Post-Apocalyptic Fiction eBooks - Beyond The Apocalypse is Here

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Fans of apocalyptic fiction, the third and final book of The Edge of Time book series, Beyond The Apocalypse, is out and free for a limited time (March 1-5) on Amazon!

For what it's worth, I decided to release the final book in this awesome series. Beyond The Apocalypse ties all the loose ends and wraps up the series with a curious question. No spoilers, but what happens when we die?

There are plenty of theories and speculation out there. We've heard of NDE's (near-death-experience) where some people have seen heaven as described in the Bible. Others claim to have gone through tunnels with blinding lights and wormholes that have taken them beyond this realm into other-worldly places.

Whether those visions are part of our collective subconscious or just our over-active imagination, we'll never really know until we get there ourselves.

It's been a great time for me writing these short books and I've complied all three books in the series into one full-length novel of about 295 pages.

I'm not sure when I'll release the novel but I might publish it on Barnes and Noble in a collectible hardcover edition, most likely by next year.

Right now I'm turning my full attention to finishing the Millennium Board game and it's Europe Expansion, which I hope both will be out this September 11, 2020.

This expansion fits next to the big six-fold board and the game continues with a manhunt for Hitler at the end of WWII in 1945.

So, from the Millennium board, the full U.S. map, you'll find a time portal on the 89th Meridian, which transports you back to 1945 and inside the fall of Berlin.

From there, the search is on, folks! With the help of numerous clues gleaned from declassified documents, you'll have many paths to follow in search of the infamous and most notorious villain in the world.

Can you find this scoundrel and bring him to justice?

That's the focus of the Europe expansion game, which is still in the works. I think it's a fitting goal to pursue if we want to rewrite a harrowing piece of history and hopefully take our future into a far better place than it is today.

And of course, there's always a fine line between reality and fiction or in this case, conspiracy theories.

But the beauty of this game is its theme and the possibility that this is one conspiracy that just might be true, given the proven facts, based on records, that thousands of Nazi's did indeed flee to a Nazi-sympathizing Argentina under president Juan Peron's rule.

There's a good bit of factual history that helps support the conspiracy theories, so to think that Hitler and his wife, Eva Braun, also managed to successfully escape is not as far-fetched as it sounds.

Again, I'm having a great time putting this expansion game together and it's going to be a great addition to the original Millennium board game because it will add a good deal of thematic depth, resonance, and intrigue. In my book, that's a good formula for the makings of a great game.

And so, my quest to finish both games and link them to the trilogy of books in the upcoming September promotion is indeed a worthy cause to pursue.

I can hardly wait and I hope you'll be there to feast on all these fantastic games and books that are much more than what they seem at first sight.

For me, it's all about a fun and engaging story at its core, wrapped with profound meaning that takes us beyond the status quo and the ordinary, into a new world beyond our imagination.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

Join us in a promising adventure that you won't soon forget. Be there or be square, as we said in the good old days.

See you back here soon with lots more exciting news!

Please leave comments or questions below.

In my next post, I'll explain my approach to marketing board games and books. Right now these products are in stealth mode but as September approaches, that's when CHTF happens. Chits Hit The Fan, which is a good title (coined here) so expect me to use it.

I've got to hustle and polish both games with more playtesting until then. Most of the initial promos will come straight out of The GameCrafter website when both games launch.

Aside from that, I might run an ad in BGG and other key websites but not sure. A lot remains to be seen and I'll play it by ear when the time comes. Gaining momentum is important after launching but so many other things have to be in place before then.

Stay tuned for all the details if you're interested in a case study about marketing new board games. This could be an epic fail without Kickstarter but I'm counting on my promotional materials and the strength and popularity of the game itself to engage consumers to generate sales.

That's a mouthful and that's why it's almost CHTF time.

Enough said. I've got work to do so see you back here soon!

Epic Apocalypse eBook Promo

Epic Apocalypse - Book Two

For those of you following this series, you can now get the second ebook free for a limited time (Feb.23-27) so If you've read the first, here's your chance to follow-up with Epic Apocalypse.

Beyond The Apocalypse - Book Three

I'm also posting a preview of Book Three, Beyond the Apocalypse, the final book in this amazing series, so have a peek.

No worries, these are short stories, about 100 pages each, so they're a quick read. I'm still working on the full-length novel of about 295 pages, which of course includes all three books in this series.

I must say that I've had the time of my life writing these three books and without question, I'll be continuing this series indefinitely. Hopefully, I'll get to the 4th book before the end of this year, although I can't say for sure because the Millennium game is due out this September 11 and I just might be quite busy promoting that for a change.

Things will then come full circle with the game and the three books out for the first time after September and that's a handful right there. Not to mention that I'm also working on a Europe Expansion of the game. I'll be posting those details here soon. I've already started designing the box and the game board and so I'll have about 3 card decks to design and a number of other things to go with it.

So, as you can see, I've got my work cut out to finish up before the end of this year. Once the game is finished I'll be able to get things going so the next several years are all about promoting the game and the books together at conventions and game rooms starting here in Jacksonville and Gainsville, Florida.

Thank you to those who've posted reviews on Goodreads.com. Hopefully, Amazon reviews will follow soon. It's all about finishing the board game now so standby for that.

Enjoy the stories!

Preview Epic Apocalypse

Epic Apocalypse - Edge of Time Book Series New Covers

Hey folks, the new year is almost upon us and I hope that all your aspirations are in place and taking place this coming 2020.

I've revised my book covers for the series once again because I needed to match them a bit better so they look like they belong together.

For now, this is what I've got and as you can see the book in the middle, Epic Apocalypse has a bit more color but what good is using fire if you can't show it burning hot?

Right, and so I've lowered the color saturation in the artwork quite a bit so it still has those dark edges and these covers seem to work for the series.

When designing your book covers for a series, keep in mind that you want your book covers to match either in colors, typography, or artwork, ideally all three should match. The middle cover is by another artist but I don't think it's off key. The other covers are my own design in Photoshop and I might still change the third book, although I do like how these three covers look together.

The main difference and what helps this trilogy is the red, white, and blue bands of color at the top. That's just a feature or "gimmick" to unify this trilogy, which gives the series a deeper meaning, plus it looks cool when you have the three books together on a shelf.

Only time will tell if this book series will be popular enough to make a bestseller list. I've really pulled out all the stops on this one and hope it will be a success. But it's hard to say at this point because I'm new in the game.

Don't underestimate yourself 

and what you know . . .

But here's the thing, don't underestimate yourself and what you know. You just might surprise yourself along the way. For me, the series will be a success in my mind because I've worked hard to get here but if the financial rewards are scarce, I'll learn from it and make adjustments to get it right next time.

Another thing is that this series doesn't necessarily have to identically match the artwork from the board game, although that wouldn't hurt, but these are standalone stories, so it's okay if the artwork is a bit different, as long as it's not too far off.

The board game does of course promote the books, and vice-versa, but each product should stand on its own, from a marketing point of view.

I've got plenty of work to catch up with so please feel free to leave any comments or questions below.

And as usual, play on!

New Post Apocalyptic Trilogy - The Edge of Time by A.R. Arias

Book 1 is now available. Books two and three are due in 2020

Good news for fans of post-apocalyptic fiction, because Book 1, Edge of The Apocalypse is now available on Amazon in paperback and eBook editions. https://tinyurl.com/y89w5rwg

I titled the new series, The Edge of Time and it includes two other books, Epic Apocalypse, Book 2, and Beyond The Apocalypse for Book 3, which will include time-travel events.

I'm very excited about this new series and although I never set out to write about the apocalypse, it turns out that this is topic I really enjoy writing. I got the idea several years ago while developing the Millennium board game (Andrea's Journal) and one thing has led to another and here I am, writing my second book in the series.

So, as if I didn't have enough on my plate already, I've set out to finish two more books. Funny thing is that as daunting as that sounds, I find it very satisfying and a lot of fun to do, so it's not a chore, but a joy for me to accomplish, hopefully in a year or so.

The board game is all but finished and I hope to launch it this September 11 without a hitch. I can't wait for that because Millennium has evolved in amazing ways that I had never thought of when I started designing it back in 2016. It pays to be patient and to sleep on ideas until they are ready to be shared.

These new books are part of the evolution of the board game and writing them is the only option for me. I must write these books and hopefully many more in this genre, not only because the time is right, but because right now this is where my heart and soul is and I'm seizing the moment.

It's going to be a whole new world of exploration in this genre, both post apocalyptic fiction as well as the YA and millennial category of readers.

Lots to learn and a lot to do as things move along towards the year 2020. Here's the link to the new blog, The Edge of Time series of books. I'll also be talking about the book cover designs for all the new books and anything related to the genre.

As an aside, I started watching the post-apocalyptic thriller, Bird Box, a Netflix favorite. I bailed out of it after 20 minutes or so, but I plan to give it another chance this weekend. I didn't get the blindfolding idea. Seemed like a gimmick to me but I'm open to anything so let's see if I can finish watching it this time around.

I did enjoy the opening scenes with Sandra Bullock and her sister, played by Sarah Paulson. Nice tension and dialog.

The movie is actually based on the debut novel Bird Box by Josh Malerman. Rotten Tomatoes has given it a mixed 3-star review and also says that the film lacks tension but has solid performances.

Too early to tell, but we'll see how it ends. That's the true test for any story and I'll post my review and rating in my next post. Stay tuned for much more!