3/30/24
For many reasons this week has both dragged and gone way too fast. Every time I looked at a clock, it felt like the hands were moving backward, and yet I blinked and suddenly it was already Friday! I can't really put how odd this feels into words, so instead let me explain everything I've been up to this week. First of all, the response for Gifting a Dragon's Heart has been beyond positive. Not a single bad review, which is almost unheard of! You all really seem to have enjoyed my quirky sci-fi/fantasy crossover story. For anyone that missed it, Gifting is available for purchase at most major retailers. My next story on the docket for release is The Chef, which is completely different in style to Gifting a Dragon's Heart. Beyond the fact that The Chef is almost double the length of Gifting, it also has a lot more world building and a slower build up to the romance and the plot. I received the first round of edits for The Chef this week. It's amazing how much more time and effort editing 60k words is compared to all the shorter stories I've been releasing. I was so excited to be working on The Chef again, but this was another instance of the clock moving in the wrong direction. I'd think I had made a lot of progress and was enjoying the opportunity to play with this story again, and then I'd realize I had only finished five pages. In a 20 to 30k story, five pages is a ton. In a 60k story that's barely scratching the surface. Lol It took me all week to return The Chef to my editor for round two. Despite that, my goal is still to write more longer works so this process has been very rewarding. Speaking of writing, I added another chapter to the third book in the trilogy, The Spy, which concludes the fun that began in The Chef. I've finished the needed introductory parts to the second half of the story and now it's time to dive into the meat of the plot as the climax for this book and the series takes off. The Spy is currently 35k words long and I believe I have enough outlined to get it to 50k, which would put it in the longer range for my books. I had to pause writing this story when the edits for The Chef came in, so I hope I can jump back in where I left off. I want to finish writing The Spy as quickly as possible because there are a ton of other plots dancing around in my head, asking for their turn. If a book is listed on my Current Projects page, it is one of those stories demanding I write them too. The problem is if I start working on one of them, The Spy won't get finished. That's what happened with my Magnified trilogy; I got distracted by other series and plots, and now it feels too daunting to go back and finish the last book. Codified is absolutely still on my to-do list, but so is Dragon Spy and Vivary Tales, and the list goes on. There's a lot to look forward to, so I'm excited to see where the next few weeks of writing take me!
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3/17/24
In fact, I have a book coming out in two days! For anyone who pre-ordered with NSP, you can read Gifting a Dragon's Heart right now! For everyone else, Gifting will come out at most major retailers on Tuesday. This fact literally dawned on me about an hour ago. I did send out a proper cover reveal in my newsletter a little over a week ago, but I also meant to re-post it here. I also wanted to do some more hype. Somehow, none of that happened. If I say I was distracted with writing The Spy, does that excuse me for not remembering to advertise properly? Probably not. Lol A combination of things have kept me totally fried. You remember from my previous blog post about how I was starting to catch up from being behind? Yeah, that failed. I'm still behind on everything. Work has been kicking my butt lately, so all I have the energy to do when I get home is nuke some leftovers and collapse onto the couch to watch anime. Weekends are therefore filled with all the things I couldn't get accomplished on the weeknights, and therefore aren't as relaxing or rejuvenating as usual. Truth is, I can find plenty of excuses as to why Gifting has inadvertently fallen by the wayside. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel! I am taking a lot of vacation very soon, and I am hoping the R&R will get me back on my feet. I will be traveling for fun and I'll be going home for the holidays next month. I'll tell you all about the traveling when I'm done, but I'm really excited! Anyway, Gifting a Dragon's Heart is available to read right now at NSP, and available for preorder at most major retailers until it comes out on March 19th! Please go and get your copy today! In the meantime, I have actually been writing. The Spy continues to go well. I have had a couple of fun ideas for my characters that are helping to bring the major plot points together, one of which I'm particularly eager to start writing in the next chapter. I also got a new idea for one of my older stand alone stories that was languishing. I'm hopeful that this idea will lead to something and I'll be able to get another story off my to-do list. We'll see. 2/21/24
Today it feels as if I'm behind on everything. One of the things I'm delinquent on is keeping all of you in the loop about my stories, so writing this post is a good start at catching up. There's a lot of information about what's going on to share, so here we go! The reception and reviews for Soul Bond have been excellent. Everyone seems to have enjoyed my Valentine's-themed short story! Mixing illegal magic with a good mystery and sweet romance appears to be what everyone wants to read this time of year. I don't currently have any plans for more short stories, but I will make sure not to ignore a plot bunny for one should it hop into my brain. Gifting a Dragon's Heart is my next story getting released. You can pre-order it at NSP, Amazon, or Smashwords right now! If you want, you can also add it to your Goodreads list, where positive ARC reviews are already coming in. Gifting officially comes out on March 19th, just over a month away. As usual, if you pre-order with NSP, you can get it four days early. For a sneak peak of the cover, head over to any of those sites. I should have the official graphic to share really soon! The Prince, book two in my Princes of Toval series, was accepted for publishing with NSP! I'm really happy, as this means it's just as good as the first book, The Chef. I expect the editing process for The Chef to begin really soon, but The Prince likely won't start that process until fall. I've made great progress writing the third book in the trilogy, The Spy. I have written over 30k words, which is more than halfway. I will definitely reach 50k total words, although I'm still aiming for closer to 60k. There was some major action right before the halfway point, which means this story needs to enter a lull as I set things up for the final punch. Making sure the slower build-up is as interesting as the fast-paced action is always a good challenge so I'm very hopeful the next few scenes turn out. 1/21/24
I have been so busy with writing stuff and chores lately, which is phenomenal! I'm feeling really accomplished. I know this level of work ethic will fade away whenever whatever adrenaline or manic energy fueling it is used up, but I'm taking advantage while I can. The most exciting thing is Soul Bond is completely ready for release. Those who pre-ordered at NSP will get their copy in a few short days. I expect the purchasing information for other retailers to be available imminently, and I will share as soon as it's there. Soul Bond comes out on January 30th! As promised, I pulled out The Prince and gave it a final edit. I was able to shine up some rough spots and I am very, very happy with how it turned out. I went ahead and formatted for submission, and sent The Prince to NSP for their consideration. I do think they'll like it, but I will let you know what they say as soon as I hear. Editing The Prince was exhausting, though, so I did pause in the middle for a mental health break. Rather than work on something else, for some reason I found myself up in my third floor library, putting together a bookshelf that had been languishing in pieces for over two years. If only all my procrastination efforts led to getting old tasks accomplished. Lol Thanks to the bookshelf actually being able to hold things, I was able to take piles of books that had been sitting on the floor and put them away, which means my library is less of a mess than before. I still need at least one more bookshelf, but for now it's a step in the right direction. After The Prince and the bookshelf, I turned toward editing tasks. I received the copy edit for Gifting a Dragon's Heart. The copy editor called the story "sweet" and loved the world building, so I will happily call this story a win. After I finished that, I rewarded myself by working on my latest paint by numbers project. The next step for this book is getting the cover, so I'm very excited! I should also have a potential release date to share soon too. Lastly, I have been writing! The Spy has reached 26k words and I haven't even reached the halfway point. However, I am about to write a big battle scene, after which the plot does shift into the second half. I think there's a good chance this story will reach 60k, so closer to the length from the first book (The Chef). While all the books have very intriguing magic, I'm finding the magic in The Spy to be the funnest, which makes writing this story very interesting. I am hopeful I'll have this story completed in the next few weeks, and can therefore start focusing on some new material soon. 1/1/24
My memory is comprised of Swiss cheese. I swear. I've written three separate posts in the past month, and said "I'll edit and post it after I [insert random activity here]." The realization that I never got around to actually posting came about two days later. By the time I found five free minutes, the contents were obsolete. I ended up writing a new post, and the cycle continued. I swore to myself that this weekend I would absolutely get my post actually posted. (You'll notice today is Monday...so I failed...sigh.) Anyway, I hope everyone had a very happy holiday season and a happy New Year! Here's what I've been working on the past few weeks: The draft of the cover for Soul Bond is absolutely perfect. And pink. I can't wait to share it with you, as it's completely different to every other cover I've ever had. I'm so excited for my fantasy Valentines story to come out. It was so much fun to write, and we're reaching the final countdown to release! Soul Bond is currently scheduled to come out at the end of January. I expect to have pre-order information to share very soon. Gifting a Dragon's Heart has completed both rounds of edits and is off to the copy editor. This story is moving through the editing process at a lightning pace. I expect to have a scheduled release date sometime soon. Generally, NSP likes to schedule releases after copy edits are completed, so keep an eye out for that step in the process. I have gotten a ton of writing done in The Spy, the third book in my Princes of Toval trilogy. I'm at 24k words, which means I've written about 15k in the last three weeks. The Spy is on track for at least a 50k, if not a 60k, final word count. My characters spent a long time stuck in the woods, and I couldn't figure out how to get them moving on to the next bit of plot. Chapter 8 is therefore a good bit longer than I usually want, but I'm finally on to chapter 9 and a new setting. I have almost finished the build-up for the midway point in the book, after which the story switches gears. I'm excited to write the next half, so I'm really hoping to get to work on it soon. My plans for this new year haven't changed from what I've said before. Now that it's January, I get to pull out The Prince, book two in my Princes of Toval trilogy. The Prince will get a final edit, I'll format it for submission, and send it off for NSP's consideration. I'm also expecting the first round of edits for The Chef, book one, very soon. Once I finish writing The Spy, my plan is to see about getting some of my older, languishing stories completed. I have so many ideas for new books, but my to-do list is far too big. Fingers crossed I can finish some of them in the next year! 11/19/23
After all the edits I completed two weeks ago, I hit a wall. Major burnout. Of course, burnout is always coupled with writer's block. Yep, I said the dreaded two words. I completed two rounds of edits for Soul Bond, which is off to the copy editor; one huge round of edits for Gifting a Dragon's Heart, which is back with the editor for round two; and I completed my own edits of The Prince, which is now in hibernation until January. After all of that, all I wanted was a nap. What that means is I haven't written anything more in The Spy in two weeks. I am just starting to work on chapter two, so there's a whole lot of story left to go. I do have all the major plot points mapped out, but getting it all onto paper requires the time and energy I just don't have at the moment. Instead, just this weekend I've washed six loads of laundry (and if there's time, will possibly do a seventh), cleaned one of my bathrooms, vacuumed the entire second floor of my house (which required clearing the floors first), filled, run, emptied, and refilled the dishwasher, and the chores keep coming! It's a never-ending cycle of figuring out what I need to accomplish next. Last weekend I baked apple bread and pecan pie, because those freeze well, and this week I also need to bake pumpkin pie and blondies, all to bring to Turkey Day dinner. I also need to vacuum the first floor of my house sometime after work next week. None of that is conducive to fighting off burnout, so it doesn't look like I'll be able to write at all in this coming week. Maybe after Turkey Day is over and things finally settle down, I'll be able to get back on a more even keel. A lazy winter with no plans to travel or see anyone is exactly what I have coming, so fingers crossed I'll be able to get a ton of writing done then instead! 11/5/23
This weekend has been all about edits. So many edits! First I received edits for Soul Bond, which needed to be completed quickly because of the time crunch. Soul Bond is absolutely adorable, so working on the edits wasn't a chore, but they still took some time. I would say we are ahead of schedule in terms of a February release, but considering mine won't be the only story coming out then, being ahead is a good thing. I expect to have the second round of edits for this story soon. Next I received the first round of edits for Gifting a Dragon's Heart. That is the title my editor and I have decided on. It's shorter and more direct, and still has excellent connections to the book itself. You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart is therefore no more, and I will be referring to this story moving forward as Gifting a Dragon's Heart. The edits for this story took a lot more time, mostly because this story is three times longer. Months have gone by since I last looked at this story, and I forgot how charming it is. The combination of sci-fi and fantasy, plus the very interesting main characters, and I've fallen in love with it again. I'm looking forward to the second round of edits, but those won't be ready for a while. I hope to have more information on release dates to share soon. Once I was done with both of those, I was finally able to return to my own edits for The Prince. I'm really, really happy with how this story turned out. It's got a sweet romance, some great action scenes, and a plot I enjoyed rereading. Despite taking longer than I would have liked, I was able to finish this round of edits. The Prince will now go into hibernation. At this point, I'm thinking late January would be the best time to pull it out again for a last edit and formatting for submission. The timing depends entirely on whether I'm editing other stories then, of course, but I'm already looking forward to getting this story submitted. I wanted to work on The Spy this weekend too, but the edits were too much. Fingers crossed I'll be able to get a lot of writing done this next week, but I have a feeling I'll be getting more edits again instead. Either way, I know it will be fun! 10/31/23
First off, Happy Halloween or Blessed Samhain to everyone who celebrates! I am writing this while waiting to see whether I'll get any trick-or-treater's this year. In past years I haven't gotten any, but I live in hope. My fake pumpkin is lit up (we have critters that eat real pumpkins, so it's fake or nothing), my candy bowl is full, and my porch light is on. We'll see if anyone rings the doorbell. With my luck, it'll be another political solicitor, of which I'm currently averaging one a week. Something about my neighborhood apparently attracts them. No idea why. Also, I'm eating the candy, but that's a different issue. As everyone who reads this blog probably knows, I struggle regularly to come up with titles for my books and my series. I can create a complex magic system and figure out how to incorporate it into a Valentine's Day plot, but deciding on a title for that story took me much, much longer. I eventually decided on Soulbond, simply because that's what the holiday is referred to in the fantasy world of this book. My editor loved the story and NSP has accepted it for publication. (I'm very happy!!!!) But. You guessed it. Soulbond is now Soul Bond, two words, to make it easier for readers to find. I told you my editor is brilliant! She's the one who pointed out something that simple. Soul Bond will presumably be released sometime around Valentine's Day 2024. When exactly is dependent on how editing goes, which should begin this week, and how many other themed stories are coming out at the same time. I'll let you know when I learn more. Another story having title trouble is You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart. The title is apparently too long and will mess up all sorts of formatting. I didn't exactly consider the formatting when I thought of the title, but it's something I'm going to have to remember in the future. My editor offered a couple ideas, and I've thought of some, but finding something perfect is proving difficult. I'm going to have to sleep on it, but if anyone has a good idea, please feel free to share. We will also be starting the first round of edits for this story this week, so I'm hoping inspiration strikes while I'm neck deep in grammar clauses. Since I forgot to formalize it, I did decide on the official title for the series that includes The Chef, The Prince, and The Spy. I'm calling it Princes of Toval, for reasons that become clear in the books. If I tell you why, I might ruin some surprises, particularly in The Spy which I'm writing right now. Thank you so much to everyone who suggested options! I really appreciated it, and it helped me solidify which direction to go in for the series name. 4/14/23
It has been far too long since I wrote a blog post. I've been trying to do better this year about posting, but somehow this past month just slipped through the cracks. Getting ready for Passover, then Passover itself, probably contributed, but I also haven't had much to share. I need to come up with something fun I can post semi-regularly for those lulls. Let me know, do you want something about my writing style, how I come up with my books, or something totally different? I want to share things you're interested in! Luckily, the lull is over! I have great news to share: You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart has been accepted for publishing at NSP! The contract is signed, so I'm hopeful this time next year you'll be able to read my quirky sci-fi/fantasy crossover story with dragons and magic and futuristic technology. You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart is one of those stories that practically wrote itself. I didn't have long pauses or breaks to figure out plot, so it flows really well. I think you'll like it as much as I do, so I'll be sure to share any updates as this story moves through the editing process. Speaking of updates, Hunter, the second book in my Witch's Circle trilogy has gotten some excellent ARC reviews! The book is apparently an excellent continuation from Coven, book one. If you missed it, Coven is available at most major retailers. Hunter comes out on May 9th (less than a month away!!!) and should also be available for preorder at most major retailers soon. If you preorder from NSP, you can get your copy four days earlier than everywhere else. My last update is some of my writing is going really well. The Chef, my story about a chef trying to survive and cook in some difficult situations, is almost completed. I have two more major plot points to write, with some minor stuff mixed in between. This includes the build up to the final fight, the fight itself, and the aftermath. I had initially thought this book would reach 60k words. Then the first half of the story didn't expand as much as I anticipated so I moved the expected count down to 50k. However, the Chef currently stands at 44k, so I think a goal of reaching 55k words is achievable. That said, the overarching plot of the story is nowhere close to being completed. Plus, I realized Char, my main character, is not the correct person to be resolving those issues. This means a sequel is in order! It's going to be called The Prince. I know who the two main characters are and I've plotted out the opening scene, but I can't delve into it more until The Chef is completed. I haven't written anything in any of my other stories, which is sad, but I believe The Chef is good enough to warrant my full attention. Fingers crossed I finish writing The Chef soon, so I can start digging into The Prince and see where this series might take me, and then I can return to some of my other stories as well! |
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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