Hallowed Journeys – Chapter 2 preview

Here’s a second chapter preview, this time it’s Mother Alanna, another character from “Hallowed Ends.”

TWO

The timeless dream became a steady white light, the sun, the flowers, the hillsides, the bright blue sky fading into an endless void with no beginning, no end. The flower petals fell from Mother Alanna’s fingers, disappearing before they reached her feet. She called out to the void, her voice seeming to echo forever with no reply. Sadness enveloped her, the sense of loss of her god abandoning her, taking from her one final happiness as the peace and serenity of her dream became nothing. The silence made her want to scream, the fear of madness replacing the serenity that she had felt only moments earlier. A bright flash, somehow brighter than the white void, forced her to close her eyes.

When she opened them, she was surrounded by darkness other than the dim glow of the heavy object on her chest. Alanna lay still as she steadied her breathing, amazed that the heavy metal on her chest flared lightly with a red glow with each breath she inhaled, becoming a dim blue that faded with each exhale. She listened intently, unsure of her surroundings. The faint sound of voices met her ears. Alanna struggled to move, her limbs stiff and sore. When she was finally able to gain control of her hands, she ran them over the object on her chest, sighing at the warmth emanating from it. Continue reading

Hallowed Journeys – preview chapter!

Hello again! Since many of you have recently read “Hallowed Ends,” I wanted to let you know that the sequel, “Hallowed Journeys” is definitely coming at some point. I also figured you might want to read a little bit of it, so here’s Chapter 1, which picks up where “Ends” left off. “Journeys” will be a much longer story than “Ends,” and is no longer told only from one character’s point of view. I’ll post a few chapters from different character PoV over the next couple of weeks!

ONE

“Do not stray from my side,” Feyric whispered to Celana as they entered the raucous, rowdy bar attached to the inn. “And whatever you do, do not show Carnage to anyone. No matter what.”

“Yes, sir,” Celana said, doing her best to keep her face from showing both fear and excitement.

“Yes, father,” Feyric said from the corner of his mouth, emphasizing it with a slight nudge of his elbow into her shoulder.

“Yes, father,” she said, keeping her eyes on the oiled, dusty floor of the tavern.

Feyric navigated through the small crowds of boisterous sailors, merchants, and laborers, finally arriving at a curtained-off area near the rear. Three pirates immediately rose from their stools and blocked his way, giving him and Celana murderous glares. Feyric nudged Celana behind him, then looked at each of the men for a moment before holding up both hands.

“I seek passage to Nian, and your captain is the only one willing to make such a journey,” Feyric said to the man directly in front of him. “Silas from the docks told me to seek him out.” Continue reading

“The Minotaur” cover update!

Keith Draws is working on the typography for the cover, so I’ll show you some of what he’s come up with. Let me know which version you like the best!

“classic” font, axe in front of the N
“classic” font, axe behind the N
“stylish” font, axe behind the N
“stylish” font, axe in front of the N

“The Minotaur” cover update!

Thanks to Trevor Smith for painting an unbelievably awesome cover for “The Minotaur”!

I originally planned to publish it as a stand-alone novella, as it is only around 20k words, but then an idea popped into my head (a dangerous affair anytime me + ideas collide!), and I’ve decided to make it a collection, but one where all of the stories tie together in a general way: An ancient genie shares stories of how humans foolishly used their wish after releasing him, spanning thousands of years from the Fertile Crescent 6000+ years ago, to a few hundred years in the future.

More on that later. In the meantime, here’s the finished cover!

12 year old Billy Jacobs battles the devil for his soul on the hardest pinball table ever created

Dark Niche Publishing interview!

Evan @ Dark Niche interviewed me about books, life, and of course, my gaggle of cats!

Read it HERE!

UPDATE 4/30/2019: No longer married. Shit happens and it happens quickly, I guess. Such is life, but forward is the only direction to go, so that’s where I’m headed.

Hello! I am Travis, the guy being interviewed. I say stuff!
“Transfer” by Travis Hill – currently on sale for $0.99 at all retailers!

Dragons are NOT COOL. Nor are they your friends.

Getting real fucking tired of dragons suddenly being ‘the good guy’ in everyone’s story/timeline. It’s absolute bullshit. Let me lay down some hard facts on you, then tell me you still think dragons are ‘awesome’ or ‘badass.’

Jake, a green dragon from Minneapolis, started working at the company I was employed by in 1997. At first, everyone, including me, thought he was a pretty neat guy. No one had ever seen a dragon except for a few nerds that got beat up on our lunch break regularly. And even those poindexter assholes had never seen a green dragon.

The trouble started about a month after Jake hit the 39th floor, working in the Executive Sales Management section. During an office party one night, everyone was bugging Jake to breathe fire, set something on fire, fire this, fire that. Ignorant twats that they were, they had no clue that a green dragon spits acid instead of breathing fire. Breathing fire is for RED dragons, but whatever.

Tommy McKindless learned a lesson that night. The lesson was “don’t get drunk at an office party and beg Jake the big fuckin’ green dragon to spit acid and make shit melt to amuse me/us.” Let’s just say that the paramedics couldn’t distinguish between Tommy, the cubicle he was standing near, or half of the men’s bathroom.

No one hated on Jake then, as it was an honest mistake (well, we thought so then… Tommy WAS an asshole, and his wife was known to sleep around the office, and not just Dalgren Information Systems, where we worked. She was a bit of a… well, you know). Jake took it pretty hard, or pretended to, and everything was quiet for another three months, until Jennifer Ortiz came to work pregnant one day, and let the word slip that it was Jake’s.

Jake denied it, of course, and if you’ve never met a dragon, they are professional liars. Kyle, Jen’s husband, was furious, but, I mean, what’s he going to do? Fight a dragon? This is fucking 1997, remember, not 997 where he can just run home and grab his rusty sword and shitty leather armor in hopes of at least giving a dragon peritonitis or something while being mashed and chewed between massive, razor sharp teeth.
Continue reading

“Hallowed Ends” released into the wild

Hello, all. “Hallowed Ends” is now live at Amazon for $0.99 (Free if you are an Amazon Prime or Kindle Unlimited member). Here’s a friendly link:

“Hallowed Ends” is exclusive to Amazon.com for the first 90 days.

Also, here’s a much larger image of the cover, painted by Rebecca Weaver:

"Hallowed Ends" final cover

“Hallowed Ends” final cover

“Hallowed Ends” cover update

Many thanks to Rebecca Weaver as she brings this cover to life!

“Hallowed Ends” is a classic fantasy tale of a powerful weapon’s forging in a world about to be plunged into the nightmare of war.

Initial "rough" sketch for "Hallowed Ends" book cover

Initial “rough” sketch for “Hallowed Ends” book cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Hallowed Ends" book cover, still a Work-in-Progress (but looking fantastic!)

“Hallowed Ends” book cover, still a Work-in-Progress (but looking fantastic!)

Read Indies – Find Good Indie/Self-Published Books!

The gang over at ReadIndies is going to attempt to read one of my travesties. Haha, good luck on that. Betting lines are open that two reviewers will go insane before someone contacts me and threatens legal action ;). Here’s some info, go give their lists a shot and find something good to read. It HAS to be better than the drivel I vomit up.

Have you heard about Read Indies (http://readindies.blogspot.com/) where you can find book selections, top picks, and recommended reads? If you’re looking for something new to read, a great place to start is Book We Recommend (http://readindies.blogspot.ca/p/books-were-reading-recommend.html). There are also pages for specific genres:
 
Best Fantasy Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-fantasy-books.html)
Best Horror Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-horror-books.html)
Featured Authors (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/featured-authors.html)
Hot Reads (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/hot-summer-of-indie-reads.html)
Top Picks (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/top-indie-reads.html)
Best Sci-fi Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-sci-fi-books.html)
Best Mystery Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-mystery-books.html)
Best Romance Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-romance-books.html)
Best Children’s Books (http://readindies.blogspot.com/p/best-childrens-books.html)
Best Fiction (http://readindies.blogspot.ca/p/fiction.html)
 
Read Indies started out as a place where indie authors go to learn about important writing-related issues. Now it’s also a great place for readers to learn about great books. Periodically, you’ll also find recommendations from international bestselling author Robert Stanek (http://.www.robert-stanek.com/). In particular, Robert will be highlighting hidden gems, overlooked books, unsung heroes, and new favorites. Robert Stanek will also be helping to shape the following lists: Best Fantasy Books, Best Horror Books, Best Mystery Books, Best Thriller Books, and Best Children’s Books.