A Cinderella update

Today I only have good news. First of all, I finished the first draft of Cinderella, and I’ve already dove into the editing process. I’m hoping to hand Cinderella off to my Editor (yes, she deserves the capitalization for what I put her through) sometime next week. Typically this means the release date is about 3-4 weeks away, so I’m hoping for a late June release date.

Secondly, the submissions for the NAME GAME are too fabulous, so I’m changing the rewards. The three Grand Prize Winners will still have their suggested names used in the sequel, but in addition to their real names appearing in the “About the Author” section of the book, I will also send each Grand Prize Winner a free e-copy (if that is a word??) of the sequel when the book is released. (I will use Amazon to make this transaction, so you will need a table or a Kindle app.)

In a second twist I am adding Honorable Mentions to the winning circle. Submitters who are Honorable Mentions will also be listed in My Life at the MBRC’s Sequel. (Sorry, I’m still working on a title that isn’t a major spoiler.) Submissions for the NAME GAME are open for another 3ish days. May 31st is the last day I’m accepting submissions, so get your names to me post-haste!

With that news, I’m going to get back to editing. Thank you for reading, Champions. Have a Wonderful Wednesday!

From the final frontier

Hello, Champions. I apologize for the off-date update, but I highly doubt I’m going to get a chance to update the blog this week. I wanted to reassure you that I am getting your wonderful submissions for The Name Game. (wow, you guys are a creative bunch!) What is keeping me from my blog and other various forms of social media is Cinderella. I want it finished this week. I’m close, really close. So I’m putting my nose to the grindstone with the intention of finishing it ASAP.

I will report in when it is finished. Until then, I will faithfully write. Thank you for the submissions and notes, Champions, and I will see you soon.

The Name Game

Cinderella is coming along fast. I hope to have it finished  next week or shortly after. Editing will probably take most of June since it gets passed back and forth between my Editor and me, so I’m hoping for a late June release.

In the meantime, I’m starting to gear up for the My Life at the MBRC as-of-yet unnamed sequel. I’ve been playing around with the plot and characters to try and get an idea of what the story will look like. I’ll be introducing a few new characters to help Morgan through her next adventure–don’t worry, her old crew is still around–and as I started to design them I had an awesome thought: I would like to have you guys name three of the new characters.

As a result, I’ve come up with another contest: The Name Game. The idea is simple. Look at the descriptions of what I’m searching for, and use the contact form in this post or in the above post to submit your entries. Important: You may submit an entry for each character. However, you can only submit one name per character. (This means you can submit to me a maximum of three names, one for each character.) REALLY Important: This contest will end May 31 2014.

I will select the names I feel best fit the character, and use them in the sequel. Winners and their suggested name will be mentioned in the “about the author” section of the book. If two people happen to submit the same name, and I select that name as the winning name, I will list them both.

I’m doing this because I feel like this sequel is our book. This is the sequel you guys wanted, and this is the story you voted for. I want to give you the chance to add your creative flair to Morgan’s story.

The characters are:

1. A male goblin: Goblin names tend to be Irish or British and are very proper/formal. (Example names are Logan or Hunter)

2. A fairy: Male or female. They are typically named after plants or the occasional animal. This particular fairy will be of the dumpy variety–like the ones that accompany Morgan on her museum field trip–NOT one of the pastels. (Example names are Violet or Oak)

3. A dwarf: Male or female. These names tend to be tough and guttural sounding when spoken out loud. When you say the name you should picture a person who is perfectly willing to smash you in the face. (Like Hildagr or Dimglash)

Helpful naming hints: Naming a character isn’t just about finding a cool name. When you look for names (trolling baby name websites and plant databases is a nice way to get your thoughts going) look to see what it means. You don’t want to give a goblin a name that means “soft and delicate,” even if it sounds awesome. Try to stick to names that give a similar feeling to the names I have suggested. (In other words, don’t submit “Katie” as your dwarf name entry.) When selecting a name, picture the character. I haven’t given you much information, but you can always re-read the chapter where Morgan visits the Chicago Goblin King to get a feel for goblins, or read the parts where Morgan address the dumpy fairies and compare their manners to the Pastels. You don’t want to give a dumpy fairy (the character you are naming) a super pretentious name.

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