VORTEX: Book III of the Alban Saga - Last Update Before Publication!

 

 

I just wanted to give you an update on what’s happening with the third and final book of the Alban Saga: VORTEX! 

The third edit was completed today, and the final read-through of the manuscript has begun!

The next time you hear from me, you will be notified that the book is ready for publication on Amazon and the date of its release! 📚 

In the meantime, you can look at the other two books in the series, Beatrice and Black Grotto, or any of my books, by clicking on the Bob’s Books link at the top of my blog.

VORTEX: Book III of the Alban Saga - Edit Update!

 

 

I just wanted to give you another update on my new book. Right now, I’m working through the third and final edit of VORTEX, the last book of the Alban Saga trilogy!

It’s going really well! In fact, the edits are helping improve the story by enabling the multiple plot lines and characters to weave an even more intricate and visual tapestry than before. 

It’s also been wonderful to keep track of how all three books in the series are becoming such a fun tale, overall, about the Bauman’s, their friends, and about Bea! I love the characters in this book!

It’s just damned exciting to see it come together like this!

I’m hopeful that the editing process will be completed sometime in July so that VORTEX can be published on Amazon either by the end of July or early August!

I’ll check in again soon! 📚 

In the meantime, you can look at the other two books in the series, Beatrice and Black Grotto, or any of my books, by clicking on the Bob’s Books link at the top of my blog.

Book III of the Alban Saga: VORTEX - Final Edit

 

 

The editing process for the final book of the Alban Saga trilogy, VORTEX, is going well! The second edit is now complete, and the third edit will begin today. It shouldn’t take as long as the other two! 

This third edit should be the final part of the editing process, and I hope to have VORTEX published on Amazon by the end of June or early July.

Just wanted to keep you updated! 📚 

Another Edit Update: Book III of the Alban Saga: VORTEX

 

 

The editing process for the third and final book of the Alban Saga trilogy, VORTEX, is going well! The first edit is complete, and the second edit is progressing well, with five chapters out of thirty-four finished so far! 

In the second edit, there’s still basic editing happening, but less of it. Also, the plot, relative to the different characters and plot lines, continues to be monitored. That’s the most complex task going on right now. So, the spreadsheet that was created during the first edit to keep track of all the dates, characters, and time travel has been really helpful!

The book will probably go through a total of three edits before that process is completely done, and I hope to have VORTEX published by the end of May.

Just wanted to keep you updated! 📚 

VORTEX: Editing Is Moving Along!

 

The editing process is going well. The third and final book of the Alban Saga trilogy, VORTEX, is about 1/3 of the way done on the first read-through!!! 

Not only is it going through basic editing, but with all the times jumps happening relative to the different characters and plot lines, checking those is a fairly complex task. So, a spreadsheet is being maintained to make sure that all the jumps mesh and coincide correctly!

Hope to have VORTEX published sometime in April.

Just wanted to keep you updated! 📚 

2nd Edition of ROOMS & THE CHOSEN Released!

                                           2nd Edition                           2nd Edition

The 2nd edition of my young adult science fiction novels Rooms: Book I of the Rooms' Series and The Chosen: Book II of the Rooms' Series have been released. They are both new versions of the older novels that have been revised and edited and include new blurbs on the back.

The series name is new for the two books as well. I don't believe I will be adding any other books to the series so this set will probably be a duology.

The new 2nd edition for both books is now available in either paperback or Kindle eBook on any Amazon site around the world. Just search for "Bob Stegner" to view them. On some Amazon sites you'll need to include the quotation marks around my name.

2nd Edition of Black Grotto and Beatrice Released!

               

       Second Edition             Second Edition 

The 2nd edition of my young adult fantasy novels Beatrice: Book I of the Alban Saga and Black Grotto: Book II of the Alban Saga have been released. They are both new versions of the older novels that have been revised and edited and include new covers with new blurbs on the back.

The series name is new for the two books as well, and I plan on eventually adding others. The history behind the series' name is that the books all take place in modern day Scotland, and there are aspects of each that are derived from Scottish history. The word, Alba, is an ancient name for the Scottish isles, and I used Saga instead of series because it means long story, and that is exactly what this group of books will be - thus, the name, Alban Saga.

The new 2nd edition for both books is now available in either paperback or Kindle eBook on any Amazon site around the world. Just search for "Bob Stegner" to view them. On some Amazon sites you'll need to include the quotation marks around my name.

Progress on New Book and Rewriting Older Novels

In my new fantasy/science fiction book, Merlin & Arthur: The Awakening, I'm almost done with chapter 23. I'm well into the series of events leading up to the climax. I was hoping to get the book finished in 2018, but I might not make that deadline. We'll see.

It's been an incredibly exciting and challenging story to write, and I'm looking forward to everyone being able to read it. You'll be the first to know when I'm done.

Also, I'm working on revising all of my prior novels. I reread them recently and found some things that I wanted to change. I'll let you know when those are done, too.

It's been a busy year of writing, and I've learned a great deal.

BLACK GROTTO: Finished Editing Process

BLACK GROTTO 

Update: Editing Process Is Complete

Just tonight I finished the final read-through of Black Grotto. It was a very emotional moment for me, not only because of completing the work, but also because of the story and characters. The book has several chapters throughout where the plot takes unexpected turns, but the end of the book from chapter 27 on is a real roller coaster ride.

I started doing the research for the book in April of 2015, and I've loved writing it. It's been my longest novel and takes place in Scotland. It's a fantasy, and I'll put the description of the book on my blog soon. Also, it should be published on Amazon sometime in June.

If you'd like to read the first chapter, you can do so by clicking the link below.

Chapter 1

Letting You Know What's Been Happening!

ROOMS HAS BEEN REVISED
Well, it's been a very busy three weeks since my "Writer's Block" post. Yes, the writer's block went away, and I decided to finally do a major rewrite and edit of Rooms before starting on the sequel to Beatrice. The rewrite is done, and I'm very pleased.

After I completed The Chosen, my writing skills had improved by then, and I wanted to bring Rooms up to the same level as The Chosen. Since they are companion books, it was important that they match up. That's the reason for the rewrite of Rooms. I worked hard on the whole book with special emphasis on the first four chapters. I think the two work together better now, and I'm especially pleased with the new first chapter of Rooms.

I will let all of you know when the changes are published on Amazon in both the paperback and Kindle versions. If you have Rooms in the Kindle version, I would recommend that you wait for the post indicating that the updated version is live on Amazon.com in order to update it on your Kindle. I'll even tell you how to upgrade to the newer version in that post.

If you'd like to read the first three chapters of the new version, just go to the BOB'S BOOKS link at the top of the blog. You'll see the link to the revised chapters.

FIRST AMAZON REVIEW OF THE CHOSEN

An Excellent Read!

I was excited to read the author’s sequel to Rooms, and he did not disappoint me. I was thoroughly impressed by the author’s capacity to not only successfully weave an intricate plot, but to create a variety of complex characters and societies that enriched and promoted that plot. I was kept on the edge of my seat the entire time as I read of the struggle between the Loonites and The Chosen to gain control of the Earth’s newly regained resources, the tiny outposts scattered throughout the galaxy, and the human’s who inhabited them. Which society won the right to change the course of human history? I will never tell. However, I will say that it was worth reading the entire novel to find out.

HOW ARE THE AGENT QUERIES GOING?

If you've been following my blog, you'll know that a few weeks ago I sent out a lot of agent queries for both Beatrice and The Chosen. This is my second time to do this, and I've received a lot more responses than before. Also, the responses that I have received have been more instructive and personal. It's been more encouraging, but I still have no takers. It's just the nature of the business, and in the meantime, I'm doing my best to improve as a writer and storyteller. It's not easy to be rejected, but it's part of the process, and I'm determined to succeed. I'll keep writing, thinking, dreaming, and creating!

BOOK PROMOTIONS AND GIVEAWAYS
Also, recently I have run some promotions for all of my books on Amazon. Those promotions have not only increased my readership, but I've received more reviews, and I believe it has kept my books in front of the public because I've continued to sell books every month.

I will do more in that area soon. I'll let you know when that happens and what the nature of the promotions will be.

Thank You!
Thanks to everyone that has one of my books! I hope you have fun reading them! When you finish, if you could write a review, comment on my blog, or send me an email, I would really appreciate it!

And...if you haven't been to my Author's Page on Amazon, take a look by CLICKING HERE.

BEATRICE & ROOMS Version 2 & Editing and Reviewing THE CHOSEN for Publishing in February

ROOMS & BEATRICE: Version 2 Revisions

 

I've just created version 2 of Rooms and Beatrice. For Rooms, only the first chapter was revised. In Beatrice, the changes were more extensive. Also, the changes to Beatrice were to get it ready to enter the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest, which is in February. There hasn't been a notice yet for the 2015 contest on Amazon's Createspace website, but it should be there soon. I'll let you know how that progresses as it gets closer. Last year, Rooms made it to the second round. We'll see how Beatrice fairs. 


THE CHOSEN

The first draft of The Chosen is finished. Now I can get back to work on doing all the editing so that I can publish it sometime in February. I'm very excited about this book and looking forward to completing it.

Once The Chosen is published, I will look for some other contests to enter and go back to work seeing if I can interest an agent in my work. Last time I worked on that, I received some good reviews from some of the agents, but still haven't found one that will take me as their client. I'll keep looking, and I'm going to look for some publishing companies and agents in Europe as well as America.

Updated Beatrice and Rooms Review

I've just updated my new Fantasy/Mystery/Thriller Beatrice on Amazon. I've changed the cover slightly and made some small changes in the text. I've also included a short description and a quote below.

Description of Beatrice

Magic, mystery and historical events combine in this unique, modern day fantasy written about a family in Scotland. Ewan Bauman was about to have his eighteenth birthday party on his family’s old and venerable estate outside of Edinburgh. On the night of the party, however, a traumatic event occurred that caused his mother, sister and he to lose fragments of their memories, including everything that had happened that night. It haunted them and pushed them apart, but after twenty years, the tug and pull of that night could no longer be ignored. They had to find out what happened. Their search brought them closer together, but it also took them to a very dark and sinister place - one that they could never have imagined - a place from which they might never return.

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

I've just received a new review of ROOMS that I've placed below.

Beautiful Story With A Timely Message

This book offers a timely view into a future brought on by the consequences of corporate greed and war. As I journeyed with Rad through the Old One's Room, I was not only entertained. I felt Rad's joy and reverence for the Earth and it's people. I felt his growing desolation as he witnessed the slow destruction of the Earth within each successive level of the Room. I struggled with him as he worked with Sparks and Zeer to bring health and hope to the demoralized Terran population.

Since the author left this story open to a sequel, I will be excited to see how his writing style evolves and how he ties the planet Loon (where The Old One and Zeer reside) to Earth and the other human outposts scattered throughout the universe.

New Rooms Review & New BEATRICE Description

Before I talk about Beatrice, I've included below a recent new review of Rooms from Amazon.

Beautiful Story With A Timely Message

This book offers a timely view into a future brought on by the consequences of corporate greed and war. As I journeyed with Rad through the Old One's Room, I was not only entertained. I felt Rad's joy and reverence for the Earth and it's people. I felt his growing desolation as he witnessed the slow destruction of the Earth within each successive level of the Room. I struggled with him as he worked with Sparks and Zeer to bring health and hope to the demoralized Terran population.

Since the author left this story open to a sequel, I will be excited to see how his writing style evolves and how he ties the planet Loon (where The Old One and Zeer reside) to Earth and the other human outposts scattered throughout the universe.

I've included a short new description and a quote from my new Fantasy/Mystery/Thriller Beatrice below. I've just recently published it on Amazon.

Description of Beatrice

Magic, mystery and historical events combine in this unique, modern day fantasy written about a family in Scotland. Ewan Bauman was about to have his eighteenth birthday party on his family’s old and venerable estate outside of Edinburgh. On the night of the party, however, a traumatic event occurred that caused his mother, sister and he to lose fragments of their memories, including everything that had happened that night. It haunted them and pushed them apart, but after twenty years, the tug and pull of that night could no longer be ignored. They had to find out what happened. Their search brought them closer together, but it also took them to a very dark and sinister place - one that they could never have imagined - a place from which they might never return.

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

BEATRICE IS PUBLISHED ON AMAZON!!

BEATRICE is done and published on Amazon. It's in paperback and can be downloaded to your Kindle as well. It's been about 6 months since I started writing the book, and it's quite different from my first novel. This is an Adult Fantasy-Mystery-Thriller and has been a very intricate and interesting book to write. The characters are rich and varied, and it's been a lot of fun putting all the pieces together to arrive at the climax.

I've included a short description and a quote from the book below. I hope you enjoy Beatrice!

Description of Beatrice

My name is Ewan Bauman, and the year was 1987. It was October, the month of my eighteenth birthday. We were going to have a huge bash at our old, historic mansion near Edinburgh. On the night of the party, however, some traumatic event occurred that caused Mother, Fiona and I to lose fragments of our memories, including what had happened that night. No one in the medical profession could determine why or help us remember. It haunted us and pushed us apart, but after twenty years, the tug and pull of that night could not be ignored. We had to find out what had happened. We did, and the search brought us closer together again, but it also took us to a very sinister place - one that none of us could ever have imagined - a place from which we might never return.

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

BEATRICE Will Be Published Very Soon & A Recent Review of ROOMS

Before I talk about Beatrice, I've included below a recent new review of Rooms from Amazon.

Beautiful Story With A Timely Message

This book offers a timely view into a future brought on by the consequences of corporate greed and war. As I journeyed with Rad through the Old One's Room, I was not only entertained. I felt Rad's joy and reverence for the Earth and it's people. I felt his growing desolation as he witnessed the slow destruction of the Earth within each successive level of the Room. I struggled with him as he worked with Sparks and Zeer to bring health and hope to the demoralized Terran population.

Since the author left this story open to a sequel, I will be excited to see how his writing style evolves and how he ties the planet Loon (where The Old One and Zeer reside) to Earth and the other human outposts scattered throughout the universe.

"Beatrice"

I've finished all the work on Beatrice, and here's the cover! It's been a joy to write this book, and as always, I've learned a great deal and continue to work hard on my writing. One of the things that I especially like about Beatrice is that it has so many twists and turns. I think there are a lot of surprises and interesting scenes in the story and a unique cast of characters that Ewan and his family discover along the way. I especially enjoyed writing about Fergus lister, the family's favorite taxi driver and Marta Pottinger. She actually has a big part in the book, and there are quite a few scenes that take place in her home.

Today, I finished uploading all the files to CreateSpace and completed the design of the cover. It's done. The book will probably be up on Amazon in the U. S. and other parts of the world within two days or so. Then I can publish the Kindle version as well.

After I finish this project, I'm going to stop writing for a little while and work on getting an agent. I know that will take some time and effort, but I'm looking forward to the process. In the meantime, my books are on Amazon, and people are buying and reading them, which makes me very happy and pleased.

Below I've included a new, shorter description of Beatrice with one quote from the book. I'll also probably include the first two chapters on my blog in a few days, just like I did with Wheatgrass and Rooms.

Description of Beatrice

My name is Ewan Bauman, and the year was 1987. It was October, the month of my eighteenth birthday. We were going to have a huge bash at our old, historic mansion near Edinburgh. On the night of the party, however, some traumatic event occurred that caused Mother, Fiona and I to lose fragments of our memories, including what had happened that night. No one in the medical profession could determine why or help us remember. It haunted us and pushed us apart, but after twenty years, the tug and pull of that night could not be ignored. We had to find out what had happened. We did, and the search brought us closer together again, but it also took us to a very sinister place - one that none of us could ever have imagined - a place from which we might never return.

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

Tree/Moon Image from:

Forest Blue Moonlight Wallpapers.. Digital image. Travelization. N.p., 30 June 2012, Web. 16 Mar. 2014. <www.travelization.net>.

New Book: "Beatrice" - Sixth and Final Draft & Updated Book Description with Two Quotes

(Forest)

The sixth and final draft of my new book, Beatrice, is almost done. I will be publishing it on Amazon in Europe and the U. S. very soon.

Below, I have placed an updated description of the book and two quotes. The first quote is from Chapter 3 and the second is from Chapter 24.

Please read the description below and let me know what you think, and if you haven't yet, don't forget to check out Rooms and Wheatgrass by clicking on the book images on right-hand menu.

Description of Beatrice

Chapter 3 Quote

“It had been at least two months since I’d seen Mother and spoken to her, and I knew that it wouldn’t be easy to talk with her about that last year we’d lived in our mansion. Just as with me, I knew that her memories were fragmented, and whenever Fiona or I would try to talk to her about it, a dark cloud seemed to surround us. Mother would simply refuse to discuss it. But this time…this time it had to be different. This was something that needed to come out. I knew none of us could ever be happy or content in our lives until we’d faced it. We had to discover together what had happened, and if we could, maybe then we could finally put it all behind us.”

My name is Ewan Bauman, and the year was 1987. It was October, the month of my eighteenth birthday, and we were going to have a huge bash at our old, historic mansion on our estate outside of Edinburgh.

However, the night of the party was also when Mother, Fiona and I lost pieces of our memories. Afterwards, none of us could recall anything that had happened during the party or for the rest of October. We even had trouble remembering some events from the Christmas of 1986 up until that time. It haunted and changed each of us to have a part of our lives simply vanish. We tried to get medical help, but the doctors were never really able to pinpoint a cause or bring back any of our memories.

Whatever traumatic event had produced the loss of memory had also damaged my family. We left our home on the estate, moved to different parts of Scotland, and from then on, there always seemed to be a wall between us - a dark hole that none of us was willing to look down.

Finally, in 2006, the tug and pull of that missing portion of our lives brought the three of us back together again. I’d decided that this simply had to end. I would take three months off work, and with the help of Mother and Fiona, we would dig into this and figure it out ourselves.

We did, and the search brought us closer together, but it also took us to a very sinister place - one that none of us could ever have imagined - a place from which we might never return.

Chapter 24 Quote

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

Tree/Moon Image from:

Forest Blue Moonlight Wallpapers.. Digital image. Travelization. N.p., 30 June 2012, Web. 16 Mar. 2014. <www.travelization.net>.

New Novel BEATRICE: First Description and Quote from Chapter 3

Before I talk about Beatrice, I just wanted to remind you  to check out my adult science fiction novel, Rooms, and my young adult novelette, Wheatgrass: An Irish Fantasy on Amazon if you haven't yet.

New Book: "Beatrice" - Fifth Draft is Complete & the First Description of the Book

(Forest)

The fifth draft of my new book, Beatrice, is finished. It now has thirty chapters and almost 78,000 words. All that I have left to do is read it one more time for content and very minimal editing, and I will publish it on Amazon.

Below, I am including the very first description of the book with a short quote from the third chapter and another from chapter twenty-four at the end. I am very excited about Beatrice and am thrilled to be this close to publishing it.

Please read the description below and let me know what you think.

Description of Beatrice

Chapter 3 Quote

“It had been at least two months since I’d seen Mother and spoken to her, and I knew that it wouldn’t be easy to talk with her about that last year we’d lived in our mansion. Just as with me, I knew that her memories were fragmented, and whenever Fiona or I would try to talk to her about it, a dark cloud seemed to surround us. Mother would simply refuse to discuss it. But this time…this time it had to be different. This was something that needed to come out. I knew none of us could ever be happy or content in our lives until we’d faced it. We had to discover together what had happened, and if we could, maybe then we could finally put it all behind us.”

My name is Ewan Bauman, and the year was 1987. It was October, the month of my eighteenth birthday, and we were going to have a huge bash at our old, historic mansion on our estate outside of Edinburgh.

However, the night of the party was also when Mother, Fiona and I lost pieces of our memories. Afterwards, none of us could recall anything that had happened during the party or for the rest of October. We even had trouble remembering some events from the Christmas of 1986 up until that time. It haunted and changed each of us to have a part of our lives simply vanish. We tried to get medical help, but the doctors were never really able to pinpoint a cause or bring back any of our memories.

Whatever traumatic event had produced the loss of memory had also damaged my family. We left our home on the estate, moved to different parts of Scotland, and from then on, there always seemed to be a wall between us - a dark hole that none of us was willing to look down.

Finally, in 2006, the tug and pull of that missing portion of our lives brought the three of us back together again. I’d decided that this simply had to end. I would take three months off work, and with the help of Mother and Fiona, we would dig into this and figure it out ourselves.

We did, and the search brought us closer together, but it also took us to a very sinister place - one that none of us could ever have imagined - a place from which we might never return.

Chapter 24 Quote

“I attempted to reach out and touch something solid that I could push against. I had no sense of up or down or movement. I couldn’t feel or hear or smell, but I could see, not in the usual way, but in insignificant bursts that came sporadically as my eyelids opened and closed and opened and closed.  Within those small, fractured moments, I could see that I was surrounded and trapped in a dense, cinnamon-stained vapor that swirled into oblivion. I couldn’t remember how I’d entered that hell, and I had no memory of it ending.”

Tree/Moon Image from:

Forest Blue Moonlight Wallpapers.. Digital image. Travelization. N.p., 30 June 2012, Web. 16 Mar. 2014. <www.travelization.net>.