (Brendan et le Secret de Kells)
Many of the scenes in the High Districts and Underoaks were written to the lovely music from The Secret of Kells, and this track in particular had a curious, investigative sound appropriate for Chaucey and Pentalion’s activities in Chapters 15- 16. Also, in my repeated listens, the quirky tune around the 2 minute mark slowly became Farwude’s theme.
“Milo’s Turned Down”
by James Newton Howard (Atlantis: The Lost Empire)
This one’s frequent switching between disappointment and determined jauntiness made it perfect for the investigation that goes on in Chapters 17-18.
“What Are You Doing in My Forest?”
by Bruno Coulais (Brendan et le Secret de Kells)
INVESTIGATION INTENSIFIES (in Chapter 19).
“Dragonborn”
by Jeremy Soule (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)
While it wasn’t the inspiration for Chapter 20‘s Brunl Library, I can’t listen to this song without thinking of the bearmen.
“Bay Side Slider”
by Try Force (Heat Guy J: Burn)
The “Lysa Kicks Butt” theme, especially for Chapter 21.
“Bedding Down”
by James Newton Howard (Atlantis: The Lost Empire)
Eew, not like that. xP Still, it’s appropriate mood music for what happens between Chaucey and Elsa in Chapter 22.
“Prologue”
by David Newman (Anastasia)
Inspiration for the Arling Ball in Chapter 23. Before it goes all crazy, anyway.
“Didn’t Your Mother Tell You Not to Play With Your Food”
by Hans Zimmer (The Lion King: The Legacy Collection)
Theme for when the Arling Ball goes all crazy. The ominous whimsy suits antagonist Milon Artur to a T, so naturally it’s his entrance music for Chapter 23.
“Nui Harime’s Theme”
by Hiroyuki Sawano (Kill la Kill)
The glassy-sounding menace in this theme makes it an excellent match for a certain spoilery reveal and associated battle in Chapters 24-25.
“Satsuki Kiryuin’s Theme”
by Hiroyuki Sawano (Kill la Kill)
The Steelgore’s theme. Any time the Steelgore does its fiery thing – but particularly at the end of Chapter 25 – it’s to this.
Part 3 coming soon!
Until then, what music do you like to read to?
The Wizard’s Way Playlist – Part 1
Music is as essential to my writing process as coffee and procrastination. While Jacob generally writes to the sound of earplugs, I have playlist upon playlist of carefully curated songs that evoke the perfect soundtrack to my novels and their characters.
So, for the similarly inclined, here’s my playlist for The Wizard’s Way! For those who haven’t read the novel, I’ve written the descriptions to be spoiler-free. On the other hand, if you’re bewildered by said descriptions, here’s your reason to read the book! 😀
Here’s the list on YouTube if you’d like to listen while you read:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqPPaxDp0Wc?list=PLo3lKhIPo_aTUVVxNmjCM-KIROSf5dYqt&w=560&h=315]
Part 1: Calderling
Overture
by George Bruns (The Jungle Book)
For the Prologue. It doesn’t necessarily scream “Ellid wrestling a dragon,” but it does establish the sultry, mysterious jungles of the island of Leray.
Anniversary Medley
by Koji Kondo (The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary Symphony)
I wrote much of Chapters 1-3 to this, particularly the first 4ish minutes, because of its fun sense of derring-do. This was a mood I hoped to capture in those chapters and in the novel as a whole.
Gerudo Valley
by Koji Kondo (The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary Symphony)
Epic music for an epic glider crash in Chapter 4.
Off to the Races
by Lana Del Rey (Born to Die)
The lyrics don’t suit them exactly, but when I listened to it ironically, the decadent, dangerous relationship in the song matched Chapter 5‘s Cider and Lysa well. After all, they are quite an ironic pairing (though not romantic at all).
Also, in my head, Lysa speaks with Lana Del Rey’s voice, so I wrote a lot of her scenes to said artist’s music.
What Are You Asking Me?
by James Newton Howard (The Village)
I also write to a lot of James Newton Howard, as he’s my favorite composer. This track in particular quickly became the “Chaucey is Sad” theme for Chapters 6-7. The juxtaposition of hyperactive violin over otherwise soothing music makes for a good representation of what’s going on inside Chaucey’s head in these scenes (and really, at any given time).
Manchester 1866
by Steve Jablonsky (Steamboy)
The Inventors’ Way theme for Chapters 8-9. It expresses the industrious and dangerous mischief that’s characteristic of a whole street full of inventors. For similar reasons, it was also the music for Elsa and Ellid’s hijinks in Chapters 13-14.
Ryuko Matoi’s Theme
by Hiroyuki Sawano (Kill la Kill)
The “Yer a Wizard, Chaucey” theme for Chapter 10. Truly, I wrote most of the book to Kill la Kill, even when the scenes didn’t suit it, simply because the bombast of the whole soundtrack complements the book so well. (Basically every chapter not specified in this list = written to Kill la Kill).
Part 2 to follow soon!
In the meantime, what music inspires you to write? 😀
Countdown to The Wizard’s Way!
It’s been eventful here at Holo HQ!
Stars aligned so that H.P. could transition to working full-time for Holo Writing, which means that you’re about to see many more updates, contests, giveaways, appearances, and yes, BOOKS.
Speaking of which, The Wizard’s Way is well on its way to being released! Comments from beta readers have come in, edits have been made, layout is complete, and now all we’re waiting for is that final glorious proof copy. Once we’ve affirmed its perfection, it’ll be time to release the Steelgore!
We love all our books, of course, but we’re especially excited to bring you this one.
Though Jacob contributed a lot of content, The Wizard’s Way is primarily H.P.’s weird, hyperactive brainchild, and in it, you’ll see a face of the Holoverse that you’ve never seen before. Namely the face involving fire-breathing steel lions, pug butlers, bear libraries, and lots of general mayhem. But the latter is nothing new. 😛
And hey, if you’d like to receive an update when the novel releases, be sure to join our mailing list!
The Wizard’s Way – Cover Reveal!
Well, it’s been an adventurous month, but it takes more than a malfunctioning eyeball and a collapsed lung to stop me, which means that Draft #4 of The Wizard’s Way is DONE!
Our next step is to see what our beta readers have to say, apply their advice in the next round of edits, and then drop this bad boy – okay, bad but well-intentioned; Chaucey is complicated – on September 1st!
Who’s Chaucey, you ask? Read on to find out—and then to get your first official look at the cover art!
J. Chaucey Thatcher has a monster inside him, but this is the least of his worries.
A murderer prowls the Iron City, slaying inventors. An angry mob storms close behind, blaming wizards. Any they find, they burn alive.
Chaucey is an inventor. He is also secretly a wizard, and the only person who can help with this secret was just murdered before his very eyes.
But when it comes to investigating, Chaucey is as dogged as his best friend is dog. With the help of his loyal pug butler, his sparky (almost? maybe?) girlfriend, and a sleuth of rambunctious bears, he has vowed to unravel the mystery of these murders and save the city from the grips of terror.
But the monster inside him burns for escape.
Will he save the Iron City? Or will the monster destroy it first?
And now, drum roll please…
…
…
…
Though really, forget drum rolls. Let’s bring out the whole band for our illustrator, Mandy O’Brien (aka Painted-Bees on DeviantArt, Tumblr, and Twitter).
I’d been following her art for years on Deviant Art (I mean LOOK AT THIS), so when I started pondering illustrators for a colorful fantasy adventure with two civilizations of talking animals, I didn’t have to ponder long. Her vibrant style combined with the animated quality of her art meshed perfectly with the world I’d pictured in the novel, and looking at these illustrations is like looking at characters that walked right out of my brain onto a computer screen!
Read about them this Fall!
Monsters. Murder. Swashbuckling Pug Butlers.
Coming September 2016.
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Holo Writing at SC ComiCon 2016!
Another SC ComiCon has come and gone, and – as always – we had a great time! We premiered two new t-shirts (coming soon to the Etsy shop!) and the final cover of The Wizard’s Way (coming soon to this blog!). We also met several new fans, saw several familiar faces, and to answer several recurring questions:
- Time Reavers and Dragons of Jupiter sequels are indeed in the works! In fact, Jacob recently finished the outline for Mind Reavers (that is, Time Reavers 2)- but the novel itself is currently in the queue behind:
- Splitting Humanity Machine into 2 books (Remember that one?)
- Finishing the final draft of The Wizard’s Way
- Writing a story for an upcoming Safehold anthology
- And a Super Cool Super Secret Project
So, it will be some time before Mind Reavers happens, but expect lots of cool stuff in the meantime.
Of course, we also snapped some awesome cosplay pics!
We don’t have nearly as many this year, though, because HP is master-in-chief of cosplay fangirling, and she actually couldn’t see for most of the con. Turns out what we thought to be a persistently weird contact lens was actually a detached retina (#conlife #partyhard).
Then, because she likes to multitask, she suffered a spontaneous partial lung collapse 5 days into recovery, spent 10 days in the hospital, and is now at home recovering from that with a bunch of ice cream, Netflix, and a load of editing to do.
As you can see, it’s already been a busy con season, and we haven’t even made our second appearance!
We’ll be at Free Comic Book Day at The Tangled Web on Saturday, May 7th @ 8am, so if you missed us at SC ComiCon, be sure to stop by! 😀
Holo Writing at HonorCon 2015!
H.P. and I recently attended HonorCon 2015, and we had a blast! The convention itself was certainly lower key than DragonCon or AWA, but the halls were packed with readers passionate about military science fiction in general and David Weber’s Honorverse novels in particular.
Not only did we have plenty of fun, but this also marks the first time I participated at a convention as a panelist. Highly successful independent author Chris Kennedy invited me to join two of his panels, the first on the economics of self-publishing and the second on sci-fi world building. I had a great time on both panels, and really appreciate Chris extending the invitation to join him and Ian J. Malone. Even A.G. Riddle crashed one of the panels and offered his insight. Very cool stuff.
Now, you’d think that would be the highlight of the convention for us … but it wasn’t!
For some of you, the fine gentleman in this picture needs no introduction. It was an amazing privilege to be invited onto two HonorCon panels by multiple New York Times bestselling author David Weber!!! Yeah. This actually happened. People told me I was so excited I was shaking like a Pomeranian.
Personally, if I’m going to be a Pomeranian, I like to picture myself like this:
On the first panel, we discussed the creation of strong characters in space opera. As the creator of the greatly beloved character Honor Harrington, David certainly knows a thing or two about creating strong and memorable characters. We also touched on Vanessa Murakuma, who is a personal favorite of mine that first appears in the Starfire novel In Death Ground.
For the second panel, we dove deep into the politics of the Terran Federation in the Starfire universe and how it survived four brutal interstellar wars against alien races, only to fracture at the end in a bloody civil war. Here, David brought his understanding of history to bear with parallels to real events as we discussed some of the pitfalls representative democracies can fall into. To say that he has a keen grasp of history and knows how to apply that knowledge to fiction is to make a monumental understatement.
What else can I say about the experience? David and I have known each other for about a year now. He is probably the most intelligent person I have ever met, but he is very approachable and down to earth at the same time. He and his wife Sharon are amazing people, both of them natural story tellers that are a ton of fun to be around. Years ago, his writing helped inspire my own, and it has been wonderful to hear his stories and to learn from him this past year.
Thank you, David! You’re awesome!