The Cly – now available

16 May, 201628 May, 2016 ~ Sean Monaghan ~ 2 Comments

I seem to be lax in yelling out when I have a new book available, so I’m going to see if I can stop and just go ahead and post. Last week I mentioned my forthcoming publishing plans, including for my new novel The Cly.

I am writing and publishing a lot this year, so I guess it’s easy for me to forget to mention things in a practical, right-brained way (practical is right-brain, right?). While I’m fairly good and writing (as in, I spend a lot of time on it), I still need to learn an awful lot about marketing and business (writing is way more fun, so I spend a whole lot less time on marketing and business).

So The Cly is my longest novel in awhile – a shade under ninety thousand words. Mostly I’m clocking somewhere just north of sixty thousand. Initially I thought it would hit that shorter length, but the plot demanded more action and more resolution.

Here’s the blurb:
Tony Brock saved humanity once. But in the mess, he lost his relationship with his daughter.

Now the Cly pose a new threat. A threat that might destroy the Earth itself.
And the aliens won’t negotiate.

So Brock’s back in the thick of it. Chasing them down, and chasing the faint hope of seeing Bex one more time.

An alien invasion novel with a difference.

I should mention the wonderful cover illustrator – Luca Oleastri. Thanks for another great image.

Available from most ebook and print book retailers (ask at your local bookstore for the print version – all 500 odd pages of it).

ebook $5.99
Nook
Kobo
Smashwords
Kindle

Paperback $22.99
Amazon

The Root Bridges of Haemae in Aurealis

7 February, 20167 February, 2016 ~ Sean Monaghan ~ 2 Comments

My story “The Root Bridges of Haemae” is out now in Issue 87 of Australia’s Aurealis Magazine, edited by the renowned Dirk Strasser.

Described as “a resonant off-world story featuring a truly alien culture”, young alien Ribolee struggles with human and alien relationships.

This story made last semi-finalist in the Writers of the Future contest. I’m pleased that it’s found a home, especially with Aurealis.

The full issue includes stories by Ian Bell and Deborah Sheldon, as well as interviews and reviews. Available from Smashwords for $US2.99.

Aurealis is expanding. For a long time the publication had been restricted to submissions from Australian and New Zealand contributors, but now it’s going global.

Here’s the story’s opening:

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Human females survive the birth of their children.

Astonishing.

Ribolee ran this revelation around in her head again and again as she walked home from their camp.

Human females survive the birth.

And not only that, they sometimes have just one child. Imagine. A single child. How could that be? How could a species come to be with such a clear hindrance to its own survival?

Around her, the jungle dripped. The midday rains had been shorter today. She liked this time of year: summer almost here, but still cooler and the rains diminishing. The full seasons were far wilder: the dry of summer when the ground became bristling and crackly, the leaves darkened and swelled, animals howled and rushed; the wet chill of winter when the rivers burgeoned, the ground became a swamp and the rain could last for suns on end.

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I’m lucky enough to have my story complemented by a wonderful illustration by Dion Hamill. Thanks Dion.

Habitat – Young adult novel available on Kindle and elsewhere

31 December, 20119 January, 2012 ~ Sean Monaghan ~ Leave a comment

My young adult/middle grade (as you will) novel Habitat is now available through Triple V Publishing – on Kindle and other ebook sites. $2.99 download, and I’m working on a POD version which should be out soon.

“Seve Brigham’s dream opportunity – a cadetship to work on the huge orbiting Habitat – is about to turn bad. Very bad. The station is an unfinished mess: behind schedule and under-staffed. Then there’s the alien voice in Seve’s head. And thieves are trying to steal the whole station. Seve needs to look sharp and think fast.”

Habitat is a backlist title. Originally published on BookHabit – one of the first ebook sites. BookHabit sold it’s inventory to SmashWords, but at the time I was busy with other things (and disappointed with the lack of sales – zero – and the complicated set of hoops to jump through to format it for SmashWords), so it fell into limbo.

Of late I’ve been learning about formatting – seriously not that big of a deal – and about indie publishing. With my newly edited novel Rotations (more on that soon) just released from Lucky Bat Books, now seemed like a good time to bring Habitat back to light.