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