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Tag: speculative fiction

Utopia PR Audiobook Coming July 1! ARC Out Nowheadphones near smartphone and cappuccino on cafe table

Utopia PR Audiobook Coming July 1! ARC Out Now

Published by Adam on April 16, 2022

I am excited to announce that the Utopia PR audiobook will be released July 1, 2022, on most popular retail sites, including Audible and Barnes & Noble (click to pre-order).

Want to read the book early? If you’re happy to write a review, you can listen to the Utopia PR audiobook from now until June 12 on NetGalley! Thank you in advance for your help creating buzz and spreading the word. I’m an indie author so this is really the biggest way you can help me, even more than paying for my books (though that is also appreciated, of course)!

Utopia PR audiobook
Narrated by Tristan Wright

I recently had to approve the audio recordings of each chapter to make sure they were just right. Let me tell you, it was an absoltue blast listening to narrator Tristan Wright bring my book to life. I know I might be biased, but I daresay the book is even funnier read aloud. Wright brings out all the individual wackiness of Blake “The Hammer” Hamner (the n is silent), Our Leader and the rest of the cast. Sitting alone in my home office, I seriously LOLed at his reading of the speech in which Our Leader ticks off every crazy idea in Blake’s Grand List of Distractions.

This was my second time working with Findaway Voices to create an audiobook (The Wanderer and the New West audiobook is also now available and 50% off until April 30 on B&N!). As before, it was a seamless process. Based on my requirements, they provided a list of suggested narrators, and then I asked a few of them to send audition tapes. It was a tough choice, but I’m really happy with what Tristan Wright has done with the book. I can’t wait for you to hear it!

Of course, if you’re not keen on audiobooks, you can get the book in eBook and paperback formats from major online retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org (or ask your indie book store to order it!). Check out the official website for Utopia PR for more information on the book and where you can buy it.

Just in case you haven’t heard my elevator pitch before, Utopia PR is a sci-fi satire about a public relations rep seeking work-life balance while managing crisis after crisis for a dystopian president. PR extraordinaire Blake Hamner (the n is silent) put off his honeymoon for his big break: joining a major political campaign for president. Now, the “Hammer” struggles to make time for his marriage as Crisis Communications Manager for Our Leader, who since taking power has become increasingly mad and totalitarian.

So yeah, mark July 1 on your calendars for the audiobook’s release date. Or better yet, pre-order it. Or better yet, get the free advance review copy (ARC) on NetGalley and write a review! I’m looking forward to hearing what you think of it!

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And the award goes to… The Wanderer and the New West!

Published by Adam on June 2, 2018

The Wanderer and the New West took the award for Best Western Fiction in the 2018 National Indie Excellence Awards!

The recognition follows Kirkus Reviews naming my dystopian western novel as one of its best indie books of the month for April 2018.

The Wanderer and the New West reinvents the Western novel with a dystopian outlook on a possible America that fully protects the rights of armed citizens to stand their ground against mass shooters and motorcycle gangs.

The novel is on sale now in paperback and eBook at your favorite online retailer! For a limited time only, get the EPUB edition at Smashwords for 50% off ($2.50)! Just use the coupon code AM26J at checkout. Deal expires 8/2/18.

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Credit: Reedsy

If you like the novel, please help Adam spread the word by leaving a review on Goodreads or the store where you purchased his novel.

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Divided We Fall Gets Some Library Love

Divided We Fall Gets Some Library Love

Published by Adam on May 8, 2018

Big news for library lovers! SELF-e by Library Journal selected my dystopian sci-fi novel Divided We Fall for a select pilot program with library eBook distributor OverDrive.

The addition to SELF-e Select on OverDrive means that Divided We Fall will be available free to 40,000 libraries and schools in 70 countries for one year. Also, Library Journal will promote my book in its magazine.

Divided We Fall reveals insurrection against a dystopian government that keeps a Watched list of its own citizens. Agent Eve Parker must arrest her fiancé after he loses his memory and becomes a revolutionary named Seven in a fight against the government. However, when she learns more about the President’s plan to broaden citizen surveillance, she begins to question just who is right.

Here’s more information about the pilot program from the email I received this week:

We have some exciting news! As you already know Divided We Fall was chosen by Library Journal as a SELF-e Select book, digitally placing it in every library participating in the SELF-e program on BiblioBoard, supporting nationwide discovery by new readers.

We are reaching out because Divided We Fall has now been selected for an even more refined collection, the best of the best, SELF-e Select on OverDrive.

SELF-e Select on OverDrive is a new one-year pilot project in partnership with industry leader OverDrive, who support a network of 40,000 libraries and schools in 70 countries. Beginning June 1, 2018 OverDrive partner libraries can enroll in the program at no charge. Following their enrollment libraries will offer the full SELF-e Select on OverDrive collection to their users for 12-months. After the conclusion of the program in July 2019, participating authors will receive usage data from BiblioBoard. As part of this collection, we will also be doing special advertising and promotion for your book with Library Journal, bringing more exposure to your book.

Pretty cool! Please look out for all my books in your local library. If you can’t find them, please request them from your favorite librarian!

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More Acclaim for The Wanderer and the New WestThe Wanderer and the New West (title)

More Acclaim for The Wanderer and the New West

Published by Adam on May 6, 2018
The Wanderer hits another bullseye with a great review from Publishers Weekly, plus Kirkus Reviews features the novel as an Indie Book of the Month!

Thanks to everyone who has picked up a copy (digital or physical) of my new novel, The Wanderer and the New West. I continue to be blown away by the kind words and excitement I’m hearing from critics and new readers about my Dystopian Western.

Recently, the Wanderer tossed his hat into the ring for the BookLife Prize by Publishers Weekly. While winners won’t be announced for several months, all entrants receive a critical assessment from Publishers Weekly, and I’m happy to report that I just received an 8 out of 10!

Here’s my favorite line: “Bender’s prose and ability to weave poignancy and humor throughout the story elevates his novel above others in the genre.”

Meanwhile, Kirkus Reviews featured my novel in their magazine for a second time, this time in a list of the “Indie Books of the Month” for April! if you don’t subscribe, here’s the online list.

Yep, that’s definitely one for the bulletin board.

Oh, this was pretty cool. My book appeared in the Spring Books issue of The New York Review of Books. I swear I didn’t plan this at all, but the cover story was all about American gun culture.

Critics are great, but I really love hearing what readers think. It’s been awesome seeing all of your reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. Please keep them coming! I’m an indie author with a limited marketing budget, so this is really the best way to help me spread the word.

Don’t have a copy yet? Check out the official page for more details on where you can buy my novel.

Charity & Events

I’m always excited to support a good cause. I donated a signed copy of The Wanderer and the New West for the annual Writers for Hope auction during Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April. The auction is organized by Kelly Johnson and proceeds went to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN).

Last weekend, I donated autographed copies of my three novels for a silent auction at the Delaware Valley Legacy Fund (DVLF) Heroes awards, started 11 years ago to honor individuals whose work and leadership advance the rights of the LGBT community.

Coming up, look out for the Wanderer at BookExpo 2018 in New York City from May 30 to June 1 as part of the New Title Showcase! Then, my novel will appear June 22-25 at the American Library Association 2018 conference.

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Adam Bender | adambenderwrites.com | watchadam.blog