Busy week

It has been a really interesting week for me.   This week featured M-Day. My book hit stores and seems to be doing really well. Monster Hunter International has been plugged and reviewed from one end of the blogosphere to the other. I even got a plug on Instapundit.com. 

I’m still doing okay on Amazon, but I don’t really know how to put those stats into context yet. #14 in fantasy, in the 600s overall. Does that mean I sold a hundred books? A thousand? Ten thousand? Beats the heck out of me.  All I know is that for three days I was ahead of every single one of Stephen King’s novels.  Sure, he doesn’t have anything new out right now, but it is still good for my ego for a few minutes. Must be all those soldiers that are too ‘illiterate’ to understand him, that are buying my stuff…  I kid, I kid, Mr. King, please don’t have me killed by demonic clowns.

Reviews so far have been uniformly good. Surprisingly enough, I’ve only gotten a couple of negative ones. I don’t really mind. Everyone has their own tastes. Like I can’t read Jane Austen, but my wife loves her, so obviously I probably shouldn’t review Jane Austen. Unless it is the new one with zombies, because that is on my reading list. 

Speaking of reading list, I’m going to take a brief break from writing now that The Grimnoir Chronicles: Hard Magic, 1st Draft is done.   I’ve got a ton of stuff that I need to read. I just started Marko Kloos’ novel, and it is really good so far. Then a really good friend of mine just sent me her new book (don’t know if she wants me to say who she is), and I’m looking forward to reading it, and then I’ve got a fantasy novel that I read the 1st draft several months ago, and it has been cleaned up and I’ve got that too… Whew…

Not to mention that I’m trying to read some Dave Farland, because I’m going to be doing several book signings with him, and I’d never been familiar with Dave’s work before. I’m reading the Runelords right now, and it is a great series so far. Then I’ve got Brandon Sanderson’s Warbreaker sitting there, that I want to read also because I enjoyed Mistborn so much.  

Really, once you become a writer, it totally kills your reading/video game/TV time.  I’ve watched maybe an hour of TV in the last week, and it was the Discovery channel show about surviving the apocalypse.  (though I’d have dropped about two dozen of the raiders by now… I’m just saying) I’m even behind in B movies!  I’ve only read a couple of books so far this whole summer. Paul Gennesse’s 2nd novel in the Iron Dragon series, The Dragon Hunters (great series, check it out), and Dan Well’s I am Not a Serial Killer, which is a cross between horror and teen drama, only this is not a teen you want your kids to relate with. Also a great book.

Reader Force Alpha has mostly gotten back to me on the rough draft of Grimnoir, with the exception of the Goddess Bellona, who is busy smiting evil with her flaming sword. (Correia taps foot impatiently…)  So far, so good. Everyone is loving this one. I’m really excited and I’m eager to get my newer stuff out there.  People don’t realize that I wrote MHI in 2006. I finished #2 a long time ago. I’ve written several other books since MHI, and that is a lot of practice. I feel like I’ve grown as a writer over the last three years.

In non-book news, my Dad got his knee replaced. Which is good, because the pain was killing him.

We went to my wife’s family reunion. I only have three cousins, total. My wife has 62 first cousins. The reunion was so large that they had to have color coded name tags so everyone would know which branch you belonged to.

And it was the first week of school.  No wonder I’m so dang worn out this week!

More MHI Patches! Order yours now.
More language help for Grimnoir. German this time

17 thoughts on “Busy week”

  1. So, when is MHI 2 due out? Is Baen going to publish it?

    Can’t wait to read your other stuff beyond the sample chapters you have posted.

  2. Avenger, I don’t know yet.

    Jesse, I don’t know yet.

    Man, I sure am helpful! 🙂

    MHI:2 is done, and the rough draft is awating the publisher’s feedback, but no contract yet. Sales numbers, I just don’t have any idea yet.

  3. Ok, got done with the book!!! About set a new speed-read record, (Considering I worked normally too).

    AWESOME!!! Will now work on getting others to buy it, and I’m gonna get a spare copy.

    One thing, (Not to bug ya though ;-)).

    If there was ever a feature film, two actresses stick out for Julie.
    Jordana Brewster (Although she’d have to regain the freakish weight she lost recently).
    And Sarah Lancaster (Lookswise. Personality,eh. but very close to the MHI cover).

    Just a passing thoguht though. Awesome!! Keep up the work, anything else comes out, I’m buying it.

  4. I enjoyed the Runelords a bit, but I found myself commiserating with the antagonist (the human one) more than any of the good guys. These good guys are high on morals and exist in a state of mental crysis all the time. The bad guys are more likely to accept the fact they are going to end up in hell, and then do what they have to do to get the job done. Or at least they WOULD get the job done if it weren’t for all those damn goody two shoes screwing everything up.

    Meh… illiterate soldiers. I should get an MHI patch and put it on the right shoulder, see how long before someone notices.

  5. The Monster Hunter himself go down to a few measly demonic clowns? Please. King’s not gonna send enough over a stupid insult to cause you to reload.

    Once he figures that out, though, well… Let’s just say you had better have made some phone calls to some well-armed buddies before the second salvo arrives:)

    Hope your dad is doing alright. Knee stuff is hard at any age.

    tweaker

  6. Just finished the book last night.

    When the movie comes out, let me be the first to suggest Nathan Fillion as the lead role. Big enough and snarky enough to pull off Mr. Pitt.
    Great thing about the book was that it kept getting bigger…you introduced plot twists and world features that pretty much blew my mind every few pages, making the situation bigger, scarier, and more outrageous without descending into lunacy and/or campiness. I mean, we went all the way from fighting a werewolf in the office to the lead character winding up on ******’s hit list. Absolutely epic. Can’t wait for MHI 2 and I can’t wait for Nightcrawler. Rock on.

  7. So…any chance of poking you to make MHI 3: The adventures of Earl Harbinger your next book? I would love to read some stories from his perspective.

    He reminds me of my uncle. Ya know, the one that everyone has, real cool laid back guy who you know has a metric ton of sweet stories about all that nasty stuff, and even when your 24 he still says “I’ll tell ya when your older.”

    I just finished the part with Skippy’s tribe. Love what you did with that whole set of mythology…

  8. Hey Mr. Correia,

    Couldn’t wait for Amazon, so i picked up a copy yesterday from my local Chapters up here in Toronto. So far having a freaking blast with MHI!

  9. I had to order the book from a local shop (Local bookshop>Amazon) and am waiting for it to get here.

    All I know is that the book delivery truck need to kick that shit into AWESOME gear and get here already. I’m already telling people about the book and I’ve only read the first seven chapters.

    Stupid NOWNOWNOWGIMMEGIMMENOW society. Patience is a virtue. Patience is a virtue. Patience is a… crock of shite!

  10. Let us know what the numbers turn out to be.

    I remember a match were I was kind of bummed that I’d come -close- to finishing first… And then a buddy told me “Hey, you beat Tony Boyer.” Google Tony Boyer – He’s a benchrest legend.

  11. Picked up MHI at the local book/video store yesterday (in semi-rural Arkansas, no less… they had 2 on the shelf). Great job. I’ve used up all the spare hours I’ve had all week (about 6!) finishing it up.
    Definitely looking forward to the sequels and the Nightcrawler series!

  12. Great job Larry. Honestly surpasses anything I have read by the so called “established” authors in a long, long time. You know, I can’t remember the last time I actually had so much fun with a book, and couldn’t put it down. It sucked me in, and I really wanted to know what was going to happen to the characters next. They start to feel like people you know…ya know? lol

    Brilliant. 7 stars out of possible 5.

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