Fairly crazy

July 15, 201421 Comments

treebridge It’s been a whirlwind sort of day around here. I stayed up till 2:00 a.m. reading Inquisitor by RJ Blain, which I’m really enjoying, so I wasn’t exactly ready to rise with the boys this morning at 7:00 a.m. I spent half my day running all over three counties to get last-minute things done for the kids’ fair projects, which are being judged as we speak.

redbloom At last, I have a little bit of peace and quiet to get done the dozen and one other things I have to do today, and I’m so tired I can hardly keep my eyes open.

So. I think I’m just going to go sit down with my candy-coated licorice bites and listen to the birds sing in the trees while I finish reading my book. It’s nice to relax every now and then.

Where is the time going?

July 14, 2014July 14, 20148 Comments

Can you believe it’s Week 7 already? I know I can’t! Here, with some more great summer reads, is author, friend, and fellow Worldbuilder Sammy HK Smith.

Summer Reads Blog Tour – Week Seven

Sammy HK Smith

Week seven is already here, and it’s time to introduce Sammy HK Smith! Sammy is another Authonomy friend who didn’t run away when I send a friend request via Facebook! Some do you know…lol. Anyway, along with others on this Blog Tour, I’ve had the privilege of getting to know her and her writings. You won’t want to miss out on her work and recommendations from Goodreads. Here’ssssss Sammy!

Sammy lives and works in the sunny county of Oxfordshire in the UK with her husband, 14 cats, 2 dogs and hamster, Georgeski. When time allows, she writes. In Search of Gods and Heroes is her first book, and the first of the Children of Nalowyn series.

Between working and writing…

On storytelling

July 9, 2014Leave a comment

“And I would’ve gotten away with it if it wasn’t for you meddling characters!” — every good storyteller ever, unmasked for the monster that they are. –Chuck Wendig, penmonkey extraordinaire

Seriously, go check out that post. Lots of good info.

Summer Reads to take your mind off the weather

July 7, 20143 Comments

Today’s Summer Reads guest is the wonderful Tricia Drammeh, a terrific friend and author. Let’s see which books she recommends!

Summer Reads Blog Tour – Week Six Tricia Drammeh

Super excited to introduce you to Tricia Drammeh! Tricia is another friend that I’ve had the privilege of getting to know over the last several years from a site called Authonomy. It’s a site where writers go to post their manuscripts and have their peers read and critique. I loved her manuscript, her style of writing from the moment I first read her work. It’s really cool to be able to say “I read her original work before it was published!” And now a word from Tricia!

Hi everyone! My name is Tricia Drammeh, and I’m super excited to be a part of the 2014 Summer Reads Blog Tour. I hope you all are finding lots of great books to read this summer. I know I’ve found a bunch and I’d love to share some with you, but first here’s a little about me and my books.

Tricia Drammeh is a wife, the mother of four wonderful kids, and the author of four published novels. She currently lives in New Hampshire with her family. When she isn’t writing, she can be found reading, wrangling cats, or drinking lots and lots of coffee. You can connect with Tricia by visiting her Website or following her on Facebook.

Twenty-three-year-old Karlie is in the type of rut some people never escape from.

In need of a good read? I know I am!

June 30, 2014June 30, 20144 Comments

Here in the Midwest, the last couple of days have been a nightmare, at least at our house (well, part of the time was a lot of fun, but the storms have definitely taken their toll), so I’m glad to have another Summer Reads Blog Tour post to share today. Let’s have a look at the books that fellow Worldbuilder Andrea Baker has chosen, shall we? That oughtta keep my mind off the river forming outside my door, at least for a little while…

Summer Reads Blog Tour – Week Five
Andrea Baker

It’s week five already, and it’s time to welcome Andrea Baker. I had the privilege of meeting Andrea a number of years ago on a forum, we became fast friends and have watched each other’s work develop over the years. It’s always amazing for me to look back and see all the changes we’ve been through. Take a peek at not only Andrea’s reads list, but also her books. You won’t be disappointed!

Andrea Baker has had ideas for stories, and poems all of her life, and as a child and teenager, many of these were written in one shape or another.

As she grew older, and graduated University, she convinced herself that writing was a childhood adventure, and something that she should have grown out of – that these daydreams belonged in the realms of childhood. For many years she stopped herself writing – although her mind continued creating these worlds and stories, she refused to write them down.

Over the last decade, however…

Five more fun facts!

June 27, 2014June 27, 2014Leave a comment

Lipei serves as a source of much consternation to her beloved big brother
Artwork by Hazel Butler

My good friend and fellow Worldbuilder, Andrea Baker, tagged me in the five facts game, and since I’d already considered doing this again for other characters, I was tickled to see I’d been tagged again. 🙂

With that in mind, let’s meet Vegin’s antagonist, shall we?

Fun Facts About Balil Tolhana

Balil is Vegin’s brother-in-law.
He’s a devout priest of the Tolathan order, dedicated to following the teachings of Kiala.
He loathes the royal family and is infuriated when his sister (Lipei) marries the Crown Prince of Lokana (Vegin).
He shares a desire to transform society with his brother-in-law, but goes about it in a much different way.
A complex man, his character is shaped by the loss of his younger brother.

Once again, if you’d like to participate, have at it, and have fun! Happy Friday!

Seven more lines

June 27, 2014Leave a comment

Anná
Artwork by Hazel Butler

The wonderful Sammy HK Smith re-tagged me in the 7/7 challenge, so I decided to share a bit more from The Lokana Chronicles, this time from the second book, tentatively titled Fog of War.

Anna stumbled on a tree root. Her backpack flew from her shoulder and landed somewhere behind her as she went sprawling forward and landed on her stomach. Groaning, she pushed herself up slowly, rising to her feet from a squat. She brushed the dirt and leaves from her clothes as she looked for her backpack, but it was nowhere to be found.

With no flashlight to help her see in the dark woods, she gave up on finding her backpack and took a step forward, causing her leg to throb. She explored her leg with her fingers till she felt something sticky on her right calf – blood. The sickly metallic scent was unmistakable.

If you’d like to join in the fun, have at it! I can’t wait to read more excerpts. 🙂

Another writing challenge

June 25, 20143 Comments

Lipei, the woman for whom Vegin defied his parents
Artwork by Hazel Butler

Yes, I’m doing this on my blog again instead of on Facebook like I’m supposed to. That’s just the way I roll.

I’m a rebel, see. 😉

Okay, no I’m not – this will make its way to Facebook, probably a couple times over, even.

I was tagged by the lovely AFE Smith for this challenge, which is to share five facts about the main character of your book. Then, of course, you have to tag five more people, and so it goes.

Fun Facts About Vegin Martoka

Despite all spelling similarities to the word “vegan,” his name is pronounced differently. It rhymes with “bacon.”
Vegin is an idealist, but feels powerless to fix anything in his kingdom.
His love life, however, is another story. He fights for the right to marry the woman he loves instead of the woman his parents have chosen, and learns in the process that he’s more capable than he thinks.
He shares the same desire for change as his brother-in-law, but disagrees on how to accomplish that change. While Balil wants revolution, Vegin hopes for peaceful progress.
Though he counts himself a follower of Kiala (the deity worshipped in Lokana as the Great Mother), he remains skeptical of the truth he discovers in his father’s bequest.

I’m going to make this an open tag – if you’d like to participate, have at it! Then let me know so that I can read all about your characters. 🙂

The 7/7/7 challenge!

June 23, 20143 Comments

Vegin
Artwork by Hazel Butler

The ever-lovely Will Macmillan Jones tagged me in the 7/7 challenge (or the 7/7/7 challenge – I’ve seen it both ways). It’s a new thing going around Facebook, where you go to the seventh page (or the seventeenth page or the seventy-seventh page) of your current WIP and share seven lines (or seven sentences, whichever you choose). Once finished, you tag seven others to complete the challenge.

Give you one guess which WIP I’m going to quote from. 😀

From the newly-revised page seven, here’s a snippet from The Lokana Chronicles, in which the prince, Vegin, receives a history lesson from his tutor, Surat:

“Garedon was a widower early in life,” Surat began. “The loss of his wife devastated him, for they’d been very much in love. But when the pain of losing her began to fade, loneliness replaced it, and he sought companionship in the less reputable quarters of the city.

“One day, Misranna caught his eye. Garedon was immediately infatuated, and soon he was sneaking off to see her at all hours of the day and night. His father threatened to imprison him for disregarding his responsibilities, but the young prince ignored him.”

Vegin found himself wishing he’d known his great-grandfather. It took guts to stand up to one’s parents so publicly, and he wasn’t sure he’d have had the stomach for it. “So what happened?”

Okay, so this is nine sentences, but I couldn’t very well stop after the first line of that paragraph, and nine lines isn’t so much, is it? Actually, I guess it’s only eight lines (but nine sentences). So see? It’s okay.

And now for the tagging bit! I’ll tag AFE Smith, Kate Jack, MT McGuire, Tricia Drammeh, and Emily McKeon. I know this is a Facebook thing, but I couldn’t resist sharing this with you, too. 🙂

Need a new book? Check these out!

June 23, 2014June 25, 2014Leave a comment

The Summer Reads Blog Tour is here again, and this time the guest is the hilarious Will Macmillan Jones, Comedy Goon of the Alliance of Worldbuilders! To see which books he recommends, scroll down. And don’t forget to head over to host Lisa L. Wiedmeier’s blog, where you can enter to win a whole bunch of fantastic prizes!

Summer Reads Blog Tour – Week Four
Welcome Will Macmillan Jones!

Well, week four of the Summer Reads Blog Tour brings us a dear friend and fellow author, Will Macmillan Jones. Will’s the comedic act in our group with his dry sense of humor, I can’t help but smile when I read his posts or chat away in a lively conversation.

Will Macmillan Jones live in Wales, a lovely green, verdant land with a rich cultural heritage. He does his best to support this heritage by drinking the local beer and shouting loud encouragement whenever International Rugby is on the TV. A fifty something lover of blues, rock and jazz he has just fulfilled a lifetime ambition by filling an entire wall of his home office with (full) bookcases.

His major comic fantasy series, released by Safkhet Publishing, can be found at: www.thebannedunderground.com and information on his other work and stuff in general at…