Periodically, a book will come around that deserves some additional attention. While this one is not in the Geek & Sundry competition, it’s got eleven days remaining in its campaign. Time being of the essence, I felt it prudent to weave it in with this batch of featured author posts. Take a look at Peter Ryan‘s Sync City.
About Sync City:
Armed, surly and vulgar. Jack Trevayne is humanity’s best hope for the future. Just don’t tell him.
Sync City is the first part of the Sync City cycle, a story set on Earth in a dystopian past, present and future.
Jack Trevayne is a Keeper, a blunt, no-nonsense enforcer for a group of pacifist post-humans known as the Deacons. Jack’s responsibilities, with the help of his sentient motorbike and sometimes partner Vic, are to keep the timelines clean and protect humanity by killing the War Clans and the Scythers. He also doesn’t mind a drink or two along the way. But this is only part of the story. Forces beyond his understanding are dragging Jack into a battle to save the planet from an artificial intelligence known as the First Code. He’s done this before. He doesn’t want to do it again. But he has no choice.
Life is complicated – Jack is not.
Warbler’s note — check out the video promo and audio episodes on YouTube.
Q: What part of your novel’s world excites you most?
A: I love beginnings, and I love contrasts. The start of a new book, whether reading or writing, is an exciting time. The whole story lies ahead of you and the possibilities are endless. With Sync City I try to get off to a scorching start and maintain the momentum throughout. I want the reader to jump straight into the story with me and hang on for the ride.
With Sync City I also attempt to blend two stories into one book. We follow not only Jack Trevayne’s (the protagonist) current adventure, but also explore his backstory. How the two adventures weave and inform each thread of the story was tremendous fun to write and, hopefully, to read.
I also love the Spartan nature of the world in which Jack exists. In our present society we are overwhelmed with information and choices. The backdrop to this story is sparse and unforgiving. The choices are simple – live or die. On top of that, the technology that exists in Sync City is well beyond current day standards, but the way the technology is employed harks back to a simpler time. The excitement I derived from writing the book was as a consequence of these contrasts.
Q: What are some novels that are similar to yours?
A: In terms of character development and dialog, Sync City is very much hard-boiled in nature. The characters have a tough existence and need to make tough decisions – they kill drink and they kill hard. Raymond Chandler was a definite influence, as was Richard Morgan’s Altered Carbon. The much overlooked James Crumley’s The Mexican Tree Duck had to be involved in there as well.
In terms of setting and feel, many people who have read the earlier drafts end up comparing Sync City to movies rather than books, with Blade Runner and the original Australian version of Mad Max being among the most common.
Q: When do you expect your book to be released (knowing that it’ll get Quill)?
A: My funding period with Inkshares is up in a eleven days. My manuscript is complete, though there is some proofreading to complete at my end. If I go down the Quill path, the time between manuscript submission and printed books is estimated to be around four months.
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And while we’re on the subject of campaigning books on Inkshares, there’s another important book you can’t miss. JF Dubeau, author of The Life Engineered, is funding another book on Inkshares.
A God in the Shed
is funding for another week (7 days!), and has only 72 books left—at the time of this writing—to achieve full Inkshares funding status. Take a look and consider helping JF—really, a terrific guy—out with his second novel.
One Response
I concur, Elan. I look forward to receiving my copy of Sync City almost as much as I do my own book. Peter Ryan is a remarkable author with a very unique voice. I hope others take heed and pre-order it so that it may receive the attention it deserves.