Like the Colossus of Rhodes, Tim Facciola has his feet solidly set in two different lands.

He is the writer of heroes, the other—as the CIBA Overall Grand Prize winner of 2024 for his novel, Scales of Balance, the first in the Vengeful Realm trilogy.

Facciola doesn’t come unarmed to this dual role. In his fantasy series, his hero, Zephyrus, exhibits the same determination Facciola has shown on his journey to becoming an award-winning author, putting skills that are both innate and earned into his epic tale based on Roman gladiators.

Creating Real and Fictional Worlds

Writing wasn’t always Facciola’s calling, but his story has always been waiting to be told, in both his ability to write and in his interest in ancient worlds. His varied background includes being a lyricist in a punk rock band, and an expert in the art of hand-to-hand combat and ancient weaponry. In The Scales of Balance, Book One of the Vengeful Realm trilogy, Facciola brings all the grit and raw emotion of punk to a fight where his hero relies on the author’s real-world experience with weapons to win his freedom.

Creating worlds seems like something of magic, but an immense amount of work goes into such a complex world. Facciola, an admitted “heavy, heavy plotter,” spent years developing his story and understanding his characters. He starts with the places, things, and social systems that make up his imaginary world. Next, he decides onthe magical rules and historic context. After that, he moves onto conjuring up the cast of characters, always very conscious that to give them life, the reader must experience a fulfilling arc. As he approaches the end, Facciola chooses archetypes of the story. This involves considers the motivations and psychological characteristics for each character, and how they will interact with their fellow creatures of story. Finally, he ponders the thematic thread he wishes to weave through his story and the intense emotional load that an epic based on Roman history should receive.

This rich storytelling is on full display, not only in the entire Vengeful Realm series, but in the dark prequel, Ghosts of Rheynia, a Shelly Finalist!

The Award-Winner Emerges

But Facciola has also created a world from his business talent in the world of publishing. Last year at the 2023 CIBA awards, Facciola’s Scales of Balance won the Grand Prize Winner in the Ozma Division and received the prize for Overall Grand Prize for “Best Book of the Year.” When he took the stage that night, he told of his journey becoming a published author. As many of our authors know, that story is one of highs and lows, victories and setbacks. Ultimately, it’s a tale of a literary endurance; a warrior reaching a goal that had at one time seemed distant.

A Champion Returns

This year at CAC25, Facciola returns in another role—one of mentor. The wise person who has traveled the same road before others and now shares his knowledge with those coming behind him. He has become a writing coach, helping other writers hone their stories to get them ready for publishing. He also continues to feed his passion for training with maces, clubs, staves, and swords, and when he isn’t writing he’s out in the wild where he hikes, paddleboards, and spends time daydreaming of other worlds.

Chanticleer is very excited to have Timothy Facciola join us again at the Chanticleer Authors Conference!

Chanticleer is thrilled to bring Tim Facciola back to the Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC2025) and the International Book Awards (CIBA) on April 3-6, 2025, to share her knowledge with Chanticleer authors.

Don’t miss out on this chance to learn from
award-winning author Tim Facciola!

Register now! Space is limited! 

Follow this link to reserve your spot at this special event!