Fall 2022 Upcoming Releases

It’s been quite a while since Ink Smith Publishing has released more than two books a year. Due to COVID and other interruptions Ink Smith has been slowly getting back into the groove. Fall 2022 is starting to take shape and we are pleased to announce the upcoming publications of three of our current authors’ work. First up, is the relaunching of Polar Night and Polar Day by Julie Flanders. These relaunched, and beautifully designed covers are in preparation for the third book, Polar Curse, in the re-branded Polar Magic series.

Polar Curse by Julie Flanders

Julie Flanders, the author of The Ghosts of Aquinnah, Polar Night, and Polar Day, is releasing the next book in the Polar Magic series: Polar Curse. It started in Fairbanks, and it will end in Fairbanks. Detective Danny Fitzpatrick has dueled with vampires and witches, but something is haunting Fairbanks—and it isn’t just the recent disappearance of a hiker. Eerie voices, accidental deaths and arson keep dragging Danny back to Kennecott cemetery. Back to Annabelle Trescot’s grave. The only theory that makes any sense: a deadly ghost.

With bodies piling up, Danny is forced to seek out Aleksei Nechayev, the murderous vampire, for help. But history has a way of coming back to haunt us, even when the ghosts get what they want. 

The Rise of the Azure Spire by J. Edward Hackett

J. Edward Hackett, author of the epic-fantasy novel, The Flight of the Ravenhawk, is back with the sequel to Prince Kals’ adventure. With King Darnashi under the control of necromancy wielded by Prime Magus Encheron, the Wizardlord’s must pledge their allegiance or face the costs of treason.

The Elves of Venda have thrown their support behind Prince Kal, but Kal might be more Allurian than they bargained for. When Kal’s dreams connect to the tortured soul of his brother, King Darnashi—the war takes a much deadlier turn. An army of the dead has risen and Encheron wields their commander. 

While Venda and Alluria fight their war, Encheron is making deals with the Shadowland to ensure his own claim over Alluria, but when he promises the Heart of Creation in exchange for his power, he may have doomed them all.

The Witch and the Devourer of Souls by C. David Belt

C. David Belt, author of The Witch of White Lady Hollow, has rocketed us into the future with The Witch and the Devourer of Souls. We find ourselves following an adult, Tabitha Moonshadow, navigating another evil force, in the sequel.

A masked serial killer feeds off the terror of women, devouring their souls… and he’s set his sights on Tabitha.

Tabitha Moonshadow Kilmore is now a young wife and a new mother, as well as a starving university student. And only her husband, her beloved Josh, knows that she’s a witch. And only Tabitha knows that Josh is a warlock—her warlock. They can do nothing apart, but together, they are magnificent.

It’s 1982, and a masked serial killer stalks the streets of tranquil Provo, Utah, abducting and terrorizing women, consuming their fear, and devouring their souls. And the killer has targeted the ultimate prize–the witch, Tabitha.

Reluctantly, Tabitha uses her abilities to aid Provo Police Detective Daniel Folau, a man scarred without and within, to identify and stop the murderer. But can Tabitha and Josh trust Folau? Can they trust any man? After all, any male could be the Devourer of Souls.

Facelift for The Devil’s Scribe

One of Ink Smith Publishing’s novels recently got a facelift! The Devil’s Scribe by Rod Baker will now be available with a new cover, and updated interior layout. This creepy novel is the perfect Halloween purchase to grace your horror focused shelves.

After lightning strikes natural-born killer Leonard Ravnik and grazes famous novelist Renee Holland, a spate of brutal and ritualistic murders begin in Baltimore. Renee lapses into trances of auto-writing and records Ravnik’s gruesome killings as they occur. Police lieutenant, Kent Elinger, who has solved Baltimore’s most infamous crimes, discovers that Renee knows things only the killer would know. This makes her Elinger’s prime suspect until Elinger discovers the staged murders form a cryptic pattern from another era. Elinger and Renee fall in love as they dig into the case and uncover its paranormal factors. The investigation leads Elinger and Renee to Baltimore’s oldest graveyard where they uncover a 160 year-old secret linked to a founding family of Baltimore and Edgar Allan Poe. When Renee becomes the killer’s final target, Elinger executes a macabre and dangerous solution that could kill them all if it fails…

Pre-Order for the new look begins today in honor of Halloween! Stay spooky readers!

Sentinel Peak COVER REVEAL!

The day has arrived for the reveal of Sentinel Peak by Jay Chalk! The cover, done by the talented Jenny Eickbush, is perfect for the alien-themed mystery. If you follow our social media channels, a special discount code will be beamed into your inbox for following @inksmithpublishing on Instagram and liking our Cover Reveal photo! Remember to do both to get that discount off our pre-order sale launching September 15!

 

Jay Chalk Joins Ink Smith Publishing!

Jay Chalk has joined the Ink Smith Publishing family with his new novel, Sentinel Peak! His previous novel, Revolution 2050, was published with Dancing Lemur Press, a dystopian novel that challenges its characters to decide between staying loyal to what they know, and fighting for freedom.

A long-haul trucker at one time, Jay now lives in East Texas and is a twenty-two year veteran high school teacher of U.S. Government and History.  When he’s not teaching, writing, or playing the guitar, he’s flying.

Sentinel Peak is a fast-paced mystery with a legendary origin spanning decades, and space. When an alien reconnaissance spacecraft crash landed in Arizona Territory in 1853, the crash site was only briefly investigated by local tribes. It left the ship, and its survivors to fade into legend.

Fast-forward 100 years later, and Daniel McKntyre finds himself haunted by strange dreams of his great-grandfather and a mysterious place known as Sentinel Peak. While rekindling an old flame with Anna, the mother of his child, the dreams become more vivid. The more time he spends around Anna the more he realizes she may have some connection to his dreams.

As he digs deeper, he finds that Anna’s history is much more expansive than he thought.

Lightyears away, 143 year-old Ason mMyer, commander of the starship freighter Mnaerias, has received a distress signal from the downed starship on earth.  Ason recognizes the signal as that of the Halaena, a vessel that had mysteriously disappeared with his father.  Ignoring protocol, he decides to take it upon himself to investigate.

As these two move closer together, Dan finds himself caught up in a government investigation and intergalactic mystery that spans decades.  He realizes there’s only one thing left for him to do: go with Anna to Sentinel Peak to uncover what’s behind it all.

 

Pre-Orders and our Cover Reveal for Sentinel Peak begin soon! Make sure to keep updated by following our blog and our social media channels.

Suburban Legend: E-Book Available!

If you haven’t purchased your copy of Suburban Legend by Christopher Veltri because you aren’t a fan of a physical book, then you are in luck! Suburban Legend is now available on Amazon Kindle and ready for download.

A deadly book, a vicious videogame, and a quiet suburban town.

When bookish Ralph Marker moves back to Wilhelmina to live with his father, a dark videogame finds its way into his hands. As Ralph’s obsession grows, deadly creatures begin stirring in the quiet town.

But Cuazque isn’t the only evil force brewing – Wilhelmina High’s beauties have a dark secret of their own. Amanda Klein, Colleen Simpson, and Shannon Kennedy release an ancient force from hell that threatens to consume them wholly.

Forcing her friends to participate in an ancient rite for power, Amanda makes a demon deal in exchange for abilities for her and her friends. While Colleen is seduced by the newfound power, Shannon isn’t ready to accept her dark gift. Shannon and Ralph must join forces to put a stop to Amanda’s deadly, power-hungry plot, before it’s too late for them, and the town of Wilhelmina.

Don’t forget to leave a review once you finish reading this suspense-filled horror novel!

A writing prompt from A.L. Glennon

A.L. Glennon has never used a writing prompt to start a story. She is more of a visual writer. She’s provided us with this fun challenge to help stimulate some of those creative juices for aspiring writers! 

THE CHALLENGE: 

Open the first magazine you see to a random page and use the photo there to inspire a few lines!

Share with us what you came up with in the comments! Or tag us on social media with the image and your first few lines. We’d love to hear from you!

Welcome to A.L. Glennon!

AUTHOR PORTRAIT BY BOBBY CARTER/BLINKONTWO.COM.

Ink Smith Publishing is happy to announce our new author, A.L. Glennon! A.L. Glennon  has her Master of Arts degree from the Communication, Culture, and Technology Program at Georgetown University. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and three sons. Her Ink Smith Publishing debut novel, Wait For It! is due out this summer!

Wait for It! is a contemporary Y.A. novel with fantasy elements. When a freak bathroom accident cuts his Earthly life short, academic bowl team captain Martin Van Assen is surprised to find himself languishing in the waiting room of the Soul Reassignment Office with only the overly dramatic Zelda Kozikowski and her maybe-ex-boyfriend, the oft-reincarnated Zeke Zabar, for company. The unlikely trio gets tired of sitting around with nothing to do but bicker while they wait to start new lives, and sneaks through a portal that takes them back to Earth in ghostly form. The search for meaning in their previous lives takes these three lost souls on the journey of an afterlifetime, all the way to the infernally warm intake office of Hell itself. Martin, Zelda, and Zeke might figure a few things out along the way, but none of it will matter much if they have to spend eternity in a pit of fire. Or worse.

Pre-Order for Wait For It! begins May 15th! Keep an eye out for updates on the pre-order status and author updates on our site. Want to join A.L. Glennon on her writing journey? Make sure to follow her on Twitter @ALGlennonAuthor.

Upcoming Author Events!

National Poetry Month: Shel Silverstein

When I was in the third grade, my teacher, Mrs. Froriep, was insistent upon our class reading and writing in tandem. It was not enough to read the words and enjoy them in the way authors organized them, but also to use our imaginations and create our own writings, and to respond to the books we were reading. I attribute a lot of my joy in writing to this woman. But I also attribute that joy to the authors and books that she connected me to as well.

As I get older and engage with different books and writing styles I always look back on those times in her class when she would pull books out for us to read together. It was always followed by those quiet moments of reflection and digestion of the content we were currently ingesting. One of the first poetry books she introduced me to was Shel Silverstein, Falling Up. In honor of Poetry Month Ink Smith has decided to dedicate today to this childhood author. His work has, and continues to, grace the bookshelves of countless classrooms across the nation inspiring children to both read, and perhaps, to write.

 

“There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.”
– Where the Sidewalk Ends, Shel Silverstein

 

What was your favorite Shel Silverstein piece? Share in the comments!

 

About Corinne

Corinne has her MFA in Writing from Lindenwood University and her MPS in Publishing from George Washington University. She has been an editor at Ink Smith Publishing and Native Ink Press since 2013, taking over the company in 2019. Since her first trip to the library when she was a toddler, Corinne has been collecting books, recommending her favorites, and providing commentary on the less-than-stellar. Her belief is that if you have a problem, it’s nothing that a good book can’t solve.

Welcome, J. Edward Hackett!

Ink Smith Publishing welcomes, author J. Edward Hackett to the Ink Smith family, with his debut novel The Flight of the Ravenhawk which will be available Spring 2019. Pre-orders will go live on the Ink Smith website in April.

J. Edward Hackett, Ph.D. is an academic philosopher at Savannah State University who rather than engage in metaphysical speculation in process metaphysics is off building magick systems in his world of Apeiron. Fantasy fiction is itself an exploration of concepts in extreme for him. In fantasy this exploration is limited only by the imagination in much the same way that philosopher employs the intellectual imagination to solve problems that science, common sense, religion, or art cannot solve on their own.

In his debut novel, Flight of the Ravenhawk, Apeiron is a world as boundless as its origin coming from Anaximander’s fragments. Wizard nobles vie for power in the Allurian Empire. Airships shoot lightning cannons. Elven archers fly atop griffins, and a dwarven kingdom is buried deep in the mountains far from elven or human spires. At the same time, Ed’s fiction cannot help but be inspired and instantiated by concepts that come from ancient, modern, and 19th and 20th philosophical systems of thought. It’s in his blood.

Ed grew up scattered across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. Born in Lakewood, NJ and spending most of his life north of Pittsburgh, PA, Ed has been traveling to other worlds since he bought the Star Wars D6 RPG book by West End Games and Mage: the Ascension from White Wolf as a teenager. He grew up on Magic the Gathering, 80s fantasy movies, and many comics of the 90s amidst the rust belt of Western Pennsylvania.

Although a professor, Ed still goes to imaginary worlds with his friends at the age of 39. He’s in a classic AD&D game. His philosophizing meshes with the sensitivity to imaginary worlds. Just recently, he contributed an article about environmental ethics and the animated movie Wall-E in the upcoming Disney and Philosophy. He’s edited another pop culture and philosophy volume called House of Cards and Philosophy, co-edited an academic volume on phenomenology entitled Phenomenology for the 21st Century. He also published his first solo academic book called Persons and Values in Pragmatic Phenomenology (2018).  When asked if she was a philosopher once, the great Simone De Beauvoir said, “No, I’m a writer.” Upon hearing that many years ago, Ed has tried to write for many audiences and emulate her example.

Ed has been married to his wife, Ashley, since July 30th 2016. They live in Savannah, a magickal place in its own right and before that they lived in Cleveland. They have two cats: Olive and Lulu. Ed absorbs the sunlight of the beach, practices zazen, and while writing and teaching philosophy and other courses in the humanities, he shoots landscape photography. Despite all of this, his greatest joy is teaching and writing. “Writing fiction is simply being philosophical with narratives rather than directly talking about concepts.”