Launching MCD’s Adepts discord with a Dowser Series Buddy Read!

As some of you may or may not have seen, my lovely new PA Brittany is swooping in to help take over some of the more online social aspects of my job. And now I will have no excuse but to adhere to my self-imposed social media blackouts in the morning because Brittany WILL KNOW IF I CHEAT. 😂

As a part of building (and maintaining) a core online community, Brittany has decided to launch a dedicated Discord (MCD’s Adepts)* alongside a Dowser Series Buddy read. I’m sharing the invitation here (below) on my blog so you don’t miss out (if you are so inclined to join us) but it will not be hosted here or by me specifically.

If you haven’t met Brittany yet, here is her intro post on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Britt Brat (@brattyandbooked)

Why a Discord? As I’m sure you’ve noticed, social media reach has only worsened over the last few years. Even just recently my Instagram engagement levels have seriously tanked. This is not only frustrating to me but also to readers who are actually interested in seeing posts from me! Hence the Discord. With Discord, you’re the one to log in whenever you like and poke around to read or participate in the topics that interest you. Nothing gets hidden by the social media platform and nothing gets dropped into spam/promo/junk folders.

The MCD’s Adepts discord will be run by Brittany (in conversation with me, of course). I will pop in to chat daily (in the afternoons 😉). If you’d like to be a moderator, please message Brittany (she is @Britt|MCD’sPA) via the discord. I’m not sure she is looking for anyone but she’d be happy to know you are available if she needs you.

Right now Brittany and I are the only ones over there chatting. So please join us! Brittany has set up some specific channels already, and I’m sure she would be happy to set up more if you have requests.

What is Discord? Via Wikipedia: Discord is an instant messaging and social platform, which allows communication through voice calls, video calls, text messaging, and media and files. Communication can be private or take place in virtual communities called “servers”.

Website: https://discord.com (to download the app)

Beginners Guide to Discord: https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/360045138571-Beginner-s-Guide-to-Discord

Dowser Series Buddy Read!

Brittany hasn’t read the Dowser Series yet! So she thought it would be fun to invite other readers to read along with her. She is spearheading this and there will be ‘share graphics’ and other fun things going on on my socials. But if you would like to really dig in with her and discuss then you can also join MCD’s Adepts* (discord).

JOIN MCD’s ADEPTS DISCORD

I have an idea for an MCD’s Fav Things: Book Club that will also implemented through the discord server (but only once I feel like I have the time to devote to it).

Note: the Discord links expire in seven days, but just let me know if you need a new invitation.

FUN! FUN!

Now on Booky Call!

Okay, so I have become instantly enamored with a book dating app, Booky Call. Yessss! So enamored that I asked them if they would do up a dating profile for Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (Dowser 1) and they said yes! (Booky Call swiped right on Dowser 1! Whoot!).

Anyway, ahem. Before I get too riled up – you NEED to read the write-up the BookyCall Matchmaking Specialist did for Dowser 1. It is freaking perfect!! – here is more pertinent info about how to get some of this going on in your life.

And now I sound like a dealer rather than just an addict.

But I guess you already knew that about me.

Here’s the link for Dowser 1 on Booky Call. *Note* you have to be on your mobile phone to click through. It doesn’t work on a desktop because it takes you straight to the mobile app. Then I BELIEVE you have to download the app to test it all out (trust me, it is worth it). Here’s the link again (in case you want to copy/paste): https://links.bookycall.com/o8rNo3SKKRrzeJzSA

Here’s a promotional video that explains what the app is all about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-o1ebvAOoc

Or you can do it is reverse (download the app, then search for Dowser 1)(see photo below):

Extra, extra: I’m also going to be hanging out at BookyCon on Nov 12, 2022 – the world’s largest metaverse book festival. I have no other info except you sign up here.

Oh, I’ll post this all on my social media pages as well, in case you want ~~to hook up your friends~~ – ahem, I mean share. Of course, I mean share!!? Share with other book ~~addicts~~ … lovers.

Fun! Fun!

Adept Universe Booklist

ETA: UPDATED JUNE 2023

I had Naomi Lane (who I discovered via Carrie Ann Ryan – thank you, Carrie Ann!) do up some pretty graphics for you (and me, of course) to share on social media or just for yourself (in the case of the PDF version of the booklist). I’m posting them here on my blog for easier download! I really also need to add them to my mailing list automated welcome sequence but we all know that won’t happen any time soon. 😂

You can find the full reading order (also downloadable) under Novels (and Reading Order) (see the top menu or click the previous link).

If you fill out and share either, or both, of these graphics on your social media, please tag me! I’m @MeghanCianaDoidge on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and @mcdoidge on Twitter.

Fun! Fun!

Thanks for the pretties, Naomi!!

MCD NOTE: updated as of June 2023

Moments of the Adept Universe 1: cover reveal, etc.

If you’re subscribed to my newsletter you may have read six of the seven stories contained in this collection of shorts and novelettes. I gave them away through 2021 in an unedited/unproofed form, but have now bundled them together, added another novelette (Burgundy 0.5), and asked Memo to illustrate a scene (or moment, wink wink) from each. I’ll be sharing those illustrations and a little snippet of each story in the week leading up to publication.

I hope to write more novellas through 2022 to expand the ever-growing Adept Universe! I have ideas!

A collection of stories featuring characters from the Adept Universe by Meghan Ciana Doidge in a pivotal moment of their life, or possibly a playful interlude.

The collection contains the following shorts/novelettes:

In But a Moment – aka Kandy 0.25
In Less Than a Moment – aka Kandy 0.5
At Just the Right Moment – aka Gabby 0.5
From One Moment to the Next – aka Kandy 0.75
Anchored in the Moment – aka Audrey 0.5
Momentary Misunderstanding – aka Burgundy 0.5
A Momentary Retrieval (Archivist 1.5) – Dusk

Content warnings: language, sexual situations, violence, and childhood abuse.

Release Date: January 27, 2022

PREORDER

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

(MCD: Jan 19: Apologies, I’m not sure why B&N still doesn’t have the preorder uploaded, hopefully soon!)

New to the Adept Universe? The first book is Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (Dowser 1). Or click here for the main READING ORDER.

Need to get caught up? Or want to reread in order? Click here for the FULL READING ORDER OF THE ADEPT UNIVERSE.

Archivist 2: cover reveal, etc

Releases January 4, 2022

PREORDER NOW

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

I was a dragon. Dragons didn’t run from any situation. Not even a dragon disguised as a witch. Well … at least not from any situation that involved the archive or my duty, because apparently I fled before anything even remotely personal. Including surprise double dates.

Synopsis: A masked gala. A solstice celebration with the werewolves. Broken relics and doorways leading not only to other realms, other mythical and magical creatures, but to other possible futures. For me. And maybe even for Kellan.

And, well … that’s all just another day at the office for me.

Though my witch disguise really wasn’t going to hold up for much longer. Because even though I’d accepted my role as head curator at the magical archive of the National Museum of Ireland, and all the duties that came with being the Archivist of the Modern World, apparently I didn’t like the restrictions that came along with that. Because I couldn’t build the life I truly wanted — the dream unfurling in the dark chambers of my heart — on lies and half-truths.

Which meant that a moment was looming when I’d be faced with a choice that I couldn’t bear to walk away from. A choice that I might be willing to lose everything else to obtain.

Compelling Infinity is the second book in the Archivist series, which is set in the same universe as the Dowser, Oracle, Reconstructionist, Amplifier, and Misfits of the Adept Universe series.While it is not necessary to read all the series, in order to avoid spoilers the ideal reading order of the Adept Universe begins with Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (Dowser 1).

Archivist Series reading order:

Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0)
Invoking Infinity (Archivist 1)
A Momentary Retrieval (Archivist 1.5/Moments of the Adept Universe 0.7)
Compelling Infinity (Archivist 2)

Hikes, baby goats, and other random updates.

After almost a year, Michael and I finally forced ourselves to leave the property/immediate area and do a proper hour and a half hike at Ruckle Park on Sunday. We’d been in the habit of hiking almost every Sunday for a good portion of 2019 into 2020 but got derailed by Covid19 and the fact that we are really, really bad at taking days off. Well, full days off. We are particularly skilled at pushing ourselves too long/far and then collapsing on the couch for a half day.

That is a pro/con of loving what you do for a living, I suppose. It doesn’t seem like work, but if you do it seven days a week, and therefore get little else done on the day you (occasionally) take off, you forget to at least go for a walk!

Anyway, I have no pictorial evidence but we saw two baby goats hiking the trail yesterday. Two and half months old, hiking with two adults and a six-year-old girl. Yes, like dogs. Nigerian Dwarf goats. They were insanely cute, nibbling on everything and not even sparing us a glance despite all our cooing.

Sunday, April 11, 2021. Ruckle Park. Salt Spring Island. A fallen, weathered arbutus tree, looking toward Pender island (far left) and Washington State (center).

The writing has stalled a bit. Not surprising because the constant headache had been really bad (spiking from the Estrogel and then back to being on nothing for two weeks) and therefore I had to focus as much as possible on getting Archivist 1 into the editor. For me, especially when I’m not feeling great, writing needs to be a daily activity so I can maintain it through deadlines, stress, etc. So now I have to either force myself back into it – maybe write something fun and frivolous – or just start writing a random scene for Archivist 2 even though I don’t have the novel perfectly plotted yet – I do have the opening, the midpoint, and a KICK-ASS ending all worked out, so it really shouldn’t be a problem sinking back into it.

Except, I’ve also been crazy neglectful of the other part of my job (for like over a year now) – marketing. And marketing, which I’ve been setting up/doing for a few days now, is a completely different mindset than writing. For me, at least. So I’m sort of blocking myself.

Anyway (x2) that is the long version of saying that I’m doing a marketing push on the Dowser Series specifically and the Adept Universe in general for the next four or so weeks, and any shares/likes/etc are greatly appreciated if you see any of my posts on your social media feeds.

And, it is possible, that there won’t be a new freebie short for April. I’ll try, but no promises. I’ll at least do a giveaway of some sort.

Okay … back to hoping the muse comes calling …

Have a lovely week!

MCD: 2020 in retrospect and a glimpse into 2021

For most of you who read the blog this is doubled (or even tripled) information but it’s that time of year again – aka The Great Culling of MCD’s Mailing List! This simply means that anyone who hasn’t opened my last five emails (through my mailing list, not the blog) is about to get the opportunity to ‘reengage’, or I will remove them. Keeping ‘nonopens’ on my mailing list costs me $$ (read: really just pennies per subscriber) and actually reduces my delivery rate (the more serious issue), especially through email providers like Gmail.

Anyway! I wanted to have a post on the blog for anyone who wishes to remain on my list to click through to ‘reengage’ and survive the great culling for another year.

So without further to-do …

Things I published in 2020:

The first book in the Misfits of the Adept Universe Series: Misplaced Souls. Narrated by Mory.

The fifth book in the Amplifier Series: Idols and Enemies. Available in eBook, paperback, and audio.

The audiobooks for the Reconstructionist series (starting with Catching Echoes). Narrated by the brilliant Whitney Dykehouse. The third book should release any day on Audible, Apple Books, Amazon, etc.

And! For fun: A series of character bios for the Adept Universe bible with sketches from Memo: Wallpapers: Mory and Ed Sketches: Jade, Kandy, Kett, Mory and Ed, Liam, Benjamin, Burgundy, Scarlett, Pearl, Gabby, Peggy, and Tony.

Release plans for 2021 (headache dependent):

Awakening Infinity, the prequel novel for the Archivist Series is currently being serialized on my blog and will release on March 2, 2021, in eBook and paperback on all retailers. I have plans to release the next two books in the series in the first half of 2021. [Again, fingers crossed]. I’m currently halfway through the first draft of Archivist 1.

The sixth book in the Amplifier Series is outlined and scheduled to release in the latter half of 2021, followed by the second book in the Misfits of the Adept Universe. Misfits 2 is outlined and from Kandy’s POV!

Bonus short stories: I’m writing a randomly themed short story set in the Adept Universe and releasing them (unedited/unproofed) exclusively to my mailing list each month. At the end of the year, I will bundle the shorts together, have them properly edited, and publish them on all retailers (so … possibly early Jan 2022?). I’ll ask Memo to do a sketch for each of them as well. The first short – from Kandy’s POV – releases to the mailing list on January 27, 2021 (so make sure you are subscribed!)

More sketches: Memo will continue doing character sketches for the Adept Universe bible. Next up: the nine guardians! I’ve also commissioned three (for now) character renderings from Nicole Deal for the Archivist Series that I can’t wait to share!!

A selection of 2021s notebooks – already filling up!

You can also find me on Facebook (mostly writing-related posts), Instagram (mostly food, pets, knitting, and sunset posts), and Twitter (a combination of posts).

On a personal note, it’s been an insane year for us all with Covid19 and unfortunately my constant headache is still going strong. I’m finally seeing a menopause specialist this week (since everything else has been ruled out) and I have hope that she will finally be able to help me. Thank you for reading this far and I hope you enjoy how the Adept Universe unfolds over the next year and beyond.

Love and Light!

Archivist 0: Cover reveal and synopsis

I’m celebrating getting the prequel to the Archivist series off to the proofreader today by revealing the freaking gorgeous book cover by Damonza, along with the synopsis.

As with The Amplifier Protocol last year, Awakening Infinity (Archivist 0) will be serialized here on my blog every Wednesday and Friday, starting January 1, 2021. I’ll also make the preorder available by that date for those of you who prefer to read all at once. Don’t worry I’ll email all the details to my mailing list (make sure you’re subscribed) and refresh my ‘how to subscribe to MCD’s blog’ instructions so you don’t miss a chapter.

Without further chatter – the gorgeous cover!

Synopsis: The plan was to hop a train to Oslo, hang out at a coffee shop, and connect my personal archive, Infinity, to the Internet. Yes, completely disregarding the well-established fact that magic and technology didn’t mix. At all.

I was also hoping to browse as many bookstores as I could before my younger brother’s patience ran out. Unfortunately, the five-year-old fledgling dragon was better known for his exuberant — and ultimately destructive — tendencies rather than his attention span.

I almost pulled it all off. Almost proved that my position as Archivist of the Modern World wasn’t just an empty title.

Then I got summoned — by the most powerful beings in the magical world. And when the guardian dragons made a request, no one denied them. Not even a lesser dragon.

Not even if it tore me away from everything I’d ever known — and the one person I couldn’t leave behind.

Awakening Infinity is a prequel novel in the Archivist series, which is set in the same universe as the Dowser, Oracle, Reconstructionist, Amplifier, and Misfits of the Adept Universe series. While it is not necessary to read all the series, in order to avoid spoilers the ideal reading order of the Adept Universe begins with Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (Dowser 1). Or click here for the full reading order.

Questions about the Archivist Series? Feel free to comment below (or +1 other comments) and I’ll write up a FAQ, if needed!!

To-Do List #Fail

Me: Okay! I finished the second draft of Archivist 0 and really should do something marketing related for the Amplifier series. Like promote my new release, Idols and Enemies (Amplifier 4) with some review quotes. Or like mention in various places on the interwebs that The Amplifier Protocol (Amplifier 0) is only going to be free until the end of the month.

Also me: Let’s spend the afternoon working on Dusk’s family tree!

The Archivist’s family tree … so far … dragons live a long time. And archivists go missing, aka wandering through the stacks. A lot.

So yeah … #AmStillWriting #AdeptUniverse … but totally ignoring my inbox and other duties.

🙂

Amplifier 4: book cover and a giveaway

GIVEAWAY CLOSED!!!! The three winners have been emailed!

Book 5 of 5 (so far), continuing the ‘behind the scenes’ look at the book covers for the Amplifier Series photographed and designed by Gene Mollica Studios.

The moment I saw this shot – on the day of the photoshoot – I knew I needed to use it but that it had to be the perfect book/plot/situation in order to do so. Thankfully, Idols and Enemies (Amplifier 4) is that book cover!! I can’t say much more without spoilers but I will say – yes! Emma and Aiden are finally touching (and touching and touching … lots of ‘touching’ in book 4) 😉 !

*Photo:* Gene Mollica Studios Models: Devon Ericksen and Jonathan Cannaux

I’m not even sure where to start with this shot (mostly because I don’t want to give away too much), because it is so desperately perfect. For the characters, and for the point they find themselves at in their relationship in book 4. Devon (as Emma) and Jonathan (as Aiden) were on fire during the entire photoshoot and Gene’s capture of this moment between them is awe-inspiring. The emotion, the body language. It’s all just brilliant.

So brilliant that I knew it only needed a simple, yet evocative setting/scene to support it (though the apple blossoms/dawn/moon are all extremely significant to the storyline).

The end result is Michael’s favourite cover of the series (so far), this Gene Mollica masterpiece:

*Cover design by:* Gene Mollica Studios Models: Devon Ericksen and Jonathan Cannaux

Want to win an ARC (Advance Reader Copy) of Idols and Enemies (Amplifier 4)? Yes?! Just comment below to enter to win.

I’ll select THREE WINNERS! And the giveaway closes in TWO DAYS so that the winners get the weekend to read the book ahead of everyone else!!

Notes/Rules: OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. One entry per person. Three winners will be selected by random number generator. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than to contact the winner. No purchase necessary. Giveaway closes in FRIDAY, SEPT 25, 2020 at 8pm PDT !! Likes and shares are always welcomed and appreciated.

Are you new to the Adept Universe series? Click here for the reading order. Or click here for the Welcome! sequence.