A Clockwork Murder

A Clockwork Murder is a murder mystery set in a fantasy world where the rise of technology has caused a backlash from the magic-oriented sectors of society. When a prototype clockwork robot does the mechanically impossible and kills its creator, retired adventurer Zook Terpin searches for an explanation. The clues lead to an obsessed killer who hates technology, but will Zook be able to stop him before the killer returns for the victim's wife?

A note about this book

Years ago, I got fed up with fantasy novels, so I wrote my own. It was a great learning process, but the novel needed a lot of work. At the same time, I switched my reading to mysteries and thrillers. Then I discovered National Novel Writing Month. Hmmm, it was only a month, why not write a murder mystery in a fantasy world...and poke fun at the fantasy genre at the same time? Thus was born A Clockwork Murder.

Ten drafts and a year later, it was ready to shop around. I went to conferences, pitched to agents and editors, sent out query letters, networked, the whole bit. I wound up with six requests for chapters and full manuscripts. I was thrilled with my success. Unfortunately they all eventually declined. But they all wrote nice letters explaining why. All the letters agreed: "I like it, but I'm not sure I could sell it."

I spent a year shopping it around, and then I reassessed the situation: go back and rewrite the novel or move on to something new? It was time to move on, and besides, I liked the story how it was. So instead of spending another year changing this novel into something more marketable and then resubmitting it, I moved on to new novels.

I decided to release this one for free so I can track how many people download it and what feedback they give. If the results are good, I'll dig up the sequel and polish it. If not, I'll keep writing sequels for my own enjoyment, but I'll focus my effort on my more marketable ideas.

I think you'll enjoy it. If you do (or don't), please email your thoughts. If you have trouble reading the files or need it in a different format, let me know. If you want to convert it to a new format, send me a copy and I'll post it here and credit you (I may even make you a character in a future book).

Please tell other people about the book. Send them to the website, give it to them, etc. I'm keeping track of how many downloads and hits I get. I have a rough draft of a sequel and several more planned for the series. If I get a good enough response, I'll have a better chance of publishing those.

Thanks,

--Todd

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This story is covered under a Creative Commons License. Basically you can distribute it, but you can't change it. And you have to attribute it to me.