Tag: Literature

Time capsule inspiration

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The University of California in Santa Barbara has done something wonderful, and I had completely forgotten about it until about a month ago.

I’ve had this short story sitting on my hard drive now for about three years (and yes, short is a relative term), and I finally had both the time and the inclination to get back to working on it. It went through one round of revisions after I’d initially written it, but it’s been so long since I’ve read through it, let alone actually worked on it, that I decided to go back to my standard revision practice of recopying the entire MS and making changes as I went. When I’m done, I’ll type it up and make a few more changes as I type.

But my revision process is beside the point.

Anyway, one of the focal points of the story is…

And now for the review!

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Yes, that’s right, it’s review time! Because nothing says weekend like books, glorious books. 🙂

Okay, fine, nothing says it’s the weekend like sleeping in, but that’s not the point.

Books. That’s the point.

And this book is a fantastic one.

Literally. 🙂

The people here are as harsh as the landscape, but they’re not without their warmth, and in a land of perpetual winter, warmth is important. Heck, even in a world not cursed with perpetual winter, warmth is important. The warmth Marishka finds is not exactly conventional, which makes her story all the more intriguing.

How do you survive as an outcast in a place as harsh as Ingary? Beyond that, how do you thrive?

Read this book and find out. Seriously, read it – if I keep talking, there will be spoilers. 🙂

Bleizgeist is wonderfully evocative and beautifully written, the kind of story that sticks with a person. I can’t wait to read it again.

You can find Bleizgeist for sale at Amazon US and UK, and you can even get it in paperback! And with a cover as beautiful as this one, you’ll want it in paperback. 😉

In case you missed the blurb earlier this week, here ’tis again:

Ingary is a harsh land. Cursed by a perpetual winter, the isolated little town has all but forget why they worship the wolf.

Marked by magic she cannot control, Marishka is an outcast. Alone and starving she is plagued by geiste, the unconscious minds of the people of Ingary, roaming the wilderness as they sleep. Attracted to the gramarye in Marishka’s blood, the geiste give her no rest. Losing herself to madness, she is saved when she chances to fall in love. But when her affair is discovered, all hope is taken from her.

Beaten and lovelorn, she resigns herself to death.

And then the wolf walks through her door, and Marishka recalls the meaning of Bleizgeist—the spirit of the wolf.

And if you were wondering about the author, you can find her at her website as well as on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and at the Bookshine Bandit.

(c) 2015. All rights reserved.

Release day!

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Promo_Banner_AWB_Anthology

That’s right, my lovelies, it’s release day at long last!  Starting today, you can get A World of Their Own to have and to hold, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, till death do you part.

AWB-AWOTOOddly enough, those last two bits have had a profound impact on the making of this book.  A World of Their Own is dedicated to great friend, fabulous author, and beating dragon heart of the Alliance of Worldbuilders, Lindsey J. Parsons, who died unexpectedly in January 2014.  All proceeds from this book will be donated to the World Literacy Fund.

So go on, buy a copy for yourself, your friends, your family, even that baby down the street.  Literacy is not just a privilege – it’s a right.

“A home without books is a body without a soul.”  –Marcus Tullius Cicero

Pick up your copy today, available in paperback (Amazon and Amazon UK) and e-book (here and here), and have a great weekend! 🙂

(c) 2015.  All rights reserved.

Seeking Solace

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Seeking SolaceLast October, I was fortunate to host Callum McLaughlin, a wonderful writer who was publishing a new novel.  Well, today he’s back, this time with a poetry book called Seeking Solace:

Seeking Solace is a collection of sixty poems that span a variety of topics and touch on universal aspects of modern life, from nature and war to friendship, love and grief, with many others in between.

From the very air we breathe to the wholly make-believe, regardless of whether inspiration has come from the world around us or the most whimsical of dreams, the one common thread that unites them all is a desire to create poetry that is both approachable and relatable.

Seeking Solace released earlier this week, and it looks fantastic.  I love reading poetry as much as I love writing it, and this book makes me want to hold on and not let go.  And I haven’t even read it yet!  But how could you not love a book with such a beautiful cover?

Besides, I’ve got an amazing excerpt:

Making memories picture quote

I could stare at this image all day (and indeed, I just might).  But where can you get your copy?  So glad you asked!  Seeking Solace is available from Amazon and Amazon UK, and you can also find it on Goodreads.  And stay tuned, because I’ll be interviewing the author himself in a future post!

Have a great weekend, and enjoy Seeking Solace! 🙂

(c) 2015.  All rights reserved.

Photo 365 #175

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Last night, the sun set on my thirtieth year.  And what a glorious sunset it was!

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See?  Toldja it was pretty. 🙂

It’s been a great birthday today, even if it has left me thinking a lot about my mom.  I’m now the same age she was when she died (or at least I will be come August), and it’s got me thoughtful.  Luckily, I’ve got some great friends who’ve done a fantastic job of keeping my spirits high today, and I want to share the happy with you all.

So!  I’m running a special on Tuesday Daydreams.  From now through Monday, you can pick up a copy (if you don’t have one already) for $1.50 (regular price is $2.99).  Just go to Smashwords and enter coupon code FE67Z at checkout.  You can also pick up a copy at Amazon.

I hope you all have a fabulous Thursday.  See ya back here tomorrow! 🙂

(c) 2015.  All rights reserved.

Photo 365 #168: Revision time

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If you haven’t been following me on Twitter the last couple of days, I’m really ramping up my revision of The Price of Mercy.

revision

This was taken a while ago, but I forgot to snap a newer pic of my revisions this noon, so I went trawling through my archives.  Some time after I took this, I gave up on marking up my hard copy and decided to go straight into rewrite mode.  What that means is that I am literally recopying my hard draft, adding new things and fixing old things as the need arises.

When I started this revision, I’d chopped my book in half.  That left me with a starting page count of ~154.  The latest page count is 295, which means that I’ve done a heck of a lot of rewriting since I started this project!  I still have a heck of a lot more to do, though, and I’m beginning to wonder if a fourth book won’t end up being necessary.  Of course, if that’s the case, then I’ll start worrying that I won’t have enough material to fill a fourth book…

Being a writer is…

Photo 365 #154

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Some people complain about working lunch breaks, but really, I don’t mind them.  In fact, I think they’re a heck of a lot of fun.

lunchbreak

Maybe that’s only because my idea of a working lunch break involves taking off to parts unknown and spending time with all sorts of crazy characters. 😀

(c) 2015.  All rights reserved.

It’s excerpt time!

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Fifth WatcherThat’s right, today’s the day where you get a sneak peak at The Fifth Watcher, Book One of Melissa Barker-Simpson’s Worlds Apart series.  But how did this story come to be?  Well, let’s hear it from the author herself:

I wrote the Fifth Watcher during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) last year. It’s taken a while to get it ready for publication, but there are a few reasons for that. The novel was originally written in third person perspective, and during the first edit I decided to change it to first – not an easy task!

The premise for the story came to me following a discussion with my sister about alternate realities. I saw the protagonist of this tale clearly in my mind and Audrey Montgomery was born. I didn’t give much thought to the  name, it’s who she is. My grandmother’s name is Audrey too, and though both are strong, formidable women, I didn’t base the character on her.

As I like to do…

Cover reveal: The Fifth Watcher!

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image for websiteOne of the best things about participating in blogging events is all the awesome people you meet.  I met fellow author Melissa Barker-Simpson back in April during the Blogging 101 challenge, and have enjoyed getting to know her a bit.  Melissa fills her days with language and words so she doesn’t get lost among the clouds. She is an interpreter by day, and a pen-wielding conjurer by night. Of course the only thing she conjures belong between the pages of a book, but it doesn’t make them any less compelling.

Her most important job, as far as she sees it, is being a mother to two impish teenagers. They keep her feet firmly on the ground, are a huge source of joy (despite the rampant emotions) and allow her to live out her fantasy of being a musketeer!

She spends her time living between different communities, one of them being the (mostly) online writing community and giving back the magic that has touched her life.

Melissa runs a series of blogs, has a thing for collaboration, and enjoys to support others as often as possible.  She’s got a new book coming out soon, and you know me – I love to help an author out.  So it’s with great pleasure and much excitement that I present to you the cover for Melissa’s latest book, The Fifth Watcher, Book One in her Worlds Apart series!

Behold, the pretty, pretty cover …behind the cut!