Musings & more….
… but I’m working through the editor’s (aka SFG’s) story notes for Dowser 8 today.
Yep, this is what brainstorming a ‘missing’ scene looked like earlier this afternoon.
I’ve also spent the day trying to convince myself that I have absolutely no need for a new iPad, even if I would totally have fun writing with the pencil.
And .. that’s editing in a nut shell. For this book, at least.
Two new cupcakes are featured in the opening chapters of Dowser 8. And, for the first time, I find myself slightly stumped about what to name them. Yesterday, after completing the first draft of Dower 8.5 and apparently freeing up some headspace, I decided it might be fun for a reader (or two) to get a chance to name a cupcake.
Fun? Fun! Yes!
The background. Jade and Bryn are about to open a bakery in Whistler, BC. The two to-be-named cupcakes have been designed exclusively for the Whistler bakery. Whistler (in the winter season specifically) is known for great skiing and other winter sports, high-end restaurants, great spas, etc. Jade and Bryn have designed the bakery with a cozy, but modern feel. Think white counters, wood, and glass, comfy chairs and low tables. Big, sleek gas fireplace.
The cupcakes-to-be named are:
Cupcake #1: chocolate mint cake with chocolate mint buttercream
Cupcake #2: chocolate mint cake with mint buttercream
The caveat. Feel free to suggest any names you wish, but the Cake in a Cup cupcake names are usually evocative of some emotion or emotional state.
A complete list of Cake in a Cup cupcakes. For reference and to avoid doubles.
| Serenity | Carrot Cake | Cream Cheese |
| Solace | Chocolate Carrot Cake | Chocolate Cream Cheese |
| Comfort | Banana Cake | Buttercream |
| Cozy | Banana Chocolate Chip | Dark Chocolate Buttercream |
| Sin | Spiced Cake | Mocha Butter Icing |
| Sex | Cinnamon Cocoa | Dark Chocolate Buttercream |
| Blitzen | Chocolate Mocha | Eggnog Buttercream |
| Vixen | Chocolate Gingerbread | Salted Caramel Icing |
| Heaven | White Cake | Coconut |
| Harmony | White Cake | Cherry Butter |
| Delight | White Cake | Lemon Butter |
| Thrill | White Cake | Mocha Butter-iced |
| Wonder | White Cake | Dark Chocolate Buttercream |
| Lift | White Cake | Coffee Buttercream |
| Euphoria | Fudge Cake | Chocolate Cream Cheese |
| Bliss | Fudge Cake | Peanut Butter Icing |
| Happiness | Peanut Butter Cake | Honey Buttercream |
| Glee | Peanut Butter Cake | Peanut Butter Icing |
| Elation | Peanut Butter Cake | Chocolate Buttercream |
| Enchantment | Chocolate Peanut Butter | Peanut Butter Icing |
| Exultation | Chocolate Peanut Butter | Dark Chocolate Buttercream |
| Delirium | Chocolate Peanut Butter | Chocolate Peanut Butter Icing |
| Buzz | Mocha Fudge Cake | Mocha Butter |
| Ecstasy | Double Chocolate Cake | Lemon Butter |
| Desire | Chocolate Raspberry Cake | Dark Chocolate Buttercream |
| Lust | Dark Chocolate Cake | Dark Chocolate Cream Cheese |
| Love | Chocolate Cake | Strawberry Butter |
| Kiss | Chocolate Cake | Cherry Chocolate Butter |
| Hug | Chocolate Cake | Buttercream |
| Joy | Lemon Yellow Cake | Buttercream |
| Sunshine | Lemon Yellow Cake | Lemon Butter |
| Charm | Lemon Yellow Cake | Strawberry Butter |
| Rapture | Yellow/Chocolate Swirl | Chocolate Cream Cheese |
| Flirt | Blackberry Cake | Chocolate blackberry buttercream |
| Sass | Chocolate Blackberry Cake | Chocolate blackberry buttercream |
| Tart | Blackberry Cake | Blackberry buttercream |
| Tease | Chocolate Blackberry Cake | Blackberry buttercream |
| Clarity | Apple Spiced Cake | Honey Buttercream |
How to enter: comment below with your suggested names for cupcake #1 and/or cupcake #2.
I will edit the entries down to my favourites, then ask Michael to pick his favourites from my short listed names. If we are torn between suggestions, the editor (aka SFG) will be asked to weigh in.
The TWO entries/cupcake names selected will receive a thank you on the Acknowledgment page of Dowser 8 as well as an audiobook and postcard prize pack (pictured below). Yay!
Notes/Rules: The giveaway is OPEN INTERNATIONALLY. One entry per person (but feel free to list as many suggestions as you wish). Two winners will be selected by the process detailed above. If there are doubles, I will select the entry with the earliest timestamp. Email addresses are not collected for any purpose other than to contact the winner. No purchase necessary.
Giveaway closes SUNDAY MARCH 8, 2018 at midnight 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.
I finally got Dowser 8 off to the editor (aka SFG aka Scott Fitzgerald Gray) for story editing this morning. Though I nearly lost my mind trying to output the manuscript from Scrivener (the software I use to write) into a WORD document because the compile function had been updated/upgraded. Anyway, an hour and half later, I dropped the book in Scott’s inbox. YAY!
And, because some of you might ask, I haven’t set a release date yet. There are three stages of editing – story, line/content, then proofread. And those tasks depend on other people’s schedules as well as at least two, if not three, more drafts of the novel, plus a polish, that depend on me. Late spring/early summer is my best guess right now.
To celebrate I thought I’d share an excerpt with you.
“Treasure Keeper.” I struggled to keep my tone smooth. “Thank you for coming. I do have some questions. Would you like to step inside the bakery?”
He tilted his head, making a show of thinking about it. “Are there cupcakes?”
“Probably not. Nothing fresh, at least. But I believe we were just about to order sushi.”
Pulou grimaced. “Raw fish.”
“We could order some tempura.” Yes, I was cajoling one of the nine most powerful beings in the world with deep fried prawns and veggies. I had a feeling it was that, or give into the need to beat him around the head until he apologized — for locking me up and not telling me about the elves. “And there might be some leftover petit fours.”
“That will have to do then. Not created by your hand, alchemist, but I shall have to endure, I suppose.” He offered me a smile.
I returned the smile, with less teeth. I wasn’t fooled by his attempt to charm me. Seriously. A girl knew when her former mentor would like nothing better than to kick her ass and retrieve the instruments of assassination.
– Dowser 8, Chapter 8, third draft [selectively edited for extreme spoilers][unproofed]
Below is the excerpt I promised yesterday. I just added another 2100 words to Mory’s story (which opens Dowser 8.5) bringing it to 12k with at least six more scenes left. So it will definitely be a novella once it’s finished, not even including the addition of Rochelle and Jasmine’s stories. Fun!
Now I’m going to make Michael his birthday lunch (grilled cheese – medium cheddar cheese from a local dairy on garlic cheddar bread from a local baker), then settle in with my knitting for a Thor movie marathon with the birthday boy. Later there will be cheesecake and individual pizzas.
Warner leaned forward. “And if I’m about to leave the country, I’d like a moment alone with you. Upstairs, perhaps?”
Placing a hand on his chest, I pushed him slightly away. He allowed it with a grin that told me he was content to be compliant. For the moment, at least. “Leaving the country? With Kett?”
He shrugged. “We’re bringing Drake. And your father and Qiuniu are joining us at some point. So what could possibly happen?”
My mind momentarily boggled at all the craziness that could possibly occur under those exact circumstances.
– Dowser 8, chapter two, second draft
Okay, this tiny snippet made me laugh out loud yesterday. I thought you might find it fun as well.
Feeling the teenagers behind me becoming restless, I wrapped my hand around the hilt of my knife. Someone was going to have to teach Peggy and Maia to be patient hunters.
Unfortunately, I was concerned that person was supposed to me and I was honestly getting bored myself.
– Dowser 8, chapter one, second draft
So I’ve decided to change up my daily writing schedule in 2018. Normally, I work on one project/novel/screenplay at a time, taking it through three drafts, then story edit, then another draft and polishing pass, then content/line edit, then final read through, then proofreaders, and then the book is released. Meaning that after I write the first draft, I don’t really write any ‘new’ words until the story is with the editor (I add a ton of words, and move them around, but I’m still working within the same main story). So this often results in me struggling to get back into the habit of daily writing when a book is being released – at a time that I often feel a bit tired (if not actually a little burned out).
So! For 2018, I’ve decided to try something new. I’ll write two thousand words a day, every morning, five days a week. And in the afternoon, I’ll work on the 2nd/3rd drafts or edits of the novel that is next to be released. Setting Saturdays aside for audiobook recording.
So this will likely mean that the period of time between Dowser 7 and Dowser 8 releasing will be slightly longer than normal, but it should also mean that Dowser 8.5 and Dowser 9 actually release quicker. If all goes as planned and I can actually write two novels at once (that does remain to be seen).
Anyway, this is long way of saying – YAY! I get to start writing Dowser 8.5 today, as well as the second draft of Dowser 8 this afternoon.
Oh, FYI. I seriously hope the test prints of the new T-shirt designs from Dowser 7 arrive at Elizabeth’s this week. But they still haven’t shipped. Yes, the ones I ordered on January 12. 🙁 Fingers crossed! I’ll do a couple of giveaways when they’ve been approved! And hopefully Elizabeth will take some modelling shots. 🙂 I will also write up a post about getting a good fit (using your chest measurement, not the size printed on the T-shirt) and how international readers can get their hands on the designs (since the T-shirts themselves still only ship to US addresses).
I couldn’t let Valentine’s Day pass without sharing a glimpse of my (current) favourite couple, Jade and Warner.
Jasmine glanced between us. “You two are a little crazy, you know.”
Kandy shrugged. “You’ll get it, baby girl. When you’re all grown up and never meet your match.”
Jasmine twisted her lips wryly, tugging her phone of out her jacket pocket. “I’ve already met him.”
Kandy laughed huskily, shaking her head. “The nearly immortal are more vulnerable than us three, darling. They’ve forgotten they can die. And it’s the possibility of death than keeps us sharp.” Kandy tapped on her temple.
Jasmine raised one eyebrow at the green-haired werewolf, texting without looking at her screen. “Thanks for the life lesson, wolf.”
Kandy snapped her teeth. “You can owe it to me, vampire.”
I laughed. “Shall we continue?”
– Dowser 8, first draft [unedited and unproofed]
Click here for the reading order of the Adept Universe.
Dowser 8 to be released late-spring 2018.
Me: *getting a drink of water from the kitchen, and – lets be honest – some chocolate.*
Michael: How is the writing going?
Me: *introspectively, speaking mostly to myself* Ah, good. I know how the rest of the chapter unfolds, I just have no idea what complication occurs in the next chapter. But, I had this idea last night when we were putting the chickies to bed, about this really … well, about this really horrible moment that happens when … *I look up to see Michael grinning to himself gleefully* What? Did I say something funny?
Michael: *shaking his head, still grinning gleefully as he rubs his hands together in anticipation* Oooo, a horrible moment!
Me: *indignant* I don’t write them for the shock value, you know! It’s just how the story unfolds sometimes.
Michael: *grinning even wider, his eyes beginning to twinkle.* Sure, sure.
Me: *narrows eyes at him* I’m going back to the office.
Michael: *laughing*
So yeah.
I’m writing.
Dowser 8.