Austen Rodgers's Blog

It's spooky season! Which means, spooky magic time!

Did you know that from 1100-1500, there were clerical necromancers? Clerical as in related to Christianity. Neither did I! In fact, it is believed that a large majority of black magic practitioners were clerics, both in reality and in public imagination, as as trial records and literature suggests.

Before the early church was hunting witches, they were very concerned about nigromancy (any method of black magic or black divination). At the time, it was an intricate form of ritual magic, whose practitioners summoned demons with magic blood circles and Latin recitations. 

The church condemned all black magic as dangerous, depraved, and it was said to be spread by "men who are Christian in name only [who] sacrifice to demons, adore them... They ally themselves with death and make a pact with hell."

However, the relationship between black magic and the early church is much bigger than just that…

Read the rest of this blog post on Patreon!

Greetings all! Another month, another divination! I hope everything is going well for you. Christmas is coming, and this book is getting written, so things are going well for me but more on that below. 

I've been tinkering with the idea of introducing either a character who uses it or a scene involving alchemy. Not in a Full Metal Alchemist or Paulo Coelho style, but as a mixture of protoscience, philosophy, and of course divination. 

The idea of all divination is that the world around us contains secrets that we can draw from. While astrology focuses on signs and omens drawn from the patterns of stars and planets in the sky, alchemy focuses on the physical elements of the world that we can more or less touch. 

One alchemical concept is the idea of the standard elements like fire, earth, water, and air. Very common. But those can be expanded to contain many more  that also represent a change or phase in a person's journey.

(the runes in the image are not in any particular order to this list)

The Metals: 

Lead (beginning)

Tin (superficial happiness)

Iron (strong, but not being brittle and bending is important)

Copper (passivity and empathy)

Silver (near perfect, or a goal nearly achieved)

Gold (pure, goal complete, or highest point of growth)

…

Have you ever wanted to divine your future?

I try every month! Read the rest of this 'Creation Divination' post to learn more about Alchemical Runes and my fantasy writing.

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Greetings!

It’s been some time since I’ve had something to share, and I’m happy to say that this is outside of the normal for me.

With the Crystal Mythos series completed, I’ve been working on a new fantasy series. Something much darker, more traditional, and larger than anything I’ve ever written before. Its inspiration comes from series like ASOIAF, The Black Company, and some of my favorite bands like Marilyn Manson and Inferi.

There are kings, an ancient sword that houses a terrible evil, and a prince who wants nothing to do with his lineage. But, that’s a story still in the works. However, I have something else to offer you today. It’s a text-based game set in the world, and serves as a prequel to the book I’m working on.

While the game is not perfect, I encourage you to dip your toes into the kingdom of Marl by clicking here, or on the image below.

Travel about the castle carefully (and precisely), or you may end up dead (or with a bug!).

Good morning! It's that time again. Feels good to be back in the writing seat.

As the image above suggests, this week I'm sharing Tyromancy. With so many kinds and process involving creating cheese, divining from cheese sounds like a gouda idea (ha!i'materribleperson). Who knows what the future holds? 

But before you grab those American singles out of your refrigerator drawer, know that divining from cheese could show you your death. Among that, people in the middle ages would examine cheese for its shape, number of holes, patterns of mold, to prognosticate love and money, too.

Young maidens would divine their future husbands by writing the names of all prospective suitors on separate pieces of cheese, and the piece of cheese that grew mold first was the ideal partner. This is the opposite of what I expected, as you'd think the most desirable person would be the one that went the longest without mold. To think of all the heart-broken relationships due to moldy cheese... It makes me bleu (HA!okayi'mdonenow). 

All jokes aside, Tyromancy is a really ancient form of divination. So old it's hard to find any research on it. There are also methods based on finding patterns in the  coagulation of cheese, and writing answers to questions on cheese and letting a mouse choose the answers. I have the upmost respect for this method of divination, even if there are grater methods (harharhar).

Projects for the week:

Today I'll be focusing on editing. I want to try to get four chapters of Dex Warrior polished off. That will put me in the clear for this week and next. 

Wednesday will be my day off, I think. Might do some light world building. The more that I work on it, the more I want to continue to work on it.

Thursday and Friday: Last week I mentioned my goal was to finish drafting the B plot. I came within a half a chapter, so there'll be no issues getting that finished this week :)

Song of the week: One of my favorite techno/cyberpunk instrumental playlists https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOw4nuJ01Y4

Do you want to see more posts like this?

Seven shuttles flee from Earth after an alien invasion and who do they have to protect them? A newb. 

Aiden is a refugee. He’s got next to nothing: no family, a bad case of PTSD, and no experience. As the remnants of humanity search the stars for a new planet to call home, the only escape from a depressing stasis-filled reality is the huge fantasy VR world of Libertas Online. For Aiden, naptime is over.

But even in-game, Aiden can’t forget the horrible attack that ruined his life when he overhears a plan to take control of his ship and return to Earth in a daring counterattack. It’s a mutiny that will risk countless lives, and he has no idea who’s behind it.

Now, to save his ship and the last of humanity, Aiden will have to master the mechanics of Libertas, form a guild and send out spies to uncover the identity of the mutineers before it’s too late.

Dex Warrior is a LitRPG story featuring game-like weapon statistics, formulas for warriors and wizards, guild wars, quests, combat, and village-building. If you do not enjoy these nerdy things, this book is not for you! 

Read for free on Royal Road, Inkitt, and Wattpad. All comments and feedback are wanted and appreciated! New chapters on Tuesdays and Fridays.

On February 18th, the audiobook of The Flame Seer went live and the bells in heaven tolled (I think, haven’t checked myself yet). With the first novel in my Crystal Mythos series all finished up, I think back to all the friends and family who have been with me through it’s journey and wanted to take a moment to thank each of them here.

Firstly, I’d like to thank my wife Tessa. Somehow, she’s stayed around even though I spend so much time at the computer writing (and I don’t even look that good).

Secondly, to William Byrne, for being the catalyst and inspiring me to start not only this series, but to fight to push my writing career forward.

Lastly, I’d like to thank my beta readers, narrator Kim Reiko, and all of the unnamed help. John Calligan and Amanda Empey, you’ve heard it before. Thanks for your help reading these stories when they were unfit for human consumption.

And of course, thanks to my Patreon patrons. You guys have stuck with me through hard times and motivated me to keep moving forward. We’ve only got one book left in this trilogy to draft. I hope you enjoy the rewards you get for your patronage.

Austen

Listen now!

Greetings everyone!

Boy, it’s been awhile since I’ve posted on the website. If you’ve been wondering where I’m at, I haven’t gone anywhere! Over the past year, I’ve been primarily using a reading group newsletter because it’s a heck of a lot easier to stay in touch with people. Check out the previous letter subscribe here!

But nevermind all that, we’re on to the good stuff: I fully anticipate being able to release the first of a new fantasy series this fall! As of the time of this writing, I’m onto the third draft of the second book in the series and I’m really hoping I’ll be able to release all 3 books in rapid succession. That’s what my goal is, but we will have to see how things pan out :)

And what’s the best way you can keep track of me? Newsletter or…. Patreon! Yep! I just launched my own Patreon page two days ago and so far things are going pretty good. If getting weekly updates, reading the novel before it hits retailers, and helping me fuel the series’ creation is interesting to you, all you need is $2 a month! Check it out, thanks a bunch, and see you soon!

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*Notice* This post is February 2018's newsletter. For more posts like this, you can subscribe here.

First, I'd like to give a special shout out to all the beta readers that have helped me get Finding Haven to where it's at today. You guys have been a great aid, and I'm happy to have you all as friends. John Calligan, April M Woodard, William Bryne, Amanda Empy, and Sharon Roberts, thanks so much!

The second big piece of news would be the release of my short story All Together, Live Forever! 
It clocks in around twenty five pages, and will be available to all newsletter subscribers for free in either March or April's letter! (It's headed to the editor's desk now)

"Desmon is the lead scientist of an A.I. program called the H.I.V.E., tasked to clone and reintroduce humanity after the fallout of nuclear war has passed. But the problem with copying the memories of a dying species comes into play when the machine can think for itself."

 

 

On the Infection...

This month, I'd like to share a bit of the inspiration behind the zombies in The Book of A Few, and what really made me go the route that I did.

First off, mild spoiler alert, as I'll be going into a bit of detail what makes them unique. The mystery that surrounds them takes up a decent chunk of the book's intrigue, as none of the characters know how the disease spreads.
You've been warned!

Don't get me wrong when I say this, but zombies got boring. And I loved zombies. My favorite book at the time was The Rising by Brian Keene. My favorite video games at the time had me fighting hordes of the walking dead. But, they were getting old. I was tired of seeing the same kinds of zombies over and over, and I wanted something new.

Bits and pieces of the world in the novel originated in the creation of a D20 Modern roleplaying game I played with some friends at the time, and I wanted a zombie that evolved and changed over time. But I wanted it to have substance beyond just "oh it grows bigger". Then I came across a wonderful horror game called Dead Space. Boy, not only did that game terrify me, but it gave me something to get started with. 

Over many different versions and constant changes, I came up with this lifecycle: 

A person comes into contact with the virus, be it saliva, blood, a bite, or even a scratch. Once inside a living body, the virus begins splitting and multiplying. Beyond fevers and fatigue, there really isn't anything dangerous right now.

The host dies, and this begins a chain of complex changes in the virus. It's just lost its primary caretaker, and now begins turning on the host's remains. The corpse begins to liquefy and secret some of the body fluids through pores, helping the skin retain its elasticity. The liquefying and consumption of the host's organs create gas pockets inside the corpse, which stretches out into massive bulges on the body. The virus can survive in this state for up to a week before the bubble pops naturally.

Once popped, either by being disturbed or by nature, the virus has roughly 24 hours to find another host - if introduced to still air. If an unfortunate person were to come into contact with the virus at this stage, they'd begin exhibiting rabies like symptoms within another 24 hours. They are now a "zombie", for lack of a better term, and the cycle begins again.

 

Dead Space introduced a species of aliens that resurrected the dead in the following pattern: The first wave of aliens would come in and just annihilate all life they could find, while the second wave that followed would then begin resurrecting the dead corpses into more necromorphs. Something about that cycle inspired me, and here's where it gets even more interesting.

With each life cycle, the virus makes its own changes and evolves as it goes along. Each time a living host is infected, it begins to incubate and make changes to itself. In the right conditions, multiple infected individuals in the third stage can even merge together and take on more radical changes. We can see the beginning of these changes in The Book of a Few when the virus begins restructuring its victim's bones and calcium deposits, giving one particularly notable subspecies increased height, strength, and elongated bone clubs for arms.

The biggest goal of this plague was to create a system where it was entirely humanity's fault. Everyday people were just as guilty as the science, or nature, (you may never know!) that created it.

I gave humanity the power to stop the virus from getting worse simply by not killing each other. A person can survive in stage one with no cause for concern. The only thing that mattered was making sure to burn the dead, so that the virus could not then infect another person and create another wave of infection. The beauty of it is, it's also a virus that's designed to be a problem for centuries to follow. A constant test of mankind's ability to work together and trust one another. The Book of a Few was really more about the characters than it ever was about the infection and just mindless zed slaying, and with a virus that could potentially resurface time and time again just adds more stress and more possibility.

But, humanity has this problem of making mistakes and killing each other in times of great peril and hysteria. Shucks. 

Hey everyone!

Interested in being one of the first to read Finding Haven? Wanna help me in my creative processes, provide honest feedback, and help a guy get his novel in the best shape possible? If so, read on!

Finding Haven is a fantasy novel of 95,000 words. I'm hoping to get feedback regarding the characters and the overall story more than anything at this point, as you would be considered among the "first wave" of beta readers.

 Blurb:

Angela always knew what she wanted out of her life. With strong conviction, she offered herself as a warrior of Dingir. In the floating city of light and metal, she serves alongside her husband, Michael, with pride. Her life – as she sees it – is perfect.

But when Angela is nearly killed on a mission to Earth she begins seeing loved ones shrouded in hell-fire that burns to the touch. Problem is, they see her the same way. With the authority she once served now seeking her death, Angela has no choice but to escape and find the Dalkhu who attacked her.

Finding Haven is an electrifying high-fantasy mixture of steampunk, otherworldly dimensions, and incantations set in a fantastical imagining of Heaven, Hell, and a long-gone Earth.

 What is a beta-reader?

A beta reader is a reader (surprise!) of unpublished manuscripts with the intention of finding continuity errors, looking into characterisation, and plot holes. Beta readers give the author advice and feedback on what works in their story, and what doesn't. Generally speaking, beta readers don't fret too much over grammatical or spelling errors, as that process takes place later on. Yay, editors!

Some key things that I expect are:

Feedback within one month. Honest, constructive criticism.I send you the book in thirds, and expect the survey at the end of each section to be completed.You will not share this work without my permission.

As a thank you, I'll send you a $5 Amazon gift card towards your next book! Fill out the form below if you're interested!

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Thank you!

Greetings!

It's been a long time since I've posted an update, and with all the things swimming in my head lately, I figured it would be a good time to get it all out. Not just to inform you, but also to help me keep myself on track.

First, I'd like to discuss what I've been working on this past year. I've kept it mostly under wraps, but now I'd like to take a little time to talk about it. If you've poked around the Books section of this website lately, you've noticed that there is a second (working) title named Finding Haven. I'm happy to say that the first draft is complete. 

What is it?

Finding Haven is a high-fantasy mixture of steampunk, otherworldly dimensions, and incantations. It is set in a fantastical imagining of Heaven, Hell, and a long-gone Earth. 

Here's a blurb:

“Angela always knew what she wanted out of her life. With strong conviction, she offered herself as a warrior of Heaven. But after returning from a failed mission, she’s seeing loved ones as flame-cloaked demons. With the authority she once served now seeking her death, she must find the demon responsible. When she does, will it spark a war of catastrophic events, and will Earth be caught in the middle?”

 Now, before your heart explodes in anticipation let me remind you that it's a first draft. Things are subject to change, but for the most part that is what it's about. 

You're probably wondering, "when?" Well, I have no clue. This is a story that has sat in my head for two years. It returned in spurts, strong, hard, and just screaming to be written. I thought about it while writing The Book of a Few, and it never went away. 

Will I self-publish it? Possibly, but I want this story to have the best footing that it can. I will give this story ample queries before considering self-publishing this one. Therefore, I am not rushing revision, and you will not see this piece for some time. 

So, now that the void of the past seven months has been filled, let's look forward.

As of next week I'll have finished earning my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Full Sail University. It's been a crazy busy three years since I began this journey, and I'm so excited to be in the program's final class. While I am somewhat nervous that I have more to learn (as every writer does) and no clear direction on where to find the information that I need to continually improve, I am eager to move along. This, for you, means that things will begin to move much faster. My work will be written faster, and I just cannot wait to have the time that I need to get ideas on paper. 

To fill my time in between drafts of Finding Haven, I'll be working on something else. As of the time I am writing this, I've begun the planning stages of a new novel. It's a sequel to The Book of a Few. Unfortunately, I can't give you any more details to this one. 

This brings me to other news; I will be un-publishing The Book of a Few until I release a second edition. For those of you that already have a first edition copy, this is good news! You now have a collectable item. I have no timeline on this, but it will release an updated edition around the same time  as the publishing of its sequel (probably a month before). 

Changes include the fixing of a few typos, updated cover art, and a very likely re-titling. I've come to realize that the current title of the book is too much of an "inside joke", as one would have to read it to have a grasp on what the title implies. This vague title, unfortunately, does not help sell copies. It was my first published novel, and my mistake, so I'll own up to it. 

I admit that I am not the most social person online. It's taken me far too long to post an update of this calibre. You can find that I post most frequently on Twitter and Instagram, if you want smaller news on my going-ons I suggest you get in touch on those websites. You will be hearing some more news here very soon, as I've got another side-project I'll be announcing once it's completely up and running. 

Until then, stay frosty.