Category Archives: Steel Chronicles
The 9th Demon Cover Arrives!
The final cover for “The 9th Demon: Time of the Cross” is here. Luke Lee of Fusiform Design has done a fantastic job. All manuscripts and covers have been uploaded and will soon be available for purchase on Kindle or in print. I will update you when the book is officially available. So, for now, here is the cover:
Imprints
When I formed my self publishing company, 613media,LLC I also decided to create two “imprints”. Imprints are divisions of publishing output that fit a certain genre. For my Jonathan Steel Chronicles and “Death By Darwin”, I created Area 613. Here is a description of this imprint:
A darkness lies upon the land. Evil forces gather to thwart the forces of good. Unnoticed by most humans, these spiritual forces vie for human souls. All is not lost. Hope is alive. God’s warriors are called forth to fight for the good; to fight for God; to Stand against the Enemy. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Welcome to Area 613.
“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” Eph. 6:13 ESV
When I was 13 years old, disillusionment and disappointment drove me to climb the tallest, standing tree on our property. There, I reached out to the sky and touched the face of God. This has inspired me to form another imprint: Standing Tree Books
In our culture dominated by cynicism, hopelessness, and despair, God touched the lives of many and uses their failures and frailties to illustrate his power and majesty. Climb the standing tree and reach out and touch God and find hope again. Welcome to Standing Tree Books.
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” Eph. 6:11 ESV.
The newest Jonathan Steel Chronicles, “The 9th Demon: Time of the Cross” will be published under Area 613. My other new book, “The Homecoming Tree” will be published under Standing Tree Books.
It won’t be long now!!!
The 9th Demon Final Edit is Done!
Tonight, I completed the final edit on the next book in the Jonathan Steel Chronicles, “The 9th Demon: Time of the Cross”. Yes, I changed the name. This novel is as long as the last one and now I am entering into the final phases of book cover design and line editing (grammar check, oh fun!)
Today, I met with Luke Lee who designed my last book cover and we decided on a basic design. So, hang in there. It will be just a few more weeks and the book will be available.
Oh, for fun, here is a part of what will appear on the cover:
Oh, and for fun, here is my first stab at the “blurb” on the back of the book:
Jonathan Steel’s partner, Theo, had been kidnapped. The trail leads Steel to a mysterious island where the media mogul, David Boone, claims to have built a machine capable of taking his movie making team into the past to film the last days of the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Steel must follow the team through the machine’s Portal to rescue his partner from certain death at the hands of the Ninth Demon. Where will Steel end up, in the past, or in an alternate world created by a madman?
Jonathan Steel is Returning!
I have just finished the rough draft for the next book in the Jonathan Steel Chronicles. Tentatively it is entitled “The Ninth Demon: Cross Time”. It will still be a couple of months before I hope to get it into press but for those of you who have been waiting patiently these past two years, here is the Prologue to give you some idea of what’s going on. (Or, not!)
PROLOGUE
It was time to die. The man standing at the window did not want to die. But, neither did he want his two girls to die. The window looked out over a vast cavern filled with sunlight streaming in through the far opening. A transport airplane appeared in the distance, touched down on a dirt runway and pulled into the huge cavern. Workers converged on the plane like ants to honey.
“Are you ready to die?” Someone said behind him. He had not heard the man enter the room.
Hope Comes With the Dawn
Sunrise over Napier, New Zealand March, 2014
Sometimes I stand in the darkness and feel its power. It is smothering; dampening; oppressive; crushing all hope. Today near dawn, I stood in the darkness and felt the power of that hopelessness. This is not the world I anticipated. Gone are the tenets of unselfish love; of benevolence; of respect for others — religious beliefs included; of manners and kindness; of true love. Gone is my God, seemingly erased and eradicated by a new god that looks back at me each morning from my own mirror and from the countless perfect snapshots of a billion selfies. Gone is kindness and empathy and warmth. Gone is dialogue in the face of endless monologuing.
Update
2018 was supposed to be a better year.
So far, I am struggling with some serious health issues. But, God is in control and all will work out.
I’ve been busy lately with teaching “Everyday Questions” with Mark Riser at Brookwood Baptist Church. It is a small group session on how to have meaningful conversations with anyone questioning the truthfulness of the Christian faith. Also, I am presenting “What Does It Mean to Be a Human Being” this Wednesday night at 6 PM for James Patterson’s class at First Methodist Church. This exploration of the question is very important. Are we just here by chance? Or, are we made in the image of God? And, why should that be important. I will also be giving this same talk in May at our RTB Chapter meeting the third Tuesday at 630 PM.
I am working on three books to hopefully release later this year:
The 9th Demon: Crosstime
The Homecoming Tree — A novelization of my 2005 play about Shreveport at the beginning of World War II.
The Tall Tree — A semi autobiographical story based on the year of 1968 and the events that changed America.
Also, Mark Sutton and I are tentatively working on a new book.
Get Death By Darwin NOW!
My latest novel, “Death By Darwin” is now available. On the title page, click on the book cover or go to the “ORDER” page to get your copy today!
This novel is very different from my previous novels. The main character is Ruth Martinez, a troubled attorney who is given the impossible task of defending a murdered caught with the weapon in his hand. Dr. Frank Miller is accused of murdering his boss, Dr. Wallace Darwyn over a disagreement on Dr. Darwyn’s latest dinosaur discovery, Annieraptor. Ruth’s future as an attorney with her law firm rests on her ability to gain an acquittal for Dr. Miller and her boss, Grace Pennington has hired the mysterious Jonathan Steel as an investigator on the case. As Ruth and Jonathan Steel race to clear their client of the murder, a deadly creature stalks the staff of the Dallas Paleontology Institute. Can Ruth discover the identity of the true murderer? Or is it possible that Dr. Miller is a fanatical religious zealot bent on murder?
Check on this newest novel by Bruce Hennigan today and find out why the monster you should be afraid of is not the one under the bed, the one that lives inside of us!
A Day That Will Live In Infamy
I just ordered my proof copy of “Death By Darwin”. Soon, you will be able to get your hands on my next book. By December 15th, the ebook will be available and hopefully, the printed version. More on that soon.
My mother and father in downtown Shreveport during World War II
But, today, I want to focus on what took place on this day 75 years ago. Yes, December 7 1941 is a day that will live in “infamy”. In 2005 our drama group at Brookwood Baptist Church performed my last written play, “The Homecoming Tree”. The play was set in the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas 1941. I based the story on my parents’ experiences living in Shreveport, Louisiana during World War II. The play has a very special place in my heart and I have rewritten it over the past 11 years. I am now working on the conversion of the play to a novel.
My hopes are to see the play performed again in its new form and also to possibly add musical numbers to the play. But, for now, I am settling for finishing up the novel. Today, in the honor of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the brave men and women who died that day and the Generation that took upon themselves to defeat the greatest evil in modern history I want to post an excerpt from my upcoming book, “The Homecoming Tree”.
Death By Darwin Release is coming soon!
Luke Lee and I are working on the final layout of the novel and the cover for my next novel, “Death By Darwin”. For those interested in this upcoming novel, here is an excerpt from the book. Jonathan Steel has been retained by an attorney, Ruth Martinez, to help defend an innocent man convicted of killing his boss. In this scene Steel has met with Detective Lunella Jones and is being escorted to the Evidence lockup.
She fell silent and tapped the desk with her fingernails. “Well, Mr. Jonathan Steel, let’s get you to the evidence room.” Jones led me through the hallways of the police station to a remote room. A window covered with thick wire separated me from a large room filled with shelves. Jones spoke with the man behind the wire and then motioned me forward. His name tag read, “Juan Destillo, F.B. I. Crime Technician.”
“Juan is on loan from the feds. He’ll give you thirty minutes, Mr. Steel. See you later.” She walked away and Juan studied me like I was some insect trapped in amber. He was a slight man with unruly, dark hair and eyes that glowed with the menial power he had been given. Read the rest of this entry
Still Writing?!?
I have been lost in my day job.
The past six months have been rather immersive for me. Due to changes in my medical practice, I have been unable to work on my upcoming books, social media, publishing, etc. It’s been tough.
I have received some very encouraging emails from those of you who have purchased “The 10th Demon: Children of the Bloodstone”. I am working on expanding my publishing offerings. And, I hope to have an official book launch here in Shreveport for “The 10th Demon” sometime in June — only six months late!
Just to give you an update on my writing. I am half way through “The 9th Demon: A Wicked Numinosity” and, honestly, the story I had planned for this book would not have worked without recent advances in nanotechnology and virtual reality. I started the book about seven years ago but only in recent months has new technology allowed me to make the story believable and possible in our world.
I am also revising a new project. “Death By Darwyn” (There’s a reason Darwyn has a “y”) was a book I originally presented to Realms way back in 2009. They optioned a first refusal and it has been sitting on the shelf. This past November, I finished the rough draft as part of NanoWriMo. I recently had another inspiration that allowed me to finish the story. It is a legal thriller and here is the synopsis:
Ruth Branson is a junior partner in a major law firm in Dallas, Texas. Bryan Nicholas and Ruth are up for the same position as full partner. When a prominent scientist is brutally murdered, Ruth is given the impossible task of defending the murderer, Dr. Frank Miller. Nicholas must prosecute. Whoever wins the case becomes the next partner. The problem is Dr. Miller was caught red handed holding the claw of a recreation of the dinosaur “Annieraptor” after ripping the heart out of his boss, Dr. Wallace Darwyn. As the trial unfolds, the issues of God versus evolution surface as Nicholas tries to depict Miller as a religious fanatic. Joining the legal team is the mysterious Jonathan Steel in the capacity of lead investigator. Can Ruth find the real killer before Miller is convicted of first degree murder? Can she resolve her own confusion about the existence of God?
I wrote the book to give Jonathan Steel a minor role in hopes that readers who like legal thrillers might read the book and then want to learn more about Steel in my “Chronicles of Jonathan Steel” series.
So, keep in touch. I hope both books will be available by late summer, early fall. Thank you again for your support.
Bruce Hennigan 
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