Val Neil's Blog - Posts Tagged "val-neil"
Dark Apprentice Made it into the Cover Contest!
Holy crap! My book made it into the SPFBO7 cover contest! 😱
I might be slightly excited over this. I made the cover myself and have had no small amount of imposter syndrome over it. Authors are cautioned against making their own covers, not due to a lack of photoshop skills, though there is that, but because most don't do enough research and the end product looks very sloppy and DIY. I have limited PS skills, so I did my best to mimic an established and proven style that was clean and simplistic (though I later found this is more for print books). This first book is made with stock art, but I commissioned the illustrator to make custom work for the following two books.
I don't anticipate winning the contest, but just the fact that it got picked is extremely gratifying, especially as a debut author.
You can see the other contestants here.
You can order Dark Apprentice here.
I might be slightly excited over this. I made the cover myself and have had no small amount of imposter syndrome over it. Authors are cautioned against making their own covers, not due to a lack of photoshop skills, though there is that, but because most don't do enough research and the end product looks very sloppy and DIY. I have limited PS skills, so I did my best to mimic an established and proven style that was clean and simplistic (though I later found this is more for print books). This first book is made with stock art, but I commissioned the illustrator to make custom work for the following two books.
I don't anticipate winning the contest, but just the fact that it got picked is extremely gratifying, especially as a debut author.
You can see the other contestants here.
You can order Dark Apprentice here.
Dark Apprentice Now Available in Hardback!
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.
Grab your copy today. Want to support a local bookstore or library? Make their life easier by giving them the ISBN (9781955075022) when ordering.
Looking into Audio
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.
The Audiobook is Out!
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.
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.
Dark Mind is coming!
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.
Get it from me or from your favorite store.
Aug 2023 Update
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.
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.
