The Puzzle Box Now Available!

I'm happy to announce that The Puzzle Box, Book 2 of the Dragon Stone Trilogy is now available on Smashwords and in two days on Amazon. This is the second book in my trilogy that starts with Call of the Dragon, which has had an enthusiastic response. You can get your ebook copy from Smashwords HERE.

The Puzzle Box

A mad chase through the kingdom of Mar involves sabotage, kidnapping and murder, before Ari’s stolen puzzle box finds its way to its rightful owner, a dragon from the Northern Country. Now Ari must do the dragon’s bidding in order to save Mar from an evil sorcerer who has come from another timeline to wreak havoc in the land. Will Ari have the courage and strength to stand up and fight? His experience in the Feast of Games, a battle of swordplay and skill, will send the sorcerer fleeing when his magic is overpowered. But Ari must face his worst rival, the King’s son, on the battlefield of the Feast of Games. The dragon accompanies him to the Games, where he watches as Ari accepts the challenge of a battle to the death. Can Ari survive his opponent while the angry sorcerer spins his web?

Cover Reveal for The Puzzle Box

Here is the cover for my new book The Puzzle Box. This is the second book in my Dragon Stone Trilogy and will be published on Smashwords and Amazon at the end of March.

The Puzzle Box

A fascinating old puzzle box is found by Ari, an apprentice to the King’s sword maker. The King claims ownership of the box, after hearing of its existence from a traveling magician. But the box gets stolen before Ari can return it to the King. There is a mad chase through the kingdom of Mar, with sabotage, kidnapping and murder, before the box finds its way to its rightful owner, a dragon from the Northern Country. Now Ari must do the dragon’s bidding in order to save Mar from an evil sorcerer who has come from another timeline to wreak havoc in the land. Will Ari have the courage and strength to stand up and fight? His experience in the Feast of Games, a battle of swordplay and skill, will send the sorcerer fleeing when his magic is overpowered. But then Ari must face his worst rival, the King’s son, on the battle field of the Games to regain his honor. The dragon, who has befriended him, accompanies him to the Feast of Games, where he watches as Ari accepts the challenge of a battle to the death.

Writer's Courage...

Recently I finished a short story aimed at being submitted in a contest that would create some exciting exposure for me. I found myself editing and picking at the manuscript over and over until I began to wonder what was bothering me about it. Suddenly I realized that there wasn't anything wrong with the story, I had edited it enough. It was my fear that was holding me back.

Writers need courage to expose themselves in their stories. Without it, they will pick away at their stories, editing and editing, never jumping over the fence into publication. Without courage, a writer can't delve to the depths of any story and flesh out the characters.

I'm taking my own advice and am submitting my story. Even if it is rejected, I know that I have done my best and will enjoy the excitement of the chase. With all the work I did on the story, it would be a waste not to submit it and get the experience from the competition.

Good luck to all you writers. Develop your courage and continue to engage in all those exciting submissions. We develop courage as we continue to stick our necks out there and hope for the best.

Responsibility and Integrity

This post is for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. The members post on the first Wednesday of the month and can visit other members on the website HERE.

I'm waiting to publish the next book in my Dragon Stone Trilogy, The Puzzle Box Book 2. What am I waiting on? A broken promise. The artist doing my book cover was supposed to have the cover finished in December, but has become unreliable. Now I'm faced with either hoping she'll finish or finding a new artist.

Responsibility and integrity are paramount when you deal with other people. I've always believed this and have demanded it of myself. When I encounter situations where people make promises and then break them, I am tempted to grab the person by their shoulders and shake some sense into them. But that can't solve the problem.

Each person has to decide for themselves whether or not they want to present a clean, professional image, or appear lazy and irresponsible. Perhaps in a perfect world we would all be professional, but I have to accept the fact that there are people out there in cyberland that have no conscience. I do leave room for unfortunate happenstances in people's lives and in those instances, the person should contact their parties and advise them immediately. But when people disappear when they have trouble, how is a person to know what's happening?

All that said, I guess you can tell that I'm feeling let down and taken by this artist. Live and learn was what my mother used to say. And so I will, a little older and wiser.

Visit other IWSG members HERE.

Emotion In Writing

How do you express emotion in your writing? I read a story recently that had me in tears by the end of the book and I wondered if I could bring a reader to that kind of emotion. After exploring my own brand of writing, I decided to try something different. I've been able to show anger in a character and elicit a strong reaction, but in this next story I'm looking to show sadness and grief.

By exploring my own emotions, I discovered that I had to reach deep down inside where I've buried my own grief. I tend to become stoic when tragedy happens, perhaps because as a nurse I had to maintain an emotional distance. When my own mother died, I remember having to listen for her heartbeat and not hearing it. I wanted to cry, but there were things that had to be done. I sat there afterwards, in a state of shock, wishing I could have joined in with my family. Wishing I could cry. At her memorial service, I listened to all the wonderful things that people said, but I couldn't add to them. I loved my mother very much, mind you, but it seemed all my emotions were hidden behind a veil.

Today I can feel those emotions as strong as the day it happened. I consider myself lucky. Why? Because with those emotions not only can I use them in my writing, but I can remember the wonderful woman who was my mother.

What are your strong qualities in showing emotion in your writing? Can you write a story that will make your reader cry? What's your secret?

How Do You Begin Your Story?

I was in a discussion recently, about how to begin a story. It was suggested that all information should be put in the beginning to give the rest of the story credibility. I said, however, that in order to create suspense and tension, it might be better to hold back and let some of the facts be put in later.

What is your idea about beginning a story? Do you like to jump in right in the middle of a scene? Or do you create the scene with backstory? I am sure that there are many different ideas. It also depends on the type of story. A mystery needs to have the backstory left to the middle or end so the reader has something left to the imagination. A sci/fi thriller needs suspense at the beginning and so on.

However you begin your story, you need to add the important elements: character, conflict and a credible plot.

character- a definite personality, with individual emotions that is shown her actions, thoughts and reactions.

conflict- from the very first sentence the story is set up with expectations of change, which is the catalyst for conflict. The project or story is fraught with pitfalls and turmoil that cause the reader to see the conflict.

credible plot- a believable idea that will be shown in description to be the basis for your story line. Does the reader believe what you are writing to be real? Even in sci/fi your created world needs to be believable.

However you begin your story, make sure you give your readers a hook that will keep them turning the pages. Do you put hooks in your story? I like to add them at the end of my chapters also. But this is about beginnings, so we'll stick to that. Make sure to create prose that is exciting and fun.

Did I leave anything out? Let me know if you have other ideas.

Happy Valentines Day!

February 14th has been celebrated as that special lover's holiday for many years. Some believe in roses and chocolates, while others sing to celebrate their love. There are many tales of how this holiday got started, but I'm not going to bore you with a history lesson.

I want to remind you to take just a few moments on Friday to give a little bit of love to someone else. If you don't have a spouse, try spending a few moments with a friend or neighbor and share from your heart. Open up and let someone see inside you. What you'll find out is that by giving, you get back many times over. 

I like to write about characters who experience love in their lives and have changes in their lives because of that love. Do you create characters that are lovers as well as friends? How do you show their love? Their first kiss and the first time they say I love you? However you portray love between two people, make it fresh, even if they are sixty years old. Love is from the soul where smiles and laughter dwell and when we share this part of us, we become young again.

Happy Valentines Day and may you experience love today!