Amber Cove Publishing

JUNE 2017 update on my writing

/ C.T. Phipps / 2 Comments

A heads’ up on where I’m related to on my various projects:

THE KINGDOM OF SUPERVILLAINY: I am at 22K writing this, which is a lot more impressive than it sounds as I haven’t “officially” started writing it. I planned to start writing it after I finished Lucifer’s Nebula but I keep writing a little bit more here and there as the jokes and plot come to me. It’s poor Gary enjoying the height of his success as a supervillain only to discover that comes with the cost of the heroes in retreat. Can he live in a world dominated by evil or will he decide he has to give the heroes a little push? I expect it to finish around 70K.

KINGDOM OF SUPERVILLAINY STATUS: INCOMPLETE

LUCIFER’S NEBULA: The sequel to Lucifer’s Star is 55K now and should be about 90K when done. The story will pick up a year after the events of the first book as Cassius finds its impossible to escape his past, no matter how far he runs. He must confront his doppelganger and wayward family, who are presently the heads of the galaxy’s ever-successful rebellion. But there’s a darker hand behind the Spiral’s civil war and if humanity doesn’t unite then it may simply join the legion of other extinct races across the universe. Cassius woudl rather just engage in some not-so-good-natured smuggling.

LUCIFER’S NEBULA STATUS: INCOMPLETE

100 MILES AND VAMPIN’: The sequel Peter Stone’s original adventure. 100 Miles and Vampin’ picks up with him being in a slightly-better but still pretty poor place in the vampire hierarchy. In this case, he’s assigned to look after the equivalent of Stephanie Meyers and immediately botches the job when she’s killed by an unknown assailant. Forced to solve the murder before he’s thrown up as a sacrifice to the masses, Peter needs to decide if success among the undead is worth it. I’m about 50K into this out of 70K so another almost done volume.

100 MILES AND VAMPIN’ STATUS: INCOMPLETE

WRAITH LORD: It’s taken just about forever to get my books right back for both Wraith Knight and the Red Room series. However, I have successfully done so. If you were interested in the my take on Tolkien-esque fiction then you might enjoy the fact I have a second volume coming out as soon as the cover is finished. Alex Raspad is working on it now. Jacob has consolidated his rule over the Formori and other “evil” races but does he really want to begin war with the “light” species? It turns out he doesn’t have much of a choice as they have begun their own invasion.

WRAITH LORD STATUS: COMPLETE

AGENT G: SABOTEUR: The sequel to Agent G: Infiltrator, we pick up with G now working for the United States government to hunt down his former comrades. Kept on a leash by the fact they have an offer to fix his condition before he dies in a few years (if he has that long), he’s less than happy with being one of the “good” guys. It gets worse when he realizes what he found out was true of his past was just the tip of the ice berg. It’ll be released as soon as I can get approval for it from Amber Cove.

AGENT G: SABOTEUR STATUS: COMPLETE

ELDRITCH OPS: The sequel to ESOTERRORISM is ready to go and should be coming out in a few months. I just want to get the book in a place where I’m not competing with myself. In this case, Derek is bored out of his skull as a member of the Committee and wishes he hadn’t given up his field agent status. Stupidly agreeing to investigate a diplomatic incident between the Red Room and the Vampire Nation, he ends up getting himself in the crosshairs of forces which want a war between the two powers. Oh and Dracula, himself, has decided to become involved.

ELDRITCH OPS. STATUS: COMPLETE

As for upcoming projects? I have plans on continuing the SUPERVILLAINY SAGA with not only Kingdom but an upcoming crossover book called WORLDS OF SUPERVILLAINY which will visit the universe of LUCIFER’S STAR and CTHULHU ARMAGEDDON. I also intend to continue both the LUCIFER’S STAR universe as a series while the majority of the others listed here will be capped off as trilogies. CTHULHU ARMAGEDDON is a special case as it was meant to be a stand-alone but I’m working on a third book and may have more as ideas come to me.

I’m also sketching out a collaboration with DAWN CHAPMAN for a Lit-RPG science fiction novel.

Update for May 2016

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Okay folks, it’s time for another update on what I’ve been up to as an author and what sort of stuff is going to be happening in the future of C.T. Phipps. Things have been going very well for me and while there’s setbacks, I’ve got to say things are all on the up and up when it comes to writing.

AMBER COVE: My relationship with Amber Cove Publications is especially good as I’ve signed an agreement with them to produce four 60K word books a year. Two AGENT G and two SUPERVILLAINY SAGA for the next few years. It’s a pretty hectic schedule but I believe I can hold onto it. It’s my hope to eventually produce twelve books for both series but we’ll see how that works out.

The Supervillainy Saga has sold well in combined audiobooks, ebooks, and paperback, with no sign of stopping. Indeed, its equal to a store release during the “heyday” of such things and that couldn’t make me happier. Not bad for an indie publisher.

RAGNAROK PUBLICATIONS: Ragnarok Publication’s deal with IPG (Independent Publishing Group) is closer than ever. It’s meant delays in releasing some of my books but is going to change the nature of publishing for all of my works with them as well as their existing prints. One consequence is you’re going to be able to see ESOTERRORISM and WRAITH KNIGHT in stores come 2017 which is something I’m ecstatic about. We’re also going to have them promoted very heavily by their reps. A small downside of this is we’re not going to have as quick a release period as Amber Cove. We’ll have roughly one book a year released from both series.

Now here’s some updates on individual series:

AGENT G: The first novel in the series, AGENT G: INFILTRATOR, will be released on October 15th, 2016 with present schedule plans. It follows the adventures of G, a assassin who has had his memory erased by the mysterious Society. He’s supposedly signed a ten year contract with them in exchange for fabulous wealth as well as a return for his memories. Is any of it true? Even if it isn’t, does he have a choice? What about when he’s sent up against a dangerous group of cybernetically enhanced assassins in the Carnivale? Sci-Fi espionage and murder action awaits! We’re hoping for a simultaneous ebook and audiobook release with Jeffrey Kafer set to do this volume as well. The sequel is already ready to go as well with AGENT G: SABOTEUR.

SUPERVILLAINY SAGA: The next book in the series, THE SECRETS OF SUPERVILLAINY is set for release on July 15th, 2016. Gary Karfosky a.k.a Merciless: The Supervillain without MercyTM is scouring the globe for secrets to restoring his now-cursed wife Mandy. Unfortunately, this has brought him closer to his partner Cindy a.k.a Red Riding Hood and he finds himself conflicted about his feelings for both women. Worse, both their lives are rudely interrupted by the news of a great superhero’s death as well as the fact they’ve made an enemy in the deranged new President of the United States. THE SCIENCE OF SUPERVILLAINY, Book 4# in the series. is set for release in early 2017.

RED ROOM: The Red Room series will continue past ESOTERRORISM but the first big news there is Jeffrey Kafer is also doing the audiobook adaptation of this work. He’s just finished it up and it’s set for release in the upcoming few months. The second book in the series, ELDRITCH OPS. will be released in Spring of 2017. This will follow newly promoted Committee member, Derek Hawthorne, on one last field assignment for the Committee to investigate “A House within the House” which is threatening to start a war against the Vampire Nation. Werewolves, pirates, and vampires menace our hero as well as a threat among his own family. Worse, the most famous vampire of them all in Count Draculs is coming to threaten him.

WRAITH KNIGHT: This is a book I’m immensely proud of and follows the basic premise of, “So, the Dark Lord is defeated and the heroes return to their homes. What would happen if, after five years or so, everything went to hell?” Jacob Riverson is a creature not-too-dissimilar to a Ringwraith and after regaining his free-will, finds himself in a world centuries older than the one he left behind. Recruited by a young heroine to try to defeat the very heroes propelled into power by the previous generation, he must deal with the fact it’s a much more complicated and grayer world than the stories of his now-legendary adventures depicted it. The first book is scheduled for release on November 8th, 2016. Like Esoterrorism, it will be released on audiobook but we haven’t picked an audiobook narrator for it.

So, our schedule for 2016 looks like:

2016

THE SECRETS OF SUPERVILLAINY: 7/15/2016

AGENT G: INFILTRATOR: 9/15/2016

WRAITH KNIGHT: 11/08/2016

Early 2017

THE SCIENCE OF SUPERVILLAINY: 3/15/2017

ELDRITCH OPS: 4/15/2017

AGENT G: SABOTEUR: 5/15/17

Cover sketch for THE SECRETS OF SUPERVILLAINY now available

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Awesome cover sketch by Raffaele Marinetti for THE SECRETS OF SUPERVILLAINY, the third book in the Supervillainy Saga starring Gary Karkofsky a.ka. Merciless: the Supervillain without Mercy. Here, we see Nightgirl and Ultragoddess. I described the latter as “Supergirl by way of Rosario Dawson and Ronda Rousey.”

Great work.

THE SECRETS OF SUPERVILLAINY should be out this July.

C.T. Phipps’ Writing Projects for 2015/2016

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Hey guys,

I thought I would give you an update upon what I’ve been working on, writing wise. It’s been awhile since I’ve done one of these posts and I figure it’d be great to give people a sense of what my current projects are.

Sales-wise, I’m very happy about what we’ve been doing for The Rules of Supervillainy and Esoterrorism. Esoterrorism‘s sales have been strong and are well on their way to reaching their year-end goal. No news yet on whether or not we’re going to be doing an audio book version of Esoterrorism but I’ll be sure to keep you guys posted on the subject. The Rules of Supervillainy, however, is a runaway success story and has not only reached its year-end-sales goal but has actually managed to quadruple it.

Yes, quadruple.

Amber Cove Publishing is very happy with its progress and we’re already working on an audio book adaptation release for Sping of 2016.

Better still, The Games of Supervillainy, sequel to Rules, is going to be released at the end of October 2015. This will continue the adventures of Gary Karkofsky as he attempts to find his missing wife Mandy in the now-zombie-ridden Falconcrest City. Move over, Ex-Heroes, there’s a new undead-slaying super and his crew in in town!

The Games of Supervillainy won’t be the end of the Supervillainy Saga, however. Indeed, for 2016, we have books 3# and 4# prepped for the series: The Secrets of Supervillainy and The Science of Supervillainy. The plots of these are under wraps for the time being but will follow Gary on his strangest mission yet: helping the good guys! *shudder*

Esoterrorism is getting its sequel set for March of 2016 with Eldritch Ops. Eldritch Ops. picks up with Derek Hawthorne having been promoted to a member of the Committee and absolutely HATING it. Suited for field-work rather than membership in an international conspiracy’s ruling council, he’s put on point for preventing a war between the House and the Vampire Nation. This is complicated by the fact Derek’s partner, Christopher Han, was murdered by vampires and turns out to be the monster Derek’s been sent to negotiate with. Can Derek prevent a war with the undead? Will he want to? And what’s this about a House within the House? Could it be our anti-hero has been working for BAD GUYS the entire time?

Well, duh.

Ragnarok Publications has more faith in me than just the Red Room series, which I think will close out with a trilogy, though. They’ve agreed to publish not only the first novel of my Wraith Knight series, appropriately titled Wraith Knight but its sequel, Wraith Lord, next year as well.

Wraith Knight follows the adventures of Jacob Riverson, a once-great hero who finds himself awakening after two-hundred years of slavery as the undead spectral servant to the now-deceased King Below. Awakening to a new world where heroes and villains used to be clear-cut but are now more ambiguous, he allies with an idealistic young warrior woman to achieve some form of redemption. But can a physical ghost find salvation? Does such a thing even exist?

This isn’t the end of my projects, though, as I’ve also got a sudden burst of inspiration to do my sci-fi spy series Agent G. Inspired by Total Recall and the Transporter movies, G is an agent for the mysterious Society. Having had his memories erased, he owes the organization ten years of faithful service as an assassin in order to get them back. Taking place in the modern day, it is a world which is infinitely stranger than we ever gave it credit for as dueling cabals wield unimaginable technology.

In the first novel, Infiltrator, G not only has to deal with a collection of colorful killers armed with the same advanced technology as the Society but also rescue or terminate a man who might be his father.

Just a normal day at the office.

Short-stories wise, I’m going to continue to donate my efforts to the At Hell’s Gates anthologies, which I heartily recommend to any and all horror fans. These books donate all their proceeds to the United Fallen Heroes fund and contain some of the best writing by independent horror novelists you’ll find today. The books are filled with writing from such budding luminaries as Devan Sagliani, Shana Festa, Tim Marquitz, and others. You can read more about these wonderful books here.

Tim Marquitz and Joe Martin, as if they weren’t awesome enough, have also been kind enough to invite me to join their Humanity 2.0 project. This is a shared superhero universe in the style of Marvel and DC comics which will publish a series of anthologies where humanity has been empowered by alien tampering. I’ll be posting a novella called Freelancer in Emergence. I can’t tell you much more than that but I’m really excited about working on this. You can read more about this particular project here.

In addition to all of these projects, I’ll also be continue to post here at the United Federation of Charles and do my best to review the best (and worst) in video games as well as independent fiction.

I hope you’ll check out my stuff!