Welcome to Engines of Creation: Children of the Halo. The first in a series of epic-length fantasy novels by EJ Spurrell.

The citizens of Dunsmith, British Columbia have a predicament. They suddenly found themselves and the whole damn town whisked away from Earth to a strange new world, the Pactlands of Eiden Myr. To make matters worse, a shrewd and cunning general, under the command of a despotic Emperor, has his eye upon the unsuspecting town.

However, when Nalya Ruus, a Raszan Noble in exile, comes across the city of wonders, she agrees to accompany three townspeople northward to the nation of Halen to petition King Nadus Hillbreaker for assistance.

Cale Shephard, a by-the-book RCMP officer, Ryan Stills, a sarcastic but talented musician, and Terra Murphy, a hippie pothead with an unusual gift, head off into the unknown.

Join the people of Dunsmith as they learn their way around a whole new world, a world ruled by the laws of magick and steel. A world filled with strange races and beings. A world of deceit and espionage, where the ears of a shadowy council might lurk in every corner. A world built upon lies.

Updates every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Contains strong language and violence.

New Readers, start here.

"[...]a good read and I look forward to more."
Sonja Nitschke, Webfiction Guide

"[...]I highly recommend Engines of Creation: Children of the Halo to anyone who is a fan of fantasy."
Trygve Thevik, Stories from a Galaxy in Turmoil

October 12, 2008

If you hadn't already noticed, Arie and Tam's background story, The Lost Windchaser was posted this past Saturday. Next Saturday, expect the tale of Silvereye to pop up.

Also, in artwork news, there are three new pictures of characters from Children of the Halo, drawn by the delightfully prolific and talented Abigail Southworth. Terra, Lily and Arie have now been illustrated and their pictures can be found in the wiki. Check 'em out, and visit the site of the artist.

October 3, 2008

You asked for it, you've got it! Tonight at midnight sharp (PST), expect The Nesting Grounds. A bonus story going into greater detail about Silvereye and the Featherclaw and how their society works, set a few months priot to the beginning of the novel. It's much longer than most other chapters, marking up at just under eight thousand words.

ant to remind everyone that we're quickly approaching the final chapter of Children of the Halo. As it stands, the last chapter will be posted on Friday, October 17, with a short epilogue the following Monday, October 20. Between now and then you can expect two more bonus stories. Next Saturday's story will cover the hows and whys of Arie and Tam, and the following bonus story after that will tell the tale of how Silvereye came to be.

Finally, I've been pondering other incentives for bonus stories, and I've come up with a plan. For every three reviews Children of the Halo receives on sites such as Webfiction Guide, Pages Unbound, and Muse's Success, I will write a new bonus story. Please only submit one review per site, and please, no one-line reviews. Put some thought into it.

That being said, keep your eyes peeled for The Liar's Law, the exciting sequel to Children of the Halo, coming soon after the conclusion of the first book.

September 29, 2008

I've received another donation. You all know what that means.

Expect another bonus story this Saturday, and because of the sizable nature of the donation, it pays for three consecutive bonus stories over the next three weeks.

Stay tuned!

September 18, 2008

Oops! What happened?

In the interests of making it easier for you to get to the latest chapter (And possibly get my RSS working), I've decided to change the format to display the newest chapter first. This may eliminate the need for the Foreword. We'll see.

Remember, Jim Zoetewey's interview with me is still up. Go read it. And remember, bonus story this Saturday, entitled "A Family Affair." Stay Tunes.

September 15, 2008 - WFG Interview and Bonus Story This Saturday!

Jim Zoetewey over at WebfictionGuide.com was kind enough to interview me. I encourage you to go check it out and spend some time on the site. If you liked Children of the Halo, there are scores of other talented authors out there that deserve your attention and support!

In other news, I was pleasantly surprised this morning to wake up to an e-mail proclaiming that the first donation has been received in the amount of $20. As you well know, I promised to write a bonus story at $10. So this Saturday, expect the first (of many) bonus story for Engines of Creation. Also, $10 will be put towards the next bonus story which will be $15 total. Only $5 away from the next bonus story.

Also, keep in mind that Destined Paths is still accepting characters. There are two so far, so check it out.

Finally, I'm on the lookout for decent artists that will work for reasonable prices to help with character designs and site-related graphics. If you have any suggestions (or offers), please leave a comment.

September 3, 2008 - New Listings & Announcement

Hey everyone. I'd just like to point out that Children of the Halo is now listed on Muse's Success, a new listing site. Remember to rate Children of the Halo while you're there!

Also, it appears as though Pages Unbound has been resurrected! Children of the Halo is now listed there, so please make sure you drop us a review while you're there!

Finally, I'd like to make an announcement concerning the EoC Wiki. As many of you may have noticed, I've yet to put any real work into it. That's why I'm going to ask you, the reader, to lend what help you can in that regard. If you feel you can help edit the wiki properly, by all means come on in and help out. (Even if it's just to help me organize which pages I still need to fill out.)

And finally, I'd like to bring up Destined Paths. I'm planning on launching the game as of October 1, 2008. The setting of the game will parallel the last few chapters of Children of the Halo and continue onwards. If any of you enjoy Freeform Role-Playing, I highly suggest you check it out. We'll be accepting characters starting this week.

September 1, 2008:

I've just noticed my first hit from Pages Unbound. I went to check it out, and noticed that my listing finally went through, and that's got me pretty pumped. So, if any of you folks are Pages Unbounders, I invite you to offer a review for Children of the Halo.

August 25, 2008:

I'm just running through some basic tweaks on the site, adding a few links. I'd like to hear your thoughts, it's often hard to look at one's own work objectively. I'm also considering changing the theme of the site, I'm just looking for the right one. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on that as well. What would be easier on the eyes?

Also, we're entering into a major story arc over the coming chapters, which will set the events in place leading up to the close of Children of the Halo on October 20. That doesn't mean, however, that the stories have stopped. I have a number of bonus stories planned out in my head and have decided to implement a bonus story system through paypal donation. For the first story, a mere $10. (Which will go right into paying for advertisements, artwork and hosting.) Donations over the asking price will be carried over into the next bonus story, which will be posted on the following Saturday.

EJ.

August 14, 2008:

Hey everyone. I've just added the Foreword page in order to serve as a launch point. As an aside, I'd like to point your attention towards the links along the top of the page and offer an explanation.

The Engines of Creation Wiki is an interactive glossary of sorts for the world presented in Children of the Halo. It's important to note that as of this post, the wiki is nowhere near completion, having only a small assortment of images and a detailed history of the Pactlands. Over the coming weeks and months, the wiki will start shaping up, having detailed information on pretty much anything covered in Children of the Halo, and future novels based within the Engines of Creation universe.

Which brings me to Destined Paths. Destined Paths is a yet-to-be begun Play-by-post forum-based Role-play based within the EoC Universe, which will begin officially shortly after the completion of the first novel. It will be set immediately after the end of the novel, and bridge the gap between Children of the Halo and its sequel, The Liar's Law.

Lastly, I invite everyone who has read Children of the Halo and enjoyed it to help spread the word! Tell your friends, your family, even your boss! Upon the completion of the book through this website, a print and ebook version will be made available through Lulu.com. If you'd like to help, feel free to leave comments and critiques, and please feel free to review the book through websites such as webfictionguide.com!

Additionally, well-written reviews may end up in the space above and/or on the back cover of the hard copy.

Thanks, and have fun!

EJ.