11/4/22
Happy Friday everyone! I had today off from work and it's been magical. I slept in late, had a leisurely breakfast, and relaxed all morning reading a book interspersed with leaf peeping out my back door as the last of the trees have finally decided to accept autumn has arrived. I also added another color to my current paint by numbers canvass, my COVID hobby which is thankfully making the walls of my house a lot less bare. I'm currently attempting a canvass of chamomiles I'm planning to hang on a large blank wall in my kitchen. I have two more colors to paint, and then I have to go back and touch up for all the numbers I missed and where I had trouble staying within the lines. Lol Of course, I also managed to squeeze in some editing and writing! My amazing editor and I have been figuring out the official blurb for Hunter, the second book in my Witch's Circle trilogy. After a lot of back and forth the last few days we've settled on something that sounds amazing. I can't wait to share it with you. Speaking of Witch's Circle, NSP has decided on a tentative release date for Coven, book one! Look for it on December 27th! (Keeping in mind all dates are subject to change, lol.) I hope to have a cover and pre-order information to share for it really soon. Hunter will likely be released sometime first quarter in 2023. And, yes, I have gotten some writing done! I added almost 3k words to You Can't Sell a Dragon's Heart and reached the minimum word count I was aiming for in this story. There is still a lot more to write before it's done, though, so I upped the expected word count on my Current Projects page. I've never written a fantasy/sci-fi crossover before so this book has been a bit of an experiment, but it's been a ton of fun and I think it's turning out great. When You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart is completed, there are a few directions I could go in next. I really, really want to get some of my backlog of older works in progress completed, so ideally I would focus on those. However, I have two new stories also percolating. One is a paranormal story about a three-legged crow set in the real world where everyone has the power to turn into an animal. The main character is mistaken for a regular crow and ostracized. Tentative working title is Harbinger, but we'll see whether that still fits once the book is written. The second is fantasy about some of the cases the guards in the city take on. I'm hoping to have multiple main characters, which will make writing this a real challenge. Working title is Vivary Tales, but I expect that to change. Either way, I will have something fun to work on next! Of course, I can come up with titles for two books I haven't even written yet, but I am still drawing an absolute blank for Fire and Water. I thought about something punny about twins switching places, but quickly realized that wouldn't fit the tone of the book. Then I was haunting a thesaurus to find synonyms that might work better and drew a blank. This book is 100% ready to be submitted for consideration with NSP, and I can't until I come up with a title! It's really frustrating. The cherry on the top of what has been a lovely Friday is the wonderful support The Oracle's Current has gotten since being released last week. Everyone seems to be enjoying it, and knowing that makes me incredibly happy. If you missed it, it should be available at most major retailers and at NSP. I hope everyone else has had an equally amazing day!
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10/15/22
For the past three years, it feels as if all I've been releasing are reprint after reprint after reprint. I know I've peppered in some new material here and there, but it really felt like the process of re-releasing older books would never end. I have loved revisiting beloved characters and worlds, particularly my earliest works that helped me grow into the writer I am today. However, I have missed the process of crafting new things. That is why I am very happy to say that with the release of The Oracle's Prophecy (renamed from The Sentinel's Prophesy) on October 11th (buy here), I am done with reprinting old material! It is an incredibly exciting milestone! I really appreciate everyone who stuck with me through what has been a very long road. Re-editing and getting 29 reprints available again for you all to enjoy took a lot out of me (and out of my wonderful editor!), and greatly reduced my writing time for new material. Thankfully, I had written some new stories prior to starting the reprinting process, so you were able to enjoy brand new material like Wounded Alpha, Ground of Resurrection, and the new fairy tales included in A Little Fairy Dust while you were waiting. Still, I know there is a hankering for more new books from me. Which brings me to what's next. I was able to finish writing the sixth and final book in The Oracle series, The Oracle's Current, in between all the editing. Current has since been waiting for the rest of The Oracle series to be reprinted. When Current is released on October 25th, it will officially mark the start of my only publishing new material from here on out. You can already pre-order from NSP! As the reprinting process slowed throughout 2022, I have been able to spend more and more time focused on writing. I recently completed a trilogy of books called Witch's Circle about a witch, his familiars, a werewolf, and the difficulties they encounter while navigating the supernatural world. The first book, Coven, could potentially be released at the very end of this year, but certainly no later than very early 2023. The latter two books in the trilogy, Hunter and Witch, will definitely come out next year. Plus, I completed a short story called Water's Price about some mermaids, which you should also see in 2023. But wait, there's more! Lol While that is everything NSP has currently contracted with me to publish, I have a few other things I've been working on that I hope to submit for NSP's consideration within the next few months. I have finished writing and am editing a stand alone fantasy story with the (very tentative) title of Fire and Water. As soon as I come up with a better title, I plan to submit it to NSP. I have also passed the halfway point in writing another stand alone fantasy/sci-fi crossover story called You Can't Sell A Dragon's Heart. I still need to write the major climax scene and tie the HEA off with a pretty bow, so there's still a lot to do, but I definitely think I'll have this story completed soon. Plus, now that I'm done with reprints, I should have more time to focus on my oversized to-do list, upon which I hope to begin making progress again very soon! I look forward to keeping everyone in the loop as I continue to work on more of my new stories and get them ready for you to read. 9/5/22
This past month has been crazy! I went on a trip to South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Botswana for two weeks, which was absolutely amazing. I saw so many animals and unique places, some of which you might see in a future book. Lol Taking a break from everything--no work and (since we didn't have WiFi or cell service) also no writing--was therapeutic. I definitely came home ready to hit the ground running again. At the beginning of this past month, NSP and I started releasing my Oracle series, of which the first five books are reprints and the sixth is brand new. Those first five are the last of the many, many reprints I've been working on. When The Oracle's Current, the sixth and final book in my Oracle series, is released, we will have officially completed revising my older material! I expect Current to be released at the end of 2022, so keep an eye out for it. I am excited for these to come out, and to be able to switch focus to working on exclusively brand new books. Which isn't to say I haven't been working on new material in the interim. Coven, the first book in my Witch's Circle Trilogy, is currently undergoing copy edits, which means there's a good chance it will also come out this year! I have not yet seen a draft for the cover, so there is still a ways to go, but I am very excited for you to meet Kana and his magic. I really think you'll like him and his story. The latter two books in the series have been contracted, so look for more information about them early next year. I am also still writing! I have two current projects I'm very happy with. The first is completely written, but I need to do a thorough clean up. The working title is Fire and Water, which needs to be changed. As soon as edits are completed and I've thought of a title, I will send it to NSP for consideration. (If you can think of a title based off the summary, please let me know! I'm always open to suggestions.) The second story I'm currently writing is called You Can't Sell a Dragon's Heart. The story can't decide whether it wants to be 30k or 40k words. Sometimes the characters want to jump off into a lengthy adventure, and other times all they want is to curl up together around a fire. Right now they're doing the latter, which is why I'm leaning toward 30k, but we'll see where it goes in the end. Once the reprints are complete, I'm hoping to be able to focus on my waiting to-do list. The next few months as we inch closer to that point are going to be very interesting! 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! 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. 10/31/21
This is my second Halloween in my new house. The first one was a bust thanks to COVID, but this year trick or treating isn't cancelled. I'm hopeful I'll get a few, although that depends on whether it ever stops raining. I'm not into scary movies, but I watched Muppet's Haunted Mansion so I've done my due diligence for Halloween fun. I'm going to watch football the rest of today and root for my fantasy team members, and hopefully get a bit more writing done. Shiver and Quiver, my current story from my new fairy tale project is almost complete. I have to tie together the last scene in the final chapter and then write a quick epilogue. And then it's done! I haven't decided whether I'm going to save it for inclusion in another anthology or submit it as a stand alone, but I've got a while before I need to make a decision. Once it's done, I'm going to set it aside for a month or so before giving it an edit and then I'll start thinking about the next steps for this story. I finished the second round of edits for Melting the Ice Witch, the fourth and final book in my Dragon's Hoard series. I have fallen in love with this series again as I've been reading through each book, so I'm really glad it will be completely re-released soon. Melting is currently scheduled for a January release, but first is everyone's favorite baby dragon, Tori, as Stealing the Dragon comes out in December. Don't forget Road to Home is available for pre-order at NSP. It comes out on November 9th, but you can get it three days earlier at NSP. 10/18/21
When my alarm goes off in the morning, the sun isn't even close to rising. It's still warm enough during the day that I don't need a coat if I'm wearing long sleeves, but I can't keep the windows in my house open for too long. And yet, the leaves aren't changing quite yet. It's an odd time of year, but I love it. Somehow that anticipation always leads to more interest in writing. I've made some progress on a couple of different stories. The most progress was with Shiver and Quiver, the new fairy tale I've been working on. It's reached 20k words, which is a lot for this type of story from me, but I think it's still got approximately 10k more to go. Because it's so long, I'm oscillating on whether to include it in a new anthology or make it a stand alone. I love how A Little Fairy Dust came out, so I was hoping to do that with Shiver and Quiver, but none of the stories in Fairy Dust were nearly so long. I guess it depends on how the rest of the anthology forms up, but I'll definitely keep everyone in the loop regarding where this story is headed. I also pulled out and dusted off The Case of the Wandering Wolves. I hadn't bothered to submit it for republishing because it was so short, but I added a 2k short story/epilogue to it and now it's ready to go. When am I going to send it in to NSP? Good question. NSP is doing some reorganizing of their release dates right now. Until I know how the rest of my submitted stories are going to fall, I've held off on submitting anything else new. Hunter and Witch from my Witch's Circle series are both complete and ready for submission, which brings my total to three stories I'm currently sitting on. I'm hoping to get all three in to NSP sometime within the next month or so. Aside from that, I've mostly been editing. We've just started working on the first round for Melting the Ice Witch, the fourth and final book in my Dragon's Hoard series. Stealing the Dragon, the third book, and Road to Home, the second story in my Road To duology are finished with copy edits. I'm well on my way into 2022 for my releases, and I know we will be completed with reprints very soon! |
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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