PH Solomon is a frequent visitor of this blog, so it’s with great pleasure that I participate in his 4WillsPublishing blog tour.

Haunted by his past. Hunted in the present. Uncertain what is real.

From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's booksAthson has seen things that aren’t there and suffered fits since being tragically orphaned as a child at the hands of trolls and Corgren the wizard. When a strange will mentioning a mysterious bow comes into his possession, he’s not sure it’s real. But the trolls that soon pursue him are all too real and dangerous. And what’s worse, these raiders serve Corgren and his master, the hidden dragon, Magdronu, who are responsible for the destruction of his childhood home. Athson is drawn into a quest for the concealed Bow of Hart by the mystic Withling, Hastra, but Athson isn’t always sure what’s real and who his enemies are. With Corgren and Magdronu involved, Athson must face not only frequent danger but his grasp on reality and the reasons behind his tragic past.

The Bow of Destiny is, at its heart, an adventure quest to find a special bow. Where is it? Who has it? Why is truly special? Is the main character meant to possess it and, if so, to what end?

Few people know anything certain about the bow. The Lost Bow Tour leads you on the path to begin finding out all the secrets that lie in The Bow of Destiny. The world of Denaria is open to everyone to begin discovering answers to the questions and enjoy the adventure of this fantasy quest.

Fireside Chat

campfire | From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's booksWe’ll catch our wind today while I give you a bit of background on how The Bow of Destiny finally made it to publication as well as some supplemental reading that introduces two important characters in the book.

After that wild ride, let’s stop to warm your hands by this campfire since it’s rather cold. Uh, sorry but there’s no heat out here in the forest. What’s that, you want to get a snow-cone? This is not that kind of amusement park but you do have some water. Besides, it really is cold out here in this forest clearing. So let’s have a little talk about The Bow of Destiny.

The book was actually started several decades ago. I finished it in the mid-90’s and almost signed with a small publisher.  However, I backed away due to a questionable contract. It was almost chosen by a well-known publisher for their new author imprint (only 2-3 books published under the imprint per year so I didn’t quite make the cut). Then I shelved the project for a number of years as life got busy and the effort had no promise of return.

Later, I looked at it some, decided I didn’t like what I had and determined it needed to be re-written. There were several attempts that went nowhere over the years until I finally started to get serious about writing once again a few years back. At that time, I realized that the book needed to be split into two books. Yeah, I groaned at the thought but set out to split and improve the book at the same time.

From there I went on a writing Odyssey to learn more about writing. Along the way, I worked on improved characterization and several stylistic changes. One major sea-change in style was converting the work to deep point of view where you get to go a little deeper with the main character of a scene or chapter. It means you read their reactions and impressions of their world, events and other characters. Sometimes a POV character is wrong in their impressions but that adds a little spice to the story – you know, variety and all that…

Hey, by the way, you dropped this package when you landed.

You realize this is what Zelma gave before the eagle grabbed you back on the precipice. You open it and find a string (a bowstring for those familiar with archery), a cloth of some sort and a piece of paper. You scan it and find it’s written by someone named Thayer and talks about some bow like you should know what it is.

To whom the eagle and the Withling give this bundle of my will, greetings and long life.

Having seen into the future, I have prepared the way for you as I have been commanded. You, who read this parchment, are my heir, and thus may bear my signet and lordly insignia as your own.

The bowstring belongs to a Bow, specially made of my care. None but you, not even I, its maker, is able draw it, let alone string it. Seek out the Bow. The Withlings look after the one to whom I gave it. You are destined to do the deed. Beware of the servants of evil; they have hounded me for the sake and possession of the bow since their doom is tied to it. Follow Eloch’s prophecy as you can and be of good courage.

May Eloch go with you,

Thayer of Hart

Some of what happened previous to the events of The Bow of Destiny can be found in two short books that are free. In Trading Knives, Corgren’s story is told, revealing how he entered the service of Magdronu and why. It’s action-packed and reveals much of the wizard’s motivation while also depicting more of his master, Magdronu.

If you’re interested in more of the Hastra’s mystic order, the Withlings who serve Eloch, check out my other short fiction prequel, What Is Needed. Here, you find out what happened to the Withlings, why there are so few and what they do. This is more of a harrowing tale from Hastra’s point of view but another piece of the puzzle that should help you understand more of the history of these two important characters who are in direct conflict because of who they serve. It’s the basis of the whole reason behind Athson’s troubles. Check them out if you have a chance – neither story is terribly long at all. Just click the link below for my email list to receive them free today.

Well, that’s all for now, I’ll leave you to get some sleep by the campfire. Sorry I didn’t bring you a nice, warm sleeping bag but that cloak you’re wearing and that blanket there by the fire should help keep the chill away – just like for Athson. An adventure isn’t all nice and comfy-cozy you know. And this about really being in the adventure, cold and all, including some real dangers!

Where You Can Get It

Book 1 of The Bow of Hart Saga: The Bow of Destiny can be found at these online retailers: Barnes & Noble, KoboiBooksAmazon – Kindle & Smashwords.

About PH Solomon

PH Solomon | From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's booksP. H. Solomon lives in the greater Birmingham, AL area, where he strongly dislikes yard work and sanding the deck rail. However, he performs these duties to maintain a nice home for his loved ones as well as the family’s German Shepherds. In his spare time, P. H. rides herd as a Computer Whisperer on large computers called servers (harmonica not required). Additionally, he enjoys reading, running, most sports and fantasy football. Having a degree in Anthropology, he also has a wide array of more “serious” interests in addition to working regularly to hone his writing. The Bow of Destiny is his first novel-length title with more soon to come.

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Tour sponsored by 4WillsPublishing.