Christmas – New Year

So, we’re at the end of the year.

It doesn’t matter what you call it, it’s all about letting off steam and letting go of worries. Of course, it isn’t always like that. Sometimes there’s strife in the holidays.

But that’s part of life. I wish everyone a great two weeks – or three – depends – and be sure to stay safe!

Anyhow, onto my work.

Clans in Conflict

As you’re aware, Dark Reign has been out for a while. This is a sequel to Dark Dimensions and you can find all of the books for Clans in Conflict here.

www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CTHRMJQW

I am still working on a new website, but unfortunately, the above link is where they are available.

The Dark Road

The Dark Road is a follow-on to Dark Reign and it is currently with beta readers who are picking through it to see if it’ll work. They’re probably already pulling their hair out regarding what I subject Alex and Fernid to.

Consequences

As you all know, I have also rewritten the first two books of the Consequences series and I have got Heart of Deception back from the editor and am currently working my way through the changes she has suggested (and her comments that are amazing, by the way). Some of the comments mean I have to go back and look at what I’ve written and look at new ways of writing it. Which is part of the process every writer goes through. She did tell me, however, that the additions I’ve included have really rounded Marek’s character and given you all a deeper look into his history as well as his character.

I am still editing Legacy of Risks, which has also been rewritten. This follows-on directly to Heart of Deception and again has inclusions there much like the first book has. I will finish it, I promise.

The third book of the series, Dangerous Heart has been rewritten as well and is waiting in the queue.

Now, new stuff.

I have put my other stuff, like paranormal and my synergist books on hold at the moment, but their characters are still niggling at me, so I will get to them. I promise.

I have slowed down over the last week, but that’s because of Perth’s weather and the fact that the fan motor for our air conditioner decided it was too old and refused to help keep me cool over the last week. The motor is currently with the installer and he has promised us he will install it on Monday. Which is just as well because there is more hot weather coming. I made great use of a spray water bottle and the spa in the last week since the motor went.

So, I should be back to full throttle in my writing and editing from tomorrow. Thankfully, the weather has cooled today and tomorrow – just in time for the motor to be installed, because, let’s face it – who wants someone on their roof on a 39C day? (For those with imperial temps, that’s 102.2F and that was one of the cooler days – we got up to about 42C – 107.6F – I think.)

Okay, more real life stuff to do! Catch you next time!

It’s finally here!

Dark Reign has been released – well, it will on 2 December 2024.

This is the first time this book has been published and I’m really proud of it.

Dark Reign is the sequel to Dark Dimensions and although Troy plays a strong role in it, most of the story is from the viewpoint of Alex Travis.

Whilst there are science fiction elements in this story, such as dimensional travel, multiple versions of the same people, a lot of this story is how a detective, namely Alex Travis, goes through life learning about how to cope with a world that constantly changes around him.

In Dark Reign, Troy has mostly taken control of his city, but, as I said, this story is from Alex’s point of view and Alex has a strong idea of what his world is about.

Through this book, Alex has to come to terms about his place in the world and what that actually means.

While you don’t have to read Dark Dimensions to understand Dark Reign, Dark Dimensions is the first in the Clans In Conflict Series and Dark Reign is the second.

On a different note altogether, Heart of Deception, the first in the Consequences series, is currently with the editor. This will be coming out early 2025 if all goes well.

This, like Dark Dimensions, is a second edition as there are many changes to the storyline as sometimes happens when an author looks back over previously published works. Already, the editor is saying that the book is much more tightly packed with the pacing much better and the storyline tighter.

Having said all that, I will probably experience the same issue with Heart of Deception (and with Legacy of Risks, the sequel) that I did with Dark Dimensions, so I intend the release date to be two or more months’ in length to give that process time to be resolved.

I am currently editing Legacy of Risks currently before that goes to the editor.

Also, The Dark Road, the third in the Clans in Conflict series, is currently with a beta reader for analysis before anything further goes through with that.

I still have other stories on the go and hopefully an updated website will be up and running soon whereby I can add things like maps, character backgrounds and stuff like that for the published books – along with small snippets of their lives.

Mal’s story is currently on hold, only because I am trying to concentrate on these other stories, but there are currently two books in that series – not one on Mal and one on Alloric, but two books, nevertheless.

Of course, with the heat we have just experienced, I’m heading for the spa to cool down!

Talk to you all later!

Julz.

PS. You can find all my books here

So much news!

First of all, Dark Reign is available for pre-order for the ebooks and pre-release for the paperback.

This is the sequel to Clans in Conflict and would normally be the second in the series if I hadn’t split Dark Dimensions into two parts.

It’s currently on Amazon, but I am considering draft2digital and going to other areas.

It’s also that month and I’m almost at 35,000 words.

Yes, I had planned to work on Jordy and Rafe, my twins who were separated as babies, but they haven’t been very forthcoming with info. I may have to look deeper into that.

Instead I have been working on an experimental character that some of you now of. Yes, I’m talking about Brad. He’s been very vocal of late and I am enjoying exploring different sides of him.

Future

The next book I hope to have out will be The Dark Road, which is the 3rd in the Clans in Conflict stories.

I do have a prequel that I have started working on, Dark Beginnings, which tells of the conversion of Vlad and the other 9 Clan Leaders and then goes on to concentrate on Vlad, ending with the accidental first shift into inter-dimensional travel.

The Consequences series will be going back online as Heart of Deception and Legacy of Risks have both been rewritten – well, I’m still working on Legacy of Risks, but I’ve been a little distracted of late. Just waiting in line at the editor’s for Heart of Deception to be edited.

Change

Okay, so not many realise that I was on not-twitter, however, like most other writers, when we found out what that platform was doing with regard to AI, we’ve all jumped ship. I am on Bluesky, now, under JADuxbury.

I remain on Facebook and Discord and I hope to have a new website up and running very soon.

That’s about all for the moment. I will get back to you in two weeks!

What an experience

And yes, these are available now! https://www.amazon.com/author/jaduxbury

So, it’s been really fun the last few weeks. I’ve run some advertising and have some advertising ready to go. I am looking for anyone who can review the books for me – and who are willing to do so!

I have also read a few books and have absolutely enjoyed them. Steve McHugh’s King of Amazon is a really complex read and his No Gods Only Monsters is one that wrenches at where your heart lies. Both great reads.

Thoroughly enjoyed Charles Phipps’s Lords of Dragon Keep and am about to start on his Agent G Infiltrator. Usually my reviews are on Goodreads if you’re interested. I try not to provide spoilers for those who haven’t read these books.

I am currently working on the Consequences series and am about to finalise Dark Reign to go up for pre-order. Just tweaking size and cover.

From there, I intend to either introduce my paranormal book or a different book entirely. Yeah, I know. I’ll keep everyone guessing!

November

As we know, there have been some hiccups with that particular novel writing saga, of which I’ve been a proud supporter for over 10 years. With these latest hiccups, I have to say that I am unable to participate again this year.

However, in Perth we have decided we will go with a writing project in November only we’ve called it 30-days-downunder. This way we can still support the writers of Perth and Western Australia. And next yeah, maybe everything will work out and we’ll be back to normal.

That’s it for now! Talk to you all next time!

They’re available now!

Where to buy

They’re out! After all the ups and downs, ins and outs, these are now available to buy, both e-book and paperback.

Dark Reign is ready to go but I am taking my time with that. I want to give people a chance to read Dark Dimensions before they learn how Troy begins to manage his own city and the intricacies involved in taking control of a major metropolitan area, especially with threats both in-dimension and inter-dimensional.

The Dark Road is currently with beta readers before it goes to the editor. This will finish off the trilogy of Clans in Conflict, however, there is an origin book in the works for both Troy and his father.

The Consequences series is also undergoing a revamp and will be out after Dark Reign. Heart of Deception has yet to go to the publisher and Legacy of Risks is currently being rewritten. Big changes in both of these books.

There is a third book, Dangerous Heart, in this trilogy and, for anyone following Marek, I have another book of the nine years prior to Heart of Deception.

And, if all goes well, I have started work on a fifth book – this one is about his kids, especially his youngest, Jhet.

I also have my paranormal story that I need to edit, along with a quantum energies book – or two. Stay tuned for those, however!

One week

Only a week until these are available!

This is the link that will take you to Clans in Conflict where you’ll find both books.

I am so excited by this!

I have also been through Dark Reign and that should be just about ready. Just working through bits and pieces.

I have a beta reader going through The Dark Road, so hopefully that will be up in a few months.

In between working on those, I am also working through the two Consequences books to get them both published. There is also a third book to that series and that is waiting in the wings for its turn!

After Consequences and Clans in Conflict are complete, I may go down the road of paranormal or a completely different dimensional tale. But that is for the future.

In all the misunderstandings with NaNoWriMo and AI as well as the controversy that went through last year, I am not participating in the organisational side of November.

I am still going to be writing this year and I have my project almost ready to go.

I am also considering writing some posts about my experience with an indie publisher who falls off the planet leaving books on Amazon and the challenge that faces people in that situation in getting their books back. I have not written them yet because I believe I will have a similar situation with the two Consequences books that have already been published under the previous publisher.

But that is for the future. Talk to you all, soon!

Success

Finally, both parts of Dark Dimensions are available.

Clans in Conflict is the series both books belong to.

I have to admit – when I uploaded the paperbacks, I made a slight error and Dark Dimensions Part 1 in paperback format is available. I haven’t even got the proof copy yet! All I can say is, “learning curve”.

But it’s all done, now. The ebooks and part 2 are available for pre-order and release date is 29 September.

We are now working on the cover for Dark Reign which is the sequel to Dark Dimensions and this should be a breeze compared to Dark Dimensions. I have a beta reader having a look at The Dark Road before it goes to the editor.

I am currently going through Heart of Deception as the two Consequences books will be the next things to be published after Dark Reign, then after Legacy of Risks I’ll be looking at Dangerous Heart.

I am still working on Mal’s story – that series will be the next one out, I think.

One of the learning curve I did go through on this journey is the paperback. After you set up an ebook in Amazon, it asks you if you want to create a paperback. I clicked on this with Part 1 thinking it would pull over all the info from the ebook which meant I didn’t really pay attention to the publishing date. So, when the review had ended, it was already published. Which is why I still don’t have the proof copy. Luckily I had skimmed through the book for last-minute obvious problems.

However, I am open to feedback on anything in the book when it comes to typos, etc.

Having said that, it is published to Australian Standards, so, everyone, please be aware that it will have some differences to the grammar, punctuation and spelling to other countries.

So, this particular part of my journey is over but there are more lessons to be learned, I’m sure!

Talk to you in a week or more!

Progress and warning

Okay, I seem to have made a little progress with Amazon. They emailed me (twice) saying they are investigating and will contact me in 5 working days.

My advice to anyone out there who publishes under a publisher – get a copy of the contract signed by both parties and make sure there is a clause in the contract that if the company goes under, rights revert to you.

Luckily, even though my publisher just went silent and, in today’s terms, ghosted all of his writers, I, with a friend I reached out to, were able to find details where he said the publishing company ended in November 2022. We were also able to find official records that say the publisher actually went into involuntary liquidation in 2021. I have not supplied that to Amazon as yet, but I have supplied them with the details of November 2022. Thus, it is a waiting game.

Regardless of whether I publish Clans in Conflict or Consequences on Amazon or not, I will revert Dark Dimensions to two parts because it is a rather epic-size and I have the two covers for it.

I will be going what self-publishers call “wide” instead of limiting myself to ebooks. I have enough ISBNs to provide paperbacks as well as ebooks, so I’ve decided at this late stage, it’s better to put both out. I won’t be putting out hardcovers, however, unless people specifically want hardcovers.

I have also paused writing in both Clans in Conflict and Consequences until this issue with Amazon is resolved, however, I have been exploring other books, including a private investigator story set in Albermarle, so there are quite a few cross-overs with her due to the size of the kingdom.

I am also working on the story of a young manipulator of quantum energies which I alluded to a few posts ago. Still got more to go with that one, but it is progressing.

On a personal note, we sold our caravan earlier this year and managed to pay off a few huge debts, including our car. So, that is a huge weight off our shoulders.

That’s about all I have, so back into it and talk in another 2 weeks’ time!

Two steps forward, one step back

Well, I seem to have found an obstacle with Amazon, but I am looking into things. Having said that, there are alternatives, including looking for a traditional publisher. I am waiting to hear back from Amazon and hopefully it will all be good.

Otherwise, I might have to hunt up alternatives.

But onto more things. I do have a few things in the mix, including the Consequences series and I hope to have that ready to go soon. Although the rewritten books, Heart of Deception and Legacy of Risks still have to go to beta readers and the editor along with Dangerous Heart which is the third book.

I’ve also got a companion book about Marek from age sixteen right up until Heart of Deception, which was fun to write. It establishes his reputation as a highly successful acquirer of items, etc., and that’s all I’ll say. Not too many spoilers for those who haven’t read the series.

For those who have, I have removed that very detailed scene at the beginning of Heart of Deception. It took me a while to see that that wasn’t really what people wanted to read. I have also included references to those earlier years of his life that weren’t in the first book.

Speaking of those references, one raises its head in Legacy of Risks, but, again, I don’t want to give too much away because I think, in the long run, the companion book will be an enjoyable read – albeit rather dramatic.

I am still working on the other two new books and along with those I am writing a follow-up to Dark Reign. I have already written the third book, The Dark Road, but there are a few years between and that book may be a companion book, too.

Dark Beginnings is coming along nicely, but still only in the first stages.

Going back to Amazon, I had thought of doing the 90 days KU exclusive, but I have decided against that – I know there’s a market out there and I’ll find it. I am determined!

Hopefully, in one of the next few posts I will have pre-order info for everyone, along with the new covers for both parts of Dark Dimensions.

In the meantime, happy writing and reading and be safe!

Exciting News!

I have allocated and am one move away from registering ISBNs for Dark Dimensions Parts 1 and 2, edition 2. Which means we are one step closer. My next step is to decide when to publish. Then I can put that into the registration and that’s the registration done.

Once that is complete, I’ll be able to concentrate on Dark Reign which is the second in the Clans in Conflict series and the sequel to Dark Dimensions.

When those books are up and published, I’ll be able to work on Heart of Deception and Legacy of Risks, Consequences books 1 and 2. Due to those changes when Marek was younger, these updates have yet to go through beta readers and back through the editor to ensure enough of these make the books edition 2s.

Returning to Clans in Conflict, I have written what was the third book in that series, however, we have since realised there needs to be a book in between. I am currently working on that, however, that may have been started in the wrong point of view, so I am toying with that, also. And it may be that that becomes a novella instead of a full-sized book.

The Dark Road then becomes book 4 although I could adopt Robert J Crane’s approach and make the interim book 2.5 keeping The Dark Road as book 3. That will depend on what Robert says because I won’t step on his toes without permission. Yeah, I know, it’s probably too much to worry about, but I’d rather keep friends than make enemies.

At any rate, The Dark Road is complete and just needs beta readers to read it and then the editor.

So, swapping back again to Consequences, book 3, Dangerous Heart is finished but again needs to go to beta readers and then to the editor. Once that’s done, that will also be published.

Now, the new book that I mentioned in my past post is still with a beta reader and I am still working on the second book in that series, but that is more for the future. I don’t even have a name for that series!

So, that’s the state of the situation at the moment. More will be coming in two weeks! Now, time for something – wait, kitchen is calling!