Welcome To the City of Light

4/10/2014

http://www.amazon.com/City-Light-Travelers-Gate-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00JL6JMR6

Enjoy!

(For those of you in the U.K., it usually takes a little longer. I don't know why--it's a weird thing on Amazon's end.)

Now off I go to PAX East...and hopefully I'll get to sleep on the plane.

77 Comments

Ryan

4/9/2014 07:52:50 pm

Awesome! I'm going to start reading right away. Thank you Will, I think everyone appreciates how hard you worked to get this out so quickly.

Zeldachick

4/9/2014 08:05:39 pm

Woohoo!!! Thanks Will!! Have fun at PAX!!

Jeremiah Halstead

4/9/2014 08:16:35 pm

Thanks for your diligence in getting this up by 4/10 as you had said previously. I have a lot sitting and waiting to do at work today and will be using my time "wisely" :)

Already read ch 1-3 (having already seen ch 1, I skimmed) Come along Pond!

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:52:58 am

It may have killed me to do it, but at least I got it up by SOME deadline! Hope you enjoyed it, Jeremiah!

Long link

4/9/2014 09:31:11 pm

OMG!! I cant believe you have published new book. I came home from school today and this probably the best present for me. I just want to ask is there going to be any new content for the final book? I hope you will give us more surprises and excitement like this in the future. You have made my day, Will. Cheers.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:53:54 am

I'm not sure what you mean by "any new content," but I do hope you enjoy my next series just as much as this one!

Shane

4/9/2014 10:13:47 pm

Link is working just downloaded the book. Thanks

Jack S

4/9/2014 10:32:19 pm

You're the best, Will.

John

4/9/2014 11:18:18 pm

Thanks Will!

Joseph

4/9/2014 11:41:31 pm

Already bought the book, and I am reading it now. Thanks Will!

Becky

4/10/2014 12:02:01 am

Bravo! This is all I have to say to this: http://www.mememaker.net/meme/you-should-be-sleeping

...at least until your plane lands. Then, you should be Pax-ing :)

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:54:23 am

I slept so much, and then not enough, and then I got sick, and now I'm sleeping again. It's like the circle of life.

nige

4/10/2014 12:28:48 am

Cheers Will.
much appreciated.

aaron lovett

4/10/2014 01:12:46 am

just finished reading. Thoroughly enjoyable, just what I've come to expect from your writing. So... When's the next one coming? I don't mean to rush you, but, knowing how quickly and well you can punch out a good book, I just have to ask.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:56:56 am

This guy. THIS guy. THIS GUY RIGHT HERE.

But for real, though, the next series is coming this fall. With probably a short story or three between now and then. Maybe a novella, I don't know, depends on how my summer shapes up.

Kory

4/10/2014 03:39:49 am

Just finished, ate the whole book up and want more.

Dogan21

4/10/2014 06:01:27 am

#1 in every category listed.
#121 overall
Cool! 8)

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:55:27 am

I was pretty blown away by that too, Dogan.

Zach

4/10/2014 07:02:57 am

And there was much rejoicing in the land! Good work, Will. Thanks!

Jay

4/10/2014 09:03:42 am

Best news to receive in the morning! Can't wait to read this later. I may have led a riot if it wasn't published by now though. Just saying

Jeremiah Halstead

4/10/2014 09:12:56 am

You've done well. A wait well rewarded. And, not that the others were bad, but you are getting better. I was riveted. Thanks!

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:55:56 am

I see. I see what you're trying to say. I see how this is.

Aaron Hetherington

4/10/2014 09:20:15 am

I really want to discuss this with somebody, but I also don't want to accidentally spoil anything for anyone.

So all I'll say is that this is even better than I had hoped.

Shiloh Hubbard

4/11/2014 08:56:18 am

I know, right?? It was so good, and I just want to get other people's perspectives....but I also don't want to spoil it for anyone! AH!

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:55:03 am

I know I'm a week late to this, but there's now a post up where you guys can talk without fear of spoilers.

Aaron N

4/10/2014 09:58:23 am

Hell Yes! Thanks Will. Although you've made it very hard to focus on work today :D

Mike s

4/10/2014 11:14:10 am

i am in over my head and cant save myself somone pull the reader out of my hands

Marc

4/10/2014 01:20:04 pm

I just finished and I have to say it was a very good read. No rushed ending (which I hate), smoothly paced throughout. Only one missing verb and one misspelling. ;)

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:58:02 am

I won't lie to you, Marc: I was very, very tempted to rush the ending. I didn't do it, though.

Feel free to email me any typos, and I'll correct them ASAP. Thanks!

Jacob

4/10/2014 01:26:09 pm

Well now that I have completed it, I must say I no longer know what to do with my life. That was thrilling until the end.

Jim

4/10/2014 01:58:13 pm

SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!SPOILERS!

"Six months later"

That doesn't sit well with me. I feel like I've missed out on some pretty neat stuff.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 03:59:16 am

I originally had it set six weeks after the end of Crimson Vault, but I was very quickly told that the characters needed more time to develop. That was one of the main reader complaints with CV.

The characters needed more time, so I gave it to them.

Jim

4/27/2014 06:45:07 am

I read the whole book a little while ago. I liked the way you wrapped up the story line actually. I take back that previous comment, though only with the *hint* that there is more to come in more books.

Angel Nevaeh

4/10/2014 10:03:28 pm

Yes ! Finally! It's here ! :D

Jason

4/11/2014 01:50:10 am

Just finished it on my lunch break, potentially my extended lunch break. A great read, very much enjoyed. Enjoy Pax!

Brett

4/11/2014 04:17:42 am

Wil will will... You kill me sir. Just finished a grand series left wanting more! Well done sir. Please continue raising my spirits with your literature.
PS Yesterday was my 2 year of marriage with my Wife and have to say CoL was a great gift. Thank you!

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:00:23 am

I'm flattered, Brett! But I sincerely hope you didn't read CoL on your anniversary. I can't imagine your wife would be too pleased.

4/11/2014 07:19:22 am

Will,
As a resident surgeon, I don't have much free time. But I was on call last night and took the opportunity to devour City of Light. I may or may not have neglected patient care to read about Simon's escapades (kidding, nobody died). But seriously, most entertaining night on call I've had in a long time. Thank you. I hope you continue to write; you have a legion of fans at your back.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:01:13 am

You know, I've often said that it's my ambition to distract people during work and class, but I didn't mean on the operating table.

For real, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Juan

4/11/2014 09:56:32 am

Thank you Will. Great trilogy from a great author.

Zak

4/11/2014 10:02:47 am

Just finished a great book and trilogy...now i've gotta look forward to Autumn 2014!

Mike S

4/11/2014 11:44:43 am

Great book Will!!! I devoured this book in less 24 hours. Instant classic!!

Gary

4/12/2014 05:20:40 am

Wonderful book. I believe it was the best out of the three. Thanks for having the courage to not take the easy roads and putting out a fluff book. It was a fun, edge of the seat read. I can just imagine all of the potential back stories. I'm curious if you had to trim it down some? I saw at least 5 different tangent stories that I would have wanted to go down. A great piece of story telling sir! I would bow a thank you but I'm with Simon when it comes to bowing.

Let us know if you happen to make any more appearances in Orlando.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:03:37 am

There are those who say I appear in Orlando all the time, flickering in and out of existence like a specter.

For real, though, I live in Orlando. I can "appear" pretty much at any time.

As for the trimming, I trimmed pretty much this entire trilogy down to its bones. It could easily have been five meaty books rather than three slim ones. I think there were pluses and minuses to the approach, but I'm glad you enjoyed the books!

R.Sierra

4/12/2014 10:07:20 am

I knew it!, The SOFA IS ALIVE

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:03:57 am

All hail the sofa!

Avi

4/12/2014 12:23:00 pm

I can't wait to devour this book.

Steve s

4/13/2014 11:11:04 am

Loved the series. Great story. I have a question or 2 about the incarnations and Valinhall powers though. Incarnations are a part of a territory, right? And aside from it making a dull story, could Denner not have banished the incarnations back to their territories with his glass bell?

Steve s

4/13/2014 11:15:25 am

I realize that it would have made a bad story and it wouldn't be in keeping with Valinhall traditions, but was merely wondering if it were a possibility

Dustin

4/13/2014 12:25:45 pm

Just to let you know, City of Light is now #1 Bestseller in Sword & Sorcery Fantasy ebooks on Amazon. Congrats!! Downloading as I write this and can't wait to start.

BrianS

4/13/2014 11:53:19 pm

"..."

MikeF

4/14/2014 02:15:31 am

Am I the only one who is forcing myself to only read this book an hour a day? I am having a mini panic attack about finishing it and having a devastatingly severe lack of Simon and Co. in my life.....

Fred Flintstone

4/14/2014 10:50:10 am

Yeah, so, just wanted to drop by and say:

I bought the first book for $2.99 last night. The description suggested it could go either way - be pretty entertaining, or be really rather bad. Happily, it was much better than expected. Just about what I was looking for. Actually, it was sufficiently good that I didn't put it down, staying up way too long (though the end of the second book).

I found the second book for $2.99, which I thought was odd. The first book was excellent, and a decent strategy is to bump the price up by a dollar or so (to $3.99) for the next book.

Then - surprise - I found the third book, also for $2.99. Now, this is really surprising. I've paid $4.99 for self published Kindle ebooks before which were quite a bit worse.

So: I suggest you think about changing your prices. Maybe. Price elasticity is always iffy, and it could be that price dominates volume at the lower end, so your profit would decline. Which would be a shame.

But still, I derived much more than $9.97 worth of value from the entire trilogy - although it actually cost me more, since I only had 3 hours of sleep last night and was pretty unproductive at work today - and it strikes me as somewhat unreasonable. Basically, I finished and thought: "That was too cheap. Why didn't it cost more?"

Very good work - the MFA in Creative Writing is certainly apparent, by the way, there's a real edge of polish that provides - and as long as you're making enough money, then all's well that ends well. But still. Keep it in mind.

Yevgen

4/15/2014 03:31:41 am

Fred,
Actually I wanted to write the same, but found your excellent comment.
I also think it is monetary unfair for the author to charge as low as 2.99 for this quality of the book. Will I am sure that all of your readers worldwide will be glad to pay 1-2 bucks more per Kindle edition, bringing you additional 10 million dollars ( I hope :- ) ). No, really, you should raise a price!
Yevgen
Odessa, Ukraine

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:08:47 am

Fred: My business manager read your comment, and he would like me to tell you that he's now your biggest fan. He's been trying for months to get me to raise the prices on my next series.

I think $2.99 was the right price for my first trilogy, but I'm considering raising my prices to $3.99 for my next series. You're right about there being a sense of, "Why is it so cheap? There must be something wrong with it," but on the other hand I don't want people to avoid it because it's expensive.

More than that, I don't want people to feel like I'm trying to cheat them by jacking up the prices, but I don't think $3.99 would be too bad. In the future I may go as high as $4.99, but I wouldn't raise it any further than that (under these market conditions).

Yevgen: Thanks for the encouragement! It still blows my mind that people as far away as Ukraine are reading and enjoying my books. What a world we live in.

Larry

4/14/2014 11:24:19 am

I devoured it whole over the weekend. Well, I had to mow the lawn on Sunday. MY Wife could be a Ragnarus traveler, I tell you. Either way, you'd better get back to TG universe, Will. Don't make me sic Leah's crystals on you.

Kyle

4/14/2014 02:31:17 pm

Just a quick stop by to say great trilogy. I was enjoyed the story very much.
Raising the price wouldn't hurt. Your originality deserves a higher value alone.
maybe take a page from Patrick Rothfuss and have a group of trusted beta readers who as a requisite have to provide constructive criticism and conventional editing.
Again great read. Thanks

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:10:03 am

Thanks for the compliment, Kyle! Glad you enjoyed the trilogy!

As for the beta readers...I think every writer does that, actually, including me. There's really no way to push a book out without having someone else read it first.

Каша (serious spoilers!!!!!!!!)

4/14/2014 09:31:26 pm

Thank you Will for:
~writing an awesome trilogy in a freakin' year!!
~getting better with every book...Knocked it out of the park with CoL
~Simon punching Alin in the face!!
~keeping Valin and my favorite overlord around
~unleashing the couch
~bringing in lady K
~Zs demise--brilliant scene
~the refreshing TG theme of effort and reward. You my self-publishing friend exemplify that! More success to 'ya!!

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:14:36 am

Look, it really does mean a lot to me to hear you say that.

When I first put House of Blades on Amazon, I really didn't expect much to happen with it. And then people started enjoying it, and I was floored. But I told myself, "Well, everyone says the second book's the hardest, so maybe this will all fall apart with Book 2."

And then people not only read Crimson Vault, but really seemed to enjoy it.

Of course, after that, I thought, "That's two books down, but I haven't finished the trilogy yet. The real test is to see if they enjoy how I close this story out." I was worried that City of Light would let down people's expectations.

And the reader response to Book 3 has blown me out of the water.

Now, naturally, I'm worried about my next series. "They liked the first trilogy, sure, but was that because of me or because I stumbled on a good idea that I'll never be able to duplicate?"

I don't think I'll ever get over doubts like that, but comments like yours keep me encouraged. Thanks so much for taking the time to tell me!

Zeldachick

4/18/2014 06:12:33 am

The only dissapointment with Col is that I finished it and now it's over. But totally loved it!! Give it a few months and then I will be re-reading the series .....again!!

spoiler john

4/15/2014 12:08:23 am

Good books, enjoyed most of it except killing off kai. Felt you wasted him away
Hope til read more From you!

Adamc

4/15/2014 01:21:29 pm

That was a great read. I am impressed by how complete the trilogy feels and yet here I am already wanting more. I can't wait for the wanderer book and I was loving the "just enough" hints about founding of territories, ties and the void. Keep up the good work Bill.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:23:49 am

I think some people were unsatisfied by that, but I guess it depends on what you wanted tied up by the end of the series.

Answers are coming, though! Eventually!

Adamc

4/19/2014 06:07:56 am

I thought that this series did a great job of wrapping up the plot line, and I think that it is appropriate that just like Simon we are in the dark about a lot of things about traveling. I am excited to see if my ideas match up with the way things are but to me that will work better in a book about the founding of a territory rather than forced into a situation where it doesn't move the story forward.

BrianS

4/16/2014 02:14:11 pm

Will! I thought you did an excellent job on the book, and it was well worth the extra time you put into it. I see you're recuperating on a mountain top again with no internet, good for you. When you get back you can bask in all the praise from your fans.

Looking forward to more excellent writing from you in the future. You set the bar pretty high for yourself on this first trilogy and still managed to get it completed within a year, which is amazing. Keep up the good work.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:16:44 am

Glad you enjoyed it, Brian! I am indeed meditating on my mountaintop, hoping to restore my mystical energies so that I might tackle the few tasks remaining in the Traveler's Gate Trilogy.

For real, thanks for the comment. The reader response to City of Light has been amazing, and it's helped me to feel that the extra time was actually worth it.

I really will keep working on my release dates, though.

JuneS

4/17/2014 02:38:46 am

Thank you for such a fascinating world and for sharing it with us! I discovered HoB some time ago and got my mother, son and husband to read it and the sequels. I had to read CoL in one sitting and stayed up way too late last night to finish. Very satisfying and well worth the wait. Many laugh-out-loud moments, a tear or two and a deep, contented sigh when I closed my kindle. You have become one of my favorite authors. I've never been inspired to follow a blog and comment before this. Thank you again. Except now I'll have to scrounge around in my desperation book list for something to read. Or maybe I'll just start at HoB and re-read everything :)

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:22:53 am

Thanks for pushing my books, June! And thanks for taking the time to leave a comment, I know that I only do that when I feel strongly about the books involved.

Reactions like yours are what make telling stories worth all the time and energy. Thanks for spending your life listening to me ramble on! I hope you enjoy my next series even more!

Madeline

4/17/2014 09:52:47 am

After finishing City of Light, and thinking about it for a few days, I'm now really curious as to what Leah was thinking when Simon first turned up to rescue her, with the obviously Valinhall sword and Nye cape.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:18:20 am

That's one of the points that I'll likely clarify as I go about my next task: touching up House of Blades. If you remember, at that point Indirial is the only Valinhall Traveler that Leah knows, so she's not expecting to see another one. She sees him and basically thinks, "Wait a second, that looks familiar..." but she doesn't put it together until she sees Indirial at the end of the book.

It's also been two years since she's interacted with Indirial at all.

Matthew

4/17/2014 11:08:12 am

Am I the only one that wanted to see some romance, or at least to see how the family members reunited? I love everything about the books, but I don't want to move on to different characters just yet.

Madeline

4/17/2014 01:56:37 pm

This, as well. With the way Rhalia and Cynara were mentioning the old man from the Ragnarus short story, it feels like there are still problems to be resolved. As well as the secrets of Valinhall that even Valin didn't know.

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:20:56 am

Some of that will be resolved in the Valinhall prequel, coming...next year? I guess?

And the rest of it will be resolved in an actual sequel. I'll be writing something in the future of this universe, I just don't know if it will be another trilogy, a standalone book, a longer series, or a bunch of short stories. Maybe all of the above, I don't know.

In the meantime, though, I need to move on to another universe. I get antsy staying in one place for too long.

Zeldachick

4/18/2014 06:17:24 am

Yay sequels!! I vote sequels!! Lots and lots of sequels!! Hehe :D

Fred

4/17/2014 09:11:34 pm

Hi Will,

could you set up a separate thread for us to discuss the book. Something with an appropriate spoiler warning

Thx

Will Wight link

4/18/2014 04:19:01 am

It is done.

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