I’m hosting a fantastic giveaway with 29 other authors. Click here to enter! We’re giving away a Kindle Fire and 30 fantasy ebooks. So what’s the point? Well, we’re all looking for new readers! By entering, you’re sharing your email address with us so we can tell you about our new releases and other writing news. Don’t worry… you can unsubscribe at any time. Many of us also have special freebies for subscribers, so even if you don’t win, I hope you’ll be glad you entered. You can check out the giveaway here, and also check out the books in the […]
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I just realized I never actually announced that A Fairy Promise (the sequel to A Fairy King) was published. I published it last year and I think I even announced it to my mailing list but I forgot to blog about it. What’s that you say? You’re not on my mailing list? Whyever not? Enter your email address and clickety click the subscribe button up in the top bar! Then you’ll (probably) find out when I publish a new story/book/novella/whatever. For better or worse, decisions have consequences. Even for a fairy king. (Let me just say that I love […]
This is a very belated post, but pretend I posted this a month ago for the calendar year 2015. Books Published: 8 (4 in 2015 – The Dragon’s Tongue (novel), A Fairy King and A Fairy Promise (novellas), and Heroes and Other Stories (a print edition of Heroes, Street Fox, and Color, which were all previously published))Books in Progress: 2 (Book 3 in A Long-Forgotten Song (tentatively titled The Beginning of Wisdom), and Book 4, as yet untitled) Books Backburnered: 2 (Erdemen Honor 4, as yet untitled, plus a new standalone) Short Stories Published: 4 (none in 2015) Short Stories in Progress: 2 Blog […]
I decided to interview Hannah, the narrator of A Fairy King and A Fairy Promise. Several readers submitted questions, so I asked Hannah directly. If you have any more questions, or questions for other characters, please let me know! Here she is! C. J.: Hi Hannah. Thank you for making time to speak with me. Hannah: You’re welcome. She is soft-spoken. She brushes her hair back from her face with a slender hand; a ring flashes on her finger. C. J.: That’s a beautiful ring. Is it from Cadeyrn? Hannah: Her smile lights the room. Yes! Isn’t it beautiful? She hesitates, then says, Although I […]
I was recently asked to describe my writing process for novels and series. Hm. That’s a hard one. Every book has been different. Every series is different. This isn’t a post about how you should write your books and your series. This is about what I’ve done so far and how it has worked, as well as what I’m going to try to do next. The Short Version: Erdemen Honor evolved as a standalone, then a sequel, then a third book in the series. Each is a complete, self-contained story that builds on the previous books. A Long-Forgotten Song was a series from […]
This post is a long-overdue review of the Occoquan Arts and Crafts Show. I had a table at the show back at the beginning of October. I had a fabulous time, but not without one significant downside. Downside: Logistics The organizer, who was otherwise fantabulous, had an email glitch that affected several vendors, including me. This meant we didn’t get the emails with the vendor setup times, when the streets would be closed to the cars, etc. She was flagged as a spammer because she sent so many emails, so her emails didn’t get through but she didn’t get the error messages. This […]
Like many authors, I like to dream of my books being made into movies. Good ones, of course, with huge budgets so that all the props are meticulously detailed and the actors are perfect and the musical score is magnificent and original and awe-inspiring. My hypothetical movies will be like the Lord of the Rings movies (except without the tiny changes that are oh-so-important to Tolkien purists like me), so that the soul of the books and the characters is laid bare, brought to life for viewers who haven’t yet discovered the books themselves. So… who do I imagine playing my characters? […]
This fall is going to be busy! In addition to writing, I also make jewelry at Shy Violet. While I don’t have a lot of cons close by this fall, I do have craft shows! My schedule is below (click the names for links to the fliers). September 26-27 – Occoquan Arts and Crafts Show in downtown historic Occoquan, Virginia. Saturday the show runs 10AM-6PM, and Sunday the show runs 10AM-5PM. I will be there as an author only. October 3-4 – Fort Belvoir Oktoberfest Autumn Bazaar at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. The show runs 9AM-5PM both days at Specker Field House. I’ll have both books […]
I occasionally post on Quora.com, a question and answer site. Recently someone asked why Labyrinth is so great. You might already know that I love Labyrinth. But let me tell you more, because this movie is dismissed far more quickly than it deserves. Someone else had already given a short answer that mentioned the fantastic story and David Bowie, but I will go deeper. I don’t like the sequel manga and I think it derailed some of the fantastic symbolism, so my answer below is going to pretend it doesn’t exist. In my mind and in my answer, I’m treating the movie completely as a […]
For #SaturdayScenes this week, I’m sharing a continuation of the short story / novella draft that I began with School Days, which is set during Kemen’s childhood. Enjoy! ~~~ “What is he?” Chavo asked. Bekendi followed Chavo’s gaze. “He’s a Dari. Full-blood, I think.” All the boys exercised together, and the instructors who weren’t leading watched the students. The oldest were at the front today, where they could be corrected. Their performance was critical to their final assignments, and they worked hard. “Have you had any problems with him?” Bekendi had been watching another boy and glanced at Chavo in […]