Cover art

Please leave a comment with your thoughts!  I am purposefully not going to initially describe the book for you.  Base on the cover, what do you think this book is about?  

Laptop Mishap

Waldgrave fans: I have some bad news, and some good news.

Bad news:

Today, I was drinking my coffee with pumpkin spice creamer in it on the couch while emailing.  The phone rang, I went to get it, and jostled my coffee, spilling on part of my keyboard.  I have never spilled anything on a laptop before, not even as a child, so after I got over my initial shock, I sprung into action.

I dried it up and did everything I knew to do (flipping the laptop, etc.) and things seemed to be fine.  Then, an hour later, my arrow keys (where I spilled) started acting funny.  I popped the keys of to see if anything was stuck (I am a second generation nerd with a dad into hardware, so this came naturally to me).  That's when I made the horrifying discovery that there was still liquid down there, trapped such that I could not get to it to dry it up.

Thanks to some help on Google Plus (thanks again, Jerry Huckaby!) I think I have prevented any more serious damage from happening.  However, this is the machine where I have been writing and editing my novels, including the Waldgrave series.

Good news:

In fear that I might have fried my machine, or that the machine was in the process of frying, I grabbed the essential novel files I could and emailed them to myself.  This included all the edits to Waldgrave 3, because those came to mind first as something I hadn't backed up yet.

I anticipate a minor delay in getting Waldgrave 3 out the door, depending on what has happened to my faithful laptop.  However, the files and edits are safe.

AL

My latest review

Special thanks to Becky Raymond, who took time out to read my book & then write about it.  Thanks for the review, Becky!  I'll be posting links to these in the sidebar:

http://missbeckyraymond.wordpress.com/


http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12409499-arrival-of-the-traveler

Smashwords to iBooks: A timeline

A while back I received a request to have my book on iBooks.  This started a personal quest, wherein I started researching options for how to make this happen.  Eventually I determined that the easiest way for me to get my book on to iBooks in a cost-free manner was to go through Smashwords.  There were some milestones along the way that had me running internet searches to figure out how long things would take.  For example, how long it takes for Smashwords to review a book for the premium catalog, or how long it takes for Smashwords to get a book onto iBooks.

So, for the benefit of other authors who are hitting that refresh button, here is my timeline:

October 26th: I receive a request to get my book onto iBooks.

October 27th: I have researched how to do this, looked over the Smashwords formatting requirements, and started formatting my book.  (Yes, these requirements will give you a headache and make you want to give up--thank goodness they are changing the requirements in 2012 so that books can be uploaded as an .epub.)

November 1st: Uploaded my formatted manuscript to Smashwords.

November 10th: My manuscript was reviewed by Smashwords, and accepted into the premium catalog.

November 18th: My book appeared in the iBooks store.  

I love peppermint

Today, I broke out my stash of holiday Wallflowers.  I'm trying out the Twisted Peppermint scent, and so far, I am loving it.  I believe it's having some sort of psychosomatic or placebo effect, because just smelling it is making me believe the room is a little chilled.

Craft Fair

Today I went to a craft show at the Adams County Fairgrounds.  Some great crafts this year!  Here are a few of my highlights.

This picture is on my blog courtesy of Rob Hob's.  He makes some incredible wood work puzzles, games, and pens.  Check out his gallery here.

I was also tickled by the artistry of Two Clayzy Ladies.  They have a mini-gallery here.

Lastly, I picked up a couple of loaves of bread from Styria Bakery.  This is kind of a special treat every year, because while these folks go around to local events, they don't have a physical bakery location (that I know of) that one can pick up from.  I have loved everything I have tried from them--the Asiago Cheese Bread and the Walnut Cranberry bread are awesome.  Check out their website here.

Where have I been...?

Well, it's been a long and mundane stretch since my last update.  More of the same--editing and formatting, and more editing.  I am giving Waldgrave 3 a run through, and it's at the top of my list.  For anyone who has been concerned about this, Secrets of the Guardian, Waldgrave Part 3 is entirely written; I am going through it to remove as many glaring errors as I am fortunate enough to catch.  Then, I will send it off to my group of editors and pre-readers, and they will do the same.

After I have Waldgrave 3 out of my hands, there will likely be a trickle of updates as I format and get out various formats of the books (paperback, smashords, iBooks, etc.).

I'm getting ahead of myself here, but after I have released Waldgrave 3, I am going to start focusing on writing again for a while.  This could take several paths; the following three are the most likely candidates.  I have a Waldgrave series sequel in the works, an original series that I am a few books into writing, and another original series that I am about 30 pages in to.  I'm not sure which I will focus on yet.

A lot of people who have read the Waldgrave books have asked me for a sequel.  I wrote one once, and then archived it and started over.  There are two more complete books that take place in the Waldgrave universe hanging out on my laptop; I'm not sure if I will ever edit or release these.  One of them received only lukewarm reception from my earliest Waldgrave fan; the other has been for my eyes only so far, mostly because I intended it as another series, and I haven't finished the other books yet.

The series I am a few books into needs some work and consideration.  I have had a lot of fun writing it, but I initially wrote it as an experiment in using first-person narrative, and then later decided to put it in third-person narrative.  So, I am just beginning to go back through and change the perspective (much more labor intensive than one might imagine).

My most recent idea--the new series I am about 30 pages into--had my muse friend in stitches last night as I described the series premise to her.  It seems like it would be a lot of fun to write.

That's all for now,
Al