Maximal Reserve is in the 2011 STL Distribution Spring Catalog

Greetings!

You know it's close to coming out when the distributor is sending catalogs that advertise your book to all the bookstores in the country. Page 12 here.



T-Minus 25 days!

Back in the "Writing Saddle"

It has been a while since I posted here. This is mostly because of my commitments to a number of other things in my life. Back in January I was asked to help our youth group at church as a youth leader.

“How hard could that be?” I thought. Silly rabbit…

I made a choice that outside of my work as a programmer for Microsoft during the “day hours” I would use my talents for the Lord and build something for our youth group on the web. This turned out to be one of the most amazing and most rewarding things I have ever done and it’s like a cross between a digital bible and a social network. While it’s a closed environment (on purpose) it’s my hope that someday all Christians will have access to a tool like this. This project essentially consumed every moment outside of work, family events and finishing the editing for my next book.

During the summer I managed to get Maximal Reserve, my next work, edited with Rachel Starr Thomson and ready to go for a February 1, 2011 release. I just saw the typeset version and I must say that it looks great. I am so excited about sharing this story with you all. It’s very different than Wayback – a different premise, a different set of heroes and villains and more contemporary in its approach.

This morning, after dropping my daughter off for a drama practice at school I headed to a local college library to continue writing on the long awaited sequel to Wayback. It’s a quiet environment that gives me the concentration that I need to write.

I have struggled with the working title for this book and it’s lurched from various titles such as The Pact of the Fallen to Mid-Cycle (it is the second book a three book series) and finally have arrived at the title that I am happy with: Insurrection. It’s a single word, like Wayback, not a lot of books with this title exist and it has dual meaning, much like Wayback did (going Wayback and finding a Way Back).

I am now referring to Insurrection as “The Big Scary.” This is a term that I saw Tosca Lee (the author of Havah and Demon: a Memoir) use for her upcoming story of Judas Iscariot, which is coming in 2012. “The Big Scary” is a good way to describe a book that you know will challenge yourself—not just the mechanics, but in the big ideas that it challenges in both yourself and your readers.

Why call it “The Big Scary?” Well, this is the third time I am rewriting this story. I really thought I would bring this sequel to market before Maximal Reserve, but some early readers were disturbed by the content. After more than a year of research into the concept, I was blown back to the drawing board. As you know, research is a key part of my books and I like to educate on the way to entertainment. I shelved the idea and kept researching coming to the same conclusions that I had early on, but with new ideas for the approach to take to get the idea across.

This idea will be controversial and in the months ahead I will share my raw research with you and we can talk about the conclusions that I have come to in the two and half years since I started this manuscript.

Until that point, think about what your feelings are regarding the following:

• How advanced was man before the Flood?
• How advanced was their technology?
• Was any ruin left that might give us a hint of how advanced man was before the Flood changed the face of the planet?
• Did man get help from another source with this technology? If so, what was the payment for the exchange of this information?
• Why did God have to destroy the entire human population of the planet, including animals that breathe through their nostrils?
• What did God mean by the phrase that “Noah was pure in his generations?”
• What does the mysterious set of versus that frame the reason for the flood in the early part of Genesis 6 mean?

Summer Blahs and an update on Maximal Reserve

Well, it's hot--I mean "out of control hot" here in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Corridor. The lawns all look like the moon and I haven't had to mow the lawn in a few weeks now.

I am in the midst of the final edits on Maximal Reserve with Rachel Starr Thomson, the same wonderful editor that worked with me on Wayback. We've already made some big changes and reordered some chapters to make the story read better and get to the action as soon as possible.

I'm also finishing up getting endorsements for the book. I'm so happy with the list of authors who have agreed to write a blurb about the book even after reading early manuscripts that don't have all the polish to them.

I was interviewed on PID/BlogTalkRadio last week and you can listen to the interview here.

I also got a great review from Kerry Neitz, a fellow Christian Sci-Fi author and fellow Microsoft Alumnus. I reposted his review here with his permission. Grab one of his books - A Star Curiously Singing has received huge accolades and is doing very well in the marketplace. When I get a review like this from a fellow author it makes me happy :) Oh, and you can pre-order Maximal Reserve on Amazon now.

Wayback is a fun novel that I enjoyed from beginning to end. I love the way it reads--like a Michael Crichton thriller, both educating the reader and challenging him to think outside the box. In fact, I would say it has a more wide-open worldview than most Crichton novels, since it allows for both the secular approach and that of a reasoned faith.
Nazi experiments? Time travel to the time of Noah? Why not! Wayback has a cool premise, and the story itself is executed nearly flawlessly--again reminiscent of Crichton at his best. I was so tickled with the idea as I read, I kept wondering why I hadn't thought of it! Big kudos to Sam for bringing it all together.
Really, I can find little to criticize here. The only thing I wonder about is whether the secondary time travel plot--while thoroughly entertaining and well written--was even necessary for this story. There were so many fun elements in the main story; the secondary plot could've almost been saved for a second novel. (Which I'm sure I would've enjoyed too.)
Wayback is an awesome first effort by Mr. Batterman. I'm excited to see what he has in store for us next.

Final Cover for Maximal Reserve

Book Covers for Maximal Reserve

As soon as I got back from The Gathering last week, I got an email with possible cover concepts for Maximal Reserve from my publisher.

I polled dozens of people and even the youth group at our church that I'm involved with. The runaway favorite was #3 with the barrels at the bottom. The first one, while more accurate with the elements of the book, would likely be troublesome as so many people don't know what Israel looks like geographically. To them, the abstract shape might look like a rusty knife with a droplet at the bottom (blood? oil?) - too many design concerns to deal with. #2 seems like more of a non-fiction book and while it's a super clean look and feel I don't think it conveys the suspense and intrigue of the book.

Hope you enjoy these!

Sam

Maximal Reserve was picked up by Deep River Books!

Maximal Reserve, my second novel, was picked up last week by Deep River Books. VMI, one of the imprints of Deep River, published my first book Wayback last year.

Timelines are still a bit sketchy and it looks like I'll miss the all important Christmas holiday season (unfortunately). Right now it looks like Maximal Reserve (MR for short from here on out) will be published in early Winter or Spring (January-April 2011).

I'm working on endorsements and getting loose ends cleaned up on the manuscript.

Stay tuned for more info!

How's Wayback doing?

One of the questions I get asked a lot is "how is the book doing?" This is a question that's hard to answer. Do you mean "Have I made a million dollars yet?" or do you mean "Is it selling enough so that you can write another one and get it published because of Wayback's track record?"

Well, I haven't made a million dollars, but I do think that the Lord has blessed my efforts (and lets face it - it happens only because of Him in the first place). I got some news a few weeks ago that made me smile.

And here it is: after nearly nine months of chasing Logic's End in the Futuristic Bestseller's list on STL Distribution's site (STL is Wayback's Distributor across the USA), Wayback is finally on the top. For the broad, general fiction spot for my publisher I keep horse-racing with Ahriman Gate by Tom Horn for the first slot.

Here's a map of where the readers live in the world (or at least where they hit the web. It's amazing to think that someone in South Africa is reading or has read Wayback.

Reviews continue to come in and I continue to get email from readers. That's why I do this. This week I'm heading to Denver for Jerry Jenkin's Writing Conference. I'm armed with proposals for my next book and looking for an agent and/or a publisher for Maximal Reserve.

2010...and no flying cars (yet)

Wow, can it really be 2010? It seems like just yesterday everyone was worried (needlessly) about the Y2K bug and its civilization damaging effects, and now, ten years later we hardly remember what all the fuss was about.

2009 will always have a special memory for me. The year my first book, Wayback, was published, the year my daughter started playing sports competitively on JV teams, the list could go on and on. New Friends made, friends that have gone on to Heaven, friends moving away. It's a swirl of happiness and sadness all melded into one.

Maximal Reserve is now going through its third revision - the spelling and grammar errors that pockmarked the first draft are now gone and the story has been cut here and elaborated more there. It's gone from a meandering walk in a park to a sprint down a city street.

It's definitely better.

In February I'm going to the Christian Writer's Guild (a writer's conference that was started by Jerry Jenkins) and I plan on talking with publishers and agents about the manuscript then. I will also be posting it on Christian Manuscript Network to see if it gets any action beforehand.

One of the neat people that I became acquainted with in 2009 was Mike Dellosso. Mike also lives in Pennsylvania and he writes Christian Fiction that has a hint of horror and suspense. Can such a genre really exist in the world of Christian Fiction (you might ask)? The answer is wholeheartedly "Yes!!!" I read Scream and ripped through it in a day and a half. He's an honest writer and a master storyteller.

Finally, thank you to all my readers that took time out of their busy, hectic schedules and read Wayback. I much much appreciate each and everyone of you.

Blessings to you and yours in 2010,

Sam

The Alien Relic

Stephen King once referred to the first draft of any novel as an "alien relic." I couldn't agree more.

As I plow through the manuscript of my next novel, tentatively called Maximal Reserve, I am face to face with adverbs (words ending in -ly), broken and grammatically, mangled sentences, mismatched character names and redundant paragraphs that seem to indicate I was smoking an illegal substance at the time of the writing.

To make it worse, I have some early readers providing me thoughts and feedback. I need feedback! I need validation, but this process is exceptionally (look, another adverb!) humbling.

It's a good thing I have great friends!

I also see a lot of places where the plot needs to be tighter and more connected for the reader. This part reminds me of the medieval torture of being drawn and quartered. There is so much tension in the book and the chapters are so intricate in feeding information out as needed that I feel like the whole thing will fly apart.

One of my friends said that she found it interesting to see a book at this stage--fresh from the brain. That pretty much sums it up.

People may like sausage, but no one really wants to see how it's made.

Thankful

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. As life gets hectic and crazy-busy heading toward Christmas, here's a holiday that literally forces the breaks onto my "run-away" life and makes me turn inward for a moment and reflect on what God has done for me. I'm thankful for so many things: my wife, my children, my church , my friends, my job and for writing.

Being a published author affords me many opportunities that I would never had experienced before. In the last month I've met three authors that are struggling through the same "find a publisher--finish the book" experience that I went through over a year ago. It's a frightening process that's very alien to people not working in the publishing industry (like me). It is great to share my experiences with them and try to encourage them to keep going. I hope they will.

A fellow author (and college alumnus) reviewed Wayback recently and posted it on his fine author blog. By permission, I'm re-posting it here. Adam is the author of Fatal Illusions, a thriller that takes place in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (or the UP as the natives call it). I hope to have a review on it soon.

My Review

I was delighted to read this new novel by author friend and fellow BJU alumnus Sam Batterman. I have always been fond of time travel stories and was especially interested to see how Sam would treat this classic but somewhat worn plot device. (From H.G. Wells to Michael Crichton, we've seen a wide spectrum of time travel sagas, not to mention numerous movies and TV shows.)

What I discovered was a novel that is really a carefully executed balancing act between suspenseful plotting, scientific research, and biblical truth. This technique is risky. Does the scientific information weigh down the plot? Are the biblical ramifications of what the story's characters experience lost in the plot? I thought Sam did a good job of striking the right balance, and he certainly put some hard work into this project. The list of sources Sam consulted for his bibliography is nothing short of amazing. This guy did his homework, and it shows!

Beyond the obvious creationism message, I was especially intrigued by scenes that describe the garden of Eden and Noah's ark. I've often wondered what the inside of Noah's ark looked like; Sam does a good job of giving readers an inside look. The main storyline of researchers sent back in time to the time of Noah's flood gains further complexity by a group of terrorists who plan to alter history in an unexpected way. I won't give away the subplot or their diabolical plans; you'll need to read the novel for yourself. The ramifications of their plans and how Sam probed the possible outcome of choices unique to two time periods definitely gave a new spin to the time travel concept that I hadn't thought of before. What a fascinating, thought-provoking read! With just enough hooks to keep the story moving forward while taking readers down a path of new possibilities and into a world we've read about in the Bible but only imagined, Wayback is definitely a worthy, suspenseful, and educational read. Definitely check it out!

Additionally, there should be a few other reviews coming in the next month or so.

I will be at Bob Jones University Campus Bookstore on December 4th for the "Light the Night" event and signing books from 7-9PM. If you are in the area, please stop by and say "Hi!"

I've started the second re-write of Maximal Reserve, my newest thriller, which I hope will be published in 2010. I have some early readers digging into it and I'm sure the story will only get stronger after they feedback to me. This novel is longer than Wayback and in some cases more complicated. I still have work to do, but I love the story so far. Can't wait to share it with you.

Blessings,

Sam

Engineering a Book - Maximal Reserve

Well, the first draft of Maximal Reserve is done. This means the general story, characters, chapters, length (and depth of the book) and basic tone of the book are complete. This doesn't mean that the book is finished, but it does mean that how the book starts, runs and ends is essentially done.

Unlike Wayback--where, to be honest with you--I had little to no idea what I was doing until the edit stage, Maximal Reserve started with the foundations that I learned along the way with my first book. I tried to take the criticisms of Wayback and my strengths from Wayback and combine them. People generally liked the story of my first book and the scene descriptions were called out as strengths with character development and dialog being areas that some felt could use work.

I agree. So, on Maximal Reserve I focused on Characters--characters that I now love. In Wayback, the science team was the protagonist (or perhaps Jim Spruce was depending on who you ask) - in Maximal Reserve you get to know the protagonist, warts and all, from the very beginning. It has the same twists and turns that my first book was known for and additional dimension -- better relationships, better romance, better emotion--better everything.

People ask me what it's like to write a book and I suspect each one is a bit different, but now I focus my answer on what I relied on for the last seven months--structure and engineering.

How can art be engineered? It has to be to work. Fiction has structure - whether it's conventional, contemporary fiction or literary fiction - there is a formula that must be considered. It's not enough to have a good start or prologue--is there enough "ummph" to make it 80,000-100,000 words?

For me the challenge is around 30,000 words where the transitions occur and the middle of the book feels like it's sagging. It takes focus and rewriting to tame a manuscript and get to the resolution in a meaningful way.

Here are some things that I kept asking myself all through the writing of Maximal Reserve:

• Is there tension - everywhere?
• How are the transitions handled between Act I and Act III?
• How does the protagonist grow during the book?
• What is the relationship between the antagonist and the protagonist?
• Do the subplots slow down the story, or support it?
• In my case, does the science overwhelm the story, or support it?

So, with 90,000 words in the bank, I can now share the synopsis of Maximal Reserve...more news will be coming...What's next? Well, I have a whole raft of early readers and critics lined up to shred the manuscript (from a critical perspective).

Will the story change as a result? Undoubtedly. This is an early look at how the book will be perceived by the rest of the world. I can't wait to hear what they think...good or bad.

Phillip Channing was just an ambitious college graduate who wanted to make his mark on the world. He didn’t know that mark would be the greatest oil discovery of all time–in the wrong place. Phillip finds the largest oil reserve in history, dwarfing the lucrative reserves in Saudi Arabia, and threatening to change the balance of power and wealth in the favor of the most unlikely country of all.

New Interview on CWW

A new interview is up on Christian Writer's World -- Characters who grip your heart. This site is run by Lena Nelson Dooley, who has dozens of books to her name. It's a great site and I'm happy and humbled to be a part of a group with such great authors.

As to Wayback news, I will be doing a book signing at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina on December 4 from 7-9P at the campus bookstore. That evening they have a special event called "Light the Night" where they turn on the Christmas lights for the season -- there are typically over 10,000 people in attendance at these events.

My second novel, tenatively called Maximal Reserve, is now hovering around 80,000 words. The first draft is done and I'm having some close friends take a reading of it and shred it. Another couple of drafts will likely insue as I get it to the best place as I can. Keep coming back to find out publishing news and date of release.

Blessings,
Sam

New Reviews and More News

Greetings,

I hope you're enjoying the fall weather that is sweeping over the landscape. The weather here in Pennsylvania has been absolutely beautiful. I love the crisp, clear mornings of September.

The bookstore of my Alma Mater, Bob Jones University has Wayback prominently displayed. It's great to have their support. Here's a pic that my Computer Science professor snapped and sent me:

A great review came in from Jill Williamson, the author of the new fantasy novel By Darkness Hid, and editor of Novel Teen Reviews. Jill is an amazing author and her first book is doing quite well in the marketplace.

Here's the review, but make sure you visit her site - she has an excellent collection of literature that's suitable for the Youth and Young Adult Literature set in your life.

Review by Jill Williamson

Two Roads Corporation has been busy. They’ve discovered a way to transport people back in time. But an expedition to 100,000 BC ended in disaster as if such a time never existed.

This leads Two Roads to believe that everything modern-day science believes about how old the earth is could be mistaken. The company plans to send another team to a time period that might answer some of their questions. The team is recruited and sent to 2300 BC, the time of Noah’s Ark and the great flood. What they discover will change science forever.

I adore books that present theories of Intelligent Design and Creationism. Men and women willing to stand up against the “proof” that Evolutionists claim is so absolute are brave. I think the public should view science like a jury views a man on trial. Unless it can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, it is not fact. And as of right now, no scientist can prove how the world came to be beyond a reasonable doubt.

This book was a joy to read. It starts out with the gripping premise of time travel and takes us to earth, 2300 BC, before the flood. I enjoyed reading what earth might have been like and experiencing how things might have happened. This is a book I will keep around for my kids to read as they get older, to keep their minds open. This book has some great characters from all spectrums of scientific beliefs, which brought great conflict to the story. I liked the antediluvian city and people. I liked that they were advanced and that the Garden of Eden was still there. There were so many interesting ideas presented here. It was so interesting.

The book shifted characters a lot. I prefer a few main characters to follow that I can really grow to care about. Also, the first few chapters simply explained how everything worked. I supposed that was necessary, but it slowed down the story in the same way Michael Crichton’s scientific descriptions tend to go on and on. So if you loved that about Crichton, you’ll love that about Batterman. Once the team went back in time, I was hooked. I recommend this book for anyone looking to open their mind to a Biblical view of creation and the flood. It was well-written, well-researched educational entertainment. Very fun.

Age Range: 16 and up
Genre: Science Fiction
Part of a Series: No
Pages: 315
Publisher: VMI
Released: 2009

I also had an Interview with Takiela Bynum of BooksALatte.com - it's an audio interview and it should be up very soon.

Next week I have an interview with CHRI - Family Radio of Ottawa, Canada on September 9 from 4:40-4:45pm.

From a sales perspective, Wayback has climbed (crawled?) to 2nd place in the Futuristic Fiction category on the STL-Distribution site. This is across all publishers in the Faith Community that STL services, so I'm pretty happy about that.

I am continuing to work on MidCycle, the sequel to Wayback. The word count is around 80,000 words and I'm still going. MidCycle will be a longer book than Wayback.

The book will explore the following areas that I just barely touched on in Wayback:

• Who were the men with sloped foreheads – why were they in positions of authority?
• What happened to Cameron and Alicia and why couldn't they come back to the present for 30 years?
• Why the USS Liberty was spared – and the implications of that action.
• The map that was found in the Ark library, what were the other cities like?

I'I' I'm also working on a book called Maximal Reserve (tentative working title). This is not related to Wayback and it's a pure techno-thriller. That book is hauling along nicely and I'll share more details about it as the fall comes into focus.

BleBlessings!