The White Raven

FaRo-What?

FaRo-What?

Yesterday, my husband/Darling Editor looked at my calendar and asked “FaRo-What? What’s FaRoBub?

“It’s a book promo event. One day only, 200 free books. I’ve got Hidden Things in for free download. That reminds me. I need to get KDP to call me. It’s not free on Amazon yet.”

So that was part of my Sunday — making sure that Hidden Things was free for today. And it is, and people have noticed and WOW, that’s a lot of downloads! I hope everyone who grabs a copy enjoys it!

Tomorrow, the fun starts of getting the prices turned back on. That’s always an adventure.

I’m finding that writing has been… interesting over the past month. I may have to shelve one of these books I’m working on and focus completely on the other, because writing TWO books where the main theme is standing up against tyranny and injustice to protect a weakened nation is a bit much for my heart right now. I may focus on The Coral Throne, because the turnaround on getting that published will be faster than on King of Swords. I’m looking at publishing The Sea Prince in late spring or early summer, so focusing on book 2 of that series seems to make more sense. I haven’t even started my editing run on Dead Man’s Hand, which will be going in to my publisher because it’s part of a series.

If I sound like I’m trying to convince myself, you have much to go on.

I have a release date for Morrigan’s Heir — I’ve been told we go LIVE February 11th! There isn’t a preorder link yet, but that will come sometime this week and I’ll post it to all the socials once I have it. I also received permission to share the cover, which is below. This cover has been a long time coming — that stock image (and the stock image that will be on Morrigan’s Wrath) were purchased years ago, and I sat on them until it was time to put together the covers, when I sent them to the cover artist and said “What can we do with these?”

I can’t wait to see it in print! I’ll have copies by the Enchanted Knights event in March — they won’t get to me in time for Saturday.

Yes, this Saturday! I’m gearing up for our first in person event of the new year. Love is in the Air is this Saturday from 10AM to 3PM at the Lakeside Community Center in Port Orange, Florida. If you get there early, there will be swag bags for the first people through the door (18+ only), and in those bags, you’ll find a little something from me! You have to come early to find out what, but I assure you that it’s cute.

Time to get back to work!

Coming Soon!

Kidnapped from his home and sold as a slave in Rome, Raven-Prince Lorcan must survive in a world where entertainment is murder, diplomacy is betrayal, and love is a commodity. And where a raven who is only supposed to ever have one mate will somehow find two…

Coming February 11th!

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 4)

13876 / 90000 (15.42%)

The Coral Throne
(The Sea Prince, book 2)

7049 / 90000 (7.83%)

Promotions

Today is the day! FaRoBub– 200 free fantasy romance and paranormal romance books.

Appearances

6th Annual Love is in the Air
February 8th, 2025
Lakeside Community Center
Port Orange, FL

***

Enchanted Knights: Myths and Legends
March 8th, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

ICFA
March 19 – 22nd, 2025
Orlando, FL

***

3rd Annual Spring is in the Air
April 13th, 2025
Venetian Center,
Leesburg, FL

***

6th Annual Mother’s Day Bazaar
May 10th, 2025
Ormond Beach Elks Lodge
Ormond Beach, FL

***

3rd Annual Summer Artisan Market
June 29th, 2025
Brannon Center
New Smyrna Beach, FL

***

Smut Lovers: The Conference
September 17th – 21st, 2025
Orlando, FL

Posted by EASchechter in 2025 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, cover art, forthcoming works, Hidden Things, public displays of geekery, publishing, Release date, Tales from the Arena, The Sea Prince, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, 0 comments
Phantom Bagpipes

Phantom Bagpipes

I’m currently listening to K-pop and electrosynth because I’m attempting to drown out the phantom bagpipes that I’ll be hearing for the rest of the week. Why?

I’m not sure which group this was, but I took this video yesterday at the Central Florida Highland Games. This was our… eleventh year, I think? When we started, College Boy was in kindergarten, and we missed two years — 2021 (if I remember correctly, there were no Games in 2021 due to Covid) and 2022. It’s the twelfth or thirteenth year for Bairn Care, the baby care facility that we run, and the Central Florida Highland Games are the only games that offer this kind of facility (thanks to a group of which I am a part.)

Brief interruption because one of the electrosynth songs in my playlist has BAGPIPES! Time to go listen to Epic.

I love the Games, even though I think I’ve gone to watch the actual Games part maybe twice in eleven years. It’s a chance to reconnect with friends who I don’t see nearly often enough. There’s excellent music and shopping, and if you don’t have a special diet, there is a food vendor that offers the best Fish and Chips — pieces of fish so large that our first year, we dubbed it Moby Dick and Chips (and that name has stuck!) If you’re in the Orlando area on Martin Luther King Jr weekend, it’s a great day out. Just get there early, because parking is… challenging. We had some weather move through on Sunday, which meant that it was less crowded, but it was still a good day.

Eight years ago, on a quiet Sunday morning at the Games, I wrote the synopsis for The White Raven books. The memory just came up in my Facebook, and I find it amusing that the first of those books will be out sometime in the next month or so. I’m just waiting on page proofs of Morrigan’s Heir, and a final cover to start promoting.

This year, there wasn’t any work done at the Games because there were no quiet parts to the morning. Saturday, families started coming to the tent almost as soon as the games started, and we had a steady flow all day. Sunday, we knew there was weather coming in, so we spent the quiet parts of the morning prepping the site and the tents for the storm. I think I maybe got a few small pages in a Field Notes notebook, but that’s maybe a hundred words written. Time to catch up on work.

Thankfully, this week is quiet, and once we get caught up on chores, I don’t have to leave the house until Friday. I can really focus on writing and getting the words on the page. I need to get my edits done from the sensitivity reading of The Sea Prince, but the read through of Dead Man’s Hand can wait until after ICFA. (Or I might take it to ICFA and work on it in my downtime.) And I need to start getting ready for my first event of the year (details listed below and on my Appearances page.)

Time to get back to work!

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 4)

9495 / 90000 (10.55%)

The Coral Throne
(The Sea Prince, book 2)

3280 / 90000 (3.64%)

Promotions

It’s Bookmas! Every day for the rest of the month, you can get free ebooks and free tools for writers, with a new book or tool every day! Check out today’s offerings here!

Appearances

6th Annual Love is in the Air
February 8th, 2025
Lakeside Community Center
Port Orange, FL

***

Enchanted Knights: Myths and Legends
March 8th, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

ICFA
March 19 – 22nd, 2025
Orlando, FL

***

3rd Annual Spring is in the Air
April 13th, 2025
Venetian Center,
Leesburg, FL

***

6th Annual Mother’s Day Bazaar
May 10th, 2025
Ormond Beach Elks Lodge
Ormond Beach, FL

***

3rd Annual Summer Artisan Market
June 29th, 2025
Brannon Center
New Smyrna Beach, FL

***

Smut Lovers: The Conference
September 17th – 21st, 2025
Orlando, FL

Posted by EASchechter in 2025 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, ICFA, progress, Revisions, Tales from the Arena, The Sea Prince, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, 0 comments
We’re All Gonna Be Safe…

We’re All Gonna Be Safe…

There’s a Youtube personality named Ranboo, who made up a little song while playing Five Nights at Freddy’s. It starts “we’re all gonna be safe…”

This, I think, is the most accurate reaction to 2025 so far. Don’t you think?

Today is technically my first day back at the keyboard, even though I was doing some business related things last week. Inventory of books on hand, repacking boxes, reconciling accounts, paying taxes and filing copyright. I’m waiting for page proofs on Morrigan’s Heir, which might make an appearance in late January (cross your crossables! As soon as I have a date, I’ll let you know!) The Sea Prince is back from the sensitivity editor, with surprisingly few suggestions! I’ll be getting those done and running them past the editor again, and then we’ll work on getting it out into the world. Looking at maybe April? It’ll depend on when Morrigan’s Heir drops.

I finally really looked at King of Swords and realized that yes, it was two books. So Tales from the Arena: Dead Man’s Hand is currently marinating and I’ll print it off for edits next week. Tales from the Arena: King of Swords already has a wordcount already because I moved two chapters out of Dead Man’s Hand. I also plan on starting The Coral Throne (The Sea Prince, book 2), but right now, I haven’t even set up the file in Scrivener. Maybe later tonight.

I’ve also set up a number of in-person events for this year — I’m trying to have at least one a month, because when I sat down to do my accounting for 2024, I found that most of my income came from in person sales. Which proves once again something I learned when I was still making jewelry — no one can sell your product better than you yourself. The list is below — I’ll be all around the Central Florida area, so if you’re in the area on one of those dates, come check out the show! (Note: I will not be selling at ICFA. I’ll be moderating a panel entitled Reimagining the Night: New Faces of Old Terrors.)

Right now, we’re bracing for winter weather here in Florida (I just saw they’re projecting the temperature to be in the high 20s for tomorrow morning) while friends and family are seeing snow into the double digits. So everyone be careful out there, and stay warm.

Catch you next week!

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 4)

5018 / 90000 (5.58%)

The Coral Throne
(The Sea Prince, book 2)

0 / 100000 (0.00%)

Promotions

It’s Bookmas! Well, okay, it’s ALMOST Bookmas. Starting January 10th, and running the rest of the month, you can get free ebooks and free tools for writers, with a new book or tool every day! Sign up for the daily emails here.

Appearances

6th Annual Love is in the Air
February 8th, 2025
Lakeside Community Center
Port Orange, FL

***

ICFA
March 19 – 22nd, 2025
Orlando, FL

***

3rd Annual Spring is in the Air
April 13th, 2025
Venetian Center,
Leesburg, FL

***

6th Annual Mother’s Day Bazaar
May 10th, 2025
Ormond Beach Elks Lodge
Ormond Beach, FL

***

3rd Annual Summer Artisan Market
June 29th, 2025
Brannon Center
New Smyrna Beach, FL

***

Smut Lovers: The Conference
September 17th – 21st, 2025
Orlando, FL

Posted by EASchechter in 2025 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, Bookmas, Happy New Year, ICFA, promotions, public displays of geekery, Tales from the Arena, The Sea Prince, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, Updatey things, WIP, wordcount, Worldbuilding, writing, 0 comments
Liz.exe Has Crashed. Please Reboot.

Liz.exe Has Crashed. Please Reboot.

Liz.exe has crashed. Please reboot. Or… you know… don’t. Just let me be, and I’ll come back online on my own.

Wizards, Witches and the Weird was awesome, and we’re definitely going to go back next year. There’s another one in March, but I’ll be at ICFA that weekend and can’t go. But as for right now? I have crashed. Hard. My plans for the day include not doing anything I do not have to do, and maybe taking a nap. I might write. Or I might not. But today is officially a down day.

Next show is Maker Faire Orlando! I should find out next week where my table is, so I’ll let you know once I know. Last year, all the writers seemed to be in Spirit, but I don’t know yet if that will be true this year.

And then… rest. Write. Edits (or page proofs! I got word on Friday that the manuscript for Morrigan’s Heir has been sent up for final review, so a late 2024 publication date is still in the cards!) Planning out 2025. And more resting. It’s been a long year.

Next week is Election Day! Make sure you educate yourself, then get out and vote! (If you’re not sure where to look for election information, check out Ballotpedia.) For me? I’m probably not going to sleep that night. Just… nervous. It’s too much like group assignments back in school. I know I did my part, but are the rest of you going to hold up your end?

Then… we’ll see what we see. There will likely be another day on the 6th of Liz.exe has crashed. Please reboot.

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 3)

87870 / 120000 (73.22%)

Promotions

Final days!!! Kobo is doing a Free First in Series promotion for the entire month of October, so you can grab a copy of Hidden Things for free! (You can find it free where ever ebooks are sold — not just Kobo.)


We’re also in the last days of Enchanted Realms — sign up for newsletters, get free books and enter to win a $30 gift card!

Appearances

Maker Faire Orlando
November 9-10th
Orlando, Florida

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, ICFA, politics, slacking, Tales from the Arena, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, 0 comments
Once More Into the Beach… errr…Breach…

Once More Into the Beach… errr…Breach…

It’s a show week! Ready for Wizards, Witches and the Weird in Daytona Beach! Once more into the beach… errr… breach, dear friends…

Since we’re on show three of four, everything is still stacked in the living room, waiting to be loaded into the car on Saturday for a “what time did you say we have to leave???” departure on Sunday. I’m in space 38, which is along the left wall as you come in to the Ocean Center, and three from the end. Remember, if you mention you saw this post or that you follow me on social media when you come to the table, you get a discount on purchases!

I’m really looking forward to this show — it looks like it’s going to be a fun day, and the vendors look fantastic! (There’s a list if you go to the event link above.)

I’m also looking forward to the show in two weeks, which will be two days at Maker Faire Orlando. I don’t know where I’ll be setting up yet, but as soon as I know, you’ll know.

Before all of that? Early voting just opened today in Central Florida. We’ll be voting tomorrow. GO VOTE!

And then? What’s after Maker Faire?

A long rest before I start cooking for Thanksgiving. Cleaning my house. Finishing King of Swords. Edits on Morrigan’s Heir (and possible Morrigan’s Wrath.) And seeing what I’ll be writing for my first original piece for THEO. I’ll be starting with them with reprints, to give myself some time to get things planned and get started, but it’s looking like this is where my serial writing will be heading, and my serial writing is going to be a bit more spicy in the future! Since they take all heat levels, my work there may be starting with rerunning the Heir to the Firstborn serial, starting with Written in Water. As soon as my work on THEO starts going live, I’ll let you all know. And if you’re an author interested in taking a closer look? Click the blog button at the bottom of the THEO page. There’s more information there.

And remember… Cookiepocalypse is coming…

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 3)

84098 / 120000 (70.08%)

Promotions

Kobo is doing a Free First in Series promotion for the entire month of October, so you can grab a copy of Hidden Things for free! (You can find it free where ever ebooks are sold — not just Kobo.)


I’m also a part of Enchanted Realms, and this promotion also runs for the entire month of October — sign up for newsletters, get free books and enter to win a $30 gift card!

Appearances

Wizards, Witches and the Weird
October 27th, 2024
Daytona Beach, Florida

***

Maker Faire Orlando
November 9-10th
Orlando, Florida

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, baking, Cookiepocalypse, forthcoming works, Heir to the Firstborn, politics, promotions, public displays of geekery, Tales from the Arena, The White Raven, THEO, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, Writer on the Go!, 0 comments
Give Me The Coffee And No One Gets Hurt…

Give Me The Coffee And No One Gets Hurt…

Otherwise known as the Monday after a convention. Today is definitely a “give me the coffee and no one gets hurt” kind of day.

We found out Thursday night that Necronomicon was going to happen, so Friday morning, we packed up and headed out. The normally two hour trip to Tampa took us over three, but the hotel was lovely as always (except in a few places where it was… not. No functional elevators while trying to load into the room was not fun.) The area of Tampa where the convention is held is on the eastern side of Tampa near Busch Gardens, and you don’t have to cross the bridges to get there. Which is good, because when we hit Tampa, all the bridges were still closed. We didn’t see any of the flooded areas, but the convention was feeling the effects of the storm — the halls were empty, and panels that were usually packed had maybe six people in the audience. Entire panels and games were cancelled because people simply could not get to the convention.

And yet, it was still a good convention. Smaller audiences made for more intimate panels, with better opportunity for discussion. The opportunity to connect with fans and with other writers were increased. New friends were made.

It was a good convention.

Edits for Morrigan’s Heir should be hitting my inbox any minute now, and I can’t wait! One step closer to having you all meet Lorcan! Hopefully, we’ll be able to get this turned around for later this year. Cross your crossables!

I was eliminated from SPFBO right before we left. Honestly, I was expecting it — the judge who was assigned my book is very upfront about not liking erotic or dark, and Counsel of the Wicked is both. I’m not sure she even finished it. Which… again, it’s not a surprise. That book is A LOT, and I’m starting to debate if it’s worth it to keep it in print. I may pull the series at the end of the year. We’ll see.

Now, I’m prepping for my next show, the Not So Spooky Hallowfest in Deltona, Florida. I’ll have an abbreviated catalog with me — it’s a family focused event, so I’ll have Heir to the Firstborn and The Chronicles of John Zebedee and that’s all. If you’re in the area on Sunday, come and check out the show, which is going to be from 10AM to 4PM at The Center at Deltona, 1640 Dr Martin Luther King Blvd, Deltona, FL 32725-2912. If you come out and tell me you saw this blog, you get a discount!

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 3)

71118 / 120000 (59.27%)

Promotions

I’m going to be a part of Enchanted Realms, and this promotion runs for the entire month of October — sign up for newsletters, get free books and enter to win a $30 gift card!


Coming up on October 11th, I have Chains of Light available for free in So Queer To My Heart, a spicy queer romance event.


Finally, I’ll be participating in a Stuff Your Kindle event from October 18-20th. There are over 400 books that will be free or discounted for that weekend, and I’ll have Written in Water up for free!

Appearances

Not So Spooky Hallowfest
October 6th, 2024
Deltona, Florida

***

Wizards, Witches and the Weird
October 27th, 2024
Daytona Beach, Florida

***

Maker Faire Orlando
November 9-10th
Orlando, Florida

Posted by EASchechter in a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, Chains of Light, Counsel of the Wicked, edits, giveaway, Heir to the Firstborn, Hidden Things, Necronomicon, promotions, SPFBO, Tales from the Arena, The White Raven, WIP, wordcount, Writer on the Go!, Written in Water, 0 comments
The Wild Ride is Just Beginning.

The Wild Ride is Just Beginning.

Last week was something else, wasn’t it? And the wild ride is just beginning.

I’m feeling a little more hopeful about… well, everything. The political news has evened out and looks very promising, and I’ve managed to get all those vendors to admit they’ve screwed up and get the supplies I need out in the mail (in theory. They’re not here yet. But they were supposedly mailed last Thursday.)

So things are looking up. Which isn’t to say that they’re not also promising to be exciting, but they’re exciting in a positive way, which is good.

I’m a third of the way into King of Swords, and enjoying myself enough that everything else has sort of fallen to the wayside. I do need to get back into working on plotting out The Covert Saloon series and revising The Sea Prince, but King of Swords is just so shiny and fun!

I haven’t had any updates on The White Raven books yet, but I’m hoping for something in the next month or so. Morrigan’s Heir is supposed to be out this year, but I don’t know what the turnaround is with my new editor, so I don’t know if I should be looking at edits coming in sometime next month or sometime in October. I’ll check in with him if I don’t hear by mid-August, and see where we are. I’m really looking forward to seeing these two in print and having you all meet Lorcan properly.

I need to make up my mind on what I’m doing with The Sea Prince when it’s all revised and ready. Do I want to run it through Kindle Vella? Or should I shop it around? Maybe I just want to just go ahead and self-publish? Decisions, decisions. If you have opinions, let me know? Where would you want to read a sort of steampunky Master and Commander-ish novel?

Next week, there may be no blog post — we have the double whammy of a young man getting three wisdom teeth pulled AND a 50/50 shot at the first hurricane of this season to make the right turn in the Caribbean and head for Florida. If I can post, I will, but I might be busy.

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 3)

29959 / 90000 (33.29%)

Promotions

Only two days left of the Smashwords Summer Sale. You can pick up my entire catalog 25% off here and here.


Counsel of the Wicked is still a contender for SPFBOX, so it is STILL on sale, but because of the Smashwords sale, it’s even BETTER — it’s FREE (only on Smashwords)!!! But only for another two days!


Starting on August 1st and running through the entire month of August, Written in Water will be on sale via Kobo! For all of August, start the series for only $1.99. (And because I’m fond of you guys, the sale will be wherever ebooks are sold, not just Kobo.)


The Cavalcade is having a Free Book Promo for this weekend only! August 2-4 you’ll can browse and download books of all genres. The link will be coming in my socials and my newsletter on FRIDAY. If you don’t get my newsletter, you can sign up here.

Appearances

Necronomicon
September 27-29th, 2024
Tampa, Florida

***

Not So Spooky Hallowfest
October 6th, 2024
Deltona, Florida

***

Wizards, Witches and the Weird
October 27th, 2024

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, Cavalcade of Authors, Counsel of the Wicked, Covert Saloon, forthcoming works, promotions, Tales from the Arena, The Sea Prince, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, Updatey things, WIP, wordcount, writing-mom, 0 comments
Back to Work!

Back to Work!

Vacation is over. So is vacation recovery (and all the laundry is finally done and put away.) Time to get back to work!

I will admit, I did get back to work last week. I started (and finished) a revision of The Sea Prince, and now I’m handing it off to Darling Editor for his first read through. Once he’s done, I’ll read it through on paper for the first time. Given how long this project has been in the works, and how much I’ve changed as a writer between writing the opening line and writing “the end,” making sure the voice is consistent throughout is part of the editing process.

I did do some writing on the cruise — the Disney Fantasy has the best little coffee shop in the adult only area, and I sat in there one afternoon with my notebook and pen, and I got started on writing King of Swords. It’s been an age since I last played in this world, and I did reread the books before starting, but I still feel a little bit like I’m visiting a place I haven’t been in years. Which, I suppose, is true in a sense — I’m going back to Tyese and Aakar some eleven years after I first wrote those books

Something else I appear to be going back to are Weird Westerns — last week, while watching Tasting History (a YouTube series I highly recommend,) I had new characters walk out of my subconscious. the episode was on Old West saloons, and before the end of the 25 minute episode, I had a cast of characters. No plot yet, but there was a Sidhe, a dhampir, an Irish werewolf, a human medium, and a Root Doctor, who all live in the Covert Saloon in a small town called Crossroads. I’m fairly certain that it’s not related to The Chronicles of John Zebedee, but it might be. We’ll see where this one goes.

That’s about all that’s going on right now. I’m waiting to hear on edits for the White Raven books, and I have a bunch of appearances coming up — two this weekend! The first is a live reading on YouTube — I’ll be reading from my SPFBOX entry, Counsel of the Wicked. And I’ll be having an in person signing of the Heir to the Firstborn series at the Writers’ Block bookstore in Winter Park on Sunday afternoon. More information on both can be found below, or on my Appearances page.

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 3)

2688 / 90000 (2.99%)

Promotions

Counsel of the Wicked is still a contender for SPFBOX, so it is STILL on sale! $.99 until it gets knocked out!

Appearances

My upcoming appearances — I don’t have graphics for most of these yet, so right now it’s just a list.

Live Reading for SPFBOX!
June 22nd, 2024
5:40 PM

***

Writer’s Block Books
June 23rd, 2024
3pm – 6pm
Winter Park, Florida

***

Necronomicon
September 27-29th, 2024
Tampa, Florida

***

Not So Spooky Hallowfest
October 6th, 2024
Deltona, Florida

***

Wizards, Witches and the Weird
October 27th, 2024
Daytona Beach, Florida

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, accountability, appearances, Counsel of the Wicked, Covert Saloon, Heir to the Firstborn, John Zebedee, promotions, Reading, Rebel Mage, Tales from the Arena, The White Raven, WIP, wordcount, Worldbuilding, Writer on the Go!, 0 comments
Did You Miss Me?

Did You Miss Me?

Hello! Long time no anything! I’m back and blogging again. Did you miss me? It’s been a wild month and a half.

Let’s see. First off, my house is now SPOTLESS and I’ve discovered the magical tool known as a steam mop. I’m in favor. It makes cleaning the floor SO much easier.

I am now the proud mother of a high school graduate. He graduated with honors — National Honor Society, Summa Cum Laude, and he also earned several industry certifications, as well a graduating high school with his Associates degree through dual enrollment. He starts college in the fall as a second semester sophomore.

A week and a half after graduation, we got onboard the Disney Fantasy, and had a lovely time sailing around the Eastern Caribbean. We got back Saturday morning, and the house is still swaying gently (I learned today that this is called disembarkation syndrome, and it can last up to a MONTH!)

Relaxing is something I keep forgetting how to do, but I managed it! And I read — two books off the Lord Ruthven Award reading list, and one that I learned of from Booktok. The vampire books are Immortal Pleasures, by V. Castro, and A Tempest of Tea, by Hafsah Faizal. The one from Booktok was The Queen is Dead, by C. H. Folan, and I LOVED it. It’s a retelling of Macbeth from Lady Macbeth’s perspective, and it also gives her a backstory. It’s a little loosey-goosey in the history, but it was still a good read.

Somewhere in the Atlantic, I also started the next Tales from the Arena book. Not reading — writing. The new title is Tales from the Arena: King of Swords. I wrote about three pages longhand over a cup of coffee, and I’ll start tracking the words later this week once I get them into the computer.

My plans for the rest of the summer? Stop swaying. That’s first. Then I have to do a reread and revision of The Sea Prince, and I’ll poke at King of Swords. At some point, I hope that the next round of edits will come in for Morrigan’s Heir, and that I’ll get a release date for you. I also have a few appearances set up, which are listed below.

Vacation is over. Back to work!

Promotions

SPFBO X started the day we set sail, and Counsel of the Wicked is included in the 300 entrants! So from now until it gets eliminated from the contest, Counsel is on sale!

Appearances

My upcoming appearances — I don’t have graphics for most of these yet, so right now it’s just a list.

Writer’s Block Books
June 23rd, 2024
3pm – 6pm
Winter Park, Florida

***

Necronomicon
September 27-29th, 2024
Tampa, Florida

***

Not So Spooky Hallowfest
October 6th, 2024
Deltona, Florida

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Wizards, Witches and the Weird
October 27th, 2024
Daytona Beach, Florida

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, Counsel of the Wicked, Tales from the Arena, The Sea Prince, The White Raven, Updatey things, Writer on the Go!, writing-mom, 0 comments
Vacation Incoming in 5…4…3…2…1….

Vacation Incoming in 5…4…3…2…1….

I’ve finished the edits on Morrigan’s Heir. And I’ve finished the revisions on Morrigan’s Wrath (well, sort of done — the manuscript is now with my first reader.) Vacation incoming in 5…4…3…2…1…

Now, vacation for me starts with cleaning. That’s sort of always been the way. I have finished a book, therefore it is time to deep clean the house. Which isn’t to say that I don’t clean during a book, but it’s more “pick things up and put them away, and maybe dust horizontal surfaces.” The actual “move furniture and dust the baseboards” level of cleaning only happens between books. Since I’m going to have a house full of people in May, I’ve given myself nearly a month to do the entire house. Why? Because I only do one room at a time. It breaks down large task into manageable bites, and keeps me from overdoing it and spending all my spell slots for the week on the first day.

(I use spell slots instead of the more common spoons. Being a geek, spell slots resonates with me more than silverware.)

What this means is that this may be the last regular blog until sometime in June. I might not get to blogging on Mondays until after everything is over. So if you don’t see anything from me and I seem to drop off the face of the planet? Don’t worry. I’m still here. I’m fine. I’m just having adventures with a steam mop for a bit.

Promotions!

Today is the last day of the Narratress Indie Book sale this weekend. Grab a copy of Hidden Things for 99 cents, or any of the other books on sale! A quick look at the promo graphics showed some good ones, so don’t miss out!

Appearances

Join me on April 27th at Spellbound Books for Independent Bookstore Day! I’ll be part of the Indie Book Bazaar from 2 – 3:45PM, but Independent Bookstore Day is a full day event. Make sure to check out your local independent bookstore to see what they’ve got planned!

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, Ta-da, The White Raven, the-end-is-near, Updatey things, writing-mom, 0 comments