Last day, get ’em while they’re HOT

This is the last day of my three day giveaway. This time the book is called Arson. This is a return to science fiction and involves other planets and aliens. The expansion into space has caused a return to colonialism.

Perry Wolfe is a member of an elite team that fights fires in space. During a huge space liner fire, he receives a minor wound, but it is career ending. Rendered uninsurable, he can never be a firefighter again.

Perry enters the ATF firefighting school and gets shipped to a small moon called Quantico Two. His training facility is in the city of Glynco. He uncovers clues that link his sister’s murder to a string of arsons, but the FBI doesn’t welcome interference.

Perry can’t let go of being a firefighter. Maybe there is something else he needs in Glynco.

***

This story includes the most fun supporting character I’ve ever written. Curious?

This one has never been the subject of a giveaway or a countdown deal. This is the first promotion for Arson. It needs more reviews, and maybe I can gain a few from my giveaway. Here’s what my one review says:

“This SciFi thriller has plenty of action to keep your heart pumping. C.S. Boyack does a good job of pulling you into the story. I especially like the way he integrated alien species into the story as friends and co-workers. That aspect reminded me a bit of the Star Wars movies, but this story is much more sophisticated.”

Here’s the link one more time, if you want a free book: Arson.

Meet the Main Character Blog Tour

Ali Isaac passed the baton to me for this blog tour, and I’m pretty excited about it. She just released Conor Kelly and the Fenian King, and has been blog touring like mad. I read the first book in this series, Conor Kelly and the Four Treasures of Eirean, and thought it was wonderful.

She has a wonderful blog where she writes about the history of Ireland along with her writing adventures. It’s worth reading too, and is one of my favorite blogs: Ali’s Blog

She decided since I’ve just released Arson, it might be a good tour for me to participate in. I’m thrilled, and thanks Ali.

***

“Hi, Perry, and welcome back to the writing cabin. Have a seat and we’ll get started,” I said. “It looks like I have seven questions to ask you. The first one is, your name and are you fictional or historical?”

“Perry Wolfe. Arson is a science fiction story, so fictional, I guess.”

“So when and where is this story set?”

“It moves around a little. It starts out in the Pacific Northwest, but moves to a secure planet called Quantico II. The government owns it and all the cities are training facilities for different agencies. It was just too far from Earth to provide services without another base. I wind up living in Glynco II as an ATF cadet.”

“What should the readers know about you?”

“I’m one of those guys who lost everything. I was an elite space firefighter, called a space walker. One stupid accident, and I’m uninsurable.” Perry pulled the collar of his tee shirt aside and showed me the scar, about the size of a silver dollar. “I’m too young to spend my days watching GNN and talking about the good old days, so I applied for my sister’s old job with ATF.”

“You’re setting me up for the next one. What is the main conflict, or messes up your life?”

“You saw the scar. That’s an ebullism, there’s no pressure in space. If you get exposed to that, you can boil in your own gravy. Mine was a routine oxygen tank change. We practice this stuff, it just happened while I was in a zero G environment. My sister was murdered, and I applied for her job at ATF. I can’t fight fires, but maybe I could investigate them.”

“So you made a career change, based upon your accident?”

“Yeah, the insurance company didn’t even give me a physical or an interview. They just stamped me as uninsurable, and my fire fighting days were over.”

I leaned forward and asked, “So what’s your personal goal?”

Perry leaned back against his chair and smiled. “There’s nothing like being a fireman. I’d give anything to get back to that. I even thought about moving to a different country where the insurance laws weren’t so tight.” He pointed an accusing finger at me and said, “But you seemed to think I need something else. Like I was wrong for wanting to be a fireman. I even passed the Captain’s exam and everything. I knew I couldn’t do the physical stuff forever and I planned to move up.”

“Sometimes characters are wrong about what they need. What can I say? Okay there are two more questions about the working title and when the story might be published. I published Arson last weekend, so we get two freebies. Who should read this book?”

“Everyone.”

“Come on, Perry. Give a reasonable answer.”

“This is for lovers of science fiction adventure. I get to visit a couple different planets, examine some fires, and chase my sister’s killer too. That was a pain. Her case is an FBI case, and I’m an ATF cadet. So, adventure, science fiction, a mystery. It’s a wild ride.”

“It seems to me there was a bit of romance too.”

“Um, yeah. That caused it’s own problems. Maybe not a story for kids on that basis.”

“Okay, we get one more freebie. Hot dogs or hamburgers?”

“Yeah! I’m kind of a big guy, can I have one of each? And maybe something cold to wash it down?”

“We can do that.”

***

 It’s time for me to pass the baton. D. S. Nelson is another one of my blogging friends. Regular readers will remember when she read my tea leaves. She’s the author of the Blake Hetherington Mysteries. Make sure to visit her and learn about one of her characters.

Website
Blog
Twitter: @WriterDSNelson
Facebook

Some Arson Spoilers

Lisa* brought me my coffee while I was creating a few Twitter masterpieces this morning. She and Lindsay** were in the kitchen waiting for the kettle to boil.

I took a sip and saw them entering the paranormal room. I have no idea what Lindsay could do with alchemy tools and ancient scrolls, and I didn’t want to find out. I carried my cup to the doorway.

“…stone flooring is perfect for something like this,” Lindsay said. “If an ember escapes the fireplace it’ll be safer.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I said. “What’s going on here?”

“She’s showing me some covert ways to start a fire,” Lisa said.

“Why exactly?”

“Because it’s interesting,” Lindsay said. She fluffed up a piece of fine steel wool and sat it inside the fireplace, then she took out a simple battery. Lisa back pedaled and moved behind the couch.

“I’ve had some bad experiences with electricity,” Lisa said. “I can zoom in and see from here.”

Lindsay shrugged and touched the terminals to the steel wool. It immediately lit on fire. It looked something like this video.

We watched the steel wool burn, and Lindsay said, “It’s about twenty five hundred degrees.”

Then she took out an ordinary ball of cotton, fluffed it up, and placed it on the opposite side of the fireplace. She pulled a small tube from her purse. “Simple nail glue.” She poured the entire tube over the cotton and sat down. “This one takes some time.”

It took a few minutes and spontaneously burst into flames. It looked something like this video.

“The best part, is all the evidence burns up in the fire. Imagine trying to find one burnt cotton ball at the bottom of a house fire.”

She took out a tiny perfume bottle and sprayed it on the burning cotton. The interior of the fireplace burst into flames and faded. “All kinds of things will accelerate the fire, hairspray, baby powder, some eye shadow. Do you want to see?”

My iPhone vibrated, and I looked at the message. “Nope. We have to figure out how to get Perry out here.”

“Why?” Lisa asked.

“I’ve been invited on the Meet My Character blog tour.”

Lisa gestured toward Lindsay. “We’re both characters of yours, and I’m a main character.”

“I know, but all the bloggers know you. They ought to meet Perry on this tour.”

Lindsay slid out a credit card thin cell phone from her wallet. “I promised to call him today anyway. Maybe he can take me home when we’re finished.”

* Lisa is the main character in Wild Concept. She’s a robot and helps me around the cabin these days.

** Lindsay Pennington is a supporting character in my newest book, Arson.

Note: Links for all my books are in the sidebar.

Get ’em while they’re Hot

Yeah, it’s a little word joke in the title. My new book, Arson, went live on the Amazon store overnight. You can get your copy right here: Arson.

Arson is the story of Perry Wolfe, an elite space firefighter called a space walker. He loves his job, his friends, and his future looks bright. His Oxygen Company extinguishes fires by removing the oxygen from burning space ships.

Perry gets caught in the perfect storm of events. One small injury costs him his entire career. Big insurance decides he cannot be a firefighter any longer. Yeah, big insurance is the bad guy.

When his sister is murdered, he applies for her job as a federal arson investigator with ATF. He leaves his elderly father behind to travel to the planet Quantico II, in the city of Glynco II for training.

Clues to his sister’s murder keep showing up, but he’s at the wrong agency. The FBI is working on that case. This program isn’t what Perry wants, but if he leaves he may never be able to figure out what happened to his sister.

Perry’s losses are substantial, and somewhere along the way he has to find a way to accept the changes and move on with his own life.

***

Note: This story includes a bit of brutality, and a bit of sexy time too. You have been warned.

***

I’m not one to beg, but I’d sure like to get some reads and reviews on this one. It’s a fun story, and I had a great time writing it. This one includes the most fun supporting character I’ve ever written.

Let’s look at Leon Tukker’s awesome cover art one more time:

***

Tons of work ahead now. I need a linked image on my blog pages. I have to update my “about me” page, my Amazon page, and my Gravitar. Then I need to get the back pages of Wild Concept and Panama updated to sales pitch Arson in those books.

editing, nail biting, and publishing

I got to the writing cabin around 7:30 this morning. Lisa* was ready with coffee and Cream of Wheat. She had on her pink overall shorts and her legs looked two yards long with her lace up high heeled boots.

“So where’s our guest?” I asked.

Lisa put a finger alongside her temple and looked off into space. “My sensors tell me she’s still asleep.”

“Maybe she thinks this is a vacation.”

“It probably is for her.”

I added some honey to my cereal and sipped my coffee. Lisa reached up to the pot rack and unhooked a large cast iron witch’s cauldron and dropped it on the floor. It clattered across the floor and made a loud racket.

“Oops!” She said, putting a finger to her lips. She looked just like a million old school pinup’s.

The shower started running upstairs. “You’re awful,” I said. I headed for my office and started reading blogs.

Lindsay** yelled down the stairs, “Hey, can I get a little coffee up here. Send the girl, I’m not dressed yet.”

Lisa passed by the door with a cup in her hand. Her lips were pursed and she looked like she was in a foul mood.

It took an hour before they came down.

“…I’m really glad you like my overall shorts,” Lisa said. “Those shoes are adorable.”

“Thanks. Looks like we’re in for a long day,” Lindsay said.

“You look nice today,” I said. Lindsay had on a summer dress with low heeled shoes. “We probably ought to get to work. I want you to look at the section about the projection lab. I want to describe it, but not wear readers out. I don’t need the technical detail you two might like.”

“Okay,” Lindsay said, “but since this is a cabin, shouldn’t we have a fire?” She got up and moved towards the fireplace.

Lisa jumped in front of her. “Oh, that’s my job. Do you want one? It’s going to be 98 degrees today.”

“I suppose we could have a small one, for mood. Make sure you open all the dampers and windows so it doesn’t get too hot,” I said. I opened the Arson manuscript and passed the iPad to Lindsay. I touched the fire extinguisher under my desk with my foot, just to make sure it was there.

Doubt*** the raven left his perch and landed on the back of her chair. Krawk, Krawk.

“I’ve never seen a black raven before,” Lindsay said. “They’re all purple on Quantico II.”

“It means he doesn’t like something,” Lisa leaned forward and said.

“Yeah, there might be too much detail here.”

I opened the document on my Mac while she sipped her coffee. “Some small changes. Try it now.”

“Good. Why do you spend so much time on my big ass and spanks?” Lindsay asked.

“Not all characters are fashion icons. Real people get to have stories too,” I said.

“She is,” Lindsay cocked a thumb at Lisa.

“Maybe, but she has her own demons to overcome. Let’s check out the cover.” I brought up Leon Tukker’s artwork.

“That’s awesome. It looks so real. The flames are perfect.”

“I toned down the adsphault. Do you think I should hit it harder?” I asked.

“Oh God no. Every surface street there wants to sell erectile dysfunction meds or some new action movie. I prefer the skyway, but it just makes it more visible.”

We went on like that for hours. I searched specific words that spellcheck always fixes the wrong way. Lindsay added wood to the fire whenever it burned low. Lisa kept a close eye on her.

The beer horns sent out a baritone blat before we finished. Lisa filled them both and they came running. I opened Amazon and started building all the various pieces into a book. When it said I could move ahead before the manuscript was finished, Lindsay clicked on the button and said, “Live a little.”

I answered all the questions and kept moving forward. I got the message that Amazon was reviewing my book and it could take up to ten hours.

“Oh crap! What happened to the preview?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Lindsay said, “I’ve never done this before. Did it work that way for Panama?”

“No, and Wild Concept let me preview too.”

“It’s probably fine. Let’s just enjoy our drinks.”

“You don’t understand. Now I’ll have to pay for a copy of my own book to see if the formatting is all screwed up. How embarrassing is that?”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Lisa said. She lifted the beer horn over to my desk and it strutted around the Mac. “Besides, you’re an old hand at this now.”

I planted my forehead against the desk and the beer horn rubbed against my head. Nothing left to do but drink.

* Lisa is the main character in Wild Concept. She’s a robot and helps around the writing cabin these days.

** Lindsay is a supporting character in Arson. She may be the most fun supporting character I’ve ever written.

*** Doubt is a raven.  He was a gift from my Muse and is supposed to help me.

___

I’ve never had Amazon skip the preview before. Does anyone have any ideas?

Ready for some final edits

I filled up the enchanted beer horns and carried one out to the porch. The other one ran happily behind, and I held the door for it.

Lisa* paced back and forth across the porch and stared off into space.

“What’s with you?” I asked.

“Watching for company,’ she said. “I invited Dr. Pennington** to visit.”

“That’s cool, I suppose. Do we have room for both her and Perry?”

“She’s by herself.”

“But she never travels alone. Who’s going to keep an eye on her?”

“She can stay in my bedroom, I don’t really sleep anyway. I downloaded special software and I’m responsible for her.” She gazed into the sky again and pointed. “There she is.”

I couldn’t see anything. I shaded my eyes and looked harder.

“I can detect the tracking chip. It’s about the same as seeing, at least to me.”

I leaned against the rail and took a swig on my beer. The other horn rubbed on my legs like a cat. A bulbous blue sedan appeared in the sky. “I can’t believe they let her drive the skyway.”

“The car’s all pre-programed. She can’t drive anywhere else. I have to talk to the car and send it back.” She turned towards me and put a hand on my shoulder. “Did I screw up? What if she wants to test me and burns me up?”

“She’s with ATF, not CPSP. The fire sciences lab isn’t about product testing, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

The car descended and slowed. It touched down near the cabin and drove to the porch. The door opened and Lindsay Pennington stepped out. She wore a blue button up blouse and some khaki pants. Her hairstyle never changed, auburn, pulled up tight with curls pouring off the top to one side.

“They wouldn’t allow me a stop along the way,” she said. “Can I use your bathroom?”

I held the door open and led the way to the facilities. The beer horns followed us inside. Lindsay moved pretty fast and closed the door. Lisa hustled in behind us.

When Lindsay stepped out she said, “What’s with you two? Can’t a girl go in private?”

“I still have some things to sort out,” Lisa said. “We need to unload your bags and send the car back.”

Lindsay picked up the other beer horn and took a drink. “I’m pretty dangerous. You’d better keep an eye on me.”

“It, um it isn’t that–

Lindsay stomped her foot and lunged. Lisa and I both flinched backward. Lindsay laughed and headed for the car.

I unloaded several bags, including the rolling trunk with a pink fire helmet lashed across the top. A plush pink bunny head was secured to the shield area. Lisa connected her umbilical to the car’s dashboard and told it to go home.

Lindsay grabbed a bag and said, “Come on, Lisa. I’ll tell you all about my fire projection studio.”

“That sounds really interesting,” Lisa said. “I’d love to see it in person someday. Is it really just like standing inside a burning building?”

“Yes, and verified by many real firefighters.”

“I need you to look over my notes about the projection room. Make sure I’m describing it right,” I said. “That, and about a hundred other things.”

We stepped inside and headed for the upstairs room. I flicked the gauge on one of the fire extinguishers, pointed at my eyes and then at Lindsay. Lisa gave me a nod and a thumbs up.

“You guys are too nervous,” Lindsay said. “I know the sound of flicking a gauge. Besides, it’s hard to burn a log cabin. You need smaller sticks to get the logs to light. When you see me carrying brush inside, then you can panic.” She took another drink and clunked her horn against mine. “Let me get situated and we can get to work.”

*Lisa is the main character in Wild Concept. She’s a robot and helps around the writing cabin these days. Her story is available on Amazon right now.

** Dr. Lindsay Pennington is a supporting character in Arson. (Coming soon to a Kindle near you.) She runs the fire sciences lab for ATF, and may be the most fun supporting character I’ve ever written.