T minus 32 days! The countdown has officially begun!
On Thursday night, I logged into my publishing platform and uploaded the files for Book IV’s hardcover dust jacket and interior. Those files are currently being processed in the system, and any day now, I’ll be ordering the proof copies for one final check before the novel is officially off to the presses for global distribution!
The fourth installment of the Chronicles of Avilésor series will have a lot of custom content that makes it stand apart from its three predecessors… which is partially why the book is being released later in the year despite my (overly optimistic) hope of publishing in early summer in between a jam-packed event schedule. Lab Rat is 464 pages and will feature:
- A floorplan of Project Alpha, which will be the fourth map joining three others (Avilésor, Phantom Heights, and Saros Manor) that were published in Book III
- A handwritten letter to readers
- A glossary with 497 terms
- A character list with 212 characters who have been featured or mentioned in the series
- A pronunciation guide with 175 words
- Inverted section title pages (white text on black pages)
- Hand-drawn branches decorating the start of the new sections
- A new digital graphic illustrating the relationships between the Elemental Guilds, Pinnacles, and Collectives
This book is definitely a labor of love, and I’ve been working very hard to make it special!
As I’ve discussed in other posts here on the blog and in even more depth on Patreon over the last year, Book IV connects a lot of puzzle pieces in the series. It goes deep into the bond of the lab-family and Cato’s personal trauma as his identity as a hero and human being is stripped down to that of a tormented test subject. You’ll even find a few familiar scenes that had been fragmented flashbacks in the other books but now fit within the context of a much bigger picture.
A few hours after I submitted the files, Patreon members were the first to hear the good news (after my editors) when they got a sneak peek at the new page designs and supplemental content in an exclusive post celebrating the final phase.
Patrons had also helped me select my headshot by voting in a poll a few weeks ago. In addition, they played a direct role in the book by submitting names for a contest, so when you’re reading, keep an eye out for the winner, Faer (along with other names that had been submitted but didn’t win).
The projected publication date is going to be December 5th. Every book release so far has correlated with the prophecy at the end of the first book, which focuses on the numbers 7 and 8. I chose December 12/5/25 because 5 is one of my favorite numbers and adding the numbers of that date together equals 15, which is 7+8. (This is also the case for Book III’s publication date, which was 2/8/23.
So, what happens over the next thirty-two days?
I just placed a rush order for the ARCs (advanced reader copies) and hope to receive them within the week! My chosen proofreaders and I will be reviewing these copies over the next couple of weeks to do one last check for typos, minor formatting errors, etc. Then, I’ll make any necessary edits to the interior file and adjustments to the dust jacket before resubmitting the files for approval.
Once they’re accepted, I’ll order the first print run, which (as of now, unless I get a sudden influx of preorders) will consist of fifty copies. Many of these books have already been claimed by Alpha patrons, who receive a free copy as part of their membership, and by the preorders placed on my website. As I did with the Book III print run, these books will have a custom sticker on the inside of the cover, and they’ll be numbered. (Example: 15/50)
These preorders were part of a collector’s bundle, which means recipients will also be receiving a mini Ghost Realm candle by Old Soul Artisan, the five buttons I designed for Lab Rat, and a Book IV bookmark.
While the publication date is technically 12/5, I can’t guarantee that the book will be available for sale on that date. It all depends on how quickly I receive/review the proof copy, and how long it takes for Ingram to approve the updated files. It can sometimes take a few extra days or even weeks for third-party retailers to receive the get the book listed on their websites. With the holidays coming up fast, I don’t know how efficient everything will be.
Are you ready for Book IV next month??
I'm an award-winning fantasy author, artist, and photographer from La Porte, Indiana. My poetry, short fiction, and memoir works have been featured in various anthologies and journals since 2005, and several of my poems are available in the Indiana Poetry Archives. The first three novels in my Chronicles of Avilésor: War of the Realms series have received awards from Literary Titan.
After some time working as a freelance writer, I was shocked by how many website articles are actually written by paid "ghost writers" but published under the byline of a different author. It was a jolt seeing my articles presented as if they were written by a high-profile CEO or an industry expert with decades of experience. I'll be honest; it felt slimy and dishonest. I had none of the credentials readers assumed the author of the article actually had. Ghost writing is a perfectly legal, astonishingly common practice, and now, AI has entered the playing field to further muddy the waters. It's hard to trust who (or what) actually wrote the content you'll read online these days.
That's not the case here at On The Cobblestone Road. I do not and never will pay a ghost writer, then slap my name on their work as if I'd written it. This website is 100% authentic. No outsourcing. No ghost writing. No AI-generated content. It's just me... as it should be.
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