2/23/20

It's been a very long February for me.  Some unhappy family issues pulled me away from writing for about two weeks, and I'm only now caught up.  That said, a lot has happened recently that I want to fill you in on, so I'm going to write another long post full of fun information.  Read on:

Submissions to NineStar Press:

• Wounded Alpha, Kelpie Blue, If A Butterfly Don't Fly, Magnified, and Justified were all accepted for publishing at NineStar Press!  I'm super excited as I really love these books.  As soon as I have concrete information on release dates, I'll share more, but it won't be until August at the earliest.
  
• I have officially maxed out NSP's release calendar for 2020.  What that means is NSP can't assess any more of my submissions until they create their calendar for 2021.  Everything else I've already submitted to them will therefore have to wait, and I won't be submitting anything more until they tell me it's okay.
  
• I also submitted my Dragon's Hoard series (minus the short stories as I'll have to add one more to get to the length requirement), Elemental Ride, The Coup and the Prince, My Truest Love, and Wings of the Stars.  They're going to have to wait, along with my Road To series, for the 2021 calendar. 
  

Writing:

• I have fixed my Oracle series!  It took a bit of finagling, but I made the changes without having to significantly alter the plot.  The series is officially ready and waiting to submit when NSP gives the okay.  I have also added 1k words to The Oracle's Current, the sixth, and final, book in the series.  The real drama is just starting, and I'm about to introduce the love interest, so I'm really excited about where the story is going.  I'm hoping I can get it completed before The Sentinel's Prophesy is released by NSP (should they accept it, of course).
  

Editing:

• I was able to complete the second round of edits for Dragon Consultant.  I got them back to NSP late because of my family issues, so I don't know if that will effect the release date.  I'm hoping April is still far enough away that it won't, but we'll see.  Next for Consultant is copy edits, which will hopefully arrive soon. 
  
• I am working on the final proofreader's edits for Ge-Mi: Part One.  There's not a lot to do, so I'm hoping to have them completed and back to the editor by today.  That should be it for edits for this book, so I don't foresee any issues meeting the March release date.  I will hopefully have an exact date available for you soon.  The first round of edits for Ge-Mi: Part Two should also be heading my way in the near future as well.
  

Book Covers:

• I have seen the first draft of the new cover for Ge-Mi: Part One and it's really nice!  It's simple, but lovely, and is definitely more safe for work than the original cover. I can't wait to see the final draft, and then share it with all of you!
• I have been asked what I want for the new cover for Dragon Consultant.  I think I want to go with something simple again, but still bright and happy, and focused on kit-level destruction. I'm really looking forward to what the artist comes up with, and I can't wait to share it with you. 
  

That's it for news for February.  I know there's a lot going on, and it's probably going to continue being a fire hose deluge of things to do until at least this time next year.  I'm enjoying it, though, and I'm so glad you're all sticking through it all with me as we all patiently wait for all my books to become available again. 

The Oracle's Sprite is coming out on September 30, 2015 and I'm holding an ebook giveaway to celebrate.  It's the fourth book in my Oracle series and I'm very excited to have it ready to give to you.  In fact, I'm so excited I'm going to give away multiple copies of the ebook in your preferred format. 

The Oracle's Sprite is coming out in a few short weeks and two of the sites that host giveaways for LT3's books are giving away one copy.  Don't miss out on your chance to enter: 

• LT3 is holding a giveaway on their Goodreads page.  Leave a comment to enter.  Plus, add The Oracle's Sprite to your Goodreads shelf for a bonus entry.  https://www.goodreads.com/...giveaway---the-oracle-s-sprite-by-mell-eight
   
  
• Hearts on Fire Reviews is hosting a giveaway on their blog.  Leave a comment to enter.  http://heartsonfirereviews.com/mell-eight-the-oracles-sprite-excerpt-and-giveaway/


I will also be putting a little something something together in a few more days, so check back soon! 


I did manage to get a lot done this month!  Too bad that next month I'm going to be far too busy.  That's why my biggest goal for July was to write as much as possible.  Here's how I did:

1. Writing. Dragon Soldier has tripled in size.  The story is almost halfway done and in a good spot for me to pick it up again in September.  My superhero story fell to the wayside this past month.  I was working on everything else on this list instead.  The Case of the Wandering Wolves is complete and off my to-do list.  Completing one of the stories here was also a goal, one I am very glad I was able to get done.  TCofWW is with a beta reader; I should see it again in September when I'll get it edited and formatted for submission.  The Oracle's Current is growing steadily.  There's still a lot more to do, but I don't foresee any difficulties with it. 
    
   
2. Editing. The edits for The Oracle's Sprite are back with LT3.  The story should be with the copy editor and will definitely be available on September 30th.  Since I also received the edits for Dragon Deception I added them to this goal and they are back with LT3 as well.  I also made some progress in Ground of Insurrection.  The edits from my beta reader were amazingly helpful.  I'm not done yet, but I made a lot of progress.  Part two has begun, but does need some more planning before I can really get into it. 

July is a month of ups and downs for me.  I enjoy summer and July is when the last vestiges of spring finally fade away.  My birthday is also this month and I love presents just as much as anyone.  There is a big downside though: my job from hell starts on the 24th.  It's six days a week, full time, for six straight weeks.  It's tiring and it's infuriating, but they pay me, which is why I go back every year.  What the start of the job from hell means is as of the 24th my writing time utterly vanishes.  I'll be able to squeak in a few minutes here or there, but any progress won't be significant.  I need to get as much as possible done this month before the job starts and my goals list reflects that.  Here's what I'm planning: 

1. Writing.  Work on Dragon Soldier, my superhero story, Case of the Wandering Wolves, and The Oracle's Current as much as possible.  The more I'm able to get done, the better.  Ideally, I would like to finish writing at least one of these stories so I can cross it off my to-do list entirely. 
    
   
2. Editing. Work on The Oracle's Sprite.  I want to have it back to LT3 within the first two weeks of July.  I also want to make some progress in Ground of Insurrection.  The edits my wonderful beta reader left me have been languishing for far too long and part two of the story is still begging to be written.