ANNIHILATION ARIA cover reveal

Posted on November 25, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

Parvus has revealed the fantastic cover art for ANNIHILATION ARIA, created for us by Tom Edwards.

It brings all of the flash, all of the space opera energy, and I love it so much.

Bridges to Hope – RAICES fundraiser

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

Bridges to Hope by Julie Dillon - An angelic figure holding up a flaming sword. The text reads "Bridges to Hope" and "RAICES FUNDRAISER"

I’m participating in a charity fundraiser for RAICES. Their mission is to help separated families, detained families, unaccompanied minors, and others who are seeking asylum in the United States. RAICES been a major force in responding to the appalling treatment of immigrants and asylum seekers, and this effort is one of many fundraisers to support them and other groups trying to help.

Donors will get a copy of Genrenauts: The Data Disruption as well as art, comics, discounts on prints, more short stories, etc. from more than 20 creators! This campaign runs through the end of the month, and be sure to claim your rewards if you do donate (we can’t host the files there forever, etc.)

100% of funds go to RAICES – there’s no overhead, no private profit, etc.

https://www.classy.org/fundraiser/2173437

I’d be very grateful for anything folks can donate, and of course please share this far and wide!

Genrenauts and the SFWA StoryBundle

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

I’m very pleased to share the news that Genrenauts Season One is part of the 2019 SFWA Fantasy Bundle, where you can get 16 books by 12 authors (including me) for one low price!

You, the reader, get to take a look at the titles we’ve chosen and then decide how much you’d like to pay for the bundle. You set the price that you pay ($5 min) for the primary titles or kick in a little extra and reap the bonanza with all the books! You also get the chance to assign a portion of the proceeds to support the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, which does amazing work to support SFF writers through resources, advocacy, and more. I’ve been a member for over five years and have been very pleased by what the organization has done and continues to do.

This bundle only lasts for a limited time, so make sure you don’t miss out on the action!

These books come with the basic bundle:

Blade & Rose by Miranda Honfleur: A perfect blend of fantastic action, menacing intrigue, and riveting romance.

Amaskan’s Blood by Raven Oak: Two sisters. Two loyalties. One path together.

The Twenty-Sided Sorceress, Books 1-3 by Annie Bellet: Gamer. Nerd. Sorceress. After twenty-five years fleeing from a powerful sorcerer, a mostly-human woman is finally safe – if she can resist using her magic. Or can she?

<Editor’s note – A definite winner for Geekomancy fans.>

Ashwin by Kit Rocha: Can a genetically manipulated soldier be a hero? A healer finds a way to love a man without feelings—and fight for brightness in a dark world.

and, of course:

Genrenauts, Complete Season One by Michael R. Underwood: A kickass extra-dimensional adventure through the stories we love.

And the Bonus Books included for larger contributions ($15 or above):

The Arrows of the Heart by Jeffe Kennedy: What do you do when your boyfriend is an animal? Really. An animal.

The Dragon Blood Chronicles by Lindsay Buroker: A dashing Pilot, a comely Sorcerous and smart-mouthed Soulsword all come together in a world intent on killing them.

Radiance by Grace Draven: A marriage between alien kingdoms – and two “spares” who find beauty in each other, and that heroism comes in many forms.

The Raven and the Reindeer by Ursula Vernon: A enthralling remix of a classic fairy tale, with a practical heroine who follows her heart to a very different ending.

Catching Echoes by Meghan Ciana Doidge: What could go wrong when a no-nonsense witch with family issues is forced to work alongside a powerful and obnoxious vampire to solve a murder?

Al-Kabar by Lee French: A young woman is chosen by powerful supernatural forces to bring justice to a desert land of oasis kingdoms.

The Glass Gargoyle by Marie Andreas: A spate of dead patrons forces archeologist Taryn St. Giles to become a bounty hunter. Needless to say, things don’t go well.

Head to StoryBundle to grab your bundle today!

Become a Patron!

The New Landscape, Part Three – Bifurcation, Specialization, and Hybridization

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Michael R. Underwood

Today I started a twitter thread inspired by Chuck Wendig’s post about writing series. I’m re-posting it here because it’s really a continuation of my The New Landscape series that has been fallow for a while because my life 2016-2018 has been pretty overwhelming, even post-Angry Robot.

If you missed Part One and Part Two, here they are. This post re-treads some of this ground, but it might be handy to have read the previous bits if you don’t mind me repeating myself a bit here.

—

It’s pretty remarkable to me that trad and indie SFF are diverging so sharply on series. Trad moving away from longer series for new writer/work because of retail death spiral while indie SFF writers are finding the best success with series where they can create a product funnel.

I understand the reasons – shrinking shelf space in the retail marketplace, difficulty in breaking out new authors, etc. vs. a MOAR CONTENT! high rate of consumption, KU-dominated indie model where rapid publication is logistically easier and maximizes reader retention.

I have, for a while, talked about a bifurcating market, where indie and trad are two models uneasily sharing an industry, each in the shadow of and reacting to the other. Trad-focused sites and figures talk about print resurgent and ebook fading while indie-focused reporting talks about a massive increase in the readership of SFF. It’s a heightened version of positionality and confirmation bias mixed in with results extrapolated from poor data.

It’s hard for trad publishers to do well with digital-only books (I know from experience) because they’re not as comfortable in the digital space and don’t work on indie timetables. They also don’t want to undermine print, where they have a massive structural advantage.

Indie authors are increasingly beholden to AMZ as KU and Audible continue to dominate the ebook and audio marketplaces. Print distribution, meanwhile, remains largely inaccessible.

Trad can put a huge amount of push behind individual releases, but can’t magically make more shelf space for sequels, watches Mass Market die a slow and struggles to adjust b/c they’ve largely sacrificed digital to protect print.

Indie authors have developed tons of tools to drive discovery and to keep readers coming back for more in a series, but they’re caught in an ever-faster loop of rapid publication, a flooded market of competition, scammers, stuffers, and hustling constantly to stay afloat in the insatiable seas of the algorithm until they hit their 1k+ true fans, etc.

Many writers have already unpacked and explained the utility of a hybrid career, but as the two models diverge, each demanding more and more of writers, it gets exhausting even when you’ve got the energy and time to do both. And all the while, the writer always gets paid last.

I don’t have any easy answers. The answers I do have for writers involve lots of hard work and effort put into being an entrepreneur. And for publishers, they involve drastically re-working how to approach print/ebook/audio as well as thinking about who their customer is.

This is the part where I remind readers that they can hire me to help them with sales & marketing strategy. 😉

Floating islands against a blue sky. Text reads 'Strategic Vision'

Get a Free Book!

Posted on October 29, 2016 by Michael R. Underwood

As part of spreading the word about Genrenauts, I’m offering free copies of The Cupid Reconciliation to anyone who signs up for my newsletter through InstaFreebie. This will let folks try out the series and decide if they want to go back and pick up the other episodes or to take the plunge and pick up the entire season collection.

If you haven’t given Genrenauts a try, here’s your chance to do so at the low low price of free.

Off to NerdCon!

Posted on October 13, 2016 by Michael R. Underwood

As this post goes, live, I am on my way to Minneapolis, MN for NerdCon: Stories, a two-day celebration of the power of storytelling (October 14-15th). I’m honored to be a Featured Guest for the con. I’ll be on a gaming panel, reprising my How To Hand-Sell Your Book presentation, and reading during a showcase event. You can check out my full programming schedule for the con here.

I’ll also be running a booth at the con all weekend with my friend Jay Swanson. If you’re coming to the con, please swing by (#817) and say hello! I will have a limited # of the paperback omnibus editions of Genrenauts: The Complete Season One Collection, as well as other books.

Here’s a quick guide to where you can find Jay and my booth during the con:

NerdCon booth directions

As a special bonus, the Ree Reyes novels (speaking of Nerds + stories) are still on discount through this weekend!

Amazon * B&N Nook * Kobo * iTunes

ree-reyes-series-small

Genrenauts Kickstarter!

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Michael R. Underwood

The time has come! The Genrenauts Season One Collection Kickstarter is live, right here.

Kickstarter info card

Check out the campaign for information about the future of the series, backer rewards (including writing critiques and more), sneak peeks at upcoming episodes, and details about stretch goals!

I’ll be appearing on podcasts, giving interviews, and writing guest posts throughout the campaign.

The next chapter of the Genrenauts saga begins…now!

The Genrenauts Life

Posted on March 2, 2016 by Michael R. Underwood

Life right now is pretty Genrenauts-tastic. I’m working on final edits for Episode 3, Ep. 4 is off for edits soon, etc.

And “There Will Always be a Max,” a Genrenauts short, is coming to Tor.com on April 6th.

There Will Always Be a Max cover (by Goñi Montes)

Which means, with the release of THE ABSCONDED AMBASSADOR very fresh in my mind, I have some things to say and people to thank, which I did largely on Twitter, but will repeat here:

The Absconded Ambassador is dedicated to Dave Robison, an OG (Original Genrenaut), for helping me develop the core premise of the series at a critical juncture, and for his ongoing contributions to the genre in fostering community and helping writers develop their voice and craft.

I lift a Neon Space Drink (TM) to my editor Lee Harris, who took a chance on the series and helped me bring this vision into the world.

I’m also very grateful to Irene Gallo, Christine Foltzer, and Peter Lutjen for creating the cover design and series style for Genrenauts, reflecting the genre love and playfulness of the series.

My Copy-Editor, Amanda Hong, kept the alien species consistent, made sure I kept the timeline clear, and in general polished the book to look better than it had been before.

Katharine Duckett has done a fantastic job spreading the word about the series and helping me get it into the hands of people far and wide. Thanks also to Mordicai Knode and Carl Engle-Laird for their assistance along the way.

I am so delighted to be a part of the Tor.com Publishing experiment, and the campaign to show that #NovellasAreTheNewNovel.

And speaking of #NovellasAreTheNewNovel, Matt Wallace has been a great supporter of the series, for which I am very grateful. Thanks, brother.

My agent Sara Megibow is the Opener of Doors, the Herald of Awesomeness, always there to help me plow throw when things get rough.

Every book I write is a love letter to the stories that have inspired me, and a suggestion of how we can move forward. As an Ex-Academic, most of my books so far have been my way of taking what I have to say about the genre and the world and putting it into story form. Never has this been more the case than in Genrenauts. I’m really excited about the characters of this series and what they have to say.

Writing Genrenauts has already helped me stretch my skills and learn to write more thoughtfully, more energetically, and more flexibly. (That ONE SECRET FOR WRITING SUCCESS everyone asks about? It’s actually lat stretches. Keep that between you and me.)

And the response so far has been very exciting. Here are some of the reviews for the series:

“This is fun…Readers will be looking forward to Leah and company’s next trip to a story world.”
–Library Journal

“It’s an entertaining enough concept, and the diverse cast of characters is a nice change of pace.”
–Publishers Weekly

“It’s storytelling as heroism, genre savviness as power. Endless fun.”
–Marie Brennan, World Fantasy Award-nominated author of A Natural History of Dragons

“A clever, exciting, and seriously fun twist on portal fantasy that sends a geeky stand-up comedian into the Wild West. Sign me up to be a Genrenaut, too!”
–Delilah S. Dawson, author of the Blud series, Hit, and Wake of Vultures, written as Lila Bowen

“My favorite new TV show of 2015 isn’t on TV, it’s in the pages of Mike Underwood’s Genrenauts. Deeply funny and creative, shrewdly insightful, and thrillingly paced, every pop culture diehard will want to keep living vicariously through the characters in this series.”
–Matt Wallace, author of the Slingers Saga and Envy of Angels.

“I have this sinking feeling that the Genrenauts series, with its raucous meta-commentary upon the stories of pop culture, is going to say important things that I might not be clever enough to catch the first time around because I’m too busy enjoying the books.”
–Howard Tayler, Hugo Award winner and creator of Schlock Mercenary

“…a rollicking exploration of western tropes, with hints of a larger conspiracy afoot. Underwood has plans for a lot more of these, and I can’t wait to read them.”
–Joel Cunningham, B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog

and for Episode 2,

“The second episode in Michael R. Underwood’s Genrenauts delivers on the promise of Episode 1, and demonstrates that his special alchemy of Leverage + The Librarians + Quantum Leap + Thursday Next (just my current guess at his secret recipe) has legs — and will hopefully go a long time.”
– Irresponsible Reader

“…it’s a heck of a lot of fun the way Galaxy Quest is: a little goofy, a little serious but not taking itself too seriously, and filled with a fondness for the source material that gives it weight without weighing down the story.”
–Samantha Holloway, New York Journal of Books

it offers a wonderfully creative premise: Fictional stories are really alternate universes in which problems bleed over into our would and cause calamities here.
–Leah Hansen, RT Reviews

In closing, I hope you’ll join Team Genrenauts and see where the story goes next.

The latest Genrenauts story is The Absconded Ambassador. Weird aliens, diplomatic wrangling, space dogfights, genre ruminations, and more: