Val Neil's Blog

Thanks to those of you who have reached out to ask about Dark Whispers. I have a tiny fanbase and I appreciate each and every one of you.

So… what’s up?

If you haven’t been following my newsletter, which you absolutely should be, you’d know that last year I made the tough decision to homeschool my son. It’s taken a lot of mental energy so I’m basically down to one writing day a week. I was hoping to have Dark Whispers out in late 2023 but that didn’t happen.

Dark Whispers is the second half of what was originally one book (Dark Mind being the first half), and like it’s predecessor, Dark Whispers touches on series topics, which are always more difficult for me to write. I’m not a perfectionist but I do want to ensure I handle things as well as I can.

That said, here is the timeline for Dark Whispers:

-Finish the current draft (I’m at 114k words and I’m shooting for 130k or more)
-Book editor, release cover, set preorder date
-Send for sensitivity reading
-Send for beta reading
-Send for editing
-Format and release
-Audiobook

I see I don't post here nearly often enough. If you want current news, you really need to be on my newsletter , which goes out the first Friday of every month.

Anyhoo, Dark Mind has been out since November. The audiobook has been live since... May? Something like that.

I'm about 60k words into Dark Whispers (for reference, Dark Apprentice was 132k and Dark Mind was ~155k). I'd hoped to have it out this year but sadly I've been battling fatigue and brain fog for about a year and a half. I finally figured out it was my medication and I've fixed the problem, but I've lost the summer and will be starting up homeschool again soon. I'm shooting for spring 2024. Preorders will go up once I've completed the first draft and have a date booked with my editor.

The sequel to Dark Apprentice is coming in December 2022! I don't have a set date yet (however long it takes me to format), though the ebook might be out slightly faster than print (proof copies take forever to arrive).

Get it from me or from your favorite store.

Dark Apprentice is out in audio and it had duet narration!

Buy direct and use the coupon code GAYFROGLICKER to get 20% off: https://mysoundwise.com/soundcasts/16...

Also available on
Chirp: https://www.chirpbooks.com/audiobooks...
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/audiobook/...
Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Dark-Appre...

Slowly rolling out to other stores over the next month.

My audio producer asked for actors/character comparisons for my characters (helps deliver the right vibe/performance for the voice). Curious what movie or TV characters come to mind when you think of Nikolai and Medea.

Project Hail Mary is currently on sale. Trad ebooks are fucking expensive, so now would be a good time to grab it. It's an awesome book.

Finally broke down and got an Audible subscription. Last month was Project Hail Mary, which was awesome. This month I've chosen The Shadow of the Gods. I've had Malice sitting on my shelf for six months because my family does not understand that I don't do paperbacks anymore. I don't know if the two series are connected, but hoping I don't get spoiled for it.

If anyone has fantasy audiobook recommendations, I'd love to hear them. Looking not just for good books, but stuff with decent narrators.

Do you prefer a cumbersome book that doubles as a weapon? If so, you can now get Dark Apprentice in hardback!

Grab your copy today. Want to support a local bookstore or library? Make their life easier by giving them the ISBN (9781955075022) when ordering.

I'm giving away four signed copies of Dark Apprentice this month. You can enter here:

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sh...

Please tell anyone who might be interested!

Project Hail Mary is great and you should read it. Was not what I expected, but in a good way. I recommend the audiobook as one of the main voices is really well done and totally worth it.