HC chats with Nebula Award-winning author A.J. Calvin about the business side of Self-Publishing.
You can (and should) learn more about A.J. and her books at:
Bluesky
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Also, be sure to see her contribution to Spreading the Self-Pub Love in 2025!
I had so much fun with this last year (and grew my TBR–plus a few others’), that I’m bringing it back. In the spirit of “a rising tide lifts all boats,” for Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week I wanted to give some Self-Published authors a chance to spread some love.
(They also get to do a bit of self-promotion, I mean, c’mon, it’s hard out here…)
(A returning guest!)
An Elevator Pitch for Something You Love
Sordaneon by L.L. Stephens
One of my favorite on-going fantasy series is The Triempery Revelations by L.L. Stephens. Book 5 (The Walled City) just released in April, and I can’t wait for book 6 to drop next year. The worldbuiliding is phenomenal, and it has one of the best and most complex political storylines I’ve read in a long time. The Triempery Revelations is an incredible series, and I really wish more people were aware of it. So please go check it out! The series begins with Sordaneon.
My Elevator Pitch by A.J. Calvin
Kye Verex is trapped.
Due to a fluke of genetics, the decisions of the galaxy’s elite, and a lack of finances, he’s stuck on his polluted and noxious home world indefinitely. And it’s slowly killing him.
Then his more fortunate sister returns one day, bringing the promise of salvation. Kelsey has always hoped to find the means to pull him out of his desperate cycle of survival, but it has taken years. Now, she has a plan, one that will cure his genetic condition and clear him for interstellar travel.
The catch?
He has to sign over his very existence – and a portion of his humanity – to Zylar Inc., the galaxy’s most prominent and notorious corporation, in exchange for the necessary treatment. Is his cure worth the cost?
You can learn more about Wraith and the Revolution on my website: https://ajcalvin.net/books/wraith-and-the-revolution/
About this Author
A.J. Calvin is a science fiction/fantasy novelist from Loveland, Colorado known best for The Caein Legacy series and The Relics of War series. By day, she works as a microbiologist, but in her free time she writes. She lives with her husband, a turtle, and a salt water aquarium.
When she is not working or writing, she enjoys scuba diving, hiking, and playing video games.
Follow her on Bluesky, Instagram, or Twitter (now X) for additional updates and news about her writing. Or if social media isn’t your thing, sign up to A.J.’s mailing list for the same (plus bonus content not shared elsewhere.)
Be sure to check out Sordaneon and Wraith and the Revolution, let’s show them both some love!
Image by Dawn Hudson/Prawny from PublicDomainPictures.net
The 2025 Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week Logo was made by Witty and Sarcastic Book Club
In the spirit of “a rising tide lifts all boats,” this year for Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week I wanted to give some Self-Published authors a chance to spread some love (while also indulging in a bit of self-promotion, I mean, c’mon, it’s hard out here…)
An Elevator Pitch for Something You Love
Black Market Heart by Darby Harn
My favorite indie read of 2024 (so far) was Black Market Heart by Darby Harn. It’s book 4 in his Eververse series, but can certainly be read as a standalone. (I haven’t read the previous books yet and had no trouble following this one.) It’s a cross between urban fantasy and science fiction, with a focus on superheroes—or villains, as the case may be. The main character of Black Market Heart could be construed as either, depending on your perspective. I love complicated, morally gray characters, and this one was done really well. Definitely worth the read!
My Elevator Pitch by A.J. Calvin
My latest release was Harbinger, book 3 in The Caein Legacy (released May 28, 2024). This is a quick synopsis of the series as a whole:
Andrew and Alexander both harbor secrets that, if exposed, would land them in line for the headsman’s axe. The kingdom’s laws regarding both magi and dragon-kind have rarely been enforced, but when the new king ascends the throne, the lax policy quickly begins to change. The king is uncompromising in the enforcement of the laws, even when those affected are blood relatives—his brother, Alexander, and his half-brother, Andrew.
When Alexander’s secret is revealed, Andrew must find a means to save him. The only option he is left with is making his own secret—that he is half-dragon—known to the world. When the kingdom learns the truth of their origins, the brothers are forced to flee. Their exile sparks a war, as others like them begin to fight for their right to exist.
The Caein Legacy begins with with Exile.
About this Author
A.J. Calvin is a science fiction/fantasy novelist from Loveland, Colorado known best for The Caein Legacy series and The Relics of War series. By day, she works as a microbiologist, but in her free time she writes. She lives with her husband, a turtle, and a salt water aquarium.
When she is not working or writing, she enjoys scuba diving, hiking, and playing video games.
Website/Blog ~ Twitter/X ~ Facebook ~ Instagram ~ Bluesky ~ Goodreads ~ Bookbub
Be sure to check out Harbinger and Black Market Heart, let’s show them both some love!
Image by Monika from Pixabay
The 2024 Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week Logo was made by Witty and Sarcastic Book Club
I’m very pleased to welcome the Escapist Book Tour’s Cover Reveal for A.J. Calvin’s Serpentus to The Irresponsible Reader this morning! Before we get to revealing the cover, let’s learn a little bit about the book and author, shall we? It’ll just take a moment, and then we can all feast on the cover.
Book Title: Serpentus by A.J. Calvin
Series: Standalone related to The Relics of War series
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Intended Age Group: Adult
Length: 250 pg.
Release date: August 4, 2023
Publisher: February 27, 2024 (tentative)
Dispatched to Stone Hill to oversee the city’s defenses among nebulous rumors of the Shadow Council’s threat, Owen Greenwaters must rely on the city’s guard and its natural defenses to protect the citizens.
But when an army of mythical hooded ones bolstered by a sea serpent and the Soulless arrive in the wake of a terrible storm, he knows there is little he can do beyond hope the walls hold – and pray to the gods he and Stone Hill’s people will survive.
They are outnumbered, outmatched, and without magical support. Owen is the only knight present in the city. They will be overrun.
The Soulless are merciless and rarely take prisoners, but Owen and the survivors of Stone Hill are exceptions…
And some fates are worse than death.
Author Website (where other retailer links will be posted once preorders are set up) ~ Goodreads
A.J. Calvin is a science fiction/fantasy novelist from Loveland, Colorado. By day, she works as a microbiologist, but in her free time she writes. She lives with her husband, their cat, and a salt water aquarium.
When she is not working or writing, she enjoys scuba diving, hiking, and playing video games.
Website ~ Twitter ~ Instagram ~ Facebook ~ BlueSky
Okay, I don’t know what those things in his hands are called, but they look like they would hurt. My guess is that behind that cover, more than one character will get to find out just how much that’s true.
My thanks to Escapist Book Tours for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided. The opinions expressed by me are honest and my own.
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