Links To Recent Interviews/Q&As/Newsletters, etc.

Eric Flint and I participated in a couple of interviews as well as a Reddit AMA in September supporting the September 5th release of Iron Angels--the urban fantasy detective novel we co-wrote.

The Baen Free Radio Hour, September 15, 2017: Podcast-- Eric Flint and Alistair Kimble discuss their new urban fantasy novel Iron Angels, in which a team of FBI agents are hot on the trail of a mysterious cult that performs human sacrifices, a second cult that opposes the first, and an ancient evil from another dimension; and part seventeen of the complete audiobook serialization of Liaden Universe® novel Alliance of Equals by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller.

Reddit Author AMA, September 28, 2017: Eric Flint is a NY Times bestseller and former labor union activist. Alistair Kimble is an FBI Special Agent and prior enlisted U.S. Navy Aircrewman. Somehow they managed to write Iron Angels together. Ask us anything!

MyLifeMyBooksMyEscape, September 14, 2017: Online interview of Alistair Kimble on Iron Angels and co-writing with Eric Flint.

Baen Books Monthly Newsletter for September: Baen's monthly newsletter mentioning Iron Angels.

Iron Angels is available in most places books and ebooks are sold. Below are some links to purchase unsigned and signed copies of Iron Angels.  

Links for purchasing unsigned copies of Iron Angels.

Signed copies of Iron Angels:
The Missing Volume (signed by Eric Flint & Alistair Kimble)
The BookBar (signed by Alistair Kimble)

Publishers Weekly Top 10 SF, Fantasy & Horror for Fall of 2017

Iron Angels, the urban fantasy/police procedural I wrote with Eric Flint has been chosen by Publishers Weekly as one of its top 10 picks for fall 2017 in the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror category! Iron Angels will be released as a hardcover on 9/5/2017 from Baen Books.

Here is a link to the web-based article:

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/new-titles/adult-announcements/article/74069-fall-2017-announcements-sf-fantasy-horror.html

In the digital and print editions of Publishers Weekly they printed a little more information, and my wonderful publisher, Baen, also ran a full page color ad for its fall releases!

Its available for pre-order now at all the usual spots, to include: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Powells, as well as Tattered Cover (since I live in Colorado!).  In addition, there is an eARC available on Baen's website: http://www.baen.com/iron-angels-earc.html. An eARC is an advanced reading copy of the novel, which Baen offers, warts and all, to the public to purchase if they want to get their hands on a book right away!

Iron Angels: A bizarre kidnapping case leads FBI Special Agent Jasper Wilde into the mysterious world of a strange religious cult and even stranger criminals.

Twin Peaks & Sasquan

My wife and I decided we'd use traveling to Spokane for Sasquan (World Science Fiction Convention) as an excuse for a mini-vacation at Snoqualmie Falls for a stay at the Great Northern--I mean the Salish Lodge & Spa.

The Salish Lodge and nearby towns were the inspiration for the town of Twin Peaks in the David Lynch mystery/drama of the same name. We booked the 'Twin Peaks' package at the Salish Lodge which included a map of locations used in the filming of the show, Dale Cooper cocktails (a wonderful mix of Gin, clove & cardamom infused Salish honey, Salish Lodge Dry Honey Cider, lemon twist and lychee), and cherry pie and damn fine cups of coffee. Our room overlooked the river close to the famous falls.

We explored many of the locations provided by the included map as well as some found on fan sites. Pretty neat to experience them up close. Our first stop was the Double R Diner, which is actually Twede's Cafe', and we enjoyed some cherry pie and coffee (damn fine cups of). The diner is a little rundown, but I believe David Lynch will be shooting there for the continuation of Twin Peaks on Showtime, and therefore they will likely refurbish the location. They were busy (but then, it was Sunday around noon). The Salish Lodge from the outside of course looks like it did in the show, the interior is nothing like what we see in the show, but that doesn't mean it's bad, I think the Salish Lodge is wonderful and full of atmosphere and the staff are kind and attentive. The rest of the locations throughout the area were interesting, but more along the lines of wow, seeing them in the context of real life is so different than how they're presented in the show.

I've been going for runs each day since being here and asked for easily accessible trails nearby, but I obviously didn't pay attention since I ended up on a road that was closed. I took along an old iPod Nano to simply use as a timer since I wanted to hear the sounds of the forest rather than music. As I jogged along the deserted road, the forest on each side of the road pressed in and I glanced left, noticing a trail beckoning me into the forest. I accepted the invitation. Towering ferns straight out of the Devonian period draped over the little-used trail. Towering trees poked the sky, obliterating direct light. The trail quickly became a path and closed in on me on both sides. Light poked through the canopy, with the sun on my left, but the path twisted and turned and forked--I kept the sun on my left. Eventually, I decided to turn around rather than get stuck in some endless Blair Witch loop.

I emerged from the forest and jogged back down the deserted road. I checked my iPod Nano for the time elapsed and found the device dead. The battery had been full when I left. I've taken great care of the Nano. I plugged it into power and then the computer. Nothing. Dead. Coincidence or some bizarre Twin Peaks-like occurrence? I eventually got the device to reboot--having to hold the center button and menu button at the same time for 6-10 seconds. But still, that was odd, it had never died on me before.

Today we leave for Spokane to attend Sasquan, the World Science Fiction Convention. There we will meet up with old friends and make new friends!

MARCON & 1632 Mini-con

I began writing this post just before leaving MARCON on Monday, May 12th. However, due to some horrible travel conditions while connecting in Chicago that saw me miss a conference for my day job, well, I forgot to post on the convention.

I won't bore anyone with the travel details--I'd rather not relive the experience. Though, I'm still missing my luggage which contained all of my favorite dress shirts and some nice slacks. Okay...moving on.

MARCON was a lot of fun, and one of the things that struck me most was how young the convention was--as in they attract a lot of younger people. MARCON itself has been around for 49 years--that's pretty incredible for a regional con. But I think it survives because its organizers are not afraid to cater to all ages. Their programming was diverse and offered panels and events for everyone.

The Hyatt Regency in Columbus is the hotel, which is connected to the convention center. A huge plus. There were no death marches in intense heat (like at World Con in Reno or San Antonio). Also--the bar at the hotel is adequately stocked, 53 feet long, and well-staffed. World Fantasy in 2010 was held at this venue and to this day is my favorite convention that I've attended.

So, my role at the convention. I was there as a guest, which was a first for me and my room was comped by the convention. Very nice. I was scheduled to speak on 1632 panels (I have two novelettes published in the Grantville Gazette with a serial planned involving the Knights of Malta) as well as a panel on character battles (stuff like Rambo vs. James Bond, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer vs. Sherlock Holmes or Dracula or Doc Savage) and another panel on Sherlock Holmes (what we like and don't like about the various incarnations).

I also taught a workshop with Griffin Barber (San Francisco Police Department) on Law Enforcement for Writers.

And I got to hang out with a bunch of friends and had dinner the last night of the con with Robert Waters and Chuck Gannon (Nebula Award nominee and ultra great guy).

Oh, and I suppose this is the biggest news for me at MARCON: I met up with Eric Flint to discuss our novel project which is moving forward quite nicely. For the curious: the novel is an urban fantasy set in the present and leans pretty heavily on my experience in law enforcement--until we get further along (contract and all that), I'm not going to say much more about it.

MARCON -- Updated Schedule

Here is my new schedule for MARCON (Multiple Alternate Realities Convention), being held this weekend, May 9-11 in Columbus, Ohio:

FRI 7:00PM  Peppercorn  Guest Meet and Greet
FRI 8:30PM  Regency Ballroom  Autograph Session with 1632 Mini-Con
FRI 10:00PM  Union C  Sci-Fi vs. Fantasy Character Battles 
SAT 10:00AM  Taft C-D  1632: Military Technology and Practice: New Timeline vs. Old Timeline
SAT 1:00PM Champaign  Writing Law Enforcement Workshop
SUN 10:00AM Taft C-D  1632:  Authors and Their 1632 Stories
SUN  1:00PM  Union C  Sherlock Holmes Blasphemy

A pretty busy schedule, but not too crazy.  It'll be a lot of fun hanging out with the 1632 crew as well as meeting a bunch of new people.

I'll be teaching a workshop on Law Enforcement for Writers with Griffin Barber, which will be a lot of fun and hopefully informative for the attendees.

A major bonus:  I'll be on a panel with Nebula Award nominee Chuck Gannon -- if you haven't read Fire With Fire yet, what are you waiting for? The e-arc for Trial By Fire is available now as well.