Readers will have the opportunity to delve into the fantasy world of Isinda when a Syracuse University student’s novel is published later this year.

Rhett Bruno, a sophomore architecture major, signed a contract with Tate Publishing last year to publish his original work of fiction. He is now working with Tate to have his book on the shelves around the country by fall 2010.

‘Isinda: Fallen Dagger’ is a fantasy novel, the first in a trilogy Bruno wrote when he was 16 years old. All three books are titled ‘Isinda,’ but each has a different subtitle, Bruno said. Bruno described the book as ‘a more realistic ‘Lord of the Rings.”

One of the comments that will appear on the back cover of the book was written by Jean-Franois Bédard, an assistant professor for SU’s School of Architecture. It reads, ‘Bruno’s gripping story of Zano, an emancipated slave, is served by the author’s vivid descriptions of the splendors of the land of Isinda and by memorable accounts of the history and mores of its inhabitants.’

Originally from Islip, N.Y., on Long Island, Bruno wrote all three of the books when he was in high school. He worked with an agent for two years looking for an interested publisher but had no success.

‘It’s hard to get publishers to look at your work if you’re unpublished,’ Bruno said.

After parting ways with his agent because of his lack of success in finding a publisher, Bruno came across Tate Publishing’s Web site, which advertises to unknown authors. Because he was 18 years old at the time, Bruno didn’t qualify to submit his own book, so he had his mother call for him. Through what Bruno called ‘a stroke of luck,’ his book was accepted soon after his mother convinced the founder, Richard Tate, to read it.

Once ‘Isinda: Fallen Dagger’ moved past the acquisitions department at Tate Publishing, it was copy edited and is now in the final stages of conceptual editing, said James Bare, an editor at Tate who has worked on Bruno’s book.

Once the editing process is completed, it will go through a cover design and layout phase and then a public relations and marketing phase before it goes to stores, Bare said.

‘It’s not ‘The Lord of the Rings’ yet, but it’s a high level of quality for a first-time writer,’ Bare said.

The public relations and marketing phase of the book’s publication will include sending the book to bookstores to get them interested and holding book signings with Bruno.

Bare said he is optimistic about the future of the book.

‘The key to the success of this book is getting the avid readers of that genre excited,’ he said.

Bruno didn’t get an advance from Tate, so he had to pay $4,000 to get his book published. If more than 5,000 copies are sold, though, he will get his money back. His contract makes no guarantees about the other two books in the series, but Bruno said he thinks the first installment will be successful enough to publish the other two.

Bruno says that he has no plans of leaving his studies in SU’s School of Architecture if he finds success as a writer. Even if his writing career develops into more than just something he does for fun, he would still work in architecture, Bruno said.

Some of his fellow architecture majors said they have noticed Bruno’s ability to balance working on his book with the demand of his coursework. On top of working with editors on his book, Bruno typically has six or seven hours of assignments on school nights, said Weston Halkyard, a sophomore architecture major.

‘It is difficult that he could do both at the same time’ Halkyard said about Bruno’s combined workload.

Bruno doesn’t know the exact release date for his book yet, but he hopes that it will hit stores sometime this fall.

jdgenco@syr.edu

Published on February 8, 2010 at 12:00 pm