Better Hero Army's Blog: Better Hero Army Talk

So far in 2021 we've released Archraven (late ... it was supposed to go out in 2020) and Arecibo (on time ... on pi day). That's two books in one year. I haven't done that in a while ... bonus points if you can guess when ... I'll wait.

And while we wait, how about we go for three books this year. THREE!?! Are you crazy, you ask? Yes. Yes I am. The hope is that we'll finish out the Hollow Mountain Butterfly series with Stonewing by Christmas. Miimork is back and making the interiors right now. All I need is to get a new cover artist lined up, which will probably be my bane this time. Imagine it, though. Three books in a single year.

Can I do it every year? Probably not. Oh, and I'm being told we have our winners! The answer was 2014, when Plagued books 2 and 3 both dropped. Congratulations Tom in Wisconsin and Carol in Texas for figuring it out so
quickly, and remember, bragging rights are an online currency, which is worth more than any prize I could award otherwise.

But what can we expect in 2022?

Honestly, I'm not sure myself. I have several new ideas in the works that will certainly be different, but none are singing to me right now. Maybe 2022 will be another 2020. Yes, no book that year. Archraven was supposed to fly. We shall see.

There's a reason this book was delayed so long. It basically comes down to a decision I had to make about Greta Kane, a new character in the Hollow Mountain that I introduce in Archraven. She's one of the stygian, the lightless who live in the cisterns and sewers and old tunnels under the city. In my original outlines, something happens to her that I felt was necessary for the story and plot of the fourth book and the overall story arc. However, after writing these events and circulating it with my alphas, it was decided that the story had to change, that what I was doing wasn't right for *this* story.

So it took me forever to revise it because, honestly, I'm a terrible revisionizer (is that a word? It is now). I'm just glad it's finally done and on its way, revisionated and all.

For those of you who have been eagerly awaiting book 5 of the Plagued States of America series, be advised, it is on its way. The cover is done. We've done the test prints to get the coloration right. You can hit my website (www.betterheroarmy.com) to check it out. The first chapter is also there, so enjoy the teaser.

Which begs the question, what's the release date?
Well, this other book I'm working on has been taking all my time, so I haven't reviewed the edits and revised P5 for the final copy-edit yet, so I can't say...except you can forget about it happening in February, or March. I know, "wait, you have a finished book in your possession that you can release at your leisure to your adoring fans and you're (air-quotes)too busy(close-air-quotes) working on something else?!?!" Before you burn my other books and flip the table, just understand that my WIP is a totally different kind of book. If I start editing Plagued 5 now, you'll get some fluffy bunny garbage and not a sink-your-teeth-into-some-flesh zombie kill-fest...although, I do need to warn you that you won't get any zombie kill-festing in Plagued book 5. In fact, you'll probably be disappointed in me on this one if you're expecting hordes piling up outside the door...until you learn that Penelope Hope is getting her own series!!!

Yeah, and you were all ready to flip the table on me.

Penelope Hope is going to be the star of her own post-post-apocalyptic stories (yup, I just invented that genre) taking place over here in the safety of the Districts and Rurals...or are they safe at all?

More to come on all fronts, folk.

In my last post I asked if you wanted to see the title for book 5, but then I didn't tell you what it is. It's not that I didn't know it, it's that I didn't want to make a post about book 4 all about book 5.

Now that book 4 has been successfully launched, and everyone's read it...you've read it, right? It's a total action packed adrenaline rush, so you better go read it before reading this. The last thing I want to do is give away that Doctor O'Farrell is actually one of Senator Jefferson's evil henchmen and that their plan all along was to switch Penelope and Larissa. Anyway, what was I saying about book 5?

Oh yeah, the title reveal!!!

Plagued: The Angel Rise Zombie Retribution Experiment

Cover is being shot soon. We've had some trouble scheduling the model. As soon as we have a cover, I'll add the manuscript to Goodreads so you can add it to your TBR, because I know you're going to want to read it.

Well, it's finally official. The release date for Book 4 of the Plagued States of America is June 15th, 2017. You can pre-order your copy on Amazon now. It's been a real labor of love with this book because I wanted to work in so many things but still give you all the action, excitement, full-bodied characters, and story you expect.

This book is a slight departure from the main storyline of Penelope Hope in that we get to tag along with Doctor Wendy O'Farrell and learn more about the curative research and the web of conspiracy surrounding everyone and everything.

Will there be a sequel? Yes. It's actually nearly complete as I write this.

Will there be more Penelope Hope? Heck yeah. She's prominent in Book 5.

Did I kill Matt in this book, too? You bet. Brutally. But hey, he asked for it. Oh, and I'll give a signed copy of Book 4 to the first person who can tell me all the ways Matt has died in the first three Plagued books between now and the launch date.

Are you ready for a sneak-peak at the title of book 5? Totally! Who isn't, right?

That's all for now. Enjoy the read.

I'm really excited that I now have a cover for the 4th book in the Plagued States of America series. It's a cool green (color progression is silver, gold, blue, green, and then...hmmm...maybe I should have fans vote on book five's cover text color). Book 4 looks pretty awesome. The first printed color tests (book proofs) really looked bad, though, so some changes are being made and we'll try again soon. I'm sorry to say that this means the cover reveal isn't being made in this post.

A lot of news to discuss lately with respect to the series too. First of all, I'm putting together a Comic-Con 2016 panel of zombie authors so we can all talk about our worlds and you, the fans, get us all in one place at the same time to ask what makes us tick. The Comic-Con board will vote on the panel in April, so I'll know then if it's a go, but in the mean time, keep your fingers crossed.

The second thing to mention is the book's title. I don't think I've let everyone know what it's going to be yet! Drum roll.......


Plagued: The Battle Creek Zombie Rectification Experiment


Here's the blurb: When zombie research scientist Doctor Wendy O’Farrell is abducted by fanatics who live deep within the Quarantine Zone, she must struggle to protect the recently cured daughter of a powerful Senator while being forced to deliver a curative to the infected friends and family of her mad captors.

In this book, you'll learn a lot about what's going on in the world, your questions will be answered, and you may or may not believe it all given the questionable sanity of the source. I hope you can all hold out until this one hits the market.

I recently modified the ending to Plagued book 2...no, I didn't actually change the book, but I added an epilogue that I hoped would get readers to leave feedback (hint, hint), and as a bonus, they get a little more insight into Kennedy's character. I figure if you read the book before the update, you deserve the cool addition. Here's the cool part of what was added:

Most movies these days reward you with a hidden, extra clip that shows what happened just after the ending, or infers something that will happen in the next installment of the series. And most of the audience walks away oblivious to this. That’s why I want to share with you something special, because you’ve gotten this far....

Kennedy read the Senator’s text on her pink phone: Did you save the blood work? Is he a match, or not?

She tapped a response: Yes. I can make her curative now. See you in a few days.

The Senator wouldn’t reply. Too much possible scrutiny already. She had been surprised in the first place when the text arrived an hour after the facility went up in flames. She ignored it a little while to make him sweat, but now he had the answer he cared about.

Kennedy sloshed more amber liquid over the ice cubes in her glass. She looked out the window of her apartment at the smoldering remains of the island, all lit up by helicopters and flood lights from the Rurals, everyone busy searching for survivors. She hoped there weren’t any. It would be cleaner that way. She wasn’t sure what caused the sentry ring to fire, but it couldn’t have come at a better time. First Biter’s Hill, now this place.

Two down, one to go.

She put her phone on the counter next to the half-empty bottle and picked up her drink. She wasn’t sure if the Senator had a hand in the destruction, but either way it didn’t change anything. He needed her, and when he got what he wanted, there would be too much at risk to let anything untoward happen to her. As the woman who delivered the curative, she was going to be the single most important person in the world for a while. She was safe, for now. She could prove her loyalty later.

She held up her glass toward the island as though toasting the place, then took a sip.

To me.

I've been writing the first draft for Plagued book 4 for a while now, and I have so many cool things in it that I just have to share something...so spoiler alert activated. What you are about to read will give away a lot of cool scenes when you eventually read the thing. If you're a purist and don't want to know, then stop reading here.

For the rest of you who, like me, are itching to be in the know about the things we love, here we go.

I try to put something cool into each book. The duck, for instance. Midamerica's abandoned air terminal, the prison facility on Rock Island, the EPS building (an empty, converted office high-rise), M.B. Houston's train, and snowmobiles. All things that I feel make my stories a little more enjoyable to read.

Thankfully, the duck is once again in the book, but it isn't used to get people anywhere this time. Instead, our heroes need air support, which they get in the form of PPCs, aka Powered Parachutes. These babies are versatile little craft with a wind speed of 25-35 mph and a 10 hour flight capacity with a full tank of gas. They don't need much room for lift-off, and they can land in any open field. Perfect for getting into and out of trouble in the zombie quarantine zone. Who needs helicopters?

The next item on the list is construction equipment, namely a Bragg crane and several cement mixer trucks. I've been itching to use the crane since I wrote book 2, by the way. And yes, there will be some splatter effect with these monster vehicles.

And finally, my favorite of all, is that this book takes place in an abandoned zoo. I'll let you ponder all the possibilities that go along with that. A zoo in zombie land. Oh, my.

So when does all this lovely goodness hit the market? The first quarter of 2016.

Yes, there is going to be a book 4 to the Plagued States of America series. Readers and reviewers have wondered it for a long time, and I'm letting you know now that I am writing a fourth book. After all, even though book three wrapped up several threads in the series, we haven't yet figured out what's going to happen in the world!

Now I know from my readers that they prefer delving into Penelope's head, and following her around the world. She's an interesting character, after all, and something of a mystery. I got a lot of flack when I split the story line in half the way I did back in book 2 with the introduction of Jones and O'Farrell. I brought the two together in book 3 to praise, and now I'm splitting it up again...but don't go sitting this one out just because Penelope isn't in it.

In book 4, Dr. Wendy O'Farrell gets to exact a little revenge on the world for the untimely death of the man she was falling in love with. Along the way she discovers answers to some of her most burning questions, but from a source so dubious that even the truths she already knows begin to seem implausible. Will there be action? Yes. Adventure? Plenty. All kinds of wicked cool zombie danger? Oh...H-E-double-toothpicks will most certainly break loose. So readers of the series, please stay tuned. This one is shaping up to be the most incredible of the series so far...

Given that my first four published books were zombie apocalypse stories, it may come as a shock that my next book is straying from the genre...and by no small margin. It is a ghost story. Well, to be more precise, it is about gargoyles.

Gargoyles and ghosts, and one girl stuck in the middle of a longstanding feud between the two. The book is entitled Girlgoyle, and it is the first installment of a four-part series called the stories of the Hollow Mountain Butterfly.

Girlgoyle begins with fourteen year old Tiffany Noboru being killed by a maniacal ghost named Bones. Upon her death she is miraculously whisked away to the gargoyle world and wakes to discover she's been reborn...with wings. And a magical ability to create light and use it as a weapon to kill ghosts. Which is good because that's her new job - ghost hunter cadet.

Tiffany isn't alone in this respect. She is sent to live in a bay full of other unwilling recruits, where she meets and befriends Hedika, an older girl with honed skill and unbridled knowledge of all things gargoyle.

Tiffany is assigned a mentor named Franklin Craft to train her in the gargoyle ways. But his quest for revenge against Bones means Tiffany is dragged into dangerous confrontations with ghosts up in the human world, which spill into the gargoyle one as well.

Now, without spoilers, of course Tiffany must face Bones in the end...but will her newfound powers of light be strong enough to defeat him?

Just a hint: it is four books in the series.

I'm really excited by this series because it is far more than just a book. Manga artist Miimork illustrated the thing, and we have a fan-art/fan-fiction handbook in production as well. The second book in the series should also be done in time to hit the market by the end of this year!

Girlgoyle