Fab 5 Friday: Announcement Edition

14199261_1277057505661832_8474678322673298450_nWow! September is already halfway over. I can’t believe it. I’m so ready for cooler weather, colorful leaves, sweaters, boots, and all things pumpkin. Yeah, I’m the white girl in yoga pants. 🙂 I know my summer-loving friends are glaring at me right now, but I’m clickin’ my heels! As if the approach of my favorite time of year isn’t enough . . .

Homeschool got off to a good start last week. The kids and I are getting into a new routine, which takes time. But we’re all enjoying the new year so far. And there’s a field trip to a local farm later this month–another family fall favorite!

Well, I have several fabulous announcements for you today. So, let’s get to it!

 

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FREE THIS WEEKEND

Hurry over to grab Bellanok: The Paladin’s Hope while it’s free this weekend. And please share it with all your fantasy- or adventure-loving friends! Find out what happens as the demon horde is closing in . . . after all, they have the ultimate weapon. How will Brian and Fauna save the island? Will they even be able to? Guess you’ll have to read it to find out!

 

 

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COVER DESIGN WINNER

Earlier this week, I had my Facebook followers vote between 2 Bellanok covers the fabulous J.L. Mbewe had designed for me (not the final copies, but design plan). And–ta-da! The side graphic  is what the general look will be! I’m so excited! She did such a great job, and I love it! And yes, I’m going to use lots of exclamation points for all the love!!!!!! What do you think of the cover?

 

NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

Now, I don’t usually go out of my way to say, “Hey, sign up for my newsletter!” However, I have so much coming up over the next few months–and I want you all along for the journey!

Over the next 6 weeks, there will be some information and opportunities that come up with the release in October of the full version of Bellanok in both ebook AND paperback.

Plus, I have some fun holiday plans coming up that include a couple of parties, some giveaways, and fun opportunities for everyone to participate in! Did I mention all the giveaways? Yes!

So, sign up now so you don’t miss out on any of it!

 

realm-makersconference-audioonly-149-99REALM MAKERS AUDIO

As many of you know, I am the Marketing Director for Realm Makers. Realm Makers is the premiere, faith-friendly conference for speculative fiction writers. And the session audio from the 2016 conference is now available!

You can download workshops from amazing teachers/speakers like Thomas Locke, Mike Duran, Steve Laube, Tosca Lee, Patrick Carr, and more. There’s over 30 HOURS of content with the full session audio.

Of course, you can purchase individual workshops as well. But, for the rest of today (9/16) only, you can get $25 off the full session audio, using a code on the webpage.

(If you’re a writer and you enjoy speculative fiction–fantasy, sci-fi, paranormal, etc.–then you should like their Facebook page, even if you don’t write spec fic. You’ll still get a lot out of the posts, the fandoms, and the camaraderie!)

 

WHAT’S NEXT?

Now that Bellanok is just about done, I’ll be moving on to other projects. Soul Seer is a supernatural suspense that I need to revise. It’s in pretty good shape, but I need to add some layers in, deepen the plot, up the stakes. You know, the fun stuff.

I am actually planning on doing NaNoWriMo this year. If everything works out, I’ll be writing the first half of a new futuristic fantasy series that’s been on the back burner for a few years. Tentitavely titled, Cortesia’s Calling, it involves nephilim, demons, and a Joan of Arc type heroine and her band of underdogs.

 

There’s so much going on, and I couldn’t be more excited or more blessed. I hope you’ll join me for this journey of life and stories.

What big plans do you have coming up for the last quarter of the year?

Fab 5 Friday: Reboot!

DSC_0394_aIt’s been so great to actually get back into blogging. I’ve missed having a workable schedule where I can write to you all on a more regular basis. Now, I’m excited to share all kinds of things with you over the next few months. Don’t miss out, sign up for my newsletter!

BLOG:

For those who are not aware, Fab 5 Friday is an opportunity for me to share with you 5 fabulous things that I’ve found, done, experienced, read, etc. I often share about books I’m reading, homeschooling experiences, quotes, new products, pictures. Whatever I feel is totally fabulous. Instead of trying to do it once a week, though, I’m cutting down to once a month!

Also, new to the blog is Novel News. At the end of each month, I’ll be sharing a slew of new releases for you to ooo and ah over. The majority will be speculative fiction, but as I believe in reading wide, I’ll be sure to throw some potentially interesting ones in from other genres. You can check out May’s Novel News!

Earlier this week, I debuted my summer experimental series, Confessions. Confessions, for now, is an opportunity for authors and other publishing professionals to share a little about themselves, their ups and downs, and their personalities. Desiree Williams shared the daydreaming, scatterbrain side of her in the first post. I’ve already started seeing some posts and ideas from other authors who have committed to the series this summer, and I can’t wait to share them with you.

 

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BOOKS:

Right now, I’m reading Acolyte by Keven Newsome. This is the long awaited, final book in his Winter trilogy. I have been bugging him for years, and now I just can’t get enough of the story. So. Good. I’m about 70% done, and hope to finish it up this weekend.

 

HOMESCHOOL:

Lately, as the public schools have released for the summer, people have been asking me if we do school year-round or if we take summer breaks as well. I’m proud to say that we do school year-round. Why? There are a few reasons:

  • I believe children retain more if you keep things consistent.
  • We do take breaks throughout the year (about every 6-8 weeks).
  • It allows extra days for me to take off when I’m on deadline or when we want to travel.
  • It gets HOT in the summer. We can cool off and work on our studies at the same time.

Now, our schedule is a little different in the summer. Instead of following our Sonlight curriculum, we focus more on electives. And we still keep up on reading, spelling, and math.

MOVIES:

Jurassic Park: In case you didn’t know, the entire original Jurassic Park trilogy is on Netflix this summer! I finally got to share the first move with my kids earlier this week. They LOVED it. I actually worried it might be too scary for them, but with all our usual quips throughout even the scary parts, they were fine. One of my daughters kept making T-Rex jokes, pretending she had short arms.

Gods of Egypt: This recently came out on DVD. Yay! It had an interesting and different take on Egyptian mythology. It was full of action with enough depth of story to engage the softer side of me. Bec was definitely my favorite character–passion and purpose. I thought the CG was well done. If you don’t mind movies/book with non-Christian gods in it, you might like this one.

RANDOM:

I found this amazing version of Let It Go on YouTube. The kids and I can watch it over and over again! Enjoy!

What summer blockbusters are you looking forward to? 

LEAVE A COMMENT FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A $10 AMAZON GIFT CARD!

Fab 5 Friday: Chaos Edition

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I’ve finally made the transition from summer to school, from conference planning to conference prep, from business to writing . . . In other words, it’s been completely crazy around here. And the craziness will continue at least through next week, which is when I will attend ACFW in Dallas.

Books:

So, I saw that one of my friends was publishing her 3rd book in a YA speculative trilogy. I had no idea that she had even published the first 2, much less that they were spec in nature. Excited to learn this, I bought the first book–and devoured it in 2 days. I bought the 2nd, and then the 3rd. I finished all 3 in about a week. I won’t tell you much about them, but I will suggest that you check out The Gifting Series by K.E. Ganshert, starting with The Gifting.

Business:

There are some exciting things going on in my business world. If you’ve been following my blog or social media, you already know that I have a book coming out next month–you can see the cover and blurb here. I’m super excited to share the first part of this 5-part mini-series with you.

Homeschool:

We’re officially into our new school year. The girls have been so excited as we’ve been studying the early Native Americans as we are into the early American History. They’re particularly excited for me to get back from ACFW so we can start our astronomy course and the typing software. So cute!

We decided to try the whole homeschool co-op thing this year, after a year-long break. The girls are taking a sign-language class and one called 50 States. Connor is taking a 2-part class where they study different countries around the world. Yesterday was their first day, and they had a lot of fun!

What did I do during this time? Worked on planning my book launch!

Conferences:

In June, I had KY Christian Writers Conference. In August, it was Realm Makers–a conference for speculative fiction writers who are Christian. And this month, I’m headed to the American Christian Fiction Writers conference. For the first 2, I was on the planning committee and did a lot of working during the conference for both. I’m excited to head to ACFW where I can kick back and hobknob, maybe learn a thing or 2.

QOTW:

What have you been reading lately? Which ones would you recommend to fellow readers?

Fab 5 Friday: Pre-Conference Insanity!

file0001024202589So, the next 9 days are going to be pretty insane around here. I am preparing for the Kentucky Christian Writers Conference, which starts next Thursday. I’m the Faculty Chair, and I am presenting my first workshop, 3 Ks of Social Media for Writers. In the meantime, though, who’s ready for another Fab 5?

Books:

Right now, I’m working my way through Let’s Get Visible by David Gaughran–a book all about how to get your book visible on Amazon. It’s been rather informative and will influence marketing/publicity plans for myself and clients. I’m about halfway through the book.

I’m also reading The Ghost Box by Mike Duran. It’s been pretty interesting so far. I told my husband the tone reminded me of the old Dick Tracy-type novels but with a modern voice. (The main character is a journalist, though, not a detective.) And, of course, with a supernatural twist. I’m also about halfway through this one.

Website:

I recently joined Good Morning Girls and Women Living Well for another Bible study. This time we’re working out way through Proverbs. I like their method of reading the Bible, absorbing what we’re reading, and applying it to our lives. It makes Bible reading more intentional.

Products:

I found these awesome Cool Gear chillers last year at Walmart, where I bought 3. I loved them so much, I sought them out (this time only found them at Kroger) and bought 3 more! You stick them in the freezer and the gel freezes so you keep your drink cold without ice. They’re dishwasher safe too!

Goals: 

Goals? What goals? I’m supposed to be keeping up with goals? This month has been so crazy that, although I’ve accomplished a lot, it hasn’t been the projects I originally set out to accomplish.

I’ve made some progress on Bellanock, but nowhere near the 20K that I planned to write. I have the outline for my workshop done, but I need to get the handout prepared and write out some more of it. I’ve also tried to work on my freebie for the website, but it’s not done yet and won’t get done until I get back from vacation in July.

Exercise–well, I got a treadmill, does that count?

Conferences:

Over the next four months, I’m headed to 3 different conferences!

KY Christian Writers Conference: June 25-27; Elizabethtown, KY–This conference is for both fiction and nonfiction writers, and I already mentioned I’m presenting a workshop.

Realm Makers: August 7-8; St. Louis, MO–A symposium for speculative fiction writers of faith–speculative meaning fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural, horror, etc. Robert Liparulo is the keynote speaker, and highlights include game night and a costumed awards banquet! I’m also on the planning committee for this one and can hardly wait!

ACFW: September 17-20; Dallas, TX–A great conference for Christian writers. There is always a wealth of learning and networking to be done here. I’m not in charge of anything here, so I get to sit back, relax, and enjoy myself.

Are you headed to any conferences this year?

 

Books, websites, products, goals, and conferences–yep, that’s 5! I think I’m going to be mixing up the Fab 5 a bit, adding in some lists of Top 5 ____.

Now, go enjoy your weekend! But don’t forget to leave a comment to let me know how you’re doing first and what conferences you’re headed to this year first . . .