Rick Heinz Books In Order

Publication Order of Chronicles of the Crossing Books

Publication Order of Seventh Age Books

Publication Order of RPG Books

Rick Heinz is an American author and electrician that writes fantasy novels. Heinz is best known for ‘The Seventh Age’, his first novel.

+Biography
Rick Heinz is a unique breed amongst fantasy authors. It isn’t just the fact that he has a day job that sets him apart but, rather, the unique nature of his day job. Heinz is an electrician that spends his days in the labyrinth beneath Chicago.

The author is quite humble about his efforts even though it takes quite a bit of work to spend one’s days walking the bowels of Chicago whilst also assigning one’s nights to the task of writing.

Though, Heinz is quick to point out the fact that he is more of a storyteller than anything else. The author came to some prominence via his contributions to the ‘Geek and Sundry’ entertainment platform.

His popularity was driven by his prodigious knowledge of games and, in particular, RPGs. Rick Heinz could build worlds like few other storytellers and it garnered him quite the impressive following of fantasy enthusiasts.

So when the author set out to write ‘The Seventh Age: Dawn’, his first novel, it wasn’t particularly surprising that his literary work was received with some fervor. The book takes readers to a modern society in which science has suppressed magic and the paranormal.

Heinz’s story revolves around a group of heretics who make it their purpose to break the walls separating the ordinary from the extraordinary, the objective being to unleash a new age of magic.

The author’s world is an ordinary one, filled with ordinary persons living ordinary lives, unaware of the ancient myths and powerful figures that walk amongst them, fighting a war that, if not controlled, threatens to encroach upon the peace of innocent lives.

Heinz frequently makes mention of his day job as an electrician because the career laid the foundation for his first series of fantasy novels. The author spent years walking the hidden world of Chicago, exploring sections that most people living in the streets, towns, and cities above would never believe existed.

That experience got Rick Heinz’s imagination going. In the decade that followed, the author slowly crafted the word of the Seventh Age, fashioning the architecture, the cultures and traditions, the secret societies and even the urban legends.

People that have followed his work for some time know that Heinz has been inspired in his life by the likes of Robert Jordan and Neil Gaiman. And those inspirations are fairly visible in The Seventh Age.

The author’s politically active lifestyle also adds to the authenticity of his literary efforts. Heinz reads a lot of biographies of historical political figures. He likes history in general, but he has a special affinity for political history, having spent significant portions of his life delving into events like the Pullman Strike.

It is that aspect of Rick Heinz’s life that informs the political machinations he engineers in his books, political machinations that have allowed his works to stand somewhat apart from some of his competitors on the fantasy landscape.

The author has spoken fervently about the importance of world-building in the fantasy genre. According to Heinz, the world within which any given fantasy story plays out is a character unto itself, an element that, when thoroughly developed, will draw readers in, so completely engaging them that they will yearn to return to it time and time again regardless of whether or not their favorite characters are still involved.

Heinz’s days as an electrician trawling the underground tunnels of Chicago did more than just inspire his ideas for the story of The Seventh Age; the experience also showed him the pleasure that could be elicited from exploring unknown landscapes.

And he delivers that same pleasure in the worlds he builds, not just via his novels but also in the guidance he avails through his ‘Geek and Sundry’ platform. Heinz knows how to ground people in fictional locations.

He knows how to engage all their senses. He understands the importance of taking readers by the hand and telling them what they should see, hear, smell, and feel.

Though, Rick Heinz will be the first to tell you that this process takes considerable work. The author looks to Google Docs to help him keep his ideas organized. Heinz normally creates multiple files that detail the ideas and themes that surround the settings he wants to create.

He will go so far as to attach images and musical tracks that can help him visualize what he wants to produce. Heinz also works with spreadsheets, using them to organize his characters, factions, armies, and kingdoms.

Because so many of his ideas were inspired by his day job, Rick Heinz always encourages aspiring authors to start their careers by writing what they know. They need to try and work within fields with which they are already familiar because their first-hand experiences will give them the best chance of creating immersive fictional worlds.

+The Seventh Age: Dawn
Mike Auburn is a limit-pushing daredevil. But even as onlookers watch him dangle from the beams of a half-built skyscraper, none of them know what drives him to court death.

They do not know that Mike is determined to find evidence of the afterlife. Of course, Mike doesn’t even know that his stunts have garnered an unexpected audience. An organization of a mysterious nature is out to recruit him.

Science and rational thinking have ruled society for a long time. But now the supernatural is rising, bringing with it the dead and the damned. Magic is about to make its long-awaited appearance, and when it does, the world as Mike knows it will end.

Mike’s new employers want him to help them prepare the city for the coming disaster. The battle between good and evil is here, and Mike must choose a side.

+Pics Plox
Akira has a unique problem on her hands. Her world is crumbling. But she has a way to escape her toxic society. She can compete in the Esport tournament and win. Of course, Akira isn’t the only gamer looking to escape.

And if she wants to improve her chances of making it out of her personal hell, she must thin the undead herd.