Hello ,
It's been a pretty busy month since the last newsletter. Read below for all the great things happening:
On April 18th and 19th, the members SoCal SciFi Collective*, joined the country's largest book fair at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books held on the grounds of the University of Southern California. Attendance estimates over 168,000 attendees! And the vast majority of them were readers!!!
The weather was much hotter than expected that weekend, but our spirits were high; many books were sold, and much fun was had!
*We've since revised our name to the SoCal SciFi & Fantasy Crew. I've joked that we should change our name for every show! (Just kidding).
If you're interested in a bunch of authors talking about their experiences at this event, click here to watch on YouTube.
Star Wars Day/Month
This past Monday was Star Wars Day (May the Fourth). Some wait to celebrate on "orthodox" Star Wars Day, May 25th, the day of the original film's initial release. Many now use the greeting "This is the May", which I think is great. Let's celebrate the entire month!
I watched Star Wars for the first time in 1977. I'm not sure exactly when I saw it that year. It was much less important to watch movies on opening weekend back then; people often waited weeks or months to catch movies at their local theaters. One thing I know for sure is that from the moment I saw Star Wars, my life was forever changed. I was already a kid with a fantastic imagination and loved speculative fiction shows like The Six Million Dollar Man, Land of the Lost, Speed Racer, and anything dealing with "space" but watching SW at such an impressionable age well, it changed me as a person and as a future creative. As Yoda said in the Empire Strikes Back "...once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny... Consume you it will..." and it did :-)
Star Wars was everything to me. For many years, I listened to The Story of Star Wars record; I listened to the soundtracks; I played with the toys. I read almost every book and comic released into my 40s, and oh man, I loved those movies! Even the prequels! Let's not talk about the sequels... that's a subject to discuss another time. But I'm always still a fan and look forward to anything new coming out.
The last week has been quite eventful in Star Wars. The Mandalorian and Grogu movie comes to the big screen later this month. It will be the first time my entire family has gone to a movie together in quite a while. The Maul - Shadow Lord animated series released its final two episodes. Star Wars animation is quite good and has some peak storytelling. "Maul" was no different, and the 10-episode first season (especially the last two episodes) was something special. If you've yet to experience any of the animated series, there are some great arcs in The Clone Wars and the 90-minute first episode of Bad Batch is really great. Maybe I'll release a list of my favorites at some point. What I'm really hoping for is an animated series that deals with Luke, Han, and Leia between Star Wars and Empire, or right after Return of the Jedi. Wouldn't that be great?
On the downside (or dark side, if you prefer), tickets went on sale for the next Star Wars Celebration in 2027... but the ticket sale process turned into quite the debacle. After three and a half hours in the queue, I ended up with tickets for Sunday only. For whatever reason, decisions were made that prevented thousands, maybe tens of thousands, of fans from obtaining tickets. I'm not bitter, but was really hoping to make it to all four days...but I trust in the force that there may still be a "new" hope for getting to attend for all four days.
I hope you enjoyed my Star Wars ramblings... here's a belated "May the Fourth Be With You!" and remember, "This is the May!"
Novel Notices
- Good news! I finished Act II of Birthright! Well... the last two chapters need a little more fleshing out, but they're fine in their current form until I'm ready to tackle revisions. My current word count on the project is 101,000! I expect to write at least another 50,000 for Act III! It looks like this book will be fairly close to the same size as By Archangel's Light.
- This week I've been brainstorming and outlining Act III. I'm eager to get all the ideas out of my head and into the computer. My goal is to wrap up writing Act III and the first draft of Birthright by July 1, but we'll see. I'm really looking forward to starting typing and fully diving into Act III.
- Big News! I'm booking a new cover with Jeff Brown, the wonderful artist who created the five covers for the main Mechhaven series. This new cover will be for the Mechhaven Omnibus Edition! I'm planning on releasing the complete series as an ebook, trade paperback, and hardcover! The bad news is Jeff is booked through November, so the physical omnibus editions won't be ready until late 2026 or early 2027.
If you'd like to meet me in-person and purchase a signed book, be sure to check out my appearance schedule below:
Comic Con Revolution Ontario from May 16th-17th (next weekend!)
- I'll be in Artists Alley (Table B14). I have a fresh batch of Pax Machina and the rest of the Mechhaven series ready to go!
The Geek Speak Expo August 8th in Fullerton, CA
- Podcaster Host Extraordinaire, Henry San Miguel, of The Geek Speak Show, invited me to take part in the 21st Century Creatives panel at his expo in August. I'm honored by the invitation and am looking forward to it. I'll also have a small table with some books for sale.
- The Geek Speak Expo is smaller and more intimate than a typical convention. Think of it as a new way to experience Geek Culture. Badges are on sale now through July 17th, but space is limited, so if you're interested in going, get your ticket ASAP.
GameACon 2026 October 17th and 18th
- This was my best show last year, so I'll be back at The Shops @ Palm Desert. This time, I'll be bringing friends! I'll be exhibiting with the other authors of the SoCal Sci-Fi & Fantasy Crew. More details to come.
There are several more events in the works for late summer/fall and even into next year! Some could be very interesting... I'll post info as soon as everything is confirmed.
Featured Authors
I have one featured author for you this month. Please take a look and support them if you can!
When survival is a lesson carved in blood, hesitation is a death sentence...
Fourteen-year-old Kael knows the rules: stay in line, stay silent, and survive.
But after a violent dispute in the mines turns deadly, Kael is pulled into a military unit where weakness is punished, hesitation is fatal, and survival is earned one scar at a time.
When his first mission takes him deep into the Grove, a forest feared for reasons no one dares to explain and Kael finds that the enemy isn’t just out there. It’s inside every decision, every delay, every moment of doubt.
Survival in the Grove is a grounded grimdark novella about power, pressure, and the quiet horror of becoming who the world demands. Perfect for fans of slow-burn tension, harsh coming-of-age arcs, and morally gray survival stories.
Group Promotions
I have one promotion for you this month. These authors cross-promote each other's books. Please take and look, you may find your next favorite author.
Sci-fi & Fantasy & Kindle Unlimited
That's it for now...have fun and read a lot of books!
Greg Sorber
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