Lee Stephen

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Lee Stephen

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The Finishing Touches: E5 Release Date Coming

As all updates must be when things are going fast and furiously, this one’s going to be short and sweet. Epic 5: Enemy One has finished the editorial stage and is beginning its final read-through. The final read-through is exactly what it sounds like: the final read-through. The novel is printed, in a binder, and being read by me from cover to cover for any last-second finishing touches. When this final read-through is finished, E5 will enter the last stage of the novel-creating process: design and production.

After four arduous years, the most ambitious installment of Epic is about to see the light of day.

Though I’m as eager as anybody to get Enemy One out there, I won’t be rushing the release date announcement. When I am fully confident that the release date can be met, it’ll be posted (and yes, there is a specific one in mind). If you’ve been intending to reread the first four installments…now might be a good time to start.

Get ready, friends. It’s on its way.

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EPIC 5: Enemy One, Coming Summer 2016

Coming Summer 2016

 

Epic faithful, the wait is finally coming to an end. In Summer of 2016 (month TBD), the most daunting book in the Epic series, Enemy One, will see the light of day.

Fans, you have been waiting for this a very long time. You have been patient with me while I battled cancer and experienced the birth of two sons. You waited for me to get my head right, then my heart right, as I wrestled this story from its inception to its end. Enough words in Enemy One were rewritten and left on the cutting-room floor to create a whole other installment. After a two-year personal hiatus from writing, you all deserved the very best I could give. Enemy One is the very best.

Between now and release, I will be teasing various aspects of Epic’s fifth installment. But for now – for tonight – enjoy that something new is on the horizon. Your comrades are coming back.

Thank you for praying for me. Thank you for sticking with me. It’s almost time.

Vivat 14,

– LS

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Big Audiobook News re: Distribution!

So I’ve been waiting to get all my ducks in a row before writing this entry (and some of them are still flying around), but there’s been a major development for the Dawn of Destiny audiobook in the realm of distribution. As those who have kept up with the audiobook know, rights were a major issue for me post-audiobook development. I made an unconventional decision in going with CD Baby exclusively, at the cost of widespread distribution, because of the fairness of how they did business. Well, things have changed!

There’s a lot of nitty-gritty in the details, but the short version is that I found a means by which to distribute my audiobook to all major retailers without feeling like I sacrificed my freedom. Yes, the audiobook is still available at CD Baby, but you’ll also be able to find it at a ton of other places, including Audiobooks.com, Audible, and iTunes. If you’ve been waiting for the audiobook to pop up in these spots, that time has finally come.

I definitely want to encourage you guys to give the audiobook a listen if you haven’t already. This was a huge undertaking for Epic and the resulting product is really something special. I would love to do more audiobook adaptations in the future, so getting support for it is a big, big deal!

Enemy One is still steamrolling forward at a whopping 180,000 words, which already makes it the largest book in the series (with a lot more still to write). This is going to be a chunk of reading for you guys. Long time coming, right? Length has pushed this to mid-2016, as it’s just going to take that long to get this behemoth through post-production. Loving this story, though. As is usually the case, you’ll never see some of this coming.

Hope everyone’s holidays are going well!

-Lee

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What’s Going On (& why it matters!) + Enemy One Update

Those of you who follow me on Twitter (@epicuniverse) may have noticed some increased activity today in the form of mentions and retweets. That’s because from today to April 10th, Dawn of Destiny will be doing a blog tour to thirty different websites, all of which will be doing their own spotlights and reviews on either the novel or audiobook version of DOD.

Why does this matter to you?

Because attached to this blog tour is a massive giveaway with ten prizes, all of which will be determined in a drawing a week after the blog tour has ended. That means you have a chance to win some pretty awesome swag, such as a Kindle Fire HD 6, just by participating! Details on the tour can be found here, and info on the giveaway (hosted by Rafflecopter) can be found by scrolling down on that same page.

Why does this matter to Epic?

Because this is once again a chance to really get the Epic fan base alive and active during this dreadful in-between-book lull (though I promise, that lull will be coming to a close)! You can increase your chances of winning the giveaway by doing certain things on social media, such as tweeting and following me on Epic. Even liking the Epic Facebook Page counts. But the two biggest bonuses are these: owning the DOD audiobook and participating on the Epic forums.

Once again, if you don’t own the Dawn of Destiny audiobook yet, which you can find here, now is really, really the time to pick up a copy! Owning the audiobook allows the biggest bonus in terms of the giveaway, and look, I mean…this thing is winning awards, guys and gals! DOD just took “Best New Fiction” and “Audiobook of the Year” from the New Apple Literary Awards. If you’re a fan of Epic, this is a MUST-own audiobook. It will change your entire perception of the series, and I’m not just saying it to say it. This thing has changed my perception. It’s the real deal.

Secondly, and always big on my heart, are the Epic Forums, found here. Every day that you start a new thread and reply to someone’s thread on the Epic boards, you get points toward the giveaway. Yes, every single day! That means that between now and the giveaway’s end, you have a chance to really ramp up your chances to win something just by being active on the forum, starting new threads and replying to others’. New members will be joining the discussion on the forum during this giveaway. I want you guys there, too! They’re new to Epic, but you’re not. Show them what this series is all about. You guys are my ambassadors! Let’s get some conversations going. 🙂

Last, but not least…let’s talk some EPIC 5: Enemy One!

As I’ve mentioned before, by leaps and bounds, this has been the most challenging book to write in the Epic series. The good news is this: this monster has found its traction, and it’s going to be one good book. There are a lot of things I’ve never been able to address in the narrative, such as Vector Squad, other worlds, and only-mentioned characters like Todd Kenner, John Mariner, and Mark Remington. Enemy One finally gives me a chance to flesh all of these things out to a degree I’ve never been able to in the previous books. Epics 1-4 and 6-8 are essentially the two “halves” of the Epic Octology. Epic 5 is the bridge that brings them together. This is a book of massive transition.

This is my promise to you guys, my fans, whom I do this for: Enemy One will be the best it can be. You guys have been patient beyond comprehension to me while I battled cancer and brought my first son (and soon my second) into the world. I am eager to get this book in your hands, and 2015 will be that year. But I won’t allow my own impatience to make its quality suffer. Time is of the essence, but this is a book that must be done right. I will not publish a book that is not solid. You guys deserve my absolute best – and that’s what you’ll get.

In the meantime, dive into this giveaway, guys! Get on that forum, start some conversations, and let newcomers to the Epic series know that it’s a series well worth their time. You’ll be reading Epic 5 before you know it.

-LS

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Update from the Terminal

It’s been a little while since I’ve given an update on things in general, so a post like this is overdue. Anyone who keeps up with me at all knows I don’t blog terribly often, but when I do, I try to give my entries a little substance. My aim with this entry is to provide a little insight into the many things I have on my literary plate.

Firstly, and what I’m sure most people are curious about, is Enemy One, Epic’s fifth installment. Progress on the book is going very well, as it’s currently Outlaw Trigger length but still with a ways to go. Though my original plan was for this to be a book somewhat longer than the first two, I was hoping to keep it under the lengths of Hero and TGB. Being as far into the book as I currently am, that may or may not be the case.

Enemy One is, without a doubt, the most difficult book I’ve ever attempted to write. One of the biggest challenges has been that, to be perfectly honest, it hasn’t even been the book that I’d expected it to be. TGB ended on a fast note, leading me to assume that book five would pick up with that same tempo. In actuality, the Enemy One experience has been quite the opposite. The more I wrote, the more it occurred to me that the natural transition from the frenetic conclusion of book four was the literary equivalent of a long, deep breath. Much needed to be digested, both by the reader and by the crew of the Fourteenth. An attempt was made to maintain E4’s action-heavy finale’s pace, but it just didn’t feel “right.” So I did what I felt was best, discarded any preconceived notions of what I felt readers expected, and just wrote the way the story asked to be written. In my experience, writing bears the best fruit when stories are given free reign to direct themselves, with me acting merely as a mediator between thought and keyboard. I think this approach as served Enemy One well. The tagline of “Run” still applies. But the concept of running is multifaceted, not simply relegated to literally running through city streets firing assault rifles. A story that would simply be that would be style over substance. As in all Epic books, there are action sets sprinkled throughout book five. They just have a purpose beyond being “action for the sake of action.”

Epic 5 is going to be different. I’m well aware of the notoriety of fifth installments (Rocky 5, Star Trek 5, etc.). Enemy One could very easily fall into the “weak link” category of the series if it were forced into the same mold that was used for TGB. Because of this, the approach has had to be different – and careful. There is a story to continue, but Enemy One can’t be The Glorious Becoming Part II. It has to stand on its own, with its own merits, its own uniqueness, and its own pacing. What has this led to? A book that is far deeper, and far more psychological, than I ever could have anticipated. It has the potential to be the most thought-provoking installment in the entire series. The first four books in Epic are the intro. The last three are the journey to finality. It’s Enemy One‘s job to link them together. If done the right way, this transitional book can be mesmerizing. Don’t ask me for a release date. I’m writing every day, but the editing process for this book will be longer than most. It’ll be done “when it’s done.” I anticipate that being in 2015. As always, bear with me.

Epic is not all that I’m working on! I’m actually juggling a whopping five writing projects right now (Enemy One included), meaning that there will soon be some non-Epic lit out there by yours truly.

One of these projects, I can’t talk about yet. But it’s big. That’s all you get.

I’m also in the beginning stages of a second novel series that I can’t talk about too much at this point, only to say that it’s a major change of pace for me and something I’ve wanted to get to for a very long time.

Then, there’s a story I’m working on that…look, I’m just gonna be honest. It’s chick-lit. My wife was watching a Hallmark movie one day, I plopped down on the sofa, got sucked in for a bit, then made the dreaded statement, “You know what kind of story I bet this channel would love? Something about…” As it turned out, the idea was good. Really good. “I have to do it now” good. So now I’m stuck. All I can say is that if I told you the idea, too, you’d be like, “dude…yeah…that one’s a winner.” I hate chick-lit. Nicholas Sparks is my bane. This will be interesting!

The last item I’m juggling is purely conceptual. It’s about gangster rap and vegetables. There’s really not much more to say.

And so those are the goings-on as of 2015! Oh, and we’re having another baby. This is gonna be one heck of a year!

I’ll write more as the above things develop. In the meantime, I’ll be cranking out Enemy One and the many other things I’ve got on the burners. Stay tuned, people!

-LS