Exciting news!!

Well, it has been a long time since I was able to say this, but—I have a release date!!!

It is official. On September 25th I will finally get to release the third installment in the Light Bringer Saga!

LIGHT BRINGER

I will be doing a giveaway for the book and have some other cool little things planned across the blogisphere...bloggersphere....the place we blog. 

For now I can show you the blurb for the book. Hope you enjoy it:

After facing her nightmares and battling against those who should have been her protectors, Sophia should be prepared for anything. With knowledge gained from the Pathways and a power growing inside, the last mystery she faces is herself.

Answers about her past are being kept just out of reach. Two powerful groups of Elementals are coming to town and their intentions could easily spell doom for everyone she loves. As if that weren’t enough, a dark figure looms ever closer, threatening to change everything she once believed.

Life is never dull around the Elementals. As each decision puts those she cares about further at risk, Sophia is left with one question: Is knowing who you are worth losing everything?

Anyway, thanks for listening. Hope everyone is well. See you soon.

Spotlight of awesome!!

A big thing I love about blogging is all the help and camaraderie that goes on here. It's a pretty special place. 

It is also filled with some pretty special people. I would like to share some of these folks with you all. Many of you may know them, but it may be time to check out some of the things they can do. 

First up are two amazing...and award winning...authors! 

S. K. Anthony

&

Raymond Esposito

Aside from being authors the two have started a website with tons of helpful advice, videos, and even a podcast. 

It is the podcast I want to really talk about here. I have been following these two as they made YouTube videos, which are also great. So I remember when they announced the podcast I got really excited.

"How To Know If Writing Advice Is Good", led the way into what would be a new favorite pastime for me.  

As of writing this, they have ten episodes and each of them is really great. They give succinct advice and have great flow and chemistry as they do it. It is a cool resource for new and old writers alike. I often listen to them when drawing or eating. You can even listen to it from itunes and soundcloud.

Oh and they are doing something really cool over there. It is a contest for authors. I will let them explain as they will do it better than me anyway. Click HERE!   

I am a pretty big fan. Do yourselves a favor and check them out. 

Being writer you take a lot of advice. Once we get this advice we sweat and toil over our works of love for who knows how long. Eventually we may get to a point in drafting that we think people might want to buy this stuff. At this point there is an important step that no author should skip. Yes, you may know where I'm going here.

Editing!! 

Being a Self Published author it is hard to wade through all the noise and find people we are compatible with. So if I may, I would like to offer up two amazing people for your consideration. 

The first is the wonderful, Janie Junebug. You can check out her blog here where she will give tips on editing and regale you with tales from Florida, Willy Dunne Wooters, and some amazing pups. 

After rushing my books out lacking the proper editing, it was Janie that came to my rescue and helped me right the ship, or did we write the ship? Well one of those things happened. 

She has great insights on content and flow. Many of the structural problems in my prose she helped me curb and fix. You will find working with her insightful and fun. 

I have been told by people that you can never have enough eyes on your work so I also had the pleasure of using this next person to proofread the books and just give it that extra set of peepers. 

Lynda Dietz is incredible as a person and editor. You can find her blog here, where she will offer her editors notes and a profound knowledge of all things editing. I found the process of working with her incredibly enjoyable. You can tell right away that your work is in good hands and you are instilled with a sense of confidence about going forward. 

I know this one was a bit long. I hope that you give the podcast a listen. I am telling you once you start you will want to hear them all. Also check out the blogs of these lovely editors and keep them in mind whenever you are in the market.

I hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for listening, I'll see you next time.  

Website!!

So like I said. The biggest thing about my stepping away was trying to figure out how I wanted to go about this little self publishing career. 

There is so much that goes into it when you are wearing all the hats. I love being the artist. It brings joy to my life, but not so much the social media expert and sales manager and the endless stream of other things that goes into this.

In the end I decided I was not going to halfway do something. So as I mentioned before, I put together a plan. Part of that plan is this: My Website!(<==click it)

I also added a new "button" up top so people can go to the site.

I am really proud of how it came out. 

I aim to use my blog to share my thoughts on writing and art and to share things about my life. I plan to use the website to post all the major news for my books. There may be some crossover between the two, but that is the main structure going forward.

Please check it out and tell me what you think.

I hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for listening, see you next time.

I finally got my letter!!!

So anyone who really knows me knows I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I read the books at a key point in my writing career and they brought me back to what I loved about story telling in the first place. 

So for my birthday, and Amanda and my anniversary, we took a trip to Universal Studious so that I could go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!!

It was truly everything I had hoped it would be. 

I got a Wand.

I wore a house robe.

I drank a Butterbeer.

I rode a certain train.

                            

I even saw my favorite castle.

It was amazing, but honestly more than just a bit of fun and some wish fulfillment it really cemented something in me. As artist all we have are ideas. This can create moments of great doubt. I have said before that I agree with some of my favorite authors, ideas are cheap. It is the artist that is important, but the idea is a great thing if we pursue it. 

Being at Universal Studios and at the Disney Springs board walk. I saw the art of these people's ideas. Buildings made from them. People dressed as them. Merchandise by the ton. All of this, every fantastical thing, started with an idea.

So I created a new mantra for myself. Here it is:

An idea, with a bit of luck, executed to perfection, makes dreams come true. 

I will probably post more pics from the trip in the next few blogs. There was just so much to see and do.

I hope everyone is doing well. Thanks for listening, see you next time.