A writer’s life – Prague highlights #indieauthor #fantasyauthor #Tuesdaybookblog

Posted on November 12, 2019 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

I recently spent a wonderful few days in Prague enjoying the sights, the food and the drink. But the real highlights of the trip was seeing my translated book – Zarua Ztracene Mesto (Visions of Zarua) in the bookstores and visiting my publisher, Albatros Media. I signed some books for competition prizes while I was there and found out the story behind how they discovered my book too!

The holiday to Prague was months in planning and ran into its fair share of problems. I was supposed to go with my daughter and husband, but we didn’t have anyone to leave the puppy with so I transferred the flights to my parents and they came with me instead. We had various issues doing the transfer and I experienced a lot of frustration trying to get hold of the airline on the phone, but I finally got everything sorted a few days before we were due to fly.

The morning of the flight didn’t get off to a good start either when my alarm didn’t go off! My phone had decided to switch off and I woke up at 4.25am with only 5 minutes to get dressed and brush my teeth before the taxi arrived. We got to the airport on time, but my phone refused to switch back on and was heating up. It’s a closed unit so I had not option of removing the battery and I feared it wouldn’t be allowed on the plane. Thankfully a lovely man at the Dixon store showed me how to get it to switch on and it started to cool down almost instantly. The phone had hardly any charge left, but the pressure was off and I could finally relax and enjoy the start of my holiday. So much stress and it was still only 6.30am!

We arrived at our grand hotel and spent four days exploring the sights, having first got to grips with the transport system, which I must say is cheap and very simple to use once you understand it. The weather was beautiful and warm on the first day and we only needed a cardigan as we started our first adventure into Prague.

The remaining days the temperature dropped and we needed coats, scarves and gloves! We decided to take a bus tour through Prague, which included a walking tour of Prague Castle, a traditional lunch and a boat trip under Charles Bridge. The guide was very knowledgeable and we had a lot of fun despite the cold.

I would love to share some more pictures but I will save them for another post. I’ll end by saying that Prague is a great place to spend a few days exploring on foot or jumping on and off the many trams that run through the city. There are beautiful buildings everywhere you look, and don’t forget to look up or you’ll miss some great architecture. The eagle-eyed might also spot a few of these cute little guys in the River Vltava (Coypu).

Until next time…

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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy

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Visions of Zarua Czech edition released today! #fantasy #newrelease #translation

Posted on October 3, 2019 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

I’m so excited. I’ve been waiting for this moment since January 2018 when I was first contacted by Albatros Media.

Zarua – Lost City is out today!

Here’s the Albatros Media link for those interested and the translated blurb.

World fantasy edition Pendragon brings the most resounding names of this genre appreciated by critics and readers alike.

The sorcerer’s apprentice, Paddren, is troubled by strange visions in which the city appears on the verge of extermination. When his master dies and the Order of Wizards refuses to investigate this violent death, Paddren pledges to detect the killer. The search takes him on a journey full of bounty hunters, sects and monsters created by bloody magic. But his nothing stops. The visions that link him to the memories of a long-dead wizard are the key to solving many puzzles. And he is going to solve them.

The publisher’s extended blurb…

The sorcerer’s apprentice, Paddren, is troubled by strange visions in which the city appears on the verge of extermination. When, under mysterious circumstances, his master dies and the Order of Wizards refuses to investigate his death, Paddren pledges to reveal the killer with the help of his friends.

The search takes them on a painful journey full of bounty hunters, sects and monsters created by bloody magic. But nothing stops Paddren. The visions that link him to the memories of a long-dead wizard are the key to solving many puzzles. And he is going to solve them.

Find out why Zarua was abandoned? Will he save his people from the darkness that is beginning to spread out of the forgotten city?

(Please forgive any translation issues, I’m using my computer to translate the text)

The release is just in time for the Humbook festival on 5th October, a huge YA literature festival held in Prague. My book will be on sale alongside great authors like Robin Hobb, JK Rowling, Sarah J Maas, Jay Kristoff and Holly Black.

I wish I could be there to see the hardback edition of my book, but I will be there in spirit. Plus I’ll be travelling to Prague in a few weeks to see my books on sale in the local book shops. I can’t wait to share those pictures with you.

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Of course you can still get the UK edition in ebook, paperback and audiobook here.

I love the Czech edition. Here’s my blurb and cover for comparison.

Two wizards, 350 years apart. Can they save the realm of Paltria from Zarua’s dark past?

An ancient darkness haunts the realm of Paltria.
Apprentice wizard Paddren is plagued by visions of a city on the brink of annihilation. When his master dies in mysterious circumstances, the Royal Order of Wizards refuses to investigate.
Helped by his childhood friend, the skilled tracker Varnia, and her lover Leyoch, Paddren vows to find the killer.
The investigation leads Paddren down a sinister path of assassins, secret sects and creatures conjured by blood magic. But he is guided by a connection with a wizard from centuries ago – a wizard whose history holds the key to the horror at the heart of the abandoned city of Zarua. Can Paddren decipher his visions and save the Paltrian people before the dark menace of Zarua’s past is unleashed?

Audiobook link.

Reviews are slowly coming in for the audio version and I have a blog tour planned later in October which will hopefully produce some more reviews. You can listen to the sample now and see what you think of the awesome Guy Barnes’ narration style.

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That’s it for now but the time of celebration is not over yet… I can’t wait for tomorrow’s big release. See you then…

Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy

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Visions of Zarua Czech cover reveal #fantasy #translation

Posted on May 7, 2019 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

I am very excited to share the book cover for the Czech translation of Visions of Zarua. I believe the translation of the title is Zarua – Lost City.

The publication date is 9th September 2019.

What do you think of the cover? I really love it and did have something similar in mind before I found the image for my own self published version. The designer has done a wonderful job bringing the book to life.

Here’s my cover for comparison, still pretty good I think.

Fragment’s Pendragon world fantasy series includes some wonderful authors, including my hero Robin Hobb! Seeing my book alongside hers in the quarterly magazine is a dream come true.

It’s so exciting to think that in just a few months Visions of Zarua will be available in bookshops and it’s made me more determined to get my book into UK bookshops. I plan to focus on this in the summer and have already begun researching ISBN’s etc. I will share my findings nearer the time, but if anyone has any tips I’d love you to share them in the comments.

In other news, I’m having Visions produced as an audiobook! I will have a full post about that soon along with a sample. We’re aiming for a June release date. So look out for more news very soon.

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Suzanne Rogerson – Author of epic and heroic fantasy

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2018 Wrap up – My writing year in review #amwriting

Posted on January 2, 2019 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

2018 has been a major year for me and it’s been good to look back over the highlights and have the opportunity to share them with you.

The year started off with a huge bang when I was approached by Albatros Media, a major publish in the Czech Republic. They are publishing a Czech translation of my debut novel, Visions of Zarua in the fall this year. 2018 saw one of my dreams come true and I earned (and spent) my first ever advance! I hope to be able to share a cover reveal with you very soon, I think the czech cover is perfect.

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I received my first full MS request from an agent. This was a huge high point, though I’m very sad to say that I haven’t heard back from her since.

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I published book 2 in the Silent Sea Chronicles – The Sentinel’s Reign at the end of June 2018 and it’s been seeing quite a lot of action on Kindle Unlimited, but unfortunately reviews are very slow to follow.

Please check the blurb and reviews on Goodreads and feel free to get in touch if you would like a copy to review.

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In November I celebrated the 3rd birthday of Visions of Zarua with a birthday blitz hosted by 25 blogs and organised by Rachel’s Random Resources. It was a great day and I highly recommend Rachel’s services. I received 10 new reviews and had so much fun answering questions, writing guest posts and sharing extracts. Click here if you want to see the tour hosts involved and for Rachel’s info. I also posted about the day here part 1 and part 2.

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I went to the Gollancz Writers’ Day. It hasn’t led to any breakthroughs with agents or traditional publishers, but it was a lot of fun going to an event centred around my genre. I spoke to other writers, bestselling authors, editors at Gollancz and a top agent. I feel more confident about attending days like this in the future. Here’s my review of the day.

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I dusted off some of my favourite short stories, had them edited and beta read and then entered some competitions. So far, nothing has come from it but I have been inspired to produce my own short story anthology at some point in the future.

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On a non-writing related topic, I lost 2 stone with Slimming World and feel so much happier about myself. I’ve tried dieting on and off for years, but it was only joining a group that really helped me reach my target weight and keep to it. I recommend it if losing weight is one of your new year’s resolutions.

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In conclusion 2018 was a slow writing year, but I plan to change that in 2019. I hope to share the new technique I’m hoping will increase my output once I’ve tested it fully.

Join me next time where I will post about my plans for reading, writing and life in general for 2019. See you then.