Tag: editing

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changing gears

I’ve felt stymied on Book 4 of the Blood Witch Saga for months on end. I stare at the page and I type a few words, but I’m stuck.

So, yesterday I broke out one of the other works in progress, “The Daughters of Morru” which has been languishing on my hard drive for over a year. I read through the first three chapters yesterday after work and I can feel inspiration for the story. 

I am going to focus on that for a bit, see if I can’t shake loose some of this writer’s block. 

It is always a fun thing to reconnect with characters you love, whether as a writer or a reader. Hell, even as a watcher of movies/tv. It’s why we rewatch favorite shows.

I’m not sure if this will be a stand alone or develop into something more, but I have a good idea where the story is going, and how to get there from where I am.

I think I’ll read some more while I sip on my morning cup of coffee.

Photo by Laura Ockel on Unsplash

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a writer writing

I’ll admit, I’m struggling a little this week. I have a bit of a head cold and the accompanying fatigue has made it difficult to get stuff done. And there is so much to do!

However, there’s some Death Wish Coffee in my Star Wars “Pew Pew” cup, my throat is less sore and my space heater is making my office a little more cozy.

I’m working on book 4 in the Blood Witch Saga. I’m pretty sure where the plot is going, but this first draft is pretty rough and will take a lot of editing. This is largely due to the disconnected way I’ve been writing. The opening is way too slow and I need to get to the action faster. But, I will continue writing and come back to the edit later.

In this book, Thána and Co., including the ghost of an ancestor, are off to save magic. You can expect more world hopping, necromancy, possession, probably some new races/languages, and some mythological creatures.

You know, the usual.

For now though, I need to finish this cup of coffee and get the day job started. So much to do!

Oh, and don’t forget my giveaway! You can win a hardback copy of the first three books in the Blood Witch Saga.

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meet Anne Gothfried

The city of Gavelscore resembles London in the 1880s, except the society is matriarchal and women run much of the world. The language resembles Old English, so when Thána is approached by someone who speaks English with an Australian accent, she’s shocked and intrigued.

To hear Anne tell the story, she fell through a hole and found herself in this backward world with no real idea how to get home. She adjusts to her new situation though and makes a place for herself as a gambler, frequenting the taverns and saloons around the country.

When she hears Thána and Daria speaking in English, she introduces herself, drawn to something in Thána, and begins to ingratiate herself into Thána’s orbit, offering her advice in dealing with the people in the small city.

The question is, is Anne friend or foe? What does she have to do with the murders happening around them? And what does she want with Thána?

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meet Stâlian Susanna Batorry

Thána and her friends find themselves in a world of many dangers, including the church militant. Like the rest of the world, the church, and its military, are led by women. Stâlian Susanna Batorry is the sharp weapon of this military, called The Mother’s Weapon.

When we first meet her, she has come to Gavelscore to hunt, judge, and execute witches.

As a child, she witnessed her sister’s death, by means of a witch’s curse (supposedly) and thereafter dedicated her life to eradicating witchcraft. She joined the church and quickly worked her way up to a leadership position to become the head witch hunter.

Dedicated and loyal, Batorry is a True Believer and that could spell trouble for our heroes.

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Hêalic: The Blood Witch Saga Book 3

Yesterday I turned in my final edits on book three of the Blood Witch Saga. I think it’s my favorite of the series. What’s not to love about a gender-bent Victorian society, a Jack-The-Ripper style serial killer and magic?

Thána, Xen, and Daria find themselves in a world where witches are killed by hanging, and both a virulent plague and a serial killer eerily similar to Jack The Ripper are hunting the populace.

They have no idea how to get back to Meerat, let alone Spítia. Complicating matters, Thána is suffering withdrawal from the xýpna powder and her powers are depleted, leaving her vulnerable. And if that’s not enough, Katyk has come through the first portal with them, but not the second, and Thána feels like she’s being hunted.

After the serial killer takes an interest in Thána, every move she makes might be her last. Can she find their way back to the portal before she ends up dead?

Hêalic: The Blood Witch Saga Book 3

I’ll be introducing you to some of the new characters this coming week, though mostly background players. Cover reveal will happen on my Instagram and Facebook on Wednesday.

I was playing with https://creator.nightcafe.studio/ this morning and the image above is the result. Thána, Daria and Xen…or some version thereof.

I also got some writing done on book 4 this weekend. It’s a bit choppy, but it’s coming along.

We’re back to Monday and the day job awaits. Tis the season of kindness, Readers. By kind to yourself too.

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family reunion of sorts

I’m in Tucson, Arizona for the weekend, visiting my father and his wife while my Uncle Paul, Aunt Agnes, Aunt Sue and cousin Zoe are also in town. I haven’t seen my aunts and uncle in at least twenty years.

There have been a lot of changes in my life since then, and theirs too. Yet it was surprising to find the dynamic has stayed the same as I remember it. I see a lot of the way my brother and I interact watching the three siblings.

It’s a strange thing seeing your elders as an adult, watching them change, age and struggle with illness. Both Dad and his wife have had cancer diagnoses in the last twelve months and they seem frailer than I ever remember. Yet, there’s humor. There’s joy. There’s the snarky family love I remember from my childhood.

It was also good to spend last yesterday evening with my very good friend, Lisa who I don’t get to see nearly enough. We just hung out, walked the puppy and talked for hours. It was great.

In puppy news, Athena is being a champ with this road trip. She played hard at the dog park yesterday and today. I was originally planning to stay through Monday, but I’m thinking that I’ll leave tomorrow afternoon, get a hotel in the LA area tomorrow night and finish the drive on Monday because that 14 hour drive is crazy making.

Right now, we’re hanging out at the hotel, drinking coffee and doing some edit work before heading over to Dad’s place later today. I hope this weekend is treating you well, Readers!

Photo by Frankie Lopez on Unsplash

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life in my world

Hey, Readers! Happy Saturday! I hope life is treating you well. I feel like a chew toy, but I guess that’s what happens when you bring a new puppy into your life. She’s been here a week and I’m a mess of scratches and bruises from playing with her.

Meet Athena

This is Athena! She’s a Pyrenees and Australian shepherd mix and just about 4 months old. She’s a bit timid but is starting to come out of her shell. So far she’s afraid of the stairs and walking on a leash, desperately wants the cats to be her friends (they are not so interested), and is learning sit and stay.

She’s had her first vet visit (she was terrified, but did very well) and went to my mother’s house to meet the family and their pets.

Needless to say, I’m completely in love with her!

Just got her settled down after morning playtime, so it’s editing/writing time. I’m deep into edits on Hêalic (The Blood Witch Saga Book 3) and have found what was missing in the plot for book 4 (as yet unnamed).

That’s all for now, Readers! Go out and initiate some kindness today!

Photo by Greg Rosenke on Unsplash

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meet Alaina Alizon

I woke up to find my edits for book 2, so it’s time to start introducing you to a few new characters!

We’ll start with Thána’s mother, Alaina. We first meet Alaina in book 1, but we don’t really get to know her. In Mörderin we get more time with her.

Alaina and her husband moved from Spítia to an ancestral home in California before Thána was born, certain that her child would be born a blood witch. The activity of the Brotherhood convinced her they’d be safer there, and for a while they were.

When the Brotherhood finds them and kills her husband, her magic can no longer hide them, Alaina flees with her two daughters, trying to stay one step ahead of the men sent to kill Thána. When that gets too hard, she tries something desperate.

Using complicated magic, Alaina blocks Thána’s magic and her memory before leaving the ten-year-old where she would be found and cared for before fleeing once more with her younger daughter, Daria, leaving a trail of Thána’s blood for the Brotherhood to follow.

Still, Alaina doesn’t stay in one place long and eventually goes back to Spítia before finding a portal to someplace new where the Brotherhood has never been seen. Alaina and Daria settle into a quiet life in Vaneesh. As much as she misses her daughter, she knows Thána is safer where she is.

One day, Alaina decides it is time to find Thána, and despite Daria warning her of some dire visions of a disaster to come if Alaina leaves, she does exactly that. Stepping through the portal, Alaina envisions traveling back to California and from there to embark on a search for her eldest child.

That didn’t happen, however, as the Brotherhood picked up her trail as soon as she was on the soil of her homeworld, capturing her and imprisoning her at the Mano Kourt, where they tried to get her to tell them where Thána was hidden.

Alaina held her silence though, determined to protect Thána even if it cost her her life. When Thána and Cambious show up to rescue her, Alaina doesn’t believe it at first. She’s frail from starvation and torture, but still alive as they make their escape.

Reunited with her daughter, Alaina slips easily back into mothering mode and joyously introduces Thána to their extended family, something Thána has never really known. All that’s left then is to go to Vaneesh and introduce the two sisters, which is where we pick up the story in book two of The Blood Witch Saga.

I can’t wait to share this book with you, Readers. Now I’m off to the day job.

Photo by Jennifer Marquez on Unsplash

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Mörderin: The Blood Witch Saga Book 2

This morning I signed the contract for the second book in the Blood Witch series, Mörderin. This story takes Thána on a new journey to find her long-lost sister. It introduces new races and characters, and presents Thána with new challenges and a rescue that may be more dangerous than the infiltration of the Kourt.

It also introduces Xen, who is both agender and asexual, a Pixin who is friends with Thána’s sister Daria, and accompanies Thána to try to save Daria. They will become a trusted companion who will help Thána survive in a world torn by war.

Here’s the blurb:

Seeking to reunite her family, Thána and her mother Alaina head back to the world where Daria lives with her husband and son. However, the once vibrant city where people traveled freely through a collection of portals has been reduced to rubble and Daria is now a prisoner of the invading army.

With her magic still in nascent stages, Thána agrees to a daring and dangerous rescue mission with Daria’s husband and friends, once again putting her life on the line for a family she barely knows.

To make it work she has to perfect magic beyond her skill set and rely on those she’s only just met, not to mention breaking into a prison camp and getting out again in one piece.

How hard could it be?

And, on that note, I should get the day job started. Happy Wednesday, Readers! May it be filled with joy and kindness!

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pamper me

I was supposed to be in Austin this weekend, but the cost of airfare priced me out, so I had to stay home. To comfort myself, I booked a facial for yesterday afternoon. I haven’t done one in quite a while, and my skin was feeling dry and lifeless, so off I went.

I didn’t go for anything fancy, just your basic facial which consisted of cleansing, a hydrating face mask, etc. It was 60 minutes of laying on a massage table having someone who wasn’t me pampering me. It was lovely.

Usually, when I want pampering, I get a massage, so this was something a bit different. I could still use a massage though! My last facial was a few years ago in Denver at the Sirens conference.

I always forget how good my skin feels after a facial. This morning my face is soft and it feels amazing.

It doesn’t completely make up for missing out on Austin, but it did make me feel better.

In writing news, I’m editing book 3 of The Blood Witch Saga, book 2 is with the publisher, and book 4 is underway. I also have a ghost story brewing in the back of my mind. I’ll toy with that later.

For now, I need to finish up this cup of coffee, have some breakfast and get myself busy. Happy Sunday, Readers. Go pamper yourself a little.

Photo by Adrian Motroc on Unsplash