Month: June 2024

Axtara – Magic and Mischief Teaser – A Mysterious Letter

Max Books! , , ,

Hey readers! Sorry for the late Friday post. It’s just been a day, if you know what I mean. We’re almost ready to open pre-orders for Axtara – Magic and Mischief, which is news I know you want to hear. How close?

I have seen the cover rough. You know, the thing that precedes the final cover itself. And it is awesome. I think you guys are really gonna like it. Next week is going to be exciting!

Oh, was that me offering an actual window? Yes, yes it was. Which reminds me: If you were an Alpha or Beta Reader, watch your email inbox tonight. I’m inquiring about the thanks at the beginning of the book and how you wish to be referred to in it.

Yes, we are close. So close that I can also say that this will be the last teaser. Starting next week, we’re going to see chapters.

We’re on the cusp. But until then, and to tide you over, hit the jump for a brief bit on a mysterious letter … and just maybe something else as well? You’ll have to hit the jump to find out, so hit that button!

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Being a Better Writer: Run-On Sentences and Other Broken Rules

Max Being a Better Writer , , , , , , ,

Welcome once again, writers! Welcome to another Monday installment of Being a Better Writer, a weekly guide to all things writing for over ten years!

Now, before we dive into today’s post, I want to start with a little reminder: Being a Better Writer is provided free of charge and free of advertising—despite a few places’ strong encouragement to the contrary. Instead, BaBW relies on Patreon Support! If Being a Better Writer has been helpful to you over the years, please consider heading on over to the Patreon Page and supporting. Or, if you’d rather not give money via Patreon, consider purchasing one of the many books on the Books page.

Please consider it. Creating new installments of Being a Better Writer each week does take a significant amount of time, and again, features no advertisements, pop-ups, page sponsors (unless you count the books and works we talk about over the course of either the post or the news blurbs at the start) or subscription requirements. It’s free to anyone, and has been used as a resource by everyone from individual writers looking to improve their craft to teachers of collegiate courses and higher education.

So, if you can spare it, or if you’re one of those college professors that has been sending traffic here via your students from a syllabus, please consider supporting the page. Or if you’re a student who’s found Being a Better Writer helpful, please consider the same. Without advertising, the only return I see as the creator is Patreon or book sales.

And I kind of despise advertising and popups. The last thing I want is for my site to be dominated by full-page ads breaking up the text, covering the screen, or doing one of a dozen other ways ads shove themselves in your face right now. Please support the site so that it can stay far away from that.

Okay, now that I’ve sufficiently prodded, let’s shift gears and get back to writing. Today we’re talking about a frequently controversial topic, and one that reared its head once again for me personally (hence why it ended up on Topic List #24). We’re talking about rule breaking.

What rules, you might ask? Well, hit that jump, and let’s find out.

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Axtara – Magic and Mischief Teaser – One Nervous Customer

Max Books! , , ,

Hey readers! Max here! Axtara – Magic and Mischief nears! How close is it? Well, I’ve gotten some of the concept work for the cover back from the artist (Codie McKneely – Nudity warning as it is an artist’s portfolio) and it’s looking pretty awesome! I’ll have some previews of that show soon, along with full chapter previews, but for now teasers will have to suffice as we fly closer to the full reveal.

At which point, you know what’s coming. Hit that jump to take a peek of an early chapter portion from Axtara – Magic and Mischief. We’ll have one more of these, I think, regarding an important letter, and by then we should be into full chapter previews and our look at the cover as the whole thing goes up for pre-order!

So hit that jump, and let’s see a little slice of Magic and Mischief.

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Being a Better Writer: Editing As You Write – When To Work and When To Let Be

Max Being a Better Writer , , , , , , , ,

Welcome once again writers! How are you all doing this Monday morning! I hope you’re ready to talk writing, because we’ve got a solid topic to discuss today. A reader request, in fact!

But first, let’s get what little news there is out of the way, shall we? Work has begun on The Phoenix, and it’s already moving along at a decent clip. In the meantime, Axtara – Magic and Mischief is waiting on a cover. And now that I’ve gotten settled into a decent groove, I can start working on the hardcover/print formatting as well.

Now, I do have some somewhat unfortunate news to tie into things, related to the family disaster that took place a few months ago (here’s the link if you don’t know what I’m referring to, but I warn you that this is … heavy). Here’s the thing: Book sales run on inertia. If I stop posting for a week? I see a corresponding slump in my sales. I’m not nearly big enough that my sales have reached critical mass and are self-sustaining regardless of what I do.

Some of you are already connecting the dots to where this is headed, as I spent twelve weeks in Alaska during that disaster, disconnected and dealing with other stuff. My sales cratered during that time. Plus I missed the original release date for Magic and Mischief.

Ultimately, what this means is that my finances are now in pretty bad shape. My outcome is exceeding my income, no matter how hard I stretch it. And while my sales have recovered some of that inertia, they’ve yet to get back to where they were (recovering inertia is a lot harder than losing it).

Basically, I’m going to have to start looking for side work to make ends meet. Which means my writing time will take a hit.

“But Max,” some of you may say (because I’ve been in this scenario before), “surely you can do this without cutting into your writing time. How important, really, is having a social life? Or hobbies? You can cut those and still make the same quotas, right?”

I’m really not exaggerating there, guys. I’ve been in a financial tight spot before and had some really, shall we say, inhumane and self-centered responses to things.

But no. Been there cutting it all, done that. I spent several years some time ago having no social life, working six days a week putting in sometimes 14 hours or more a day. And what happened? First, this is America, so I really didn’t make any more money. And second I was miserable.

So yeah, things are going to have to slow down when this takes effect, even if only for a few months. And if you’d rather that not happen, well … I’m sorry. If you’d like to help, there are some options: become a Patreon Supporter, or spread the word about my books in hopes that things pick back up for me (tell friends, tell the web, post reviews, etc).

I realize this news sucks. And I know some of you may be upset or indignant about it (you would not believe some of the nasty messages I got the last time I was in a tight spot, including one that said it hoped I became homeless because it would be ‘a better for me as a person and would give me more time to write’). But there’s a real simple equation behind this: Income must be greater than outcome. Income>outcome.

Now, be aware I ain’t exactly living a high life, folks. I cook my own meals from scratch and even then I go “Oh, a sale on beans!”

This doesn’t mean Being a Better Writer will be slowing down. At least, not for now. Those I can get done in advance. But … It does mean my writing will have to take a hit until things recover. I’m not even sure what I’m going to be doing yet, I just see the writing on the wall for what it is, and what’s coming down the path if I can’t recover.

So yeah, sorry, bad news. But … I can’t avoid it. I knew during those twelve weeks that I was doing a ton of damage to my sales inertia, but stayed anyway because … well …

Oh, and if you’re one of those trollish folks who’s going to message me about how maybe I shouldn’t have stayed for those twelve weeks taking care of things because you want more writing to read right now … Don’t. Just don’t. Same if you’re going to talk about how “homelessness will be good for me” or some other crap like that. Don’t.

I’ve stretched things as far as I can, and done as much as I can regaining that lost momentum, but it’s not quite enough. So I’m looking for a good side income, and until I no longer need it, there will be a shift in content delivery around here. I don’t like it. I don’t want to do it … but I also need to be able to eat. And have a place to live.

Anyway, more on that as things get more concrete. I know it’s unwelcome news, but at the end of the day … Income>outcome. If it’s the other way around, something has to give.

All right. I apologize for taking up so much of the news post with that. If you’re upset that you had to read about my financial straits well … Tough. That’s the news. But we’re done talking about it now. News over. So now we can talk about today’s topic.

Editing as you go. And this topic? Well … It’s a tough one. Hit that jump, and let’s dig in.

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Axtara – Magic and Mischief Teaser – Introducing Princess Mia Elnacier!

Max Books! , , ,

Hey folks! Max here! We’re drawing closer and closer to the release of Axtara – Magic and Mischief, and while I don’t have a release date set yet—sadness, I know—that doesn’t mean we can’t take some early looks at what’s inside the pages of Magic and Mischief as we did last week! Oh, and if you missed that last preview, you can read it here!

So, who’s ready for another look at what’s coming inside the pages of Axtara’s next adventure? Last week we saw an early snippet of Axtara going to meet with Elden Moon, one of the many characters from Banking and Finance who makes her return in the sequel, so for this week, I figured we’d get a glimpse at another returning fan-favorite character: Princess Mia!

Now, those of you who did see last week’s post know that we’ve got a lot more of Mia coming in Magic and Mischief, with Mia appearing in almost double the number of chapters compared to the first outing. Don’t worry, she’s not replacing our loveable dragon protagonist or anything, but they are best friends. So without spoiling anything, let’s get an early look at Mia’s first appearance in Magic and Mischief, in which Axtara has something unusual to show her.

Hit the jump!

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“Clarkson’s Farm” May Be One of the Most Important Shows Streaming Right Now

Max Misc , , , , , , , ,

I know, some of you are probably really boggled at that title. Some of you might even be wondering “What is Clarkson’s Farm?” and imagining some sort of Fantasy or Sci-Fi show revolving around a farm on an alien planet or something like that.

Others of you might be wondering why after my hammering of the Halo show (well-deserved, I might add), the next show I’m talking about isn’t Fallout (which was excellent by the way, if deserving of that rating) but rather … I mean, Clarkson’s Farm?

Let’s back up a bit then. What is Clarkson’s Farm?

Well, the Clarkson referred to in the title is Jeremy Clarkson, a prominent TV personality from the UK most famously known for being one member of the trio that made up Top Gear. Yes, that Top Gear. The show that routinely saw worldwide viewing numbers that could compete with the Superbowl. Yep, a show about “cars” (that routinely was far more than that) which ran for 13 or so seasons and became one of the world’s most-watched television shows, with spin-offs in almost every other country.

Seriously, if you haven’t seen that old show, it’s a hoot, and once you sit down to watch it you’ll see why hundreds of millions tuned into each new episode each week. It was an absolute blast, but like all good things it did have to end. And I’m not here to tell you to go watch that show, but to tell you why you should instead watch the show one of the leading trio went on to make afterwards.

See, all three of the leads for Top Gear were getting pretty far along in years, so when the time came to separate from Top Gear, even though they all went right back to something similar with The Grand Tour, each also started looking at other things to do.

For Jeremy Clarkson, that was having the idea of buying a thousand-acre farm in the Cotswalds, and filming himself (and everyone else who is roped in) trying to run it.

Now, if you’re American, you’re probably thinking “Oh, reality TV” right about now. With all its artificial drama and tweaks to make for “good television.”

But that’s not what Clarkson’s Farm is at all.

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Being a Better Writer: Titling Your Work

Max Being a Better Writer , , , , , ,

Welcome back, writers! Who’s ready to talk writing?

As usual, of course, there is the small bit of news to get through. As of late last night (around 11 PM), the Copy-Edit for Axtara – Magic and Mischief has been completed!

“What does this mean?” some of you may ask? Well, it means that the book is almost entirely ready for publication in ebook form. All that remains is making the final file for upload, double-checking all the extra information (like title page, etc) and then … uploading it.

Which means that as soon as the cover is in my hands, pre-orders can open. Release will come soon after.

Now, this also means I can start editing a separate file for print copies. That’ll take a bit more work, plus it’ll need a print proof to be made. So as usual, the digital version of Magic and Mischief will beat the print copy into everyone’s hands. Ebooks are just easier to prep for.

Ultimately what this means is Magic and Mischief, long overdue, is finally about to arrive. Hopefully in the coming week or two I’ll have a release date for all of you, and pre-orders will open up.

Oh, and if you missed it, our first preview of Axtara – Magic and Mischief had it’s debut on the site last week! We dropped some fun comparison factoids between the first and second books, as well as an excerpt from the text of Magic and Mischief! Go check it out!

Now, this all does mean there’s one other item of news. What will be the “Next Big Project?” For those not in the loop, a few months ago I asked the Patreon Supporters to vote on what my next book would be after Magic and Mischief, the vote closing at a day of my choosing when my current project was essentially complete.

Well, that day is today, and we have our winner. Well, technically a tie. Which means I get to tiebreak. The two titles that won were The Dusk Guard Saga: Fires of the Earth, the next installment in that fanfic saga, and The Phoenix, a long-ago Unusuals project that only the earliest of fans will remember that, upon completion, was not up to my standards and shelved until I felt comfortable rewriting it.

Well, with both of those items tying (personally, I voted for the YA Space Pirate Adventure just if you’re curious) I serve the tie-breaker, and while I know this will be disappointing to some no matter what I pick, I’m going with The Phoenix.

For two reasons, mind. The first is that The Phoenix is a product I can sell, and right now my financial situation needs all the cash it can find. Secondly, the last Dusk Guard entry was a while ago, yes, but a lot less of a wait than the last Unusuals book. Seriously, Hunter/Hunted was 2019, which is a lifetime for some people, but Dead Silver was 2014. That ten-year anniversary we had last week for Dead Silver? I was writing the first draft of The Phoenix at that time. It’s been delayed for a long time.

So, with this now being June, my path is clear. It’s time for The Phoenix to rise from its old ashes at last and burn bright. The next project has been chosen!

All right, with all that news out of the way, let’s get down to business. It’s time to talk writing. And today, we’re talking about a very specific piece of writing. One that’s short and direct, but one of the most influential moments of your entire work.

That’s right, you already know. Because of this principle in action. Or in other words, you read the title of the post. So you know that today, that’s what we’re discussing.

Hit the jump, and buckle up.

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