Posts Tagged ‘novels’
Guest Post – Eric Zawadzki and Kingmaker
Today, we have a guest post from Eric Zawadzki, author of Kingmaker. Take it away, Eric!
Origin Stories
I first want to thank Brian for hosting us on his blog. He was one of the first people to welcome me to Kindleboards almost a year ago. At the time, he shared a bit about how he started writing – a topic that has always fascinated me. These tales are like superhero origin stories, “how I met my spouse” stories, or any other coming-of-age experience that both shapes who we are now and describes how we were then. There are as many origin experiences as there are writers. In the spirit of fair exchange here is mine.
Many authors came to writing later in life. They took a creative writing class in college. Or they experienced a major life change. Or they had a baby (redundant with the second, I know). I fear I’m one of those annoying folks who always wanted to be a writer. I can’t imagine wanting to be anything else.
That doesn’t mean my early efforts weren’t terrible. The imagination was there. The ability to put it on the page in a form recognizable as a story to anyone not on hallucinogenic substances? Not so much. That would take decades – yes, with an s. You have no idea how undisciplined and impatient I was at the beginning of this journey.
Cut me some slack. I was 9. Read the rest of this entry »
Another Christmas, Another New Year
Whew, what a year it has been. A year of good things, a year of bad things, and everything in between. A decision to “restart” myself and my writing (turning the zombie novels loose for free, starting anew with fantasy, for those who haven’t been tuning in).
Thankfully, The Circle of Sorcerers (http://circleofsorcerers.latenitebooks.com) didn’t bomb. If it had, we’d be in a little trouble–no new material for quite some time. But, thankfully, it didn’t. It’s done well enough to support the next book at least, so I can keep going forward with new stories. (And, of course, I owe that to the fans for their support.)
With The Consuls of the Vicariate, I hope to have more. More of everything, and more than anything, I hope people will like it. We saw the conclusion of the story arc with Gustav Drakar in the first book, and we’ll be moving forward to the arc with Andolis Drakar in the second. After that… well, you’ll have to see how Consuls ends to know where we’ll be going next. 
Hopefully, it will be ready in February, and I foresee the third (and the *currently* planned final) of the series out for release in June.
The audiobooks will follow on a schedule that is self-supporting. If there’s enough interest in the first audiobook (which, I must say, has been well-received and is doing well) and it at least pays for itself, I’ll commission the same actor (if he’ll have me) for the remainder of the series.
For now, back to work. Thanks for all the support.
Posted in Mages of Bloodmyr, Novels, Self-Publishing Blog | 
Tags: epic fantasy, fantasy, Mages of Bloodmyr, novels, The Circle of Sorcerers | 
No Comments » The Circle of Sorcerers Released
I have finished releasing The Circle of Sorcerers to all retail channels. The print editions will take a little longer to float along the internet stream, but the electronic versions of the book are up at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords, and Smashwords should begin distribution to their retail partners (Apple iTunes and others) soon enough.
Excited!
Posted in Mages of Bloodmyr, Novels | Tags: epic fantasy, fantasy, fiction, Mages of Bloodmyr, novels, The Circle of Sorcerers | No Comments » The Survivor Chronicles now Free
I have decided to make the Survivor Chronicles (my zombie apocalypse tales) free to the public. You can find them and download them in many popular formats (and those which are only in PDF now will be in other formats soon, so check back). I hope you enjoy!
Posted in Novels, The Survivor Chronicles | Tags: novels, Prisoner and Survivor, The Dying Times, The Survivor Chronicles, The War of the Dead, zombie | 4 Comments » Book Bloggers & Reviewers
This page is currently under construction. This will be a place for any book bloggers who happen to come by to request copies of the books for review/blogging material. Hopefully, this part of the page will be fully operational by the first week of November.
If you want a copy of a book before then, feel free to shoot me an email at brian@latenitebooks.com, and include a link to your blog or review website and indicate which book you are interesting in receiving. I respond to all requests.
Posted in | Tags: blogger, book, find books to review, novels, review books, review novels, reviewer | No Comments » February Report, 120 days later
It’s been four months since The Dying Times hit the scene, and about 23 days since The War of the Dead was released. I’m here to report on sales rankings, sales numbers, and so forth. People ask me about this all the time, and I promise, as always, to include some shiny graphs and stuff. I will include sales from all channels as of 02/25, and they shouldn’t change a huge amount until the end of the month.
Posted in Novels, Self-Publishing Blog, Site News, The Survivor Chronicles | Tags: novels, sales report, self publishing | No Comments » Looking Towards the Future
The War of the Dead Cover Art Finalized
Posted in Novels, The Survivor Chronicles | Tags: Andy, novels, The Survivor Chronicles, War of the Dead | No Comments » Contests/Giveaways
Benchmark Giveaway: 200 “Likes” on Facebook
When we reach 200 “likes” on Facebook, I’ll be giving away a $25.00 Amazon gift card! No strings attached!
The War of the Dead – Andy’s Story
Author: Brian Kittrell
Page Count: 312 pages
Stage: Available!
The War of the Dead Cover Art
Format(s): Novel, 5.25″ x 8″ paperback
Download for Free (why free?):
- PDF: Download (1.17 MB, .pdf)
- ePub: Coming Soon
- Mobi (Kindle): Coming Soon
- Sony eReader (LRF): Coming Soon
- Palm Document (PDB): Coming Soon
Released: February 1st, 2011
The War of the Dead: Andy’s Story is the second book in a planned series of survival horror set in a post-apocalyptic world filled with flesh-eating undead zombies. It tells the story from the perspective of Andy, a Captain assigned to a secret military post in Texas, known only as North Star. At first, Andy’s only responsibility is watching over a facility tasked with processing information and studying viruses. As the story progresses, Andy’s job becomes much more complicated.
This book could be considered a more omniscient overview of the global events that occurred parallel to the story of the first book and explains, from the military’s standpoint, the progression of occurrences as the virus strikes the United States and Europe. It also strongly reinforces a few twists and turns that were present in the first book and leaves the story open to develop into the next in the series.
The second book in the Survivor Chronicle series continues to develop strong characters and a strong progression of a very volatile and interesting storyline. The second book can be read independently of the first book, but the story tie-ins to the first book might be missed.
Reviews
Any professional reviews for this book are listed here:
Review by Sandra Heptinstall of Whispering Winds Book Review & Midwest Book Review. Reviewer rated the book 5 stars.
Often times we wait for the next book of a series to come out and then are disappointed, as it does not live up to the first book. I can honestly say that I liked this book even more than the first book.
In this second installment we are given the military perspective of what has happened in our country. The whole eastern seaboard has been hit by missiles. Many people have been killed from the attack, but then something strange happens. Some of the dead come back alive and are attacking and trying to kill the people who had made it through the initial attack.
Captain Andy McKenzie is assigned to a military post called “North Star,” which is near Fort Hood, Texas. His job is to keep everything coordinated, and inform Washington of his findings. By satellites he can see what is going on in the country that has attacked us and also, how the Marines are doing in the jungles where the attack was launched.
After many attempts at contacting Washington, and reporting his findings, Captain McKenzie learns that Washington, DC has been hit and people are dead, or have become a type of zombie. McKenzie finds his own men and women are leaving their post to move as far West as they can, and taking everything they think they may need too survive on their own.
This book is captivating and will keep you reading. You will find yourself waiting for the next installment. This is not your ordinary zombie type of book. Do not let the word “zombie” turn you away, as this book can encompass a variety of different genres.
For some of us baby boomers this story can hit home. We grew up doing drills each month where we would have to get under our desk and cover our heads. Then, the threat was the U.S.S.R and some people even had underground shelters in case we were attacked.
Again, I have to say that this book also has just a whisper of truth in it that will keep you reading. We now live in a world that is filled with terrorist and extremist. Who can say that the things that are mentioned in this book can not happen in our world today? You need to read this book.
Sandra Heptinstall
Rated PG for violence
Review by Lori Bowland from Living Dead Media. Reviewer didn’t provide a star rating.
“War of the Dead: Andy’s Story” is the second installment of “The Survivor Chronicles” and tells the story of a Captain Andrew MacKenzie who commands a secret base tasked with finding intelligence and a way to stop a warlord from launching a deadly attack on the U.S and allies.
When I began to read this story I was reminded of some very interesting military thrillers and then the story evolved into a hybrid of a Tom Clancy novel and one written by Michael Crichton. The story is very smoothly written and the storyline tight. The writer seems to know a great deal about his subject and writes the story with a comfortable style. Scenes where there are military sequences and action are very convincing. The parts where there are zombie attacks are very creepy. He does go off on one tangent with the story which is a romantic side story that may be a little out of place in a zombie story. The story does connect fairly well with the first novel in the series with a psychic link with its main character. This aspect of the chronicle is both baffling and fascinating. I’m wondering where the author will take this sub-plot.
I liked most of the characters in this tale. I found them to be very convincing as well. The main character could have changed into something like Captain Rhodes from “Day of the Dead” but the writer made a very good choice in creating a character that the reader will sympathize with. Other characters include a special ops team which was one of the best written aspects of this novel. They become trapped in a lab with a few zombies around and one member is trapped outside by the warlord’s troops. I welcomed that they didn’t panic when their situation became dire. A character called Alyssa Henderson was part of the romantic side story but even with that aspect she was very interesting and a bit of a mystery. I wanted to know her back-story.
Brian Kittrell writes stories that go a bit beyond, “the box” with this series. This is another series that I’m going to be impatient waiting for further installments. The first story in the Survivor Chronicles was very good but I think that this one is just a bit better. This series is proving to be a mesmerizing picture of a world that could be.
Lori Bowland (Tauseret), Living Dead Media
Posted in | Tags: author, books, Brian Kittrell, living dead, novels, The War of the Dead, undead, walking dead, zombies | 1 Comment » State of the Art Address #1
August 2, 2010 | 
Author BrianPosted in Site News | Tags: amazon, core system, free copies, manuscript, negative comments, novel, novels, roleplaying system, supplements, time span | No Comments » The Dying Times – Nadene’s Story
Author: Brian Kittrell
The Dying Times book cover
Page Count: 282 pages
Status: Available!
Format(s): Novel, 5.25″ x 8″ paperback
Download for Free (why free?):
- PDF: Download (1.09 MB, .pdf)
- ePub: Download (170kb, .epub)
- Mobi (Kindle): Download (425kb, .mobi)
- Sony eReader (LRF): Download (192kb, .lrf)
- Palm Document (PDB): Download (147kb, .pdb)
The Dying Times: Nadene’s Story is the first book in a planned series of survival horror set in a post-apocalyptic world filled with flesh-eating undead zombies. It tells the story from the perspective of a 13-year-old girl who has been thrown from an uncertain world of divorce and dealing with the stresses of a single parent family to a world overtaken by a viral disaster which turns normal people into depraved creatures hellbent on destruction.
When the disaster strikes, Nadene and her mother Pamela are forced to make decisions for their own survival, and they pick up companions along the way who may be able to help, but, in many cases, simply have nowhere else to go and are looking for a way out of the nightmare.
The book focuses on character development, fast-paced action, and descriptions that put you on the edge of your comfort zone. I hope that zombie fans will enjoy this brand new edition to the genre, and the first book in a series of survival horror: The Dying Times: Nadene’s Story.
Author’s note: As a note, I should say that I appreciate all reviews of the book, whether positive or negative, and I post them here on the website for transparency and honesty. I don’t want someone buying my book if one of these reviews would have dissuaded them, as I’m not out to just sell books – I’m out to tell a story that people enjoy, and I appreciate both the good reviews with the bad. Even bad reviews help by making the author more conscious of his own mistakes.
Reviews
Any reviews for this book are listed here:
Review by Sandra Heptinstall of Whispering Winds Book Review & Midwest Book Review: Reviewer gave The Dying Times: Nadene’s Story a 5-star rating!
“This book is a genuine masterpiece of this type of genre. Actually, it could fit into a number of different categories and styles of writing. I read a couple of chapters and then put the book down. I kept thinking about the story and decided to just read a little more. Well, I wound up reading the whole book. I found out that once you start reading this book you cannot stop.
It starts in the year 2013 where we find the eastern portion of the United States is being attacked. Missiles carrying biological agents are falling and killing thousands of people. But then a strange thing happens. Some of the dead come back to life and begin to attack and kill people who were not effected by the bombs.
I found this story to be interesting, and it may hold a whisper of what may happen if some things do not change in our world. Everyone will have their own perceptions of the story and characters. I firmly believe that this book will be enjoyed by all who read it.
I loved the way the characters were developed and how they teamed up to go west away from the horrific things that were happening to save their own lives.
This book was so good I found it hard to believe it was from a first time author. Do yourself a favor and buy the book. You won’t be disappointed.”
- Sandra Heptinstall, Whispering Winds Book Review & Midwest Book Review
Review by Nickie Hopkins, independent reviewer. Reviewer didn’t provide a star rating.
Unlike Stephen King or even Jack London, “Dying Times” was easier to follow, and yet at the same time, just as interesting. An excellent read. If this book was a movie, I would be the first one in line to buy my ticket.
- Nickie Hopkins, Reviewer
Review by Greyz Grimalt from Clandestine Sanctuary.
“The Dying Times: Nadene’s Story is the first book in The Survivor Chronicles series by Brian Kittrell, and I am super lucky to read this book which will be released on the third week of November.
I am not a zombie fan, but when I saw the blurb of the book, I was intrigued of what Brian’s novel could give me so I gave it a go. I decided to read the first few chapters of the book and get a feel of how the novel would progress. Well, I didn’t stop on the first few chapters; I ended up reading the novel in one sitting.
I am quite amazed at how good this book is despite the fact that this is Kittrell’s first book. It is a well-written novel, the characters are well played out, it is a fast paced read, there is not a boring moment in the book, and the ending is just enough to make you want to wait on the next book from the series. After reading The Dying Times: Nadene’s Story, I so want to read the next book to know what will happen to Nadene and her companions.
Who may want to read this novel? Zombie lovers, paranormal junkies, readers who loves new stuff from fresh writers, adventure seekers, and people who enjoy a good read. I would just like to include a warning to younger readers because The Dying Times includes violence, so take a little precaution in reading the novel.”
Greyz Grimalt – Clandestine Sanctuary
Review by Lori Bowland from Living Dead Media. Reviewer didn’t provide a star rating.
This first entry into the Survivor Chronicles is the story of a teenaged girl making a perilous journey to Texas from Alabama. In her group of survivors are her mother Pamela, a homeless veteran named Wayne, a former police officer named John and a police dispatcher that they meet along the way, Susan. The world in which they live has been over run by huge numbers of zombies following a missile attack carrying a very deadly virus with it.Dying Times:Nadene’s Story is one of the top zombie stories that I have read this year. It’s very imaginative in its presentation and has a fantastic lead in to the zombie action. The book keeps a very steady pace and is attention-grabbing almost from the start. The zombie scenes are incredibly grisly and are excellently written. One scene takes place in an airport which the group is trying to fly off in a helicopter. This scene is particularly terrifying as the undead are relentlessly dogging the trail of the living trying to escape. These zombies are fast and just smart enough to be even more dangerous than their cinematic counterparts. One scene has the survivors at a cabin in a campground where they rest and regroup following a close call with a nuclear weapon in Biloxi MS. The group were followed by dozens of the undead to their refuge. This scene was startling. The author had fashioned some of the scariest scenes within the genre.
His characters are very interesting and exceptionally well written. Nadene the teenaged survivor is written with a great deal of sensitivity. The author gives this character an ability which added an extra dimension to the character. One of the better characters is Wayne, the homeless veteran. His character makes some interesting changes and eventually becomes the savior of the group. John is a very believable leader and Susan elicits a great deal of sympathy as she takes Nadene under her wing. I thought that all of the characters had depth and a range of personalities. I hoped that each of the characters would survive and found myself routing for them. I also think that Mr. Kitrell had created a very unusual undead world in this story. I had alot of fun reading this story and feel that anyone who reads this book will equally enjoy it.
Lori Bowland (Tauseret), Living Dead Media
Review by Brit from Bitten by Books.
“The United States is under attack. Missiles armed with biological weapons have struck the eastern part of the country, and death and destruction are now the new world order. Nadene and her mother are heading west, hopefully to safety. Along the way they pick up other survivors and they quickly learn they will do whatever it takes to survive the zombie invasion.
This is an interesting novel that takes readers on a terrifying journey through the heart of a biological disaster. The cast of characters who have nothing in common are brought together by this disaster. We get to see them come together to fight and we experience their heartache of losing their loved ones. Nadene, a thirteen year old girl, seems to be somewhat of a secret weapon. She has visions that help them avoid danger so she is quite helpful in guiding the group.
The Dying Times is interesting but does have some problems with word usage, consistency and believability. The constant use of the words suppose for supposed and use for used is distracting. While I had no trouble suspending disbelief when it came to the zombies, I did have trouble with the more everyday situations. One of the main problems I had was when there was a fire at Nadene’s school and she went home with a friend. Her mother was working and called the house a few times and did not get an answer and she then waits until four o’clock in the morning to call her best friend to see if Nadene is there. She claims she was too busy at work to call. I do not know any mother who would not make time to find her daughter.
There were several other inconsistencies but if you can look past them the story is fun and entertaining.
The Dying Times is a fast paced story with plenty of action, some interesting characters, and enough zombie thrills and gore to please the fans of zombie fiction.”Brit, Bitten by Books
The following excerpt was separated from the review, but is displayed here. This excerpt refers to a pre-publication version of the book, and the part referred to has been edited out of the final version (it is included for transparency and honesty): “Also, Nadene wakes up in terror screaming when she has her first period. She does not know what is happening. Her friend then gives her something until her mother can explain what is going on. A girl almost fourteen would know about her period if not from her mother then her friends or health class at school.”
Review by Jennifer DeNaughel from Lighthouse Dreams, author of Face the Rain. Reviewer didn’t provide a star rating.
“This book shows definite potential to be a great novel. It held my interest although it needs further development of the characters and dialogue. Despite it’s flaws, it has good flow though it does suffer from some continuity problems. I do appreciate the chance to review this book as it gives me insight into another first time author’s work. I hope he will keep writing and keep developing his skills as he does have a talent for storytelling.”
Jennifer DeNaughel – Lighthouse Dreams
Posted in | Tags: author, books, Brian, Kittrell, living dead, novels, The Dying Times, undead, walking dead, zombies | 6 Comments » Novels & Fiction
This page contains links to the individual product homepages for novels published by Late Nite Books. The status of each work is listed next to the link for easy sorting and fact-finding.
Books are much like children – creations of passion and love by the parents, harnessed from inception and guided into their present forms. At the same time, authors love their creations and fear what happens when they are let loose onto the world. Some may adore them and hold them up while others may abhor them and seek to destroy or discredit them with every breath. Either way, a book is the result of a recipe – a little life experience, a dash of compassion, and a generous helping of love. – Brian Kittrell
Completed Works
Mages of Bloodmyr
- The Circle of Sorcerers: Book #1 – Available!
Retailers: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords
The Survivor Chronicles (2009-2011) (released for free. why free?)
- The Dying Times – Nadene’s Story [282 pages, 5.25" x 8" novel-sized paperback] – Available!
- The War of the Dead – Andy’s Story [312 pages, 5.25" x 8" novel-sized paperback] - Available!
- Prisoner and Survivor – William’s Story [350 pages, 5.25" x 8" novel-sized paperback] – Available!
- A World Forsaken – coming soon!
The Survivor Short Stories (provided as free downloads)
- Harvey’s Diner [6 pages, 6.14" x 9.21" trade-sized PDF] – Ever wonder what happened to Harvey in The Dying Times? Find out through this original short story!
Works-in-Progress
The Survivor Chronicles
- Book #4 of the Survivor Chronicles – A World Forsaken - in progress
About/FAQ
Brian Kittrell is the founder of the Late Nite Books publishing imprint (2009) and a fiction author. His most recent release is the first book in the Mages of Bloodmyr series, an epic fantasy series, and is entitled The Circle of Sorcerers.
His first release of The Dying Times (Nov. 2010) was met with critic and reviewer acclaim, landing a review in the Midwest Book Review Dec. 2010, “Reviewer’s Bookwatch) and on several other reviewer websites. Other titles in the Survivor Chronicles series include The War of the Dead (released Feb. 2011), Prisoner and Survivor (released May 2011), and A World Forsaken (scheduled Fall, 2011). He has since decided to release the Survivor Chronicles series of books for free, and they can be downloaded from their respect product pages under the Novels & Fiction header.
In addition, he is the author and creator of the d10 Core Roleplaying Game System which is will see a release of the Second Edition of the core rulebook by the end of 2012. The basis of the game system is to streamline and speed up game play with a strong framework designed for fast task resolution (handled by a single die roll).
Brian is currently employed as a police and fire dispatcher and as a 911 services operator in Mississippi. He has held many other jobs, which include (in no particular order): volunteer firefighter (attaining the rank of Lieutenant before leaving the service, early 2003 to mid 2010), insurance agent, freelance web designer, grocery store clerk, freelance programmer, gas station clerk, hydraulic machinist/repair, video store clerk, retail clerk, fast food cashier, jail detention officer, juvenile detention officer, and, more recently, entrepreneur, author, writer, and ghostwriter (sorry, can’t reveal any details). Most of these were short-lived while he was younger, but they have all helped – in some small way or another – to mold his life experience and his writing.
He writes novels as a form of stress relief and management, and he believes that, of the options available, using his unique talent in writing is better than the alternatives (“It’s better than drinking or using other non-constructive things to cope with the pressure.”). He is married to a wonderful wife, and they have a beautiful daughter together (born Apr. 2010).
In support of other independent authors and publishers, he makes an effort to provide tools and resources for his fellow struggling authors. To name a couple: KindleProcessor (launched mid-February, 2011) is a tool which automatically formats eBooks so that they’ll look good on Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, the common tool used by all publishers, independent or not, to publish to the Kindle format on Amazon (this tool has become the eBook Formatter, and is available for free); and Late Nite Books (launched Dec. 2009) is the publishing website where he posts tips, tricks, experiences, and opinions on publishing news and topics and current events in general.
Some words that he says often describe him correctly are: author & writer, web developer & programmer, computer guru & enthusiast, zombie fan, fantasy freak, and always willing to help others.
Late Nite Books is a website containing community resources, company news and information, and digital and physical product links for The Survivor Chronicles series of novels, the d10 Core Roleplaying System, and other works.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
The following is a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) and their respective answers. If you have a question that you would like answered here, ask it and it shall be answered.
When did all of this start?
I have been writing for the better part of 2009 and beyond. Late Nite Books just seemed to be the next logical step.
What is your inspiration?
I get inspired by a multitude of stimuli. From movies, books, video games, and other media, to reading roleplaying systems, internet forums and blogs, and even news articles. Anything counts. I read very few fiction books these days in an effort not to be influenced by the works of others, though.
What is your motivation?
Passion, of course. A deep passion for writing and taking away personal satisfaction from my work. Writing is also useful for me as a form of stress management and relief, so I write, and I often write for long periods of time, up to several (4-6) hours in one sitting.
Why zombies?
The first and foremost reason is that I like zombies. Well, I should say the idea of zombies is fascinating and terrifying to me. One of my greatest fears is being eaten alive, whether by a zombie, a tiger, or an army of ants. There’s something about being slowly devoured methodically and mercilessly that really makes me tingle. Another of my greatest fears is having a parasitic organism in my general vicinity. Zombies fit the bill in both cases, making it one of my favorite horror specimens.
What is Mages of Bloodmyr?
Mages of Bloodmyr is a young adult fantasy series. The first book in this series is due out in October, 2011, and is entitled The Circle of Sorcerers.
What is The Survivor Chronicles?
The Survivor Chronicles is a post-apocalyptic zombie horror series for young adults consisting of The Dying Times (book #1), The War of the Dead (book #2), Prisoner and Survivor (book #3), and A World Forsaken (book #4).
Why did you create Late Nite Books?
I created the Late Nite Books imprint in order to publish my horror stories and novels, roleplaying games, and other works. I decided not to shop the novels around to large publishers due to the amount of time it takes for a book to go into publication that way. In short, it could take years to get the books out in print. I have the technical abilities to layout books and design book covers and the talent to write, so I decided to put it out there.
Welcome!
This is the official home page of the Late Nite Books imprint and author Brian Kittrell.Connect with me:
Email: brian@latenitebooks.com
Twitter: @Brian_Kittrell
Facebook: Brian Kittrell
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