The Holiday Hustle

I spent Saturday baking two dozen banana nut muffins and about 8 dozen cookies, and then spent Sunday with family.  I then wrote like mad, and finished writing the fourth Hawthorn novella on Tuesday.  Right now, I'm trying to plan the menu for Friday.  I wanted to start the fifth Hawthorn book yesterday, but the stress of the holiday rush got me, and I spent those hours designing covers instead.  I've got a ton of activities planned for next week--everything from going to see the Denver Zoo Lights to shopping for a new car--so I'm afraid it may be a poor week for additional writing.  However, on the 1st, I am going full stop on all other projects to do my final pass on the 7th Redemption novel, and then it will be ready to go for the launch date in late January.

But the house is beautiful right now, it it looks like we'll be getting more snow toward the end of the week.  Also, here's a new draft cover for the 4th book in the Hawthorn Witches series--enjoy!

Happy Reading,
Al

Pre-Order for Fox Blood

The pre-order for Fox Blood, Redemption Book 7 is now up!  You can check it out on Amazon.

Also, I got my holiday decorations up today!  Woohoo!

Happy Reading,
Al

The End

I just finished the initial draft of Fox Blood, Redemption Book 7.  Now, on to editing.  I'm setting up the pre-order, with an intended release date of January 26th, so stay tuned for further updates.

Thanks again to all the fans of this series.  It's been quite the journey.

Happy Reading,
Al

Hawthorn Witches #2 is now available!

Holy smokes, where did the time go?  I've been so wrapped up in finishing the Redemption series that I nearly forgot about this release date!

Sorcerers & Sumac, Hawthorn Witches Novella #2 went live today.  Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered!  This series is exclusive to Amazon, so anyone with a Kindle Unlimited membership can read it for free.  You can find it here.  Or, if you're looking for the first book in the series, look here.

Happy Reading,
Al

Closing out character plots

Well, I'm about to write a farewell to Delia.  (Hoping "farewell" is ambiguous enough to not give any spoilers.)  Kaylee's ending is drawing near, too.  I don't know why, but her ending was one I thought about a lot from the very start of the series.  Now it's making me misty-eyed, because I'm there.  I had the same thing happen in Waldgrave when Lena finally met Olesia.

I've already closed out plots for a handful of others, and I still have a few more to go.  I'm going to miss the ones that didn't make it through this book, especially.  Book 7 marks my planned conclusion to the Redemption series, but who knows.  Years after completing the Waldgrave series, several fans asked me for more books, so I drew up outlines, but certain characters won't be in them owing to how their story arcs completed.

I'm in the last 10-20k words of this book now.  I only have 5 more chapters outlined that I need to give words to.  When I have the initial draft completed, it will go up for pre-order

With the holidays coming up, I feel like this is a good time of year to be closing this plot out, because I always get a little sad and a little lost for a while when completing a series with no more planned additions.  Seven novels is a lot of words, and a lot of time spent in this quirky universe.  They haven't been fantastically popular, and in fact, some people have told me they outright hated the first book.  That's okay.  Not every book is for every reader.  The series does have some fans, and to them, I am truly grateful.

Happy Reading,
Al

Cover Reveal for Fox Blood

Yesterday I uploaded the final draft for Hawthorn Witches Novella #2, and it is set to go live on the 24th. I also got the pre-order for Novella #3 set up and sent the manuscript off to my editor, and that one will be out toward the end of December.

And with those tasks out of the way, I am back writing on Redemption Book 7.  Yay!  (Except kind of not, because I'm always a little sad writing the final book in the series...)

In any case, here's the working cover, which may or may not change prior to publication in January.  The pre-order isn't up yet, but it should be by the end of November, so please stay tuned.

Happy Reading,
Al

Hawthorn Book 3 is now complete

...And ready for the editor!  It will be released in late December, and it's looking a little longer than the other two novellas in the series.  However, that's before edits, so stand by in case of changes.

Find the first book on Amazon.

I am now throwing myself into edits on Waldgrave, and hoping to have a revised edition out before November.

Happy Reading,
Al

Progress on recent projects

I am incredibly sick this week, and so is my toddler.  He's one day ahead of me, which is great because he's getting better...but not so great, because I still feel like crap, and his energy is now on the upswing.

However, I'm hanging in there writing-wise, and I think I'll have the third installment in the Hawthorn series finished before Monday.  I already have the cover finished, and it has a planned release date in late December.

I'm debating now if I want to go from this project into editing Waldgrave, or if I want to finish writing the last 30-40k words in the final Redemption novel.  I had put Waldgrave on the schedule first, but I hate leaving anything half-finished.  The edits to Waldgrave likely won't take that long because they are focused on fixing just a few things previous editors have missed, but I had kind of hoped to immerse myself in the process.  I want to reread those books before I write the sequel series that I have planned for 2016.

Maybe my thinking will be clearer when the head cold is gone.

Happy Reading,
Al

View from the Rut

This week hasn't been that great for me, but I won't burden you with the details.  I am in a major funk tonight over various things that normally wouldn't bother me, and hoping to get them all ticked off my list before the end of the month.

I'm shopping cover art for the last book in the Redemption series, due out in January, but I can't quite seem to find what I'm looking for.  I had to stop halfway through finishing Redemption to finish the third installment of the Hawthorn books, which was a scheduling snag I didn't anticipate, and that's been freaking me because my mind keeps wandering back to it.  I'm already drawing up outlines for a sequel arc to Hawthorn, because the early response has been pretty good, and dang it I just really need to finish Redemption and slap a cover on that book...

I am really looking forward to closing out this story line in Redemption after seven books, because I feel like I'm finally giving those characters some peace and a well-deserved rest.  At the same time, I'm looking forward to some freedom to write more in the Waldgrave universe, which I know I've been promising readers for the last year.  It is coming, and it's the first thing on my list in 2016.  I'll be giving the first three books a thorough reread and edit, and releasing new editions just before I start writing to refresh the characters in my mind.  (Though really, I don't think this is necessary.  I know where they are and what they're doing now.)

Here's hoping for a better mood tomorrow.

Happy Reading,
Al

Demons & Dracaena is free today

All,

As part of the launch of the series, Demons & Dracaena is free today on Amazon.

I am about 25% done with book 3 in the Hawthorn Witches series, and I am 50% done with book 7 (the final book) in the Redemption series.  I had to put book 7 on hold to finish book 3 in the other series because I didn't want to cut it too close with my new editor.  I anticipate releasing book 3 in December, which means editing must happen in November, and I need the final draft done with my initial edits by the 31st.

And speaking of Halloween, putting up decorations is on my list of activities to do with my kiddo today.  We didn't plant pumpkins this year because they nearly overran our yard last year, so a visit to the pumpkin patch is also in order.  I still have dehydrated pumpkin for bread and pies in my pantry from 2014.  This year we have an abundance of zucchini, but my kiddo has fortunately taken a liking to zucchini pickles, so it worked out.

Happy Reading,
Al

Demons & Dracaena is now available!

Demons & Dracaena is now live, so head on over to Amazon to check it out!  It is free to read if you have a Kindle Unlimited subscription.  :)

I'm about half way through writing the final book in the Redemption series.  I'm still seeking a title for it, but I'll need one very soon, so stand by.

Happy Reading,
Al

Saying goodbye to characters

I'm only on my third day of writing the 7th Redemption novel, and already dreading the end.  I've been wanting to write these moments for these characters for a long time, and the words are coming quickly.  To be clear, book 7 is my planned ending to that series.  It will wrap up all of the open plot lines.

But like Waldgrave, I'm now wondering if I can say goodbye to those characters forever.  I may keep writing stories for them (just for me); I did that with Waldgrave, and those ideas are evolving into what will be the next lineup of novels in the Waldgrave universe.

All the same, endings are a little sad for me.

I anticipate that Redemption Book 7, which I currently haven't titled, will be completely written by mid-October at the latest with a release date in January of 2016.  After I finish writing this one, I'll spend a couple of weeks writing the third Hawthorn novella, and then I will move on to writing a new series to ease the pain of wrapping up with these characters.  Or, I might go straight into that Waldgrave lineup.  I haven't fully decided the 2016 schedule yet, but there will be more of the Waldgrave universe and a new series, and if people like the Hawthorn novellas, probably more of those, as well.

Happy Reading,
Al

My tea has arrived

It's late on the end of a three day weekend, and I'm about 2/3rds the way through making my edits on Book 6 of the Redemption series, and if I don't finish tonight, I will at least come very close.  My quest for editors is going very well.  I just heard back from PayPal earlier today that they have fixed the error in my account, and I can now actually pay the editor of my choice, so that's good.

Ah, me.  The stress in this household today.  We're all trying to wind down the day, and my husband is in the kitchen making tea.  I've got a cat lying next to me and I really want to get back to writing so that I can escape for a while, but these edits must come first.  And selecting an editor.

My tea has arrived, so I'm off to edit, and hopefully to finish editing before the night is done.  And tomorrow, back to writing.

Happy reading,
Al

Preparing for Launch

Today I put final touches on the first two novellas in the Hawthorn series in preparation for the launch later this month.  I also did my final edits on those two novellas to iron out plot holes.  I am currently interviewing editors, so if anyone wants to throw their name in the hat, please email me your rates at addisynltyler@gmail.com.

Today, me and the kiddo also made a couple of loaves of apple bread.  It was my last jar of preserved apples from last year, so kind of a Big Deal in my kitchen.  It was a bad year for fruit, because a late freeze killed 90% of the buds.  Additionally, that apple tree died from fire blight early this spring with no indication that anything was wrong until it was too late.  I'm going to miss those apples...sigh.

My zucchini and acorn squash plants keep producing, and the cucumbers finally decided to show.  We canned our first batch of pickles last week, with more to come.  I planted butternut squash this year, but for some reason, they seem to have stalled out at about 5" long each.  Cute little squashes, but I have no idea why they didn't grow to a normal size.

Happy Reading.
Al

It all happens at once...

Today is my birthday, and it was a lovely day, despite some recent loses that have made me hurt.  I had a good time with my son and my husband, and tomorrow I'll go out and find a place in my garden to plant the mums I received as a gift.

Dropping in to share my draft cover for the new Hawthorn novella series.  ETA, late September--stay tuned for updates.

Happy reading,

Al

Finished book 2

Yeah, yeah...they're only novellas this time around, but it's the first time I've ever written a series of novellas, so I'm pretty jazzed.  30,000 words in two weeks isn't a personal record, but still pretty good in terms of consistent pacing.  I am on track for getting the three books of the Hawthorn Witches series completed by mid September; if readers like it, I will add a second installment of 3 more novellas.

Today, the plan is to go back and do edits on book 1 in preparation for a September release.  I'll also get a final version of a cover in the works, and share that as soon as I have it.

Happy Reading,
Al

(About to be) Announcing a new series

I am about 10,000 words away from finishing the second book in what I have been calling the Annie Hawthorn series, so I guess it's time to call it official.  I will be publishing a third series, and probably very soon.  The books will be shorter than my other works, about 30,000 words each; I started writing the first one as a sort of fun break from editing the Redemption series, but now the plots have grown into their own project.

I am planning to finish up writing the second installment this month, and I have cleared my calendar to edit Book #1 on September 1st, hoping to make a release date in late September.  Two more books will follow in that series before the end of this year, if all goes to plan.

I will use the rest of September to finish polishing up Redemption Book #6, which is due out on October 22nd, and then I will dive straight into writing Redemption Book #7.

I have been so busy writing lately, but having so much fun doing it.  Thank you to all of the readers who have joined me on this amazing journey!

Happy Reading,
Al

Updated Covers for the Redemption Series!

Yeah, yeah...I'm always fidgeting with my covers.  But this was a major change in branding, so I figured it deserved a post.  Here are the new covers for the Redemption series!

...And I think this wraps up my current cover projects, so back to writing I go!

Happy Reading,
Al

Pre-order for Shattered Minotaur, Redemption Book 6

Just a quick note that I got the pre-order for Redemption Book 6 up!

Lion's Shadow, Redemption Book 5 went live today (...ish, because it's already the 26th for those in the UK, and US and Canada will be available in a few hours).  A big thanks to all of the readers who pre-ordered, because knowing so many people were anticipating the release was really awesome.  :)

All the other usual vendors will follow, but here's the pre-order page for book 6 on Amazon for now:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012F1TLTM

Happy Reading,

Al

Email alerts for my new releases

I've had a handful of fans recently ask me about getting emails or other alerts on my new releases, and today, I would like to proudly announce that I now have an official newsletter for this!

So, if you want to have an alert sent to your inbox when I have a new book out, use the link and sign up below.  (No spam, just new releases--and if it doesn't work out, unsubscribing is just a few clicks away.)

http://eepurl.com/btupaT

Happy Reading,

Al

More Waldgrave books to come

(Edited on 7/17/2015 to add: if you want to get on the email list for my new releases, follow this link:  http://eepurl.com/btupaT )

Today I put some time into rethinking my schedule in the coming months.  I have (at least) one more book to write in the Redemption series, and this month I started writing a new series as a Camp NaNoWrimo project.  I plan to publish this new one, tentatively titled Demons & Dracaena (Annie Hawthorn Book #1), but I'm not sure when it will be out.  I want to get more Waldgrave books done this year, but I kept shuffling things in my brain about which of these projects deserved the most priority.

After some soul searching and a lot of reading how other authors handle their multiple series, here is what I have come up with.  I am writing on Annie Hawthorn #1 until the first book is completed, and then I will go back and write book #7 of Redemption in August, which will have a tentative release date of January/February 2016.  In September, I will focus on writing a new book set  in the Waldgrave universe, following Lena and Griffin as they move onto Lenore's Island.

If you are one of the fans awaiting the release of more Waldgrave books, please follow this blog for updates.  The brave ones can also email me directly (I love emailing with readers), and I'll send you more personalized updates on when those books will be out: addisynltyler@gmail.com.

I read some interesting things from other authors about finishing a series in its entirety before moving on to the next, but one thing that really resonated with me was someone who talked about not wanting to let characters go.  Rotating what you write allows you to come back to each of the worlds you have created and revisit them and the characters, and prolong the time you get to spend with them over months or years instead of one furious blitz to get the series done.  I like my worlds and my characters, so I think this is what I'm going to try.

Redemption #7 still doesn't have a name, but it's going to need one soon.  I guess the new additions to Waldgrave will, too.  That's my next topic for thought.

Happy Reading,
Al

Camp NaNoWriMo

Between the family stuff and a recently broken down car, I'm feeling the stress today.  I'm not sure why, because I'm usually a very (some would say annoyingly) optimistic person.   Might be the weather today, but overcast skies are usually my favorite.

I discovered that NCIS is on Netflix today, so that's part of my plan to cheer up.  That and lots of writing, because my one-year-old was up most of the night, so he owes me a big nap today.  And chili--I'm making a big crock pot of chili for dinner so I don't have to worry about dinner while picking up my husband from work (...per last paragraph, his car is in the shop).

I think I'm going to do a full re-boot on the covers for the Redemption series, probably around the end of the year.  I'm hitting my Camp NaNoWriMo goals so far, and I think I'll have 3 novellas in a new series out in August or September, but don't hold me to that--it's all about the editing.

I think I'll have Book 7 in the Redemption series done by the end of September, and it will be up for pre-order by the end of October with a January release date.  I only had 7 books outlined for the Redemption series when I first conceived it, but I may write more in that universe if people are still interested in the characters at that point.

...And speaking of, more books for Waldgrave are still on my calendar for later this year.  Stay tuned for more on that project as the others conclude over the next few months.

Happy Reading,
Al

Finished!

I have just finished typing out the end of Redemption Book 6, beating my own prediction by 2 days!  Woohoo!

I am now in the clear to start my project for Camp NaNoWriMo July.  :)

Al

A stone's throw

I am only 5,000 words away from finishing my initial draft of Redemption Book 6.  I am debating now if my Camp NaNoWriMo July project will be book 7, or a new series of novellas I have been cooking up.

I got some bad news on the home front this week, in a wide range of areas, and affecting a lot of people.  It always seems to come in threes, and I won't go into it here.  But it has me hurting, and I think that has drawn out finishing my current project.

In brighter news, I went out and picked the first harvest of snow peas from my garden today.  I have an abundance of lettuce out there, and I picked up some tomatoes at the farmer's market today, so we're probably having a salad for dinner.  My little baby is a little boy now, and he's finally able to enjoy the outdoors as much as I do.  He played in the sprinklers for the first time yesterday and laughed the whole time.  :)

Happy reading,
Al

Late night, tooling around with covers

It's after bedtime, and the mood struck to do some casual cover design.  I've already been messing with new covers for Redemption for a while now (mostly just new lettering, though I think I could do better for the image on Book 1...), but here's what I was playing with as newer draft covers for Book 5 and Book 6.

The color palette for Book 5 is the same, but it has more mood and depth than my last draft.  I did a total palette change for Book 6, and I'm still trying to decide if I like it, or if it could use more adjustment.  I'm writing a lot of beach-y scenes right now, so it may just be my mood of the moment craving a beach on the cover.

Enjoy!
Al

Snakes under my porch

Usually I have rabbits living under there, but this year, the rabbits decided to make their burrows in the side yards.  The porch was abandoned property, so now I have a nest of garter snakes under there.

Every day around 8 a.m. they exit from under the porch en masse, and at last count, there were seven of them ranging in size from 12" to almost 30".  One of them is vary large, and I'm pretty sure it's a pregnant female--I saw her out by the fence today.

Sorry if that gives anyone the creeps.  I think they're neat.  :)

As a gardener, I'm actually very happy to have this variety of snakes in my yard, and given the size of my yard, I think the count is about right for the area they need to cover.  Garter snakes are great pest predators, and they keep the slugs off of my hostas and the mice out of my veggie patch.  They're skittish and run from confrontation, and they tend to move along whenever I get too close.  

A huge plus is that they're big enough to handle mice, but small enough that they don't bother the rabbits.  This morning a small baby rabbit sat by and ate grass two feet away while the snakes exited the den, and neither the snakes nor the bunny were bothered.  Now, the rabbits are a constant problem for my garden, because they eat my ice plant, hostas, blanket flower, tulips, lilies, crocus, and pretty much everything else.  They decimated my attempt at a strawberry patch.  I think the yarrow and the marigolds are the only thing they won't touch.  

It's good for them they're cute.  I enjoy watching them just enough that I'm willing to put up with the hassle and heartbreak of eaten plants.

Shattered Minotaur (Book 6 of the Redemption series) is still coming along, and I'm about 2/3rds done writing it.  If I finish it before the end of June, the plan is to bump up the release of Book 5, which is currently scheduled for release on July 26th.

Happy Reading (& Gardening).

Al

Thanks, stranger!

I love books, whatever form they happen to take.  I have read paperbacks and hardbacks, ebooks and online books, audio books, illustrated novels, and I would probably try any other format a book can come in.  I say this because I haven't been the best in the past about keeping print editions of my books available.  However, this month especially, I'm realizing that other prefer print to digital (or any other format).  Because someone out there has purchased copies of my print editions books.

The fact that I noticed should tell you exactly how many I sell.  A special thanks to the print lover out there--you are a rare and much appreciated gem, stranger.  :)

And because I noticed, I realized that even though I am currently writing book 6 in the Redemption series, I only have book 1 available in print.

So to anyone out there waiting for it, formatting the rest of Redemption for print editions has just been bumped up my priority list.  Stay tuned for further announcements on that front.

Happy Reading,
Al

Storyteller Alley & draft cover art

First, a big thanks to Storyteller Alley for accepting my book for a feature on their site, and for making Waldgrave a part of their daily giveaway!  If you're a person who signs up for book blogs or sites that offer free books (I'm a member of several), you may want to check them out.  Their email list is an automatic signup to win free books that they feature.

It's still raining at my house, but I'm hoping to take my kiddo and get out of the house tomorrow, and maybe head in to Denver.  I don't know--the laundry also beckons, and I have a few other indoor chores if the cabin fever doesn't take hold.  At least the garden is shaping up nicely this year.

Also, here is some new cover art I am working on for book 6 of the Redemption series (in no way final--I may still make changes).  I'm playing with the idea of moving up the release dates, but haven't made a final determination.  It all depends how fast I can finish the draft for Shattered Minotaur.

Happy reading,
Al

Cold and Wet

The covers for Waldgrave have been updated...everywhere but on this blog, seemingly, so I'm going to get on that today.  I am officially 1/3 the way through writing the 6th book in the Redemption series, and it won't stop raining outside.  I usually like to get out and take my kiddo to the zoo, or the gardens, or anywhere, but it's been too cold and wet lately.  To cold and wet to go out and pull weeds, in fact, so a nasty situation awaits me in the back when the mud finally lets up--all the rain has those things thriving.

 


I think I've lost an apple tree to fire blight because the symptoms were atypical and I didn't know what to do.  I'll be sterilizing all of my gardening equipment to be sure, and then picking out a new tree for the back yard.  I'm actually grieving it a little, because those apples were delicious, and the tree was here when we bought the house so I don't actually know what kind it was.

Al

Updating the covers for Waldgrave

Earlier this week I made the decision to update the covers for Waldgrave.  This is partly because I'll soon be adding books to that world, and partly because I just felt it was time for a change.  So I spent a few evenings and nap times this week picking out stock images and putting things together, and here they are.

I'm hoping to do a quick update on the internal files for these books, and have the new covers up everywhere by the end of next week.

Al

Trying to put up the Smashwords/Nook pre-order for Lion's Shadow

I just finished doing my rough edits, and I was going to put up the SW/Nook preorder for Book 5, but sadly the system thinks the file is password protected (it's not, and never has been).  I'm using the exact same procedure as I usually do when uploading to Smashwords, but for some reason, they have chosen to hate on this book in particular.  Oh, the frustration...

I'm waiting on a return email from support now, and they always do a wonderful job, so hopefully the problem will be resolved before tomorrow.

I'm off to get out from under the rock...erm, I mean, leave the house, to run some errands.  Wish me luck.

Happy reading,
Al

EDIT:  The pre-order is now up.  We never really figured out why the file was getting rejected by the system, but I saved it to a .docx and then back to a .doc and for some reason that fixed the problem (just in case anyone out there is in the same situation and willing to try anything).

Hand-foot-and-mouth disease

...has come to my house.  My kiddo is sick again, but after fearing that it might have been something far worse, I was glad for this diagnosis.  I'm a little relieved that he decided to go on a noodles cooked in bouillon binge the day before the sore throat set in, because I think it helped him retain water.  The name of the game is yogurt and homemade applesauce now, which suits me fine as long as it keeps him strong and hydrated.

In writing land, I am still plugging away at edits on Redemption Book 5, and the launch for Book 4 went off without a hitch!  I came downstairs last night, just after midnight when I had to give my kiddo a dose of ibuprofen, and uploaded the new file with the link to the pre-order for Book 5 at the back.  If anyone got an email about a new version being available, that's what that was about.  :)

I'm gearing up for finishing Books 6 and 7 now, which I believe will close out the series.  I make no guarantees on that, but I think that's where this story line will close out.

Happy reading,
Al

Getting ready for the release of Pale Hound

The "final" draft has been uploaded, but I caught two more little errors.  I'm going to upload a new draft first thing release day, so only the folks that download Pale Hound before I get to it will ever know.  (ETA: Pale Hound, Redemption Book 4 is coming out this Thursday, April 30th!)

The new upload will also include a link at the back to the next book in the series, because I just created the pre-order for Lion's Shadow last night.

My camp NaNoWriMo was a little bit of  a disappointment, because I spent most of it editing Lion's Shadow to get that pre-order file ready.  I'm only about 20,000 words into writing Redemption book 6 now, but hoping to kick it into high gear after my final pass of Lion's Shadow, which has a tentative release date of July 25th.  Book 6 will be out in either September or October, depending on how writing goes the rest of this year.

Spring has finally arrived in my backyard, and I *think* that we've already had our last hard freeze for the year, but in Colorado one never really knows.  I've already got half of my vegetable garden planted, and I just put out some annuals on Saturday...followed by an epic 2 hour weed pulling session.  My daffodils have come and gone, but I've still got some tulips in bloom, and waiting to see if I get any irises this year.  The hibiscus have just started to come out of hibernation, and it looks like the tiny hydrangea I planted last year, which I was sure had died, is now making a come back.

Happy reading,
Al

Redemption is going back on Nook, Apple, etc.

Hearkening back to my post about putting the Redemption series in Kindle Select for a three month run, the enlistment has now expired, and this series is returning to the usual vendors over the next few weeks.  The series will still be available on Kindle, and the first book is currently free on Amazon and elsewhere.  Additionally, book 1 is now available for the first time in the Google Play store for free, and I will be working on getting the rest of the series made available there before the end of May.

Happy reading,
Al

Camp NaNoWriMo, I'm finally starting!

My edits for Pale Hound ran over, which led me to making another quick draft cover (still debating if I like it more--see draft below).  Then I went to the zoo with a friend who I rarely get to see because we live a long distance apart (time well spent).  Then I had to take my son in for a routine medical appointment, and found out he will need some not routine medical tests (stressful).  Then I got sick, probably partly from the stress.  :P

But my child is safely sleeping now, the edits are done, I'm holed up on the couch with my cats and my laptop, and it's raining tonight.  I'm finally ready to start writing for April's Camp NaNoWriMo, so yay!

This is the first NaNo I've gone into with a detailed outline in hand, so I'm interested to see how it affects my speed and voice while writing.  If it's not working, I may just ditch the outline, but I hope it does work.  I've heard from many other writers that they were able to increase their writing speed (and even the quality of their writing) with a good outline.  

So if you're doing Camp NaNo this month, I'll see you there.  :)

And here's that cover.  The changes are subtle from the previous version, but I wanted to put a little more plot into the image this time around with the sparks.  I also felt that the sky was a little too barren without clouds, so I added some wisps and readjusted the treeline to make it more interesting.  Pale Hound is currently available for pre-order, to be released on the 30th of this month.

Happy writing,

Al

Yes, but where are the cup holders?

My husband sent me this link, because we're both total nerds about futuristic technology.

I watched the video, and thought the projected signals the car used were very cool, but this little voice in the back of my head kept saying "white interior...white interior...white interior..."

Anyone who has gotten into a car in bad weather, or has eaten in their car, or has small children who have brought things into the car, etc., knows what I'm talking about.  The last car we purchased in this household got decision delayed for months because the color we wanted only came in the white (well, "beige") interior instead of the black (well, "charcoal").  In the dealership car we tested, the beige interior was already showing stains, and it didn't even have 500 miles on it yet.

Maybe I'm just a messy person.  Here's to hoping that future cars come with the option of stain hiding charcoal interiors, are self cleaning, or maybe the entire interior comes standard coated in this stuff.

One book finished, another to begin

I have just finished draft one of Lion's Shadow, book 5 in the Redemption series.  It's about three weeks late on when I anticipated finishing it, which in part explains my absence here, but it will still make the publication date in July.  I'm setting up my Scrivener template for book 6 tonight, and fighting the urge to start writing it, because I already have on my calender to give Pale Hound (book 4) the final read through before I release it next month.  I might cave and make a cover for it, just to relieve some of the tension.

There's just something about endings that make me want to start a new book, and it's really hard to have to go back (in this case, to edit), when I want to be writing forward.  But I know it's better to leave things to mellow for a while before I do each editing round, so unless I'm going to sit on my couch doing nothing in the mean time (unlikely), I'm going to be writing between edits.

In other news, I'm having fun reading all of the rumors about the upcoming Star Wars movies.  While it wasn't classic Trek, I did enjoy the J.J. Abrams reboot movies enough that I own them now, and I'm curious to see what he does in the Star Wars universe.  I've got my hopes up, which could be a dangerous thing.

Al

Apparently, I'm still sleepwalking

I've been pulling a lot of late nights lately as I'm writing book 5 in the Redemption series.  It's not a "meet the goal" thing, but more of an "in the groove" thing--I get going, and I don't want to stop until the thoughts are out.  Having already plotted out the entire rest of the series already, finding those breaking points is a challenge.

When I was pregnant, I pulled a lot of late nights too, but for an entirely different reason.  My husband reported to me a couple of times that I was getting up and wandering around the house before coming back to bed.  He thought I was doing paranoid nesting things like making sure the oven was off or the doors were locked, but when he finally asked me about it one morning, I was surprised.  I didn't remember getting out of bed at all.  Now, I wasn't entirely shocked, because I was a sleepwalker when I was a child, but I thought I had given it up sometime between the ages of ten and twelve.

I mention these two things in conjunction because I got a fitbit for Christmas.  I was looking at my data a few days ago, and noticed a disturbing trend.  Apparently, I'm still sleepwalking some nights, and staying up late seems to be the trigger.

I looked online and I'm not the only one.  For some people, it looks like the wrist band is registering hand movements as steps.  I tend to wear mine in a pocket or clipped to my hip (it registers the steps more accurately, especially when I'm pushing the stroller), so I don't think that's the case for me.

It isn't a lot--less than 100 steps each episode--but I kind of want to hook up a camera to see what I'm doing at night.  I guess it might explain some of the bruises I get on my shins that I don't remember getting.

Al

The Waldgrave series is now on Google Play!

Yay!  After an entire day wrestling with the (IMHO, less than ideal) Google book uploading process, I have accomplished what I set out to do last Spring, and the second two books in Waldgrave are live!

For anyone who wants to check them out, here are the links.

Arrival of the Traveler, Waldgrave Book 1

Deception of the Magician, Waldgrave Book 2

Secrets of the Guardian, Waldrgave Book 3

Happy reading,
Al

Verizon bill got a little cheaper

For anyone else who's on Verizon, you might want to check out this article.  Verizon is changing their rates, and customers have the option of lowering their bill or getting more data for the same price.  My husband got a call from Verizon when this change went into effect, but I guess not everyone I know got a call, and you won't be opted in automatically, so it may be worth the call to Verizon to see if you can save a little money.

I'm about 24,000 words into writing Redemption book 5 now (a little less than 1/3 done), and still hoping I'll have it finished by the end of the month.  As the season is warming up, I'm doing a little more gardening on days when the snow is melted; next week is looking a little cold and wet, so I'll probably be hitting the keyboard a little harder.

Al

A highly productive day

Today I finally got the last pumpkin out of my basement!  Huzzah!  And I got out in the garden, and cleared away the dead stuff from last year!  Double Huzzah!

And while this isn't from today (two days ago, I think?) I thought I would share.  It's likely to change, but here's the cover art for Book 5 in the Redemption series:

It still feels a little off to me...I've already received some feedback to make the leaves in the foreground a little more golden, but I feel like I may need to do something at the horizon line to break up the wall of red in the back.  The space between the top of the cover and the book title also feels weird to me, but that might just be my own perfectionism.  The title may or may not change--this was the first working title I could come up with that people thought fit the series and wasn't too ridiculous.
I am writing Book 5 now, based on a 25K outline and novel start I put together in May of 2012.  Back then, I had noted this was going to be book 3.  How the times have changed.

Al

A stack of old floppy disks

I was cleaning out my craft (read: "crap") room, which also happens to house a lot of boxes of things from my parents' house, and I found something pretty great.  I'll stop and say right now that I moved out of my parents' house back in 2007.  Okay--I partly moved out in 2003 when I went to college, but I was only going to school in Boulder and they lived in Broomfield, so it was kind of 50/50 between my apartment and their house.  (Free food, laundry that didn't require quarters, and great company.  I don't think you can blame me.)

Anyways, I was trying to straighten out my craft room, and I found this old shoe box filled with old floppy disks of books that I wrote years ago.  I found the original drafts of the Waldgrave series.  I found a series that I had completely forgotten, and definitely merits a revisit.  I found some things that were complete trash, and others that amazed me.  It was freaking awesome.  I'm hoping some of it may be fit to publish, or at least fit to rewrite, but I'll have to wait until I have the time to give it a good look.

In other news, I finished my base draft of Pale Hound, Redemption Book 4 last night, and I have set up the pre-order on Amazon here.  The tentative date of publication is April 30th, and I am so thrilled to be moving on to writing my next book.  I had a lot of fun outlining book 5, so I'm hoping the first draft goes smoothly this month.

More soon,
Al

Serpent's Bite is Now Available!

It went live this morning!  Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered!  Serpent's Bite is currently available on Kindle.  If you haven't read book 1 in the series yet, it is also available on Kindle (set a calendar reminder--it will be free to download from February 1st-3rd).

Thanks!

Al

Windows 10 for free

A few days ago a friend sent me an article about how Windows 10 is going to be offered free to 7 and 8 users for a limited time.  I hate to say it, but this kind of thing makes me tense.  Change on my laptop always does--I spend a lot of time here, and rolling the dice on a makeover of my most used space carries a huge anxiety factor.  I don't like change for the sake of change, so it should be pretty obvious...

I didn't understand Windows 8.  I don't hold it against anyone who loved this OS, but I had to install a third party client to make the tiles go away and bring back my familiar start menus.

And I still don't understand the tiles.  Sometimes I get to a screen where I MUST use the tiles to do something, and I ESC out and find a different way to complete my task.  Or I just don't complete it.  I have to wonder how much Windows 8 cost companies in productivity due to employees like me.  Don't get me wrong--I love tiles on my touch screens, and I get that some computers have them now, but mine does not.

This is why I'm not an early adopter.  I wait until after the first patch has been offered, crashed everything, fixed again, and people start complaining that they didn't fix a handful of minutiae with it.
My husband, however, did want the aforementioned upgrade (he didn't get the tiles, either), and Windows 10 does appear to be an improvement.  The tiles have been down played to occupy a smaller spot in the start menu (I still cringe when I see them, because they've beaten me with the stupid stick too many times before), and from what he says, the OS is much more cloud-centric now.

I'm still going to hold out for the first patch to get fixed.

Al

3 a.m. stress-induced inspiration

I've had some down time recently due to my child being sick (better now, very thankfully).  We ended up in the hospital for a couple of nights, and while I didn't have my laptop with me, I did manage to pen a new story idea after bedtime one night.  It was one of those crazy middle of the night dreams, and I woke up wondering if it could be worked into a novel.  I think it can, but I'm going to wait a few days just to be sure that isn't the sleep deprivation talking.

It's a sort of scifi futuristic story, so a little outside of where I've built my name, but maybe.  Or, maybe I'll publish it under a different name.  I'll see how it goes if I get the time to write it.

Due to a lag in editing progress on the 4th Redemption book, I came home with a determined attitude and promptly decided that I might go back and tie up a few loose ends from the Waldgrave series.  I've been asked a few times about side characters and where they ended up, so I figure if I have time, I'll write some novelettes leading up to the next Waldgrave novels.  Why not, right?  It might be fun to share the tidbits that didn't make it in, like where Marie ended up and Rollin's back story.    I wrote those outlines tonight, as well as outlines for the next three Lena Collins books, and edited another couple of chapters.  I'm really hoping I get Redemption 4 edited on schedule, but we'll see--If I don't, then I guess I'll shift my timeline a little and make up any losses in April.

Al

Serpent's Bite -- Now Available for Pre-Order

All,

After the writing blitz last month, the pre-order for Serpent's Bite: Redemption Book 3 is now live!

You can check it out on Kindle here.  (If you're looking for the series on another platform, please see my post here, and then email me directly for the availability schedule.)

This series is currently available in Kindle Unlimited.

Thanks!
Al

Chores are like nesting dolls

Despite my best intentions, I still have three pumpkins hanging around my basement.  Yes, they've been there since August, and yes, I have everything I need to get them out of the basement and into my pantry.  I'm sitting on my couch, right now, thinking about how I should really go down there and carry them up, because the baby is sleeping and it's an excellent opportunity.

But if I'm going to roast them, I've got to do it all at once so I don't have to set up and take down my food mill and dehydrator multiple times.  I've also got to clean the refrigerator before this effort is undertaken, because three pumpkins takes up a heck of a lot more space than one would think.  To clean the refrigerator I need an empty trash can and and empty dishwasher...

So I guess what I'm looking at here is doing the dishes this afternoon so that I can clean out the fridge tonight, and then roast pumpkins tomorrow.  The roasted pumpkins can be stored in the newly clean fridge overnight.  Then I will mill the next day, store the pumpkin goo in the newly clean food containers from cleaning out the fridge, and then clean and store the food mill.  Then dehydrate for the next 3-5 days...

Some days, I wake up with the best intentions of getting stuff done, and then I get buried in the bigger picture of how everything chore in my house seems to be contingent on everything else.  It's like it all has to get done or nothing can get done.  It's like the logic center of my brain is conspiring to validate my own laziness and procrastination.

I'm getting up now.

Wish me luck.

Al

Redemption series is now in KU

Just a quick note--Spider Catcher and Rabbit Bones are now enrolled in KDP Select, which means you can read them for free from the Kindle Owners Lending Library if you have Amazon Prime, or read them for free if you are a Kindle Unlimited subscriber.

Stay tuned for the launch of Serpent's Bite later this month.

Thanks,
Al

Putting one of my series in Kindle Unlimited

Over the last few weeks, I've found myself spending a lot of time thinking about the various publishing options out there.  There are a lot of them--everything from vanity press to traditional publishing.  Even within Kindle Direct Publishing, there is a choice to put the book into the Kindle Select program, thereby making it exclusive to the Kindle for 90 days.

I have dabbled with Select a few times in the past, but never saw enough of a response to warrant keeping the titles in.  By that, I mean that I don't think Select increased my readership enough (or, let's face it--at all) on Kindle to warrant taking the book away from fans on other platforms.

...And along came Kindle Unlimited, Amazon's new paid subscription service that is bundled into the Kindle Select program.  I am hearing from some fellow authors that they are reaching new readers through Kindle Unlimited.  I am hearing from other authors that the program did nothing for them.  It seems that genre is a big factor in whether or not the program benefits a specific series or even a specific book.

After some consideration (and believe me, this was a big decision), I have decided that I'm going to try putting the Redemption series into Kindle Unlimited in the coming months, just for 90 days, to see what happens.  During this time, the Redemption books will be unavailable at other ebook venues, but Waldgrave will still be available everywhere.

I have started the take down process to remove the books from other vendors, including Nook, Kobo, and Apple, and I expect they will be down sometime in the next 2 weeks.

I know there are a few fans out there reading on Nook and Kobo (and others), and if that's you, please shoot me an email.  I don't want to make the books inaccessible to anyone, so I want to work out an availability schedule on those other platforms that won't conflict with Amazon's terms of service.  I'm also seeking beta readers for Redemption, so feel free to throw your name in the hat if you're interested!

Thanks,
Al

Animal prints in the snow

We still have about a foot of snow in the back yard, accumulated from several storms in the last few weeks.  We're scheduled to get more today, but this morning I was completely tickled to look out back and see the various trails and prints of all the critters who have passed through.  It looks like we've got quite a few rabbits back there, some mice that seem to traverse back and forth from the apple trees to the garden, and a possible raccoon that has been scoping out our garbage cans and has left the pine trees for the shelter of the play set.

Small wonder that I suddenly have a craving to go and reread Brian Jacques' Redwall books.  :)

Update on Serpent's Bite

All,

Here is an updated cover for Serpent's Bite, Redemption Book 3, which I will be releasing end of this month.  I'm in the final stages of editing now, and I expect to put up a pre-order in about 2 weeks.

It is such a huge relief to finally have this one off my plate...for anyone who's been following for a while, you may know that this manuscript has been a bear.  The first book I wrote in the Redemption series was actually what is now books 2 and 3 (Rabbit Bones and Serpent's Bite).  My initial readers couldn't make it past the first third of that manuscript, though, because they wanted to know what had happened during Ember's previous stay on the island.  These details were discussed later in the manuscript, but they said it just wasn't working.

So I started writing a new introduction.  The introduction got too long, and I decided it would be a short prequel.  Then I dropped the "short," and Spider Catcher was born out of snips and edits of various pieces of that original manuscript.  I took what was left after excising what is now book 1, and started to flesh it out.  Without all of the history and background explanations, there was a lot more room to focus on the plot and characters and developing the story, and soon I had a novel.  Then two novels...in addition to the other novel I had already taken out.  From one manuscript.

And that, friends, is the writing and editing history of the last two years of my life.  I've been wrestling with a bear, trying to make complete plots and catch continuity errors, and oh yeah, this entire story used to be told in the first person.  :P

The relief I am feeling right now, that I can finally proceed to a rewrite and edit of book 4 (tentatively titled Pale Hound), which was originally book 2, is immense.  Let's hope it's smooth sailing from here.  In any case, thank you all for your patience--stay tuned for the pre-order around January 14th-18th ish.

Al