Feels like a good time for another update on my newest novel. I’ve dotted all the i’s and crossed almost all the t’s on my Kickstarter campaign… just waiting for approval before I can unveil the preview page! That should happen next week, and if everything stays on target I’ll be launching the official campaign on July 11 – so mark that day on your calendar. (Just kidding. You don’t need to mark it. I’ll be blasting that date over all my social media a thousand times between then and now!)
I still don’t have the cover art locked down, but someone is working on it right now. (At least, I hope they’re working on it…) Once I get some cool art, I’ll be sure to share it. But until then, I figure it’s time to give a few more details about the book. Followers of my Author FB page have already gotten a sneak peek at the title and summary, but in case you missed it here it is… (drumroll, please).
Time Kings of Las Vegas
Carson Gaines is a professional gambler and card counter with a very special gift – he can literally stop time! There’s just one drawback: whenever he stops the world, he finds himself just as frozen and helpless as everyone else.
Cursed with the world’s most frustrating superpower, Carson finds himself on the wrong side of a local mobster, the CIA, and a secret government research project operating out of Area 51. And he soon learns that in Sin City, the house always wins…
Time Kings of Las Vegs is my first self-published novel. While it’s true I released my Minor Malevolent Spirit short story collection a few years ago, this feels very different. With MMS I didn’t really know what I was doing, and instead of launching it through Kickstarter, it was released through my publisher, Curtis Brown. (So, technically it wasn’t even self published, but now we’re splitting hairs.)
I had no idea what I was doing with MMS. I didn’t really know how to promote it, and I knew short story collections didn’t typically sell all that well anyway. It was fun, and I was glad to get my work out there, but it wasn’t ever going to reach a massive audience. Case in point: I just got my latest MMS royalty check for the past six months of sales, and it’s barely enough to buy a dozen high-end golf balls.
With Time Kings, I’m hoping to make a bigger splash. I’ve already lined up some podcasts and a Reddit AMA to help promote it… watch for dates and details coming soon. And as I mentioned earlier, I’ll be blasting the news all over my social media as July 11 gets closer. (And begging for friends, fans, and followers to share the ever-loving shit out of it!)
But for now, I just wanted to share a bit more of what this book means to me. Time Kings is a love letter to Sin City, my home-away-from-home. I’ve been going to Vegas regularly for almost 30 years now, and for me nothing can match the excitement and raw energy of a packed casino on the Strip.
In Time Kings, I’ve tried to capture that feeling and weave it into a contemporary sci-fi tale – a thrilling adventure that combines the rush of Vegas with the mind-bending world of quantum theory, topped off with a dash of government conspiracy and Vegas mobsters.
I know some of my fans are going to be upset this isn’t another Darth Bane or Star Wars novel. (Hey, I’m ready to jump on those if Disney asks, but the ball is in their court.) And I know some fans want me to go back to Mass Effect, but BioWare has moved on without me. (And I don’t blame them one bit.) But I’m hopeful that fans of my other works will be willing to give this book a chance, because it really is a labor of love.
Do I think Time Kings will hit the NY Times Bestseller lists, like my Darth Bane novels? Honestly, probably not. Will it have the same cultural impact as the Mass Effect franchise? That would be nice, but I’m not banking on it. Will it sell enough copies to cover my lifetime expenses from all my Vegas trips? Hell, I’d be happy if I sell enough to cover the losses on my next visit! (Yeah, I have a problem.)
But if the Kickstarter goes well – if y’all are willing to give me a chance, and if y’all help me spread the word – then maybe, just maybe, this could turn into something big. So cross your fingers as I roll these dice, and let’s see if we can make something special happen!