Red Team Series

Well, Jack is back. Ever since picking up A Shrouded World and writing the third novel in that series, he’s been clamoring in my head. And, honestly, I miss writing him. Jack has more tales to be told, and Red Team is along with him. The Shrouded World series has opened the avenue for those stories to be told. As much as I enjoyed the characters of Sergeants Brown Jennings and Emily in ARES Virus, Sam and Erin and the others in Eidolon, Jack just resides deep within me. He’s a part of me, my brother, my uncle, my twin. He’s Jack and I’m able to connect with him, to know and understand him.

Now, with that said, it’s not easy to start a completely new world. Red Team is also back, but in a different light. They don’t share the warmth of close bonds as they’re meeting for the first time. Their relationships cannot be contrived, but slowly developed and nurtured over time. The bonds and trust have to be fashioned. So, don’t expect a plunge back into the middle of A New World. Jack and Lynn are also meeting for the first time, so what they had in the other series isn’t to be found in these initial pages. All of these relationships will develop as they walk along the razor’s edge of the world. And, as such, Robert, Nicole, and Brianna aren’t suddenly thrust into the sudden demise of the world, along with the turmoils and dangers the end brings. This won’t be a repeat of A New World – this will be a new tale.

The rough draft of the first book, Red Team: Strigoi, has been completed and is undergoing the first round of edits. I cannot even begin to explain how much I enjoy writing about Jack. He’s ingrained into my psyche and we know each other. I know his thoughts and he relates to mine. There is no character to develop as with the others, he’s just there. So, as such, when the book is out, I ask that you go into it with an open mind and not one with the idea of Red Team that was in the other series.

John

Red Team: Strigoi

Well, this new series is slowly progressing, mostly because I’ve created a creature that is damn hard to kill. The hard thing with this first book is bringing Red Team together for the first time and making it seem that way. The camaraderie they enjoyed in A New World has to slowly evolve. And, Lynn and Jack aren’t together…yet. 🙂 This will all mesh in later books. Also, Jack’s kids are just that, his kids while he heads off on assignments. So, who are the Red Team members you ask? Gonzalez, McCafferty, Henderson, Denton, Greg, and of course Jack. But…but Lynn? Don’t worry, she’s there as well.
 
At the moment, I’m sitting at nearly 74k words and only slowly progressing as I don’t know exactly how this ending is going to go. Normally, I have that in mind at this point in a book and the writing flows quickly to an ending. However, with that said, I’m actually hoping to wrap the rough draft up this coming week. And the book title will most likely be Red Team: Strigoi, so that should be a clue as to what lies inside the pages.
 
In other news, A Shrouded World should be back from the editor in about 2 1/2 weeks. Then, we go through the editing recommendations, finalize the cover, and go through it a final time. Expected completion and publication will be sometime around September, but that is dependent on a couple of other aspects.
I hope everyone is having an awesome weekend!
John

Time for Another Update

Well, Mark Tufo sent his part from the third book in the Shrouded World series back and I’ve been working on the final touches of the story this past week.  I absolutely enjoy writing in this world as there are few limits and our writing styles, although different, just mesh well together. I sent my copy back to Mark today for his final read through.  It will then be sent to me for my final read through and the editing phase will begin.  That will take about a month or so and the cover is being designed.  So, by all expectations, this should be ready for the electronic shelves by the end of July.

This has been an exceptional ride and I want to thank everyone for their support.  Mike, Trip and Jack were pulled into this strange world overwhelmed by creatures of all varieties.  While battling for their existence, they attempted to figure out how they could return to their home worlds and family.  Around every corner was a new obstacle and information fleeting about what transpired.  Things went south so quickly, no one sat down to write notes.  They had to figure things out as they went along, and still tromped across the landscape mostly clueless.  The third book, A Shrouded World: Convergence, works its way to a conclusion…kind of.  I won’t say anymore, but let you find out for yourselves.

So, while waiting for a final read through and while it’s then sent to the editors, I’ll be diving back into another world with Jack.  At the moment, I’m a little over 52k words into that story and have absolutely no idea where it’s going to go.  I have a long scene which I’ll be doing, but then, well, I suppose Jack will tell me what’s going to happen.  I’m kind of eager and worried about what that might be.   Now, you all know Red Team and Lynn from A New World, and they’re back in this one, but there are a few differences.  Jack is now a Somalian pirate with a kangaroo side kick….wait, wrong story.  The first book is Red Team coming together, so there isn’t the comraderie built up like in the series…just yet.  Oh, and Greg is there as part of Red Team, sooo, there’s that fun to look forward to.  There are several larger story arcs that will be a part of this series of books which will each culminate in their own way.

That’s about it for now.  I know there are some who are now saying, but what about book 11 in A New World.  I haven’t forgotten, and I will get back to that here soon.  But, these stories need to be told first so that my head isn’t crammed with all of this dialogue from characters shouting to be heard.  I want to also thank everyone for their support with the ARES Virus series and The Third Wave: Eidolon.  I’m more than thrilled with the responses from Eidolon.  It was a different kind of story that had me a bit worried, so I’m happy that it’s enjoyed so much.  If you wouldn’t mind taking the time to leave a review for each of the books, I’d be so grateful.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

John