Announcement

THE TRAILHEAD #01

admin / July 5, 2024

ANNOUNCING MY DEBUT NOVEL, THE TOWPATH Welcome to the first entry in my blog, The Trailhead, which will take you deep into the legends, mysteries, characters, and settings of The Towpath, my debut novel. I will also share bonus materials, discuss the writing process, and delve into the mechanics of time travel—a topic on which there is sure fun to be had. I’m also pleased to announce that The Towpath will be published by Collective Ink in October of 2024, through their Roundfire imprint. Part of Collective Ink’s marketing strategy involves their authors writing their own press releases for their books, which they can then leverage as part of the overall marketing and publicity campaign. Some outlets, magazines, and radio programs prefer to hear directly from the authors themselves. Because of this, and the fact that this is my first blog entry, I figured I’d share my self-written press release, which is as follows: Travel Down THE TOWPATHBut beware, you might not end up where—or when—you expect. By Jonathan Walter Visitors to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) in Northeast Ohio might not realize that there’s more to the park than meets the eye—or any other sense for that matter. For just beneath their feet, deeper than the deepest of troughs of the mighty Cuyahoga River, and more implacable than the sheerest of cliff sides along the valley’s eastern rim, awaits a power that’s beyond all reckoning. We’re talking about the conditions for time travel here, and I’ve written a story that puts a new spin on a genre that’s captured the imaginations—and pens—of legendary authors like H.G. Wells (THE TIME MACHINE) and Stephen King (11/22/63). Note: that’s the last time you’ll ever see me reference myself in the same sentence as King or Wells! In my story, The Towpath, the more you meddle with your own history and lineage, the stiffer the objective and steeper the penalty, which only increases the further you stray from your native time and place and the longer you stay there. There are rules to time travel after all—and there are consequences. Some brazen souls may test those rules, often to their own lurid demise. But there is one person who’s managed to defy these rules and somehow stave off the grave consequences… for now. That person would be THE REDEEMER, who’s determined to prevent her teenaged daughter’s suicide in 2014. She’ll take whatever detour in time and place that’s necessary to achieve her goal, removing anyone who stands in her way. She’s become hardened, brutal, and impassive from these long and meandering journeys, increasing the damage and collateral she leaves in her wake. Consequences and the Butterfly Effect be damned. When she finally discovers that there’s an ancient medallion with powers that would allow her to time-travel freely and without penalty, she and her legion of Iroquois warriors embark on a bloody mission to recover it in the 1600’s. When that mission ultimately fails, she defeatedly returns to her native time in 2021. But she isn’t idle for long. Her mission is renewed when she learns that AARON PORTER, a shy fourteen-year-old with a garbage picking hobby, discovers it in Portage Falls, Ohio in June of 2021—which just so happens to be her native, present time. Now, hot on the trail of Aaron and his friends, The Redeemer won’t hesitate to remove them and claim what’s rightfully hers. My story will take you across hundreds of years, pulling you deep into the legends and lore that have been smoldering in and around the Cuyahoga Valley for centuries. You’ll go underground, including into the cavernous Salt Mines under Lake Erie, speed along the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail, get lost in a national forest, and find yourself in places and times you might not have ever expected. Oh, and along the way, you’ll be pursued by a brutal killer and her equally brutal warriors from the past. So, get ready and climb onto your bicycle along with Aaron and his friends, Libby, and Simon. Because in The Towpath, you’re not just in for the ride of your life. You’re in for the ride for your life. For more on The Towpath: NovelTime TravelAnnouncementThe TowpathSuspenseThrillerPress Release

Announcement, Uncategorized, Writing Journey

THE TRAILHEAD #02

admin / July 5, 2024

THE LATEST I’m happy to share that the paperback version of THE TOWPATH is available for pre-order now (ebook will be this Spring)! And while I’ve been waiting to share the cover design, the cat will be out of the bag anyway if you check it out on Amazon. The publishing world is still a mystery to me, and timing can be very difficult to understand as huge online marketplaces like Amazon and Barnes & Noble are governed by their own rules, processes, etc., and things drop without my knowledge unless I proactively go out and see what’s happening. COOL STUFF THAT MIGHT ONLY INTEREST ME Let’s delve into time travel for a moment, shall we? In The Towpath, things only get worse for you the longer you stay, the further you go back, and the more you attempt to meddle with your own past. Not only do you become marked, even putting the Earth’s creatures on high alert (yep, they want no part of you), you will look different too—at least, temporarily. I won’t give away how time travel happens, but let’s just say the physical effects may remind you of the weird story of the Children of Woolpit. That is, if you’re familiar with it. If not, allow me to bend your ear for a moment. In this bizarre historical account that took place in Suffolk, England, in the 12th century, a group of villagers came across a young boy and girl whose skin had been tinted a sickly green and they were acting strangely, if not temperamental. The kids didn’t speak any language that was recognizable to the villagers and were taken in by a local man who tried to feed them, but they refused to eat. Over time, they acclimated: their skin turning to their natural color and eating what food was available to them. The boy died young, but the girl adjusted to her new life. When she was eventually fluent in English, she said that she and her brother came from the land of St. Martin, which was a place of perpetual twilight where the sun never shone, and she did not recall how they made travel from their homeland to Suffolk. I also find it interesting, at least according to this Wikipedia entry, how the sister was described as being “very wanton and impudent.” There have been many attempts to theorize where the children came from, and some people have asserted that they came from underground and could even have had extraterrestrial origins. Other theories simply assert that the kids were malnourished, lost, and spoke an unfamiliar dialect or language. I won’t describe just how much this bizarre story has influenced the mechanics and consequences of time travel in The Towpath, but you’ll likely make some connections after having read the book, including how characters behave based upon their length of stay and what they do during those visits. WHAT’S UP NEXT I’ll admit that self-promotion is not a natural inclination for me. But I also get that it’s a necessary evil, even if my novel is going to be traditionally published by Collective Ink. From what I’m learning through my crash course on the world of fiction publishing, even authors published by the “Big Five” (Macmillian, Penguine Random House, Hachette, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster) still need to hit the proverbial streets, grow a following, and drum up interest. It’s also overwhelming just how many options authors need to consider for promotion and how they should strategize building interest for a book that could take several months to finally release. But I’m starting to get a handle on this and have made a deliberate decision to grow my audience through the following channels: Well, that’s all for this post. Until next time! Sapere Verdere. For more on The Towpath: NovelTime TravelThe TowpathSuspenseThrillerHistorylegendsAmazonBarnes & Noblesocial media

Announcement, Book Launch, Writing Journey

THE TRAILHEAD #04

admin / July 5, 2024

THE LATEST In this issue, I discuss the cover and design of THE TOWPATH, as well as some inspirations behind it. THE COVER REVEALED This blog template doesn’t support inline images (at least not that I’m aware of), so I can’t post the cover here. However, you can easily see it on The Towpath Overview page or within the Image Gallery, via my concept imagery. I didn’t want to just take some bland photo of it lying on my desk—anyone can do that. Besides, what fun would that be? In a future post, I’ll take you behind those concepts and composite images, as well as some of the others I’ve done using good ol’ Photoshop… with a tiny smidge of AI tech. Moreover, I’ve also routinely posted imagery to The Towpath Novel Facebook Group and on my Twitter(X) account—so, some other places to engage. BEHIND THE DESIGN In the world of literature, I’ve always heard that an author’s expected response to their completed cover design must range from, “It’s amazing!”, to “It’s astonishing!”, and every gush-filled adjective in between. As you can guess (and as I’m finding out), authors don’t have a lot of say on their final cover design. This is why I was pleasantly surprised that my input was actually factored in, perhaps way more than I was expecting. When the creative process was about to kick off, Collective Ink (the publisher), provided a form to capture any ideas an author has for their cover design, while fully caveating that the artist doesn’t have to use or consider any of it. I was also invited to upload any inspirational images or even sketches (which I did provide, but I need time to work up the courage to share that embarrassment with you). Given I had a glimmer of an opportunity to influence the design, the Visual Designer/creative in me couldn’t resist. I combed through my own photography as well as hundreds of royalty-free images using the platforms specified by the publisher. Eventually, I found the image of The Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath trail that you see on the cover, which appeared set during the right time of year in which the story takes place—the June-July timeframe, when the forests of Northeast Ohio are at their lushest and greenest. For that image, my feedback to the artist, Nick Welch—who’s an award-winning graphic design specialist out of the UK with over 25 years of experience designing book covers—was as follows: “Here’s an actual photo of The Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, where much of the book is set, and the trail is central to more than one key scene in the book. I do like how there’s a bit of mystery for what’s around that last bend.” Additionally, while yes, the title of the book is The Towpath, and it would make sense to show, you know, the namesake trail within the Cuyahoga Valley National Park that inspired it, the cover also needed to communicate the central sub-genre, Time Travel, and also convey some danger too. After all, this isn’t exactly a kid’s book, even if teens are some of the main characters. As such, here’s some additional guidance I offered Nick without any expectations it would be used: Hence, perhaps you can begin to see how the swirling clock motif in the foreground evokes the spiral and the color purple serves as an accent in several areas, including the text on the upper left-hand side on the front cover, and the leading characters for each paragraph on the back cover’s description copy. Nick also darkened the hollow in the trees where The Towpath trail vanishes into that last bend, which I think serves very well and evokes the danger I was hoping for. I admit I had mixed feelings when I first saw the final design given this book has been my baby for over seven years. However, I’ve fully embraced it, even to the point of building all my other conceptual imagery around this central design, hoping to thematically foreshadow it so it would make perfect sense when I shared the final design (which is now) with my followers and subscribers. Well, there you have it. I’d love your feedback on the final design. My goal is to earn the right to publish more books, so even if your thoughts don’t benefit this one, there’s a chance you might help me in the future! WHAT’S UP NEXT I’m going to start looking into the publicity side of things, which I admit makes me squirm, as self-promotion doesn’t come naturally to me. That said, it’s a necessary evil, even for authors who are fortunate to publish with even the largest of publishers, such as Macmillan or Penguine Random House. More to come on that topic. In the mean time, let’s stay connected. Here’s where else to connect with THE TOWPATH and its author (yours truly): Well, that’s all for this post. Until next time! Sapere Verdere. For more on The Towpath:

THE TRAILHEAD #01

THE TRAILHEAD #04

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