Unsouled - Released!

6/13/2016

EDIT #2: It's live!

EDIT: It's uploaded! The book is in Amazon's hands now. Leave me a comment here or on Facebook when/if you see a working link.

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm currently preparing my newest novel (Unsouled) for upload! I'll be putting it up in just a few hours, which means it will be available tonight.

Unsouled is the first book in a series I'm calling simply Cradle, and I'm trying a few things differently with this story.

For one thing, I'm primarily following one character in chronological order. There are a few sections from a different POV, but 90% of the book is told from the perspective of the protagonist, Lindon. In Traveler's Gate I had Leah and Alin take up about a third of each book, and in Elder Empire I jumped around in time, but I'm keeping those things to a minimum here.

Second, I'm trying to fill in some details and progress a little more steadily than I have in the past. In House of Blades, for example, I skip some things I could have shown in scene, and Simon progresses very quickly from "completely powerless" to "murdering dozens of Travelers." In Cradle, Lindon will be moving at a more measured pace. If you wanted my books to fill in the books a little more and take it one step at a time rather than jumping ahead, this is the story for you.

Third, while I wrote this book primarily for fun, the series has room to grow as long as I want. In the TGT and EE, those series had planned ending points. This one doesn't.

It's about Lindon growing, exploring the world, and slowly becoming absurdly powerful.

If that sounds interesting to you, or if you enjoyed the preview I sent out over my mailing list last month, then check it out in a few hours!

Also, Unsouled is (by a little) the shortest novel I've written so far. I think it works better if the books are relatively short but they come out often, though I'm open to feedback on that.

Let me know what you think!

-Will

P.S. For those of you waiting for word on this month's mailing list story, I'm on it! I was in Central America, and then sick because I went to Central America, and then releasing this book. But it's coming very soon! Prepare thyself!

P.P.S. Also, House of Blades is on sale for free this week! Check it out!

108 Comments

Patrick

6/13/2016 06:42:03 pm

I know we're all super fans, but this is kind of spoilery if you didn't come in with BLADES.

Will link

6/13/2016 08:01:13 pm

I don't really feel too bad about people spoiling themselves when they're choosing to go on the author's blog. Especially not when it's a spoiler like "Simon progresses quickly."

But you're probably right that there will be that ONE guy who's going to read this and get upset.

AngryFanGuy

12/3/2017 08:51:39 pm

GRRRR! Curse you to the deepest depths of the void Will! I thought for sure Simon was going to continue to be powerless throughout the story, and that his true character arc would be him coming to terms with the fact that he's not the hero!

JK. I read House of Blades when it first came out, way before you had a blog.

Andrew

6/13/2016 06:44:19 pm

I'm so excited!

anthony

6/13/2016 07:33:45 pm

This book is going to be great

John

6/13/2016 08:35:07 pm

Hey, its up on amazon

https://www.amazon.com/UnSouled-Unwind-Dystology-Book-3-ebook/dp/B00BAWBLAU

Oh, wait, wrong author. Doh!

Pat

6/13/2016 08:55:36 pm

Do not worry. We shall be certain to punish you thoroughly for your crime.

Will link

6/14/2016 08:41:06 am

Yeah, I was sad to see that Unsouled was already a book title, but I plunged ahead anyway. It's a different genre entirely, so hopefully there's not too much confusion.

Alex

6/13/2016 09:38:56 pm

Awesome cant wait, this is perfect got a long flight coming up and now i have something to read.

david

6/13/2016 09:46:01 pm

Cant wait to read it and cant wait anylonger for my monthly short story

Andrew

6/13/2016 10:19:00 pm

Just bought it on my Kindle app. Yes!

Devin

6/13/2016 10:28:07 pm

It's up! Just purchased. Link is in original post.

Ravi

6/13/2016 11:00:00 pm

Just bought it I can't wait! I'm sure I'll be able to leave a great review!!

Pat

6/14/2016 02:02:44 am

Just finished. I like! So, which iteration is the Traveler's gate world?

Will link

6/14/2016 08:40:01 am

Amalgam.

Tyler

6/14/2016 10:34:20 am

I keep looking for similarities in the characters in your different series, I actually held out on buying elder empire books because I was worried it would be more of the same from traveler's gate just in a different setting but I am continually blown away but just how unique each story you craft is. It isn't just the characters (although that is my absolute favorite thing about your writing they're just all so different), it's how each world is so well crafted and not just a recycled version of your last book. Unsouled was amazing and I cannot WAIT for your next book. Keep it up!!

Will link

6/14/2016 10:41:38 am

Glad you enjoyed it, Tyler, and thanks for the review!

Mack Gatling

6/14/2016 10:44:29 am

Ahhh, it felt so short but it was so good. Can't wait for the next one. Lindon is great.

Will link

6/14/2016 11:46:53 am

It is my shortest one, but I enjoyed writing it. Glad you enjoyed it! I'm a big fan of Lindon, and I can't wait to put him in more and more messed-up situations.

Juan

6/14/2016 03:08:42 pm

I have a super nerd/man-crush on Simon, and Shera is my favorite. Your characters get better with every series, and I'm looking forward to reading about Lindon.

Will link

6/14/2016 09:10:45 pm

You know, that's the most rewarding part. It takes a lot of work to develop the characters, but they're what make the story fun.

That said, I still have a long way to go.

Crazy

6/14/2016 03:23:28 pm

Hey will trying not to be to asking of spoilers or anything but if you had to put a release date on part three of elder empire books what would it be and I hope Shera gets a good nap in there.

P.S Love your work keep up your amazing writing skills

P.P.S hope you get better from being sick

Will link

6/14/2016 09:12:43 pm

If I HAD to name a release date? February 30th, 2026.

Probably a more accurate estimate than that fictional date, though, is "late August, early September."

That is a guess, though. Don't nail me to anything.

P.S. Thanks!

P.P.S. The illness is a part of me now.

Jeremiah Halstead

6/16/2016 08:50:26 am

If you want this you have to earn it. Right here, right now. Also, it may help to awaken it. A self aware book, that might be trouble

Brian

6/14/2016 03:51:17 pm

Please please please tell me you're already have the next part in the works (by this I mean you're thinking of how the story will progress and have the some of it planned out)!!!

Will link

6/14/2016 09:13:36 pm

Oh yeah, always.

Jason

6/14/2016 04:19:49 pm

Really liked this book, read it all in one day.... When does the next one come out?

Will link

6/14/2016 09:14:44 pm

As soon as I can! But there are other books in the pipeline first.

OtherAndrew

6/14/2016 05:24:10 pm

Will you directly deal with the Abidan in your other series?

Will link

6/14/2016 09:07:52 pm

In Elder Empire, yes. In Traveler's Gate? ...maybe.

Stewart

6/15/2016 04:14:57 am

Oooh - so I was looking for info on the next instalment of EE and I find out you've written another book. Thanks.

On a related note - how does the pricing work on Amazon? Its just i paid £2.10 for Unsouled but that could have been £5 and I still would have bought it.

Will link

6/15/2016 08:14:09 am

I set the pricing myself, and as long as it's between $2.99 and $9.99, I get about 65% of what you pay.

(I set the prices in US dollars, and Amazon automatically adjusts it for currencies around the world.)

So three dollars is the minimum I can charge; if I set the price less than that, then I only get about 30% of the revenue, and Amazon gets the rest.

I normally charge $3.99 for Traveler's Gate and the Elder Empire, but I went less for this one because A.) it's slightly shorter, and B.) it's sort of an experiment. I'm trying a longer series of slightly shorter, slightly cheaper books with slightly quicker release times.

But we'll see how it does!

Shay

6/20/2016 09:44:21 am

What do you get when people are getting your book from kindle unlimited ? I bought it myself (and enjoyed it immensely) but was wondering how does that model work.

Will link

6/20/2016 11:15:18 am

SHAY:

That's a great question! They're changing the terms of Kindle Unlimited all the time, but the fundamental answer is that I get paid based on the number of pages you read. So longer books reward me more than shorter books, and if all the readers start reading but give up halfway through because they're bored, I only get paid half as much as I would if they finished it.

So how much do I actually make? Well, that's different from month to month and from book to book. But typically, if you read it all the way through, I make almost as much as I do from a sale (some months I make more, which is weird). And it costs you nothing.

Therefore, I love Kindle Unlimited! If you want to keep the book, I of course like it when you buy it, but I'm still getting paid for Unlimited. Amazon has designed it so that it's profitable for them, cheap for readers, and good for authors. I'm a big fan of the program.

Andrew

6/15/2016 07:19:04 am

Wait, could people use madra outside of Cradle and intent outside of the Elder Empire world?

Will link

6/15/2016 08:08:52 am

Maybe.

Brian

6/15/2016 01:02:28 pm

So when is the monthly mailing list story going to be sent out?

Will link

6/15/2016 01:42:29 pm

Hopefully tomorrow! I'm working on it as we speak.

Brian

6/18/2016 05:58:36 pm

Any update on the monthly mailing list story? I devour any and all of your stories as soon as they are available and I am going into withdrawal with no new stories.

Arindam

6/15/2016 04:55:40 pm

Loved the book. Read it in one sitting.

Will link

6/15/2016 06:00:29 pm

Awesome! Thanks for reading it!

Just Asking link

6/15/2016 06:21:25 pm

Quick question: if we post a theory and it happens to be correct, do you change the plot so that it is not so? If so, I'll keep quiet.

Matt

6/15/2016 08:48:28 pm

Keeping quiet won't work... He changes the plot before we even think of the theories.

Will link

6/15/2016 10:01:31 pm

Matt knows my secret.

I sensed you forming your theory, so I changed everything. Next book is going to be about an old fisherman finding a cursed statue in the surf.

So go ahead and post your theory. It can't hurt.

Patrick Q

6/16/2016 12:50:19 pm

I bought this a couple of minutes after release and after rationing this as much as I could I finished this yesterday. I reviewed it on amazon (5 stars - congrats), and put up a reddit post regarding your free house of blades (hopefully you can snare a feww more new readers from that sub reddit).

I review of Unsouled? I loved it, and I hated it.

I loved the magic system, the universe and the characters. I loved the main character who had to start from rock bottom with no special destiny or innate ability or talent and was not above cheating get what he wanted.

I hated that the story was so short. This has been my constant gripe with your otherwise stellar work. I could have finished the book in a three hour sitting. Typically I would reject buying a book that short. I do not like getting invested in a story that is over so quickly and leaves you wanting more. I love the stories that you create and I will continue to buy them as they are released and the quality keeps up. But I really think that if the length of the books remains the same, I may hold off on buying them until they are complete.

Keep up the great work!

Will link

6/18/2016 01:50:11 am

You know, I held off responding to this, because you gave me a review and I felt you deserved a well thought-out response.

Then I couldn't think of a great response, so I decided to wing it.

There are a few factors that go into deciding the length of my work. First, I like fast-paced stories (as I'm sure you've noticed), and I believe faster-paced books are the way to connect to a wider audience. Fast pace is great, but it can't be sustained for too long, which naturally limits the size of the book. Many, maybe most, thrillers are between 70k and 90k words (for reference, Unsouled is 90k and Crimson Vault is 115k). Too much longer, and you've strung the audience along for too long, and they check out.

Second, the nature of Kindle Direct Publishing rewards quick releases. You make money if you're maintaining momentum, and the faster you release, the more momentum you build. That's a fundamental problem with Elder Empire: they take a minimum of six months to write, which means six months in between releases, and by the time comes to release them I'm making virtually no money.

...and shorter books, of course, are faster to release. Because they take less time to write. No shocker there. Which leads into my next point...

Third, Cradle in particular was an experiment. I almost released Unsouled at half its length (it would have been $0.99). I have a business consultant I work with regularly, and he was urging me to do it--as I said before, the more often I release anything on Amazon, the more momentum I have. Essentially, releasing something new boosts the sales of everything I already have out. So the more new things I release, the better.

But I didn't, because 50k words is a very short novel. It's essentially a novella. 90k words, which is where Unsouled ended up, is fairly average for a non-fantasy work, but it's short for fantasy. That was the minimum length I was willing to accept.

I'm digressing, which is what happens when it's 4 AM and I didn't have a good response planned.

Bottom line is: with Cradle, I'm trying for short books released quickly telling a long story. It's going to build up, and it's going to be longer than the Elder Empire or Traveler's Gate, and they're going to come out regularly. That's the attempt.

I would enjoy spending more time writing a 200,000-word monster book, but if I did that, I would have to find another job to pay rent. I'm not struggling now, but neither am I in a position to sit on releases for most of a year.

Oh, that was my fourth point! I remember now (I'm really tired): people want quick releases. The most common request I get is for faster releases, and I've released EIGHT books in the past THREE years. By the end of this year, it will be ELEVEN. At a certain point, it's physically impossible to release any faster.

So in order to make everyone happy, I would need to spend less time on my books, but also make them better and longer.

Also, I'm ethically comfortable charging $3 for three hours of entertainment. I just went to see Finding Dory, and I spent $12 for an hour and a half.

ALL THAT SAID, I know exactly where you're coming from. When I'm reading a book I really enjoy, I'd gladly pay five times the price for it to be twice as long.

TL;DR - I'm trying to make the books as fun and engaging as I can, working within my own constraints. If I knew how to make them longer and still write full-time, I would do it, but until then I'm going to write the best slightly-shorter books I'm capable of writing.

P.S. Thanks for reading the book, and thanks for your review! It really helps, and it means a lot.

P.P.S. I'm going to sleep now.

Just Asking link

6/16/2016 02:00:56 pm

My theory (spoiler-free)is that this occurs BEFORE the Traveler's Gate books, and that certain characters are connected, if not actually getting mentioned by a different name.

Will link

6/18/2016 01:52:51 am

While the larger multiverse IS connected to the Traveler's Gate, it's not THAT connected.

Alex

6/19/2016 03:40:53 pm

I have to admit, I was hoping you'd go full Sanderson Cosmere.

Loved Unsouled. I enjoyed the Traveller's Gate trilogy and shorts, though the Elder Empire books haven't grabbed me. This one, though, was by far my favorite of your books. Can't wait for the next!

Will link

6/19/2016 07:00:24 pm

The Cosmere is way beyond me. They're sharing a solar system and a magical plane of existence, which sounds like it would be impossibly difficult to plot out. Only Brandon Sanderson could even attempt it, because he deserves the golden statue I have of him in my living room.

That's awesome that you enjoyed the book, Alex! What grabbed you so much about this one in particular?

Alex

6/23/2016 04:52:46 pm

1. An underdog main character
2. With a can-do attitude
3. Who rules-lawyers a fairly unique magic system
4. In an interesting world/universe

Will link

6/23/2016 06:23:24 pm

Yeah, I'm a fan of Lindon as well. At first I was worried he would come across too much like Simon, but he's a very different guy.

Madeline

6/17/2016 02:34:35 pm

Somewhere before 50% in the book, either the word "whole" is written instead of "hole" or vice versa. I didn't want to put it down to point this out at the time and now I can't remember which of the two it was but it is there.

Devin

6/17/2016 03:08:55 pm

Found it. Thanks for pointing it out, i'll relay it to him.

Will link

6/18/2016 01:53:31 am

Devin saw your comment and almost immediately messaged me with the error location. You guys are on the ball!

I'll fix it ASAP.

Emily

6/17/2016 09:31:03 pm

Read the book in a day. Really enjoyed it. I definitely see how it would have worked well as a web serial. My least favorite of your works however as I'm not generally a fan of that genre and the magic system seems the least interesting, but despite all that your writing kept me engaged as always.

One issue (mildly SPOILER)
You make a big deal of how powerless he is...yet from start to finish he doesn't lose a single fight. Sort of made it hard both to worry over any fights and to believe him powerless. The idea that he has such a low percent chance to succeed as noted by Suriel seems ridiculous as it's difficult to see him not succeeding at anything. I sort of started rooting for him to lose, just once even.

Anyway my two cents, excited for the next one.

Will link

6/18/2016 02:24:37 am

Thanks for reading, Emily!

The next book will definitely go into more detail regarding the magic system, because he's not really using it much in this one. I'm hoping it will come into its own then.

As for him losing/not losing...

UNSOULED SPOILERS AHEAD

SPOILERS

HERE THERE BE SPOILERS

YAR

...I'm not saying you're wrong, but I didn't see it that way.

For one thing, he directly loses two fights that I can think of.* Only when he's fighting children does he straight-up fight and win, and in every other case he either knows fighting doesn't work so he has to try something else, or he tries to fight and fails.

*DOUBLE SPOILER WARNING, YOU HAVE ONLY YOURSELF TO BLAME: He gets beaten up by the Kazan disciple in Heaven's Glory and essentially has his lunch money taken away, and Li Markuth actually kills him.

So he does lose, though I'll grant you that he avoids the worst consequences both times: (SPOILERS, I WARNED YOU) he eventually gets his revenge for being beaten like a rented gong, and Suriel reverts his death.

Usually, when I get frustrated at a protagonist for winning all the time, it's because they have it too easy. I didn't feel like Lindon fell into that category. He got hurt, or risked a lot, or gave up something, or suffered somehow for every victory. And most of the time, he had to redefine the terms of victory in order to win, because he knows he isn't capable of flat-out winning.

Anyway, that's how I saw it, but believe me when I say I'm more than happy to have a nice, rousing debate! Let's talk about it. I love it when readers come up with a different interpretation of the books than I do, I really do. It helps me learn, and it means that you're genuinely interested and invested.

So...what would a nice, satisfying failure look like for Lindon? It's not too late for me to write one in to Book 2.

Brian

6/18/2016 06:31:34 am

I completely agree in the sense that Lindon has to change the rules in order to win. A satisfying failure for me would be when even after changing the rules of the engagement and still doesn't win.

Madeline

6/18/2016 02:45:41 pm

This would be interesting, because he has been told before that just being clever isn't enough to take him as far as he needs to go. He needs to be clever, and to work hard.
Maybe a situation or two where he actually has the option to try something later once he is stronger but tries to cheat through and fails because he hadn't put in enough hard work. Because he has seriously underestimated the power of enemies and the effectiveness of his techniques before.

Emily

6/19/2016 12:13:26 pm

Thanks for the thoughtful response! And I can't wait to see what the more fleshed out magic system will reveal.

Agreeing with Brian and Madeline below and also...

I did enjoy that he had to win his fights through cleverness but even if they were not a straight up knock down fight it still did feel like he won every fight he had.

For the Kazan fight he won the two times he fought the one time he lost was more of a sucker punch and less of a fight. I concede he lost to Li Markuth, but it was also less of a fight and more of an annoyance being squashed.

I would like a fight where I feel there is risk and I spend the pages worrying, anticipating, and wondering whether or not he will win. Most of the fights I felt I knew what the outcome would be before the end.

Will link

6/19/2016 06:23:19 pm

EMILY: You've been very insightful, which helps me a lot. I can do risk.

MADELINE: I agree. I'm setting him up to land in a situation where he's going to learn firsthand that he hasn't been working hard enough, so that's an opportunity to slap him right in the cleverness too.

BRIAN: Done.

stephen

6/28/2016 05:00:20 am

Will I agree with what you said, and by the rules of his world the only time he fought an adult, instead of a cocky child he spoilers died

Jason

6/17/2016 10:30:28 pm

MILD SPOILER ALERT

That was amazing. And while I agree with Emily above about him not losing, he did get his butt kicked that one time and almost always gets hurt. I think he keeps putting himself in situations where losing = dying...which makes it a much much shorter book series. Now I need to go back and refresh myself on TG and EE to see how to connect all the dots!

Will link

6/18/2016 02:29:20 am

Glad you enjoyed it, Jason!

I'm a little surprised to hear that you thought he had it too easy, for the same reasons you mentioned: he was beat up, he was (SPOOOOIIILEEEERRRS) killed and brought back to life, he was mocked, he was treated unfairly, he was forced to fight and beg for what everyone else was given, and so on.

I mean, you know, he's the protagonist. So he had it easier than he would have if he weren't the main character.

But I love disagreement! It's the spice of life. Let me ask you the same thing I asked Emily, and anyone can feel free to chime in on this: what would a nice, juicy failure look like for Lindon? Something that you might want to see happen in Book 2.

Jason

6/18/2016 06:22:33 am

This is what I get for commenting at 1:30 AM. Let me try this again with a little more intelligence.

Simon was fascinating because he had no innate power in him, which made him an unlikely hero. His successes were hard fought and hard won. Lindon, on the other hand, keeps getting told how useless he is/powerless he is/weak he is (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, grammatically, whatever). So what he SPOILERYSPOILEDSPOILER does actually die, it's a moment of "whaaaa?" I assume that was the point.

After that, however, he does things that he shouldn't really be able to do (Whitehall even says as much at the end with his seal/cloud trick), but it isn't explained until he and Yerin are flying away. So it's not that I want a "big juicy failure" as much as it required a little bit of belief suspension in some parts because the payoff/explanation hadn't arrived yet.

But I agree with you--and tried to make the point in my original comment--he's the main character. He can't really actually die, otherwise the series gets a lot shorter. It's kind of the "why didn't they just take the eagles to Mordor" problem--because then the book is 25 pages long and what was the point?

To sum up: it's a fantastic character, it is incredibly well written (as all of your books are), and the only minor complaint involves suspending belief in a world where people's souls attack you after death, so...take that for what it's worth.

Appreciate you Will.

Will link

6/18/2016 08:28:21 am

That helps a LOT, thanks!

(I'm also responding your other comment from this morning, for the sake of economy.)

I get what you're saying now. Lindon can't ever do Plan A, so he always tries an outlandish Plan B, but his Plan B always works. So they're not that outlandish, are they?

Here's the deal, from a behind-the-scenes perspective: I was aware that Lindon pulls off a lot of unreasonable stuff, which is why Elder Whitehall hangs a lampshade on it at the end. But I completely didn't think of it as a problem for reader immersion, which I should have. Total oversight on my part. If I had thought about it that way, he would have had one of his plans completely blow up in his face.

I was entirely focused on establishing Lindon's character in this book (and especially differentiating him from Simon, because I know they start off in similar places). So I spent way more time making sure the WAY he solved problems was unique and consistent, which meant I missed that he was solving too many problems too easily.

It's not exactly missing the forest for the trees, but it's kind of like missing one tree for another tree.

Now I'm already thinking of ways that his plans can spectacularly collapse at some point in Book 2.

Thanks for hashing it out with me, Jason! I learned something!

And thanks for pointing it out, Emily! You've made a change in the series by keeping me from making the same mistake twice! Way to go!

(Also, Emily, if you come back and see this, feel free to chime in!)

Emily

6/19/2016 12:19:07 pm

Will, Apparently I drastically underestimate how quickly you look at and reply to comments, that's awesome and I should check the blog faster.

And thank you Jason for putting into words what I was having trouble describing.

PS hard to describe the excitement/joy of knowing one of my favorite authors takes my feedback seriously

Will link

6/19/2016 06:35:49 pm

You know what, Emily, I just appreciate that you're here discussing this with me. I love getting feedback and learning, and your feedback was great. Thanks!

Brian S

6/17/2016 11:16:16 pm

Huh, what's this? A book, again? Okay, I'll give it a shot.

I want you to know this though. I can't, won't, absolutely refuse to wait until Feb of 2026 for the next EE book. I expect it no later than Jan of 2026. Don't disappoint me Will! ;p

Will link

6/18/2016 01:55:33 am

I was going to start releasing poems instead of books, but I decided to stick to what I knew.

What if I actually did wait ten years for the end to Elder Empire? And I just kept lying and stringing you along, Duke Nukem Forever-style? Would you literally lynch me, or just figuratively?

Devin

6/18/2016 11:02:51 am

Literally.

Crazy

6/18/2016 11:10:15 pm

Not only only would we lynch you we give you a full Rasputin treatment (stabbed,drowned,shot,poisoned,lynched,suffocated,and I think like two other things as well)
But only after you release the book in ten years so otherwise your completely fine

Will link

6/19/2016 06:37:05 pm

I would give you the full Rasputin response: survive it all, sit up in the flames, and eventually come back from hell as an undead warlock.

I may have confused historical Rasputin with the villain from the animated movie Anastasia.

Brian S

6/18/2016 10:52:27 pm

Lynching is sooooo final. I was thinking maybe a couple years at git-mo getting water boarded, followed by a half a decade in Mexican prison. Get you a transfer to an Iranian prison where they threaten to kill you on a daily basis and water board you. Once you finished going through all that a few years in Arkham asylum would almost certainly be a welcome respite where you could get all those creative writing energies together and get back to work. See, that is sooo much better and less permanent than lynching and you would get all that life experience to write about in the process. Heck, you may even meet that special cell mate.

Crazy

6/18/2016 11:12:55 pm

Actually scratch the Rasputin thing Brian S is a genius and his idea would work as long as he doesn't die in Mexican or Iranian prison but otherwise it would work

Just Asking link

6/19/2016 10:14:26 am

I think y'all have gone just a LITTLE too far on the whole coming-after-will-wight-for-not-writing-fast-enough thing. He's not Patrick Rothfuss, who abandons his readers and just kind of stands around going to writing cons. Right? O.K, Patrick Rothfuss gets a lot of heat, and he's making sure it's all just right, but I would happily take a part one and two deal so I could at least get a fix. DON'T ABANDON US, WE HAVE FAITH IN YOU!

Devin

6/19/2016 12:36:16 pm

I don't think we've gone fast enough. If Will Wight doesn't have his next book released in 28 days, all that he loves will perish in a sea of flames.

Will link

6/19/2016 06:39:27 pm

Coming up next on the Will Wight channel, How to Write a Book in Twenty-Seven Days: The "Please Don't Kill My Family" Story!

Steve

6/19/2016 01:12:33 pm

Loved the book. Now I can't decide if I like this series or Traveler's better. Guess I'll have to wait and see where it goes from here. It was really well done though. I think what I enjoyed most was that I couldn't accurately predict what would happen next. The style was unique and all of the characters were very interesting. I look forward to the next one.

Will link

6/19/2016 06:38:07 pm

Glad you enjoyed it, Steve! I think you'll find Book 2 even less predictable, as Lindon runs away to join the traveling circus.

scott pike

6/19/2016 09:01:24 pm

I just got the book the night it came out and finished Unsouled yesterday. I would have finished sooner but I work graveyard shift. I loved this book. I got it on Kindle Unlimited but it was so fun I might read it again and buy it for 3 bucks on its own. No offense will, I got used to the Elder empire style and it certainly had interesting world building, but I bonded with this character a lot faster than the protagonist of either sibling series of the Elder Empire. I look very forward to the next book.

Will link

6/20/2016 11:09:47 am

Why would that offend me?

I'm thrilled you enjoyed it, Scott! I try to make every series at least somewhat different, so I know that some stories will appeal more to certain people than others. That's not a problem at all! In fact, I think it's awesome that you tried them all!

Book 2 coming as fast as I can reasonably make it!

Color

6/20/2016 03:16:43 am

Just finished your new book after randomly finding it while checking to see if you released any new TG stuff! Loved the heck outa it!
Linley Ba- I mean Lindon was pretty fun to read about, and I liked the magical scifi goodness!
Somehow I keep reading stories where all the powerful people are complete assholes or self centered though.
#screwthepatriarch. #patricide. #stayedupallnightandcantrememberwhichplotpointsarefromthisbookandwicharefromwuxiaworldnovelsivebeenreading

Will link

6/20/2016 11:01:35 am

You won't BELIEVE what happens next, when Lindon gets a pet rat and meets Beirut, the Sovereign of Trolling.

Honestly, the "all powerful people are complete assholes" thing is less what I was going for. It's more that I'm writing in that same typical Wuxia culture, in that it's your fault for being weak so that it sucks to be you. Most of the powerful people weren't maliciously oppressive to Lindon, they were just indifferent and unsympathetic.

That's what I'm going for, anyway.

#AllTheWuxiaPlotPointsAreTheSame
#StrongPeopleSuck
#ExceptTheMainCharacter

Keith

6/21/2016 01:47:46 am

Hi Will loved Unsouled! I literally couldn't put it down untill 2am and suffered the consequences. I loved this book almost as much as house of blades and think that you should make the next book at least 3 times bigger! (and yes I read your comment about why you do short books and found it really insightful and understandable but really wanted to make a Zoolander reference). I enjoyed how quickly the world expanded. It reminded me a little of Gurren Lagann (which you should watch if you haven't seen it already). Keep up the amazing work. I think you are getting better and better as an Author!

Will link

6/21/2016 09:24:06 pm

Haven't seen Gurren Lagann?

https://66.media.tumblr.com/b8598e7e91e39e42341dd232d2d0c6e5/tumblr_nrt40bHRuU1uq8o6wo1_1280.jpg

Keith

6/22/2016 01:00:49 am

It's full title is Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. It starts small and the world keeps expanding and expanding. It's completely ridiculous but also epicly awesome! I've watched it a few times.

Will link

6/22/2016 08:25:50 am

You didn't go to my link, did you Keith?

Let me put it to you this way: there's a reason why my first main character's name is Simon.

I have a Kamina poster on my wall. I watched the first episode the day it came out, and as the series continued, I watched it live every week via a Japanese television streaming service. Raw. When the final episode of the show came out, I skipped one of my classes, stayed home, made popcorn, and watched the episode four times in a row. First raw, then with bad subs, then with good subs, then again just because I could. Libera Me From Hell is on my House of Blades playlist. I have no tattoos, but were I to get one, it would be either a dragonball or the Gurren-Dan logo.

You might say I'm a fan.

Micah

6/26/2016 08:29:01 am

I don't know why people seem to have problems with Lindon winning his battles. He pretty much only picks battles he can win! On the flip side of the argument, I kind of hate when a protagonist loses in some contrived way. I can't believe people were saying there was no tension either. SPOILERS That final battle had a darth vader vs emperor ending. How can you claim you saw that coming?

Anyway, looking forward to the next one. The release format seems like a really good idea. Please keep it going to like 2000 chapters like those crazy chinese wuxia web stories! I feel like there was some reference to them with the whole 'sword cloud' idea in the treasure room.

Thanks for the good read Will! I liked the dialogue style of 'the presence'. Gave the story a cool sci-fi twang.

Will link

6/27/2016 02:42:40 pm

You know, I see their point. I didn't at first, because Lindon's not grossly overpowered (he's underpowered) plus he does lose a couple of fights AND the ones he wins are close. Like you said, I was okay with it because he's the kind of guy who is constantly looking for a way he can win. If there isn't a decent chance of winning, he's not going to do it.

However, I overlooked their perspective, which is valid: that every time Lindon tries something that should be risky, he succeeds. For some people, that can undermine what should be elements of risk.

If Lindon keeps rolling the dice like this, they're eventually going to come up snake eyes, so that does need to happen. In Book 2.

I'm planning for it to be very long, but exactly HOW long depends on whether people stay interested. If I can keep people engaged for 15 books, then it's going to be at least 15 books. I'm confident I can keep the story fresh for that long, but I wasn't even sure people would like this novel enough to read a sequel.

But apparently they do.

Absolutely this is wuxia/xianxia inspired. The only trope I'm not taking is the "MC finds a magical treasure that makes him OP" trope. Lindon's grinding levels the hard way.

Joshua

8/16/2016 11:44:45 am

You know, I understand where people are coming from with the "but all of his plots work!" angle. On the flip side, that's what an effective plotter /does/. As you point out, he only picks fights that he can win, and even then it's usually by redefining victory. Very Ulysses.

* SPOILERS *

The way I thought about it while I was reading Unsouled was similar to how Suriel thinks about his chances of success at the end of the book. Poor chance of making it out, lesser chance of making Gold before he dies, tiny tiny chance of ascending from Cradle.

The closer Lindon is to Suriel's point of interference, the greater confidence I as the reader should have in "the rails". That's usually how these fate-type predictions and manipulations work. The farther removed from the original intervention, the less certain it is.

Suriel basically gave him a walkthrough for the next few levels, or at least strong hinting. You see some parts of that explicitly (go here, find her, do this), but just as much as you don't get to see firsthand /how/ or /why/ Yeerin is the right way out of the valley etc. you also don't get to see all of the things that Suriel anticipated/adjusted by choosing which information to give to Lindon.

Long story short? I have no problems with the character development and risk balance so far and actually respect it because it is *exactly* the sort of outcome I would expect for a canny character being guided by a near-future-weighted oracle.

Will link

8/17/2016 08:26:18 pm

That's exactly what I thought, Joshua.

Typically, when I feel a plot was too easy for a protagonist, it's because they're never faced with any real challenge. They've already demonstrated a capacity to solve harder problems and now you expect me to believe they can't solve this one for some reason, like pitting Superman versus...virtually anybody.

I didn't feel that way with Unsouled, and honestly I still don't, and not just because I wrote it (thought I'm sure that helps). In stories similar to this one, I don't tend to find that the stakes are too low or that the MC is winning too easily, so long as the problems are fresh and the MC is intelligent in how he approaches them.

That said, I can see why some people WOULD feel that way, and while I still don't think that Lindon should have failed in the way that they're asking for in the first book, I think it's appropriate for him to take a gamble and fail in the second book and later. He's the type of guy that will only take action if there's a decent chance he'd succeed, which means he'll take a 70% chance every time, if the reward is big enough. And a 70% chance is only going to succeed, by definition, about 70% of the time.

Look at me, doing math. There were numbers and everything. I can feel my writerly power withering away in the presence of my Kryptonite.

Anyway, the challenges are also going to ramp up as he proceeds, and the stakes will get higher as well. The first book was only about ninety thousand words, after all. I expect it to be less than ten percent of the whole series.

Michael P

6/27/2016 12:13:34 pm

Do you know how you plan on releasing other Cradle books (I.e. After u finish elder empire, or the new travelers gate, etc.)

Will link

6/27/2016 02:43:45 pm

I'm going to release a news post answering that question very soon! Until then, let me just say that Soulsmith will be coming very quickly. Even more quickly than I'd originally planned, considering the warm reception for Unsouled.

Michael P

7/1/2016 12:53:48 pm

Woohoo! Will Wight comes in clutch!

Will link

7/1/2016 05:48:37 pm

When your emergency is a lack of cheap fantasy novels, then I'm the one to call!

(For any other emergency, please call 911 or your country's number for emergency services.)

Marcos

6/29/2016 08:19:13 am

I have to say I've read everything you've put out, and you're really coming into your own. My wife is a writer although not yet published(I think the one she's currently working on will be published), and I've watched her grow as well. It seems like each time you come out with a book series, it's better than the last. I think this one holds great promise. I love your "magic system", and can't wait to see how it all unfolds.

Good job man.

Will link

7/1/2016 05:49:48 pm

I keep trying to push myself to get better, Marcos. I'm still learning, but I've learned a lot in the past three years. Thanks for reading!

What genre does your wife write?

Marcos

7/2/2016 05:36:14 pm

It feels like your worldbuilding has really developed, and you're taking bigger risks. That's what I've enjoyed.

She's writing a mix, mostly science fiction and fantasy, with a mix of thriller in there as well. It's an arduous task getting the skills necessary to put a good product out there. That's why I'm always appreciative of people who are putting it together.

Will link

7/3/2016 09:06:45 am

Yeah, it's a long journey. For what it's worth, I do recommend Kindle Direct Publishing. You finish a novel (which is the step most aspiring writers never reach), then you put it up, and you get feedback from real readers. It's a live-fire exercise, and you're learning and growing under real conditions.

I actually wrote House of Blades as a test to see how readers responded to my writing style, with the intention of using what I'd learned to write something else and bring it to a publisher. But people liked HoB so much that I never looked back.

...that said, there were a lot of steps that went into it before that. I paid for a professional cover design and an editor, I let many different types of readers read the book, and I spent the previous six years learning about writing, writing, and getting feedback (college).

So I'm not trying to imply that it's easy or short, quite the opposite, but when she thinks she's ready KDP has been a great road for me.

Marcos

7/3/2016 06:49:03 pm

What's interesting is watching the growth and the plateaus that go along with the growths. It's almost like a video game, where you level up and then you gain these new abilities, but then you plateau for a bit until you level up again. It's been hard on the plateaus to keep striving forward. She's been writing for 5 years but then we moved to Mexico where she was finally able to go for it full time. And she's on her fifth novel and this current one *I* feel is better than some drivel I read on Amazon(she leveled up). I'm a voracious reader, and I read 3-4 novels a week(after starting 6 or so). I alpha and beta read for my wife and her writing group.

I feel like each one of your series has been a level up for you. How much of that do you feel has been due to the immediate feedback you received on Amazon, and do you feel like your Kindle experience is speeding you up on that track faster than you could have alone? Or were you just ready, after working on it for six years?

I fully subscribe to the maxims proposed by Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers. That there's a price to gain mastery, and it's around 10,000 hours of work. That's why I'm not worried that my wife won't succeed, she's paying the price, so I believe she'll get there, just has to level up a couple more times.

P.S.- My daughter is transferring into UCF(Go Knights!) next month from FGCU, she's really looking forward to it.

Will link

7/5/2016 08:03:37 pm

It's not the feedback.

It's nice seeing fan response to stories, I enjoy it and can learn from it, but the better feedback came from my writing groups in college. I'm aware enough of my own tendencies, strengths, and weaknesses that I almost never get feedback I didn't anticipate.

More than anything, fan response serves as a motivation for me.

The experience in writing eight books in three years is what's given me so much XP. If I stayed hovering over one novel for all that time, I could have made the novel much better, but I wouldn't have grown as much as a writer.

Go Knights!

Jim

6/30/2016 06:40:04 pm

Good! There was SO MUCH unanswered in the Traveler's Gate trilogy that really could have been expanded on. That being said, can we get some swearing/adult themes? We've got guys getting cut in pieces, but god forbid someone says something!

Will link

6/30/2016 06:52:59 pm

Surprisingly enough, I'm not entirely against that in theory. But in practice, I've already written three books in the series a certain way. There's no way I can have Simon suddenly start swearing in book four.

curious person

10/13/2016 12:39:45 pm

I was wondering when book 3 of the cradled series was coming out (when i read the description of 1 and 2, I bought them immediately, KNOWING they would be good books, and after that, I couldn't put them down).

Will link

10/13/2016 04:55:19 pm

Wow, that was a gamble! But thanks for your trust!

I'm not sure when the next one will come out; I have another book to write first. But it will be early next year, I can basically guarantee that.

John

11/13/2016 07:34:37 am

I loved the travellers gate books (still want more of simon) now I'm loving the cradle books I need book 3 and I might as well say it now book 4 to. Thanks for all the great books.

Eyzteinn

3/1/2017 03:09:15 pm

Finished Unsouled in January. Liked it. Read some other books by various authors and spent 3 weeks on my last book as it was quite boring and poorly written. Then read Soulsmith in 3 days. ABSOLUTELY loved it! Book 3 can not come soon enough! :-)

In which we ramble on.
And by we, I mean me.