Red Rope of Fate Sequel

Depending on if you follow me on other social media platforms, you may–or may not–be aware that I am currently working on a sequel to Red Rope of Fate. (Woohoo!) It doesn’t have a title yet–I can’t tell you, Champions, how much I hate coming up with titles–but I’m already over halfway through writing it!

The story takes place approximately three years after Red Rope of Fate, and the protagonists are two character’s you’ve already met. (Or at least briefly seen.) Prince Benjimir of Calnor, and the elven Princess Gwendafyn of Lessa. Kitty, you might be thinking, Benjimir was a VILLAIN in the previous book! How can he be a protagonist? Champions…I give you the most wanted archtype you voted: Villain turned hero.

This book has been a real blessing for me. Writing The Revived (Book three in my Second Age of Retha series) mentally bankrupted me because it turned out to be so long and massive. This sequel, however, is much lighter and fluffier–which is something I haven’t been able to write in ages as the Timeless Fairy Tales are really ramping up in terms of tension and complexity. (No complaints here–I love that sort of thing–but it does get tiring to write after a while because I spend so much of myself completing the stories.)

I’m hoping to finish it (it being the as-of-yet-untitled-sequel) and get it edited in time for a mid July release. I do hope you guys like it. Gwendafyn and Benjimir are a much more sarcastic/jaded couple than Tari and Arion, but they have some of the cutest interactions too.  (And yes, you get to see quite a bit of Tari and Arion in the story. And Thad, Wilford, and Grygg. And Seer Ringali. And King Petyrr. Basically, EVERYONE IS BACK!!)

That is all for today, Champions! I hope you have a lovely week, and I would like to leave you with an important question: which character(s) are you most excited to see again?

Fanart and Audio Book!

Happy Friday, Champions! I’m going to bust right into this because I’ve been waiting forever to share this news, but Red Rope of Fate‘s audio book is now available for purchase!

Ta da! Isn’t it pretty? If you want to hear an audio sample click here to go to Tantor media (the publisher of the audio book) and right below the picture is a sample of the first few paragraphs of the book. Listening to it simultaniously fills me with awe and makes me want to scream into a pillow. When I decided to forgo traditional publishing I pretty much gave up on the idea of having audio books, so watching Red Rope turn into an audio file has been incredible! (The narrator, Lucy Rayner, did an amazing job!) It’s available on Audible and Amazon, but I think the cheapest spot is if you buy the MP3-CD directly from Tantor, though I have no idea what their shipping is like.

We’ll have to celebrate its release, but my brain is playing dead right now as I spent the morning playing with Create Space. (Good news: Heart of Ice’s paperback should be available next week. More News: Myrrhlynn is hoping to tackle Sacrifice’s paperback cover this weekend, so it shouldn’t be too far behind Heart of Ice. Slow news: B&B’s paperback revision is in progress.)

But the fun isn’t over yet! I received some fantastic fanart just when Swan Lake was released, but this is the first time I’ve had a chance to show some of it off! Today’s incredibly talented artist is our very own Hobbitlady97! She made a pretty awesome sketch of Elle of Beauty and the Beast. She said the portrait of Elle is specifically after Severin’s curse is broken, but before he comes after her in Verglas.

I think her hair is my favorite part. That might sound odd, but my drawings/stick people usually end up with three hairs on their head because I lose patience or their haircut looks like a bunch of noodles, so I can really appreciate how difficult it is to pull that off!

Okay, that’s it for now, but next week I should have something fun in store for everyone! Until then, thanks for reading, Champions! Have a splendid weekend, and thank you for being you!

Book News

Greetings, Champions! I’m pleased to announce that Swan Lake is now available for pre-order! Woohoo! I am a mash of excitement and apprehension with this puppy. I’m excited because Odette, the heroine, was so much fun to write. To start with, she’s sarcastic–which is my FAVORITE to write because it opens the doors to humor–but she is also exceedingly practical and a bit mouthy. I hope you guys like her as much as I do. I am nervous, though, because this is the first story I’m publishing after the Snow Queen books. The Snow Queen books had a phenomenal reaction, and a lot of new Champions joined our ranks as a result of it, which is amazing, wonderful, fabulous, and a whole string of adjectives I would list here that would make my editors tell me to narrow down my word choice…but it’s also a bit intimidating because Rakel is now something of a standard my characters have to live up to.

So, I’m really looking forward to hearing what you all have to say about Odette and her crew.

Next, more book news! Red Rope of Fate is getting an audiobook! It’s my first audiobook ever, and it’s being produced by Tantor Media. Lucy Rayner is the narrator, and she’s got some serious narrating creds. She narrated the audiobook version of Maleficent and Brave. (If you want to here a sample of her work, click here to go to the Maleficent Audible page, there’s a sample you can listen to. Try to listen to the whole thing as the sample starts with her in the middle of a piece of dialog.)

So far the processes has been a lot of fun! I worked with a production assistant to pick the narrator, and I got to email back and forth with Lucy to confirm some of the pronunciations. They are still working on producing it, so Red Rope of Fate‘s audiobook will be available sometime in mid to late July.

That’s all of my exciting news for now. Have a marvelous weekend, Champions, and thank you for reading!