Just purchased the paperback from Amazon. I am looking forward to reading our work Joe. With Scotch.

 

Ha! I only seem to disappoint women, so you should be safe. Second one should fall around January.

Say what? $154? Link me. Hell, the $6 ebook comes with a night with me if you provide proof of purchase.

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B008AI8GM8/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new

I present two people selling your book for 100+ each

 

Wait, you're doing a movie version?


Uh. How?

 

Fan Film Zen, nothing so lofty as a full production.

 

Just got the book. DLP shout out is golden haha. I'm heading to Mexico in the AM so now I have something for the plane.

 

Funny thing, yesterday a mate of mine from uni suggested I read this book called Distant Star. He said it's awesome.

 

So....out of curiosity Joe. Would you be willing to tell us just how many books/ebooks you'ver sold?

 

Sure.

I've just crossed the 5400 threshold as of last night, and this is primarily (80%) through Amazon and the Kindle Store. Slowed down considerably from the first few months, but still clocking along nicely.

Actual hard copies have sold a lot less. As of this writing, I'm looking at 18 for the month.

 

Since this topic is active again, I may as well ask; are there going to be hardcover copies coming out? Will there be a version packaged with the second one come next year, complete with a poster of Declan riding Moby Dick into Count Dracula's castle?

 

Make that 19. Enabling some random Australian to feed his scotch addiction is probably the most sensible thing I'm going to do with my first salary anyway.

And that's my number one reason for buying only the occasional e-book, I can't enjoy looking at those gorgeous covers on my bookshelf.

 

This is going to be a fun evening..

 

Indeed. This is how I wrote the story to be read.

If you can keep up with the amount of scotch Declan drinks in the pages of that novel, you will have earned my admiration.

I hope you enjoy the story - be sure and let me know, mate!


@Juggler: Declan won't be riding any dick, but I like the cut of your jib.

 

New Drinking game:

Every time Declan saves one of his friends. Drink a finger of scotch.

Every time Atlantis is mentioned. Drink a finger of scotch.

Every time there is a battle. Two fingers of scotch.

Every time Declan's shadow is mentioned. Two fingers of scotch.

Every time Declan has a drink. Drink half a glass of scotch

Every time Declan is awesome. Drink a full glass of scotch.

Switch rules: If good quality scotch is not available, replace with shots. 1 finger = 1 shot. half a glass = 2 double shots. So on and so forth till drunk.

Shit-fest rules: replace everything with tequila.

Londoner's rules: Replace everything with a gin & tonic.

Irishmen's rules: Replace fingers with shots of irish whiskey and glasses with pints of Guinness.

Joe's Rules: Never stop drinking.

 

You really hate your liver, don't you?

 

Nope, just love a good scotch.

 

It's your wallet that you hate if you play that game, not your liver. Or if you're drinking bad cheap scotch, you hate yourself, your life, and your god.

 

Don't suppose this made it to Canadian bookstores? I'd prefer to pick up one from my local chapters rather than mess about with Amazon.

 

Let me end this how I started it: With a good glass of scotch.

Before writing my opinion I just want to state that I haven't read the rest of this thread, so I'm probably going to repeat a couple of things already mentioned. Which could be a good thing, I'm approaching this like someone who randomly bought this book off of amazon.

This is obviously going to contain some spoilers.

Okay, here's what I thought..

I loved it. There are several things that could have been better, but overall I had an absolute blast reading Distant Star. The main reason for that is that it made me think - well, daydream is probably more fitting.

This is fantasy how it's supposed to be; whole chapters that just make you go 'How awesome would it be if that was real/possible'. The idea that worlds made up by authors could actually exist, especially in combination with the multiverse-theory, just made me pause, stare at nothing and imagine the possibilities for several minutes. In addition to that I completely adored how you described the transitioning between worlds, I could vividly picture the process of leaving the Void. And "Reality flooded through the tear - literally." is just an awesome line.

The ending really amazed me as well, how beautifully everything fit into place, how even minor things from earlier on were important to the plot and how you managed to resolve problems that usually accompany timetravel. You brought this story to a very satisfying and neat conclusion while keeping your options for the next book open, which was extremely well done.


Most of the things I disliked could've been solved with 400 additional pages. Declan was the only character that was fleshed out enough to feel important, and I would've loved to read even more of his backstory and of the world in general. Flashbacks from his moments with Tal, their forays into different universes, a tale or two from his days in the academy, how he stumbled upon Atlantis, how they both made their decision and the following consequences. I wanted to immerse myself in this story which was very difficult due to its short length. It felt as if the plot was rushing along - just about every single line of dialogue was important and there was in my opinion a lack of irrelevant lines, which usually help in giving a world more depth.

I don't know if you kept it at this length on purpose. Maybe it was a limitation placed by your publisher, or maybe it was a deliberate decision on your part, seeing as this is only Volume 1 of a series.

The only other, minor criticisms I could think of are two:

Declan was only brash and arrogant when he needed to be, otherwise he was pretty much humble and reserved. It really annoyed me that you were throwing his titles around during the very first scene and in one of the earlier conversations with Marc, it felt like exposition or foreshadowing without a real purpose that actually clashed with his character.

And one thing that made me pause: You've got people with an amazing ability that grants them access to different universes and every single point in time, there even was a dragon involved in the big battle. And their main method of fighting involved shooting around colored lights and conjuring up translucent shields? That really was a bit of a let down.

Anyway, those things aside I absolutely loved Distant Star and am eagerly anticipating the next volume.

P.S.: Seeing Tweedledee and Tweedledum again made me strangely happy.

 

Many thanks, Trig. If you (or anyone who's read it) get a minute, I'd appreciate if you could leave something simple on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Distant-Star-Reminiscent-Exile-ebook/dp/B0085SYSDE/

Certainly helps sales and popularity, getting positive reviews.

As for your issues with the story, I've heard similar murmurings from readers. It was designed to be a quick, fast read--taking place over six story days. That didn't leave a lot of time for exposition and world building beyond dialogue, but I do get that the balance between that and plot may have tipped too far toward plot.

The sequel, Broken Quill, which will probably be out in time for Christmas, I think addresses these issues. We have characters from Declan's past, glimpses of his first time in Atlantis, and how he grew up as a Knight in Ascension City.

Broken Quill will be longer, too, maybe longer by half. There are scenes of Hale reminiscing with folk from his past, explaining the world and magic to new people, and greatly expanding on the groundwork, however scant, established in Distant Star.

I think this will be the make or break story for the series, and determine whether folk bother reading a third instalment.

Anyway, many thanks for reading and your review. You'll get your 400 additional pages (or so) in the form of a brand new adventure.

Cheers.