The White Raven

28
Oct
2024
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
21
Oct
2024
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
30
Sep
2024
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
29
Jul
2024
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
17
Jun
2024
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
10
Jun
2024
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

***

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
15
Apr
2024
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
08
Apr
2024
Partial Eclipse of the Heart?

Partial Eclipse of the Heart?

If you’re supposed to fall apart during a total eclipse of the heart, what do you do during a partial eclipse of the heart?

We’re only at about 57% where I am, so the light got a little weird, and now it’s pretty much back to normal. The next time Florida will be in the path of totality will be 2044, I think. So… I’ll get to experience that when I’m in my 70s or so. Something to look forward to?

I’ve finished my readthrough of Morrigan’s Heir, and I did a quick read of Morrigan’s Wrath (for the first time since I wrote it, so there was a lot of “Oh, I’d forgotten about that scene!”) Now I’m reading for edits, and questioning some of the stylistic choices of Past-Me. See, Lorcan speaks Gaeilge in Eire (ancient Irish in Ireland) and he learns Latin in Rome. So Past-Me thought that it would make sense to italicize all the words in Latin when Lorcan was speaking Gaeilge, and all the words in Gaeilge when he starts speaking Latin.

Now-Me is wondering just what Past-Me was thinking because dear BOB, is that confusing and I am changing it RIGHT NOW.

Needless to day, there are a lot of editorial marks in my manuscript. I’ll still get it in by the end of month, though. My goal is to have everything complete before the Indie Bazaar. And then…

We picked up someone’s cap and gown today. May is coming at us at high speed, and Graduation will be here before you know it. The fun part of Senior year has started — prom was last week, and this week starts the Universal Orlando celebration of high school seniors known as Grad Bash, where the park is closed to the public and the seniors get the entire place to themselves overnight. I think EVERY high school in Central Florida participates, and it takes about two weeks for them all to have their turn.

So many things happening, and all of them wonderful!

Promotions!

I’ll be part of the Narratress Indie Book sale this weekend, from April 13th through the 15th. 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. If you’re not in the area, check out your local independent bookstore to see what they’ve got planned!

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, Blessed, edits, forthcoming works, progress, promotions, The White Raven, WIP, writing-mom, 0 comments
01
Apr
2024
What Am I Forgetting?

What Am I Forgetting?

I know I’m forgetting something. What is it? What am I forgetting….?

Oh.

So now you know why today’s blog is so late. I plain forgot it was Monday. To be fair, I’m a little distracted. Edits for Morrigan’s Heir came in on Friday, and I’ve been going through them. The initial edits are minor — mostly house style changes and a couple of corrections. The actual work I’ve been doing has been making the the small changes I need to make with things that came up during the writing of Morrigan’s Wrath. That’s going nicely.

Right now, the plan is to make all the changes and updates. Then I’m going to go back through Heir from the start and transition right into a first read-through for Wrath. Why first? Because when I finished writing Wrath, I printed it out and put it aside to wait. I haven’t reread it since I finished it, which means that any edits that need to be made will jump off the page. I hope. Once I reread it, then I’ll update Wrath for any changes I need to make. Then I will send both manuscripts in to my editor so that he can read them both back-to-back.

And once those manuscripts are sent, and after the Indie Book Bazaar at Spellbound Books on April 27th, I’m off until mid-June. Except I might still keep working on the worldbuilding for “Frog and Fae are Friends,” at least until I know what the title REALLY is. But starting at the end of April, it will be all prep for graduation and vacation — cleaning and getting things in order for house guests, then packing and getting everything in order for a long-postponed vacation.

It’s been a while since I took an extended time off. I’m not sure I know how to do it anymore. I’ll report back in mid-June as to how I did.

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. If you’re not in the area, check out your local independent bookstore to see what they’ve got planned!

Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, accountability, appearances, edits, Frog and Fae, Planning, progress, Revisions, silly, The White Raven, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, Worldbuilding, writing-mom, 0 comments
25
Mar
2024
Monday, Monday…

Monday, Monday…

Monday, Monday, can’t trust that day…

I have to admit that I like Mondays best when they’re not quite so… Mondayish. And today Monday is being an overachiever. Nothing I can share, mind, but beating my head against the wall would be a welcome respite, if only because I could STOP.

Needless to say, today has been a heck of a long week, and most of that was before noon. Some of it was even before coffee. It will hopefully all be resolved before dinner.

Hopefully.

Edits are coming in this week — I confirmed that. So I’ll be starting work on Morrigan’s Heir soon, and then doing a readthrough and editing pass on Morrigan’s Wrath. Deadline for me is having both back to my editor by the end of April (my target is to have everything done by April 27th — the day of the Indie Book Bazaar at Spellbound Books.) And I should hopefully have a rough synopsis for “Frog and Fae are Friends” done sometime this week, too, and then i can give a bit more thought to the worldbuilding. I’m still not sure if this will be a serial or a novel or a series of shorts. We’ll see what happens when I sit down to actually write it. Which, I have to say, not sitting down and starting either this or Tales from the Arena: Dead Man’s Hand is hard! Both of them want to be started right now!

The schedule for the rest of this week is packed solid, but it will end on a high note — someone has Senior Prom this weekend. The beginning of the fun part of Senior Year is starting.

I’d better lay in tissues…

Giveaways!

This is the last week where you can download a copy of my dark fantasy romance Counsel of the Wicked FREE through the On Fire Romance promotion. (Content warning — this book is the darkest thing that I have ever written, and includes on the page explicit sexual violence. Go carefully.)

Image of a flame. Text reads "On Fire. Free Spicy Romance Ebooks. March 1-31"
Posted by EASchechter in 2024 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, annoyance, edits, Frog and Fae, I really want some dull, Planning, progress, publishing, Tales from the Arena, The White Raven, Vagueblogging, Worldbuilding, writing-mom, 0 comments