Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences

Rebelling…on all the things

MOPO_FBpage

The Ghost Rebellion has now been released to the general public. Yep, it is out there in the wild.

After $21,837 raised in the Kickstarter, an epic photoshoot with Michael Ward of Go ForWard, wrestling words with Katie Bryski and Jennifer Melzer, recording ten hours of audio, editing it, and all the nervousness possible, book five has made it into the world.

I was musing the other day how the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences has truly had a weird, and peculiar journey. How it has been an organic thing, a wild unexpected ride, and a joyful thing (with a bunch of terror through in there). It started as an experimental podcast for pay (yep, that would have sunk like a lead balloon) and now is a roleplaying game, novel, short story thing.

So I can’t think of a better title for this fifth book. Not only is the whole adventure a rebellion at the whole way this book publishing thing is done, but also this book is all about rebels, the weirdos, the strange people that don’t fit in. Eliza and Wellington are both oddballs in their own way. Eliza is a woman who is an adrenalin junky, and loves explosions far too much. Wellington is a man brought up by a terrifying father, and who seeks shelter surrounded by words. They are weird and wonderful, and so is their world.

You see, the Ministry is a lot like the collection of wonderful eclectic people I have met on this journey of becoming a steampunk author. Dreamers, makers, people who have wild ideas and make them real. I never really thought about it before, but the Ministry is a collection of geeks who have made themselves a family over the five years since the first book come out.

Strangely, or maybe not that strangely, this rebel spirit fits in very well with the vibe of steampunk. The punk in steampunk is a rebel, going against the grain, doing things differently, and that is what this series has become.

And then there is the self-publishing rebellion that has been going on for the last few years, which we have joined full-tilt with this novel.

And looking ahead, only more rebellions await. It’s all exciting, hard work, but worth it. Who knows what will come after the dust has settled.

For now here are all the buying links and a little David Bowie as music for the revolution.

Print edition

Buy in print

Buy a signed copy direct from the authors

Ebook edition

Direct from the Ministry

Our Ghost Rebellion Cover

A few weeks ago I wrote about my experience doing our first cover shoot, and now I can reveal the first of the fruits of that experience. When we received the final product we were blown away, and knowing we were there to see how it was made makes it even better. In all the years of being published authors, this was the first time we’d done this, and it was incredibly memorable.

This was truly a team effort, and it was great to have so many friends involved in creating this.

Cover model:Â Verena Vorsatz
Photography:Â Michael Ward of Go ForWard
Book design:Â Starla Huchton of Designed by Starla
Make-up Artist:Â Tamara Barnett ofÂ Tennille Makeup Artistry
Additional Costuming:Â P J SchnyderÂ and Kevin Houghton
Behind the Scenes Wrangling: Matthew J Drake and Christina Payton

The first pre-order link is now live for the ebook

From authors Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris, the award winning steampunk series continues…

The chase is on! After rescuing Queen Victoria from the clutches of the Maestro, Agents Eliza D Braun and Wellington Books are in hot pursuit of Dr Henry Jekyll. While he continues his experiments on the aristocracy of Europe, he leaves a trail of chaos and despair in his wake. However when Eliza and Wellington run him to ground in India, they are forced to come face to face with ghosts from the past, and the realities of empire.

Meanwhile Ministry agents Brandon Hill and Bruce Campbell travel deep into Russia hunting down a rare ingredient to save Queen Victoria’s life. Amid the cold they uncover a threat from the revitalized House of Usher that comes directly from their new Chairman.

All in the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences will find their allegiances in question, and their mettle tested as a new dastardly era of international intrigue dawns.

New Year, New Things

Well, 2013 is finally behind us, and though it was a rough ride, it ended nicely.

Tee, Sonic Boom and I celebrated a kiwi Christmas, which was just what we needed. We got to put our toes in the Wellington harbour on Christmas day, reconnected with family and friends, and generally relax.

Then we got home and it was -10C…ah well.

Each year I try and learn from my mistakes of the previous yearâ€”at least writing wise. So I decided I needed more of a long view in the planning process of the year. A lot of stuff was planned day to day, but I felt like I was missing out on getting the most from my time by somehow always seeming to be scrambling. So I bought a laminated 12 month calendar for the wall, and wrote on it all the commitments (like conventions) as well as all the things I wanted to work on that month for 2014.

It certainly gave me a new perspective, and I was able to plan for some projects that I have had on the backburner for some time.

I have nearly finished the first half of Immortal Progeny, my huge scope epic fantasy, with gods and monsters, so that the agent can begin pitching it.

Weather Child is in the editing process and I plan on having the ebook and paper version out on the 1st of March. The cover is be-autiful!!

Then I have a couple of other projects to get to. Two are YA titles. One is another New Zealand project that is tentatively titled Sea Witch.

In between I have several short stories and Kickstarter projects I am involved with.

As for the Ministry news…well Book Four, the Diamond Conspiracy has winged its way to our editor at Ace, and it is packed with exciting derry doings. Dawn’s Early Light comes out at the end of March…and we will have a free short story, and of course another season of Tales from the Archives to tempt our readers and listeners with. The RPG is out in the next few months and we’re super excited to see it. I am also starting to record the audio for ACX so that we can have Ministry Protocol available as an audio book.

This month I am most looking forward to going on a writer’s retreat with about ten other authors. It’s going to be fun and productive and I hope to make the most of the quiet. Alright, I admit the quiet might feel odd.

I hope you and yours came through the holiday season safe. What are you planning for in 2014?

Ministry Protocol- COVER REVEAL

A busy week rolls on, but this is an announcement I have been dying to share!
The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences novels are a multi-award winning steampunk series, which tells the story of the government agency committed to keeping citizens safe from the strange, the unusual, and the bizarre.

In a very successful Kickstarter in July, the Ministry Initiative was funded, allowing the creation of both a roleplaying game and a brand new anthology.

Ministry Protocol: Thrilling Tales from the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences is a collection of short stories that will take readers across the Empire and all over the world, revealing new facets of familiar characters and introducing new agents, allies, and enemies from the Ministryâ€™s colourful history.

The authors of this globe-spanning anthology include Delilah S. Dawson, Leanna Renee Hieber, Alex White, Jared Axelrod, Tiffany Trent, Peter Woodworth, Jack Mangan, JR Blackwell, Dan Rabarts, Lauren Harris, Karina Cooper, and Glenn Freund from The League of S.T.E.A.M.

And one of the Ministryâ€™s creators, Tee Morris, presents the origin story of the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences itself.

Look for the ebook coming in August, with signed print editions to follow.

Feast your eyes on the cover art from the Ministry renaissance man, Alex White, and spread the word about the anthology by entering the giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal- Dawn’s Early Light

Hot on the heels of the German cover for Spectyr…comes the moment where I can actually show the world another delight.

The cover of Dawn’s Early Light. Ace’s creative department knocked it out of the park. Eliza is attractive, but look capable, Wellington’s face continues to remain hidden, and there is a deathray lighthouse! Airships! Explosions!

Phew…how they fit it so skillfully on one cover is a mystery to me. I also adore the new decorations, fonts and stylings they have used.

The release date is a funny thing. I was originally going to be March 2014, then we got bumped forward into late 2013, and then moved back to January/February 2014. I’m not sure if it will change, but let’s for the moment go with that. You can pre-order here.

I know some of our readers will be disappointed at the slightly later date, but honestly, if it means a better book then I hope they will bear with us. In the meantime there is always the Kickstarter for the anthology and the roleplaying game. We are two weeks from the end, and 45% funded. If you want to see the amazing stories, and play as agents in this world, then help make it happen. Go here and check out the awesome rewards!

But feast your eyes….