Book Trilogies End. But Sometimes the Author will Revisit it in a Short Story

Life, spelled out in a name, is the official - 'what happens after The Judas Syndrome Trilogy' has been told - story.

Spoiler Alert

It’s a difficult thing to leave a trilogy alone. Some readers want to be left to ponder the character’s prospects, while others want more! This is how I imagine Fan-Fiction took off. In this story Poeltl offer a brief yet surprising look into the events following Revelation; the third book in the wildly popular post-apocalyptic trilogy; The Judas Syndrome. 

This short story stars the only character to have endured all three books – at least in Poeltl's versions – and one of the strongest characters he's ever written. Left with a small band of survivors, Sara contemplates her past, while hoping to prevent a future which has taken her completely by surprise. 

Her son; dead and gone, and his father long dead, Sara contemplates her own mortality and what purpose she could serve in this aftermath. Upon pondering these hard questions, she is alerted that her son's friend and prodigy; Daniel, may be in trouble as he carries on Leif's teachings to the survivor's of Earl's vicious attack on their base. Homeless and hopeless, these newly displaced refugees could be capable of anything, including placing blame on her son and surviving disciples.

This short story and thirteen others unrelated to the trilogy can be found in the Waning Metaphorically anthology of short stories and flash fiction. 

Not every story is meant to be a novel - read a Short Story.

Not every story is meant to be a novel, and with so many stories circling an author’s head at any given time, a short story is sometimes the best format in which to package it. Bang for your buck! Condensed story-telling.

This collection of shorts and flash fiction features fourteen multi-genre stories offering the reader a range of opportunities to slip away while on their commute, a day at the beach, or their lunch break. Short stories offer real-time entertainment in a world that demands instant gratification.

Waning Metaphorically is intended to excite the reader’s emotions and asks them to question, always. The stories within should inspire introspection on a number of topics and leave the reader more curious about their own points of view while, at times, agreeing with the authors.

It is recommended the stories are read in the order they are presented, but then, order is just another’s perception of how things ought to be.

Life is a Metaphor. A metaphor is a symbol. A symbol is a sign. Watch for the signs.

Book trailers act just like movie trailers, only for books!

I like book trailers for their ability to offer short visuals with enough information and story-telling to give the viewer a reason to go pick up the book.

I don't necessarily want the trailer to give away too much, especially where the characters and settings are concerned, as I like to conjure those images up on the merit of the writing. In this, my most recent book trailer, I decided to offer each title of the fourteen short stories included within the anthology in a unique, whimsical, yet memorable way.

This is my first time appearing in one of my book trailers. I like how it turned out, and how approachable it makes me seem. And I am approachable! Especially where my books are concerned. I know I like to learn about the author of a book i'm about to read. Being featured in the book's trailer gives the reader a better idea of, if nothing else, the number of facial expressions I'm capable of.

I hope you enjoy the trailer for its whimsy, and pick up the book for its content. Fourteen multi-genre stories await your instant gratification. For even more on me, the author, you can check out my website: www.mikepoeltl.com

Books are an adventure! Short Stories offer more!

Where will your book take you?  Novels are great, but a collection of short stories can put you in danger, insane, in love, the far future, the past, exotic locals, behind the eight ball and everywhere in between within minutes. A multi-genre collection like Waning Metaphorically does just that.

A short or flash fiction story is designed to take you out of your head and into someone else's for a brief, yet intense trip into their lives. The short story covers every genre and topic, only condensed for a trip that is perfect for your break or commute. There is little commitment necessary, as a short is usually completed in one sitting. So take it with you, on your Kindle or in paperback. The perfect accessory for virtually any situation. Waiting room at the Doctor's office? That's a short story! Bus ride from point A to B? There's a short story! Train into work? There's a short story for that! Camping? Relaxing while the baby is down? Need an hour to yourself at the pub? An afternoon while the kids are away? Short story, short story, short story... you get my meaning.

So don't say you have no time to read when your friends are telling you about another novel they can't put down. Pick up a collection of shorts. Show them your sophisticated side. Hey, short stories won the Nobel last year... look who's reading now!

Pick up your short story collection today!

Happy Canada Day, Readers! Free Books!

Canadian Author Michael Poeltl is giving away the second book of his wildly successful dystopian/post-apocalyptic trilogy; The Judas Syndrome, on Canada Day.

"Rebith; book two of the series is arguably my favourite of the three." When we asked Poeltl why, he had this to say, "because book two demonstrates my growth as a writer, a more defined story line and characters who were already developed. I didn't need to build them anymore, they had a life of their own."

He tells us that the last few scenes of book one are revisited in the beginning of book two. "Sara, Joel's (the protagonist from book one) girlfriend tells the story in Rebirth, picking up where book one left off." From there on the pace is quick and plot twists keep the reader`s interest until it leaves you wanting more.

Thankfully, Poeltl has completed the entire trilogy, and all the books are available on Kindle and in paperback. He's even released an anthology featuring all three books in a single paperback.

"Honestly, book one has since been edited a number of times, but it's not absolutely necessary you read it to get the gist of what's happened, and what is happening in book two."

If it's all the same to Mr. Poeltl, we'd recommend reading book one. The character development offers insights into the players, some of which will follow you right through to book three!

Books on Your Commute Can Take You Further Than Your Stop

Every commuter has that one person they can’t stop staring at, or the reverse. Both are kind of creepy, so stop staring! Immerse yourself in a book. Even if the book is only going to act as cover for the staring. If that’s the case it might as well be an attractive book. One that might make others start noticing you, in a good way. A book immediately makes a person more interesting, you immediately have layers. Instant intellect. Perhaps in time, the object of your affection will return your looks with a renewed sense of interest and a happily ever after is suddenly possible.

Now, if you’re one being gawked at, a book is the perfect camouflage. At least, it can hide your face and thwart the efforts of the creepy guy eyeballing you from the next row. The less opportunity you give him to catch a glimpse, the more likely he’ll be to give up on you and move on to the next target.

Your commute can take you anywhere when you’re reading a book. Novels are great, but a collection of short stories are arguably the best choice for the commuter. Instant gratification. Whether you’re riding the bus or train for fifteen minutes or fifty, there is a short story for that!

Michael Poeltl has recently entered the world of the short story with his June release of Waning Metaphorically. This is a collection of fourteen stories. Some are twenty-five pages while one is just a paragraph. Hemmingway once wrote a short story in six words and claimed it was his masterpiece. “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” It takes you on an emotional ride and tells a much larger story of anticipation, loss and suffering as well as rebounding. In a short story you don’t have the space to fill in all the details, and when done well, you shouldn’t have to.

Poeltl’s new collection of multi-genre shorts was given an appealing cover design meant to resemble a sandwich board, listing each of the fourteen stories in chalkboard style fonts. Waning Metaphorically is available now in both paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.

For more on the author and the book visit http://www.mikepoeltl.com/Waning_Metaphorically.html

MichaelPoeltl has released a new collection of short stories and is the author of four novels, one children's novella, a collection of short stories and two educational children and young reader’s books.

Amazon's Kindle Select Payment Plan Has Changed.

So, what`s Amazon up to now, Indies?

I see they’ve made an announcement about their new concept where they only pay authors of self-published Kindle books enlisted in the Kindle Select program based on the amount of content – or pages – the readers actually consume.

As an author with eight books on Amazon, and several in the Kindle Select program, it will be interesting to see whether this concept fails or not. I think it will be different for every genre. Short stories should do well, while novels that are slow to start ought to do poorly. A short story collection or anthology using this method, I would think, is destined to take-off!

Lucky me! I’ve recently published a short story collection and had planned to include it into the Kindle Select program. Now I’m not entirely sure if that’s a good idea. However, in the service of indie Author’s everywhere, I will include Waning Metaphorically into this program and report back with the stats.

I assume there will be a cost-per-page-turned in order to tally up each books worth to the reader, and those monies handed over to the author? That’s what I’m getting from this. But what that number per page is, I haven’t found out as yet.

If you have it, please respond and share.