Category: - Mell Eight's Writing Blog

News: Dates and Edits

10/7/2017

10/15/17

I'm so glad to hear everyone is enjoying Dragon Lesson! All the reviews have been positive so far and it's really wonderful to know that the next book in the series is just as anticipated as the previous ones. I'm still writing the next book, which will feature Nickel and Platinum again (and will probably have Lumie and Goldie popping in and out throughout) and will continue the new arc. It's going to take a while before it's ready, especially considering how many other projects I have going at the moment, so until then feel free to check out all the other books in the series.

The next book I have coming out is Hadash Aviv, which is a reprint. It was originally published as part of LT3's Kiss Me at Midnight collection and while in print was nominated for a Goodreads M/M Romance Member's Choice Award for Best Law Enforcement. All the edits for the story have been completed and I can tell you not much has changed. The edits fixed a few word choices and a couple of commas, but the overall content is the same. If you own the previous printing, there is no reason to buy this one unless you want the new cover (which is awesome). For those that haven't read Hadash Aviv before, the official release date is December 13, 2017. It should be up for preorder at LT3 any day now.

Kelpie Blue is the next story on my upcoming list. I was given a release date of January 31, 2018, which coincided with my receiving the first round of edits. The edits are not easy. The editor wants a lot of big things tweaked, which will require multiple rounds of edits. I've been working hard on them, but I'm not certain January is entirely doable. I'll let you all know how it goes and whether LT3 decides to make any changes.

News: Submissions and Writing

8/19/2017

8/19/17

I read through both stories I completed last month and they have ended up in totally different directions. The Coup and the Prince was first and I quickly realized that the story wasn't ready yet. I made a bunch of changes and have decided to let it sit for another week or two. At that point I'll pick it up again. I then took a look at If A Butterfly Don't Fly and I am super happy with it! I went ahead and submitted it to LT3 and I'm hoping they like it too. I will let you know what LT3 decides.
There still hasn't been any word on the stories I'm waiting on. I submitted Ground of Insurrection almost two months ago, so I'm hoping to hear whether LT3 accepted it any day now. I also haven't had any news about Kelpie Blue in five months. I don't know what LT3 is thinking about for release dates, but I could have the first round of edits in my inbox tomorrow or two months from now. The reprint of Hadash Aviv is in a similar position to Kelpie Blue: no projected release date and edits that could appear at any time. I am hoping to have some news to share for all three stories soon, so keep an eye out for my post about it.
The reviews for Justified have been stellar. Readers are liking it even more than Magnified. I really enjoyed writing Justified, so it's wonderful to hear how much you all are also enjoying it. Codified, the third and final book in the series, still has a ways to go before it's completed. I'm hoping to have it ready sometime next year.

News: Hadash Aviv and Writing

3/28/2017

3/28/17

LT3 saw my last post and offered to work with me regarding Hadash Aviv. There is a lot of work to do, but man, oh man, did I jump for joy when I got that email. Hadash Aviv is the first story I wrote where every word I put on the page meant something to me. There's a lot of me in there. Hadash Aviv went on to be nominated for M/M Romance's Member's Choice Award for Best Law Enforcement, which was the very first story I ever had that received any recognition. There's a special place in my heart for Hadash Aviv and that's why I wanted to get it reprinted so badly. Of course, because I love Hadash Aviv so much, editing on my own when I'm so close to the story is probably impossible. Working with an editor will be painful, but it's absolutely necessary to get this story perfected for reprinting. I can't wait to see how it turns out!
I've been getting a lot written in my Rapunzel-themed fairy tale. It's kind of quirky and I doubt anyone's reworked the original tale quite as much as I have for this story, but it's a ton of fun to write. I've gotten the prince up the tower and now I need to introduce the witch (in this case a wizard) into the equation. There's still a romance to plan and after that is the big battle and the reconciliation, so there's plenty to write, but this story is growing nicely. Hopefully I'll come up with a title soon too.
I think I've figured out where I was stuck in A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes. Originally this was just going to be a Cinderella themed story, but I think I need to tie in some aspects from Sleeping Beauty (or another fairy tale with an incapacitating issue) so the villainous plot makes sense. I also need to change the title. There's some copyright issues since it's the title of a song from the Disney movie, plus it doesn't entirely fit with the overall theme of the story any more. Titles are hard, but something should come up as I keep writing. My plan is to finish my Rapunzel story first and then return to this one next.
Speaking of title issues, The Dragon's Hoard Short Stories finally has a real title. LT3 rightfully intervened and together we came up with Gathering the Hoard. What do you think?

News: Writing Continues

3/26/2017

3/26/17

I have begun writing book seven of my Supernatural Consultant series. I'm almost finished with the prologue, which will connect this new story to the end of Dragon Spy as well as fully connect the new arc started in Spy with the hints I dropped in Dragon Deception and Dragon Dilemma. Unfortunately, the prologue is the only part of the story I have planned out at the moment. I'll need to return to planning the rest of the book once the prologue is completely written. I haven't figured out a title for the book yet either. What I do know is Nickel and Platinum will be the main characters. There will still be considerable input from Lumie, but after what happens to him in Dragon Spy, Lumie needs a bit of a break. Right now I'm expecting book eight to return to Lumie's point of view.
You won't believe how many questions I've received about when the second half of Ge-Mi will be released. It's almost as many as when readers have asked for more Tori or more Lumie. The reception this story has gotten is amazing and has galvanized me into starting work on part two. There is a lot of work to still do for this story, but putting together the overall plot and much of the research was done for part one. I'm hoping that means writing part two will go faster, but I can't make any promises.
Most of my writing time has been spent working on some of my fairy tales. I am currently writing three different fairy tales and am hoping to rewrite a fourth. If I combine those with my two fairy tale stories that recently went out of print, I feel like I could have a nice compilation. There's still a ton to write, but I'm really enjoying putting these stories together so I hope to have some of them completed soon.
I have been wracking my brain, trying to figure out what to do with Hadash Aviv. For those of you who don't remember, Hadash Aviv was my cute little contemporary crime thriller that recently went out of print. I absolutely adore this story and I want to get it reprinted, but it's too short. LT3's (and most publishers) minimum word count for stories they'll accept is 10k, but Hadash Aviv is only 7k. I've read through the story and I'm concerned that adding another 3k words will ruin the flow. I could release it as a free story, but that isn't fair to the people that purchased a copy. I thought about pretending it was a Beauty and the Beast inspired story so I could slip it into my fairy tales, but it's really not. Hadash Aviv will unfortunately continue to sit on my computer until I can come up with a solution.

Going Out of Print: Hadash Aviv

3/6/2016

I know I am known for my books with dragons soaring through the skies and making terrible messes on the ground. I also know that most of my readers follow me because of those dragons. However, every once in a while a bug bites me and I decide to write in a different genre. Hadash Aviv, part of LT3's Kiss Me at Midnight collection, was the first contemporary story I've ever written, and it's probably also one of my absolute favorite stories that I've put together.

The original collection call was for stories of less than 10k words centered around the theme of New Years. I got an idea and was so inspired I wrote Hadash Aviv in one sitting. I can still remember my first images of a little boy walking towards the Israeli soldiers with a bomb sewn into his teddy bear. The way Aviv tugged at my heartstrings because his story, while fictional, was all too true in the real fight Israelis are trying to survive today gave me all the incentive I needed to start writing his story. Hadash Aviv is Hebrew for New Spring, or a new life started over where happiness, instead of bombs, could be the focus of Aviv's life. Putting Hadash Aviv together was also exciting for me because it was the first time I was using my background in counter terrorism, which I had studied for years at the undergraduate and graduate levels. I did my very best to keep the story grounded in fact and real world truths based on that education and my own experiences living in the Middle East and was very happy with what resulted.

Hadash Aviv will therefore always hold a special place in my heart, full of firsts and much loved characters. However, there's another reason I love Hadash Aviv and that's the future it guided me to in my writing. My success with Hadash Aviv prompted me to write Road to Revenge and Road to Home, my two contemporary thrillers set in the Middle East. They didn't sell, most likely because most of my readers were wondering where the dragons had vanished to, but they did give me courage. If I could put a large part of my education and personal experiences into those two books, why couldn't I do that with more of my stories? This eventually led to Magnified.

Magnified is one of the most involved stories I've ever written. It has multiple plot lines, intrigue, and Judaism. I've never been shy about the fact that I'm Jewish, but I've never before had the guts to have a Jewish main character fighting with magic and dealing with vampires. My paranormal and fantasy stories have all been strictly secular. Thanks to Hadash Aviv I learned that I could put more of myself into my stories and make it work. My Magnified series has lots of magic, and--eventually--dragons, but it also has things that I use every day that are intrinsically part of me like Judaism. It took courage to write Magnified and I can't emphasize enough how pleased I am with the results.

As Hadash Aviv goes out of print at the end of this month I can't help feeling nostalgic. It's as if the end of an era has arrived. Yet, at the same time I know that the future of my writing has only grown and will continue to grow stronger. If you don't own it yet, Hadash Aviv is currently on sale at LT3 for 50% off until it officially goes out of print on March 31st. Unfortunately, Hadash Aviv is too short to be republished as a stand alone, so if you're interested in reading it this is your final chance to get a copy before the doors close on this story forever.

Here's the link if you want to get a copy: https://lessthanthreepress.com/books...

News:

1/2/2014

1/2/14

The New Year has come and it has brought lots of snow with it. I am quickly getting snowed in, but it looks like just the right kind of snow to make snowmen. Fun will be had.
I have two fun things to share in regards to The Oracle Series. The first is that the edits for The Oracle's Hatchling are sitting on my desktop. They seem to be pretty straightforward--no major re-writes like in the first book--so Hatchling should be ready to go on time! I have also seen the first draft of the cover and it is beautiful! The amazing artist is doing a quick color change and then I should have it up and ready for you to see too.
On the writing front my muses have taken control and won't let go. I wanted to get a large chunk of The Oracle's Golem finished this past weekend, but every time I tried my muses said "what if you do this or change that in Magnified?" and I got yanked away. The bottom line appears to be that until I finish writing Magnified I won't get anything else done. Of course, the issue is that I don't quite know how I want Magnified to end. Until I figure out that important bit, I'm left floundering on how to tie the major plot twists together so it turns into a cohesive book. I think I'm going to set my muses a deadline of January 31st and if Magnified isn't completely written by then I'm going to force them to move on to something else. Wish me luck!
No word on either of my submissions just yet, but publishing companies deserve a few days off on the New Year's too. I also don't yet know how Hadash Aviv did in the M/M Romance poll. I'm sure I'll hear soon. I just hope it's all good news.

News:

12/18/2013

12/18/13

There’s not much happening right now. I’m still plugging away at my stories. I’m hoping to have something ready to submit by the end of January, but there’s still a lot of writing to go.
The 2013 M/M Romance Group’s Member’s Choice Awards are still ongoing. If you haven’t voted yet, please do. Hadash Aviv was nominated in the Best Law Enforcement category and could use your support! You don’t have to be a member of the group to vote: http://www.esurveyspro.com/Survey.aspx?id=31dc63a9-f374-40b9-a220-b3aad4f2ba0d
The edits for Heart’s Tournament are back with the editor. I’ve done my research and I’m hoping that the issues with the age of my characters has been resolved. Who knew toddlers couldn’t climb walls? Not me, apparently.
I have seen a first draft of the cover for Wings of the Stars. It's a work in progress, but I know if will turn out all right. I can’t wait to show it off here!

Hadash Aviv is Nominated at the M/M Romance Group Awards!

12/10/2013

12/10/13

The 2013 M/M Romance Group's Member's Choice Awards are live! There are many amazing books to choose from including Hadash Aviv, which was nominated in the Best Law Enforcement category. If you're interested, please go vote. You don't have to be a member. http://www.esurveyspro.com/Survey.aspx?id=31dc63a9-f374-40b9-a220-b3aad4f2ba0d

News

1/17/2013

1/17/13

Stealing the Dragon is in the publisher's hands. LT3 will have it ready for pre-order very soon! I will be going on a blog tour to promote Stealing and the rest of the Dragon's Hoard Series starting in February. More info to follow so stay tuned!
I've been working with LT3 to get the print version of my submission to Kiss Me at Midnight, Hadash Aviv, ready for publishing. I expect it to come out sometime in early February, but those dates are subject to change. I can't wait to see it, because I know it will be excellent!

News for the New Year

1/11/2013

Here's the great news for the New Year!

As of 1/9/13, LT3's Kiss Me at Midnight anthology part 1 is out!!! Please check out my submission: Hadash Aviv

New beginnings come in many different forms. Aviv's started with a bomb in Gaza and a friendly American soldier who turned his life around. But pomegranate trees only bloom in the spring and aviv is a long way off. Can a chance meeting at anew year's party finally bring Aviv's new beginning into flower?

On 2/6/13, book three of my Dragon's Hoard Series, Stealing the Dragon, will be out

Stealing from a dragon's hoard is never a bright idea, but stealing from a baby dragon's hoard can lead to tears, sniffles,and smoke in the middle of a busy marketplace.

Jerney, a witch who does work for a well-known thieves' guild,knows exactly who's to blame for the brazen theft. With no other choice in the matter, he quickly becomes entangled in trying to help the baby dragon. What he doesn't expect is that his own heart might get stolen in the process.

I also have three more books hanging around LT3's editing boards: My submission to their Rocking Hard Anthology, My Truest Love. The fourth, and final, book in the Dragon's Hoard, Melting the Ice Witch is set to arrive in stores 6/4/13. And, my newest book, Road to Revenge, has been accepted by LT3 as well! Check out my Coming Soon section on my website for more info! I'm hoping all three will be out this year.

My final piece of news is that I have the cover for the print addition of The Dragon's Hoard. This paperback book will be all four stories in the Dragon's Hoard series bound together into one delicious volume. I have no idea when it will be out, only that it will be sometime after Melting the Ice Witch. Isn't the cover beautiful!!