Author: MCD

I'm a writer. I also bake. And knit. A lot. My novels are available anywhere ebooks/paperbacks/audiobooks are sold online. Find more info on my blog: http://www.madebymeghan.ca

Categories
excerpts writing

Archivist 1: update and excerpt

I just finished my first full pass on the story editor’s notes for Invoking Infinity (Archivist 1). Next, I’ll do another complete pass, smoothing the prose and making certain I haven’t inserted anything strange (i.e. continuity errors, etc) while working through the editor’s suggested changes/additions.

The book is now 104k. That’s long. I prefer to stay under 95k myself. But, the editor hasn’t recommended any cuts. Yet.

To celebrate getting through the last two weeks (which have been seriously, seriously rough for me headache-wise) I thought I’d share an excerpt from Chapter One and Dusk’s first day of work. I hope you enjoy it!

Leather-covered sketchbook (aka Infinity) created by Mille Cuirs. Ink: Caroube de Chypre by Jacques Herbin. Fountain pen: Parker Sonnet Ciselé Silver

I stepped through the door. Energy clung to me, trying to taste my magic, then slid off when it couldn’t gain purchase.

Like I’d said, it was difficult to ward against a dragon. We were magic, descended from demi-gods. Not that it couldn’t be done, but the witch who’d built the wards would have needed to have known that dragons existed in the first place. Outside of morality tales and mythology, of course.

The boundary wards yielded completely. My front foot landed on a worn rug set just inside the door to protect the oak hardwood. And the buzzing of all the magic objects on the shelves increased.

A wide grin swamped my face.

This already felt like home.

Literally. The library at my mother’s estate was filled with tiny touches of energy just like —

Something slammed into the side of my head, getting instantly tangled in my already wild hair and obscuring my eyesight. Tiny claws tried to hook into my skin, failing but then finding hold on my bottom lip. The creature latched onto my right upper canine and started nibbling and suckling.

Yes. On my tooth.

I laughed.

Still balancing the coffee and cinnamon buns in my left hand, I gently attempted to pull the creature off me. It clung with a tenacious strength that was usually only reserved for the starving.

And since going for my teeth was a bit of a clue as to what I was dealing with, this creature did have a rather specialized diet.

I managed to transfer its front claws from my lip to my forefinger, tugging it away from my teeth so I could peer at it. It assessed me with wide, dark-orbed eyes.

An imp of some sort. A wide classification for magical creatures — with or without wings — that ranged in size. Smaller than brownies but larger than pixies. This imp was the length of my forearm. Its eyes dominated its light-gray skinned face, except for the overly large mismatched teeth of its lipless mouth.

“That wasn’t nice,” I said teasingly, holding it loosely so I didn’t accidentally crush it. “You could have said hello.”

The imp narrowed its eyes at me, then it chittered discontentedly. It was unlikely it understood English, or spoke any language I could understand, but my tone should — 

The imp sprung free from my grasp, attempting to launch off the coffees and Tupperware balanced in my other hand as it made its escape.

Four lattes in large paper cups and plastic lids didn’t make for a terribly stable surface.

Scrambling for footing, the imp leaped for the nearest shelf.

The lattes slammed into my chest and shoulder, lids flying off, and dumping hot coffee all over me.

Shrieking — even a dragon wasn’t completely impervious to heat — I lost hold of the cinnamon buns as well.

Hot liquid soaked into my hair and sweater, scalding the skin of my neck and collarbone, then dripping down my plaid skirt, all over my favorite brown boots, and the rug.

The imp watched me warily from the shelf at eye level to my left. It chittered quietly, disconcerted.

“Yeah, that also wasn’t nice,” I said sighing.

– from Invoking Infinity (Archivist 1), Chapter One, fourth draft

RELEASING MAY 25, 2021

PREORDER NOW AVAILABLE

– AMAZON – APPLE BOOKS – KOBO – BARNES & NOBLE – SMASHWORDS –

***

In other news, guess who didn’t actually hit publish on the paperback for Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0)? Ugh, me! I’m sorry. It should be available very soon.

Categories
writing

Discussion thread: In Less Than A Moment (Kandy 0.5)

I just dropped In Less Than a Moment (Moments of the Adept Universe 0.3) (aka Kandy 0.5) into the inboxes of my newsletter subscribers, and as promised, I actually remembered to start a thread where you could discuss all the secrets it reveals as a group.

The novelette (15k+) cracks Kandy’s background wide open – a large piece of the puzzle leading to the events of the Dowser series, as well as the upcoming Misfits 2. Yep, the Kandy stories are most definitely prequels to the second novel of the Misfits of the Adept Universe. 

Click here for Kandy’s bio and sketches.

Click here for the discussion thread for Kandy 0.25.

Assume there are spoilers for the novelette, as well as any Kandy book, in the comments below.

Feel free to discuss among yourselves (I believe there is a follow comments button? So you can see if anyone replies, etc?).

I hope you enjoyed the read!!

Categories
audiobooks

Amplifier 4: finalist in the IAA Awards

Thanks to the enthralling, supple narration of Tia Rider, Idols and Enemies (Amplifier 4) is a finalist in the 2021 Independent Audiobook Awards!

Congrats, Tia!

It is such a pleasure working with Tia on the Amplifier audiobooks. Not only is she a true professional, meeting deadlines and submitting practically flawless first passes, but she brings a depth and deliciously contained emotional component to Emma. Tia’s read is subtly evocative, tense in all the right moments, but also allowing hints of playfulness to filter through Emma’s narrative.

With Amplifier 4, I flung a TON of new characters at Tia and she handled them effortlessly, making each voice unique, yet never cartoonish or over the top. The story flows and engages thanks to Tia’s expertise and talent.

I very much look forward to working with Tia on Amplifier 5 later this year!!

Fingers crossed, Tia! And thank you so much for lending your voice to Emma, the Amplifier Series, and me!!

Categories
inspiration personal reflection writing

A little sunshine.

First daffodil of 2021.

I’m making this tidbit of sunshine my desktop photo for the day – aka a little yellow daffodil that has braved the still-chilly morning temps to bloom – because I’m about to do a second pass on Kandy’s second short, In Less Than A Moment. And I know I’m going to blubber through it. Again.

I’ll just keep reminding myself that Kandy has found her pack, her family. Not that life is ever without strife but it can be filled with love and laughter at the same time.

***

In other news, I’m (slowly) putting together a Frequently Asked Questions, Spring Edition blog post so if you have any burning questions – LOL – drop them in the comments below and I’ll add them to the list (as long as it’s not too rife with spoilers).

Categories
Adept Universe Bible

Adept Universe Bible: Haoxin

Haoxin – guardian dragon. Aka one of the Nine. Territory: North America. American accent. Petite and curvy. Tan. Blue eyes. Slightly turned in eye teeth. Straight blonde hair (wavy in Archivist 0). Adores silk dresses in shades of blue, teal, and green. Carries a katana. Keeps an army-green Jeep Wrangler in Alberta. Likes espresso. Appears to be in her twenties but is 100+ years old. Accepted the mantle of Haoxin aka ‘Reckless and Adventurous’ in 2012 (one year prior to Dowser 3) from her mother. Youngest of the guardians. She can expand and contract her physical form. According to Jade, her magic tastes like sweet creamy tomatoes with a hint of basil. 

Resides in the Nexus. Her family is from San Francisco, where she also maintains a penthouse apartment. Nexus door: cedar carved in a First Nations design.

T-shirt designed by Kandy: (featured in Dowser 8) heathered blue with white text, “Fueled by coffee. And epic mystical powers.”

Haoxin first appeared in Dowser 2, then again in Dowser 3 and Dowser 6. Featured in Dowser 8, Dowser 9, and Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0). She also has a fun cameo in Idols and Enemies (Amplifier 4).

Pronunciation: HAWK-SIN (but the K is soft) or click to listen to audio.

Haoxin. Dragon. The Guardian of North America. Playful and sexy, just don’t get her mad … she holds rather gigantic grudges (literally). Sketch by Memo.
Haoxin. Dragon. One of the Guardian Nine. Most definitely addicted to espresso. Occasional flirt. Possibly hooking up with the Healer. But more than willing to dance with an elder vampire when given the opportunity (with her katana on hand, of course and always). Sketch by Memo.

Categories
brainstorming inspiration writing

Archivist: Things-To-Be-Revealed

I started my day by digging back into the Archivist series with only a vague idea for a couple of scenes for Archivist 2 and A LOT of Things-To-Be-Revealed™ for many, many books after.

Usually, I firm up the core idea for the next book in the series while writing the previous book. I leave myself notes … like breadcrumbs to follow into the brainstorming and outlining. And, since I usually write with a thriller-type construction (aka the antagonist propels the plot) and I adore seeding those relationships/possibilities, etc, in previous books, that usually means that I know who the ‘bad guys’ are for books ahead.

But even with a long list of Things-To-Be-Revealed™ I still had no idea who the ‘bad guy’ was for Archivist 2. I had a bunch of fantastic characters, two or three great scene ideas, and a throughline for the romance storyline, but that did not equal a plot.

So I pulled out all the sticky note pads I had – index cards would have been better but apparently I no longer own any – and I started with listing and placing all the secrets.

Then, still stymied on book 2, I thought about how the Archivist series is different from my other series, especially the Dowser or Amplifier (which also feature powerful characters). The WHY I was writing it. WHAT drew me to explore the idea. It’s easy to get caught up in the relationships and the background and all the secrets, but the FEELING of the series as a whole needs to be really established by the end of book two (or three if you include the prequels). In my opinion, of course and always.

That FEELING is tied directly to the main character.

So, what makes one main character different from another?

Answer: how she interacts with her world. How she reacts. Her fundamental nature when confronted with change or a threat/challenge/hurdle or an offer or desire, etc.

Does she create, like Jade? Does she protect, like Emma? Does she love, like Wisteria? Does she believe, like Rochelle?

Short answer for Dusk?

Yes. To all of the above.

So knowing how my main character reacts to challenges, knowing her capabilities, how do I force her out of her comfort zone? How do I shake her to her core? How do I make her doubt? Falter?

A rather difficult thing to do when dealing with a practically immortal being with vast resources.

Continually finding/creating a ‘bad guy’ who is stronger than Dusk is rather … farfetched. [This holds true for Emma as well]. Making a bad guy smarter is possible, except that level of intelligence really relies on the writer (aka me) and I rarely manage to outsmart … anyone, so I have no illusions that I could pull off that dynamic in a story.

So then the bad guy has to be sneaky … has to be patient … has to learn how to play Dusk … how to manipulate her. Then they have to offer her something she can’t refuse or give her no other choice but to step onto the wrong path …

Thusly armed with my notebooks and sticky notes, I figured out the ‘bad guy’ for Archivist 2 by lunch.

Then with Ed Sheeran’s Afterglow (YouTube video) on repeat, I had the major plot points – aka the beginning, middle, and end – plugged into my structure (aka paradigm) by 2 p.m.

Oh, I won’t be silent and I won’t let go

I will hold on tighter ’til the afterglow

And we’ll burn so bright ’til the darkness softly clears

Ed Sheeran, Afterglow

And, ahem, I might have paused for a few moments early on and dropped a few notes into my notebook for Amplifier 6 (yes, I’m writing that series a book ahead now). 🙂

Headache or not, apparently the muse only needed a little juice. Though a hot chocolate, the brand new notebooks, and some pretty ink might have helped along the way.

Thank goodness.

Categories
writing

Moments of the Adept: Kandy 0.5 progress.

In Less Than a Moment (Moments of the Adept Universe 0.3) aka Kandy 0.5 – first draft. 13,099 words. Done!

A shot of my desk while in the middle of writing Kandy’s second novelette. I’m honestly never certain why I do these things to myself – things requiring so much tissue – but I write what the muse wants me to write … blubbering and all.

SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT

Sorry, I really couldn’t find an excerpt that wasn’t a huge spoiler.

Stop reading now if you don’t want to wait until the end of March to read the rest.

***

Justin was dead.

I’d dragged him behind an industrial garbage bin … or maybe it was for recycling. At least I thought it had been me that had dragged him … blood streaking away from us back out into the middle of the alley. Justin’s blood. From the three gunshot wounds. 

They’d shot him in the back.

I think.

Though it wasn’t yet clear to me who they were.

He’d gone down without a sound.

We’d been chatting and laughing … and … 

Now Justin was dead.

Vaguely aware that I was panicking, I rolled Justin, tearing his T-shirt so I could get a better look at his back. I accidentally scored his pale skin with wolf claws that I hadn’t consciously manifested.

Blood was just pouring out of him, pooling underneath him. I was crouching in it, kneeling in it. His warm lifeblood.

I’d thought … if I could remove the bullets … but the wounds were already blackened at the edges, that poison spreading in dark veins of death.

Justin was dead.

Three bullets to the heart would do that.

Even to a werewolf.

If those bullets were silver.

And wielded by a sorcerer.

– In Less than a Moment (Moments of the Adept Universe 0.3), first draft except

***

If all goes smoothly, the third draft of In Less Than a Moment should drop in the inboxes of my newsletter subscribers on Thursday, March 25 – headache dependant, as always (unfortunately).

Reminder: my newsletter is not the same as following this blog and getting notifications. It’s not the same as following me on social media. You can sign up following the link under the image of the Adept Universe cookbook, either to your right (if you’re on a computer) or by scrolling down (if you’re on a mobile device). And, once again, I cannot force your email provider to deliver my emails to you. You must make certain you’re subscribed and check all your own folders – spam, junk, promos – on your end. 🙂

But! Don’t worry if you do miss the unedited shorts. I will be bundling them for publication at the end of 2021.

Categories
Adept Universe Bible

Adept Universe Bible: Jiaotu

Jiaotu: guardian dragon. Aka one of the Nine. Territory: Northern Europe. Father of Sisu, who calls him Papa. Involved with Trissa. On again, off again lover of Suanmi, who was also his father’s lover. Descended from Jiaotu-Who-Was on his father’s side (she was his great-grandmother). White blond hair, pale-skinned. Bright blue eyes. Appears to be in his early 30s but is actually 300+ years old. He accepted the guardian mantle of Jiaotu and therefore wields the power that comes with it: silver-tongued (enchantment/story-teller). Great illusionist, including invisibility. Expert hunter. Retains all the memories from every Jiaotu that came before him and can recall them at will. Carries two axes. Has been a guardian for over 200 years, third youngest.

Resides in the Nexus. Door: shades of white and gray, carved with the images of a wolf and a raptor. 

Jiaotu first appeared in Dowser 2 (unnamed), then again in Dowser 3 and Dowser 6. Mentioned in Dowser 9. Supporting character in Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0). 

Pronunciation: JAW-TOO or click to listen to audio.

Jiaotu. Dragon. The Guardian of Northern Europe. Father of Sisu. Always ready with a judgemental sneer … or to chop someone’s head off. Sketch by Memo.
Jiaotu. Dragon. One of the guardian nine. Secretive and self-contained. Arrogant, but fiercely loyal to the few he considers under his protection. Sketch by Memo.

Categories
lovely readers personal reflection

The day after a release day, part 25

So I had to count – novels only – to get the number of novels I’ve released to date. TWENTY-FIVE. Absolutely crazy! And I’m about to send number 26 (Invoking Infinity) off to the editor for story editing.

Yesterday was a lovely low-key release day for Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0) but with surprisingly strong sales numbers/ranking. Surprising, because I know a bunch of people had already read the book. I took a few screenshots of bestseller ribbons (B&N) and other fun things (Trending Now at Kobo) and I’ll share them on my social media for fun and to say thank you to everyone who won’t see this blog post.

Launching a new series is always a risk, but you’ve seemed to have enjoyed Dusk and Sisu’s prequel story, and I hope you love how their story continues to unfold.

As always, I couldn’t do this without you … I mean, I’d continue to write, of course. I can’t not create. But I wouldn’t have such a lovely life without your support, whether it is buying my books or getting them from the library. As well as all the conversation and reviews and recommendations.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I’ll be spending the next couple of days writing Kandy’s next novelette … with the fear that it’s actually a novella. And then I’ll start work on the next Archivist book – I have a ton of ideas but I have to figure out where each major reveal falls in the series overall. Lots of secrets that all must come to light at the perfect time!

Working out the structure for Kandy 0.5 aka In Less Than a Moment (Moments of the Adept Universe 0.3).

Don’t forget to enter the Archivist 0: release day giveaway!

Categories
giveaways paperbacks

Archivist 0: release day giveaway

Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0) is now available as an eBook on all retailers. Paperback soon to follow. If the series is well received then I’ll add audiobooks later this year.

As always, I’m running a giveaway to celebrate the release, but since I don’t have any Archivist series giveaway-related items (yet), I’m doing things a little differently – I’m giving away all the ‘first in series’ paperbacks in my Adept Universe, plus some swag!

Yep, that’s Dowser 1 (plus Cake in a Cup stickers), Oracle 1 (plus butterfly tattoos), Reconstructionist 1 (plus four extra signed bookplates), plus Amplifier 0 (with corresponding oracle card sticker)!! The paperbacks are autographed (and dated). Whoot!!

Comment below to win this prize pack!!

Are you interested in winning a ‘first in series’ giveaway?

Yes? YAY!

Then COMMENT BELOW with your FAVOURITE QUOTE from ANY of the Adept Universe novels.

Likes and shares are always welcomed and appreciated.

Notes/Rules: OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. One entry per person. Only entries that follow the giveaway requirement will be counted. One winner will be selected by random number generator. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than to contact the winner. No purchase necessary, Dowser 1 is currently free and all my books are available from your library.

The comments are moderated. I will approve your entry just as soon as I have a moment to do so.

Giveaway closes SUNDAY, MARCH 07, 2021 at 8pm PDT.

Are you new to the Adept Universe? Book one is Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (Dowser 1).

Click here for the reading order of the Adept Universe.