Happy Release Day Glenbrook!

I probably should have posted this earlier, but Glenbrook is officially out!  The fourth book in The Ethereal Crossings series, ah that's so weird to say.  I hope everyone that has followed Liv this far enjoys the next adventure.  And thanks again to everyone who has bought/downloaded the books!  You're the reason I've come as far as I have as a writer!

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE SERIES!

Glenbrook Excerpt

There's only a month left until Glenbrook is out!  Can you believe it?  I certainly can't.  I honestly never thought I'd get this far with Liv's journey, or have her do some of the things she has.  But I have, and it is all thanks to you lovely readers :)  So thanks for supporting me!  Here's an excerpt from Chapter 6 of Glenbrook (and if you haven't already, you can read the first five chapters on Wattpad).

The Fenridge clan was much larger than I had anticipated.  When I heard the word “clan” I thought of a small village of maybe two dozen people; not this.  This was a city, an entire race hidden beneath one tent.

The image of the sleeping bags and pillows melted away when I stepped inside, and it almost felt like being pulled into the Shade with Emerson.  After a moment of feeling woozy I was feeling stronger than ever.   Even better than when I had my other half come out.  I eyed the patrons.

Each person here showed their scales with ease, and as a few of them laughed I saw pointed teeth.  They sat at long wooden tables, filled with various foods, most of it meat.  I had to wrinkle my nose at the portions on their plates; I’d never be able to eat that much.

Past the rows of tables was a dance floor and band, but only a few dragons were actually dancing.  Their movements seemed forced, like they weren’t sure what to do with themselves there.  Another thing we had in common.  I arched an eyebrow.

“Damn, it’s hot in here,” Jared said.  He stepped in after Keiji, followed my Merelda.  Jared was already sweating, but I couldn’t sense any extra heat.

“We like it like this,” Merelda told us.  “The heat is comforting.”

“Right,” Jared murmured.  He clearly didn’t want to upset his host when there were so many Eidolon around.  I didn’t blame him; there was no way he had enough bullets for everyone here.  I hoped he wasn’t about to bring his gun out.

“This is wonderful,” Keiji said.  “Are your sons here?”

“Of course.”  Merelda lit up with a smile, a smile that didn’t seem malicious or predatory like before.  The skin around her eyes crinkled, her gums showing even.  She was proud of her sons.  “They’ll be out shortly.”

“I haven’t seen them in quite some time,” Keiji went on.  “How old are they now?”

Merelda laughed.  “You know better than to ask a woman that, Keiji.”

As they continued their light conversation I watched for anything that might be able to help me.  Any sign that someone might be more willing than another to take me into Shadeland, because Merelda seemed to have another motive.  I wasn’t sure what it was just yet, but something wasn’t right.  She was being too kind, too…secretive with her words.  It was only a feeling I got from her but I trusted my instincts.  And I needed them now more than ever.

“If we eat anything are we trapped here forever?” Jared asked, a hint of boredom in his tone.

Merelda paused, as if to hold her fury back.  The area around her eyes fluctuated, drifting between scales and pale skin.  “Don’t think so low of us; we are better than faeries,” she sneered.  She quickly steeled herself and smiled again; this time it was forced.  “Anyway, enjoy.  I need to check on the other guests.”

“Ah, I’ll join—” Keiji began, following after Merelda.  He was stopped as Jared grabbed the collar of his SLAYER tee-shirt and yanked backwards.

“You’ll stay with us,” Jared ordered.  “We don’t exactly have experience here.”

I jerked my head towards Jared, unable to believe what he has just said.  He glared at me.  “Yes, I admit that I don’t know exactly how to handle this situation.”  Instinctively his hand went towards his gun, but I grabbed his wrist to stop him.

“We’ll be fine,” I said.  “We’re already in Shadeland, we just need a way out now.”

“We—”

“I certainly hope you aren’t thinking of leaving so soon,” a man said.  We all turned to find a man wearing a lavish tuxedo.  His frightening white hair stood out against the black fabric, only illuminating his eyes more.  The thin pupils and pale blue scales made me think he was Merelda’s son.

“Quinten,” Keiji exclaimed, “you’ve grown!”  He laughed loudly.  “The last time I saw you you were my height.” 

I glanced between them, a clear two foot difference now.  Keiji went on, again, and I realized he was nervous.  “Quinten, this is Liv and Jared, and of course you know Azazel.  Everyone, this is Quinten, Merelda’s eldest son.”

“Enchanted,” Quinten said, giving us a small bow.  “Please, call me Quin.”

“Nice to meet ya,” Jared drawled.  “Your mother always throw parties like this?”

Quin smiled at Jared before turning to me.  “There are special circumstances.”  Jared stepped closer to me, pushing me away from Quin.

“Well, it was nice meeting you,” he said, “but we really should get something to eat.  Airplane food just isn’t quite as good as it used to be.”

Quin nodded and didn’t try to stop us from walking away.  We moved all of five feet before being stopped by yet another white-haired Dragon.

“Rueben,” Keiji said, “you’ve returned?”

Reuben was clearly younger than Quin, his face more round and soft.  But his scales were out, and he gave a mischievous smile.  “Mother ordered me home,” he explained.  “Apparently there was talk of exposure; she wanted me back in the nest.”  He looked to me.  “I can see why.  You must be Liv; I’m Reuben, Merelda’s son.”

I nodded my greeting.

“Let’s try this way,” Jared mumbled, dragging me away from Reuben.  “What kind of name is Reuben?”

Much like his brother, Reuben didn’t try to stop us.  Another few feet away and we were stopped yet again.  It began to grind on my nerves.

“Damn it,” Jared grumbled.  We were surrounded by Dragons, I didn’t know why Jared thought we might find an escape in the middle of the crowd.

“Good day, Enoch,” Keiji said.  “You’ve really…grown up.”

The third son of Merelda towered over us, even more so than Neeson or any of my brothers.  His arms were almost the size of my waist, and he didn’t give off the same gentle air his brothers did.  He didn’t even need to have his scales showing to be threatening.

“Good day, Keiji,” Enoch replied.  “I was told to come home to celebrate, but I’m not sure why yet.”  He looked to me.  “For this?”

Keiji flinched, his eyebrow twitching with…annoyance?  “Yes, this is the newcomer.  We’ve come to ask Merelda for help getting into the Shade.”

Enoch grunted.  “You’ve accomplished your mission then.”

Jared gave Keiji a shove and pulled me along.  Enoch didn’t look insulted by our leave, but rather glad.  His brow unfurled in the slightest of manners and he marched over to the banquet.

“What does that mean?” Jared questioned.

“We’re already in Shadeland."

Day 16

Only about 10K words to go and I meet my goal of 25,000 words for Camp NaNoWriMo.  Glenbrook is quickly coming to an end!  I've been tweeting a lot about it lately, so be sure to follow me @somethingofdev for updates and such.  Once I have the first draft of Glenbrook done and I've gone through it a couple times I'm going to set up the preorder through Smashwords (which sends out to B&N, Apple, and Kobo).  So be on the lookout for that most likely mid-August :)

As for Glenbrook excerpts, I have up to chapter four posted on Wattpad, so if you wanna get an early read of it, it's there for you (and more to come!  I'll be updating it about every ten days with new half chapters.).

In other news, Astral Bodies part 6 is out soon!  Only two more weeks, and the preorder is already set up for you to get from Smashwords and Apple (and soon B&N).

Happy Anniversary!

Today marks my two year anniversary of publishing!  Two years ago today I hit the publish button on Smashwords and sent Shadeland out into the digital world.  Within the first night I had just over 80 downloads and I thought that was crazy!  Little did I know I would soon be getting thousands of downloads across different retailers.

When I put out Shadeland I wasn't sure if people would like Liv; she was so apathetic and unromantic about everything, I didn't know if the YA genre would embrace her.  But you guys did!  You truly encouraged me to continue with The Ethereal Crossings, as well as inspired me to work on new projects (sorry I jump around so much though haha).

And I couldn't have done it without the support of my lovely readers :)  So thanks for supporting me! I am nothing without you, which is why I'm giving away Fenridge and Northcliffe for free until the end of today.  www.dlmilesbooks.com

Thanks again!

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! :)

Day 6

Today marks the almost first week completion of Camp NaNoWriMo, and I'm doing much better than earlier this year!  I'm not quite at what I need to be, but I'm only a little behind; according to my profile stats as long as I write 822 words each day for the next three weeks I'll stay on track.  That SOUNDS simple enough, but I know I'm going to be getting stuck somewhere along the way (did I mention this is the end of Glenbrook I'm writing?).  There's a lot to make sure I include.

Anyway, I thought I would post an excerpt.  This is part 1 of Chapter 4, and if you missed it the first three chapters are already on Wattpad!

**unedited first draft**I didn’t want to try and explain to Neeson why I was quitting my job without notice and taking a trip to the Yukon.  He probably wouldn’t have approved, which is why I decided to call him at the airport.  There was no way he was going to be able to stop me there, as I sat in the plane with Jared next to me.His phone rang a few times before the voice mail picked up, and I found myself breathe a sigh of relief.  It made me wonder how hard it would be to tell him I was going into Shadeland.When the tone beeped I said, “Hey Neeson, I’m going away for a while.  Tell Dad I’m fine, okay?  I’m just working on getting Luke back.”  I paused, glancing at Jared beside me.  There was a very thin aisle between us, and he seemed distracted by reading the safety pamphlet, but I wasn’t sure if he was listening.  “Love you.  Bye.” I hung up and turned the phone off, shoving it into my pocket.“You really like things short and sweet, huh?” Jared asked.I shrugged and stared forward at the television screen a few seats ahead, pretending it was fascinating.  “Easier that way.” Only when we were finally in the air, and the seatbelt light was off did I notice Jared had his gun on him.  The silver pistol caught my attention as he stretched, and it revealed itself beneath his black leather jacket.  I couldn’t help but gape a little.“How did you get that onto the plane?” I asked.  It seemed impossible, even with his fake ID’s.  They might work on senile old women, but airport security?He flashed me his fake SILC badge, a new one I hadn’t seen, and winked at me.  “They let you do just about anything if they’ve only heard of you in newspapers,” he said.  “That, and having confidence helps.”Sometimes I thought Jared was a little too confident, but I didn’t say that to him.  “Are you going to ignore me the entire time?” Keiji questioned.  I turned to face him, sitting quietly beside me.  “I paid for Business class for you two, and you aren’t even going to act like I’m here?”“Calm down,” Jared ordered.  “We woulda survived just fine back with the common class.  Besides, at least you don’t have to sit beside this thing.”  He sent a glare to Azazel who lay quietly in his cage next to Jared.  Honestly I wanted to keep Azazel close, because he hadn’t seemed too keen on the idea of a cage, but after witnessing Jared and Keiji’s behaviour, I thought it best they stay separated.  Still, I felt bad Azazel had to be locked up two-fold.Keiji rolled his eyes, and I wondered how he could afford Business class.  He dressed like a punk, with large black boots, metal band tee-shirts and mussed up hair to match.  Keiji didn’t look like someone that would be sitting beside me, sipping champagne and glaring at Jared like he was a bug.“Did your clan pay for this?” I asked.He sighed.  “I have an allotted amount of money,” he explained.  “They’re being lenient on me, since Kat disappeared.”I flinched.“Sorry,” he said, “since Kat passed away.  When I first left Japan it was to find him—we were still hoping he was alive.”  Keiji twisted the flute between his index finger and thumb, his eyes narrowing in thought.I looked to Jared to see his reaction, but he was pretending to be interested in something in another pamphlet.  The guilt still weighed him down, I knew that; it weighed me down too.  And it wasn’t just Kat’s death on my mind.  It was Melody and her grandfather, Utah, and Charlie, and Amber.  I rubbed at my temples, a headache forming.“‘Scuse me,” I mumbled as I stood.  I hurried into the bathroom while Keiji began to go over the finer things that came with his “executive” status, as he called it, with Jared.  If my head didn’t hurt so much I might have thought they might kill each other while I was away.The bathroom wasn’t as small as I thought it would be, but it wasn’t exactly comfortable.  The sweet smell of name brand soaps filled there air along with the sounds of the engines.  It was quieter there compared to sitting between Jared and Keiji, but it didn’t make my head feel better.In a haze I bent over the sink and turned the cold water on.  I splashed it onto my face, ignorant of how it soaked into the collar of my shirt and sweater, or how it got all over the counter.  I didn’t care.  My head pounded.I groaned quietly, grinding my teeth hard in hopes of not alerting anyone.  If Jared got wind of this I was certain he would somehow force the plane to land.  Liv? a voice asked.  Liv, I’m sorry.“Luke?” I whispered.  I could feel him in my mind, just like when I’d talked to him outside the police station.  He was putting his thoughts in my head, but I wasn’t sure how.  Wasn’t he in Shadeland?I’m in trouble, he said, bringing another onslaught of pain.  I fell to my knees, gripping the counter but failing to hold myself up.  There’s nobody else again.“Where are you?” I asked through another groan.Shadeland, he replied.  They need—help—it’s not—He cut out, along with the pain.  I blinked my eyes a few times, unsure if the pain was really gone or I was just dying.  I stood on shaky legs, feeling my hands sizzling with the residual connection to Luke, to Shadeland.  A fine pink mist drifted from me and dissipated into he air.  I watched it a few moments until it stopped and I knew it was safe to return outside.If only my hands would stop shaking.I didn’t understand much of Luke’s message, only that he was in trouble.  The more I thought about what he said, the more I couldn’t figure out.  If he was in trouble, why would they need help?  Who was “they” exactly?I shook my head and dried off with paper towels.  They were smooth against my skin where I imagined they would have felt scratchy.  I sighed, another reminder of my not-so-human half.“Mom,” I whispered, “what’s going on?”

Camp NaNoWriMo and Special Anniversary Giveaway!

(Happy Canada Day!)

And happy start to Camp NaNoWriMo!  This month I plan on getting Glenbrook done, or at least very close to done.  My goal is 25,000 words, which would bring me to my entire word goal for the book.

Liv has gone through a lot in this one, too, and has been visiting old friends and making new ones (or enemies).  I'll be keeping up with excerpts each week, along with word count updates on Facebook and Twitter.  I'll also be posting facts about what happens in Glenbrook every so often, so check out those :)  Here's one now...

Azazel's true form will be revealed!  

Oh, and remember how on Facebook I said be on the lookout for a special announcement?

WELL HERE IT IS

To celebrate my two year anniversary of publishing, I'm going to giveaway The Ethereal Crossings series for free until July 11!  The prices have just been changed at Smashwords, so it might take a day or two to reach other retailers.

Shadeland

Fenridge

Northcliffe

*Note about Amazon: I can't set books to free at Amazon, but if you download the free .mobi file at Smashwords, that can go on your kindle :)

I'm going to do a "Thank You!" post on the 11th, but I'll say it here too.  

THANKS FOR READING!

Cover Reveal - Glenbrook

I had the cover for Glenbrook: Book Four of The Ethereal Crossings made up a while ago with the other new covers for the series.  I thought I would reveal it, since it's already up on my website anyway and I will be setting it up on Goodreads later :)

I still do not have a set date for the release of Glenbrook!

*Cover design by yocladesigns.com*

Luke is trapped in Shadeland, and there’s supposedly no way to get him out.  Everyone is keeping their mouth shut, since something’s happening within the Eidolon world that they don’t want the humans knowing about.

Liv is determined to find out, even if it means going against all warnings, and travelling to Shadeland herself.

Happy Holidays!

It's almost Christmas, so for the next couple of weeks I don't think I'll be able to post much of anything.  I thought I would post a bit more of Glenbrook, and in the new year will come Astral Bodies!

“How far is the…castle?” I asked, still feeling awkward about that.  We were heading into vampire territory according to Eyre, and it was to see the Lord of Vampires.  It sounded ridiculous, even after all I’d seen.  

“Not far,” Arick told me.  “Once we’re out of the forest we only need to cross the moat, and we’ll be there.”

Of course there would be a moat.  I didn’t reply, and it made him look back at me.  He repeated, “Once we’re out of the forest we only need to cross the moat!”

“She heard you,” Eyre growled, swatting Arick on the back of the head.  

Arick was baffled.  “But she didn’t say anything.”

“Because she did not want to,” Azazel replied.  “Liv Burnett does not speak often.”

I didn’t like this conversation much.

We continued to walk through the trees, the dirt path kicking up dust as we moved over it.  It was a little pink, similar to the smoke that I’d seen on the airplane.  It made me miss Luke even more.

Liv?

I stopped and turned towards the woods, wondering if I’d actually heard that.  I could have sworn he called my name, in the real world and not just in my head.

When he called again I realized it was just in my head.

Liv, how are you here? Luke asked.  It isn’t safe.  Someone is—

I grunted and fell to my knees, holding my temples in hopes of stopping the pain.  It had never hurt so much before to communicate with Luke—why did it now?  I thought it might have to do with being in Shadeland, but that didn’t make complete sense to me.

“What’s wrong?” Arick asked, instantly in front of me.  He kneeled down to my level and helped me up.  It was hard to stand.

“Nothing,” I said, “just a headache.”

I glanced at Azazel and he nodded, as if knowing the truth.  Eyre only pursed her lips; maybe she knew as well.  How either of them could know I wasn’t so sure.

The pain began to subside, and I was able to stand up straight.  I brushed off Arick’s hands, despite how determined he seemed to be.  When I nodded again he took a step back.

“Is someone—”

“She isn’t a case,” Eyre said, “not anymore at least.”

“You don’t know for sure,” Arick sniped.  “How do you—”

“She.  Isn’t.  A.  Case,” Eyre said, her voice low.  “Now let’s get to the castle so that I don’t have to bother with you or him anymore!”  She crossed her arms, and Arick did the same.  Their backs were to each other, and neither of them moved.

I stared, baffled.  Siblings? I thought.  They shared the same eyes and nose, hair colour too.  I was a little surprised Agent Eyre had a brother, and by the looks of things a younger brother.  I decided it isn’t something I’m going to ask about.

Reminders: 

1. Glenbrook is still in progress and does not have a release date yet.

2. My novella With Cross & Charm comes out in a month!  You can preorder on Smashwords, Apple iBooks, B&N, and Kobo!

3. Astral Bodies will be out around March, with some parts available for free :)

Importance of Covers

I can't remember if I've blogged specifically about how the new covers for The Ethereal Crossings has helped sales or now, so I'll just do it now!  When you publish books yourself, one of the first tips you'll get from any experienced writer is to make sure your book is properly edited, then next is getting a damn good cover.
Because the cover is what people see first.

Since I changed my covers for The Ethereal Crossings, sales have been better--I've gotten twice as many downloads for Shadeland specifically, and for Christmas I'm expecting Fenridge and Northcliffe to really pick up.

They went ...

See the difference?

While I quite liked my original cover, I didn't think it said "I'm a mystery, PICK ME UP NOW".  I think Shadeland is now much better off, along with Fenridge and Northcliffe :)

As for more specific sales numbers, normally I would get around 400-500 downloads a month for Shadeland, and with the new covers it is now well over 900 for the month between various retailers.  So if you're going to publish your book, I suggest you get a professional to do it (it's worth the price) especially if you're getting print copies done through Createspace.

My other covers were...

And...

*New covers designed by www.bookcoversale.com*

That was all, just thought I would share how changing the covers has increased downloads/sales :)

NaNoWriMo Ends for 2013

I didn't make my goal (although I guess I still technically have the day to make up? 30K words...possible in a day?!).  But I got a lot more outlining done than I thought I would, and have everything set up to (hopefully) make the writing go smoothly.
I will continue to post excerpts from Glenbrook, although they'll probably get shorter for now :)  Don't want to give too much away!

With that said, I am planning a giveaway for Shadeland in the new year through Goodreads, and my giveaway for The Warden in the Gates is still on.  And hey, don't forget that With Cross & Charm is still out there!

Anyway, here's a very early blurb on Glenbrook!

Luke is trapped in Shadeland, and there’s supposedly no way to get him out.  Everyone is keeping their mouth shut, since something’s happening within the Eidolon world that they don’t want the humans knowing.Liv is determined to find out, even if it means going against all warnings, and travelling to Shadeland herself.

Even more Glenbrook...

I feel like I haven't been blogging a lot lately, but that's mostly because when I have time to sit down and write, I want it to be on my books.  Glenbrook is still going, and I'm nowhere near the 50K word goal, but I'm getting a solid start on everything.

Before I get to the excerpt, here's a reminder that there is a Goodreads giveaway for The Warden in the Gates, with the new cover!  Currently it's only open to Canada and the US.

And now here's some more Glenbrook!

“Calm down,” Keiji said.  “I’ll get you out of here.”

We started to waltz as the music changed, and Keiji easily took the lead.  I wasn’t one to judge, but he was a pretty good dancer, even with me fumbling to keep up.  Soon I found my pace, and we swirled across the floor.  It wasn’t long until more Fenridge began to join.

It’s not me I’m worried about, I thought.  I felt frantic as I searched for Jared, still no sign of him.

Keiji was doing the same, but his eyes were more calculating.  He was just looking for Jared or Azazel.

“What’s happening?” I asked.

“I think Merelda might have left out a couple of details on the phone,” Keiji admitted.

“What kind of details?”

“The forced marriage between you and her eldest son,” he said quickly.

I held back a hiss.  “What?”

“If it makes you feel better, he doesn’t seem to want to marry you now that he knows you aren’t a pureblood.”  Keiji shrugged.

“Splendid,” I muttered.  “Anything else?”

“Just that you’ll have to start running soon,” he whispered.  “I’ll take care of Jared, but you need to go.”

The zipper to the kitchen opened and Keiji shoved me through.  On the other side I found a few confused dragons, and Azazel sitting by the far door.  Keiji shouted, “Don’t worry about him; I’ve got a plan!  Be sure to pick Azazel up before you leave; trust me!”

I didn’t trust his plan, but I didn’t have a choice.  While none of the cooks were trying to stop me, I could already hear voices on the other side.

Merelda shouted, “Do not let her go!  She is your next Queen!”

I did not like the sound of that.  Taking my chance to dash by the stunned cooks, I ran forward and scooped Azazel into my arms before slamming the door open.  A cold wind smashed into me, almost blowing me back into the tent, when my feet touched down on dirt.

Keiji shouted one last warning, “Don’t forget to breathe!”

More Glenbrook!

I've been at work on Glenbrook and haven't really had much time to update my blog...so here's another part of Glenbrook!

Liv? a voice asked.  Liv, I’m sorry.

“Luke?” I whispered.  I could feel him in my mind, just like when I’d talked to him outside the police station.  He was putting his thoughts in my head, but I wasn’t sure how.  Wasn’t he in Shadeland?

I’m in trouble, he said, bringing another onslaught of pain.  I fell to my knees, gripping the counter but failing to hold myself up.  There’s nobody else again.

“Where are you?” I asked through another groan.

Shadeland, he replied.  They need—help—it’s not—

He cut out, along with the pain.  I blinked my eyes a few times, unsure if the pain was really gone or I was just dying.  I stood on shaky legs, feeling my hands sizzling with the residual connection to Luke, to Shadeland.  A fine pink mist drifted from me and dissipated into the air.  I watched it a few moments until it stopped and I knew it was safe to return outside.

If only my hands would stop shaking.

I didn’t understand much of Luke’s message, only that he was in trouble.  The more I thought about what he said, the more I couldn’t figure out.  If he was in trouble, why would they need help?  Who was “they” exactly?

I shook my head and dried off with paper towels.  They were smooth against my skin where I imagined they would have felt scratchy.  I sighed, another reminder of my not-so-human half.

“Mom,” I whispered, “what’s going on?”

NaNo Updates

NaNoWriMo is going fairly well so far, but I can feel it starting to slow just a bit.  That second week really is a killer!  I miss the good old days when I only worked part time and even when I was working I was able to read a book (not because I didn't do my job, but because it was just THAT bad at the place I worked).  Good times.

Anyway, I'm up to about 14K words for my NaNo WIP Glenbrook (The Ethereal Crossings, #4).  Some things I've found while getting back into Liv's head is that A) I missed it, and B) I needed a break.  Taking a few months off to work on other things really helped, I think!
Although during my absence from The Ethereal Crossings I forgot many side character names :/ LOTS of rereading to do lol.

With that said, here is an excerpt from Glenbrook (a rough first draft!).

***CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST THREE BOOKS***

Azazel was no longer in my arms, as he decided to start walking on his own.  I thought it might be a power thing, him trying to show the Eidolon that he still is in control despite his cat form.  By the way Carson and Taia treat him it was clear he still holds some authority in the Shade, but Sera didn’t seem to even notice him.  I wonder what it will be like if I ever get to the other side.

I knocked on Emerson’s door, hoping she would be the one to answer.  I didn’t want some other faerie to talk to me first, and I certainly didn’t want it to be her brother, Harker to either.   He would never let her do it, I was sure.

But my knocking was met by silence.  I listened closely, trying to find the small puffs of breath on the other side of the door to tell me someone was inside, but there was nothing.  I knocked again, and this time feet shuffled.

It wasn’t Harker or Emerson that greeted me, although I didn’t count his look of disgust as a greeting.  It was Breccan, the tall bleach blond faerie that had attempted to negotiate with the wolves.  The way his fingertips barely touched the door reminded me that he hated just about everything human.  I resisted rolling my eyes.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I need to speak with Emerson,” I told him, careful to control my tone.  It was getting harder and harder to keep my temper at bay, knowing that everyone was able to help me but wouldn’t.  Why was it the only people willing to help were the ones that could do nothing?  People like Jared and Azazel were determined to get Luke back, yet Sera and Dr. Wineman weren’t?

It wasn’t right.

“She’s resting,” he said, “come back later, or better yet, not at all.”  His hand flicked and the door almost shut.  I slammed my hand flat against it, pushing it open wide.

“I need to get to Shadeland,” I said.  My voice wasn’t desperate as I thought it would be, but rather furious.  Threatening.  Thankfully I couldn’t feel my eyes changing to their scaled counterparts, not yet anyway.  It was there, just below the surface.

I took a step inside, but Breccan didn’t budge.  He stood his ground, but I could see the sweat beginning to form at his temples.  If anything he was nervous.  After all, my kind was supposed to be extinct—he probably had no idea what I was, much like the rest of the Eidolon.

“Let her in,” called Emerson.  She was in a room to my right, the room that belonged to Charlie, the first owner of this apartment, and the room that used to be Kat’s.  I looked towards the half shut door, memories swirling.  I shook them off, along with any guilt.

Now was not the time.

Azazel and I marched into Emerson’s room to find her laying in bed, covered with about a dozen blankets.  She was shivering, her skin a strange pale blue.

“She’s sick,” Breccan explained.  “She cannot take you.”

“Why—Why do you want to go to Shadeland?” Emerson asked, sitting up.  It looked like she was struggling.

“Luke is trapped,” I said.

Her eyes widened.  “Is he…?”  She looked to Breccan, as if to convey a message I couldn’t understand.

I shifted my eyes between them as Azazel jumped onto the bed.  He was doing the same thing he had done with Taia and Carson; he simply wagged his tail back and forth, and stared them down.  “What is it?” I asked the faeries.

“It’s time for you to go,” replied Breccan.  “Emerson needs to rest.”

I looked at him.

He glared back at me.  “If you want to get to Shadeland so badly, why don’t we bargain?  I’ll gladly take you there; I just won’t guarantee you come back.”

I thought of Harmony’s warning about faeries.  She said they liked to take first borns, or lifespans.  What would he want?  I wondered.

I looked back to Emerson but she had passed out.  Azazel stepped down from the bed, clearly not worried I might bargain anything away with Breccan.  Maybe that meant it wouldn’t be so bad.

I asked, “What kind of bargain?”

I’d seen in the past just how bad a witch’s deal could go, and imagined a faeries wouldn’t be much different.  But this was for Luke…

Breccan shrugged at me.  “What have you got?”

Not much, I thought, and probably not enough.  Azazel circled at my feet, showing an unusual restlessness.  Breccan watched him with mild curiosity, not the respect others showed.

I never gave Breccan and answer, and instead waited for him to come up with something.  After a moment of silence he rolled his eyes and said, “Ten years.  I’ll make it easy, since you’re trying to help a friend.  And if you die in the Shade, I’ll get whatever you would have had left.”

Ten years of my life?  I thought about what I might miss, or even how old I was going to be when I died, and thought ten years didn’t sound so bad.  Not if it meant I could have Luke for another fifty.  I asked, “Ten years of my life taken away, or in servitude to you?”

He cocked an eyebrow.  “Nobody has ever asked that.  Clever.  But it will be the former.”

He was certain I was going to take the bargain, maybe even more certain than I was.  I told him, “Let me make a call.”

Breccan held his hands up.  “Of course.”

Glenbrook - Prologue

As you may know, Glenbrook: Book Four of The Ethereal Crossings is my WIP for NaNoWriMo.  So here's a peek at it!

Luke stood in the shaky haze of violet and pink that always came with a transition from Ellengale to Shadeland.  It was blurry, and anything further than ten feet from him was a mess of shapes and colour, but that didn’t matter.  What his eyes focused on was the body at his feet.

A man no older than himself, with wide brown eyes and throat slashed, it stared at Luke with growing questions.  Luke shivered in the cold of the Shade, finally able to rip his eyes from the body to peer around him.  He was completely alone.

His own clothes were coated in blood but he couldn’t remember where it had come from.  A frail hand touched his shirt, and came away wet with red.  He tried to focus on feeling pain, but he felt fine; no injuries.

He looked back at the man at his feet when he suddenly felt the weight of a dagger in his hand.  He dropped it, letting it clink against the concrete at his feet as he stumbled backwards and fell to the ground.

It had always been hard for him to remember what happened during the first few minutes of his transitions, but his memories weren’t coming back anymore.  He waited, heart beating hard against his ribs as he tried to crawl backwards. Head swimming, he squeezed his eyes shut to block out the blood and haze of the Shade.

What had he done?


In other news, I've set up a preorder for With Cross & Charm, with the scheduled release date at the end of January 2014.  You can download a sample from Smashwords (and soon other retailers), or check it out on Wattpad.  

NaNoWriMo 2013

NaNoWriMo is approaching fast, don't you think?  Personally I'm not sure where October went >.>  But I'm looking forward to it!  Last year I managed to write Shimmering within the month, so here's hoping to another good year!  Especially because I didn't reach my Camp NaNo goals (ah, well.).

This year I'm going to be working on Glenbrook: Book Four of The Ethereal Crossings.  I've technically already started the story, but it's been a little slower than I want, so maybe NaNo is the kick I need to really get going!

So, since I'm working on Glenbrook for NaNoWriMo, you know what that means?

EXCERPTS AND SNIPPETS.

November first I'll post the prologue!

And remember that it is all first draft :)  So what you read may change.