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Praise for Joe Buff from NY Times Bestselling Authors:

"Superbly researched and well-written, Joe Buff's novels are the creme de la creme of submarine thrillers."
--Stephen Coonts

"Joe Buff takes the reader through a labyrinth of action and high adventure. A rare thriller, highly entertaining."
--Clive Cussler

"If you want a hair-raising trip to the bottom of the ocean, Joe Buff's the guy to take you there."
--Patrick Robinson

Welcome to JoeBuff.Com, the Cyberspace Home of
national bestselling author Joe Buff.

December 13, 2005

JOE BUFF'S "CRUSH DEPTH" COMES OUT IN FRENCH FOREIGN-LANGUAGE EDITION

Joe is pleased to report that CRUSH DEPTH, the third "Captain Jeffrey Fuller" novel, has been released in France by publisher Fleuve Noir under the French-language title PROFONDEUR LIMITE. (This translates into English as "Depth Limit," the French nautical-speak version of what American Submariners call crush depth, that point below which the ever-increasing pressure of the sea spells violent doom for the particular class of submarine .) Fleuve Noir previously released Joe's second novel THUNDER IN THE DEEP in French translation during 2004, under the title PIEGE EN EAUX PROFONDES -- which translates pretty directly as "Thunder in Deep Water." During the summer of 2005, Fleuve Noir cut a deal with Joe's U.S. publisher Wm. Morrow/HarperCollins to also purchase the French rights to Joe's fourth novel, TIDAL RIP. The French edition is expected to be released some time in 2006. (Note that publishers in other countries often create their own cover designs, to better suit reader aesthetic tastes/expectations and book-selling market practices, given varying local cultural-demographic and business parameters.) Joe, just as before, is especially pleased to see his work is popular in the land of the "spiritual mentor and primal muse" of all submarine fiction writers, the great Jules Verne!

Profondeur limite
de Joe Buff, Denis Bouchain (Traduction)

2021 : depuis dix ans, le monde est en guerre. Alors que les dictatures sud-africaine et allemande unies dans un Axe dominent l'Europe et l'Afrique, les Etats-Unis et l'Angleterre tentent de les contenir. Un âpre combat : pour avoir développé des bombes ultrapuissantes, les Alliés sont handicapés devant l'Axe qui, grâce à son armada de sous-marin à missiles tactiques, impose la loi sur les mers du globe, emportant l'appui des Russes et des Chinois... L'heure est grave. D'autant plus grave que le Voortrekker, un sous-marin sud-africain commandé par Jan ter Horst, ruine, par ses provocations, le crédit des alliés : après avoir envoyé des missiles -sans ogives nucléaires- sur New York, il a détruit une de leurs bases du Pacifique, avant de disparaître. Commandé par Jeffrey Fuller, le Challenger part alors à sa poursuite, avec à son bord Ilse Reebeck, une océanographe sud-africaine déterminée à lutter contre ce nouvel Axe du Mal...

Biographie de l'auteur

Joe Buff a effectué des années de recherches auprès du ministre de la défense américain et d'anciens marines. C'est cette expertise, alliée à une imagination visionnaire, qui a fait de lui un écrivain de thrillers militaires reconnu et estimé dans les pays anglo-saxons. Il vit à New York avec sa femme.

December 9, 2005

JOE BUFF SPEAKS AT NYS MILITARY MUSEUM ON "WILL CHINA RULE THE WAVES?"

[Joe Buff / JoeBuff.Com] On Saturday, December 3, Joe gave an hour-long public lecture at the New York State Military Museum www.nymilitarymuseum.org/AboutUs.asp in Saratoga Springs, NY, on the topic "Will China Rule the Waves?" The talk was followed by a stimulating Q&A period with the audience, and then a signing for Joe's novels in the Museum's Gift Shop. The outline that Joe used for this talk, plus a one-page handout of recommended further readings, can be seen now in JoeBuff.com's "Non-Fiction Articles" section by clicking on "Will China Rule the Waves?" www.joebuff.com/essay85.htm. The talk received very positive feedback from the audience and the Museum staff, as well as from several retired U.S. Navy captains and admirals to whom Joe sent his outline for courtesy/informational purposes after the lecture. Joe especially wants to thank Tracy Millis and Mike Stoneback of the NYS Military Heritage Institute, plus Al Singleman and Bob Ondek of the U.S. Submarine Veterans Inc., for their help in arranging and publicizing the event and handling logistics at the Museum. Joe strongly recommends the Museum to anyone visiting the attractive Saratoga Springs area (with its many hotels and restaurants to fit every budget). A day trip of scenic driving can include the nearby Saratoga Battlefield National Park from the American Revolution -- plus Fort William Henry on Lake George and Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain, important from colonial times up through the War of 1812 and truly breathtaking to see.

Here I am talking to the audience about "Will China Rule the Waves?" at the New York State Military Museum, in late 2005. (Photo by Sheila Buff)

Here I sign one of my novels in the Museum's Gift Shop after the talk, for a member of the SubVets Albany-Saratoga Base. (Photo by Sheila Buff)

November 28, 2005

"SEAS OF CRISIS" GETS RAVE REVIEW IN PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Joe is pleased to be able to pass on to his readers this excellent advance review of SEAS OF CRISIS, which ran last week in the trade journal Publishers Weekly. The review, in full, is as follows:

From Publishers Weekly:

The combined effect of unrelenting action, clever plotting and sheer firepower in Buff's latest near-future military thriller (after Straits of Power) successfully torpedoes any notion that this long-running submarine series has begun to tire. It's June 2012, and America is at war with the neo-Axis coalition of Germany and South Africa. Europe is in German hands, most of Africa has been seized by the Boers, who reinstate apartheid, and with Britain blockaded, only America remains to fight on and in the last battlefield, the oceans of the world. Cmdr. Jeffery Fuller captains the USS Challenger, the most powerful nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine in America's arsenal. Fuller, a Medal of Honor winner, has fought many battles and now must implement one of the greatest wartime ruses ever attempted. Onboard the Challenger, a deadly Special Forces team readies itself for what becomes a bloody, gut-wrenching attack against a Russian missile silo. Readers willing to negotiate some difficult technical dialogue--"This new warhead has a miniature gravimetric gradiometer"--will sail through the tough stuff and revel in the meticulously described battle scenes both on land and at sea. Attention, all military thriller fans, report to battle stations, flank speed, superior entertainment ahead. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

November 10, 2005

"SEAS OF CRISIS" TO BE A MILITARY BOOK CLUB SELECTION

Joe is delighted to announce that the upcoming hardcover edition of his sixth Captain Jeffrey Fuller novel, SEAS OF CRISIS, has been selected by the Editorial Board to be a Featured Alternate of the prestigious and very selective Military Book Club. SEAS OF CRISIS will be published in January, 2006.

November 9, 2005

"CRUSH DEPTH" PAPERBACK GOES INTO FOURTH PRINTING

Joe is pleased to report that the paperback edition of CRUSH DEPTH (Captain Jeffrey Fuller #3), first published in 2003, is now in its 4th printing at Morrow/HarperTorch.

September 15, 2005

"TIDAL RIP" PAPERBACK GOES INTO THIRD PRINTING

The paperback edition of TIDAL RIP, first published in 2004, has just gone into its 3rd printing, almost simultaneously with the first release of Joe's STRAITS OF POWER paperback edition by Morrow/HarperTorch. (TIDAL RIP is the fourth Captain Jeffrey Fuller story, and STRAITS OF POWER is the fifth.)

August 30, 2005

"STRAITS OF POWER" PAPERBACK GOES ON SALE TODAY

The paperback edition of STRAITS OF POWER, the fifth Captain Jeffrey Fuller adventure, officially goes on sale today. It's available at all major brick-and-mortar and on-line bookstores in the U.S. and Canada -- if they've run out, just ask them to order you a copy. The book (at the end) includes a tantalizing "sneak preview" from the beginning of Joe's next book, SEAS OF CRISIS, due out in hardcover on January 10, 2006. For more information re STRAITS OF POWER, see the BOOKS and ORDER buttons at the top-left of all JoeBuff.com website pages. Among the clamor of critical acclaim for STRAITS is this sound-bite of praise from a major radio station in America's heartland:

"I haven't enjoyed this type of book this much since RED OCTOBER came out!"
-- Dave (Doc) Kirby, "Book Bit," WTBF-AM/FM, Troy, Alabama, about STRAITS OF POWER

August 29, 2005

"SEAS OF CRISIS" HARDCOVER ON-SALE DATE NOW FINALIZED!

SEAS OF CRISIS, the sixth in the national bestsellling Captain Jeffrey Fuller series, will go on sale in hardcover on January 10, 2006. The manuscript was formally "Accepted" by Joe's publisher Wm. Morrow/HarperCollins earlier this month, meaning that some (rather keen and insightful) changes suggested by Joe's editor, Mike Shohl, were made to Mike's satisfaction. The next step in book production after Acceptance is the Copyedit, in which a copyeditor looks not only for grammatical and sentence-structure improvements, but also flags any sequences that might benefit from clearer explanation for a layman reader. The Copyeditor did an outstanding job, and Joe has completed his review and response to the copyedit queries. (Yes, hardly the "lonely craft" it's often labeled, writing is truly a team effort!) Later in 2005, when Morrow lifts their embargo on the cover art and story plot, Joe's website will be updated with his webmaster, Bill Parker, to feature SEAS OF CRISIS as Joe's latest book-length fiction work.

July 6, 2005

JOE BUFF HAS THIRD FOREIGN RIGHTS SALE TO FRENCH PUBLISHER

Joe is delighted to announce that the French publisher, Fleuve Noir, which previously bought the French-language translation rights to THUNDER IN THE DEEP and CRUSH DEPTH, has now cut another deal and added TIDAL RIP to their inventory. Joe, just as before, is especially pleased to see his work is popular in the land of the "spiritual mentor and primal muse" of all submarine fiction writers, the great Jules Verne!

May 28, 2005

JOE BUFF MAKES MAJOR BEQUEST TO NAVAL WAR COLLEGE FOUNDATION

Joe, who is a Life Member of the Naval War College Foundation, recently made a substantial estate bequest to the Foundation (see www.nwcfoundation.org), thus joining its Heritage Society. The Foundation's Executive Director asked Joe to write a brief essay, explaining his reasons for this planned giving, which appeared in the "Foundation Notes" newsletter issue for Spring 2005. Because of the vital importance of maintaining robust American sea power during unstable times, while nationwide debate rages over defense budgets and base closings, that essay is reproduced here in full. Joe strongly encourages other folks to look into joining the Foundation -- benefits include a subscription to the superb and thought-provoking quarterly journal, the "Naval War College Review," one of the best scholarly periodicals on naval affairs in existence today.

Why Planned Giving Now?
by Joe Buff

The Naval War College has for more than a century been a brilliant keystone of national defense. It's a pragmatic training ground for naval officers, and a think tank of the very highest intellectual caliber, rolled into one. The College draws on the past and present to help make sure that the United States, as the arsenal of democracy, remains focused and strong going forward. The Naval War College boasts international reach and impact, through the hundreds of people from foreign countries who participate in its programs, gaining inspiration and making friendships that last for life.

But no human life lasts forever. And aggressive war by evil-doers, alas, is an ugly but inescapable reality of the wider global canvas around us. Planned giving to the Naval War College Foundation is thus an outstanding way to create a permanent legacy for peace. Personally returning something to this great and vital institution only seems fair, I believe, in appreciation of having enjoyed all the wonderful day to day benefits flowing from our nation's hard-won freedoms -- freedoms which the College went a long way toward making possible.

Today, worrisome debate rages over defense budget cuts, including proposed severe reductions to our carrier and submarine fleets -- the capital ships of the 21st century. I'm deeply concerned that the effectiveness of America's sea power in the years ahead is at risk, if planning horizons are overly short-term or visions of future armed conflict stay too limited. A robust Naval War College now, with its culture of soberminded yet innovative strategic insight and analysis spread far and wide by its generations of graduates, can aid preventing ill-considered, irreversible choices which might later leave us isolated and weak. Having arranged a bequest, to join the Heritage Society, gives me a feeling of satisfaction that I've done the most I can to help assure that the College, and the U.S. Navy, for decades to come achieve all their assigned missions in troubled times in an unstable world.

April 15, 2005

JOE BUFF DELIVERS "SEAS OF CRISIS" MANUSCRIPT TO HIS PUBLISHER

Joe just delivered the draft manuscript of his latest, sixth Captain Jeffrey Fuller adventure, titled SEAS OF CRISIS, to his editor Mike Shohl at Wm. Morrow/HarperCollins. The formal editing process now begins! SEAS OF CRISIS is scheduled for hardcover release on November 29, 2005. (The paperback will come out in autumn, 2006.) A first cut of the cover art for SEAS OF CRISIS has already been developed after consultation with Morrow's Art Director, Rich Aquan, and the result is stunning and beautiful. The plot of SEAS OF CRISIS is embargoed by Joe's publisher for a while, but this story takes Jeffrey to a more senior command level than ever amid deadly international intrigue and high-stakes diplomacy, with his most harrowing front-line submarine combat yet. Jeffrey works with a different cast of Special Operations Forces commandos this time, whose land mission is perhaps the most frightening and critical one yet in the entire novel series. Other important new characters are introduced as well. The war takes some very dramatic twists and turns -- with major geopolitical realignments that suggest the whole nature of the global conflict will morph in compelling and exciting (and scary) new directions! Joe is now beginning to outline the next book, #7, which will be his major work project going into 2006 and which would be published in hardcover in late 2006.

April 13, 2005

JOE BUFF'S "STRAITS OF POWER" PAPERBACK DUE OUT AUGUST 30, 2005

Joe is very pleased to announce that the paperback edition of his most recent hardcover, STRAITS OF POWER, will be available to readers everywhere starting on August 30, 2005. (The actual date of availability on the shelves of individual stores may vary slightly from this.) The STRAITS OF POWER paperback will include at the back a "teaser chapter" from the beginning of Joe's next hardcover, SEAS OF CRISIS, which is scheduled for release on November 29, 2005. Joe's publisher, William Morrow/HarperCollins, is following their successful approach from Joe's previous book, TIDAL RIP, and the artwork on the cover of the STRAITS paperback is the same as on the hardback -- so those of you who saw the hardcover on display in stores or on-line a few months ago will be able to spot it immediately when it comes in!

February 20, 2005

JOE BUFF'S "CRUSH DEPTH" IS OUT IN POLISH EDITION: COVER DEPICTS FULLER AND BELL!

Joe is pleased to report that the Polish-language edition of CRUSH DEPTH is going on sale, published in Poland by Bellona Press. All fans of the Jeffrey Fuller series will probably enjoy seeing the cover art of this Polish edition, given the unusual and (to Joe at least, delightful) approach taken by Bellona's design department. The world's first artistic impression of Joe's two main series characters has appeared!

Yes, that's Jeffrey Fuller with the coffee mug, and his loyal XO, Jackson Bell, at the (somewhat inaccurate) old-fashioned periscope. Jeffrey, ever the happy warrior, sure does look like he just spent a week on 2 hours sleep and 20 gallons of coffee -- so typical of him in battle! And Bell, African-American and third-generation U.S. Navy, looks competent and dedicated -- perhaps he'll get his own command some day soon? Joe is keeping a hard copy of the cover art near his laptop for inspiration. After having these two guys be so alive in his head and in printed words for over six years now, it's quite an amazing experience for the author to see an artist's rendition of the characters as "real" people.

For those interested in how the publishing industry works, foreign language rights sales are basically arms-length licensing agreements between Joe's U.S. publisher, Wm. Morrow/HarperCollins, and the publishing company in the foreign country that purchases the rights. That foreign company then hires a translator, but also goes ahead with their own staff and ideas about the design of the cover and so on. Sometimes they will even change the title, rather than simply translate the English-language title. This is because they are starting from scratch with the text of the story itself, then applying their own creative concepts along with detailed awareness of the consumer market for books in their home country. And Bellona came up with something really kewl!

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