Threads of Chaos is currently free on Amazon!
It’s today only, so I suggest you hurry and get your own copy!
Free Tomorrow
With so much going on for Shadeland, I forgot that tomorrow is the first day Threads of Chaos will be going free on Amazon!
The paranormal mystery will only be free for the day, so hurry over tomorrow and get it!
The Shadeland Giveaway
The giveaway on Goodreads has been approved, and you can now enter to win one of two signed copies of Shadeland!
This is from the first batch of printed books 
The giveaway will end the evening of June 30.
Shadeland has Arrived
My print versions of Shadeland are now in my hands! I’m quite happy with how it turned out 
and will celebrate with a giveaway of two copies of Shadeland through Goodreads (which at this very moment is still being approved. I will post when you can start entering, but if you follow my Facebook or Twitter you’ll know sooner!).
For those wondering, Createspace does pretty good quality work! I made the cover/back myself, and formatted the interior myself using their templates. It’s a sturdy book, and looks just like the digital proof that they show you online. I went with the 6×9 size, because it said that was the most popular order, with the basic black and white interior.
And if you want to order a copy, you can get Shadeland, Fenridge, and The Warden in the Gates in print now! Here are links:
My next books might be slower to get up, because I’ve learned that I can use the Shutterstock photos, but the covers I bought are not the right resolution so I need to get them redone >.> which will cost money and time and blah blah blah.
My Time to Write
You know how every writer has that particular time of day they put aside to write? Usually because they’re so busy with work or children that it is literally the only free time they have. Yeah, I’m not sure I have one of those.
When I first started writing (and even now on occasion) I read some “how-to” book on the subject. (My absolute fav writing book is 101 Habits of Highly Successful Authors). And I noticed that all of them say you need to set aside a specific time each day to write. I’ve noticed a lot of people set it aside in the early morning, around five, before their children go to school and they go to work. I respect you people; I’m not sure I could do that.
But then again, I have time to write. I’m an all day writer and I like it that way.
Yesterday I finally got back into my old groove of writing for the entire day, taking small breaks here and there to do other things. I managed to get about 5000 words onto paper, although it wasn’t for anything I feel I should be working on.
Oh, and Threads of Chaos’ first free promotion day through Amazon KDP is coming up! May 23 is the day to remember, and it will only be free for that one day, so be sure to check it out.
I’ve Been Formatting
I’m pretty sure that is all I’ve done in the past few days. The layout for Createspace is different than with KDP and Smashwords, so I have to go through everything. So far I’ve got Fenridge and Shimmering done, and am working on Northcliffe.
I’ve also been working on Crossings4, and I can’t wait to get to the middle because there’s going to be lots of a certain character I love. It makes me wish I could write out of order, but it gets too confusing and usually something changes when I got back to the beginning. So I shall just have to wait!
Back to Createspace stuff. So since I’ve started working on getting things into print, I’ve noticed I might not be able to use the covers I bought. There’s a thing on Shutterstock (which I’m certain the designers got the photos from) that says the images can’t be used for print on demand stuff. I’m still looking into it though because damn they don’t make it easy to read/understand.
Shadeland is in print!
So Shadeland is available for purchase in print! I’m excited, and I’m also excited to get my other books up there and available (but that will take some time).
You can find it here on the Createspace eStore. Or you can order it through Amazon.
Overall I’d say dealing with Createspace was pretty simple. They have a guided process to help first-time users through, along with templates for the covers/interior. I look forward to seeing the end product (darn you shipping time, it’s 2013, where’s my teleporter?), because everything I’ve read says that they do a very professional product. I’m just nervous my cover might not look right; it looks find on the computer, but who knows how it’ll turn out in print? When I get them, you can bet there will be pictures!
Createspace and Me
So the other day I decided to look into Createspace and like many times in my past, when I look into something I ended up throwing caution to the wind and just doing it. So, soon Shadeland will be available from Createspace, and you can get a print copy! I’m not sure how many people would want to buy a print version of Shadeland, but I can’t wait to do a giveaway with one!
Currently I’m in the review process (second time around because I had to add in an extra page). If this goes well, I hope to add Fenridge and Northcliffe into it as well (and most likely my other books though I think I’ll have to do some changes with the covers I’ve bought).
Why did I choose Createspace? (for any other writers out there that are still deciding on what to do). I chose it because it’s print on demand, and since I didn’t buy any of their publishing packages, it doesn’t cost me anything (as far as I can tell). Shadeland is a free ebook, and will remain that way, so POD seems like a better choice. I’m not expecting hundreds of people to go rushing to buy it, so putting it on Createspace is mostly so I can get myself some hard copies for family and friends, and also for giveaways!
Excerpt from Phasing
I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned it, but Phasing is a sister-book to Shimmering (like Igniting). Last month I had started working on it a bit, just before I started Igniting for Camp NaNoWriMo (which I totally did not finish btw lol). So here’s a little excerpt from it.
—I dodged to my left, a streak of fire just missing my legs by a fraction of an inch. As I landed into the puddle I tried to let out a shout but instead let the muddy water into my mouth. More curses came from me, but I didn’t have much time to grovel in my own pity. I jumped to my feet a whirled, just in time to see another shot of fire coming in my direction.
It was technically against the rules to use my powers unless it was absolutely necessary, but since I didn’t feel like having any more of my hair singed off, I felt this was absolutely necessary. My hand shot to my right and a small window opened, a miniature portal to a safer distance from the elemental.
In the blink of an eye, his burning gold eye, I was behind him. I watched him quietly, hoping Colt would arrive soon with Enna. A fire elemental would only be preoccupied for so long before getting bored and moving on to light something else aflame. And this particular elemental got bored fast.
His entire body was flame, a glowing torch that lit up the normally black night in Thistlewood. So far he’d gotten me once with his whip, a length of blue fire that hung from his hand. Thankfully it’d only been my leather jacket, but I could feel the heat of the burn; it was at least second-degree.
We had started out fight in the park beside us, the children’s playground now melting into the woodchips. Although the woodchips were nearly a pool of fire. Colt would never be able to miss it from overhead.
I inched my foot, preparing myself for another jump when the elemental heard me. He whirled on me, whip already in motion and I didn’t have enough time to create a portal again. I braced myself for another lash of flame when Colt hit me to the ground. My breath was knocked from my lungs, but I managed to stand quickly. Colt was at my side now.
“Where’s Enna?” I asked.
Colt kept his stern gaze trained on the elemental, who seemed confused by another person joining us. “She’ll be here soon.”
“How soon is ‘soon’?” I muttered, trying to gauge the next attack. The elemental began to pace back and forth, maybe debating if he could handle two of us. Legion agents weren’t to be taken lightly, but whenever I worked alone they usually thought differently. I guessed I might have thought the same of a seventeen-year-old half-elf girl. I barely took myself seriously. But whenever Colt arrived, the chiseled six-foot Amazon people tended to rethink us.
The elemental tilted his head at us, and I felt his fury coming in waves. “Do you feel that?” I asked.
“Feel what?” Colt questioned. I could tell he wanted to get into the battle, to just take down the elemental and get this done. But a fist fight with fire didn’t exactly work, and we needed Enna. Fire elemental versus a frost elemental was a much more even battle.
“He’s pissed,” I said, preparing to make another portal. “And kind of confused.”
“How can you tell?”
“I can feel it.” Nobody ever understood why I could feel what others did like this. I always chalked it up to reading body language, but how exactly does one read a fire elemental? I’d never know. But I knew he was mad.
“Well he was kicked out of his home,” mused Colt, keeping his hands at chest level should anything happen. But the elemental still refused to make a move.
“He wasn’t kicked out,” I argued, “he burned it down. Which I totally don’t get because a fire elemental living in the house firemen practice on seems to be a pretty good deal. Light a fire, it gets put out and he lives happily ever after with his little fire wife.”
The elemental roared, his flame turning bright blue before dwindling back to an orange glow. His whip crackled as he stepped towards us, this time leaving a burning trail behind him. I’d made him mad.
“Oh,” I said, “no fire wife?” He began to turn blue. “Okay, she leave you?” He ignited, his fire going as high as the lamp posts around us. Beneath him I could see the pavement melting, black tar pooling as he stepped towards us.
“How do you do that?” Colt whispered.
“Do what? Figure things out? I consider it a special talent.”
“No, always find people’s buttons.”
“Same thing.”—
No Turning Back
I’ve got my accounts all set up for my pen name So there is no turning back now! For all things Embridge Expedition, you’ll have to go check out this blog. I’ve also set up a Twitter account where I post pieces of the novella with #EmbridgeClips.
In other news, Shadeland and Of Noble Chains have been price matched on Amazon, and are now available for free! Finally!
