Thomas Riley 2

My second book in the Thomas Riley steampunk series is coming to a close. I'm 5 chapters away from being done with the draft and I'll tell you... it's been quite the journey.

Yes, it's taken A LOT longer than expected to get this beast finished but I have a good reason. Well, I think it's a good reason. As most of my readers know, I traveled extensively in 2010 for the book. My travels took me everywhere from South Carolina to Victoria British Columbia. Fifty seven different events in 2010 alone. Book stores, cons, book festivals and book fairs... everything was fair game. And I have to say... It was amazing. In 2011, I got a divorce. Most people have no idea what that will do to you mentally and physically. There is constant stress, drama, problems, anger, frustration, friends that turn their back on you... you name it.

For me, it was like starting completely over, like there was a massive fire and everything you once owned and relied on was simply gone. I remember one of the first nights in my new place and I got a frozen pizza. I had no utensils, or plates or anything... So I sat on the empty floor, used the pizza box as a plate and ripped the pizza with my hands. While it was sort of funny in an insane way at the time, those kind of things take tolls on you that you might not realize. Then there are the money issues... wow... Dirt poor is the best way to describe it. We went through several months of eating ramen and hamburger helper for nearly every meal. Needless to say we can't even look at hamburger helper commercials anymore without feeling sick.

Needless to say there were about 1241235987612351235 of these happenings and that saps you in every way. You don't feel like writing, you don't feel like being creative and you really are not inspired. To get through it, I had to take a lot of time to finish the next book. And I have to say without the unwavering encouragement from Elizabeth Darvill, I would probably never have gotten done. Also, I have to thank my publisher, ZOVA Books for being unbelievably patient with me. That means a lot because most publishers would absolutely hate me by now. So there you have the abridged version of why this is taking so long.

Soon I'll post again when the draft is done and I can show you the cover (once again being done by the absolutely amazing Will Routon) and yes it is bad ass.
Till next time.

New Steampunk Anthology

Her Majesty's Mysterious Conveyance

That's the name of the newest steampunk anthology that Elizabeth (Darvill) Valentino and I are in with Sean Hayden and Jennifer Williams published by Echelon Press. This is a super fun anthology where all the stories are about non traditional steampunk characters and there is a queen or empress involved in every yarn.

My story is called Ten Thousand Years and is about a bitter Japanese sea captain that takes to piracy to regain his crew's honor. There are samurai automatons, royal airship battle cuisers and advanced cannons that can punch holes through an entire ship! *Hint* (This cannon also makes an appearance in the new Thomas Riley 2)

I'm super excited about this nifty little anthology and to celebrate, I'm giving away 2 e-copies for Twitter users. Copy and paste the text below in twitter and two winners will be chosen at random on Saturday night!

RT this for a chance to win an e-copy of new #steampunk Anthology "Her Majesty's Mysterious Conveyance" @sirthomasriley http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006ZA8P9C/ref=rdr_kindle_ext_tmb

If you want to go on and pick up the e-book (Print books will be available in a few weeks!) you can grab them at Amazon for a very cheap $3.99 here. http://www.amazon.com/Her-Majestys-Mysterious-Conveyance-ebook/dp/B006ZA8P9C

Virtual Con and The Mechanical Masquerade

Virtual Con 2011
Starting Friday, Elizabeth Darvill and I will be virtually attending the first Virtual Con as their steampunk guests of honor. This is a new kind of con done 100% online so you can see panels, game and hang with other like minded friends without leaving your home. http://www.thevirtualcon.com/

Here are my panels:
Friday 11/11/11
7:00PM "Meet The Author of Thomas Riley Series"
Sunday 11/13/11
4:00 "Thomas Riley Reading"

Also as a special treat for my reading, I may read a bit from Thomas Riley II which is due out in the first quarter of 2012.


The Mechanical Masquerade II
This Saturday 11/12/11 5:00PM - Midnight?
Some of you know that my first steampunk event was the first Mechanical Masquerade held in 2010 in Decatur, GA. The people I met there set the tone for a host of amazing friends I've met over the last year and a half. So, I'm super excited to see them again and have an great time at the fabulous Mechanical Masquerade II put on by the awesome Doctor Q. If you're in Atlanta or in the area, I promise you don't want to miss this event.

How cool is this?

So I had an amazing Halloween and to put the cherry on top, when I got home I saw on facebook that someone had dressed up like Thomas Riley for the holiday. This is a really cool milestone for me. I never really thought that anyone would dress up in character as anyone from the Thomas Riley books but this just takes the cake in coolness. And I don't know this person! So color me stoked as can be. Here's the pic I saw on Facebook: (Thank you awesome fan!) Oh, and if anyone knows this fine fellow, please let me know. I'd love to send him some goodies.

The Southern Festival Of Books

I'm back! I can't wait to do another book festival and I finally get to start back up with the awesome Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, TN. The festival goes from Friday October 14-16 at the War Memorial plaza in downtown Nashville. What makes it even sweeter is I will be sharing a tent with fellow amazing authors and top notch people Elizabeth Darvill and Teresa Burrell.

We'll be in booth 43 and with any luck you shouldn't be able to miss us. We'll have pirate flags flying and all manor of gaudy steampunkery around the tent. This year, we will have:

By Nick Valentino:
Thomas Riley, Dreams of Steam I and Dreams of Steam II Brass and Bolts

By Elizabeth Darvill:
Love in a Time of Steam, Love's Immortal Pantheon and will be promoting her new Harlequin release, Steam Heat

By Teresa Burrell:
The Advocate, The Advocate's Betrayal and her brand spanking new The Advocate's Conviction.

So come by and say hi, we'll have all types of shenanigans going on.

Kindle Gold

I want to make you all aware of a new website called Kindlefinds (located at Kindlegold in the blogosphear)that features all types of awesome books. Many of which have super great prices. I've always wanted a Kindle or Ipad so I could pick up all the wonderful short stories and inexpensive books. It just seems like such a steal for some great entertainment.One day... one day...

So check this new site out, you won't be disappointed.

Dreams of Book fests

I got my author copy of Dreams of Steam II Brass and Bolts today which is an anthology published by Kerlak Publishing featuring a ton... and I mean a ton of awesome steampunk authors. This book is HUGE! It looks like I'll be debuting Dreams of Steam II at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, TN next weekend. I'll be sharing a booth with Elizabeth Darvill and Teresa Burrell at booth 43. Trust me, you'll see us, look for the pirate flag. So if you're in or around Nashville, come and say hi, we love hanging with our friends and readers. More to come on this...