7/17/22
I feel like I always write better in the summer. I want to say it has something to do with sunshine, warm air, or the happy cheeping of birds, but the reason is actually much more mundane. I take a vacation from work in the summer, which means I have a lengthy amount of time to de-stress and refocus. When I'm not exhausted, my brain starts swirling on all sorts of plot ideas, most of which I'm really hoping to get onto paper in the near future. Here are a few:
That's all I have for the moment, but it's only July. Maybe I'll come up with something more (particularly some plot ideas for the far too many stories I'm stalled on), but I also think these are more than enough to keep me occupied for a while. I'll keep everyone in the loop as I progress with writing. For now, I'm working on edits for Coven, the first book in my Witch's Circle series, but once that's back to the editor, I will return to writing!
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6/10/22
I have a bunch of good things to share with you all! Let's start with upcoming releases. The reprints of Space Stars and The Oracle's Flame have both completed the proofing stage of the editing process. I have seen both covers, and they're amazing. All the books need are ARCs and a release date, which means they should be ready very soon. The remaining five books in my Oracle's Series are all with a proofer right now, so they're only one step behind. This includes the brand new final book in the series, The Oracle's Current. Aside from completing those proofs as they come in, I will have a bit more editing to accomplish this summer. I have been informed the first book in my brand new Witch's Circle trilogy is with an editor! This is the first step in the lengthy process of getting it published, but after a long wait, I'm incredibly excited to see Coven moving forward. I expect to have more good news to share about this story soon. And here's that good news! The latter two books in the trilogy, Hunter and Witch have been accepted for publishing at NSP! In NSP's response, they said they really liked them and that the trilogy as a whole was excellent. I will keep everyone in the loop as these two stories progress through the publishing process. In addition to that, NSP also accepted my mermaid fairy tale Water's Price for their NSP Shorts collection, so I'll keep you appraised of that story as well. My last bit of good news is that I have been writing! Unfortunately, it's not any of the stories on my to do list, but as far as I'm concerned, writing is writing. I don't have a title for it yet, but the premise of the story is the king gets poisoned and his identical twin has to step in to keep the kingdom from collapsing all while desperately trying to find a cure. In comes the handsome prince from the neighboring kingdom, and...drama. I've written approximately 10k words so far, so I've reached the drama portion of that explanation. There's also a lot of lava. I'm 50/50 on whether this story will be a stand alone, or whether I'll put it in with my second fairy tale anthology. If it ends up being longer than 30k, it'll be a stand alone, but there's too much for me still to write to be able to estimate the final word count just yet. Once I know that (and have a working title), I'll get it up on my Current Projects page. 5/22/22
I just realized how long it's been since I've posted! My books are all moving along, so I keep thinking I'll have something significant to share really soon. And then I never end up posting anything... Anyway, all six books in my Oracle Series are basically ready for publishing. I'm waiting on ARCs for the first few and final proofs for the last few. The new covers are gorgeous, so I'm very much looking forward to posting about them. I expect The Oracle's Flame will be available for pre-order in the very near future. Once I learn more, I'll definitely share it, because I know you all have been anxiously waiting for this series as much as me. In other news, I submitted three brand new books to NSP for their consideration. The latter two books in my Witch's Circle trilogy had been sitting around for a while, so I was glad to send them in. Hopefully NSP likes them both! I also decided to submit one of the fairy tales I recently finished writing. It's a Little Mermaid rewrite (of sorts) that is too short for traditional publishing, but is perfect for NSP's Shorts collection. It's one of the stories I'm planning to include in my second fairy tale anthology, but I thought it might be nice to give everyone a hint of what is to come. On the writing front, things have been less successful and I unfortunately don't foresee that changing this summer. I have been so busy at work, that by the time I get home I'm totally burned out. Then I need the entire weekend to recover. I've been fitting editing in, but that's about it. My summer is going to be crazy too. I am hoping things will calm down by autumn. In the meantime, I'll try to keep up with my blog posting a little better! 3/11/22
I know it's been a while since I've posted anything. It's also been a while since I had a book come out! Let me fill everyone in: NSP is reorganizing their release schedule to provide dates that allow for more promotion and such. During that process, my last few reprints were shuffled around, and got bumped from their original proposed release dates. The new process is once a book has completed copy edits, it will be added to a schedule, and only then will I know a tentative release date. I have just finished a ton of copy edits, so I'm hopeful my next post will have a bunch of information on when they'll be available for purchase. For now, here's where all of my books that NSP has accepted for publishing stand: Books with completed copy edits right now include:
I expect to have more information to share on all those stories really soon. On a happier note, I have been writing a bit. Mostly in drips and drabs. I've been so busy with real life (and copy edits) that squeezing writing in continues to be an adventure. However, as you can see from above, I am almost done with all the reprints, which means I will definitely be able to return to writing really soon! 1/23/22
Two years of pounding out reprints, desperately trying to ensure my readers don't miss out on any of my books all while working a full time job, has taken its toll. I'm definitely feeling the burn out. It's not just that I haven't been able to write nearly as much as I would like; I've also not been posting on my blog as much either. I truly enjoy interacting with my readers, but it has been months since I had the time or energy to put together something and post it. With all that said, I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Just last week the final book in my Dragon's Hoard series, Melting the Ice Witch, was re-released. The only series yet to be reprinted is my Oracle series, and The Oracle's Flame, book one, should be arriving really soon (release date to come). In fact, my editor and I are already working on The Oracle's Sprite, book four, which means there is only one more reprint after that! Now is the time to start looking toward the future and what's next for my writing. Right now, I have two brand new books accepted for publishing at NSP: The Oracle's Current, the sixth and final book of my Oracle series, and Coven, the first book in my Witch's Circle trilogy. In addition to that, Hunter and Witch, the latter two books in that series, are ready for submission as soon as NSP is ready. I also have a fairy tale I'd like to submit to NSP's "Shorts" collection, but am waiting for my editor to have time to breathe before I send her that too. 2022 is therefore set in terms of what books will likely come out. My focus therefore must be getting books ready for 2023. That sounds like a long way off, but in the publishing world it really isn't. Over the last few weeks I've written small bits in Codified and Dragon Spy, and the aforementioned fairy tale will be part of a new collection I'm also working on. I can't make any promises as to what I might finish next, but I am looking forward to being done with reprints so I can focus exclusively on my new stuff, and can write blog posts about it much more often. 9/15/21
The incessant editing is finally starting to slow down now that more of my books have been re-released, which means I actually have time to focus on my writing. It's a very nice change, and it's really making me look forward to when the reprinting process is done and I can return to a more normal writing schedule. I was able to complete Witch, the third and final book in my Witch's Circle trilogy. The original epilogue grew too large, so I turned it into another chapter instead. That meant when I started working on the new epilogue, I was able to keep it short and sweet. Witch will now sit for a while to marinate, after which I will give it an edit and format it for publishing. Hunter, the second book in the trilogy, is ready to be submitted to NSP. As soon as I have a free moment I will send it in for consideration, however my schedule for the next few weeks is insane so that probably won't be until October at the earliest. Given the first book in the trilogy, Coven, won't be available until mid to late 2022, I'm not in a rush to get the last two books submitted. I added a large chunk to Dragon Spy as well. I was finally able to get two of the main players to meet, which means the drama can really begin. Spy has a long way to go, but it's been so long since I was able to work on it I'm taking even this little bit of progress as a victory. I have decided to trim it down to two points of view, instead of the three the original outline had, which makes it flow a lot better. You'll hear from Nickel and Alloy, and it's Alloy whom I'm going to put through the ringer. Nickel's POV is needed to help with the overall plot, and he'll have an adventure of his own, but poor Alloy's story is going to be center stage. The only other book on my active to-do list is Shiver and Quiver from my new attempt at a fairy tale anthology. The entire story is plotted out, I just have to find the time to write it. It's growing in bits and pieces and I'm probably about halfway through, but it's still going to take a bit more time. Once this story is complete, I'll get to work on the second story in the group, but, as I said in an earlier post, it will very likely be years before this anthology is done and in your hands. For anyone who celebrates Yom Kippur, I hope you have a g'mar chatima tova, a good and meaningful fast. 7/17/21
Coven, the first book in my Witch's Circle series, was accepted for publishing at NSP! We haven't officially signed the contract, but I'm super excited. By the time Coven is released (best guesstimate is the end of 2022), I will be done with reprints. I can't wait to return to a more normal writing and publishing schedule, and Coven is the first step in that process. Hunter, the second book in the series, is also completely written. I was in the process of giving it one last edit before I format it for submission, but I had to pause temporarily because I received more edits. I hope to have Hunter submitted for consideration with NSP within the next few weeks. I am still writing Witch, the third book. I am stuck on the final sentence for the book, and then I have to write a quick epilogue, which I already have planned out. Hopefully I'll be done writing it soon! Unfortunately, that's it for the writing front. I haven't had time to work on anything else. June was incredibly busy both at work and in life, and I've spent the first half of July catching up on all the little things that fell by the wayside, i.e. laundry. The latter half of July is mostly open, so I hope to finish Witch and return to working on some of my other languishing works in progress. However, that depends on what edits I receive. I recently completed the second round of edits for Ground of Resurrection. That means editing for all my upcoming releases through October are in progress. I am waiting on edits from the proof reader and copy editor for all those books, which is a good sign they are on schedule for their respective release dates. Road to Home is currently scheduled for November, so I expect to start working on the first round of edits for that book soon. As long as the edits continue to go smoothly (and as long as my real life isn't too busy) I will hopefully be able to get in some writing time as well. Maybe by the end of 2022, my publishing life really will be back to normal! 7/1/21
The past few months have been crazy with book releases. One after another, until I could barely keep up with my promotional posts. I finally have a bit of a break, so instead I want to let you know about everything else I've been working on. Editing: I can't believe how much editing I've gotten done. We're well past the halfway mark for getting all my books re-released, and we're also finally getting to some of my older stories. As you saw last month, Finding the Wolf, my OG book, was re-released. We've also started working on the edits for Breaking the Shackles, book two in The Dragon's Hoard series. One of my other early series, Road To, is also in the editing process. Road to Revenge is almost ready for a July release and I expect to start working on the second book's edits soon as well. Don't worry, my editor and I have been working on some of my newer stuff too. We've made a lot of progress editing Ground of Insurrection, so that will be ready for release in August. That also means the book I know a lot of you have been waiting for, Ground of Resurrection, has also started the editing process. I am almost done with the first round! (For those of you who remember, Resurrection was supposed to come out the day before LT3 closed, so readers have been forced to wait an extra two years to get their copy.) Writing: I'm still writing, but not the books I need to be focusing on. I have finally come up with a series title for the circle stories I've been working on. I'm going to be blatant and call it the Witch's Circle Series. I submitted Book One, which I've decided to title Coven, to NSP. I hope to hear yea or nay soon. Book Two, which I've tentatively titled Hunter, still needs to be edited one last time, but it's close to being complete. I was working on what I thought was the epilogue for Book Three, tentatively titled Witch or Wolf (I haven't decided which yet), but it's gotten so long I think I'm going to make it another chapter instead. This means I still have to finish the final chapter and write the epilogue, but the story is turning out really good, so I'm excited to be finished with the trilogy. Similarly to many of you, I love rewritten fairy tales. (Hence why A Little Fairy Dust exists.) I recently came up with an idea for two more stories, and have decided to therefore start a brand new anthology. The first story is a Beauty and the Beast rewrite set in the same world as Red Apple Witch. I have the basic idea fleshed out, but I haven't figured out the villain yet so this story is still in the planning stages. The other will be the title novel for the anthology, called Shiver and Quiver, My Little Tree. Although I wrote a number of Cinderella stories in Fairy Dust, they were all based on Perrault's version of the story. This one will be loosely based on The Brothers Grimm version instead. I'm a third of the way through and loving it so far. That said, A Little Fairy Dust took me five years to write and two of the stories were reprints. It will definitely be a while until you see the final product. What about Dragon Spy, you ask? I haven't written anything more just yet, but it is definitely next on my to-do list. Hopefully I'll get to it soon! 1/30/21
Every time I mention I'm having an issue with my house, someone invariably nods sagely and says "the joys of home ownership". Every time! I'm wavering on whether it's actually joyful. I bought a house because I couldn't stand to stay in my noisy, smelly, and annoying apartment, and I don't regret that decision at all. However, to date I have had to replace every single appliance in my kitchen, my furnace, my AC, and now my water heater. (Finding water leaking into my basement Wednesday morning was less than ideal.) I'm waiting for that moment where home ownership is stress free, when I can simply enjoy having my own space without worrying something else is going to go wrong. At this point, I don't think I'm going to reach that stage until after I've rebuilt the entire house from scratch, but one day I know I will achieve the elusive joy of home ownership. On a happier note, I have seen the first draft of the cover for Magnified. It blew me away! I can't wait to share it. Also, all the edits are done for Magnified, so it is completely ready to go for its March release. I have also completed the second round of edits for Wounded Alpha, so that's on pace for an April release. I haven't had much time for writing these past few weeks. My untitled Circle stories are still going well, which is nice, but I haven't had a moment to dig into any of my other works in progress. I am thinking of scraping the third book in my Wizard Wars series. I'm not sure the overarching story warrants a third book, and my efforts to force one to happen anyway aren't going well. Maybe that will change once the first two books are released again, but for now I'm setting it aside to focus on more pressing books. Now that my home ownership issues have (presumably) been solved, I plan to focus my free time on writing rather than on calling plumbers. Wish me luck! 1/15/21
The installers got to my house a little after eight this morning, worked all day, and by 4 PM I had a new furnace! Right now my house smells like whatever crud is burning off the new furnace, but that toasty marshmallow/acetone smell is still better than the burnt oil stench I've been enduring the last few months. Once everything is burnt off, I'm hoping I won't even notice when my furnace is on. I have received the first round of edits for Wounded Alpha. This is a brand new, never before published story, so I'm incredibly excited it's moving closer to being released! My amazing editor really likes the story too. I am hoping to finish this round of edits this weekend so the story can continue moving along in time for its April release date. I have also had a lot of success on the writing front. My witch/vampire/werewolf story is complete. It needs a lot of edits. I started writing the sequel, which is when I realized I needed to fix a couple of things in book one to ensure I had proper continuity. After I fix things in book one, I'm going to set it aside until the sequel is also done, just in case I find something else I want to change. At some point I will also have to come up with book and series titles, but for now I'm just going to enjoy writing again. |
Coming Soon
Gifting a Dragon's Heart
March 19, 2024 Soul Bond
January 30, 2024 Twin Elements
October 17, 2023 Witch
April 15, 2023 AuthorMell Eight is an author writing with NSP. For more information about Mell and her writing, please visit her website: http://melleightfiction. Tags
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