Paperback Publication News: Blade of Empire.

[merlinscribe]

Dragon Prophecy 2: Blade of Empire, will be published in mass market on August 28, 2018.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you so much for this update! I only read books in paper back, and I can't wait to read Blade of Empire, having been anxiously waiting basically since I picked up The Outstretched Shadow in October of 2013. I re-read Crown in five days, and have made it my goal to re-read both the Obsidian Trilogy and The Enduring Flame Trilogy before Blade comes out in August (fingers crossed life doesn't get in the way of that)!

I just want to say how much I have enjoyed this journey through the world you have created. I love how the reader can experience the darkness that permeates the very fabric of your novels, but still find hope in the innate goodness of the characters you have created. As an aspiring author myself, I find the balance between the power of the villain and the power of the protagonist difficult to maintain in a believable fashion. There has to be just enough darkness within the novel to provide opposition, without snuffing out all hope and just leaving me depressed for weeks on end (*cough cough* Star Wars III).

I do have one question. I have noticed that the stylistic choices present in your books with Mercedes Lackey are significantly different from the tone created in Lackey’s own books. So my question is this: who does most of the actual writing of the books in the Obsidian world? Does one of you show more of a presence in the process than the other, or is it a more collaborative effort?

There is also another question I have, about the publication process. How much say do you as the author have in the formatting of the book itself? Did you have any say in any of the cover art? Are you satisfied with the way the cover art portrays your characters? What changes, if any, would you make?

Thank you so much for your time. I look forward to a response.

[merlinscribe]

Hello! I had thought I answered this question, but apparently not. My apologies for the delay. And now, to your questions:

Ms Lackey and I have collaborated on the Obsidian books and over the years in just about every way a collaboration can take place. We have written alternate chapters, I have done an outline, she has done an outline, she has done either the first pass or the last pass on a draft, and so on. I find working with her to be enormously energizing, as many of the elements she has introduced are matters I would simply never have thought of.

As for how much say the author has in book formatting, cover art, and so on, the answer is, simply: none. The cover is designed to *sell* the book rather than to faithfully illustrate it (I understand there are some great illustrations of the World of Obsidian over at DeviantArt), and with that in mind, Tor has done very well by me.