James M. Vargo Books

Time to explore. A blogpost can be an intimidating thing.  I must have something pertinent to say -- or awe-inspiring, glorious, or just downright timeless.  Or if a book update, it better say something incredible like -- Book Four coming out tomorrow: NY Times already calls it the greatest achievement of the twenty-first century!  Yeah, not quite there yet. Another fear of the dreaded book blog:  it clearly means I've been writing.  Right?  Well, not exactly.  I suppose saying it's been on my mind lately won't help; or everything has its season; or the complexities of starting a new job endeavor has robbed me of my story-telling qualities.  So no more excuses.  But it has entered my mind more and more, and that's a good thing.  My short prelude is done, and part of the first chapter, but now I am getting ideals on the next step -- the next several steps.  I've known the beginning and end of each book in the series for a whil...

If you read advice of better writers you'll learn things like; writers write every day, writers keep specific schedules, writers are only writers if they earn long lists of achievements and degrees, and most emphatically, writers write to sell.  Darn. It's been many months since the release of the Prince of Furies , and it never sold.  I can't count family and friends, because they shouldn't be numbered among regular readers -- sorry folks.  I'm proud of this book, being third in the series, and consider it my best, but... Passage of the Acolyte , in it's two parts, sold a few copies over the years -- and several giveaways put it in the hundreds worldwide.  Yes, hundreds -- not earth-shattering.  I hoped some of these good folks would return, leave comments, tell me it was a wonderful read, it sucked, or don't bother me with this Fantasy stuff.  Silence. I'm catching on to the sign of the times.  Tweets, twitter, blurbs, fast this -- fast that...

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/prince-of-the-furies-james-vargo/1119881327?ean=2940149812486 Yeah, it's been a while, but Prince of the Furies is finally on NOOK...and for only $0.99.  More updates to follow. Another cover choice, but I went with the Celts.

They congratulate authors for finishing their first book -- although I made mine a two-fer.  What to do for an encore?  Book three, of course. A series is a risky proposition for obvious reasons, but some of us write not so much for popularity (Ha!) or money (bigger Ha!), but an inane desire to create.  There are worse passions. So another endeavor tossed out for the world to see, and that is a frightening thought, but here we go again. Let the adventure begin...again! https://www.createspace.com/3797496 It's on Amazon too, of course, and Kindle in the very near future.  I'll keep you posed.

I'm not one to procrastinate...a lot. Writing-wise, I have my pace, and that might be called slow. So when I set a goal, I don't always succeed. But this time I ran with it to the finish with the clock expiring. My goal was to finish my edit this year -- 2013 -- and as of 10:30pm EST, December 31st, I made my goal. The Prince of Furies is done! Okay, truth be told, I have to rush through two maps (at the most), which should be interesting, if not fun. I can't account for artwork when setting goals, mind you. Then I can finally send this off to be published. My next blog post should be the one telling you when my third book is ready to hit the market. And so many waiting readers will shout for joy...or is that a New Years Eve party going on down the street? But you get the drift. Happy 2014 everyone!  

I am halfway through my proofing of Book Three, Prince of the Furies , due out by New Years Day (hopefully).  In the spirit of Black Friday and the season of giving, Passage of the Acolyte, Book One is available FREE on Kindle this weekend -- Sat Nov 30th and Sun Dec 1st. I am also big on selling the hardcopies for a discount -- $5 each for Books One and Two. Just make the request thru this sight, or Facebook, or even my e-mail, which is easily had, and i'll hook you up.  I really want folks to enjoy the story before the highly anticipated next volume is out. vargojames@verizon.net

I have to admit it, I like crowds.  That sounds strange for a writer, but droves of mall folk or party lined streets hardly bother me at all (minus the traffic getting there).  Don't get me wrong, I'm an introvert too.  I like my alone time when I can get it. But today was about the crowds. Fort Ligonier days ran its popular course this weekend. I've written about it before. Anyone within a few hours drive of the Laurel mountains in western Pa. should check it out, along with many other nearby places worth a look; from Fallingwater, Seven Springs, to the falls at Ohiopyle. Pennsylvania is awesome! Anyway, the town of Ligonier lay nestled between soft forested ridges of the Laurel Highlands, and emerges as a thriving village along the banks of Loyalhanna creek. And to top it off, Ligonier has its own fully restored 18th century fort. Here you can imagine George Washington riding out of the woods to find rest from his travels; or Ichabod Crane galloping roughshod out...