I woke up screaming in the dark.
I woke up alone.
I didn’t know who I was, where I was,
or how I got there.
But I learned. I fought. I survived.
I still don’t know who I was,
but now I know who I am.
And I’m not alone anymore.
Friends, fans, Junkies, lend me your ears. Okay, fine, your eyes, because this is a letter — stop being a smart-ass already, will ya?
I want to tell you something about my next novel, ALIVE, due out Summer of 2015. It’s different. And not different like that one uncle who comes over for Thanksgiving and smells of patchouli oil, I mean different from anything of mine you’ve ever read. I want to prepare your faces. This letter is all of nine paragraphs long, so read it for me. Because you’re swell like that.
ALIVE is the story of a twelve-year-old girl who wakes up to a nightmare. To say her upbringing was “conservative” is an understatement. I can’t explain why, I can’t reveal what that means, but I can say that telling a story from a child’s perspective is something you haven’t seen from me before, not in novel-length.
So, yeah — different. Is this “YA,” what the fancy-pants big-wigs in those tall New York City publishers offices call “young adult?” The narrator is twelve years old, man. So … maybe? You’ll experience the story through her young mind, her limited life experiences and her pre-adolescent frame of reference.
Different, but also, not as different as you might expect. It’s still written by me, and the rotten apple only falls so far from the haunted tree. Our girl is thrown into a boiling vat of awful and has to fight her way out. There is pain, there is terror, there is loss, and — this is a Sigler story, after all — there is blood.
And now, a sooper-secret secret: At New York Comic Con, Oct 10-13 in the Big Apple, something is afoot.
If you attend, and you go to the Del Rey booth, they have a little trinket to promote ALIVE. Go there, get the staff’s attention and then scream the following line in your best overly dramatic, over-the-top, SyFy Original, Shatneresque delivery.
“The spear! The spear!”
Do that. Get something. Squeal with delight.
Don’t see a “play” button above? Click here to download.
• Amazon hardcover (no order link yet, but click the button in the upper right-hand corner to be emailed when it’s available)
• Order from your local bookstore: Call ’em and tell them to reseve it!
Just finished The Champion- no spoilers but I was crying my eyes out!(yes there is crying in football!) Thanks for another amazing story! Uh… No rush but more GFL please!!!???
Nabbed the Kindle version for me, my girlfriend wants to know if an audiobook is going to be available?
@Toren: Absolutely. Don’t know who will read it, though.
My daughter went to ComiCon on Saturday. She stopped by the Del Ray booth and brought me home a copy of ALIVE!! I couldn’t believe it. They took a picture of her and said they were going to send it to you. Thanks to you and the people at Del Ray. I can’t wait to read it!!
The Amazon hardcover is now available for pre-order! Will we be able to order signed copies directly from your website?
Same question as above. Just saw preorder, should I do so through Amazon or wait for your preorder?
@ratman19: Pre-order from Amazon whenever, or from your local store, or pre-order autographed copy from Mysterious Galaxy books (www.mystgalaxy.com).
Bwoop…send her back to Microsoft; bitch got that red ring o’ death.
athanas: I read that three times on three different days, and didn’t get it until just now. Then I laughed.
Obviously, I haven’t been playing video games much if it took me three days to get it.
Ring bell…in voice of Tattoo…”Da Spear! Da Spear!”…
Ooh, interesting cover.
I skipped to the end of the letter to see the NYCC stuff, because I want to read the novel knowing as little as possible.
That being said, its a pity I can’t make it to NYCC. Do you know if there will be anything at RICC?
@Rockto3.14: We aren’t attending that one. We’re trying to back off cons because I’m so far behind delivering y’all many promised stories.
I just want another great book to read. It is getting so hard to find an author that picks at your brain. The only two I look forward to is Scott Sigler and Stephen King. All the rest is the same old dribble.
@terry: Thanks! That’s heady company, right there.
So much Sigler goodies coming our way…I love it.
All we need now is an update on the GFL novellas and I’ll sleep happy.
@ratman19: I hope to do a blog post soon on what our plans are for the remainder of 2014.
Thank you Scott. We all know that since your now a super celebrity, you don’t have time for us small time junkies….jk
A bimonthly update as to what your working on and how you plan to fit in all the Sigler goodies would be nice. I just figured I’d ask about the novellas because they are written by other people.
I so wish I could go to NYC for the treat 🙁
If it’s a ARC I am going to extra upset. After purchasing an ARC of Pandemic on eBay last time before learning how wrong that was, I will not be supporting such crooks again if this becomes available prior to summer 2015.
But I want it nowwww
Cool cover, but is that supposed to be a 12-year old girl?
@BigJohn: Read the book, and all will be explained …
I have never been so excited about a 12 year old girl before!
Um… does that make me sound pervy?
How about… I am eager to read about a book about a little girl covered in Sigler Stank?
Nope, that also sounds bad!
Oh well, no one will judge, junkies are all wired a bit different anyway! It sounds amazing to go a different direction in stories! Makes me really wish I could go to NY Comic Con and shout out in my best Crazy George Starcher voice!
@jokerdas: This might be the one time where you can say that and it is not pervy.