NBTM Virtual Book Tour - All We Leave Behind: Transits of Three (Transit #3) by Benjamin X. Wretlind

Welcome to my stop on the virtual book tour for All We Leave Behind: Transits of Three by Benjamin X. Wretlind. This tour was organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. On my stop, I have an excerpt from the book as well as an interesting guest post about where the ideas came from for the book. There's also the tour wide giveaway for a chance to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card. Be sure to visit the other stops on the tour for more content. Enjoy!

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Title: All We Leave Behind: Transits of Three

Series: Transit #3

Author: Benjamin X. Wretlind

Publication Date: December 20th 2022

Print Length: 520 pages

Genre: Science Fiction

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Their new paradise doesn't want them, but to what lengths will these tired colonists go to survive in spite of the odds and a world that rebels?

Following the exodus from rising floodwaters, the surviving descendants of those who came to create a society on a planet far from Earth have struggled to rebuild within the remains of an ancient temple. Now, as disease and an unfamiliar environment threaten to destroy them yet again, everyone seems to have an opinion about what to do next.

Miriam and Tobias Page, newly married, believe there may be a possible home beyond a distant canyon. Their journey with a quarter of the population doesn’t start well and soon nature and their own humanity will conspire to end it all. Meanwhile, Miriam’s two cousins, Joel and Micah, have different ideas. Joel is convinced the best course of action is to return to the mountains they left to mine for the ore that would make a great return to Earth possible. Micah hopes to stay, learn all he can about the temple’s previous occupants, and prove both of them wrong. But soon, he and his new partner Patience realize that no option is truly safe.

As the transits of three different groups get underway, new dangers and surprises emerge from within the rainforests, mountains, and deserts of the planet…and one of those may have followed them from Earth. While a final home is a dream away, present nightmares must be dealt with first if any of them are going to survive.

Goodreads * Amazon

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EXCERPT:

“How many?” Moran asked.

“Four. Just up ahead.” Tobias tightened his grip on his weapon. “Bethany is waiting for us.”

Moran stopped and watched as the caravan slowly edged toward the right, away from immediate danger. “Wish we had more to spare.”

“So do I.” Tobias took in a calming breath and let it out slowly. The nervousness in his stomach eased up. Miriam had taught him several techniques for dealing with fear, for calming his anxiety and sharpening his mind. He would forever be grateful to be married to a counselor, a therapist, a wise wizard of the brain’s complications.

“Ready?” Moran asked.

They both walked slowly toward Bethany’s position, their eyes locked on the trees where Tobias saw the four animals.

“Eight,” Bethany whispered as they approached. “Four more in a cluster of trees to the right of the others.”

“Typical pack. Haven’t heard the growl, yet,” Moran said. “Maybe they didn’t see us.”

“Oh, they did.” Tobias pointed to the tree with the first rychat he spotted. “I swear I saw that one lick its lips.”

“Well, we’ll have to take care of that.”

Moran raised his crossbow and took aim at the one Tobias pointed out. In tandem, both Tobias and Bethany raised their own weapons.

“One on the trunk,” Tobias whispered.

Bethany responded. “The big one to the right.”

The three were silent as they steadied themselves.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Benjamin X. Wretlind ran with scissors when he was five. He now writes, paints, uses sharp woodworking tools and plays with glue. Sometimes he does these things at the same time. 

Benjamin lives with his wife Jesse in Colorado.

Website * Amazon * BookBub *

Facebook * Goodreads * Instagram * Twitter

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GUEST POST:

- Where did the ideas for your characters come from?

There is an adage writers have heard in one form or another: write what you know. While I believe that can only be applied loosely to science fiction and fantasy (who knows what an elf on a faraway planet really looks like?), the characters are what connects the writer to the reader. As humans, we all share common emotions, so my goal is to get a character to resonate with a reader emotionally.

The characters in the Transit series are mostly based on real people I've known over the years, although most of them are mashups. Their appearance and voice are often created from television shows so I have an idea of what they look like, but their personalities are from my own experience. Miriam, for example, looks like Bobbie from The Expanse (Roberta Draper), but her role as a counselor to the colonists is a mirror of my wife's role as a therapist. Her husband Tobias is a buff version of Hawk from Cobra Kai (Eli Moskowitz minus the mohawk), but his character is based on a friend I had twenty or so years ago. Micah is a little like how I was when I was younger--always looking at the negative and love struck by those older than him--but we don't look anything alike. Aaron's attitude is a combination of people I've worked with who were always blaming someone else, and Joel's engineering background is a nod to two particular engineers I went to high school with.

I once told people I hear voices in my head, but I may not have been clear enough when they looked at me like I needed to see a psychiatrist. The voices I hear are those of the characters as they act a part. I start with a need (i.e., I need someone to do something in this scene) and then let the voices tell me who they are as the action progresses. As the story progresses, I get a better sense and might even be able to discover some physical trait that I didn’t realize at first. For example, Tobias has a cleft lip, Micah has a limp, Patience is missing an eye, and a character named Nemeth is on the autistic spectrum. Since those are subconsciously driven, I'm pretty sure that's why I have such a diverse cast of characters--I have been around and worked with a lot of people.

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GIVEAWAY:

Benjamin X. Wretlind will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Good luck!

(All the Ups and Downs is not responsible for this giveaway, its entries, or the prize. Goddess Fish Promotions and the author assume all responsibility for this giveaway.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway