Lee Stephen

The website of author Lee Stephen

epic

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The Audiobook Progresses

With the Xenonauts novella–something I’ll touch on in another entry–wrapping up, I’ve had more time to sit down and work on the production of the DOD audiobook. I’ve had several people inquire as to why this audiobook project seems to have taken so incredibly long. Being that it’s going on three years in development now, I’ll absolutely agree: yes, this project has taken very, very long. Arduously long. Tortuously long.

The reason for this is pretty straightforward and can best be described by a single word. Beastly. Because that’s what this audiobook is. Outright beastly. Up until this point, the most anyone has heard or seen of the audiobook, beyond a few pitifully short teaser trailers released in years past, has been the “theatrical” style trailer, seen here. While that trailer (which is actually the audiobook’s introduction) will offer an insight as to the approach this thing is taking, listeners won’t fully understand what this audio experience will be like until they start hearing actual clips. Those will be coming in time. But what I can tell you is this…forget everything you ever thought you knew about audiobooks when you consider this one. This is not a person reading the story. This is a summer blockbuster in audio form. I think one of those most telling scenes in this project is from the Battle of Chicago, an iconic Epic mission that spans two chapters in Dawn of Destiny. The first of those two chapters clocks in at over thirty minutes long. That’s thirty minutes of people shooting, running, screaming, fighting. Thirty minutes of the most bombastic soundtrack you have ever heard in an audiobook. Thirty minutes of total dynamic immersion.

It’s just the nature of the beast (no pun intended) that this project is taking as long as it is. Every sound is inserted “by hand.” Everything is timed to happen when it happens, from musical cues to pauses in dialog to that plasma bolt that just took out the window. It just takes time. Thankfully, with the help of the absolutely sensational Natalie van Sistine, who is handling all of the dialogue editing for this thing, the speed at which this audiobook is being produced has increased tenfold. Right now, it’s rocking and rolling. This is good, and it’s why I was confident enough to name 2013 as the year this thing hits the public.

I’m most excited for you guys to hear my voice actors. They do such an outstanding job bringing the Epic characters to life, from Stewart Cummings total ownership of Scott Remington, to Paul Bellantoni’s chilling take on General Thoor, to Gabriel Wolf’s uncanny ability to actually become a Bakma. Not to mention Patrick Quance, who singlehandedly elevated the narration of this project to something so ridiculously good, it almost defies belief. As much as I’m pumped up to share the story of Dawn of Destiny with people in a fresh, new way, I’m even more excited to share these actors with you. Every single one of them, of which there are over two dozen, knocks their role out of the park. It’s awesome to hear.

So sit tight! I know it’s been a long wait (believe me, I know). Every day brings this thing closer and closer to fruition.

I love this job.

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Epic’s 90-Day Workout: Teaming with Duolit

In my last journal entry, I mentioned that over the next several months, I will be working with Shannon and Toni from Duolit, a tag-team pair of literary and promotional trainers. Effective promotion has always been Epic’s weakness, as I’ll be the first to admit to anyone that I just don’t promote myself well. I write, I release, and I let things run wild. Up until this point, that’s worked relatively well for Epic. But at the same time, strictly relying on word-of-mouth is not the way to go. Epic deserves better, as does the fan base. The more people who get into Epic, the more engaging the community will become. The more successful Epic is, the more I can actually do.

Tomorrow (Thursday, Jan. 10) marks day-one of this 90-day “author boot camp,” as I’m referring to it. There is no doubt in my mind that it will both be an eye opening experience as it pertains to the things I should and could have been doing for Epic, but also a huge step in the right direction for me personally (and professionally) in regards to my writing. I have always been honest even when it comes to identifying my own shortcomings. This process will directly address one of my biggest ones – marketing and to an extent believing in myself.

I will definitely be posting as this process gets underway, not only to let you know how things are going, but also to let you know about some really cool things that Epic is doing. The Epic Universe will become very active over the course of the next three months – I definitely want you guys along for the ride. It is you who make Epic what it is. Without you, this series doesn’t have a reason to exist. I want you guys taking this trip with me!

With that said…it’s time to bring on Duolit. I’m so excited about what 2013 has in store for this series. I know faith will persevere.

Here’s to an epic three months, and brighter things for the series’ future.

-Lee Stephen

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Meet the New Face of Epic

 

 

She’s been a tactical scout, a covert agent, a romantic comedian, and a world-class swimmer. Yet none of those roles will compare to the one Esther Brooking is about to assume. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the new face of Epic. Over the coming weeks, you’re going to see a lot of Epic’s favorite scout from Cambridge. You’ll read her thoughts on Twitter. See her likeness on deviantART. You might even hear the sound of her voice on YouTube. It’s not a coincidence that Esther is suddenly getting a lot of face time. She’s officially been named Epic’s character ambassador.

So what does that mean exactly? In the context of the Epic story, nothing new. Epic began, and will continue, with Scott Remington at the helm. But even the most casual fan of Epic would have to agree: no one brings quite the character resumé to the table as “Molly Polyester.”

Esther’s transition into the physical world via things such as Twitter and deviantART will give fans (and potential ones) a chance to experience Epic through the eyes of one its stars. In terms of importance, Esther is a top-5 character in a series with over a hundred named ones. Her quirky combination of sass and style is second-to-none. She’s a scene-stealer. Who better to spearhead a promotional campaign? Having Esther in the spotlight will provide name recognition to a series with an overabundance of names to choose from. She’s Epic’s pretty face to the world.

So get plugged into Esther Brooking! Tweet her—she will definitely tweet back. Keep tabs of her on YouTube…you may not have heard the last of her there! Check out her account on deviantART, where more will most certainly be added to her gallery. Heck, you can even zip her an email at esther@epicuniverse.com. Drop a line to Epic’s special-ops spitfire.

She’ll blast you back at every chance she gets.

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Does Faith Belong in Sci-Fi?

“I have nothing against Christian or Christian writers, but when I want a ‘Christian’ story, I will buy one. When I want military Science Fiction, that is what I want.”

“Pages upon pages of God this and God that … Oh GOD cut it out! If I want to be preached to, I’ll go to a sermon. When I read military science fiction, I want a good story, NOT a spiritual rant.”

“The main character had a fixation on the Bible. For no apparent reason he would start thinking about his ‘faith,’ question god’s ‘plan,’ do some soul-searching, then decide he is doing what god ‘wants’ him to do.”

 

Well…that answers that!

Not so fast.

The quotes that kicked this entry off, if you haven’t figured it out, are from selected 1-star reviews for Dawn of Destiny, the first installment of my Epic series (NOT representative of the vast majority of its reviews). The same sentiment can be taken from each: an unequivocal insistence that stories of faith have no business being in science-fiction. They are oil and water. Wheat and chaff. Teenagers and turn signals. So the question remains. Does faith belong in science-fiction?

My answer is unabashedly, wholeheartedly, yes.

Now before some of you get all crazy on me, take a moment to understand the statement you just read. It did not say, “To not advocate [insert any name of any religion] is to fail.” Nor did it read, “To say that God is not real is to fail.” Take a look at the fundamental basis of the originally-proposed question. Does faith belong in sci-fi?

According to a 2011 survey, 51% of the global population has a belief in God, with varying percentages falling under such options as, “believes in an afterlife,” or “undecided.” Only 18% classify themselves as “not religious.” Bear in mind, “not religious” does not equal “atheist.” It simply means “not religious.”

Faith is real. That is not to argue that it is correct, or proper, or in need of emphasis. It is simply to state what it states. Faith – the human belief in some sort of Almighty – is real.

This is really just touching on something that has become somewhat of a passion point for me lately: the mindset that the word “God” should never appear in any sort of science-fiction (unless it’s followed by an expletive). Characters who seem real should appear in science-fiction, and if characters who seem real should appear in science-fiction, then characters of faith should appear, as well. That’s not an opinion. Unless your protagonist is an atheist who will have zero contact with any other human throughout the course of your story, or the full length of the narrative takes place at an atheists’ convention, then faith must appear to some extent to capture the essence what we should strive for: realism..

Obviously the question still remains, to what extent should faith exist in a science-fiction story? And the answer is, “whatever you want.” Including faith does not mean pushing it. It does not mean leaving footnotes to Bible verses. It doesn’t even mean making the person of faith the hero (heroes are heroes, religious or atheist). But it shouldn’t be ignored. It exists, in the same way that atheism exists, in the same way that agnosticism exists, in the same way that this whacked-out kid who married a cow ( http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/830794-man-forced-to-marry-cow-faints-at-wedding ) exists.

Me, personally? I’m not a fan of laying it on thickly. In spite of what the reviewers at the top of this entry think they read (I’m fairly certain it wasn’t my book), my preference for faith inclusion leans toward light and subtle. Because isn’t that how most of us are, most of the time, with everything we do? Realism is captured in subtleties. Now, the faith element of Epic and in particular in Scott Remington – my protagonist – is absolutely there, and I make zero apologies. But we – and particularly the owners of the quotes that kicked off this entry – make a mistake when we view “there” as “preaching.” We make a mistake when we don’t want faith present at all. We might as well marry a cow.

Okay, so that last line didn’t make sense. But just the same…what the heck was that kid thinking?

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What are you After?

That’s probably the first question I ask people who approach me about their pursuit of writing as a career. What are you looking for? Why do you want to do this? If the answer is somewhere along the lines of, “because I want to sell a million books,” or, “because I want to make a million dollars,” then I’m probably not the blog you want to follow. I can’t help you there, and even if I could, I’m not sure I’d want to. I’m not sure it’d be in your best interests, and that’s really the thing I’m most concerned with.

You see, there’s a secret about the world of writing – one that most authors (independent or not) don’t want you to know about. I’d probably go so far as to call it a secret to “success,” though that mostly depends on your definition of the word. Regardless, it’s something that’s rarely, if ever, brought up in the writing clique. Brace for it, because here it comes.

Writing isn’t everything.

“Blasphemy!”

“Did he just say that?”

“What kind of a writer is this?”

Yeah, yeah, keep it coming. I’m a CCC (Conservative Cajun Christian) from South Louisiana. I can take a lick or two.

But seriously. Writing isn’t everything. There’s so much more to life, there’s so much more to living, and there’s so much more to being successful. No level of sales figures can replace the smile on my wife’s face when I offer her a foot massage after a rough day, or the tongue-flapping grin my dog gives me when he wants to play “hide and go dog” in the house. Writing can be your passion (it certainly is mine), but it doesn’t have to be your obsession.

I’m a little bit different, and I’ll tell you upfront that most authors (okay, pretty much all authors I’ve ever talked to) will disagree with my core writing philosophies. I don’t think anyone can be a writer. I don’t think you can make a career out of this. I don’t think you should strive to write something every day. I think writing conventions and clubs are a waste of time. I think listening to the advice of a best-selling author is the equivalent of listening to the advice of a lottery ticket winner.

“You’re jaded because you’re not a best-selling author yourself.”

No, because well…I kind of am one. In the realm of indie writing, I’ve been blessed with a pretty good level of success. My series, Epic, is the best-selling independent sci-fi series in America (though as soon as my good friend and fellow writer Patrick Todoroff officially becomes a “series” author, that title may change!). I get more than a few requests for writing advice and sales tips, which leads me to believe that, as improbable as it may seem, I must be doing something right.

So take heed! Though I may not be a lyrical poet (I really, really hope somebody gets that), I think I might be able to impart a thing or two. But don’t take my word for it, or anyone’s word for that matter. Writing isn’t a journey. It’s your journey. How you go about it and how you define success are up to you.

In the meantime, sit back, relax, and count the ramblings of a guy who uses words like “couillon” and “peleed” as wisdom. Satisfaction anything but guaranteed. But you already knew that.