Donald Firesmith's Blog

I will be at the ComiCon the Saturday and Sunday (June 7-8). If you're there, find me in the dealers' room and we can discuss books.

I have just completed my latest book, the fantasy novella, The Foundling: Heir to Ash and Blood. It will be published July 1st. I plan on making if free for the first few days. I hope you enjoy it.

In a caste-bound city where birth dictates destiny, a foundling’s discovery of his noble lineage ignites a revolution that challenges the very foundations of society.

In the slums of Westburg, Ash is a Bottom, a beggar and scavenger of garbage heaps, a survivor in a city that deems some lives worthless. Abandoned at birth, he has no future and even fewer dreams. But a single act of bravery — saving a young administrator from an assassin — changes everything.

Ash discovers he’s not just another forgotten foundling. He’s Jason Redgrave, the illegitimate son of Alice Redgrave, a powerful administrator, and Harker Haroldson, the Duke’s only surviving son. Now a target of his murderous father, Jason must flee the only city he’s ever known with the help of a family he never knew he had.

Fleeing across a treacherous land, Jason must grapple with his newfound identity, deadly conspiracies, and a question that refuses to be silenced: Can someone born in the ashes of the caste system rise high enough to change it?

The Foundling: Heir of Ash and Blood is a gripping tale of class injustice, identity, survival, and vengeance, with the promise of an epic transformation from outcast to revolutionary. Perfect for fans of Red Rising, An Ember in the Ashes, and Mistborn, this emotionally resonant novella is recommended for readers who enjoy gritty realism with a deep emotional core.
Genres

Speculative Fiction, Dystopian Fiction, Political Fantasy, Adventure, Coming-of-Age, and Found Family

I have just completed the editing of Hell Holes: The Complete Trilogy, and the manuscript is currently with my beta reader team. The book will be published in paperback and ebook format on August 1, 2024. You can preorder the ebook now!

During the last three days, I have made a great deal of progress on supporting background for Hell Holes: Insurrection. The sequel to the prequel has 6 species of demons (devils, imps, ogres, trolls, hellhounds, and gargoyles), 6 alien slave species (blurk, kextuxix, mrkl, norg, thaku, and vim), and human slaves for a grand total of approximately 100-150 named characters and numerous unnamed "red shirts." The alien species all need bits of individual languages so that the names of characters within a species are consistent in terms of approximate pronunciations while also clearly being different from the names of characters in other species. I have to make sure that the characters are consistent between the prequel and the sequel, e.g., in terms of where they live and which ones die or are injured when.
So, for the last several days, I've been making language pronunciation charts (vowels, consonants, syllables) and character charts (names, pronunciations, locations, and jobs). I think I have everything documented and consistent for the half of the book I have written so far.

I feel a little like what J.R.R. Tolkien and Tolstoy must have felt when writing their complex magnum opuses.
I have the rest of the chapters blocked out in terms of action and characters. If I keep my head down and don't get sidetracked by too many short stories, I might just finish the book this year.

I just finished the manuscript of my anthology of science fiction short stories and sent it off to my team of beta readers. I hope to have the book launch in about 6-8 weeks.

A Slave's Revenge has now won awards in the following seven book contests:

Winter 2022 Pinnacle Achievement Awards – Winner – Science Fiction Category

2021 Top Shelf Magazine Book Awards – Runner-up – Fiction/Fantasy Subcategory

July 2022 BooksShelf – Finalist – Fiction Category

2021 The Wishing Shelf Book Awards – Finalist – Adult Category

ReadFree.ly 50 Best Indie Books of 2021

2022 Purple Dragonfly Book Award in Science Fiction/Fantasy Category (Honorable Mention)

2022 Author Shout Reader Ready Awards – Recommended Read

It took a long time, but Top Shelf Magazine is finally back in business, and A Slave's Revenge was chosen as the runner-up in the fiction/fantasy category.

𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗼𝗻
I have created a webpage on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/) that enables my fans to become my patrons. With just a trivially small donation each month, you can become a patron supporting me as an indie author. Having sufficient patrons will definitely help me to continue writing and publishing new books and short stories. I will also use the patronage to fund illustrations for my books (e.g., for my Halloween-themed children's book, 𝘑𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘺 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳). For just a few pennies a day, you will not only gain the warm feeling that comes from knowing you are supporting an indie author; you will also earn patron-only rewards (such as an autographed book or audiobook) and my sincere appreciation. Please click on the following link to check out the rewards and become one of my patrons!
https://www.patreon.com/donaldfiresmith

I just received the feedback from The Wishing Shelf Book Awards for my novel, A Slave's Revenge. Wow. I got to share this:

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀' 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀:
“I suspect if dystopian is your thing, this is for you. Fast-paced, exciting, and plenty of demons!” Male reader, aged 42

“I must say, being a slave in hell is not a lot of fun! This author has a superb imagination which, thanks to his strong writing skills, he's capable of putting across in a well-written and well-plotted fantasy.” Male reader, aged 61

“I'm not big on prequels, but this was excellent. The author works hard to describe the hellish world, and the pacing is strong all the way through. There's even a little artwork thrown in, which was fun to see and helped me to visualize the demons.” Female reader, aged 49

“A thoroughly enjoyable novel, rather dark and gritty in parts, helped along by the author's impressive imagination.” Male reader, aged 37

𝗧𝗼 𝗦𝘂𝗺 𝗜𝘁 𝗨𝗽:
‘A superbly plotted dystopian thriller with a strong cast of characters. A FINALIST and highly recommended!’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Star Rating: 5 Stars

For those of you who like to collect hardback copies of your favorite books, I am pleased to announce that a hardback version of A Slave's Revenge is now available from Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09KNCYN3Q/
As always, autographed copies of my books are available via my author website, http://donaldfiresmith.com