Story updates

May, I think. Fingers crossed. I'm hoping that Totems 3 will be ready for the public eye by May. Of course, that means I have some work to do. I mean, I'm still revising. Then I have to edit. Then I have to send out to beta readers. And then I have to edit some more. Hmmm...hopefully, May. ;)

I've also got a new series in the works. I haven't fully decided on a series name, yet, but the first book is called "The War Captain." I probably won't release this series until 2017. But I'm so excited about them. Connor is the protagonist of the story. Oookay, you talked me into it. A little bit of Totems 3 and a little bit of The War Captain. :D

"Hestia

Hestia leaned over the shoulder of her dragon, staring down at the ground. Her lips pursed together in fury. They had kicked her off the island! She clenched her hands.

:They will regret it,: Saphala commented. She swiveled her head, searching the land beneath them.

:I was their source of power. The only reason the mages had come to be respected!: Hestia seethed.

:It is true,: Saphala agreed. :But this is not the end. It is a new beginning for us.:

Hestia took deep breaths. :Yes, I must focus on the opportunity being presented.: It was true. Saphala was right. They were no longer confined to the Isle of the Mages. She could now return to her kingdom and take her rightful place as queen.

:What about Ethelinda?: Saphala asked.

Hestia’s lip curled into a sneer. :The girl will not be difficult to deal with. She couldn’t even take the kingdom on her own, let alone keep it from me,: Hestia said, dismissing the worry of Ethelinda.


:What will you do with her?:
:That depends on how she reacts. If she accepts me as the rightful queen, then I may keep her as my heir.: Hestia smiled to herself. That would be the key. If her daughter could bow down gracefully to her or not." "Chapter 1
The nursemaid turned maid bustled through the bedroom, one last time. She took a deep breath, clasping her hands to her chest. It was hopeless. She was going to have to tell High Councilor Elenor. She walked through the corridor, the soft carpet muffling her footsteps. Guards patrolled different sections of the hallway, eyeing her suspiciously before they noted her colors.
She walked to the Councilor’s Hall, heart pounding. This was exactly what the High Councilor told her not to allow to happen. She paused, looking at the guards. “I have an urgent message for her ladyship High Councilor Elenor.” They nodded once, pushing the large wooden door open.
Raised voices assailed her ears. Lady Elenor leaned over the table, jabbing it with her finger for emphasis. “I will not cede another ounce of my land to you! You are already getting my son—“
“Your youngest son. Just because your late husband’s blood flows through his veins—“
“It is because my late husband’s blood—“ she cut off, staring at the maid. “Excuse me,” she said, stalking around the table without waiting for response. She crossed her arms, glaring at the maid. “Well? What is it, Tamissa?”
“I apologize, your Ladyship,” Tamissa whispered. “But he’s done it again.”
“Drat the child,” Elenor muttered.
“What is it, Lady Elenor?”
“You’ll have to excuse me for a moment, Lord Jermaine. I will return presently.” She walked from the chamber, the maid scrambling to keep up. “When did you see him last? He must be presented within the hour!”
“He was at lunch. I went to fetch another pasty for him—he loves them so!—and when I returned he had vanished.”
“I ordered you not to let him out of your sight!”
“I am so sorry, my lady,” she whispered again.
Elenor ignored the maid, leaving the main building for the castle courtyard. A group of men in her colors were drilling to the side, weapons banging noisily against each other and against armor. “Cormick!” she shouted above the sound.
A large man turned from the fray, his eyes falling on his lady. He let out a whistle. The men stopped training, many of them leaning on their knees. “Get a drink, take a rest. When I return, I want every man ready to run.” His announcement was met with groans. He did not stay to hear them. He met Elenor partway across the field and half bowed, eyes never leaving the woman. “My lady?”
“He’s done it again.”
Cormick sighed. “Shall I assemble the men?”
“All of them. He must be found and presentable within the hour.”
Cormick saluted, fist to chest. “It shall be done, my lady.” He turned, striding back to his men. “New orders!” he bellowed. “The first one of you to find Lord Connor will get the rest of this afternoon off.” Jaws dropped and men stared. “Well? Get going!”
Thirty minutes later, a scruffy looking six year old was dragged by the arm into the castle. A trail of mud followed his path. Tamissa scurried to him, sending another to inform Lady Elenor. “Oh my goodness, Lord Connor! What have you done?”
The boy scowled up at the maid through the mud dripping off his chin. “I won,” he muttered, wiping at his dirty face with a dirty sleeve. Mud smeared across his face, only his green eyes seemed free of the ooze.
“What, against pigs? What will your mother say?”
“Damnit!” All three jumped at the curse. “What did I tell you, Connor? This is unacceptable behavior for the son of a High Councilor.” The maid scrubbed futilely at his face with a small handkerchief, making swirls in the mud. “There is no time now. He must meet Idrina. Bring him.”
Connor struggled uselessly against the guard still holding him. He desisted when his mother told him he would lose his training sessions if he did not stop. Sullenly, the boy followed in his mother’s wake. Lord Jermaine’s lip curled at the sight of the boy. “I’m inclined to argue for more land.”
“The contract has been signed,” Elenor snapped. Jermaine sighed and beckoned to a second maid.
“May I present, Lady Idrina.” The maid held a tiny bundle wrapped in cloth out for inspection.
“Well?” Elenor said to Connor. He shrugged up at her. “Go say hello to your bride!”"

The Internet

You don't know how much you use the internet until you don't have it anymore! This last month has been a hectic one for my family and me.

We bought a house (Yeah!). Because of how the loan worked, we didn't know until the actual day of signing if we were moving or not. Which means we didn't have anything packed because we still needed most everything for day to day living. So we signed and packed and moved in two days (Not so yeah!). At this point, we're mostly unpacked, but the move did put a bit of a delay on Totems: Clouds of War. Possibly end of November, although I'm still working my tail off.

We have started round 2 of edits. I have to say, I'm excited for this book. There are a few twists that I didn't see coming until I actually wrote the book. Very excited. :)

I'll keep you updated on how the edits are going. Have a good one!

New Book

This is something that should have been said sooner, but...It's done! The Guardians: Revenge is live on amazon! You can get it here: http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Revenge-Carol-M-Vaughn-ebook/dp/B00JU74JGK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1409949454&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Guardians%3A+Revenge

Enjoy this continuation of the story of Eddy and April. Remember, Jason is still out there, trying to kill them. And he's found an ally.

Enjoy the story!

Beta Readers

I have finished my personal edits of Totems: The Sword and The Shield. I've sent the book out to my beta readers. Now I'm waiting to hear back from them. I'm very excited for this story! I believe that it's better than my Guardian series, although I still love Eddy and April. They're a lot of fun.

Speaking of Eddy and April, we're nearly to 30,000 words in Guardians: Revenge. In this story, Eddy and April search for Jason, hoping to end his madness. In case you were wondering, Guardians: Gateways was about 80,000 words. So I've still a ways to go, including editing. But it should be out next year.

In the meantime, I have a decision to make on the release of Totems. I'm playing around with the idea of creating a paperback version of the story. That will involve a lot more work, which would push back the release date quite a bit. I would likely need to hire a professional to make my cover...unless I can get my hands on a good Photoshop program or something. Exciting times for me!

Tentatively, I believe the Guardians: Revenge book will be released March 2014--one year from the release of Guardians: Gateways. Pretty awesome, in my opinion. I love bringing my characters to life. :)

First Draft!

The first draft of my second book is complete! :) Totems: The Sword and the Shield. Of course, now comes to tedious part that I think does in most authors...editing! Oh well. I love writing. And I get so excited re-reading things that I've already written! And that excites me even more!

Totems: The Sword and the Shield

"Arianwyn is nothing more than a lowly orphan, passed over and abused in a tiny mountain village where family is everything (Hmmm, maybe I need to make that more prominent in the story). When the abuse becomes too much, she flees the village. She has no hope for a future; she only knows that the present is too painful to continue living.

After living on her own in the woods, she comes across an awesome (and dangerous) creature. A dragon. This dragon, however, has been captured under a magical net. In her attempt to rescue the creature, the dragon forms an unbreakable bond between them.

After fleeing still more abusive situations, Arianwyn finds herself living under the nose of King Rael, a man looking for a wife and hoping for a miracle."

How's that for a book reading? I'll have to ask my beta readers...speaking of which, wanna be a reader? ;)

Popularity

Why do you write? If the answer is to become famous, I'm probably doing it for the wrong reason...at least, that's what the sales of my first book would tell me. Admittedly, I have a long way to go when it comes to writing. I need an editor. Unfortunately, I don't have money to spend on an editor. I need help with a book cover. Same problem: lack of funds. So I resort to the real reason why I write.

I'm not writing because I think I'll become wildly popular (not gonna lie, that would be pretty awesome!). I write because I love it. It's FUN to me. And I've achieved one of my dreams, becoming a self-published author. It's nothing fancy. But I did it. How many other people can say that they've achieved whatever dream they've been holding secret?

So, I'm not popular. But you know something? I never have been anyway. :)

Book Post

Whoops! Silly me! I should have posted a link for any random travellers to find my book. ;) Don't forget to review on amazon, random traveller!

http://www.amazon.com/The-Guardians-Gateways-ebook/dp/B00BNVC2KQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362417502&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Guardians%3A+Gateways

Publishing Woes

Well, I had set a goal to be up and running by this weekend with The Guardians: Gateways. And what happens? First the battery dies, then the power cord ceases to charge. So I lost an entire week. Luckily, this all happened on President's Day so I got a GREAT deal on a new battery and cord. :) Now it's back to formatting and editting (SO BORING!). Five more chapters to edit and formatting is about 33% finished. So my new goal is next weekend.

By the way, if you're going to be writing a book and publishing it through Amazon, look up Kindle Direct Publishing. They'll have you download a free book that will tell you how to format your story so that the transition to Amazon is as smooth as possible. Do that BEFORE you start writing! You'll save yourself A LOT of time formatting if you do.

Following

I guess you reach a point where you realize that you can't do things because you believe it will make a difference for someone else. The only change that I can be sure of is the one I make for myself. So, here we have it. This blog was originally to help ME learn and discover new things. Others learning and such was supposed to be a side-note. Somewhere, I lost track of that.

Now, it's for me. I am my audience. And I intend to enjoy every minute of it. :)

"The Guardians: Gateway" has 100 more pages to go before I'm finished editting it. Then I plan on self-publishing on KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing). I plan on this being a trilogy; "The Guardians: Revenge" and "The Guardians: Hope." The titles are tentative, but I'm pretty sure that they're a solid tentative. :) I also have a fantasy book in the works, another trilogy...although the third isn't very solid. Basically it's a "dilogy" or "duology." Hmmm, which word would you use? Probably Duology. Anyways, this series is "The Sword and the Shield" series. Not sure what differentiation to use between the titles yet.

Uncertain Salvation?

Here's the first page to one of my books. I still don't have a firm title. Read it and let me know what you think!

A Letter:

            Dear Mom and Dad,

            I know I said I would be home soon. I’m sorry that I can’t make that come true anymore. It will probably be awhile before you see this and doubtless many will tell you that I’m dead. I’m not dead. I’m very alive. And if I could come home, I would. I love you both so much! I hope that this helps explain where I am and why you can never see me again.

1: Ogden-Heber City

            There’s a strange fascination with Sasquatch and skunk apes. People are constantly claiming that they’ve seen Big Foot or Sasquatch or whatever. Once, I knew what that fascination was. Now, I’d just as soon they left me alone. Now that I know what skunk apes are all about, I wish I didn’t. Makes it hard to sleep at night, ya know?

            You’re probably wondering where I’m going with this. After all, I think the majority of people are sensible enough to believe skunk apes are fictional, figments of an overactive imagination. While I enjoyed watching the shows about Bigfoot, I have to admit I used to be a skeptic. The irony of me being skeptical now…Well, let me tell you from the beginning. It will make more sense that way.

            My name is April. I was a student at Weber State University in Ogden, UT. I hadn’t really picked a major yet, so what I was studying didn’t matter. It’s not like I’ve really been able to use what I’ve learned. Who does, really? I had your usual paperwork to get done, just like other students; math homework, a research paper, reading and studying. Nothing big or unusual.

            Yup, that was me. Nothing big or unusual. It was nearing Halloween and my roommates and I decided to have a party. I was in the bathroom getting ready because my roommates said they had invited boys. So I needed to look good. Well, as good as possible. I’m pretty average looking, to be honest. I’d make a great spy if I had spectacular spy skills in my repertoire! I don’t, in case you were wondering.

            I have brown hair with honey and red highlights that usually show up in the summer. No amount of tanning seems to turn my pale skin tan. I’m pretty much a nightlight year round. Most people say I have brown eyes. I think they’re hazel because the brown is only on the inside. They lighten to a golden green color on the outside. But you have to look close for that. Most people don’t gaze into your eyes that closely. It would be pretty creepy. My height makes me stand out. A little. I’m about 5’ 10”.

            The apes showed up that Halloween night. I didn’t know what they were then, nor did I know what they really looked like. The skunk apes you see on TV are just ideas of what the creatures look like. And they’ve had several different species all lumped into one. The apes that showed up that night weren’t very similar to those make believe renditions.