Anthromech

Hello to you all! I hope your week is starting off on the right foot… or at least several good cups of coffee. Of late, I’ve been trying to write all of the stuff that keeps showing up in this fevered brain, and trust me, caffeine helps.

It’s been a bit of time since my last blog, but it hasn’t been due to a lack of content. It’s been freakin’ crazy busy for us. Travel and then time to write!

In early March, when I last updated this, Sara and I were looking forward to a lot of travel around the U.S. We visited southern Utah, which was fun and beautiful in a starkly different fashion than what the Pacific NW showcases. Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks were amazing and epic in scale and grandeur. Fun! Our hosts, Bill and Pennie, were tons of fun, and Bill is one badass off-road dude.

Then it was off to North and South Carolina to visit my older sister who lives just south of Wilmington near the coast. We spent a day at Holden Beach and had the great good fortune of seeing Jim and Linda Zarick. He’s an old and dear friend from prep school days. We enjoyed awesome company and delicious food in a beachside restaurant that allowed us to bask in sunlight with an onshore breeze. Even came with a great selection of Jimmy Buffett music on the PA system.

Then off to Charleston for two days and nights. We all stayed at the Planters’ Inn in old Charleston, and it was a great experience! A couple of suites overlooking the interior garden, food, ambience, amenities were all superb. If you ever find yourself with the opportunity, I’d tell you to stay there. You won’t regret the experience.

We spent our time wandering around the area to see the old architecture, amazing restaurants, fresh air open market, a Confederate Civil War museum, the battery where Beauregard fired the first salvo towards Fort Sumter in the harbor, an antebellum plantation…Charleston is a beautiful city that defines the word history. Incredible.

Once back home, it was time to hit the keyboard. Over the next week I wrote several thousand words in Book 2 of the Shadow Mode series with Kevin Steverson (Salvage Title universe books are just some of his. You’ll love them.). Have I mentioned what a great guy he is? He’s been a wonderful and generous collaborator on this project, allowing me to do most of the writing while he edits and coaches. I’ve gained so much from this endeavor, and we’re just on Book 2!

And now, for the coolest part! Saturday morning on social media Chris Kennedy of Chris Kennedy Publishing out of Virginia announced the cover of Anthromech, the anthology I’ve talked about here before. I couldn’t give details until the publisher put it out there…

So here it is!

Anthromech is the brainchild of William Alan Webb, a well respected and published author of dozens of books throughout the years (I’ve mentioned his Last Brigade series before. Get it and enjoy!). He came up with the idea of an anthology wherein every single short story is the origin story of an original, new science fiction series. He paired some of the veteran writers he knew with writers earlier in their careers.

Here's a sneak peak of the story titles in Anthromech!

The Oath of Alaric

SOLAR Wired for War

The Ghost Load

Kill Switch

A Loyal Steed

Aurora

The Last Survivors at Centerpoint Crystal Research Facility

Moon Strike

Soul Survivor

The Crossing

Hunger in the Code

The Road We Lost

Directive Thirty-One

By a Thread

Me and My Shadow

Absolutely innovative and had never been done. Chris Kennedy came on board to ensure publication and review the new stories for potential series commitments…and the first one he chose was ours. The story is titled Me and My Shadow, and I’m proud to say it’s just the initial foray into the Shadow Mode universe Kevin and I have been working on for the past couple of months. Chris has book 1 and over the weekend set release dates for both the Anthromech anthology on May 29^th and Shadow Mode #1 on June 26^th. And, by the way, that release date for our first book is the Friday of Liberty Con 38 in Tennessee. Holy crap! It’s all happening!

Then Bill Webb sent Kevin and me the first of the recordings for the audio book on our short story. It’s so cool to hear your words being professionally rendered into an audio book. I’m still in a bit of shock over how fast all of this happened. I know I have that look on my face that’s sort of like a cow looking at a new gate and wondering what’s going on.

Mia Kleve, professional editor extraordinaire, has pretty much completed book 1 in the revised Eyes in the Black / Gangrel War series and is now starting on book 2. She also has books 3 and 4 to do in that series and the first book in a new series I’ve written. Like Kevin and Bill before her, Mia’s an awesome coach and editor. She’s given me so many valuable tools along with edit skills that truly humble me. I am blessed beyond measure with these amazing relationships.

So, Book 2 in the Shadow Mode series will be done and to the publisher by end of the week. I’ll start writing Book 3 over the next weekend. We hope to have it completed by Liberty Con….Wish us luck! By that time, fingers crossed, the re-write on Eyes in the Black will be ready for sale along with the audio book, which so many of you requested on its initial release. Patience! I promise it’ll be worth it.

So that’s it. Next month, who knows? I’m hanging out and devoting my workspace to writing. Sara’s venture is gaining momentum and is so exciting as well. She’ll be going to Vegas for a high end industry show at the end of May with her two partners.

All of this is so crazy, and it feels like it’s just getting started. Thanks for taking the time to check this out! Talk soon, and remember you can always reach out to me on my website email. Check it out! www.craigbellauthor.com

Be well!