Writer Thursday: April Wrap Up & May Goals

Hey readers! This #WriterThursday I'm giving you updates on all my bookish projects...

Bloodstone Manor

April Progress:

- Project Named: BLOODSTONE MANOR

- Project Outlined (14 Chapters)

- Character Development

- 3 Chapters Written/Rewritten

- Cover Created

- (Working) Synopsis Written

Synopsis:

Inspired by classic novels Northanger Abbey and Rebecca, Bloodstone Manor follows naive heroine Edylynne as she spends the summer in the Hamptons with friends of her parents and meets an attractive, older man whose past is shrouded in the mysterious death of his Hollywood starlet mother nearly thirty years earlier. When their whirlwind romance takes a serious turn and family secrets unleash Edylynne's boundless imagination she will try to uncover the truth about the mysterious death of the mother of the man she loves... before history repeats itself.

Pinterest Idea Board

Goals For May 2020:

MONSTERS & MIST
- Keep editing Monsters & Mist
- Add to the mythology/history of the world sections

BLOODSTONE MANOR
- Write Chapters 4-8

Writer Thursday: March/April Book Update & Goals

Hey readers! This #WriterThursday I'm giving you updates on all my bookish projects...

Monsters & Mist

With the coronavirus pandemic (or is it epidemic now? which is worse?) I've pushed the release of Monsters & Mist off until late September / early October in the hopes that things will have gone back to normal by then. That will also give me ample time to really polish each draft and add more to the mythology of the world. 

Titania Project

I didn't make any progress on this project in March. With everything going to hell the way it has I really wasn't motivated but I'm hoping to get back on track. 

Untitled Retelling/Romance/Mystery

I've written two short chapters for this project and have been working on adding to the first chapter before I continue writing. The story is inspired by two classic novels but will have a murder mystery that the source material doesn't. This will be most likely a New Adult/Adult Fiction Thriller Retelling.

Goals For April 2020:

- Camp NaNoWriMo to work on Titania and the NA Retelling
- Keep editing Monsters & Mist
- Add to the mythology/history of the world sections

Writer Thursday: Q&A, Story Outline, and Vision Board - Monsters & Mist

Hey readers! This #WriterThursday I'm doing a little Q&A, sharing the process of developing Monsters & Mist and showing a bit more of the visuals inspired me while writing.
Q&A
Q: Is Monsters & Mist a retelling? A: No, originally it was meant to be but the story took off in a completely different, original direction.
Q: Will Monsters & Mist be a stand-alone or part of a series?A: At this time Monsters & Mist is a stand-alone, but I may revisit the world and the characters in the future.
Q: What was your favorite part of writing Monsters & Mist?A: Creating the mythology that the world of Monsters & Mist sprung from. I wanted a wholly original fantasy world so I didn’t want to base the mythology on any of our world mythology. 
Q: What inspired Monsters & Mist?A: Orignally I wanted to do a retelling of a folktale I was read as a child, The Fog’s Net. It’s a story about a  creeping fog that devours boats and people and a weaver girl  tasked with making a new net for the fog in exchange for keeping her family safe. The fog goes back on it’s promise and takes her younger brother and she goes on a quest to bring him back. That was the bones of where I wanted to develop the story but it soon became clear that the villain of the story was not who I would have expected it to be. 
Story Outlining / Development / Process
Monsters & Mist was written on this formation: 1 section divider on The History of Esternwhorl (the world in Monsters & Mist to every 2-3 chapters of story. 
The History of Esternwhorl covers the origin of the world, the mythology, and the origins of any organization or religion mentioned within. 
The first initial chapters follow Andromeda Mistsplitter the technical main character before fracturing off to the other main characters’ perspectives: Thane, Lyra, Daegan, Cygni, and Octavia.
In lieu of HoE sections, several chapters begin in 3rd person narrative of a newly introduced character to build a “meanwhile in...” omniscient feel to the story.  
Vision BoardFrom my Pinterest board...
The view from the coast when you live in a world cloaked in thick mist.

The poorest people live on the coast of Vacantia so I pictured them living in shacks thrown together from driftwood thrown up on the coast.

My initial vision of what the Mistborn people would look like, perhaps a depiction of what the Vacantian people think the Mistborn look like. 


While the world above is reminiscent of long ago times, the world below the sea is home to a highly tech advanced kingdom and a palace built on waterways like the city of Venice. 


Mythological creatures are a thing in Esternwhorl. Below the surface of the sea a legion of creatures that are part sea serpent and part dragon called Krayverns are bred to be mounts for the queen’s warrior riders. The Starborn kingdom boasts an all female army of stormriders who ride giant phoenix-inspired beasts borne of lightning, cloud, and storms.

The fifth and most well hidden kingdom in Esternwhorl, the Starborn kingdom resides in the Sky any only those born with the map inside them can find their way. 
🔹🔹🔹

Monsters & Mist releases July 2020! Stay tuned for preorder links! 

Writer Thursday: Meet the Cast Of Monsters & Mist

Hey readers! This #WriterThursday I'm giving you a peek at the visual inspiration of the character cast of Monsters & Mist...
Andromeda MistsplitterAndromeda is our heroine, an aspiring warrior about to uncover a monstrous secret about her origins.
General Thane Cruelseas

The youngest General the Watierai Warriors has ever seen Thane teeters between the duty he has trained for his whole life and the loss long ago he has never gotten over that drives everything he does and how he views the world.

Daegan Brykmaker

His family disgraced by their queen, Daegan captains a rag-tag crew of bounty hunters aboard his ship, The Internment. What will he have to do to regain favor from the royal family?

Octavia Starkova

Left on the steps of a temple honoring the Starborn goddess baring an unusual facial birthmark and trained as a Watierai Warrior from the moment she was old enough to walk, Octavia is nobody to underestimate. But could there be a hidden destiny within her waiting for the right moment to show itself?

Cygni of the House Vacant

Heir presumptive to the throne of Vacantia but not ready to give up nights of drowning himself in drink and women Cygni will find himself thrust into the role of the leader of a revolution. 

Queen Lyra of the House Vacant

Ruthless, cunning, and charming - Lyra could slit your throat and you’d thank her for it as you gasp for your final breaths. 

King Pavo of the House Vacant

Once a strong, unstoppable warrior Pavo has been cursed with a mysterious ailment that no healer in any of the kingdoms can identify. Is there an assassin in his home?

Queen Carina of the House of Faeta’s Blessed Chosen Ones

Once a young, innocent princess before something was stolen from her long ago Carina became a respected, yet feared queen of her people and the kind of ruler you’d hate to make an enemy of.

The Three

The Three are the eyes and hands of the Starborn Goddess, Adventrya. They see all and report all while under strict orders not to interfere in the quarrels of Landborn men.

Cutter Longbone

Right hand of General Cruelseas, Cutter holds no ill will toward the monsters they hunt. No more loyal a friend will you find in any of the five kingdoms.

Castor Windwhirl

Among General Cruelseas’s inner circle, Castor’s talent with a sword is as legendary as his temper.

Grus Mistsplitter

Just an honest man who made the mistake of loving the wrong woman, Grus’s past will set off a collision course of what is to come.
🔹🔹🔹Monsters & Mist releases July 2020! Stay tuned for preorder links! 

Writer Thursday: Monthly Book Update

Hey readers! This #WriterThursday I'm giving you updates on all my bookish projects...

Monsters & Mist

I'm about 1/3 of the way through my editing process for Monsters and Mist. I wrote most of the first draft on Scrivener which is a great tool for writers... but I have to admit, it wasn't the best tool for catching typos. Also because of the length of time it took me to write Monsters I'd forgotten some minor details the further I got into the writing. I'm hoping to have these first few sets of edits done by mid-month and a more polished copy on its way to beta readers by end of March, early April.

Titania Project

I started plotting the Titania Project, which is a sci-fi project inspired by Titanic, late last year. I can't tell you much yet but I can give you a peek at the visual inspiration for my main character Rozy from my secret Pinterest board...

Photo Credit: Art Ignition / Pinterest

Untitled Retelling/Romance/Mystery

As it always happens when I'm gearing up to really get into a new project a new idea pops into my head and demands to be written down, developed, probed until it becomes something. I don't have a title for this newly forming story and I can't really describe the genre because it's a mashup of two gothic classics with a dash of mystery and intrigue, and forbidden love.

Goals For March 2020:

- Monsters & Mist editing

- Add 5k words to the Titania Project

- Outline untitled project

Bookish (And Not So Bookish) Thoughts - 28 March 2019

Bookish (And Not So Bookish) Thoughts is a Weekly Meme hosted by Christine @ Bookishly  Boisterous.

Happy Thursday Bookdragons! 

1. Do you ever have just lazy weeks where you know there's stuff you have to do; housework, blogging, review books to read, etc.  but you're just tired of your routine and just need some time off? That was me last week. I read a lot but I didn't do much besides that. 

2. I bought way too many books this month. I just kind of went on a spree when I should be 
saving for my fall vacation. I decided against getting a ticket for next year's ApollyCon because
there weren't many authors attending that I'd actually like to meet so I figured I wouldn't have to
worry so much about May's paychecks and just sort of went for it with March's. I regret nothing.

3. I'm nearly caught up on my ARC reading. The only ones I have left are May-August releases so I have plenty of time. It feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

4. I watched Game of Thrones for the first time tonight and I loved it! I'm going to try to catch up before the final season, but it's going to take a lot of binging!

5. My grandmother and I started a two-woman book club this month. Our pick this month was All We Left Behind: Virginia Reed and the Donner Party. My grandmother just finished so I need to catch up so we can discuss. Next month we're doing Daisy Jones and the Six!

6. It's finally warm enough that I don't need to wear boots out! I'm so glad to be back to walking more and taking off a few of the pounds I put on over the winter.

7. I'm finally nearing the end of my current writing project. I'm about 7k words from hitting my project targets! 

NaNoWriMo Stress-free

It's November, and if you are a writer like me you know that it is NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month, a month where authors temporarily lose their minds in an attempt to write 50,000 words in thirty days. I've done this two previous years in a row and actually excelled. Then came this year...

What's different about this year you ask?

Well, this fall has not been going my way at all. I've had a sick relative that was in a hospital and then a physical therapy facility for a whole month who has now returned home, turmoil in my relationship that hopefully is calming down, a surprise book release, and another book coming out in less than two months. Who wouldn't be freaking out?!?

On top of that, the "perfectly constructed story idea" that sounded so good in my head is not going so well on paper. I can actually feel the psoriasis breaking out on my skin as I type this. So I'm not really feeling the spirit of NaNoWriMo this year. 

So to soldier on, I've decided to do NaNoWriMo my way to keep the stress at a minimum.

Here's how I'm switching things up...

1. I left my "Home Region" on the NaNoWriMo website.

Why did I even join that region anyway? Even though it's one of the two closest geographically to where I live (as in the middle of nowhere in Wisconsin) it isn't really accessible for me to get to write-ins 45 miles away when I have neither a car nor a license, nor, if I'm being perfectly honest, the spare time to sit around at a library working on the same thing I could be working on at home just for the sense of camaraderie. Besides that, there's one woman in my "home region" who is a total witch with a b. I mean on day one she claimed to have written over 13,000 words which I swear is an impossibility. I'm not competitive, but she gloats and rubs it in and is overall not a nice person - and this is the second year of having to put up with this. And I don't need the stress, so the group had to go.

Whew, I feel better already.

2. I'm taking on a "Que Sera, Sera" attitude. 

If I can figure out the kinks in this story then eventually I'll finish it, even if I don't hit 50,000 words in the month of November or finish the first draft in thirty days. I'm not going to freak out if I don't. I'm patting myself on the back because you know what? I've already written 92,000 words this year on two other writing projects. That's pretty damn good if I say so myself.

3. I'm not writing every day. 

Sure, I can tell you I'm sitting here on my laptop every day writing. But some days I'm just not feeling it. I'm not behind... I don't think? I'm at 12,000 words written since November 1st and I'm tired. So if I want to read, I'm going to read. If I have a book that pops up that I have to review or a blog post to type and schedule, that will come first. I can stress myself out by staring at a flashing cursor on the screen or I can relax and let the words flow out of me if and when they come. 

4. I'm not thinking about writing when I'm not writing.

Sure, if an idea pops up, I'll write it down. But I have other things on my mind so I'm not going to panic and think "oh no, I haven't written today," or "I'm so behind on my word count!" Like I said, if it's going to happen, it will happen in time. I think that's part of my anxiety issue, I'm so afraid of what's going to happen if I don't get what needs to be done, done now that I don't stop and think about what will really happen, which usually is nothing. Why did we let NaNoWriMo get to be such a big thing? Did it used to be fun before all the competition and pressure? Some of my friends talk about being supportive and encouraging and I want to get back to that, not surround myself with writers who act like jerks and pick on people if they don't have a certain word count on a certain day. 

***

Are you doing NaNoWriMo? What are you doing to keep your stress levels in check?

What I'm Working On: September

It's halfway through September (and still overwhelmingly hot here in Wisconsin) and I'm about halfway through my current writing project so I just want to catch you up on what I'm working on this month...

Night of Terror

Night of Terror is a short story/novelette/novella which I will be posting one chapter per week on Wattpad starting on October 3rd and continuing until it is complete. Night of Terror is aimed to be a horror story and as of right now it is 9,000 words in length and I'm in the midst of the 6th chapter - which means you'll get to read this story at least through all of October and into November!

Where will you be able to find this story? Follow me on Wattpad!

Monsters & Mist

In November, I will be starting my next full-length novel, Monsters & Mist and this month I'm outlining the chapters so I can figure out what parts of the plot need to be filled in and worked on. 

CurseBreaker

This month I revealed the cover art for my upcoming novel, CurseBreaker and this month I still need to get the Kindle edition ready to go up for preorder, order paperback ARCs, and begin reaching out to bloggers and readers about review requests. 

***

That's what I'm working on writing-wise this month. What are you up to?

June Wrap-Up

June was a fantastically busy month and in case you missed anything on my blog or social media last month, this is what I got up to: 

READING


Books I Reviewed In June:

Secrets of Skin and Stone by Wendy Laine - My new favorite gargoyle-themed book! 

Roar by Cora Carmack - Magical storms + a magicless Princess + swoon-worthy storm hunters = an awesome read!

Kiss Me, Kill You by Larissa C. Hardesty - A quick YA read about a teen succubus who just wants to fall in love.

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller - Strike two when it comes to me and pirate-themed books. 

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga - My first manga read and an interesting way to read an old favorite. 

Just An Illusion: EP by D. Kelly - An emotional end to a fantastic trilogy!

Books I Read In June: 

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga

Caraval by Stephanie Garber (Took a break from reading, will finish listening to audiobook in July)

The Dazzling Heights by Katharine McGee

Just An Illusion: EP by D. Kelly

The Shining by Stephen King

Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco (Still reading... hoping to finish tonight!)

Books To-Be-Read in July:

Ever the Brave by Erin Summerill

Sublime by Christina Lauren

The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

WRITING
In June, I finished writing my seventh full-length novel and first New Adult novel, Headless. I wrote a total of 27,711 words this month, finishing the first draft at 76,211 words! This is the longest of all the novels I've written so far. 

BLOGGING
In June, I participated in 3 Cover Art Reveals, 4 Release Day Blitzes and/or Blog Tours, 1 Excerpt Reveal, and Three Book Tags. I also posted my Summer Reads to Check Out Blog which can be found here: "Stuff Your Beach Bag! 17 Books to Devour this Summer!"

PUBLISHING
This month, I published my fifth novel and the third book in my Eternals Trilogy, Through the Fog. Included with Through the Fog is a bonus novelette entitled, Eternal Fire which is in the perspective of one of my favorite secondary characters. You can read more about Through the Fog and Eternal Fire here: "{Release Day Blitz} Through the Fog by Taylor Fenner"

MISC. BOOK NEWS
Finally, this month I submitted my upcoming YA High Fantasy novel, CurseBreaker to a writing contest for fantasy novels. The deadline isn't until October 31, 2017, but I wanted to get it in early enough. I'll be starting to get CurseBreaker ready for it's January 2, 2018, release next month! Be on the look out for opportunities to read an ARC of CurseBreaker later this year! 

My Writing, Bookish, and Publishing Goals for 2017

2016 was a seriously busy year for me. I published the first two books in the Eternals Trilogy, wrote book 3 of the Eternals Trilogy, a novelette to go with the Eternals Trilogy, and a standalone YA High Fantasy novel - not to mention turning this blog into a full-fledged book blog where I blog 2-3 times a week, reading at least 74 books - including quite a few ARCs, and getting into #bookstagram on Instagram. 

With the exhaustion of this past year behind me and no sign of slowing down, what do I have in store for 2017?

Publishing:

1.) Publish Through the Fog (Eternals Trilogy  #3) and Eternal Fire (An Eternals Trilogy Novelette) 

I finished writing Through the Fog and Eternal Fire over the summer and I'm preparing to get the publishing process for both started after the first of the year. I'm planning - if all goes according to plan - to publish Through the Fog and Eternal Fire together either at the end of June or beginning of July 2017!

2.) Figure out which course of publishing I want to pursue for my YA High Fantasy novel and begin the process.

I haven't decided whether I want to try to submit this book to a traditional or small press, seek out a literary agent to help me find a publisher, or self-publish this project. Ideally, I really believe this could be the book that changes everything for my writing career and I want it to find a broad audience so I haven't decided which route would be best yet. After the first of the year, I'm planning to sit down, make a few pro/con lists and see what happens from there. Either way, you probably won't see this book available until at least early 2018. 

Writing:

3. Pick A Writing Project (or a couple) and See What I Accomplish in the next 12 months.

I'm not sure which writing project idea to pursue next, but I'm going to look over the ideas I have and see what I feel like working on. I'd like to write at least 2 full-length novels in 2017.

Possible projects:

-A collection of short stories that occur in the Eternals Trilogy world pre-Out of Darkness.

-A classic novel retelling with an unusual twist.

-A vampire romance set in Green Bay, Wisconsin in the 1960s.

- An upper YA paranormal romance set in Nashville. 

4. Participate in NaNoWriMo 2017 and actually attend some of the write-ins.

This year's NaNoWriMo was a huge success for me and I can't wait to see what I come up with next November! I couldn't make it to any of the write-ins for my region due to my schedule and the weather but I'm hoping next year I'll be able to attend a few! 

Bookish:

5. Read at least 30 books in 2017.

I like to set the bar low so I can exceed my goal. 30 books is an easily doable goal. 

6. Expand my blog viewership/subscribers/readership to 2,500 to 3,000 views per month.

Right now between 1,500 to 2,000 of you amazing readers view my blog every month. I am beyond grateful to everyone that stops by! Let's keep growing in 2017!

7. Take better #bookstagram photos and gain more followers.

I've just really gotten into the #bookstagram community on Instagram the past few months and I'd love to try out some new props and see what shots I can come up with in 2017. I've met some amazing people that inspire me every day through the community! 

Music & Writing

My vacation is winding down and I'm heading home so I think I'll talk about how music helps me write...

As I've mentioned before in an inspiration blog, music can be great for writers. It helps us focus and we can completely get lost in our writing. Some writers listen to classical music others to instrumental but I'm fond of rock music when I write. 

Some of my favorite artists to write to are Halestorm, The Pretty Reckless, and Evanescence. I need it loud, I need it angry, and I need it powerful. But sometimes I don't even hear the lyrics when I listen to music while writing... sometimes there's just something about the beat that drives me on. 

Music is a powerful thing. When I listen to a song for the first time something magical happens: the lyrics paint a picture in my head and that picture tells a story. This isn't a new development. When I was younger before I started any major writing projects I'd listen to a song and my mind would conjure up a story about what the singer was saying. (in my mind I used to think I was "brainstorming" what the music video should look like.)

For example, when I listened to "Gun In My Hand" by DOROTHY I pictured in the literal sense a woman doing away with her cheating boyfriend/husband/lover. In my mind's eye, the era is the 1930s or forties, the woman's black hair is pulled into a tight chignon, and she's wearing a blue cotton knee-length dress with short capped sleeves. She's in a women's prison after killing her significant other and a woman after finding them in bed together. At one point you see her scrubbing blood off her hands then the cops bust the door in and arrest her. She's singing into an old fashioned microphone in a large open area and there are prison cells behind her - it is all very Chicago - Cell Block Tango scene. 

How do my weird thoughts about songs translate to writing? All it takes it a phrase in the lyrics to create a scene relevant to whatever I'm working on and I'm off. I can see it all so clearly and words start flowing from the tip of my pen. 

Music is my greatest weapon against writer's block, my saving grace when I'm afraid I won't know how to continue. Music is soothing (yes, even loud rock is soothing to me) and it blocks out distractions around me. Music has the ability to convey thoughts and emotions through lyrics and melodies. 

What does music do for you? Does it help you create? Are you a writer? What do you like to listen to when you write? Or do you like complete silence?

All About Inspiration

                 A question I get a lot from readers is "What inspired me to write my novel (Enter name of novel here)?." or "What inspires me to write in general?"

Inspiration is everywhere. In the lyrics of a song, in an overheard conversation, in a random stray thought. What you do with it is entirely up to you. 

Over the past few years, I've become what I'm sure some people would describe as "absent-minded" or "forgetful." My grandmother can ask me to bring her a kleenex on my way back from the kitchen but when I'm all wrapped up in my thoughts it's entirely possible that I'll sit down without grabbing the kleenex, Cheetos, Tylenol, whatever I was asked to bring on my way back. When I get an idea in my head I can't focus on anything else, I need to get that idea out before I can do anything else. 

Where do I (and other writers) draw inspiration from? 

Music

These lyrics from Make Me Wanna Die by The Pretty Reckless could inspire a kickass start to a paranormal story, maybe even with a vampire theme. But it's not always the music or the beat, or even the lyrics themselves. Sometimes it's just about how the song makes you feel and the images and scenes they create in your head. 

Conversations

Conversations, whether overheard or otherwise can be great inspiration for dialogue.  Like the image above says, clear warning... anything you say might at some time end up in my novel. 

Dreams

Dreams are a rich wonderland of writing inspiration. Daydreaming is great but when you close your eyes and fall asleep and travel into a world completely created by your subconscious amazing stories can spring forth. A lot of the dreams and past lives in my novel, Finding Elizabeth were based off dreams I've had throughout my life. The key is being able to write them down before you forget. 

Visual Inspiration

Look at this picture. Study it, get a real good look. What story does this picture tell? What is the girl running from? Are the headlights up ahead her salvation or her nightmare, continued? Writers can use pictures as inspiration to tell their story, as scene inspiration, a prompt, or to even help them visualize what they want to happen in a sequence. 

Prompts

Whether using the picture prompt in the last section or the writing prompt in this one, prompts can inspire writers to come up with all kinds of different stories. Afraid someone else will write the same story as you? Not likely because everyone sees the prompt differently and writes in different styles. It's like the saying "no two people ever read the same book" meaning each person views something in their own way, their own mindset. 

and the best way to get inspired? 

Reading!

Reading makes for great inspiration. Reading a book about whatever you like may get you to thinking about the what ifs... and then you're off. As if I need to give you another reason to read more books. Remember, readers will rule the world, as soon as we finish this chapter. 

These are just a few examples of things people can get inspired from. I once was inspired by looking at the shiny floor at a Cheesecake Factory restaurant... now that is a weird thing to get inspired by. Are you a writer? What inspires you, what gets you in the writing mood? 

What tools can help you when you get inspired?

I highly recommend keeping something to write on and a writing utensil with you at all times. Whether it's a notepad, notebook, post-it note, napkin, pen, pencil, marker, eyeliner pencil.. you always want something on hand when that idea hits you. Don't have paper and a pen on hand but need to write down that awesome idea? Do you have a smartphone? There are tons of apps like Evernote that allow you to take notes right on your phone and who is ever that far away from their phone? Stick your writing stuff in your purse (or your pockets/wallet if you're a dude), next to your bed, in the bathroom for those awesome in-the-shower breakthroughs, and wherever else you hang out frequently. 

Next week I think we'll discuss Character Inspiration...