Isn't it gorgeous? I love this model, she's perfect for Lilac, she captures her beauty, seriousness, and playfulness all at once. I also redid the font on book one to match:
Thursday, 9 October 2014
Hiatus, why?
So I haven't posted much in the past week and a half, and I promise I have a reason for that.
I have been so sick the last week, I missed four days of school, along with a weekend spent in bed, coughing and sneezing and wanting to die, basically. Most of that time spent in bed feeling miserable and crying (this was a really bad flu, which I never get) was spent writing, and talking to my friends and family, and thinking things over.
Which is why I made the decision to take a hiatus from publishing.
It's holiday break right now, but the first day back to school I have a meeting, which is basically just a formality, about my switching school. I posted a lot early last year, just before the new years, about how I was applying to a learning center in my city, and I did get in. I've been at that center for a semester now, and the new school year just started. My original plan was to stay here for a semester and then leave, but I started school here this year to see if maybe I needed more time there to help myself, and the answer was a resounding no. I really feel like I'm ready to go back to my regular school, which is a lot larger and has way more students. I originally left because of anxiety, and it gave me the opportunity to take a break from everything but school and my anxiety and depression issues. I feel like I'm in a place now where I can handle going back, so that's what I'm doing, and I feel like it will be what I need.
However, it's going to be hard. The school day is longer, there are more classes, and a lot more homework, and aside from that, I'm considering looking for a job. Basically, I'm about to be really busy. Since we're already a month into the semester, I'll have a lot of work to catch up on and studying to do, and also a lot of homework to focus on.
I'm not taking a break from writing, just from publishing. I plan on publishing book 3 in the Dreamwalker trilogy, and books 2 and 3 in the Lilac Jones Adventures this month, wrapping up both those series. The books will all be available for free. I also hope to publish a new story, The Face of Love. Then I'll stop publishing new material and my internet presence as an author will go way down. I'll still be active online, just not talking about publishing or doing anything professional. I have to focus heavily on studying and school and Japanese. This year and next year, grades eleven and twelve, those are what colleges and Universities really look at. If I want to study abroad in Uni, I have to work hard and dedicate myself to school.
I also really need to focus on my writing, and with my health. I really have a lot of things that need to be prioritized over publishing right now.
I'll post updates when new books become available through this month, and then my hiatus will officially begin.
-Thanks for all the support, Kyle.
I have been so sick the last week, I missed four days of school, along with a weekend spent in bed, coughing and sneezing and wanting to die, basically. Most of that time spent in bed feeling miserable and crying (this was a really bad flu, which I never get) was spent writing, and talking to my friends and family, and thinking things over.
Which is why I made the decision to take a hiatus from publishing.
It's holiday break right now, but the first day back to school I have a meeting, which is basically just a formality, about my switching school. I posted a lot early last year, just before the new years, about how I was applying to a learning center in my city, and I did get in. I've been at that center for a semester now, and the new school year just started. My original plan was to stay here for a semester and then leave, but I started school here this year to see if maybe I needed more time there to help myself, and the answer was a resounding no. I really feel like I'm ready to go back to my regular school, which is a lot larger and has way more students. I originally left because of anxiety, and it gave me the opportunity to take a break from everything but school and my anxiety and depression issues. I feel like I'm in a place now where I can handle going back, so that's what I'm doing, and I feel like it will be what I need.
However, it's going to be hard. The school day is longer, there are more classes, and a lot more homework, and aside from that, I'm considering looking for a job. Basically, I'm about to be really busy. Since we're already a month into the semester, I'll have a lot of work to catch up on and studying to do, and also a lot of homework to focus on.
I'm not taking a break from writing, just from publishing. I plan on publishing book 3 in the Dreamwalker trilogy, and books 2 and 3 in the Lilac Jones Adventures this month, wrapping up both those series. The books will all be available for free. I also hope to publish a new story, The Face of Love. Then I'll stop publishing new material and my internet presence as an author will go way down. I'll still be active online, just not talking about publishing or doing anything professional. I have to focus heavily on studying and school and Japanese. This year and next year, grades eleven and twelve, those are what colleges and Universities really look at. If I want to study abroad in Uni, I have to work hard and dedicate myself to school.
I also really need to focus on my writing, and with my health. I really have a lot of things that need to be prioritized over publishing right now.
I'll post updates when new books become available through this month, and then my hiatus will officially begin.
-Thanks for all the support, Kyle.
Tuesday, 7 October 2014
Super busy and definitely not just avoiding his blog.
Hi there guys, long time no see.
So I know the other day I posted about how I was sick and that I would get back to blogging soon, but there's trouble in paradise. Not only am I still sick, I'm also in the middle of maybe switching schools. I want to skip schools. It's definitely what I want. And if I do that I'm at this new school/old school for two more years.
I did ninth grade and the first semester of tenth at this school, then I switched and did the second semester of tenth grade at my current school. I'm glad I did that, but now grade eleven has started and I feel like all the benefits that came with this current school have faded. I was only supposed to be there for one semester, and now that that semester has passed I can already tell that the sort of vacuum or bubble the school created for me last year is gone. I feel like by switching to a smaller school I was able to take a break from my life and just focus on school and on getting help for my anxiety, and now that I have those two problems both improved drastically it feels high time I went back to my regular school.
I have a meeting on the fourteenth to discuss it with my current principal, and if all goes well I'll be at the new/old school in short order. Once that happens though, I'll probably be really focused on homework and assignments I need to catch up on to pass all my classes this semester, and since I also want to fit more writing time in, the blog might fall to the wayside. I'll still be active, just mostly with updates, and not real posts or discussions.
As always, though, you can find my on twitter to the right side of the blog! Thanks for reading!
So I know the other day I posted about how I was sick and that I would get back to blogging soon, but there's trouble in paradise. Not only am I still sick, I'm also in the middle of maybe switching schools. I want to skip schools. It's definitely what I want. And if I do that I'm at this new school/old school for two more years.
I did ninth grade and the first semester of tenth at this school, then I switched and did the second semester of tenth grade at my current school. I'm glad I did that, but now grade eleven has started and I feel like all the benefits that came with this current school have faded. I was only supposed to be there for one semester, and now that that semester has passed I can already tell that the sort of vacuum or bubble the school created for me last year is gone. I feel like by switching to a smaller school I was able to take a break from my life and just focus on school and on getting help for my anxiety, and now that I have those two problems both improved drastically it feels high time I went back to my regular school.
I have a meeting on the fourteenth to discuss it with my current principal, and if all goes well I'll be at the new/old school in short order. Once that happens though, I'll probably be really focused on homework and assignments I need to catch up on to pass all my classes this semester, and since I also want to fit more writing time in, the blog might fall to the wayside. I'll still be active, just mostly with updates, and not real posts or discussions.
As always, though, you can find my on twitter to the right side of the blog! Thanks for reading!
Friday, 3 October 2014
Sorry guys!
I haven't posted in days, but I'm sick as a dog. I don't know at this point if it's my allergies, or if I'm actually sick. I've been smoking after other people for a few days, sharing my pipe with friends and friends of friends and I think I probably caught a cold from one of them: lesson learned.
I'm still working on Reveries & Regrets, but I've also got a novel I'm writing, which will probably never see the light of day, but it's still a lot of fun. It's a spin-off of the Dreamwalker stories about Katrina's younger cousin Bonnie, and it takes place about two years after Reveries and Regrets ends.
The entire idea of the novel is based around the plot twist at the end, which I don't wanna give away, because I'll probably post it on Wattpad for you guys to read for free or something when it's finished.
I'm still working on fury Virus too but that's top secret.
God, it sucks being sick too, because I'm in the mood to write right now but if I get out from under this blanket to sit down at the desk and write I will freeze to death. I have the chills.
I'm still working on Reveries & Regrets, but I've also got a novel I'm writing, which will probably never see the light of day, but it's still a lot of fun. It's a spin-off of the Dreamwalker stories about Katrina's younger cousin Bonnie, and it takes place about two years after Reveries and Regrets ends.
The entire idea of the novel is based around the plot twist at the end, which I don't wanna give away, because I'll probably post it on Wattpad for you guys to read for free or something when it's finished.
I'm still working on fury Virus too but that's top secret.
God, it sucks being sick too, because I'm in the mood to write right now but if I get out from under this blanket to sit down at the desk and write I will freeze to death. I have the chills.
Sunday, 28 September 2014
Surprise bitch. I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me.
So, I'm finally buying my ipod touch tomorrow. Which means I'll have the blogger app, and I can write blog posts on the go!
It also means I can write on the go!
This is a temporary solution until I buy a second laptop that I can bring out with me. Most of my time is spent on the go and I'm afraid to bring my laptop out of the house in case I break it, but that means I lose at least 3 prime writing hours a day, because I can't work on the go while I'm at School and then waiting for the bus home.
Still, it's great. I'll be posting on Instagram and Twitter a lot more. I'll have Instagram links up soon, but you can follow me on Twitter already, on the right sidebar! >
That's all for today, but I may or may not post tomorrow afternoon.
Friday, 26 September 2014
Where do I go from here?
Okay, so I don't like to talk about things that will happen in the future, or things that I haven't written yet, mostly just because I get performance anxiety when people are waiting for something I haven't even started to create. It sets the bar a little high, you know?
But for now, I feel like I have to talk about a few things to sort them out.
Mainly, I have to decide what I'm going to do in the future as far as publishing my books go, and as far as how I want to do that goes. I love self-publishing. I love making covers and writing blog posts and having control over blurbs and marketing and pricing. It's fantastic and efficient and it helps me connect with readers on a closer level.
But the thing is, while going indie has helped launch my two short story trilogies, and get my name out there as far as writing goes, I don't want to be known as a short story author. I love short stories, but I'ma novelist at heart, and I have big (like, massive) stories and worlds I want to bring to life.
The problem is, I truly feel like these novels deserve the marketing and covers and publicity and production value that a traditional publisher can bring to the table, and I can't.
If you're wondering what exactly I mean, let me give you a brief list of what I want to achieve from here on out:
But for now, I feel like I have to talk about a few things to sort them out.
Mainly, I have to decide what I'm going to do in the future as far as publishing my books go, and as far as how I want to do that goes. I love self-publishing. I love making covers and writing blog posts and having control over blurbs and marketing and pricing. It's fantastic and efficient and it helps me connect with readers on a closer level.
But the thing is, while going indie has helped launch my two short story trilogies, and get my name out there as far as writing goes, I don't want to be known as a short story author. I love short stories, but I'ma novelist at heart, and I have big (like, massive) stories and worlds I want to bring to life.
The problem is, I truly feel like these novels deserve the marketing and covers and publicity and production value that a traditional publisher can bring to the table, and I can't.
If you're wondering what exactly I mean, let me give you a brief list of what I want to achieve from here on out:
- Publish Reveries and Regrets, the final story in the Dreamwalker trilogy.
- Publish the second and third Lilac Jones Adventures stories, ending that trilogy.
- Publish a novel.
I think that Finishing up my two short story trilogies will take two to three weeks, tops.
Publishing a novel, however? Hard to say.
Right now I'm thinking about my novels, and I'm thinking, Traditional? Indie? If I'm being honest, I think I'm good enough to be traditionally published. That may sound like, self-congratulatory or something, but I think it's still true. And I've always wanted to be traditionally published.
I have a series I'm in love with. It's a Young Adult Paranormal Romance, set around Demigods, but they're not any Demigods, they're Demigods set in a world with mythology created entirely by me. This isn't Greek or Roman or Egyptian or anything, it's my own world, with it's own rules and dangers and enchantments. But this is more than just a series of books: it's several series set in the same world, the same history.
I have three trilogies planned out in this world, and each trilogy features its own unique characters, its own unique part of the mythology and fantasy world it explores, and its own setting within our own modern world. It's dark, it's exciting, it's sexy, and it pushes the boundaries of the genre.
I like to pitch it as Beautiful Creatures meets Percy Jackson, meets Welcome to Nightvale, but that's just me. Sounds awesome, huh?
The thing is, I'm not at a time in my career where I can get a major publisher to take a chance on my nine book epic, just yet.
Luckily, I have a lot of ideas I'm passionate about that are more market friendly. The first is a New Adult stand alone called Fury Virus, which is inspired by Kill Bill and a few other things I can't talk about to avoid spoilers. The second is a trilogy of YA futuristic Sci-Fi novels that I already have outlined. This trilogy is literally my obsession, and I think these my be my best work as far as sci-fi goes. After that I have a few more projects I'll work on before trying to publish the nine book series. You can only really do that when you have Cassandra Clare level fame, and I'm so not there yet.
I'll post more Fury Virus info soon, along with keeping you guys updated as far as the short story trilogies come along!
I'm over being sick, also, R&R (book 3) news!
Today is Friday. I didn't go to school today, and I didn't go yesterday, either.
I'm pretty sure I slept for nineteen hours. I took a shower, a bath, another shower. I drank hot tea, I drank bottles and bottles of water. I turned the heat up so high that I was basically roasting. I piled blankets on top of myself and took nasal cleansers and my allergy medication.
I feel better now, but it was bad. It was like a storm sweeping over the fields or something, because it passed really quickly. I hate being sick. I always wish I was sick so I could miss school, and when I finally get sick, I just want to get better as soon as possible. It's a never ending cycle. But now I'm better, and I'm listening to Rainy Day by Lucite Tokki, drinking cherry kool aid and surrounded by pillows and everything is awesome. I cleaned me bedroom while I was sick yesterday and it's spotless now.
I also started working on Reveries and Regrets just before I got sick. I just started the opening scene, which I've had in my head for some time now, and I'm about 900 words in? Around there. I'm so excited to get this story out. I love the Lilac Jones Adventures, they're so fun and entertaining, but I have a special love for the Dreamwalker series just because they have such a good balance between light and dark, they really blend together and I feel like the Dreamwalker stories have their own unique atmosphere. They take place in Winter, which is slowly but surely on it's way, and which is my favourite season by a long shot.
And speaking of the Dreamwalker series, when the first trilogy is finished, with Reveries and Regrets, I plan on releasing an omnibus edition in both ebook and paperback. But here's the catch: the paperback edition will come with tons of cool bonus content that you can't get in the ebook!
The bonus materials will include:
I'm pretty sure I slept for nineteen hours. I took a shower, a bath, another shower. I drank hot tea, I drank bottles and bottles of water. I turned the heat up so high that I was basically roasting. I piled blankets on top of myself and took nasal cleansers and my allergy medication.
I feel better now, but it was bad. It was like a storm sweeping over the fields or something, because it passed really quickly. I hate being sick. I always wish I was sick so I could miss school, and when I finally get sick, I just want to get better as soon as possible. It's a never ending cycle. But now I'm better, and I'm listening to Rainy Day by Lucite Tokki, drinking cherry kool aid and surrounded by pillows and everything is awesome. I cleaned me bedroom while I was sick yesterday and it's spotless now.
I also started working on Reveries and Regrets just before I got sick. I just started the opening scene, which I've had in my head for some time now, and I'm about 900 words in? Around there. I'm so excited to get this story out. I love the Lilac Jones Adventures, they're so fun and entertaining, but I have a special love for the Dreamwalker series just because they have such a good balance between light and dark, they really blend together and I feel like the Dreamwalker stories have their own unique atmosphere. They take place in Winter, which is slowly but surely on it's way, and which is my favourite season by a long shot.
And speaking of the Dreamwalker series, when the first trilogy is finished, with Reveries and Regrets, I plan on releasing an omnibus edition in both ebook and paperback. But here's the catch: the paperback edition will come with tons of cool bonus content that you can't get in the ebook!
(!YASS GAGA YOU LOOK SO GOOD YASS!)
- Q&A with the author
- Trilogy Playlist
- Featurette: the Science Behind Dreaming
- Featurette: Real Life Dreamwalkers
- Featurette: Creating a Monster, Anatomy of a Wraith.
I'm not sure how long each feauturette will be, but I'm thinking somewhere around 2000 to 4000 words each. I think the interview will be anywhere from 10 to 20 questions, with varied response lengths. I don't know how much the paperback will be since Createspace tends to decide that themselves, I think, but as soon as I know all the details and have all the content written I'll post more.
I'll also post the ebook edition cover sometime soon, probably when I publish it . . .
Reveries and Regrets has no firm publishing date yet, but I'll most likely finish the first draft within the next two days.
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