Self-published Author Hits Amazon's Top 100

'The Elder Staves' by Steven Oliverez ranked 67th in Fantasy

(PRWEB) June 8, 2006 -- In another milestone for self-published author Steven Oliverez, his debut novel, 'The Elder Staves,' earned a coveted spot on Amazon.com's bestseller list on Monday, edging ahead of many popular fantasy books by established authors like Robert Jordan and George R. R. Martin.

'The Elder Staves,' which has enjoyed much success with online retailers and received many favorable reviews, combines fantasy with elements of science fiction that have made it popular with readers of both genres. Its mix of strong characters of both genders has also helped it achieve a large female audience – which can be critical for any modern book release. Through interviews, reader blogs, and even distributing bookmarks depicting the book's cover, Oliverez has spent the past year actively generating interest in his novel. With the inclusion of 'The Elder Staves' among Amazon.com's bestsellers, the work is starting to pay off.

For Oliverez, self-publishing was a natural choice born of necessity. "None of the major publishers would look at it," he said, referring to the book when it was still in manuscript form. "If you're an unknown writer, your chances of being picked up are non-existent – so I went to work and put it out there myself."

Set in the mystical sky-city of Tyr, 'The Elder Staves' tells the story a ruling council of mages faced with an industrial revolution that is crippling their power and prompting open rebellion. When two young nobles become entangled in a plot to overthrow the leaders of Tyr, they learn that their efforts to survive through the night will be useless if they cannot stop the destruction of the city at the hands of a haunting, malevolent presence from Tyr’s mystical past.

The first two chapters are available from www.stevenoliverez.com and the author's blog is located at http://blog.myspace.com/oliverez.

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