Quickie Update

This post may be a little short as I'm trying to keep an eye on my Muse while he tackles tumbling a really large tree.  I needed to escape the heat and humidity for a few minutes and thought, hey, I need to write something on my blog.  Yeah, I talk to myself alot...it's when I get answers back that I start to worry. ;)

Anywho, I am in the thick of editing both Starward and Dangerous Moves at the moment.  I'm also in the process of updating Cressen Books website because guess what?.....Okay, I'll tell you....all books published by Cressen Books are now available on the Nook!!  WOOT!  So, now our books can be found on both Amazon's Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook...I'll leave links to each at the end of this post.

So, this means that the publishing business' website needs updating (again).  Yeah, that's a never ending chore.  Just ask any webmaster or anyone who has their own website or even blog for that matter.  Always something to tweak!

Oh, and before I forget, Starward's cover design is coming along nicely.  I may even have a cover reveal for you in the near future.  I hope you like it because I'm totally loving it!  It fits so well with the story.  But then again, my Muse and I wrote the story and are creating the cover together, so it better darn well fit! lol

I guess that's it for now.  The tree hasn't fallen yet and I don't hear anyone yelling "TIMBRE" out there, so all is good!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful and safe Memorial Weekend and I'll try to be back in the loop soon with more updates!

Oh, and here's those links:

Amazon Kindle: $6.99
B&N Nook: $6.99

For those of you who aren't aware, this is my Muse's (aka, the hubby's) novel.  It's really really good, so check it out and spread the word to others who might be interested!

Amazon Kindle: $5.99
B & N Nook: $5.99

Amazon Kindle: $5.99
B & N Nook: $5.99

Amazon Kindle: $5.99
B & N Nook: $5.99

Starward and Dangerous Moves

After taking a short break to celebrate the release of The Legend of Goat Head Lodge, I'm back to work.  Edits for Dangerous Moves (The L & L Mysteries #4) will begin soon (hopefully this week).  And let me take just a moment to explain the editing process, since it actually is quite different from what most authors go through.

Since my husband (my Muse) and I publish our own books through our publishing company, Cressen Books LLC, we wear many hats including the hat of Editor.  Obviously, there's format, grammar, and spelling edits that take place.  But we also do a lot of content editing in order to flesh out the story and make it come alive for our readers.

So, a typical editing session lasts about an hour, maybe two (depends on how large of a section we're tackling).  If it's my books we're editing, then he reads them out loud, line for line.  We've come to realize the huge benefit reading aloud is because when he reads it, we tend to find words that have been dropped (because of my speed typing and me overlooking it because I'm convinced it's there), and we discover what flows better (is the sentence too formal or too awkward?, that sort of thing).

Also, by reading aloud, we can both get a feel for what might be missing in the section.  This leads to discussions of what can be added (or sometimes what can be dropped) and changes are made accordingly.  Plus, when specific character conversations/interactions are read aloud, it helps me to get a better feel for how they respond to each other and whether it should be added to, changed, or taken out completely.  I'm a huge fan of character interactions and I want my characters to have a realistic and comfortable feel when conversing with each other. 

Anyway, so that can take us up to two hours at a time to thoroughly edit a section (usually 10-15 pages).  Then, if there are major pieces I need to add to the section, we'll come back to it and do a final read-through to make sure everything's flowing right and I didn't forget something.  With the way our schedules are, we're usually lucky if we can get in two editing session in a week.  So, with that in mind, editing a book usually takes anywhere from a month (that's pretty darn fast) up to three months (we have a lot going on that takes away from editing time).

So, my best case scenario is that Dangerous Moves will be ready to publish sometime this summer, but I'm not holding my breath on that.  As the edits come closer to being done, I'll definitely keep everyone informed and let you know when you can expect to see this next book!  I will confess, though, that I'm extremely excited about this 4th installment into the L & L Mysteries, so I'll probably be pushing hard to get through all of the edits quickly but accurately!

Now, an update on Starward (Galactic Dynasty #1).  I have decided to add a Word Count meter to the side bar of this blog.  I'll update it periodically so you can see what progress I'm making and I'll also post when I've made major progress.  In the last post, I was at 58,750 words.  I am now at 60,499 and according to the word counter, that means I'm about 60% done...WOOT!  So, posting may become sporadic as I work towards finishing this book.  But, I'll try to come out of my writing cave at least once a week to post a general update or talk about whatever else may be floating through my brain.

Okay, it's off to work.  I hope everyone is having a wonderful week and I look forward to sharing more with you again soon!

Getting Reacquainted with Characters

So, this has been a big week for me.  I've finished the new Cressen Books website design and that's now live.  I published my latest book on Kindle, The Legend of Goat Head Lodge.  And I am now a Goodreads Author...go me! :)

With these pieces accomplished, what am I up to next?  Well, I'm trying to get reacquainted with my characters in Starward, Rosa and Daemos.  I've spent the last several months in the heads of Leyla and Lucien trying to finish up Goat Head that any writing I've done on Starward has been sporadic at best.  And when writing is sporadic, it's very hard to stay in the main characters' heads.

But, I'm slowly getting a good feel for Rosa and Daemos and am very excited to be working more consistently on their story again.  And actually, I should clarify that a little: I'm feeling pretty good about being in Rosa's head (or her being in my head as the case may be).  After all, this first book in the Galactic Dynasty series is mainly told from her perspective with only glimpses from Daemos from time to time.  And I don't want to explain that any further because it would ruin certain plot elements at this point.  *cackles evilly*

So, for a recap, I posted a week or so ago reporting that my progress in Starward is a little over half done with over 55,000 words.  I am now at 58,750 words and things are starting to develop more with Daemos (meaning I get to write more scenes with Daemos now and those scenes are quite, er, challenging).  Geez, it's very hard to talk about Daemos at all without giving certain things away, but I absolutely love the character and can't wait for readers to get to know Daemos. :) 

Anyway, I know that doesn't look like a whole lot of progress but it's more the quality of the scenes than the quantity of the words at this point.  Plus, I have to factor in all the other projects I've been working on this past week and suddenly 3,750 is pretty darn good.  *pats self on the back*

And yes, I know that there are a lot of authors out there now that are using word counters to keep up with their progress (or have been for a long time).  And I'd be happy to use one of those as well, if I knew how many words I was shooting for to begin with.  I think I'm an oddball because I tend to format my stories ahead of time and pay more attention to the number of pages (302 at this time) and chapters (16 at this time) than I do to the actual word count.  Oh, and I don't have an editor demanding that the book be so many words...I get to choose how long (or short) I want my novels to be.  Such a nice, liberating feeling!

Okay, enough rambling.  So, at 58,750 words, I'm going to guesstimate that I probably have another 40,000 words (or less) to write and Starward will be complete.  (I guess I might actually be aiming for a total of 100,000 words, give or take.)  And I will definitely keep everyone posted with regards to my progress, either through future posts or through an actual word counter or both.

And now, it's time for me to return to Rosa.  She's been pestering me for the last fifteen minutes wanting to know why I'm writing a blog post instead of dealing with her latest crisis!  I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Happy Release Day!!



The Legend of Goat Head Lodge is now available on Kindle...WOOT!!  You can click the book cover on my side bar and it will take you directly to Amazon's site.  Or, if you would like to read the first chapter, please visit my publishing company's website: Cressen Books LLC - The Legend of Goat Head Lodge.  You'll find the synopsis, the first chapter, and a link to Amazon.  And feel free to browse the rest of the website for other books and chapter excerpts!  (Yes, the website is finished and live...just uploaded the new and improved this morning...double WOOT!)

Now I'm going to hop off of here and do a happy dance! 

Releasing Soon...Finally!!

In case you didn't know, the last few months have been a complete roller coaster for my motivation.  At times I've been excited and ready to tackle edits of The Legend of Goat Head Lodge (the 3rd book in The L & L Mysteries), and at times I've really dragged my feet.  Needless to say, what should have taken a month tops has stretched into almost 5 months.  *hides face in shame*

But, at long last, I have finally finished the edits and will be formatting the book to upload to Kindle today...YAY!!!  *throws confetti and opens a bottle of bubbly*  (Actually, I don't have bubbly but I do have chocolate donuts...hehe)  There is still some work to be done to get The Legend of Goat Head Lodge up on Kindle and ready for purchase.  But hopefully by Wednesday or Thursday of this week, readers can purchase and download it to their Kindles.

So, once that piece is done, I'll be shifting my focus to Cressen Books' website.  I'm redesigning the entire site and hope to have the new (and improved) site up by the end of this week or early next week.  I'm already loving how it looks so far and hope that others will find the site much more appealing to visit!

I am also shifting my focus to Starward, the first book in the Galactic Dynasty series I'm co-authoring with my Muse.  I'm about half-way through the initial draft and will be working hard to have that book ready for publication by this summer or early fall. *crosses fingers*

And, I will begin edits of the 4th book in The L & L Mysteries, Dangerous Moves!  I'm very excited about this book and the mystery that Leyla and Lucien get involved in.  It's a much more serious mystery and really helps to evolve (in a good and mature way) their partnership and friendship.  The book is actually in the final stages of edits, but I refuse to put a release date on it yet since I tried to do that with Goat Head and failed miserably...sigh.  But, the closer I get to the final polish of Dangerous Moves, the more information I will have and will let everyone know when the release date will be. :)

I believe that's it for now.  I need to get going so I can upload Goat Head to Kindle and then get to work on the website.  I hope everyone is having a pleasant week so far and maybe I'll have more updates to share real soon!

Long Time, No See

Wow, I hadn't realized just how long it's been since I last posted on this blog! **blushes in embarrassment**  Oh well, I'm back now and have some progress to share. :)

First of all, The Legend of Goat Head Lodge, book 3 in The L & L Mysteries, is nearly complete.  I have one final chapter to write and edit...whew, thank god!  I thought I would never get here.  I have no idea why this book in particular has been so difficult for me to edit since I really love the concept and know it will be a great addition to the series.  Anyway, the cover has already been designed.  So, once the edits are complete, I'll be putting it in book format and will then upload it to Kindle...yay!!  And, just because I can, here's the cover:



Isn't it pretty?  I love it!!

Okay, now on to the next bit of news.  I am co-authoring a mature YA sci-fi series with my Muse called Galactic Dynasty and the first book in the series is called Starward.  I think I may have mentioned this before but since it's been so long since the last post, I just wanted to refresh everyone's memory, including mine...lol.  Anyway, Starward is over 55,000 words long now and is about half complete.  I'm hoping we might be able to introduce this new series by late summer 2012, but we'll see.

I'm also in the process of giving Cressen Books LLC's website a makeover and hope to have that completed in the next few weeks.  Then we will be actively looking to take on a few new authors in order to expand our product selections.  I will say this much; we are not currently looking to take submissions of either poetry or non-fiction.  We would like to stay within the fiction genre for right now.  If you know of anyone that may be looking to publish a fiction book, please give them this web address - www.cressenbooks.com - and let them know to be on the lookout for more information in the upcoming weeks.

Alrighty then, I think that's all the updates for now!  Doesn't seem like a lot, but man it's been busy since Christmas. :)  And I'm excited to have finally found my focus again.  So, it's time for me to hop off of here and get back to work on Starward and The Legend of Goat Head Lodge.  I will try to put more effort into posting more frequently from now on and will keep everyone posted as the various books and websites in progress continue towards their completion!

Writing Woes

No matter how much I try to focus, I just can't seem to get the writing woes to go away.  I would blame my Muse, but he actually has given me all sorts of great ideas to work with.  I just can't seem to find the focus or energy to sit in front of the computer long enough to write anything down.  Maybe it's the holidays or maybe it's the scenery...who knows.

The sad part is that I seem to be able to find time and energy to read and write book reviews to post to my other blog, Escape Into Fiction.  I think part of the reason for that, though, is that it's such a change in what I normally do and I'm not necessarily dealing with the same characters day in and day out.  Don't get me wrong...I absolutely love the characters and the worlds I've created.  They're a very strong part of me and I'm never far away from them, whether it's me thinking about them or writing about them.  But sometimes it's nice to escape into other worlds and meet other characters.

With all this said, I really need to find some way to get my focus back on the book I'm writing.  So, I'll be making a very conscious effort to put my energies into L&L #3 this week and hopefully will have some awesome progress to share next week.  And, because of this effort, this will probably be my last post until after Christmas at least.  So, I wish everyone a very merry Christmas and hope that Santa's good to you!

Celebrate the Book

I'm finally back in the loop and had a great time in Carlisle PA at the Celebrate the Book festival.  Here's me at the booth:

I ended up signing and selling a few books and had a really great time getting to know other authors.  I'm not sure when my next event will be, but I'll keep everyone posted. :)

Now I'm back and have finally mentally recovered enough to begin working on "The Legend of Goat Head Lodge" and "Starward" again.  I was already in Leyla's mind this morning and will continue to write some more from her perspective tomorrow.  As for Rosa, she got a little break while I delved into the mind of a different character by the name of Daemos.  I will not, however, explain anything more about Daemos at this time as that character is somewhat of a work in progress and I wouldn't want to spoil anything.  I'll just say that writing from Daemos' perspective is extremely challenging!

Well, break's over and it's time to get back at it.  See ya later, peeps!