RELEASED! From Ashes They Rose

Dear Friends,

Thank you! Thank You! Thank you! Whether you are a keen reader of the Wycaan Master series, follow my Elfwriter blog or twitter sites, are members of the California Writer’s Club or the Berkeley Writer’s Circle, or whether you are just some poor soul who keeps bumping into this optimistic writer with a propensity to gaze up at the mountains or out to sea…Thank You!

Today, Tourmaline Books released From Ashes They Rose, the fifth Wycaan Master novel. Every time I have a book released, it feels surreal. The excitement and pride are as fresh as they were when the award-winning At The Walls Of Galbrieth, was released five years ago.

The first few days of a book release are critical to its trajectory, so please consider purchasing the paperback here and the e-book here. In celebration of the release, Tourmaline Books has made the first three novels available as e-books for 99 cents each. This sale will only continue until after the weekend. Please click on the book cover below for the link to each book.

Finally, a quick thank you to the amazing team who supported me:

Monica Buntin, my editor, who makes sense of the jumble of words I send her.

William Kenney, for the cover design, artwork, and vision. He has an amazing capacity to create something beautiful out of the vague ideas I throw at him.

Jeny and Rutchie at The Fast Fingers, who format the book with such professionalism and are willing to let me bug them every week or so (okay, maybe more!).

Ariela, Pele & Asif – my family, who have the patience to listen to every first draft and endure the silences when I travel far away in the land of Odessiya.

I hope From Ashes They Rose lives up to its predecessors. It does take on a more complex hue, but as we say in the elven tongue: C’est la vie. Once read, please consider leaving a review on Goodreads and Amazon.

Thank you again for your support. Good Reading!

Alon Shalev.
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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, and four more novels in the Wycaan Master Series – all released by Tourmaline Books. From Ashes They Rose, is the latest in the series. The story continues.

Shalev is also the author of three social justice-themed novels including Unwanted Heroes. He swears there is a connection. More at http://www.alonshalev.com and on Twitter (@elfwriter). Hang out with Alon on Google+

Whole Trilogy Reduced For Book Launch

Sep25

We are less than a week from the release of From Ashes They Rose. I am so excited as another book takes it place in the series. I have always said I write for my eldest son’s level. His response after reading this manuscript was – “It’s getting complex. I like that.”

That made me very happy…actually ecstatic. It is true, as with most story arcs for a series, but if he is saying this (never mind his use of the word complex!), then I have raised the bar as intended. Sacrificial Flame, the book that precedes it, set a different pace and maturity, and still remains my favorite.

My publishers are also proving complex. They have decided to reduce all three e-books for the first trilogy to 99 cents each for this celebratory week. I have previously written what I think of such a move when they do this for one book, but three! So until October 4. they are all available for less than a latte. They aren’t as sweet, less fattening, but may keep you up at night reading, so you might want the caffeine after all.

Still, I shall stoically endure the … not exactly sure what…frustration? If you haven’t yet finished the first trilogy, this is probably your best time to do so and, if you do, please take a moment to share a review on Amazon. Me? I need a coffee!

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Good Reading! And a belated Happy Hobbit Day! September 22 is generally recognized (don’t ask me what generally means here!) as the birthday of Bilbo and Frodo. May we all celebrate our one hundred and eleventy birthday with fireworks, wizards, and good friends.

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I Bawled My Eyes Out

Sep13

I did. It’s true. In front of a critical audience, I broke down. To their credit, they smiled indulgently. Not really. Both my sons in fact grinned at my embarrassment as, with the summer closing, I read the last page of the first draft. I have, for five consecutive summers, read the words The End. Now, as I read the closing words of Book 6, it hit me: this really was the end. Each time in the past they would sigh, grumble that it’s over, but know that next summer…

This is how it all began – deep in a redwood forest.

This time, The End was The End. Some character died, others survived, but all moved on. This time I did not weep for my characters (I have many times). I did not weep for my sons (let’s not go there). Truth is, I wept for myself. My boys are six years older than when we started, almost men, and all I can hope for is that one day maybe they will tell their children how their grandfather wrote epic novels for them, one every summer.

As I reached the bottom of the epilogue, I could no longer articulate. So I turned to Ms. Elfwriter and pointed to the last line. She read it with the gravity I felt, with total solemnity.

Reading Book 6 in the summer of 2015. End of an era.

Now it is over. I have nothing to consider for six months or so, as I tear Book 6 apart and rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. I imagine around the end of the year or beginning of next, I will send it off to the publishers and…

But there is time to pass. On the same day I read the end of Book 6, I received the proof copies of From Ashes They Rose. Hopefully we are still on schedule for October 1.

We are definitely on schedule for the release of the eBook. As I wrote last week:

…the process of preorder is huge for the author. If many of one’s followers preorder the new release, the purchase will count on the launch day. This means a high sales rank, potential best selling status, and encourages other readers and Amazon itself to take notice.

So please, consider investing $2.99 sometime this month to preorder the ebook version of From Ashes They Rose. Maybe one day you can point out nonchalantly to friends over a deep red Merlot that you helped that best selling author when he was still a struggling writer.

Book 5 Cover FINAL

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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, and four more novels in the Wycaan Master Series – all released by Tourmaline Books. From Ashes They Rose the fifth in the series, will be released October 1, 2015. The story continues.

Pre-Release: Instant Bestseller?

Sep8

This weekend, Tourmaline Books announced that From Ashes They Rose will be released on October 1, 2015. For the first time this series, they have uploaded the book onto amazon and allowed for the ebook can be preordered.

What does it mean to preorder? For the reader it is being part of the excitement as the countdown. Suddenly, the book appears on your eReader, an email in your inbox, and the inevitable ‘sick day at the office’ rears its head. “Stay home and get well soon,” the kind boss says over the phone. “Some chicken soup and a good book in bed.”

I know of one person who read Sacrificial Flame, the prequel to From Ashes They Rose in one weekend and they were perfectly healthy on Monday morning if lacking a weekend warrior suntan.

But the process of preorder is huge for the author. If many of one’s followers preorder the new release, the purchase will count on the launch day. This means a high sales rank, potential best-selling status, and encourages other readers and Amazon itself to take notice.

So please, consider investing $2.99 sometime this month to preorder the ebook version of From Ashes They Rose. And maybe you can point out nonchalantly to friends over a deep red merlot that you helped that best-selling author when he was still a struggling writer.

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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, and four more novels in the Wycaan Master Series – all released by Tourmaline Books. From Ashes They Rose the fifth in the series, will be released October 1, 2015. The story continues.

Shalev is also the author of three social justice-themed novels including Unwanted Heroes. He swears there is a connection. More at http://www.alonshalev.com and on Twitter (@elfwriter). Hang out with Alon on Google+

A Year Since My First Book Award

May18

It has been 12 months since I won my first award, the Eric Hoffer Book Award for YA category, and I am still glowing from the rush of seeing my name in print on the awards page.

I do not subscribe to the solitary writer image. I have facilitated the Berkeley Writers Group for several years, and I am an active member of the California Writer’s Group. I have a cadre of supportive writer friends and feel confident in my trajectory.

The Wycaan Master series is housed with a small publisher, Tourmaline Books, which is always gratifying and who are very supportive. But they acknowledge and encourage me to look for a bigger house.

But there was something very powerful in receiving an award. I have got close before, reaching the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award’s quarterfinal twice. I have spoken a couple of times before packed rooms and have a wonderful relationship with readers through this blog and my @elfwriter twitter feed.

And yet, to be able to introduce myself as an award-winning author gives instant credibility and I can see this in the reaction of the poor bugger I’ve cornered.

I treasure the reviews I receive on Amazon and the emails and tweets from dedicated readers. I couldn’t help but stare in amazement when I saw a person on the BART (Bay Area train) actually sitting and reading At The Walls Of Galbrieth.

It is important to be recognized to garner the recognition and legitimacy that it gives: for your readers and especially for you the aspiring author.

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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, The First Decree, and Ashbar – Wycaan Master Book 3 – all released by Tourmaline Books. Shalev is also the author of three social justice-themed novels including Unwanted Heroes. He swears there is a connection. More at http://www.alonshalev.com and on Twitter (@elfwriter). Hang out with Alon on Google+

Book Cover Revealed

May11

The launch of Sacrificial Flame – Wycaan Master Book 4 is still unclear. This summer sounds about as accurate an answer as I can get. The publishers feel that it needs another round of editing, since when I receive my copy back from the incredible Monica Buntin, I then make changes and rewrite a scene of two. I guess I should be grateful that the publishers strive for as near perfect as possible, but I figure I’m allowed to be a little impatient.

To pass the time, I am back to writing Book 5 and have passed the 50,000 word mark. Nothing much that I can really share as so much derives from what happens in Book 4.

But I am proud to share the book cover for Sacrificial Flame – Wycaan Master Book 4. The cover artist is once again Mr. William Kenney – and I remain truly in awe of his talent and imagination. As I said once before: “How an artist can take the garbled ideas from a man who can’t draw stick figures without giving them unintentional but severe spinal deformities and produce something like this amazes me.”

This time there was a lot of uncertainty on my part. William suffered me in silence and offered each time an improved version of what I described and expected. Let me know what you think of it. Drumroll please…

Thank you so much, William.

For more details on Sacrificial Flame – Wycaan Master Book 4, please click here.

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It was 99 cents…again.

May4

Last year, I whined in a blog post about my publisher’s decision to lower the ebook price of At The Walls Of Galbrieth to 99 cents. It was done last year to promote the release of Ashbar – Wycaan Master Book 3, and will be repeated before the release of Book 4. Next week there will be a cover launch and I am as stoked as ever by the talent of William Kenney, our cover artist (and in awe of his patience with me). Check out his work here. This is a rewrite of the blog post.

Every year before going on our annual vacation, my family sit around the kitchen table for some intense negotiating as we decide which songs from the past year will find their place on the 201x family vacation playlist. The songs with the highest consensus are the first. This year’s number one choice was Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’s hilarious and anti-consumerism song – Thrift Shop – it was 99 cents! (the version below is the clean one with lyrics – thank you to Jadey Wadey – if you don’t mind the language, the official video is hilarious).

If I’m honest, I’m one of those people who visits the 99 cents store to buy 2-3 items and spends $15. In my humble defense, I rarely make such a trip.

So the concept of 99 cents shouldn’t faze me. But with Sacrificial Flame – Wycaan Master Book 4 due out in the summer, the powers that be have decided to offer the kindle ebook version of At The Walls Of Galbrieth for 99 cents for the next month or so. I objected: the book is already only $2.99 – less than a coffee at Starbucks (or most coffee shops). It took me a year to write and rewrite. I invested in a professional editor, cover artist, and many hours of blood, sweat and tears.

I gave birth to it, sat up all night with it when it got a fever, and saw it take its first steps on Amazon.com. At some point, eyes were rolled. They might have been relieved that I was portraying the necessary signals to become famous – I was acting the cultural prima donna. I changed tracks: it is an award-winning novel, I whined. The response was brutal: it’s all about the sales. And I was reminded that writing for my kids in the ancient Northern California Redwoods is one thing, making a living is quite another.

I do have a question: when you see a book for 99 cents – do you have lower expectations about its contents? Please leave your comments below or on @elfwriter.

And so: for at least the next month, At The Walls Of Galbrieth will be available in Kindle format for 99 cents. Oh well, it worked for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis.

Have a good week, everyone.

Alon

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Thank You!

Nov19

It is 30 minutes before the end of Amazon’s KDP 3-Day Promotion of At The Walls Of Galbrieth. I hoped you enjoyed the blog posts, the tweets, and the messages over the last three days.

If you downloaded At The Walls Of Galbrieth – thank you (if not – you still have 30 minutes!). I do not have results at the time of writing, but I so appreciate the amazing support I have received throughout this wild adventure since the initial summoning of the Wycaan Masters four years ago.

This is how it all began – deep in a redwood forest.

One door closes and another opens. We are celebrating a year when the second and third books came out and the first won a national award. If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, please join me at Games of Berkeley on December 15 – details here.

In January 2014, the manuscript of Book 4 will go to the ruthless hands of my editor and I will begin writing Book 5. Such is the pace as the journey continues. I never thought I would get here and know I could not have done so alone.

As our mutual friend, Bilbo once said:

“You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

Thank you for your companionship along the road.

Alon

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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, offered by Amazon.com for FREE on November 17-19. The sequel, The First Decree, and Ashbar – Wycaan Master Book 3 are all released by Tourmaline Books. More at http://www.alonshalev.com and on Twitter (@elfwriter). Hang out with Alon on Google+

What If Humans Were Real – repost

Nov19

Over the three days of November 17 -19, Amazon.com have decided to promote the 2013 Winner of the Eric Hoffer Book Award for YA – At The Walls Of Galbrieth. The novel will be offered FREE in ebook form.

This is a wonderful opportunity for me and I request that, to support my sales rank and me, you download the book and invites your friends to do the same. Feel free to gift it on (Thanksgiving and Hanukkah, anyone?).

To celebrate this and also the milestone of 100 blog posts on elfwriter.com, I wish to offer 10 of my favorite posts over the next three days. I hope you enjoy and, please, take a moment to download for FREE At The Walls Of Galbrieth and spread the word.

Thank you,

Alon

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What if elves were real? There are those in the south of England who believe that elves exist. I heard this when researching for A Gardener’s Tale. When a twitter friend shared with me that he had heard of this in the north of England, it made me wonder…

I rubbed the points of my ears as I waited for Harwin who was always late. I checked my watch. We would have to walk fast to reach the bookstore before the famous author began his reading.

“Sorry, I’m late,” Harwin said as he jogged up.

We set off, hands in pockets. There was no point in chastising Harwin – it simply didn’t help.

“I’m looking forward to this,” Harwin said. “I loved ‘Lady of the Earings’. The way that professor describes these mythical humans, I really began to feel they exist.”

I nodded, too winded to comment. The professor was a strange chap, lecturing at an elite university on ancient elven languages. They say he even invented an entire human language – as if all humans would speak the same language. Still he was a master of the epic fantasy genre.

We entered the bookstore, which was full and grabbed the last two empty seats.

Harwin leaned in. “I hear that in this book he is planning on sending the humans on a new quest, that their world is threatened by some strange energy – ‘oil’ – which is expensive, polluting and they go to war over it because there isn’t much.”

“That’s a bit of a stretch,” I replied. “His humans are too smart to do that. Besides, they have the sun, the wind, and the waves of the ocean just like us. Why would they use this oil?”

Harwin smiled. “You look rather irate. Are you starting to believe in these humans too?”

“Don’t be daft, Harwin. That’s the beauty of epic fantasy. You get so into the story that you begin to believe the characters might actually be real. Next thing, you’ll be swearing you saw someone with round ears.”

We both laughed. That would be a sight. The room hushed. The professor stood at the podium, about to speak. He opened his new book…and the world of the humans became real as he read…

I could almost see their round ears and even imagine their oil.

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Everyone Wants To Be An Elf – repost

Nov19

Thank you,

Alon

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How many times have you uploaded an article or song on the Internet and then got lost surfing through hundreds of comments underneath? Whether discussing politics, sports, or comparing the lead singers of Nightwish, it gets ugly very quickly. If you need to stock your insult arsenal, You Tube comments is the place to go – but a shot of JW or an anger management course might be more effective, long term…just saying, calm down.

Earlier this week, I played a Gothic music play list (that I can’t find now) while I wrote a new chapter for Book 4 of the Wycaan Master series. I made the mistake of perusing the comments and they were eye opening.

Tens of people (and I did not check all 2,000+ comments) wrote why they would love to be an elf. Just for the record, I believe people were imagining Legalos and not Will Ferrell or any of his fine companions.

But there they were: some frivolous, but many, well, I believe laced with a genuine desire. They seemed to resonate with something deep inside, something lost.

Some spoke of the physical attributes – tall and thin, healthy (have you ever seen an elf sneeze? – they even die beautifully – yes I’m talking about you, Haldir, at Helm’s Deep, I’m sure you remember), long living, nimble, coordinated…

Others mentioned emotional attributes – decisive, confident, calm, intelligent, loyal mates (I plan to research this – I did a quick search for the Rivendale Daily Enquirer but they only distribute in the Western Isles).

And there was also an interesting assortment of comments such as: they could trust their leaders; they were in touch with nature…

When I began writing the Wycaan Master series, it was clear to my sons and me that we didn’t want to make the elves (most of our protagonists) perfect. They get angry, make wrong decisions, feel abashed at that first kiss, and seem more…well human (ouch!).

In fact, one of the comments that surfaced as I read At The Walls Of Galbrieth to my writer’s group was that I failed to distinguish them as elves. I struggled to do this without stepping into the familiar stereotypes. As I write Book 4, things have become somewhat darker, with the protagonists facing greater personal challenges. I continue to find it difficult to strike a cord between making my elves special without them losing their genuine, vulnerable side.

Finally, as I write this, I am listening to The Hobbit soundtrack. There is a long thread of comments, disagreements, and debate. But this is the comment that caught my eye:

RobbieBjork17 wrote: “Holy Crap that was one_ of the most educated conversations I’ve ever read on youtube…. shoulda known it was going to be Tolkien Fans ;).”

It made me absurdly proud to feel a part of the Epic Fantasy nation.

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Elfwriter

A Fantasy Author

Tag Archives: Amazon.com

RELEASED! From Ashes They Rose

Whole Trilogy Reduced For Book Launch

I Bawled My Eyes Out

Pre-Release: Instant Bestseller?

Thank You!

What If Humans Were Real – repost

Everyone Wants To Be An Elf – repost

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