The Great Announcement

At least, that’s how it feels to me at present. I was teasing on social media for a while that I had a “big announcement” that would go to my newsletter subscribers first, and it did on June 26, 2021. Now I’m ready to share that announcement with the rest of the world.

The trilogy of books I wrote many years ago is going through a relaunch. Yep, that’s right: The Moon’s Eye, The Talisman of Delucha, and War of the Nameless will be rereleased, with some significant updates and changes. (I have also decided on a proper series name, The Relics of War).

Why did I feel the need to change things, you ask?

The answer is simple: At the time of the original publication, I was not mentally prepared to promote those books, and I honestly didn’t believe anyone outside of immediate family and close friends would want to read them. It had always been my dream to publish my writing, and those who encouraged me to pursue publication knew that. But the truth is, I wasn’t ready. As is my way, I pushed ahead and did it anyway, and then my books languished for many years.

Looking back at the writing itself, there were a number of issues.

The books jumped between character perspectives at an alarming rate: In the first book alone, there were more than twenty different points of view expressed. I know a lot of avid fantasy readers enjoy books with many characters, but the amount I had was far too much. I know that now; as I’ve grown and continued to work on my writing craft over the past 20+ years, I’ve learned what works and what doesn’t. So, the points of view have been reduced drastically, and will now feature only six for the entirety of the trilogy.

• Vardak (as a representative of the Scorpion Men, and one of my favorite warriors created to date)
• Tavesin (he was a reader favorite, and I needed someone to represent the wizards)
• Dranamir (she is absolutely my favorite villain ever created, and the readers need to know what the Enlightened are up to)
• Aran’daj (as a Murkor representative – yes, you read that right, I changed the spelling because of feedback, and I actually like it better)
• Ravin (another reader favorite, and his role is HUGE in books two and three)
• Emra (she’s got the most powerful weapon on the planet, so I can’t leave her out)

Before those who did enjoy the first editions begin to panic, I want to assure you that most of the storyline will remain intact. Some sections will be written from a different character’s perspective than what was originally published, but the overall theme will stay the same.

The second major change – one which I think some readers will be excited for, and others possibly upset by – is that the books are being rewritten as adult fantasy. My vision for the trilogy had always been for an adult audience, but given that I was only 15 or 16 years old when I started writing the first book, that vision fell flat. As a writer, I’ve never wanted to cater to the young adult (YA) audience, and I can say confidently that my recent works (still querying away, I might add) are intended for mature readers. (Please don’t recommend my books to kids, because there is content that may upset them or their parents! Also, there’s language, violence…You get the picture.)

Some of the names will be simplified from their tongue-twisting, original version (primarily the Murkor names, but a couple other minor characters, as well). A few other names/terms are being changed completely because I didn’t like the name to begin with and have come up with better alternatives (this affects a few of the Immortals, a couple races, and some of the places the characters venture into).

The last change is that I will be getting real cover artwork for the second edition, revised trilogy. My original publisher “included” the cover artwork in the package, and I’ll admit, I was more than a bit disappointed by the end result. This time, I’m taking control of this aspect, and I’m going to get an artist that can bring my characters to life. I’ve contacted a few already to get an idea of cost and timing, but until I finish the rewrite, I can’t go much further. In order to make sure the cover artwork is an appropriate size for each book, I need a final page count – and I’m not quite there yet.

At first, I was simply going to revise the manuscripts and bring them up to date, but the further I got into The Moon’s Eye, the more I realized that wasn’t going to be enough. The books are getting a thorough overhaul. That means it’s going to take some time before I’m ready to rerelease even the first book. Don’t worry, though, I’ll keep you all apprised of my progress as things continue down this path.

I’ve recently cut the ties with my former publisher due to a number of reasons, which I won’t go into here. What that means for my trilogy is the rights are fully back in my control, so all of the above changes can easily be made. I firmly believe the changes I am making are necessary, and I want this trilogy to be told as I intended it to be. I think the books will be much better for it, and I hope the small fanbase of the original version will agree.

In the mean time, the first edition ebooks and paperbacks have been removed from sale on all outlets in order to facilitate the updates. Trust me when I say all of this will be worth it.

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