Author Guest Post with Marc R. Micciola

Welcome to one of the June 8th stops on the blog tour for Ascension by Marc R. Micciola, organized by Silver Dagger Book Tours. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.

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Hey there! My name is Marc R. Micciola and I am the author of Ascension. I was born in Brampton, Ontario, Canada and have lived there most of my life. I am a huge fan of JRR Tolkien’s worldbuilding and I’d like to think he inspired a lot of my own creations. I have anxiety, depression, and borderline personality disorder. Creating stories and the worlds they take place in has always been an efficient coping mechanism, so I decided to try it out as a career! I’m a huge advocate for mental health awareness and I have done my best to display the mental health of my characters within my stories. I think being aware of a character’s mental well-being really brings that character to life and makes them relatable. While creating the world surrounding them will always be a joy for me, the characters and their personal arcs will always bring me the most pride. I’ve always enjoyed character driven stories, so it’s something I strive for in my own work.

Speaking of my own work, Ascension is the first book in a series I have dubbed The Age of Shadow Saga. The world is heavily inspired by Scandinavia, with the names of locations and characters being derived from Norwegian, Icelandic, and Swedish words. It took me about four years to go from initial idea to published book, but it was during a time where I was struggling with a lot of stuff mentally. I’m super proud of myself for completing Ascension during that time in my life, the euphoria of it all driving me right in to writing book two. The entire series will be written in first person point of views from a small cast of characters, on both sides of the story. Every character at the end of the book is somewhere different than they were when we are first introduced to them; emotionally, mentally, and physically. In Ascension, you’ll be told the story from the point of views of Iver, Einar, Otti, Elouera, and Sigurd. Each are unique, two are female and three are male, and they all have their own importance to the story being told. If I had to pick a main character, I’d say it’s Einar. My reason? Well you’ll just have to read Ascension and find out for yourself!

I used to read a lot, but as my writing career has continued on I’ve found less time to read. Some of my favourite authors are George RR Martin, Mark Lawrence, Tom Lloyd, and of course the legend himself, JRR Tolkien. All of them have had some sort of influence in my writing, in both how I tell a story and what the story consists of. Unlike my idols, I only have one book out right now (Ascension) but I do plan to have book two in the series out late December or early January, plus book number three after that. I’m also working on a side project I’m really excited about that I am hoping to go the traditional publishing route with. I’ve been distracted with dealing with my mental ups and downs, plus all the writing I’ve been doing, but I do have a website I plan on paying more attention to in the near future. It has information about Midstad, the world where Ascension takes place. There’s also some commissioned art, with room for fan art if any of you feel inspired by what Ascension presents to you. My favourite is the brief histories of the kingdoms of Midstad. I have a large part of the 3000+ year recorded history of Midstad completed, allowing me to really display the world I’ve created. It’s taken a lot of hard work and time, but I absolutely love all of it. Anyways, I think I’m babbling a bit so I’ll wrap it up with a piece of advice for new writers. Enjoy yourself. You’ll write the best stuff when you’re having a good time! Don’t stress too much and bring your story to the world!

Ascension
Age of Shadow Saga Book One
by Marc R. Micciola

Published 15 August 2020
Centaury Lilium Publishing

Genre: Epic Fantasy
Page Count: 324
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!

Many years ago, every race in Midstad came together to imprison a dangerous foe; however not everyone supported this decision and some swore in secret to set Him free one day.

Now, nearly two hundred years later the world is prospering during its longest age of peace. Elves are hidden away in their forests, dwarves live deep within their mountains, and humans have come together in a way which has never been done before. Life for every race is peaceful, until a mythical cult, The Black Light, makes their name heard in every corner of Midstad.

One violent day of assassinations sends elves, dwarves, and humans alike into a panic. The Black Light has shown themselves to be more real than many would have wished them to be, and they have named their leader; Iver, an heir to one of the human kingdoms.

Einar, son of the King of Hestferd, and his allies scramble to devise a proper response to this act of war. Their biggest worry? A name shouted by the assassins; Kemryr, the great foe who was imprisoned centuries ago.

Many believe him to be nothing more than a myth nowadays, but myths seem to be becoming very real as of late. Einar’s father wishes to learn more, and so he turns to a secret friend for help. Together, Einar and his father seek out answers while Iver and his followers continue to carry out their plan in the hopes to reach their ultimate goal.

Set. Him. Free.

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The scavenger who had his spear at my throat yelped at the death of his friend, giving me an opening of my own. I acted quickly and shoved away the weapon the sickly man had been using to keep me at bay. When I went to strike as my father had, my victim was aware enough to move out of the way, catching my arm with a small knife he had pulled from his belt. I shook my arm out as he abandoned his spear completely, pulling another knife from his dead friend, and we began to circle each other. Behind my opponent, I caught sight of the menace I called my father, roaring and cutting down two more of our assailants with relative ease.

I live in Ontario, Canada with my two dogs Ace and Rielly. When I’m not entertaining those two goofballs, I’m usually watching hockey or a movie.

Night time is usually when my writing time begins. It’s been that way for as long as I can remember; writing when the sun out just seems near impossible now!

Writing is my main passion, but I do have many others. Photography, Pyrography, spending time with my friends, watching hockey while eating pizza, and of course enjoying some family time are all things I love doing.

I’m a huge advocate for removing the stigma around mental health and always try my best to support those who struggle with mental health, just like I do.

I am also the owner of Centaury Lilium Publishing, a company that assists authors in finding affordable and reliable services in order to self-publish their books. It’s a young business, but I’m hoping to help even just one author achieve their dream.

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