Loren Jones’s novel “All that Glitters” now available from e-Quill Publishing.
NOTE: This is a post from 2010. Things have changed. See the update at the end, and see this post immediately if you wish to buy Loren’s novel INADVERTENT ADVENTURES.
Second note: Loren’s ALL THAT GLITTERS is back out via Twilight Times Books as of July, 2016. Please go here to buy Loren’s novel as an e-book at Amazon.
*** Back to post from 2010, already in progress ***
My friend Loren K. Jones now has two novels available, the first being All that Glitters at e-Quill Publishing. All that Glitters is a fantasy novel/coming of age story about Stavin kel’Aniston, once the smallest and least-regarded of all the warrior-candidates in his village. Because of this, he feels he has nothing to lose in attempting to beard a dragon in its den, and ends up with a quasi-friend in the dragon along with dragonscale armor, something no one else in his village has or has ever had.
But this is just the start of Stavin’s problems; he still must learn how to work within the system in order to show his worth. If he can do so, fame and fortune will be his, but more importantly, he’ll be able to marry the woman of his dreams (a slightly older, and nearly blind, scholar).
All that Glitters is just under 100K words, and is an excellent read. I urge everyone who loves fantasy, coming of age tales, or simply something fun to read to check out Loren K. Jones’s fine novel. And better yet, it is the first in a four-book series . . . more reading pleasure awaits, if you only will accept the challenge of buying — and reading — the first book in Stavin’s journey.
Go here to purchase Loren’s novel All that Glitters:
http://www.equillpublishing.com/all-that-glitters.html
Loren also has available another very strong novel, this one through Amazon Kindle’s wireless e-book program. This novel is called Inadvertent Adventures and is also right around the 100K mark. Inadvertent Adventures is space opera/humor; Sterling Silver is a veteran who’s been cashiered from his job due to spurious reasons, and now must make shift for himself. He finds space on a tramp freighter and learns the ropes, all while missing his ex-wife, Ann . . . in the process, this middle-aged man re-learns how to enjoy his life, and that no matter how boxed in he might feel himself to be at the start, there are more options and opportunities available than he’d ever dreamed. This novel, too, is highly recommended; please follow this link in order to buy Inadvertent Adventures:
A bit about how I know Loren: my late husband and Loren were very strong Internet friends and writing critique partners, and after Michael died, I continued working with Loren (and Loren returned the favor with my stuff). Loren is a good man and a very fine writer; his writing has been compared to David Eddings and L.E. Modesitt, Jr., as it has freshness, authenticity, and the ability to effortlessly carry the reader into another place. If the science fiction and fantasy community were not so difficult to break into with all the closed book markets, requiring agents to help you find a way in for the most part, and the few “opens” like Tor, Baen, DAW, etc., being overloaded with manuscripts on the one hand and being understaffed on the other (meaning no disrespect to anyone — it’s simply a fact of life), Loren would’ve broken in years ago. And so, no doubt, would’ve my late husband, Michael, me, Jason Cordova, and many other good writers without major publisher book contracts I have the privilege to know.
Please do not let the fact that Loren does not have a major book publishing contract fool you, in short. This man can write. Give him a chance, and you will enjoy your reading experience. Thus ends today’s public service announcement.
*** UPDATE FOLLOWS ***
As stated earlier, things have changed.
Since 2010, E-Quill Publishing has folded. Most of Loren’s novels are now out-of-print, though he’s working to change this as I understand it.
But INADVERTENT ADVENTURES is again available as of February 5, 2016, and is even better than before.
Why? Well, Twilight Times Books liked INADVERTENT ADVENTURES, bought it, and it’s now out in e-book form. It has been comprehensively edited, it has a great cover, and the formatting is pristine…it is a thoroughly professional edition, and readers should enjoy it immensely.
Please see this post about how you can get INADVERTENT ADVENTURES right now…then meditate on the virtues of persistence in this business.
As you see, I’m not the only author out there who refuses to give up.
Barb Caffrey's Blog 
Mind, before Jason beats me to it — I believe Jason may have a major book publishing contract _now_. Which is wonderful.
I still know way, way too many writers with good to excellent novels who have given up because they can’t get their work past the “opens” and can’t attract an agent, either. My hope is that places like MuseItUp Publishing and e-Quill Publishing take off in a big-time way, so these folks might be willing to try again. It really stinks that people give up; I don’t blame people for doing this because some of ’em try for ten, eleven, twelve years and get into failing health — what else are they supposed to do?
And yet, it’s not the fault of the publishers, either, for the most part — it’s just the facts of life. The economy is poor. There were mergers galore during the 1990s and 2000s in publishing, which resulted in fewer markets overall. And then the vast majority of publishers closed their markets, meaning people now had to wade through the agenting world — making an additional hurdle to get across before your novel ever has a chance of being considered.
There are only two ways to get considered by a major publisher, for the most part — through agents (dicey) or through the very few open markets (in SF&F there are, at last count, _four_), which means a long, long wait. (One of my friends has been waiting over seven years for a yes or no. Another was bounced after six years.)
I believe the process is deeply flawed, but it’s all we have. That’s why I’m so glad Loren did *not* give up, that Jason did not give up either, and that I haven’t given up — because I know Michael wouldn’t have, and I certainly won’t. 😉
Barb Caffrey
October 19, 2010 at 8:34 pm
[…] Folks, back in 2010, I wrote a blog about Loren Jones’s novel ALL THAT GLITTERS. In it, I described the adventures of Stavin, soon to be DragonBlessed, as: […]
Reintroducing: Loren Jones’s ALL THAT GLITTERS | Barb Caffrey's Blog
July 23, 2016 at 3:45 am