200,000 Page Views!

Last night, sometime after 5, The Update surpassed 200,000 page views! This momentous occasion happened just weeks before our 2 year anniversary, for which I am eternally grateful. The last time we reached such a milestone was when we surpassed 150,000 page views on 2/8/13.  Thanks to all of our contributors and fans who made this possible.

First up, let us look at the top posts of all time (the list on the left is only for the week):

1) Review: "Red Inferno 1945" by Robert Conroy by Sebastian Breit.

2) Preview: Before Watchmen by Sean Korsgaard.

3) Alternate History and Superheroes by Ben Ronning.

4) How to Write and Publish a Novel in Eight Easy Steps by Chris Nuttall.

5) Showcase: Images of 1984 - Stories from Oceania by Sean Korsgaard.

6) Review: Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation 2 by Chris Nuttall.

7) A first look at NBC's Revolution by Sebastian Breit.

8) January 2013: The Month of No Americans by Matt Mitrovich.

9) Civilization II: Eternal War by Matt Mitrovich.

10) Review: Spike's Alternate History by Matt Mitrovich.

Seb keeps the top spot, but as usual I have the most article on the list (although not by much this time). Alright lets move on to the state of our social networking presence:

• We had 63 Google followers on 2/8/13, now we have 68 (Goal: 100 by 6/13, 68% complete).
• We had 207 Facebook fans on 2/8/13, now we have 245 (Goal: 300 by 6/13, 84% complete).
• We had 319 Twitter followers on 2/8/13, now we have 389 (Goal 300 by 6/13, 130% complete)
• We have 14 Networked Blogs followers on 2/8/13, now we have 14 (Goal: 15 by 6/13, 93% complete).
• We have 6 Reddit subscribers on 2/8/13, now we have 7 (Goal: 25 by 6/13, 28% complete)

Thank you to our Twitter fans for continuing to be awesome as we blow past the old goal. Hopefully we can still break the rest of our goals before June as well. Please, if you use either service, follow us and help us reach our goal before our two year anniversary. Of course you probably noticed the stats for the group not up there. That is because I disbanded the group because I found it redundant since we have a page. I still might try sometime in the future setting up a forum for our fans.

I am proud to say the Update averages more than 10k views a month and we continue to grow.  Those interested in advertising with us should check out our Advertise page for more details. If our readers like one of our advertisements I highly recommend that you click on it and help support Weekly Update.  Please check out our Amazon page as well to purchase a subscription (first 14 day free) for your Kindle (or Kindle app) or write a review (one of these days I will update the cover page with a new screenshot). All proceeds go to help pay contributors who submit fiction, non-fiction and reviews to The Update.

If you would like to contribute, I encourage you to contact me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  The Update would not have grown to become what it is today without the help of the contributors who routinely submit articles to be enjoyed by you, the reader.  All contributors will be given the opportunity to promote their current projects, plus a link to their website(s) in the "Our Favorites" section on the left had side of the blog. Check out our Submissions page and the rules for the DBWI writing contest.

Thank you once again for being a fan of The Update and I hope that we can continue to provide top quality content for years to come.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a volunteer editor for Alt Hist magazine. His fiction can be found at Echelon Press, Jake's Monthly and The Were-Traveler. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

New Orleans by Gaslight: The First Anthology of Steampunk Fiction and Poetry Set in The Big Easy

The first-ever anthology of fiction and poetry set in the city of gas lamps, gumbo, and steamboats, all with a steampunk twist, is now available. Here is the description from Amazon:

In a New Orleans that Never Was and Never Will Be, there are a thousand stories to tell. There are stories of sorrow and triumph, of passion and fury, of love and of revenge. Aloft with cloud and sun, great warrior airships drift silently over the city below, crewed by eager young men and women awaiting the moment they will be called upon to strike against foes with cannon and with sword. Steamboats float down the river bringing travellers from far climes and distant lands unknown to our more mundane world. Lovers ride down the boulevards upon clockwork carriages drawn by mechanical horses. Cheated gamblers decide between making a break for the door or breaking the quiet calm with the staccato beat of revolver gunfire. Ragtime music echoes as fallen women ply the world's oldest trade in the streets of Storyville. Soldiers lead clanking platoons of clockwork automatons through the port on their way to their next deployment and archaeologists, explorers and adventurers set forth aboard airships to find new lands, fortune and glory or perhaps death in the forlorn forsaken corners of the globe. These are the stories of New Orleans By Gaslight.

New Orleans by Gaslight is edited by Brandon Black, a science fiction and fantasy author living in New Orleans, Louisiana and is published by Black Tome Books, a New Orleans based independent publisher focusing on speculative fiction with Southern flavor. Authors on the anthology include Jackson Kuhl (who was kind enough to send this press release), Shawn Aveningo, Gary Bourgeois, C.M. Beckett, Rob Cerio, Dionne Cherie, David Ducorbier, Philip Karash, Jay Wilburn and Matthew Wilson.

Featured stories include…

• Paranormal investigators Mark Twain and Nikola Tesla strive to uncover the truth of a haunting at the Old Opera House;
• Science leads an engineer toward accomplishments never before thought possible — and yet human hubris remains the same as it ever was;
• A Confederate slaveholder, caring little for the city's neutrality, hunts his escaped possession through the fogbound streets and alleys;
• Hurricane Katrina is reimagined in Victorian times;
• A yeoman aboard an airship learns the terrible price paid for his captain's victories.

These are the stories of a New Orleans that Never Was and Never Will Be. These are the stories of New Orleans by Gaslight. Learn more about the anthology at its website and Facebook page.

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This post is based on a press release submitted to Alternate History Weekly Update. If you have a work you would like, submit your press release to ahwupdate at gmail dot com.

Once Upon a Clockwork Tale Blog Tour!

Well it is finally happening. Once Upon a Clockwork Tale will be published on June 1st. This anthology of classic fairy tales given the steampunk treatment is brought to you by the good folks at Echelon Press. There are four stories, including "The Enchanted Bean" written by me. Here are the descriptions below:

"Wings" by Ella Grey 

Born into a world where the fairer sex hides coyly behind fans, Winifred is nowhere near the stereotype. She is fearless and passionate about her father’s scientific work. When the King summons him, Winifred is worried. The arrival of her six brothers and the mysterious Amelia and her silent brother offers distraction, but Winifred's entire world is about to change beyond recognition and it’s up to her to save everyone she loves. 

"Hands and Grater" by Robin Wyatt Dunn 

Hands and Grater don't understand their mother's unique love for them. For how much love can a machine truly give? As Grimm originally intended, this is a bildungsroman, a tale of two young people coming of age in a time and place filled with danger and joy. The time has come for brother and sister to leave the nest, and learn their true nature, and the nature of their mother. 

"Bitter Cold" by Kat French 

Childhood friends, Kit and Greta, live in an extraordinary place powered by alchemical magic and mechanical wonders. Just when life might offer him favors, Kit is captured by the Snow Queen, a ruthless industrialist, bent on developing her Eternity Engine. Greta must risk everything to save Kit. Can a stubborn young lady best the most powerful woman in the world, with a little alchemy, a lot of luck, and a clockwork reindeer? 

"The Enchanted Bean" by Matt Mitrovich 

How do you reach a fabled land of giants without any magic beans? Build an airship, of course. A British adventurer takes to the skies seeking wealth and glory, instead he finds ancient gods ruling an oppressive flying kingdom. With the help of their allies, these former masters of men want to replant the World Tree and rebuild their war machines. To stop the sky from falling, our hero will have to do more than chop down a beanstalk.

To promote the release of the anthology, I am going on a blog tour. If you are interested in receiving a review copy or hosting a guest blog/interview contact me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com. Current we only have e-book versions of Clockwork Tale for review.

Next week on The Update I am going to be posting interviews from the other authors on the anthology. You can also find upcoming guest blogs, interviews, reviews and more on:

• Dale Cozort's Blog.
• Alison Morton's Roma Nova.
• Lynn Rainey's books!
• Amazing Stories.
• Jeff Provine's This Day in Alternate History.
• Katina French's blog.

Go and subscribe to those sites so you can see more information about Once Upon a Clockwork Tale. Follow me on Facebook and Twitter for more updates as we approach book day on June 1st.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new story "The Enchanted Bean" is coming out on June 1st in Once Upon a Clockwork Tale from Echelon Press. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

New Releases 5/21/13

New Paperbacks

Steampunk Magazine #9 edited by Margaret Killjoy

Description from Amazon.

This issue of SteamPunk Magazine features lots of ways to get up to no good! Theres also history, fiction, interviews, and everything you could possibly want! No steampunk library is complete without it. Issue #9 features Cherie Priest, Cory Doctorow, and more.

New E-books

The Red Plague Affair by Lilith Saintcrow

Description from Amazon.

The service of Britannia is not for the faint of heart--or conscience...

Emma Bannon, Sorceress Prime in service to Queen Victrix, has a mission: to find the doctor who has created a powerful new weapon. Her friend, the mentath Archibald Clare, is only too happy to help. It will distract him from pursuing his nemesis, and besides, Clare is not as young as he used to be. A spot of Miss Bannon's excellent hospitality and her diverting company may be just what he needs.

Unfortunately, their quarry is a fanatic, and his poisonous discovery is just as dangerous to Britannia as to Her enemies. Now a single man has set Londinium ablaze, and Clare finds himself in the middle of distressing excitement, racing against time and theory to find a cure. Miss Bannon, of course, has troubles of her own, for the Queen's Consort Alberich is ill, and Her Majesty unhappy with Bannon's loyal service. And there is still no reliable way to find a hansom when one needs it most...

The game is afoot. And the Red Plague rises.

The fantastic follow-up to The Iron Wyrm Affair, set in an alternate Victorian world where magic has turned the Industrial Revolution on its head.

To fans, authors and publishers...

Is you story going to be published in time for the next New Releases? Contact us at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new story "The Enchanted Bean" is coming out on June 1st in Once Upon a Clockwork Tale from Echelon Press. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Weekly Update #103

Editor's Note

For those following us on Facebook and Twitter, you probably noticed some increased postings on my part. I have changed up my social media game to make both locations more enjoyable for fans. Here is my posting schedule (subject to change):

9 am: Today in #althist
11 am: New Post
2 pm: What if?
3 pm: From the archive
5: Good night

I also will occasionally post between those set times with any interesting stories or ideas I have. If you have any suggestions I would love to hear it. You can contact me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.

It has been a while, but I finally have some new countries to add to my map. Welcome to our first readers from Chad and French Polynesia. I hope you guys enjoy your stay here and if you are reading this, tell us about alternate history from your countries.

And now the news...

Update: The Boleyn King by Laura Anderson

Last week saw the release of an intriguing new debut novel called The Boleyn King by Laura Anderson. Here is the description from Amazon:

Perfect for fans of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir, and Showtime’s The Tudors, The Boleyn King is the first book in an enthralling trilogy that dares to imagine: What if Anne Boleyn had actually given Henry VIII a son who grew up to be king?

Just seventeen years old, Henry IX, known as William, is a king bound by the restraints of the regency yet anxious to prove himself. With the French threatening battle and the Catholics sowing the seeds of rebellion at home, William trusts only three people: his older sister Elizabeth; his best friend and loyal counselor, Dominic; and Minuette, a young orphan raised as a royal ward by William’s mother, Anne Boleyn.

Against a tide of secrets, betrayal, and murder, William finds himself fighting for the very soul of his kingdom. Then, when he and Dominic both fall in love with Minuette, romantic obsession looms over a new generation of Tudors. One among them will pay the price for a king’s desire, as a shocking twist of fate changes England’s fortunes forever.

If you are interested in learning more about Anderson, check out her interviews over at Suvudu, where she talks about writing alternate history, and over at Dawning of a Brighter Day, where she discusses among other things her LDS faith.

Update: Milkweed Triptych by Ian Tregillis

The Milkweed Triptych by Ian Tregillis is completed, but should you read it? For those who don't know, the series is set in a universe where children manipulated by a German physician manifest paranormal powers. The Nazis make use of these meta-humans to conquer the world, forcing Britain to call on warlocks to stop them (plus there is time travel).

Yes, ASB, I know but the books have received a lot of praise. James Long at Orbit said when he first read the original submission and the rest of the trilogy that "[j]ust when you think you might have figured them out, they’ll change direction and completely shatter your expectations (my jaw dropped so many times when reading this trilogy that I attracted more than one strange look from my fellow commuters)."

Elfy at Travels Through Iest also said "Milkweed as a whole is superlative story telling and Necessary Evil is the perfect end for it." If you have read any of theses books I would love to hear from you and maybe even post a review.

More on The Confederation

A lot of people have been viewing my write up on The Confederation web series, but donations haven't been forth coming. As I write this they have only raised $50 and that is chump change compared to their $50,000 goal. Still the news is starting to spread. Friend of the blog Matt Quinn and Sherman from Other Times both wrote posts about the planned series. If you are interested in learning more about this alternate history web series, check out their website and Facebook page.

Awards Watch

Good news for some alternate history writers. The Joan Hessayon Award was presented to Liesel Schwartz for A Conspiracy of Alchemists. The finalists for the 2013 Campbell and Sturgeon Awards were also announced with Any Day Now by Terry Bisson being nominated for the Campbell award. Let us all congratulate them on their success and hope this inspires more alternate historians in the future.

Calender

May 27: Last day to see Victorian Extreme: American Fancywork and Steampunk, 1850-Now at The Bennington Museum in Bennington, VT.

June 3: Last day to fund the All Quiet on the Martian Front, Miniature Tanks vs Tripods Kickstarter, although they have already reached their goal.

June 15: Last day to see the Steampunk: Nature & Machine exhibit at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum in Norwalk, CT.

June 30: Last day (I am sensing a pattern here) to fund the Iron Sky The Coming Race Indiegogo campaign.

Links to the Multiverse

Articles

Counterfactual: Boston Marathon Bombings by Josephine Huetlin at Varsity.
Iraq Goes Into Saudi Arabia? With Allies? by Matt Quinn at The World According to Quinn.
Sci Friday: The History That Never Was by Tommy at BookPeople's Blog.
What are the rules of time travel in the J.J. Abrams Universe? by Charlie Jane Anders at io9.
The Yellow Prose of Texas? Secession Movement Blooms in Fiction by Miguel Bustillo at WSJ.

Book Reviews

The Iron Sea's by Meljean Brook at Falcata Times.
The Iron Wyrm Affair by Lilith Saintcrow at books!
Steampunk Magic by Gypsey Elaine Teague at Patheos.
Without a Summer by Mary Robinette Kowal at Tap Milwaukee.

Comics

Lord Of Mars – The Tarzan/John Carter Crossover, Only Dynamite Can’t Call It That by Rich Johnston at Bleeding Cool.

Films

Django Unchained: A Brief Word by Alex Kane at Amazing Stories.
DVD(s) of the Week: Seeking a Friend for the End of the World and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Matt Farr at Ramblings of the Easily Distracted.

Games

Infinite Crisis video introduces the beefy steampunk butcher Gaslight Joker by John Funk at Polygon.
Just Cause Dev Talks Steampunk, 'Holy F**king S**t' Moments in Future Games by Stephen Daly at Gameranx.
Wolfenstein: New Order Announcement - Bethesda at Falcata Times.

Podcasts

Michael Panush Gets PULPED! at PULPED! The New Pulp Podcast.

Television/Web series

Elementary: Season 1, Episode 22. Risk Management at Thinking about books.
Revolution 1.17: Even Better Nanites at Paul Levinson's Infinite Regress.
When Sliders went to paradise, it was pure hell for viewers by Rob Bricken at io9.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a volunteer editor for Alt Hist magazine. His fiction can be found at Echelon Press, Jake's Monthly and The Were-Traveler. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

The Confederat​ion Web Series Kickstarte​r

An intriguing new Kickstarter called The Confederation has caught my attention. It is a proposed web series set during the 1960's in a world where the South won the American Civil War. The story follows a squad of Confederate female snipers fighting in the Cuban War and a group of former slaves. You can check out the trailer here.

The point of divergence for this timeline is the Battle of Puebla in Mexico, May 5th 1862. In our timeline, the Mexicans win the battle, but in The Confederation timeline, the French win the battle, setting off a chain reaction that unintentionally alters the course of the American Civil War. The producers picked Puebla because it had, at least on the face of it, no influential role in the outcome of the American Civil War. They are firm believers in the butterfly effect, which is refreshing.

The producers hope to raise funds in order to produce the first season of the series and they are asking for $50k, which will be used to cover costs involved with creating and distributing the series, including travel and lodging expenses, paying the cast and crew, location fees, advertisements and equipment.

They plan to create at least eight episodes that will be distributed on Blip.tv, which is home to shows like  Red vs Blue. Each episode will be between 10 to 15 minutes long. The series will be in black and white, but will have some items (ex. flags) in color, similar to the style of Robert Rodriguez's Sin City or Gary Ross' Pleasantville.

$50k certainly sounds like an ambitious goal, but I am curious to see this web series get made. With so much alternate history television being made in the UK, it would be nice to watch a show that us Yanks can access. Good luck to the producers and as for the rest of you, go check out their Kickstarter.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a volunteer editor for Alt Hist magazine. His fiction can be found at Echelon Press, Jake's Monthly and The Were-Traveler. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Dragons Fly Over Edinburgh Unnoticed

A Life Less Ordinary, the latest novel from long-time contributor Christopher Nuttall, author of The Royal Sorceress and Bookworm, published by Elsewhen Press, an independent publisher of SF based in the UK.  A fantasy novel for adults, it is set in a magical Edinburgh where dragons fly through the sky, the castle glows blue and strange creatures trade in the Grassmarket.  Here is the description from Elsewhen Press:

Having lived all her life in Edinburgh, the last thing 25-year old Dizzy expected was to see a man with a real (if tiny) dragon on his shoulder.  Following him, she discovered that she had stumbled from her mundane world into a parallel magical world, an alternate reality where dragons flew through the sky and the Great Powers watched over the world.  Convinced that she had nothing to lose, she became apprenticed to the man with the dragon.  He turned out to be one of the most powerful magicians in all of reality. 

But powerful dark forces had their eye on this young and inexperienced magician, intending to use her for the ultimate act of evil – the apocalyptic destruction of all reality.  If Dizzy does not realise what is happening to her and the worlds around her, she won’t be able to stop their plan.  A plan that will ravage both the magical and mundane worlds, consuming everything and everyone in fire.

Despite being a fantasy, with magic and dragons, this is definitely a story for adults not children, revealing the darker side of the magical world.  Addressing serious issues such as betrayal, revenge, and free will, it is nonetheless being called a fantastic adventure made all the more exciting by being set in the familiar environment of Edinburgh, one of the most vibrant capital cities in the world.

A Life Less Ordinary is published in digital editions, available from Apple iBookstores, Kobo, Amazon Kindle stores and other online retailers, and will be published in a print edition in September.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a volunteer editor for Alt Hist magazine. His fiction can be found at Echelon Press, Jake's Monthly and The Were-Traveler. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.