Word Count Wednesday - New Tales From Midhgardhur!

Hello everyone,

     Well, when last I updated Word Count Wednesday, I was working on "The Gorgonades Shipwreck," and I was up against some serious editing challenges. For example, the story was for a contest with a 2500 word count limit, and I was at 3524 words and counting. Final word count of the first draft was close to 5000 words, and I needed to cut it down to less than half of that!

     I am happy to report that with some help from my wonderful wife, Tanya, I accomplished the mission! I was stuck for a long time at about 2600, having cut out a couple of sub-plots, several major characters, and some scenes I really loved. At that point, I was so burned out from re-reading the same words over and over, and hacking away at my manuscript, that I really needed a fresh set of eyes (thanks again, Tanya!). But the thing I love about editing for a word count goal like that is how tight the writing becomes after a while. Redundancy is pared away, fat is trimmed, and you're left with a far leaner, heavier-hitting story. I was really happy with the way it turned out, and finally clocked in at about 2460 words!

     So, the story is finished, and submitted to SIA for their "Mythic March" story contest (started in March, but deadline is April 30th, 2019, with winners to be announced in early May). I also posted "The Gorgonades Shipwreck" to Tales From Midhgardhur on Channillo (you can read it there now, if you're a subscriber!), and added it to the manuscript for the forthcoming Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume III. 

     Yes, the manuscript for Volume III is finally complete! I had to wrestle a bit with the new system on Amazon for submitting books (I used to do it in Create Space, now defunct, and then have Kindle Direct Publishing, or KDP, base the ebook on that version. Now I had to fight with KDP's new system a bit, and it involved deleting the table of contents from the ebook version, but I got it done!). Both paperback and Kindle versions of Volume III are under review and should be released soon, I hope!

     Also, speaking of Tales From Midhgardhur on Channillo, the series was understandably listed as "Postponed" since my lack of a computer meant I couldn't update it regularly from November until now. I wrote to the fine folks at Channillo and asked them to put the series back on "Ongoing" status, which they have done, so I'm back on the map! I'm very glad to say my readership is growing again - thanks to all my new subscribers! "The Gorgonades Shipwreck" is available there now, and I finally posted a long-term project there for May 1st ("Wolf's Head," first in a series called "Runestones of Rys" intended for a zine that never happened - I'm still going to do the series, anyway!). And while I am working on other projects, I want to make sure Tales never becomes inactive for long, I'm finally posting "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" (June) and "The Tale of Ingjaldur the Mad" (July) there too (previously only available in the collections Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I and Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume II, respectively). So, current and upcoming schedule so far:

April - "The Gorgonades Shipwreck" - available now!
May - "Wolf's Head" (Runestones of Rys, Part 1) - available May 1st
June - "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" - available June 1st
July - "The Tale of Ingjaldur the Mad" - available July 1st

     I'm still trying to get back in the habit of writing every single day, and hope to start thrashing out some stories that have been languishing for far too long!

      One last thought - what great fantasy (besides mine!) are you reading right now? I'm always reading when I can! Right now, I'm loving Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James. It's African-inspired fantasy (rather than European) and it is definitely unlike anything I have ever read before! I'm not very far in, but I would recommend it! I hope i finish it before Tad Williams' Empire of Grass (the new Osten Ard book!) comes out next month - I have it pre-ordered from Amazon!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Wiki Entry of the Day - Dofri, the Giant of Dofrafjall

Hello everyone,

Haraldur freeing Dofri

     Today's new entry in the Midhgardhur Wikia is Dofri, the Giant of Dofrafjall. Dofri appears in Norse lore, such as the Heimskringla, and in Midhgardhur appeared in the "Tale of Halfdanur the Black" (available as a stand-alone Kindle story or Audible story, or as part of Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I. Dofri is a giant who menaces the kingdom of King Halfdanur the Black, father of young Haraldur. When the giant is captured, Haraldur defies his father and frees the giant from bondage. Halfdanur exiles his son as an outlaw for several months, during which time Haraldur takes refuge in Dofri's lair in the mountain called Dofrafjall. When Haraldur is recalled from exile, he has made a powerful friend and ally in the Jotunn Dofri. Later, when Haraldur rises to power as king himself, he makes great use of such supernatural allies . . .

     Keep checking in for more great new entries in the Midhgardhur Wikia!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Coming Soon to Audible . . .

Hello everyone,

I have some exciting news! I have now signed agreements with some really great audiobook producers to create Audible audiobook versions of the novella "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" as well as Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I and Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume II. The exact release dates are still up in the air, but all three should be available by the end of December for all of your holiday shopping needs! 

Happy Listening! Skál!

~ Colin  Anders Brodd

All Hallows' Eve

Villa Picena, Phoenix, AZ

Word Count Wednesday - The Trade, The Mad King, and The Giants!

Hello everyone,

     Once again it is Word Count Wednesday! So, I finished one project for Tales From Midhgardhur on Channillo - "The Trade" - which weighs in at about 6280 words. It was a piece I've had rattling around in my head for a while, and finally had to come out. It is scheduled to post on Channillo on Friday, 6/23/17. I also started another piece, "Luck of the Lytlingar," which doesn't really have a word count yet - it's still in the sketching/outlining stage. About time one of the "Little People" of Midhgardhur gets to be in a story! These would be my May and June installments, and then I'm working on July before Camp NaNoWriMo gets here!

     I now have enough of the Tales for a Volume II, except that I liked the way the first volume ended with a novella ("The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" - also available as a Kindle novella!), and I wanted to do that again. I wasn't sure I had another story like that right now, but it turns out that I do - I've started work on "The Tale of Ingjaldur the Mad", which currently weighs in at about 2180 words. I'm hoping to hit at least 20,000 before I'm done, though that may be overly ambitious. Midhgardhur's "Ingjaldur the Mad" is based on our world's pyromaniac king, Ingjaldr hinn illráði, and is usually cited in my world as the reason why the Sviar have no king. Incidentally, Ingjaldur has appeared in the "Tales" before, in the story "Ingjaldur's Crown", which also features Asa Oathkeeper. 

     Speaking of whom, I should remind you that I already announced my Camo NaNoWriMo project for this July - a sequel (at last!) to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper! The tentative title is "Asa Oathkeeper Among The Giants," and will feature a journey to Jotunheimur - the World of Giants! This project has no word count until July - then, hopefully, watch the word count soar! (Hopefully better than a leaf on the wind!)

     Lastly, I am still working on the final (?) edit of Ormsbani. I had been getting some great feedback from the Armadillo Authors' Workshop, but then I ran into some car trouble and had to stop going for a bit. Last Thursday I resumed my attendance, but accidentally left my work at home, so no new feedback or edits! How sad! But I do intend to go tomorrow, and I've already packed my pages. So if all goes well I'll be there - if you're an author in the Phoenix, Arizona area, by all means come on down to the Armadillo Grill down on Camelback on Thursdays from 7 - 9 PM and join us! 

     I think that's it for tonight!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Thanks To Everyone Who Helped Make My Giveaway A Success!

Hello everyone,

     I just wanted to say a big "thank you!" (or, as the Vikings would have said it, “þǫkk!”) to everyone who helped to make my big birthday giveaway of "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" a success! I was happy to see so many people picking up the prequel to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper, and I saw that a few people decided to pick up the saga as well while they were at it! I appreciate everyone who reposted, retweeted, reblogged, and shared to get the word out! I hope everyone enjoys the tale, and encourage everyone to continue the Midhgardhur adventure by checking out the other books! 

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

FREE KINDLE BOOK GIVEAWAY - "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" free until 9/14/16!

Today (Saturday, September 10th, 2016) is Midhgardhur Books author Colin Anders Brodd's birthday! For his birthday, HE would like to give YOU a gift - a free copy of "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" for your Kindle (or Kindle Reader App device)! The story is free from now until Wednesday, September 14th, 2016! If you enjoy this, continue your adventures in the Norse fantasy world of Midhgardhur with The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper and Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I . . . 

Welcome to Midhgardhur!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd 

GIVEAWAY REMINDER! "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" will be FREE on Kindle for the author's birthday, tomorrow to the 14th!

Hello everyone,

     This is just a reminder that Midhgardhur Books author Colin Anders Brodd is celebrating his birthday by giving away copies of his Kindle short story, "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black: A Midhgardhur Fantasy" starting tomorrow, on Saturday, September 10th, through Wednesday, September 14th. You can read this Norse saga-style story on Kindle or any device with the Kindle Reader App! "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black" is a prequel of sorts to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper, so if you enjoy the Norse fantasy world of Midhgardhur, you can stay for a while, and then continue the adventure with Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I: More Midhgardhur Fantasy!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

FREE Book Promotion Time on Kindle! (9/10/16 - 9/14/16)

Hello everyone,

     "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black," the short prequel to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper, is going to be available for FREE on Kindle and Kindle App device from September 10th to the 14th this year! This story also appears in Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I, but if you don't have that book yet and want a free taste of Midhgardhur, check this out!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

More Stories Available NOW! More Stories On the Way!

Hello everyone,

     First of all, I am pleased to announce that "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black," my summer camp project for Camp NaNoWriMo, was completed several days ago and went through quite a bit of editing so I could make it available for everyone. This forms a sort of prequel to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper, telling the story of Halfdanur Svarti, the father of Asa's antagonist, Haraldur. It is now available on Kindle - the settings did not allow me to make it free, but it is now available for $0.99! You can find it HERE!

     Anyway, having that done and ready meant that I was able to include that as the final story in the new collection, Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I, now in paperback for $9.99. This collection gathers the first nine storied published in the Channillo series Tales From Midhgardhur (Runner Up for Best Fantasy Series in the 2016 Channillo Awards) as well as "The Tale of Halfdanur the Black." I plan to publish other collections as the series progresses. The new book is also available on Kindle.

     Of course, I am also working on my next Channillo story for Tales From Midhgardhur - the next installment will be "Knight of the Green Chapel," a story set in Theiphalia, a region of Gaunorria (a region roughly equivalent to Poitou, France in our world). I have not yet set a publication date for that story, but it should be out sometime in early August.

      I hope that you will check out the new publications and I truly hope that you will enjoy them! If you do like what you read (not just my work, but whatever you may happen to read), please consider writing reviews for Amazon and Goodreads. The reviews really mean a lot to authors, and help other people find our work!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 17 - What I Did On My Summer Vacation

Hello everyone!

     I am pleased to say that I am officially over my word count goal of 10,500 words (currently at 10,528 words, in fact!), so I have "won" Camp NaNoWriMo. Now I start editing the heck out of this so I can add it to the next book I have forthcoming, Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I. I also plan to make the finished version available for free on Kindle, since it forms a sort of prequel to The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper. And don't worry - I am also working on my next story for the Channillo series, Tales From Midhgardhur!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 12 - Back In Black

Hello everyone,

     Well, as AC/DC says, I'm back in black! That's funnier if you know me personally and know that my wardrobe pretty much consists entirely of black clothing . . . but also makes the point that music is a powerful source of mood and inspiration for me. When I am writing Midhgardhur material, I often seek inspiration or even just ambiance in music. Tonight's music is MANOWAR - If there were an official soundtrack to my Midhgardhur stories, it would be the music of MANOWAR! In particular, tonight's soundtrack is Battle Hymns and Sign of the Hammer! If you don't know this band, you should check them out! They are not for everyone, but if you're one of the people for whom they make their music, you'll probably fall in love with their stuff (although the albums to which I am listening right now are their earliest work, and not necessarily their best work). Anyway . . .

     So I took the weekend off from writing to attend a new Arizona gaming convention called Crit Hit. Crit Hit 2016 was a lot of fun! I ran three different Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG zero-level funnels, and it was awesome! When I returned from the convention, I was a little burned out, I did not get right back to summer camp work right away (shame on me!). So today I had to buckle down and get back to it! I am hacking away at my word count goal (I'm currently at 8606 words out of my goal of 10,500 words, so I'm getting close - only 1900-odd words left to go to my minimum goal!). Today I added a bunch of stuff I wasn't sure would make it to the story, including mention of Halfdanur's parents (their story is complicated, and I wasn't sure I wanted to get into it - for the most part I didn't, I just mention them in passing. I just finished reading a novel that deals with the historical Halfdanur's parents - you can check out Song of the Valkyrie by Steven M. Rogers if you are interested!). I also figured out a way of working in an episode that seemed a bit too silly to work in my story in its original version, so that felt good. Anyway, I'm now fully back in the writing groove . . . back in black!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

P.S. The image above is an illustration of the murder of Gudhrodhur the Hunter, father of Halfdanur the Black, by a man with a spear. This episode was mentioned in my writing today, so I thought it would make an interesting illustration for this post!

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 7 - End of (Out)Line

Hello everyone,

     To say that I am exhausted would be such a dramatic understatement as to be actually worthless in conveying how I feel at present. I have a two year old boy who decided not to sleep more than a combined total of about 2.5 hours last night (not continuous!), so I'm going on a couple of days with no real sleep at all and trying to cram everything to meet self-imposed deadlines . . . So yeah. Anyway. Tonight, I caught up with the end of my initial outline for my Camp NaNoWriMo project. I'm at 7873 words or so, but I've reached the end of the outline I was working from. So now I have a lot of editing and fleshing out of this skeleton to do, especially if I am to make my goal of a minimum of 10,500 words. I also have material for my next Channillo story for Tales From Midhgardhur pouring from my skull - I need to get it onto paper or pixels soon, before I lose it! Plus, I may not get much done over the next couple of days - I need to actually sleep at some point, and I'm going to Crit Hit in Phoenix, AZ this weekend . . .

     On a related note, I am very much looking forward to Crit Hit. I'm Judging 3 Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG modules ("The Portal Under the Stars," "Sailors on the Starless Sea," and "Hole In The Sky"), plus I signed up for some games I love - Call of Cthulhu, Hunter:The Vigil . . . and I signed up to try Tunnels & Trolls with Ken St. Andre (the creator of T&T, which was the 2nd RPG ever created), so that's like Geek Bucket List material right there, that's like playing D&D with Gary Gygax . . .

      Anyway, given the circumstances, I may not post again for a few days. Don't take it personally. I'll be back!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 6 and Word Count Wednesday

Hello everyone,

     Today is the 6th day of virtual summer camp at Camp NaNoWriMo, and it is my first Word Count Wednesday of the month! The news from camp is that I am at 5994 words on my Camp NaNoWriMo project, The Tale of Halfdanur the Black, which is awesome - my ultimate goal is a minimum of 10.500 words, so I am more than halfway done already, in theory. But I also figured out today what I want to do for my next Channillo project in Tales From Midhgardhur. At present, I have just the barest outline of that, at 136 words. But I think it's going to be a great story! And it may end up being the kickoff to Volume II of Tales From Midhgardhur . . .

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 5 - Rough Chapters Taking Shape!

Hello everyone,

     Well, the 5th day of my virtual summer camp at Camp NaNoWriMo is drawing to a close, and I have a rough outline of three chapters completed, at a total of about 4511 words! I think it is going to be six chapters total, and the ones I have written are in pretty rough shape, so I have a LOT of work to do - but there are rough chapters taking shape! I've got a two-year-old toddling around my house, which limits the writing I can do during the day, and this weekend will be a wash for me (I'm Judging some Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG games at Crit Hit here in Phoenix this weekend!), but I've got my outline and I'm getting as much of a head start as possible so I'll be ahead if my productivity crashes, which seems like a virtual certainty at some point!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 4 - Independence Forever!

Hello everyone,

     Happy Independence Day! The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. Today it was not just American Independence Day, but also the 4th day of virtual summer camp with Camp NaNoWriMo. My toast for the 4th of July every year is "Independence Forever!" - the final Independence Day toast of John Adams, who died on the 4th of July, 1826, the same day as his friend, Thomas Jefferson.

    I've been working on The Tale of Halfdanur the Black, and I think it is coming along quite well. I finished the first draft of the Dofri episode I mentioned previously. It is much longer than I expected, and needs editing, but it is a good start. Currently, my word count is up to 3646 words.

     Meanwhile, the print version of The Saga of Asa Oathkeeper is off to a good start, and I'm very proud that my Channillo.com series Tales From Midhgardhur was runner up for Best Fantasy Series in the 2016 Channillo Awards. Tales From Midhgardhur will also form the basis of my 2nd book in print, which should be available around the end of August - Tales From Midhgardhur, Volume I. It will contain all the stories published on Channillo.com so far, as well as The Tale of Halfdanur the Black (which will not be on Channillo, but will be available for free from Amazon on Kindle).

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 3 - More Giant Stuff!

Hello everyone,

     Day 3 of Camp NaNoWriMo, and the writing is going smoothly. I credit the fact that I plan a lot in advance so I can flesh out my outline to my heart's content without getting lost in what I'm doing. Anyway, I worked more on introducing the "Dofri the Giant" plot line to my story today; it wasn't in my original outline, so I'm concentrating on that first, in case I run into problems I didn't anticipate because this wasn't in the original specs. Currently, the tale is sitting at 2484 words. According to Camp NaNoWriMo, I'll hit my minimum word count on July 13th if I keep up this pace. Keeping up the pace may prove difficult, given the recent changes to my household routine, but I'm happy to be ahead of the curve for now - at the very least, it means I have a bit of a buffer if I am not able to work on my story some days . . .

Happy Reading! Skál!
~Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 2 - Giants In The Earth

Hello everyone,

     Well, my writing time is very short for the 2nd day of Camp NaNoWriMo (I've got a 2 year old toddling around my home, and I'm running a Pathfinder game in about an hour!), but I did a bit of work on The Tale of Halfdanur the Black. In particular, I've been working on adding an episode that was not in my original outline (it does not appear in the sources I originally used for research, but I found it in another saga, and I want to use it) - an episode in which the young Haraldur frees a giant named Dofri from imprisonment (the illustration above is of that scene in the Flateyjarbók). So I did some work on the giant today. My word count is currently at 1975 words (my goal is at least 10,500) - also, coincidentally, the year in which I was born! Anyway, I'm done with writing for today, and off to prepare for Pathfinder! 

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd

Camp NaNoWriMo Day 1 - The Tale Begins!

Hello everyone,

     So it is July 1st, and summer camp (Camp NaNoWriMo, anyway!) has begun - with The Tale of Halfdanur the Black. I'm working from an outline I prepared in advance, but I'm beginning to put some real flesh on that skeleton! My minimum goal is 10,500 words (child's play, and not even really a novella length), but I shall happily surpass that if I can! My word count for the first day is about 1168 words and counting after a word sprint with some cabin-mates! Off to a great start!

Happy Reading! Skál!
~ Colin Anders Brodd