Unfortunately, and due to a need to deal with some unexpected and urgent life-events, the release of my next novella, Aftermath, will be delayed until further notice.
EDIT: Aftermath was published on December 24th, 2021.

The Home of the Sanctum of the Archmage Saga
I’ve been reading a bit about “log-lines” recently. A log-line is supposed to be a one sentence summary of your story, usually a novel or screenplay, for “pitching” purposes. I decided to take a few minutes to try to come up with one for the first volume in my Sanctum of the Archmage series, Dawn of Chaos. Here’s my first cut:
The people of Carlissa struggle for survival when a professor of magic summons an army of demons to enforce his elitist ideas on their society, and its maverick bard princess tries to reach the Archmage for the power to defeat them.
Here’s the longer description from the book’s page:
A new constitution prepares Carlissa for an era of enlightenment. The harsh traditions of the past fade, and a promise of freedom stirs the air.
In the space of one terrifying day, that promise is shattered in a bloodbath of fire and magic.
Thousands of years ago, an epic battle was fought between good and evil. The demon lords had opened a door to the realms of hell itself, and their horde threatened to overrun the earth. But the Kalarans, led by the hero Calindra, destroyed their hellgate and drove them from the world.
The Great War has long since been lost to myth and legend. The Church struggles for relevance as the people forget their covenant with the gods. A renaissance of freedom and learning stirs the air in the modern age of Carlissa, led by the royal family, and the wisdom of the Archmage.
All of that comes to an end when a dome of shimmering magic appears in the capital city.
The people fight desperately to survive the chaos that follows, and wonder bitterly why the gods seem to have abandoned them. Their only hope lies with the magic of the Archmage — and his, with a young princess who never wanted to rule. She must find the strength to set aside her bard’s calling and take up a battle against impossible odds, or surrender her land and people to the Black Magus and his demons.
Sanctum of the Archmage: Dawn of Chaos, by Tony Andarian
I just received a terrific review of my first book, Prologue to Chaos, that I thought I would share. I particularly appreciated it because it did a great job of describing the experience that I’d hoped readers would find in it.
Engaging read. Ready for more.
“Prologue to Chaos presents an intricate, complex universe of magic, humans, elves, dragons, flying horses, and more. The civilization is at an intellectual/political crossroads when all hell breaks loose–literally. This first book sets the stage for the coming battles among strong characters, and I am eager to read on. The writing is compelling and engaging. Andarian takes the reader into a fascinating physical world where the characters are sharply drawn, the action moves well, the conflicts are important, and the stakes are high.”
I’ve been trying to find time to finish looking into installing and using the DAZ 3D software to create cover art and scene illustrations for my books. I finally managed to figure it out enough to complete a tutorial and create this sample “render.”
I’m very encouraged. I can’t draw worth a damn, but I do have fifteen years of experience using 3D software to create scenes for my gaming work. With some proper thought and care, I think I’m going to be able to make use of this.
Here’s another test, which was mostly an exercise in figuring out how some of the controls work. The posing could be significantly improved, and I’ll need to get more clothing models to dress them properly. And I definitely need to study how to set the illumination and rendering parameters, since some of the light’s clearly not being cast correctly. Nevertheless it does do a semi-decent job of roughly capturing a scene from my upcoming book, Aftermath.
Chapter 1 of Prologue to Chaos, the first book in the Sanctum of the Archmage saga, is available to read for free in the manuscripts section of the Land of Kalara’s World Anvil site.
Rogue Wizard on Andarian’s World Anvil Site, The World of Kalara.
Gerard Killraven stepped through the door from the Wizard’s Tower and into the Great Hall. It was the height of the Yule season in the Kingdom of Carlissa, and the walls and arches of the royal palace were strung with magical lights and decked with garlands of mistletoe and holly. The cheery ambiance provided a stark contrast to his sense of dread at the summons that had brought him down from his research…
From Rogue Wizard by Tony Andarian
I’m pleased to announce that each ‘episode’ of my four-part serialized novel, Hell Gate, will also be published on the Rakuten Kobo online bookstore. Part I, The Return of the Horde, will be released on May 28, 2021. It’s now available there for pre-order.
The Return of the Horde on the Rakuten Kobo Online Bookstore
My plan is to release each episode on my website first. Then, when I release the following episode, the previous one will also be published on Kobo.