Christopher Mahoney's Blog

Hello world!

I've moved this blog to a new home at http://www.christophermahoney.com
Come on by!
Kalamazoo!

Well, it's been quite some time, since I've written here and even longer since I've written something substantial about my book. So, this is announcement is overdue.

The Incredible Origins of the Onyx Sun is now available on online bookstores everywhere!

This includes Apple iBooks, Amazon Kindle Store, Barnes & Noble Nook, etc.

I'm very excited by this development. It's been over ten years since I wrote the first word in this space adventure. Since then, it's been a wild ride of self-publishing, winning some awards, having Publishers Weekly and the Midwest Book write great reviews, reading it to hundreds of kids, finding an agent, talking to publishers like Scholastic, Penguin, and Disney, and finally making the decision to "strike out on my own again" and publish the Onyx Sun online.

I got tired even writing all that.

So, I'll save a rant about self-publishing vs. traditional publishing for a future blog post. For now, I just want to relax and enjoy the freedom of being in control once again of my book's future.

Since my priority is to share my book broadly and have people enjoy it, I've set the price at $0.99. Enjoy!

Kalamazoo!

I just read an amazing article this morning that puts in context the sheer magnitude of the universe. There are billions of billions of stars in the night sky. As the article points out, even a "dark patch" in the night sky is a window to viewing thousands of galaxies.

This is one of the major reasons I wrote the Onyx Sun. There are literally infinite adventures awaiting our species out there.

One day.




Kalamazoo!

Happy Birthday Aiden!Eleven years old today. Amazing.

It's still weird to me you share a birthday with two of my best friends.

Kalamazoo & love,

Happy 10th birthday my boy! Wow, can't believe it's been that long. Still think about you daily. This is still one of my favorite pictures of us (probably both working on our next books!)

Happy 10th birthday my boy! Wow, can't believe it's been that long. My family and I still think about you daily. This is still one of my favorite pictures of us (probably both working our next books!)

Happy Birthday Aiden!Wow, nine years old today. Happy birthday buddy!

You're always on my mind.

Kalamazoo!

Happy Birthday Aiden!Wow, nine years old today. Happy birthday buddy!

You're always on my mind. Wish it were easier to see you.

Kalamazoo!

I had a great day last weekend exhibiting at the Sonoma County Book Festival. First of all, it was warm, which being from San Francisco is a very acceptable change. Next, I was pleasantly surprised by how many people there were and how open they were to hearing about the exhibitors' wares.

About 40 people stopped by my booth. By the end of the day, I think I had explained my book so many times I could have done it in my sleep.

The few moments where there wasn't a visitor, I spent my time talking with my boothmate, Ezra Barany, who is the most light-hearted and friendly person I've met recently. At the end of the day, we exchanged books. So I picked up a copy of The Torah Codes ("a Jewish DaVinci Code") which I look forward to reading. I also met a woman named Margaret Murray, who has written an existential story called Sundagger.net. I haven't started it yet, but I'm looking forward to reading more!

Of course, no great book festival would be complete without a visit at the end to a local brewery. So my wife Kim and I slid over Russian River Brewing Company, where a beer and pizza bites put a cap on a great day!

Kalamazoo!




Christopher

[image error] It's been a while since I posted as I've been pretty busy traveling abroad for work and just plain working (not to mention dodging hurricanes in the Outer Banks for a friend's wedding last week and training for my third triathlon. Pic from my last one to the left.)

So, I'm excited to finally have something new and book-related to post. I'll be attending and exhibiting at the Sonoma County Book Festival on September 24, 2011 in Santa Rosa, CA.

If you're in the area, I'll have a booth at the event and will be offering signed hardcovers of The Incredible Origins of the Onyx Sun . Come by and say hi. It's my brother's birthday that day too, which is a funny coincidence, and I'll be offering a 30% discount to mark the day.

In other book news, The Midwest Book Review gave my first book a nice review, saying it is "a fun entry into a brand new youth science fictionseries, highly recommended!" although I wish they would have recognized it is more of an adventure novel set in space than true sci-fi. But that's a small point to quibble over. Thanks for the kind words MBR!
[image error]
I also offered a free giveaway of my final paperback advance review copies on Goodreads.com. Although I only listed 150 books, I got over 1,100 requests! That was pretty exciting. I hope those who won them enjoy them as they are a rarefied version of my book now. I originally printed over 1,000 of them, gave about 700 away to kids, schools, and industry press and now only have about 50 left after the latest giveaway. If you were one of the winners, keep sending me your emails as feedback is key to me evolving the Onyx Sun series!

Lastly, since we're on the topic of the series, I have gotten a number of inquiries over the last few months about Book 2: The Wicked Adversaries of the Onyx Sun. Yes, I am working on it. I've got about 70 pages written so far and continue to chip away at it a few pages at a time. I did take a brief break to write a different novel - another book for younger readers but geared more firmly toward the YA crowd. Now that is done and out to agents for consideration, I am back to working on the Onyx Sun Book 2, while I promote Book 1.

Thanks again to all you who have supported me, sent letters from your children or students, or bought a book. I am much encouraged by all your positive support, words, and feedback.

Kalamazoo!




Christopher