The muttering and fretting of the crowd grew, but it was just a wash of useless noise. Beau had drilled me with contingency plans, over and over again. I was supposed to call Audrey if we got separated. I was supposed to make it back to the pack if anything ever happened to him.
I cleared the crush of the crowd, but stayed nearby on the grass in the shadow of the brick building. I dug my phone out of my satchel and pulled up Audrey’s contact info.
Except … if I went to Portland that meant I had to just let whatever was happening here happen.
Beau would be pissed. But how long would it even take Audrey to get here? And then what?
I scrolled from the As to the Bs. It was a short scroll. A shallow flick of my thumb. I had a dozen entries total, at most.
I stared down at the contact I’d selected.
Blackwell.
– I See You, Oracle 2, Chapter 6, First Draft
Category: writing
I’m currently writing the first draft of I See You (Oracle 2). Life has been crazy – we are moving. Yes, again – but I’m still managing to eke out about 2000 words every day.
Writing – as opposed to brainstorming, which I live and breath – needs fuel and focus. Not enough fuel, and I lose focus quickly. So I try to enforce mini breaks when I feel weary or distracted. I could push through, and I do so when time is crunchy. But it’s better if I don’t. An unfueled MCD is not a pretty sight. Such days usually devolve into ranting, then weeping. Generally over things that do not require yelling or tears.
This is my break today. Only two chocolates remain from my second to last forage at Chocolate Arts. They look at little worn – perhaps they’ve been bashed about in the stash drawer – and I can’t remember what kind they are, but I know I’m going to love every nibble.
ETA: The Chocolate Arts website has helpfully reminded me that I indulged in a Framboise (rectangle) – single origin, intense dark chocolate with fruit and acidic overtones – while writing this blog post. And will luxuriate in a Cleopatra – caramel ganache, surrounding a caramel cream with a roasted organic hazelnut in a dark chocolate shell – right after I hit publish.
What fuels you on a draggy Monday?
GIVEAWAY CLOSED. WINNERS: LUCKY #28, 18, 52, and 48. In a startling turn of events #28 has deferred her winnings because of her close personal relationship with the author, so #51 turns out to be extra lucky!
We are gearing up to move into a MUCH smaller place at the end of September, and I need to purge a bunch of stuff before then. To that end, I have a few more misprinted paperbacks that need new homes.
Such as these four pink-streaked but still pretty Dowser 4 paperbacks:
Since there are four books there shall be four winners – quadruple the fun! I’ll leave the giveaway open for four days for symmetry.
Who would like to win an autographed paperback of Dowser 4?
You would?
Okay then!
To enter:
- Comment below and tell me your favourite chocolate treat. Perhaps a chocolate bar or baked good that you savour while you read a new Dowser book? Or even what you treated yourself to while reading Dowser 4 specifically.
Notes/Rules: OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. Each comment will be assigned an entry number. FOUR winning entries will then be selected via random number generator. One entry per person. Please make sure to fill out a valid email address in the comment form. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than notifying the contest winner.
If you haven’t commented on the blog before, or you comment from a different IP address, the comments are moderated. So don’t worry if you don’t see your entry right away. I will approve it, then assign it an entry number.
Contest closes THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2015 at 9 p.m. PDT.
<3 <3 <3
CONTEST CLOSED: WINNER: LUCKY #21! BARB from Minnesota.
These beauties just showed up the mail yesterday, so it must be time for a FLASH giveaway!
Who would like to win an autographed paperback of Dowser 5?
You would?
Okay then!
To enter:
- Comment below with your favourite quote from Maps, Artifacts, and Other Arcane Magic (Dowser 5).
Notes/Rules: OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. Each comment will be assigned an entry number. The winning entry will then be selected via random number generator. One entry per person. Please make sure to fill out a valid email address in the comment form. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than notifying the contest winner.
If you haven’t commented on the blog before, or you comment from a different IP address, the comments are moderated. So don’t worry if you don’t see your entry right away. I will approve it, then assign it an entry number.
Contest closes WEDNESDAY, AUGUSTÂ 19, 2015 at 9 a.m. PDT.
<3 <3 <3
Categories
Rochelle’s Tactical Pen
So I wrote up a blog post some time ago about writing lead characters who can’t actually kick ass but who must still resolve the main conflict in order for the story to function properly, but I never finished it. I figured that yammering on about my writing process was a rather boring blog post.
However, this came in the mail last Thursday. And this – I think – is interesting, because it’s part of teaching Rochelle to kick ass when she has no other choice.
Yep, that’s a Smith&Wesson Tactical Pen. I bought it on Amazon. I thought it was a great idea for Rochelle. Or rather, Beau thought it was a good thing for Rochelle to have. And I wouldn’t mind tucking it into my own satchel after I’m done working through Oracle 2.
I couldn’t just give Rochelle a knife. She’d probably just end up stabbing herself with it. Ha.
Back to talking about writing and structure and audience expectations for a second … if the Oracle series is a trilogy (as I believe it is) then book two is technically the second act, which means it’s all about confrontation – inner and exterior conflict. Rochelle is not only learning who she is, but how she functions within the Adept world.
I think the pen is going to come in handy.
I keep all my paperback proofs – flaws and all – lined up in the upper left corner of my sitting desk. I just added Dowser 5 to the group, making it now almost eight inches of self-generated inspiration.
I adore these books, even the misprinted spines of After the Virus and Spirit Binder. Perhaps that is egotistical, but there is just something so satisfying with this evidence of creation. So much so, that on days where I have to beat back the resistance just to chain myself to the desk, I can see that I’ve done it before. I’ve produced. I’ve made it through five or more drafts, editing, proofing, and into print.
Day and days of tears have gone into these books, but happily, much, much more laughter has accompanied their creation.
I published the ebook of ATV in June 2011, so the above eight inches encapsulates over four years of my life. It’s crazy that so much time has flown by, yet utterly fulfilling to have these books to mark the years.
What a blast it’s been!
Categories
Live chat this Friday, August 14th?
Anjanette asked me today if there was a place to have a private discussion of Dowser 5, and I thought we could try a live chat on my Facebook page. With a massive spoiler alert headline, of course. I’d host for an hour, and answer any questions I can. I won’t discuss any unreleased books but you all can feel free to speculate without me. 😀
We narrowed the date down to this Friday, but I’m not sure what time, hence this poll. I’m on the West Coast of North America so I’m flexible.
Majority rules. The poll will be open for twenty-four hours only, so I have time to let everyone know about the chat ahead of time
How fun will this be?
For those of you who can’t make it, I’ll try to figure out a way to post screenshots afterward. And maybe take a few questions ahead of time?
So this beauty just showed up in my mailbox for proofing.
I love ebooks, and I rarely buy paperbacks myself. Though I do have a few author-signed books that I’ve collected lately. But there is just something about seeing your words in print. 😀
I immediately approved the proof, so it’s on sale at Createspace now and should be available on Amazon in 3 days or so, then on other retailers in about a week.
You know what a new paperback means, right?
Yep, more giveaways!
I still have a few misprints I need to pawn off, and someone should get a copy of this pretty baby as well, don’t ya think?
I started tracking my books sales by country in May and am exceedingly pleased to have added three more countries in July! I was grinning ear-to-ear as I typed this up and added new colours to the map. I’m so glad I decided to keep track.
New to the map for July 2015 – Welcome!
South Africa
Czech Republic
El Salvador
Other countries I sold books in this month – you rock, as always!
Canada
UK
USA
Australia
Finland
New Zealand
Netherlands
France
Spain
Germany
Italy
Sweden
Mexico
Chile
Argentina
Peru
<3 Thank you all so, so much for reading!! <3
Previous book sales by country posts
CONTEST CLOSED. WINNER TBA
This is the second of two giveaways to celebrate the pending release of Dowser 5 – yay!
Who would like to win these five autographed paperbacks and an eARC of Dowser 5?
You would?
Okay then!
To enter:
- Comment below with your favourite quote from any of the Dowser books, making sure to note which book the quote comes from and why you’ve picked it.
Notes/Rules: OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. Each comment will be assigned an entry number. The winning entry will then be selected via random number generator. One entry per person. Please make sure to fill out a valid email address in the comment form. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than notifying the contest winner.
If you haven’t commented on the blog before, or you comment from a different IP address, the comments are moderated. So don’t worry if you don’t see your entry right away. I will approve it, then assign it an entry number.
Contest closes THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2015 at 9 p.m. PDT.
NEW TO THE DOWSER SERIES BUT YOU STILL WANT TO PLAY ALONG? Dowser 1 is currently perma-free on all retailers.
<3 <3 <3
The Dowser 5 ebook will be available THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2015 on Amazon, Kobo, iTunes, B&N, and Smashwords. The paperback will follow about two weeks later. The preorders are live.
Don’t want to miss the release day? Please make sure you are signed up for my mailing list.