Error in Kindle Astral Bodies 5 + NaNoWriMo

It was pointed out to me that in the kindle version of Astral Bodies 5, Chapter 25 is actually chapter 12 from part three! GAH!  Sorry for anyone that downloaded it and might have been confused, but the error has since been corrected and should be live very soon.  It was ONLY THE KINDLE version that was affected, so if you downloaded it elsewhere you're a-okay.

Now, on to NaNoWriMo!

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I'm doing terribly.  Only in the sense that I've been busy with school, and started working on Phasing a bit more??  I don't even know how it's already the end of November.  I didn't get nearly as much done on Misled Souls (Astral Bodies 2) that I wanted, but hey, there's still a few more days.  I'm sure I can do SOMETHING.

And speaking of Astral Bodies!  The full version will be available soon!  December first the compilation will be available, and is currently on for preorder at select retailers :)  I'm also adding a few more chapters to Wattpad until the full version is available.

NaNoWriMo 2014, Day 1

Today marks the start of NaNoWriMo!  I've been waiting for this for what feels like forever, because I'm so excited to get working on Misled Souls, the second novel in the Astral Bodies series!  To kick off day one I thought I would post the temporary cover (that may also turn into the official cover!).

Arrowood was a quiet city, or so Tess thought.  Until she met Adler she never thought much of murders, warlocks, or ghosts; not in real life at least.  But now that she knows what’s out there she’s more determined than ever to develop her skills and help those that can’t be helped by normal means.

With the Arrowood Vampire gone, Adler brings Tess to their next case; finding the missing bodies of Arrowood.  Over the past week dead bodies have been disappearing from graveyards and morgues, and the police believe they’re being stolen.  Adler thinks they’re breaking themselves out.

Evidence shows that a man dug himself out of his own grave, and a woman walked herself out of her own autopsy.  The undead are rising all over the city, and it’s up to Tess to figure out why.

Now, I'm off to start some writing!  You can track my progress on my NaNoWriMo page here.  I'll most likely start posting excerpts on Wattpad within the next couple of weeks as well!

Anyway, to everyone participating this year, Happy NaNoWriMo!

Astral Bodies 2

NaNoWriMo is starting very soon, so I thought I would post the synopsis + title for what I'll be working on!  As stated before, I'll be writing Astral Bodies 2, the continuation of Tess's journey with Adler as she solves supernatural crimes in Arrowood.  I have quite a bit outlined for this, so I'm hoping I'm able to get a lot done between school and other things.

The current title (it could change) for Astral Bodies 2 is...

Misled Souls

Arrowood was a quiet city, or so Tess thought.  Until she met Adler she never thought much of murders, warlocks, or ghosts; not in real life at least.  But now that she knows what’s out there she’s more determined than ever to develop her skills and help those that can’t be helped by normal means.

With the Arrowood Vampire gone, Adler brings Tess to their next case; finding the missing bodies of Arrowood.  Over the past week dead bodies have been disappearing from graveyards and morgues, and the police believe they’re being stolen.  Adler thinks they’re breaking themselves out.

Evidence shows that a man dug himself out of his own grave, and a woman walked herself out of her own autopsy.  The undead are rising all over the city, and it’s up to Tess to figure out why.


I am ridiculously excited to start working on this.  I've gotten the beginning outlined and ready to go, and I'm dying to begin!  You can read the first part of Tess's journey in Astral Bodies, which has multiple free parts to it (or preorder the full version which is available this December).

NaNoWriMo 2014

So the past two years I've been doing NaNoWriMo, and this year will be no different.  Though it does come at a time when I'm in the middle of a project!  Phasing is starting to wrap up, so I thought I would follow the actual rules this year (to work on something you have written absolutely nothing on).  It's a difficult rule for me to follow, since I usually write the first couple of chapters to everything I think of and then put it aside for quite a while.  But I realized that I hadn't started one project, and NaNoWriMo was the perfect excuse to divide my attention! YAY!

My serial novel Astral Bodies completed this year, so for NaNoWriMo I will be working on Astral Bodies 2!  I've written nothing for it, other than a few brief notes on the plot so I look forward to seeing what I can come up with in the heat of the moment.


I don't have a title yet, so I'm just going to be calling this one Astral Bodies 2, and it will be the continuation of Tess's journey with Adler.  I'll post the temporary blurb closer to NaNoWriMo!

Complete Release of Astral Bodies

My serial novel Astral Bodies completed in August, so I thought it was time to set up the compilation!  You'll be available to buy it for the same price as the individual parts ($3.99), but with the convenience of one file :)  Pre-order it and get it as soon as it's available on December 1, 2014.  Or I mean, if you can't wait, all parts are already up for sale!

There’s been a murder in Arrowood with only one witness, and she can’t come forward with any information because she technically wasn’t there.
Twenty-year-old Tess has the ability to astral project, and while going for a midnight walk in the woods she stumbles across a ritual murder. Not only that, the killer was actually able to see her when nobody else could.
After leaving an anonymous tip with the police, Tess thinks her life can return to normal, until Jonas Adler contacts her and offers her a job she just can’t refuse. He wants her to become his apprentice and work with the FBI using her unique ability to find the killer.
Tess is soon thrust into a world that both terrifies and excites her, and into a job she never knew she wanted.

Smashwords Pre-Order

Amazon Pre-Order

Astral Bodies is now complete!

If you didn't know, my serial novel Astral Bodies completed at the end of last month!  Part seven is out at retailers and available for you :)  So I hope you check it out and like the ending.

I've set up a giveaway of Goodreads for a copy of Fenridge: Book Two of The Ethereal Crossings (link here).  It's open to the US and Canada, so go enter!

I'm still working my way through Phasing, and you can read the first few chapters of the first draft on Wattpad.  Or if you like, you can read the first two books in the trilogy!  These books can be read in any order...(Click on the photo for links).

The Dark Origins

Read the stories of three girls as they discover who they are, where they come from, and where they’re going.  Each book is the tale of one girl, their life, and how different events lead them to the same place at the same time.

Igniting

Grace has finally escaped her past of foster homes and mall-cop jail cells. What she hasn’t escaped is her deadly temper, if she loses control black flames lash from her at high velocity, causing fires that can’t be put out by anything but time.

When a boy named Noah drags her through a magic portal after getting attacked she realizes she isn’t the only one out there with bizarre powers. But can she really trust someone with her biggest secret?

Shimmering

Ember Reed is a fifteen-year-old shape-shifter, a creature with the ability to transform into any animal, despite it’s shape or size. At least, she should be able to; Ember can’t quite change her entire form, only bits and pieces. This has earned her the nickname “sucky spook” at the Sagefall Recreation Center, a place where supernatural beings go for training.

Living the life of an outcast, Ember pretends to be content with only having her cousin Jayd as a friend and keeping her nose buried in fictional stories. But when she goes to the bookstore downtown and finds a girl going through her first Shift, Ember realizes that she might have the chance to make a friend.

Ember also realizes that this girl may be in trouble, because the most powerful people of her community have been starting to disappear. After she witnesses the kidnapping of her classmate she decides to do whatever she can to save her new friend. But while trying to keep this girl off the kidnappers radar she seems to have fallen right onto it when her new power is discovered.

Day 9 of Camp NaNoWriMo

It's day nine of Camp NaNoWriMo and I've reached the climax of Glenbrook!  With only 16K more words to go, I think I'll be doing pretty good to reach my goal (and if not, I will get it there in the revision process).  Either way, I think I'm doing wonderfully in writing daily on it, way better than I was for a while.  Camp NaNoWriMo really does inspire you to write every single day :)

It looks like I'll be finishing Glenbrook this month, and if all goes well, I imagine I will be able to do a late October/early November release.  As long as revisions don't throw a curve ball my way and my alpha readers don't take too long to give me feedback.

Other than that, don't forget you can preorder Astral Bodies part 6 and 7 at select retailers.  Fenridge and Northcliffe are still FREE for a couple more days!  Get them now and then get Glenbrook later this year!

And for all the other writers out there, HAPPY CAMP NANOWRIMO!  Also, good luck! :)

Are you ready for Camp NaNoWriMo?

Because I sure am!  Glenbrook is well on it's way to getting done, and even though I won't have it published by my anniversary (July 11), it'll at least be done for a release this year.  I can't believe June is already coming to a close...what the heck happened?  I'm never going to make my reading goal at this pace >_<

Astral Bodies 5 was released earlier this week and is already on all retailers.  The next two parts will each be $0.99, making the total for the book $3.99.  Upcoming dates are...

July 31 - Part 6

August 28 - Part 7 (the final part!)

I hope you guys are enjoying the story as much as I did rewriting it.  Astral Bodies actually started off as my attempt to write a mystery without a supernatural element, and after about 40K words I decided that I didn't like things without a supernatural element.  It was very boring.  So, I changed almost everything.  The only thing that stayed was the fact it opened in a hotel lol.

One last things; the giveaway for Igniting on Goodreads is ending in about a day, so enter while you can!

July Camp NaNoWriMo 2014

There's only two more weeks until Camp NaNoWriMo 2014, and I'm not sure what I should work on!  This is the problem you get when you have too much on the go.  I need to find a way to make my brain slow down and focus on one single project at a time...

I'll most likely work on Glenbrook, because it kind of stalled a bit while I focused on finishing up Astral Bodies (Part five is out soon by the way!).  I only need about 25K more words until I've reached my word count goal, so that'll be my NaNoWriMo goal! :D  I'm excited for you guys to find out more about Shadeland, and what happens between Liv and Jared.  You can actually start reading the first draft of it on Wattpad!


As for publishing updates, part four of Astral Bodies came out!  Find out what Tess saw that will define the future of the case, and learn what a family member has been hiding for her for some time now.
Part five of Astral Bodies will be out the end of June, and is going to be a free instalment :)

I can't believe how quickly this serial novel is coming out; I feel like I just started publishing it and it's almost time for the end!  I've really enjoyed putting it out in this format though, and I think I'll be doing it again, although I might try to shorten the timespan.  Maybe every two weeks or so?  I'll figure it out once I actually start book 2.

Sorry I've Been Gone!

I feel like I don't post anything at all lately!  I've been spending so much time on other aspects of my life that blogging just isn't on the top of the list anymore.

Recently I've also started giving more attention to my photography.  Two years ago when I first started publishing my books writing took over my life--everything was about it, how I could do better, sell more, get more reviews, etc. etc..  Photography just sort of go pushed away, and my poor little camera started to gather dust (literally).

One of my new years resolutions was to take more photos.  Normally I just post them on websites like Flickr or Deviant Art, but last week I decided that I wanted to start selling them.  So I made an account on Society6 after checking out all my options, and started posting!  I do mainly macro and nature photography, and if you like you can check it out here: www.society6.com/openfire !
I also realized that Society6 has AMAZING fan art of everything I love, and have been forcing myself not to buy everything (although I did buy this and cannot wait for it to arrive).

Now, back to writing.  Astral Bodies part 4 is available as a pre-order from Smashwords, Apple iBooks, and soon Barnes and Noble.  Don't forget to check out part 3, which is free!
If you're wondering, there will be seven parts to this serial novel, so here's the release dates for it...

Part 4 - May 29 ($0.99) [Read an excerpt on Wattpad]

Part 5 - June 26 (free)

Part 6 - July 31 ($0.99)

Part 7 - August 28 ($0.99)

The final two parts are going to be a bit longer than previous ones as well, and prices might change.

In other news, I've posted more excerpts of Glenbrook on Wattpad, and With Cross & Charm is also being completed there!  It's free now after all :)

Astral Bodies (Part 3) - Released!

Last week was the release of Astral Bodies (Part 3)!  This part is free, so download now!  Links below :)

Amazon

B&N

Smashwords

Apple iBooks

Scribd

Spring is finally here!

Spring has finally arrived in Canada! It's about damn time, too.  And I think the warmer weather has helped to reignite my writing mojo--I'm doing a lot more writing than I was over the winter.

I'm wrapping up Astral Bodies, and it looks like it might have seven or so parts to it.  Have you checked out Tess's story yet?  Part three will be coming out at the end of this month, and it's going to be free!  Here's an update on the scheduled release dates for upcoming parts...

Part 3 - April 24 (FREE) Read an excerpt here!

Part 4 - May 29 ($0.99)

Part 5 - June 26 

Part 6 - July 31

As for Glenbrook...it's going.  I'm relatively on track for a summer release, but I'm not too sure.  Updates as I go, I guess.  For now I have started posting pieces on Wattpad, so check it out!

As for my Camp NaNoWriMo project, it's going surprisingly well.  Phasing is just a little bit behind schedule, but I already have most scenes planned out on cue cards or just in my head--I just need to find the time to sit and write it now!  Chapters are also being posted on Wattpad for you to read.

Release Day - Astral Bodies Part 2!

Astral Bodies part 2 is officially available!  Thanks to all who emailed me about part one :)  The winner has been chosen and contacted.  Don't despair if it wasn't you though, because you have another chance this month!  (See my website for details).

Find out in part 2 how Tess reacts to Dr. Adler's offer, and more about the murder!

Astral Bodies 2 - Excerpt

Part one of Astral Bodies has made it to most retailers, and is already set to free at Amazon, so I thought I would post an excerpt from part two!

Adler huffed and stood.  After he tapped his hands on the desk a few times he began to pace.  “Well, despite your ignorance, I would still like you as an apprentice.  What do you say?”

“How generous of you,” I stated.  I sighed though, too, giving in.  “What would I be doing?”

“You would help me find whoever is responsible for the girls death,” he explained, “and stop them forever.  You’d also get to work with the FBI, I suppose, and fulfill most of your graduation requirements.  No pay though, such a shame.”  He looked away, clearly happy with that last part.

I held a finger in the air as he started to ramble about the job.  “Sorry, um, did you say fulfill most of my graduation requirements?  As in, less classes?”

He paused.  “Yes, I did.  Do you—want that?”

“Okay, let me nutshell this,” I said, more to myself than Adler.  “I will work with you and the FBI,”—Adler nodded—“and help solve a murder that was done by a—what did you call it?  Warlock?  Warlock.  And I’ll get to miss classes too?”

Adler nodded.  “If you work out for the summer.”

“And you can astral project just like me.”

Another nod.  “Yes; I’m not a natural like you, but I learned.  If you’re taking the job I would like you to decide now; I’ll need to make a phone call.”

“Right now?” I asked.  “I have to decide right this second?”

“Well the killer isn’t going to wait around for his next victim, now is he?” Adler questioned.  He had a point, but everything was happening too fast.  My head was spinning.

“Hurry up, now,” Adler pressured.

“I—okay, I’ll do it!”  The words escaped my lips before I could even think them.  Adler grinned and picked up his phone, already dialling the numbers.

“Wonderful,” he said, “I’ll see you this afternoon at the police station.  I think an hour should do it; don’t be late.”  He waved a hand towards the door.  “I’ll do my best to teach you; you can go now.”

I stood on quivering legs, barely able to hold myself up.  As I shut the door behind me I found I was exhausted from the encounter.  But also a little energized.

I’d never met anyone that could astral project before.  Ever.  Nor had I ever been so grateful to not get something I wanted.  Who cares about some sucky downtown couples counselling?  I was going to work with the FBI!  I just wished I knew more about Adler, and what the hell he thought was going on, before I’d agreed to take the position.

Climbing slowly down the steps I wondered what my next move should be.  Calling Mom and Rose and apologizing for ditching them was probably my best option, but I thought that could wait.  I had to tell someone about my new internship!  Apprenticeship?  Whatever.

As I began to dial Rose’s number, my best friend in the world, I stopped myself.  Just how secretive should I be when working on a murder case?  I glanced up the stairs, debating on going to ask Adler but found I couldn’t.  What if I didn’t even last through the day, after I told everyone about my great new job?

I’ll pass on that embarrassment.  So instead of telling anyone, or even calling my mother to apologize for ditching her at lunch, I decided to get myself a coffee and head towards the police station.  It was only an hour, and it would take half that just to walk there.

Getting into line at the coffee shop on campus, I found myself lost in a fantasy world.  Astral projection had always been a part of my life, but warlocks?  What was that anyway?  All I knew about warlocks was that Rose had once played one in some online fantasy game back in high school.  A time she likes to keep buried in her past but I often dig up during our many fights.

But with warlocks came demons, maybe, and that was something I wasn’t sure I could handle.  I stepped forward robotically, trying to remember what had happened last night, and question if there was anyone else nearby at the time.  I could only remember the one person, and their victim.  No demons there.

“You’re next,” a man said behind me.  I blinked out of a daze I hadn’t realized I’d fallen into, and looked at him.  “The young woman is waiting to take your order.”  

I almost fell over as I met his gaze; Niklas Rogues.  Four years older, and four inches taller, I also knew him as Nik.  AKA my high school crush; AKA, the guy that had rejected me and then laughed about it with his friends.

“Right, sorry,” I said absently, finally finding the words.  This was the moment I had so desperately wanted; the moment I could tell Nik off!  I’d never gotten the chance to do it after he rejected me, since I was way too hurt over his reaction; total disbelief that someone like me would even talk to him.  And then he graduated, and the next four years of my life I got to be known as the girl that was rejected on the first day of school.  I stepped forward and ordered a coffee, but as I went to pull my wallet out I realized I had forgotten my purse in Adler’s office.  “Damn.”

Nik chuckled.  “I’ll give you a hand,” he offered, giving me a smile that was far too charming.  After adding four black coffees onto the order, he paid with a single swipe of his credit card over the terminal.

While his back was turned I inspected his suit, looking for any signs that his life had turned to total ruin after he’d left Arrowood but sadly it looked immaculate.  In fact, even his shoes shined, and his hair was perfectly misplaced just like I remembered.  My heart sank; he looked like he was doing well for himself.  Jerk.

“You don’t have to,” I began, finding my chest was fluttering.

“It’s already done.”  He smiled at me, and a shining silver emanated from his eyes.  It was then that I realized he had no idea who I was.  “Good luck with whatever you were thinking about.”

He quickly grabbed his coffees and went out the door.  The girl behind the counter had to give me a poke to get my attention before I finally took my own drink, and headed back to Adler’s office, a dark cloud encompassing my thoughts.

My Current Promos

I have a lot of free stuff going on right now, so I thought I would post about it!

Igniting (The Dark Origins), is set to free until the end of March!

Shadeland has a print giveaway on Goodreads for the US and Canada.

Astral Bodies is still making it to all retailers, but part one is already on Smashwords, Apple iBooks and B&N for free!  If you comment on it anywhere (and tell me so I know), you have a chance to win one of my other ebooks free on Smashwords!

New Release - Astral Bodies

It's finally here!  And by finally, I mean I've been dying to hit the publish button for like three months...and I'm still hitting it early.  It's only about a week early anyway...right?  So here it is on Smashwords!  It'll take a few days to get to other retailers.

There’s been a murder in Arrowood with only one witness, and she can’t come forward with any information because she technically wasn’t there.

Twenty-year-old Tess has the ability to astral project, and while going for a midnight walk in the woods she stumbles across a ritual murder.  Not only that, the killer was actually able to see her when nobody else could.

After leaving an anonymous tip with the police, Tess thinks her life can return to normal, until Jonas Adler contacts her and offers her a job she just can’t refuse.  He wants her to become his apprentice, and use her unique ability to help find the killer.

Tess is soon thrust into a world that both terrifies and excites her, and into a job she never knew she wanted.

Also, here's a reminder that part two will be available March 27, and the preorder is set up and set to go out to Kobo, Apple iBooks and B&N!  The covers are the same (just a different colour), but here it is anyway:

What I've Been Doing

Sorry for the recent lack of posts.  I've been working on a getting a few thing done, and it really took away from my constant updates for things :)

Early this month I decided that I wanted to get LASIK done, and I actually did it.  But it made looking a computer for a long time kind of hard, and for the first couple days I couldn't even look at technology, let alone sit down and do some writing or editing or anything.  I'm good now, although I have to take a lot more breaks as my eyes are still healing!  (I can see everything clearly though! YAY!)

Other things I've been doing since, has been getting Shimmering and Igniting prepared for print, and getting the first two parts of Astral Bodies formatted and ready to go on February 27 (it might actually go out a day or two sooner!).

So that's what I've been up to, and there will be more updates as things are made available soon.

PS: Don't forget to check out how you can win free eBooks by reading Astral Bodies each month!

Monthly Giveaways + Release Date for Astral Bodies!

So with the release of Astral Bodies coming up (part one will be available on Smashwords and Kindle in February and hopefully make it to retailers quickly), I thought I'd try something with it.

Every month a new part of Astral Bodies will be released, and with it you'll have a chance to win one of my other books in eBook form!  :D

Here's how it'll work:

1. I post new part.
2. You read said part.
3.  You comment on my Facebook, blog, or even send me a tweet about what you liked/disliked about this part.  It could be a full review, or simply a "LOVED/HATED IT!" comment by the time the next part is released.  There's a full month for you to comment!
4. One winner will get to win one of my books in eBook form through Smashwords!

*Please note that the winners will be random picks, and that when you get the eBook it will be through Smashwords coupon (meaning you need  a Smashwords account, which is free).  When you download the book you can then put it onto whatever eReader you use.
*Another note: I will need an email address to contact you at; if you do not wish to disclose your email we can do a private message on twitter/facebook :)

So get ready this March!

RELEASE DATE SCHEDULE

Astral Bodies will be released on the LAST Thursday of each month.  Here are the dates for the first four parts:

Part One - February 27, 2014

Part Two - March 27, 2014

Part Three - April 24, 2014

Part Four - May 29, 2014

I'm Not Dead I'm Just Writing

Although sometimes writing can feel like being dead (brain dead at least).  Over the past few days I've been somehow writing about 5000 words a day, and by the end of it I'm just very out of it.  I'm getting a lot done though :)  On things I probably shouldn't be focusing on :(

Anywho, Astral Bodies is still on track (and going well I might add), while Glenbrook is slowing down.  I'm having a bit of writers block on this one, which is why it's taking me longer to write, I think.  Liv is giving me trouble...but I'm trying to write at least a little bit on it every day.

The giveaway for The Warden in the Gates ended a few days ago, and I'm going set up another Goodreads one soon!  Most likely for Shadeland.

But that's all I have for now.  More news about Astral Bodies/giveaways in February!

My Writing Resolutions

It's 2014, and that means it is time for me to make goals for myself.  I probably should have done a post like this sooner, but oh well.  My writing goals for the year are...

• To finish Glenbrook (I'm already about halfway there! YAY!)
• To finish Of Noble Blood: The Second Fable (Ventori Fables, #2)
• To continue writing/possibly finish Astral Bodies, my new serial novel :)

I would very much love to add more "To finish" to that list, but that would be a bit too overwhelming I think.  Sadly I can only do so much now with my current schedule.


So that's what's going on on the writing front, and on the publishing front I just put out With Cross & Charm a couple weeks early!  It's still being loaded and checked on Smashwords to go out to all retailers, but it's available on Amazon for $0.99.
If you aren't sure about it, a good chunk of it is posted on Wattpad to read for free!