Category: Writing

Action, Awards, Climate Fiction, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Science Fiction, Suspense, Technology, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, The Shadow of War, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

The Shadow of War by TSJ Shortlisted for the 2023 CYGNUS Award

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The Shadow of War by TSJ Shortlisted for the 2023 CYGNUS Award

I’m thrilled to announce that my underwater heist and climate change adventure, The Shadow of War, has been shortlisted for this year’s Science Fiction Award in the Climate Fiction category. (Watch the exciting book trailer below.)

“Johnston presents readers with a diverse set of characters, along with a complicated world for them to navigate. The novel shines when describing the technology, as when the characters discuss the beam weapon, nicknamed ‘The Water Pick’ … Fans of high-tech SF will enjoy the concepts and worldbuilding here …” — Kirkus Reviews

The novel is a thrilling adventure that takes place in the near future while Earth is dealing with climate catastrophe on the surface — drought, famine, shoreline flooding, crashing economies, shipping disruptions, rebellion, dictatorship, and more.  While resources dwindle and populations struggle, the superpowers are colonizing the ocean floor in the search for resources to assist the topside nations.  The fledgling underwater colonies, meanwhile, have plans of their own that don’t include their mother nations.  These plans involve subterfuge, espionage, and outright war.

“The Shadow of War is a slambang thriller set in an all-too-plausible future. Fans of Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton will be spellbound.” — Robert J. Sawyer, Hugo Award-winning author of The Oppenheimer Alternative

In The Shadow of War, my characters are on the hunt to steal the most incredible weapon for underwater warfare ever invented.  The device consists of four components, hidden in hostile and remote locations of the Earth’s oceans.  Each must be stolen covertly, and each is in a unique, deadly, and well-protected facility or vessel.

See the exciting book trailer below.  Purchase links are here. The Shadow of War was previously a 2023 Silver Falchion (Action/Adventure) Finalist as well as a 2022 GLOBAL THRILLER Finalist. 

It is currently ranked #2 on the Indigo/Chapters Science Fiction Adventure charts.

Stay tuned for more news about this award at www.timothysjohnston.com.

Watch THE EXCITING BOOK TRAILER HERE!

“The Shadow of War is a slambang thriller set in an all-too-plausible future. Fans of Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton will be spellbound.” — Robert J. Sawyer, Hugo Award-winning author of The Oppenheimer Alternative

“Johnston presents readers with a diverse set of characters, along with a complicated world for them to navigate. The novel shines when describing the technology, as when the characters discuss the beam weapon, nicknamed ‘The Water Pick’ … Fans of high-tech SF will enjoy the concepts and worldbuilding here …” — Kirkus Reviews

“Any good heist consists of three components: a team, a plan and something worth stealing. ‘The Shadow Of War’, the fifth novel in Timothy S. Johnston’s ‘Rise Of Oceania’ series, has all three … Johnston has written a thriller with hot-off-the-presses technology, edge-of-your-seat moments, separated into heart-pounding seconds, and characters who don’t always do what they’re supposed to.” — SFcrowsnest

“Johnston weaves an engrossing tale … it’s easy to highly recommend The Shadow of War as an outstanding and gripping sci-fi technothriller.” — Midwest Book Review

“I need to see Oceania on the big screen!” — FIVE STARS from Readers’ Favorite

“…a terrific read! Smart, thrilling, intriguingly plotted and, like all previous entries in Johnston’s ‘Rise of Oceania’ series, A-level entertainment. And that opening chapter—WOW! Page-turner is an understatement.” — Michael Libling, author of Hollywood North: A Novel in Six Reels and The Serial Killer’s Son Takes A Wife

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A BLANKET OF STEEL IS COMING FALL 2023!  WATCH THIS SPACE!

TSJ’s Awards

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THE WAR BENEATH:  FIRST PLACE 2018 GLOBAL THRILLER Action / Adventure Category Winner, 2019 Silver Falchion Award Finalist, 2018 CLUE Award Semi-Finalist, 2019 Kindle Book Awards Semi-Finalist, & 2019 CYGNUS Award Shortlister

THE SAVAGE DEEPS:  FIRST PLACE 2020 CYGNUS Award Winner, 2019 GLOBAL THRILLER Awards Finalist, 2022 Kindle Book Awards Semi-Finalist; 2019 CLUE Award Shortlister

FATAL DEPTH: FIRST PLACE 2021 GLOBAL THRILLER Award Winner, 2022 Silver Falchion Award Finalist (Best Action Adventure), 2021 CYGNUS Award Semi-Finalist

Praise for THE WAR BENEATH

“If you’re looking for a techno-thriller combining Ian Fleming, Tom Clancy and John Le Carré, The War Beneath will satisfy … a ripping good yarn, a genuine page-turner.” — Amazing Stories
“One very riveting, intelligent read!” — Readers’ Favorite
“If you like novels like The Hunt for Red October and Red Storm Rising,
you will certainly enjoy The War Beneath.” — A Thrill A Week
“If you’re here for thrills, the book will deliver.” — The Cambridge Geek
“… an engaging world that is highly believable …” — The Future Fire
“This is a tense, gripping science fiction/thriller of which Tom Clancy might well be proud . . . When I say it is gripping, that is the simple truth.” — Ardath Mayhar
“… a thrill ride from beginning to end …” — SFcrowsnest
“… if you like Clancy and le Carré with a hint of Forsyth thrown in,
you’ll love The War Beneath.” — Colonel Jonathan P. Brazee (RET),
2017 Nebula Award & 2018 Dragon Award Finalist
“Fast-paced, good old-fashioned Cold War espionage … a great escape!” — The Minerva Reader

A Blanket of Steel, Action, Book Cover, Climate Fiction, Cold War, Cover Reveal, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Science Fiction, Suspense, Technology, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

A BLANKET OF STEEL’s Temp Cover is Here

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The Temp Cover for A Blanket of Steel!

You can see the direction this is headed.  The hull plating, the rivets, the color scheme.

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A Blanket of Steel, Action, Article, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Inspirations, Technology, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

Why Underwater?  Ten Important Reasons I wrote The Rise of Oceania, and a Message for the Future

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Why Underwater?  Ten Important Reasons I wrote The Rise of Oceania, and a Message for the Future

(Note:  I watched the events involving the submersible Titan in the Atlantic closely over the past week.  It was a tragic and yet avoidable disaster.  James Cameron, on CNN, spoke about how similar it was to the Titanic sinking in 1912.  He couldn’t have been more correct.  Despite warnings, the captain pressed on to the inevitable end.  I am saddened by the loss of five lives and it is a sign to explorers everywhere that the ocean is merciless.  Pressure is inexorable.  Engineering needs to be perfect to descend to depth, and if problems appear, there is often very little time (or none at all) to solve problems on the spot.   Since I began writing The Rise of Oceania, events have tended to mirror my predictions.  The increasing tensions with China, for example, the growing climate crisis on the surface, and more.  I wrote the below article only days before Titan went silent.  I’ve added this note to acknowledge the dangers and the loss of life last Sunday.  — TSJ, 26 June 2023)

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A Blanket of Steel, Action, Climate Fiction, Cold War, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Mystery, Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

A Blanket of Steel is off to the Publisher!

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TSJ’s A Blanket of Steel is off to the Publisher!

And it’s off!

This is the sixth and final book in my underwater colonization series, The Rise of Oceania from Fitzhenry & Whiteside LTD.  It’s also the largest, at about 127,000 words.  I promise a gripping spy vs. spy tale filled with excitement, action, technology, and emotion.  There’s a reason it’s called A Blanket of Steel, and it ties in with the ongoing Cold War between the US, Russia, and China and the thirst for new resources on the ocean floor.  But as with my other titles, there is more than one meaning here, but I will leave it for you to discover.  It’s a standalone thriller; all the books in The Rise of Oceania can be read in any order.  Together they tell an overall arc about the Second Cold War, the McClusky family, and the world’s quest to colonize the ocean floor during escalating climate change on the surface.  And, of course, the necessary gruesome violence that it all entails.  The book is coming …

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A Blanket of Steel, Climate Fiction, Cold War, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Inspirations, Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

TSJ’s New Bio

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TSJ’s New Bio

The sixth — and final — book in my series, The Rise of Oceania, is due to publisher Fitzhenry and Whiteside at the end of the month.  I’ve been working hard on it for over a year now.  There’s a lot of story to wrap up, there are more graphics/schematics than in any of the previous installments, and I want this to be the most gripping conclusion possible.  Each book is written as a standalone thriller, but collectively they tell a complete arc from Book 1 to Book 6.  I’ve poured my energy into this for so many months now.  Here is—

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An Island of Light, Awards, Climate Fiction, Cold War, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Shadow of War, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

2022 GLOBAL THRILLER Finalist, THE SHADOW OF WAR

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2022 GLOBAL THRILLER FINALIST

I’m thrilled to announce that The Shadow of War is now a finalist in the 2022 CIBAs.

And not only that …

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Inspirations, Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, The Shadow of War, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

Escapist Entertainment — More Important Than You Might Think

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Escapist Entertainment — More Important Than You Might Think

(Originally published 1 December 2022 at Crime Writers of Canada.)

Remember when your parents complained that you weren’t working hard enough? When they told you to get a job, do your school work, or wash the car? Or they piled pressure on you to get better marks, win awards, and get accepted into university? And while the stress mounted, you could only sit in your room, in the dark, wondering why no one understood that you were on the verge of cracking?

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