There should have been thunder. There should have been lightning tearing the skies and the very heavens weeping. There should have been portents and comets and demons of fire riding skeletal horses of ice-white bone—but if there had been, this would have been a movie. Probably with very artistic lens flare. So there wasn’t. There was a cottage. And a future I was going to make damn sure never happened. Once upon a time...
*****
Ahem 🙂. Let me start again (Blush).
So, truly, that thing up there? It's the blurb for my next book - TWICE BORN. And, like many stories, there's a story behind it. Because one day, my Publisher (BOOKS WE LOVE), sent me an email. Every now and again they do a Canadiana series. One book from each Province, each by a Canadian author, each set on a similar theme about or from that Province. Which makes sense - they're a Canadian Publishing House. So in the past, as examples, they've done Canadian Brides, Canadian Historical and others. But this time? This time the series is to be Canadiana Paranormal. A book from each Province, each one based on something that actually happened in that Province. And my Evil Publisher told me I was doing New Brunswick, since New Brunswick is the Province I live in. But it was OK. Because they know I normally take two to three years to write a book, but this was in 2024, and it wasn't coming out until 2026. So, on with the motley, right? Whatever motley might be 🙂.
Yes. About that. Prepare for terrified screaming. Because I say, sure. I'll make it happen. And then? Then I get another email. Because Marketing sort of changed their minds. They want it out in October. October 2025.
Remember that terrified screaming I mentioned? Yes. It was me (blush).
Well, suffice to say, it got done. TWICE BORN will be coming out in October of this year, 2025. But as you may know, it's a very common thing in Publishing to have people (people who aren't related to the author, who weren't part of the book's creation, or close friends of the author) read ARCs (Advance Review/ Reader Copies) of the book, if the agree to post a review (in this case on Amazon) when the book is released. They get the ARC for free, and their only commitment is to post that review. Good or bad, it only has to be their honest opinion. The review generally says something like that at the front, so people know what's happening. Something like:
"I received this book free as an Advance Review Copy in return for a review when the book was released. This is my review..."
And that, of course, brings us to you. To you, and to my thanks for agreeing to receive this ARC, and for providing that review when the book comes out. I'll email you when that happens, but as I said above it is intended to be in October of this year, 2025.
So here we are. TWICE BORN is the title. And, like a lot of Canadian stories, it doesn't start in Canada. It actually starts in Italy, in the mountains of Friuli, on September 19th, 1835. But it also starts on a beach in Nova Scotia, which is in Canada but not in New Brunswick, on September 8th, 1863. And in a castle in Ecsed, Hungary, on a date not recorded by history. And in a basement nobody knows about under a very, very tall building at 350 Fifth Avenue, New York. Which might all sound very confusing - but that's how stories can be sometimes.
Ahem. Let's try that again.
There should have been thunder. There should have been lightning tearing the skies and the very heavens weeping. There should have been portents and comets and demons of fire riding skeletal horses of ice-white bone—but if there had been, this would have been a movie. Probably with very artistic lens flare. So there wasn’t. There was a cottage. And a future I was going to make damn sure never happened. Once upon a time...
There should have been thunder. There should have been lightning tearing the skies and the very heavens weeping. There should have been portents and comets and demons of fire riding skeletal horses of ice-white bone—but if there had been, this would have been a movie. Probably with very artistic lens flare. So there wasn’t. There was a cottage. And a future I was going to make damn sure never happened.
Once upon a time...
*****
Ahem 🙂. Let me start again (Blush).
So, truly, that thing up there? It's the blurb for my next book - TWICE BORN. And, like many stories, there's a story behind it. Because one day, my Publisher (BOOKS WE LOVE), sent me an email. Every now and again they do a Canadiana series. One book from each Province, each by a Canadian author, each set on a similar theme about or from that Province. Which makes sense - they're a Canadian Publishing House. So in the past, as examples, they've done Canadian Brides, Canadian Historical and others. But this time? This time the series is to be Canadiana Paranormal. A book from each Province, each one based on something that actually happened in that Province. And my Evil Publisher told me I was doing New Brunswick, since New Brunswick is the Province I live in. But it was OK. Because they know I normally take two to three years to write a book, but this was in 2024, and it wasn't coming out until 2026. So, on with the motley, right? Whatever motley might be 🙂.
Yes. About that. Prepare for terrified screaming. Because I say, sure. I'll make it happen. And then? Then I get another email. Because Marketing sort of changed their minds. They want it out in October. October 2025.
Remember that terrified screaming I mentioned? Yes. It was me (blush).
Well, suffice to say, it got done. TWICE BORN will be coming out in October of this year, 2025. But as you may know, it's a very common thing in Publishing to have people (people who aren't related to the author, who weren't part of the book's creation, or close friends of the author) read ARCs (Advance Review/ Reader Copies) of the book, if the agree to post a review (in this case on Amazon) when the book is released. They get the ARC for free, and their only commitment is to post that review. Good or bad, it only has to be their honest opinion. The review generally says something like that at the front, so people know what's happening. Something like:
"I received this book free as an Advance Review Copy in return for a review when the book was released. This is my review..."
And that, of course, brings us to you. To you, and to my thanks for agreeing to receive this ARC, and for providing that review when the book comes out. I'll email you when that happens, but as I said above it is intended to be in October of this year, 2025.
So here we are. TWICE BORN is the title. And, like a lot of Canadian stories, it doesn't start in Canada. It actually starts in Italy, in the mountains of Friuli, on September 19th, 1835. But it also starts on a beach in Nova Scotia, which is in Canada but not in New Brunswick, on September 8th, 1863. And in a castle in Ecsed, Hungary, on a date not recorded by history. And in a basement nobody knows about under a very, very tall building at 350 Fifth Avenue, New York. Which might all sound very confusing - but that's how stories can be sometimes.
Ahem. Let's try that again.
There should have been thunder. There should have been lightning tearing the skies and the very heavens weeping. There should have been portents and comets and demons of fire riding skeletal horses of ice-white bone—but if there had been, this would have been a movie. Probably with very artistic lens flare. So there wasn’t. There was a cottage. And a future I was going to make damn sure never happened.
Once upon a time...
Graeme Smith
www.graeme-smith.net