This is the End...

Well, here we are…release day of my latest (last?) book, Blood in Snow.



I have to say, I'm a bit bummed. Not because the book is being released. To tell you the truth, I actually LIKE this one--and believe me, that's difficult for me to say!! Up until this point, I've always hated my writing. But I'm rather proud of Blood in Snow. It makes me, well, smile inside ... kind of a sad, bitter-sweet, smile.



You see, Blood in Snow is the last installment in my Riddle in Stone series ... which means I'll be saying goodbye to a lot of wonderful characters I'm met over the past five years. Edmund, Pond Scum, Abby, Becky--even the goblins, Kravel and Gurding--I've really grown to love them all. We've been through a great deal together. And now, it's the end.



I suppose to most of you, none of this really makes any sense. After all, they aren't real and I can go see them any time I want just by closing my eyes, right?



I don't know. They seem pretty real to me. Okay, I know they aren't "real" real. Still, they have a life of their own. When I sat in front of my computer, I didn't intend on having Edmund be as neurotic as he is. I didn't put sarcastic comments in Abby's mouth. All of that just kind of happened. They developed themselves.



In fact, when I first typed "Pond Scum", I didn't think he'd become a main character. That was the farthest thing from my mind. He was just one of the pitdwellers--a random person Edmund stumbled across in the second act of the first story. But as the computer keys rattled, he began to take over and carve out a reality for himself. It was rather fascinating to watch (and hopefully read!).



It's difficult for me to say good-bye to my characters. I keep hoping the books will take off and sell MILLIONS of copies; not because of the money or fame or anything, but because then I'd be able to keep the series going or maybe write a side series.



But, for now, it's the end. Like a well-worn sweatshirt, I have to fold my characters up and tuck them away in a dusty drawer. I might take them out every once in a while and reminisce with them. But I know it'll never be the same. It'd be like a high school reunion. The idea of it sounds good, but the people you have dinner with aren't the people you remembered from all those years ago.



I hope you all have enjoyed reading the Riddle in Stone series as much as I enjoyed writing it. I want to thank you for your support and encouragement and feedback. I particularly want to thank everybody who has helped promote my books. Believe me, when you're an unknown author, every rating, every Facebook post, every recommendation to a friend counts! It only takes a handful of reviews to really start the ball rolling. So thanks to all of you who have made Riddle in Stone a success!!



Since my series is about a riddle, I have a riddle for all you readers:

Forever it goes,

and fast does it fly.

When it is up, 

All will die.

Pretty easy, eh? Well, if you know the answer and would like a free eBook bundle of the Riddle in Stone series, e-mail me your answer (robert.evert.author@gmail.com) and you may just win!!  I'll give away five bundles to people who answer the riddle correctly and are willing to review the books on Amazon and/or Goodreads!



That's it for now. Thanks again for everything! Talk with you soon.



--Rob