Notwithstanding the distractions posed by the impending release of To Honor You Call Us and For Honor We Stand, I’ve been getting some good work done on the third installment of the “Man of War Series,” Brothers in Valor, the last few weeks. When I’m in the zone, these books practically write themselves, and that’s where I am right now.
Max has gotten out of the jam he’s in at the start of the book (this isn’t a spoiler–I’ve posted a draft of the first chapter on this site), moved through the plot setup for the bulk of the book, and is now in place for him and his ship to be doing what they’ll be doing for most of the novel. I know what most of that is going to be, so we’re in good shape. So, those of you who are worried about getting invested in a series that the author drops along the way should be reassured–I’m writing the third book and things are going well.
Besides, there is the small matter of a contract that obligates me to write the third book. I used to be a lawyer. I understand these things.
When things are going well, this doesn’t feel like work. I’m in space, where I’ve wanted to go ever since I understood what it was.
There is no place I’d rather be.
H. Paul Honsinger 
Wow…here I thought the book was already written and we were waiting for the P.O.S. publisher to let you print it. I thought this was done a year ago! That is certainly what was said at the end of the last book. I’ve been checking amazon weekly for the third book, and now i hear it isn’t even written yet. Ugh.
Thanks for reading the first two books. With respect, at no point have I ever stated or so much as hinted that the third book was already written. Further, I have made repeated announcements in this space, on my Facebook page, in comments to reviews on Amazon.com, in my podcast interview with Mack Meyers, and every other venue that the third book is in process–I have repeatedly commented on the difficulty of trying to write the third book while shepherding the first two through the 47North editing process and getting them ready for publication, and so forth. I am sorry that you are disappointed, but the latest blog post is news only to the extent that progress on the third novel is good, not that the third novel is not done. Also, it would be surprising indeed if the third book were to be issued before the second book were to be issued by the new publisher (which I would never regard as a P.O.S.) before the second book is even issued by them. Rather than checking Amazon weekly for the third book, you would do better to check this space monthly, where you will get notice when the third book is done with first draft, when it goes to Mike Shohl, my editor, when we’re done editing, when it goes to the copy editors, when we have a cover design, and all the other steps along the way.
In terms of the first two books, I produced and published roughly 300,000 words of very technically demanding fiction in a space of just over five months–something that takes most writers in this genre about a year and a half, if not two. This third book is taking longer, largely because of all the attention I had to give to bringing the first two books to publication in their new editions with 47North. So, when the third book comes out this summer, that will mean I published 3 novels in about a year and a half, which is certainly a reasonable pace for putting out work that is as detail-oriented as mine. I really don’t think that I have anything to apologize for here. It’s not like I’ve been sunning myself on a beach somewhere.
Back when I bought the second book in the series I found at the end of the book “The story of Captain Max…..Continues the concluding volume of the “man of war” Trilogy, Brothers in Valor, scheduled for publication in mid 2013″. I was hooked on the series at that point so i was watching for the next volume closely…as the “mid 2013” got closer or arrived we heard that you got a publisher and the book was going to be pushed back on coming out.
You know what they say about assumptions. From my stand point the publisher held you back from putting the book out from what I saw in the posts. This has and does happen with publishers all the time (Marko Kloos latest book as an example…same publisher btw). They march to their own drum and time frame to get the best bang for the buck. This leaves the readers out in the cold not the author.
Now that I see that it was not a scheme of theirs in this case. Sorry. I have no issue with authors taking as long as they need to enjoy their work and get things right. But I have to say…even when your done you can’t put it out yourself as you could as a self publisher. It will be up to 47north when they choose to put it out right? 6 months to a year after the previous book is the norm. 🙂 That is one of the reasons I dislike the business, among others.
Keep up the good work and thank you for writing a gripping story!
Bookworm, mid 2013 looked like a reasonable time frame for Book III when I finished Book II. I had nothing big on my plate to distract me and was chomping at the bit to get Book III written. I had thought I would read a few submarine books to get my head in the right place and then charge into the writing. Within a few weeks of Book II’s release, sales took off and, on March 19, 2013, I got an email from an editor at 47North that changed the trajectory of the whole writing enterprise. First, there was the contract to negotiate, then there was the process of editing the prior books, giving detailed input in the covers, the naval uniforms on the covers, marketing, blah, blah–the process takes months and months requiring lots of attention, particularly as I was not only new to the process, but ad never seriously believed that I would ever be working with “my publisher” on anything. I had never really learned about the process of bringing a book to print with a publisher because I never believed I would be doing it.
There were also some health problems that made it difficult to work for a while.
Anyway, I’m back on track now and will get Book III to press as soon as I can.
Love the books, will be getting number 3 when its out.
I’m not worried about when the 3rd book comes out, I am presently in the middle of the 2nd book. Very enjoyable stories and as I am a US Navy veteran, the description of life aboard the Cumberland is very realistic. I don’t know how many books you plan on having in this series, but I do plan on getting them and reading them as they become available. Keep up the good work. Ignore those critics, the fans are the ones that count.
I am planning a series of indefinite length. The trilogy may end but the story will continue. Thanks for the support.