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WWW Wednesday
In another bow to Book View Cafe’s WWW Wednesday, I’m going to snatch the idea and post it here.
The meme is simple:
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you’ll read next?
What are you currently reading?
A Hidden Witch (The Modern Witch #2) by Debora Geary. I’m enjoying this series, despite it’s simplistic nature. In fact, that’s part of the fun. I like characters I’d be comfortable with at a picnic, and this crew of witches definitely fits that idea. So far, nothing much actually happens in these books – it’s sort of a Walden Family Witches. There’s a close-knit extended family with lots of kids and a tight community of witches that stay in contact through the internet and an online game. Everybody loves everybody else and there’s lots of sharing and teaching going on. It’s exactly the kind of thing I’d like to be part of. Except for the gaming part. Trust me. I can’t even handle Second Life.
What did you recently finish reading?
Lyon’s Legacy (Catalyst Chronicles, #1) by Sandra Ulbrich Almazan. I gave this novella 3 stars on Goodreads, which is my default rating. I liked it well enough, although I found it hard to take seriously. Honestly, we discover a wormhole to a parallel universe slightly behind us in time, and we turn it into a tourist playground? Then send someone over there to steal DNA from a famous rock star so we can clone him?
The good thing about this is that it’s so ridiculous you go along for the ride. The characters are well-drawn, especially the MC. There’s no serious action in this book either, but there’s lots of angst.
What do you think you’ll read next?
I think I’ll go with Timeless by Gail Carriger. I loved the Parasol Protectorate series, and I’ve never managed to read this last book. But I’ve finally bought it and it should be up next!
What about you? Give us your answers in the comments or leave a comment with the link to your blog post.
A Meme on Reading
I picked up this meme from Book View Cafe. I’ll post my answers here. If you want to play, go ahead and post on your blog or leave a comment with your answers. If you post on your blog, let me know in the comments that you did it!
• What are you currently reading?
Firebird by Jack McDevitt. This is not quite true, since I’m not reading it at this time. Let’s say I’m reading it, but taking a break. This is because it’s on my husband’s Kindle, so if I want to read it, I have to wait until he’s reading a printed book. I started it several weeks ago, but when we went on vacation, my husband needed his Kindle back.
This infuriates me, so PUBLISHERS – are you listening? It’s total bogus nonsense to not let people share their OWN purchased ebooks with members of their family. After all, we are sharing the book with each other. You’ve just made it difficult for us to do it. And guess what? We’ve only purchased one print copy of earlier Jack McDevitt books and we shared those. You didn’t make us each buy a copy before both of us could read it. Why are you trying to do that with the ebooks? Which, by the way, you aren’t selling for very much less than the print book.
For the record, the publisher in this case is Ace Publishing. A hearty Pfft to them.
Wow. So sorry about the rant. I had no idea I was going to do that when I started this. On to the second question!
• What did you recently finish reading?
I just finished Craving by Kristina Meister. I gave it 5 stars, and I don’t do that very often. I won’t say it was perfect, but that’s not what 5 stars means. It means I thought the book was amazing. It’s a fascinating twist on vampires. For a minute or two, I was afraid it would turn out to be horror and I’d have to put it down. But nope – just suspense, a little gore, and a lot of interesting characters.
• What do you think you’ll read next?
While I’m waiting for my husband’s Kindle (ahem), I’m going to start reading Morrigan’s Cross by Nora Roberts. I’ve never read anything by Nora Roberts, so this will be a new experience for me. I’ll let you know what I think!
Okay, your turn. I want to hear from some of you quiet people, too. No hiding behind your mouse!
The Fairies of Donamorgh
A few people have asked me about the fairies in Moon Over Donamorgh. They aren’t your normal Disney fairies at all, but they also don’t fit into the usual Seelie or Unseelie lexicon. If you haven’t read Moon Over Donamorgh yet (why haven’t you? Go buy it, now!), here’s how Bashen is described when Seamus first meets him:
(Seamus) never saw movement, but he suddenly knew that he wasn’t alone, that someone waited next to him with amused patience. Seamus turned his head to the side and then down, forcing himself to stay perfectly still at the sight of the creature squatting on the stump next to him. He looked like a little man, but a man with long ears tapering to points above his head. His nose was long, with a small black muzzle, and he had short brown fur that resembled soft, brushed hide. He stood a little more than a foot high, naked, with thin legs spread wide in his squat, balanced by equally thin arms, fingers and toes long and delicate. He seemed to shimmer, fading in and out a bit, but always there.
So what kind of fairy is Bashen? Where did I get the idea for him and his band of forest dwellers?
These fairies are really a combination of my imagination and Irish myths. The Irish have always had stories of strange creatures living alongside, but not with, human beings. One website which was instrumental for me is Hidden Ireland – A guide to Irish fairies.
Bashen most closely resembles the Grogoch, although that’s not what he is. Remember, in the end, I just made him up.
If Bashen and the others were real, I think they would fit quite nicely into the Seelie side of things. In Moon Over Donamorgh, my fairies fade into and out of a place they call Elsewhere. I have no doubt this place is in some hidden corner of the Shadow Lands.
One of the things I love about Irish myths, is how they flow right along with everyday life. The Fair Folk were a common and normal part of life, albeit, a slightly dangerous part. Care must always be taken when dealing with them. These are the fairies I wanted as friends of Seamus and partners with Donamorgh. Together, they can create a magic powerful enough to save their forest.
Good Times…
Tomorrow, we run away to Kauai. Then we hop over to Maui. Yes, you can expect pictures, but not necessarily of sunny days. Looks like we have a lot of cloud cover in store. But it will be warm cloud cover!
For now, I’m making slight progress on The Dryad of Durry Woods. I’m writing a scene that’s making me cry and I needed a break. I keep asking myself if this story is going to have a happy ending. Because, y’know… I don’t know. Weird, huh?
Oh, and I decided I’d try Scrivener. Durry Woods (the sequel to Donamorgh) and Honor System (the sequel to Bridgebuilders) are both requiring a good bit of planning and rearranging on my part. I needed a program that would help me keep things straight. We’ll see how well Scrivener accomplishes that.
Let’s not forget about Worlds Apart – it’s with the editor. I’ve ordered the cover, which is always exciting. Can’t wait to see what Laura comes up with! Can’t wait until you all can read the book!
Winners of Moon Over Donamorgh
The Goodreads Giveaway has ended. As promised, there are three winners, each to receive a signed copy of Moon Over Donamorgh. The winners are:
Morgan Eckstein of Denver, Colorado
Eunice Adeniran of Essex, Great Britain
Sharlene Munday of Whitecourt, Alberta
Congratulations! Your books will be the mail very soon!
By the end of the contest, 1,076 had entered, and over 500 have added it to their To-Read List. I hope all these people like Seamus as much as I do!
She Loves Me… She Loves Me Not
I just finished a book. It was the second book in a series. I really enjoyed the first book and I was looking forward to the second one. It was every bit as good, so I was quite happy with it, and certain that I would want to read the third book.
Until I got to the end.
In the last page or two of the last chapter, the author did one thing that made me swear off this series. This is strictly a subjective thing – there’s no reflection on the writing or the story. But I’m curious about how others feel about this.
It’s basically the typical love triangle. In the first book, we have a smart and stubborn heroine, her long-time male friend, and a hot new friend who makes her nervous system do interesting things every time he walks into the room. There is a lot of “history” between the heroine and her Old Friend (O.F.). Their relationship has not always been platonic and they both harbor a deep love for each other. Throughout the first book, they dance around this situation, coming close to it, only to move away again. It always comes smack down in between the heroine and her New Friend (N.F.) – she can’t truly let loose with him, because the O.F. is always in her mind.
Each man is aware the other man has feelings for her. But they are good friends with each other, too, and both of them tend to step aside magnanimously, with a no you go ahead. I insist, kind of thing.
The triangle provides some heat to the story, racketing up reader interest in a “who-will-she-end-up-with” way.
At the end of the first book, N. F. leaves to resume his job in another city, while Heroine and O. F. get really close to confessing their feelings for each other. But once again, they back off, as they get into the cliff-hanger for the second book.
Okay. I can live with that.
Second book: more of the same. Only as this story unfolds, I root more and more for Old Friend. Their relationship is long and complex, rooted in deep respect and friendship, along with a healthy dose of realism: they’ve seen each other at their worst and always helped each other through it.
New Friend is great and all. He is not a shallow character, but there’s nothing in his relationship with Heroine to make me want to cheer them on. It’s mostly physical. Oh, I can see them loving each other, but… eh.
Nope, I’m rooting for O.F.
And at the end of the second book, N.F. has a possible new love interest, while O.F. and Heroine have been through Hell together and saved each other’s lives ten times each, and have just settled in for “the talk.” Let’s admit our feelings for each other.
And heroine backs off again, with the old standby reason: there are people watching her, and anyone she loves is in danger. For his own safety she must stay away. So she tells him it won’t work. There’s too much history between them (another old standby, and ghod, do I hate that one), and so she turns and walks away, breaking his heart completely.
And this author just lost me as a reader.
It’s not her fault, because the industry pretty much demands this type of ending in this type of book. But I could care less what the “industry” demands. By this point, two books into the series, I do not want to hang with these losers anymore. I’m not going to put myself through another book’s worth of these three people dancing around each other.
I want to know why is it that two main characters in a book can’t be in a committed relationship with each other, and still pull off a great story? Sure, in romance, they get together in the end – that’s a requirement for the romance genre. But why can’t it be done in mystery or adventure novels?
Is it because publishers insist that the heat and tension only exist when the couple can’t acknowledge their feelings? Because I’m here to tell you, that after two books, there’s no heat or tension left in that quandary. I’m bored with it, plain and simple.
For full disclosure, I do not intend to do this with the books I write. My couples will get together. They’ll explore each other as much as they’ll explore the universe. I think it can work to do this, and since I don’t have a publisher telling me I can’t do it… I’m gonna give it a whirl, in genres that are NOT romance.
So what do you think? Do you prefer the constant tension of unacknowledged love? Do you hate it when the girl gets the guy, hold your nose, and toss the book aside? Or do you enjoy watching a loving couple play off each other as they solve the mystery and save lives?
Moon Over Donamorgh is at Smashwords!
Progress is being made, folks. You can now, as of ten minutes ago, buy Moon Over Donamorgh over at Smashwords. Use this link.
I don’t know about you, but I’m excited about it!
Kindle and print should be available in a day or two. I will be sure to let you know when that happens.
You can buy for Apple, B&N, Kobo, etc. at Smashwords. And don’t forget, all my other books are available there, as well. Let all your Smashwords-buying friends know about them. I need more exposure over there.
And while you’re at it – if you’ve read Bridgebuilders, may I humbly request a review or two? Doesn’t matter where – Amazon, Smashwords, Goodreads, etc. I prefer honest reviews, so say what you really think. And if you really disliked something? Let me know here, through the contact page. Feedback helps me improve!
And thank you for all the congrats on the real baby that just entered my family!
Success At Last!
I’m thrilled to report that, at last, the proof copy of Moon Over Donamorgh looks the way it should. I’ve ordered a print copy so I can see it with my own real eyes and feel it in my hands. Assuming all is well with the proof, you should see Donamorgh on online shelves within a week!
I solved the problem by using the “Start section break on next odd (or even) page.” That solution was staring at me the whole time, but I never thought to use it. It’s called “being in a rut.” We get so used to doing things a certain way (in this case, using section break to start on the next page), that we don’t even see the obvious.
Mind you, there is still NO REASON why Word should be placing extra blank pages in the document when it gets saved to .pdf. But since that’s what it was doing, I needed a way to work around it. Remember, this never happened with my first two books. It’s completely random.
Anyway! It’s done, and the book can be published. I hope you all ooh and aah over the professional-looking front matter, remembering what I went through to get it that way 
.
Happy Saturday!
Moon Over Donamorgh. Another Book From Me For You!
I couldn’t go to water aerobics yesterday at my usual time, so I went to the class at 7:00 pm last night. It was so cool to be jumping around in the water underneath the bright, full moon. I watched the moon as much as possible while doing my half-jacks and crunches.
That moon of ours is simply amazing. I never get tired of seeing it.
I have a character who feels that way, too. Let me tell you a little about him.
Seamus Firnan is one of those characters who is bigger than life. From the moment I first wrote him into a scene, he took over and handled the situation with strength and discipline. He fairly shook the rafters with his love - love for his Goddess, love for his land, and love for the people he called family.
He took my breath away, and I have to admit, he made my heart beat a little faster. It was probably the Irish accent.
The moon guides Seamus in planting and harvesting. His magic waxes and wanes in power with the phases. The moon represents his Goddess and he looks to its light for inspiration and comfort.
Especially after he’s shanghaied and left to the mercies of a sadistic first mate.
Seamus’s story is told in Moon Over Donamorgh. You’ll get to read it in a few weeks, as soon as I’ve perfected the manuscript formatting. It will be for sale at all the usual places. I’ll be sure to tell you when it’s ready!
You can read the first chapter here.
And get a preview of the awesome cover right here:
