Reign of Magic: Teaser #1

I’ve been “Editing” Reign of Magic for two weeks now, but in truth I haven’t even started the actual editing part, and instead I’ve been writing and adding additional scenes. This book is enormous. It dwarfs The Revived, which previously was my longest published book, by a long shot!

I’m happy because I know all of these extra scenes are going to make the book better–there are two Evariste scenes I added this week that I’m fairly certain are going to make you all react in one way or another–but I’m a little frustrated because this is all taking so long. Unfortunately, I don’t really have a way to speed it up. (At this point I have so much invested in this blasted book I refuse to let it go out without the extra shine these scenes will add!)

But since you Champions have been so incredibly patient and loyal through this, I thought it might be fun to release a few teasers while we wait. Note: These extras will be unedited because–as I mentioned–I still haven’t gotten a chance to edit yet thanks to all the add-ons I’m writing.

I hope you enjoy!

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“We have arrived, Lady Enchantress at Tsona Palace.” Emperor Yevgeniy smiled warmly at Angelique and motioned to the castle.

Angelique forced a smile—even though it felt bone weary and thin. “It’s lovely. You said Tsona Palace is your summer residence?”

“It used to be, Yes. Since my sons grew up we have not returned as often as we used to—though my oldest son would prefer to make his residence here given his passion for hunting and the like.” Yevgeniy squinted in the sunshine. “My wife opted to journey here after I left for the Summit, but it’s just as well. As I told the other representatives, Rothbart has made his home at Swan Lake—which is not far from here.”

“How fortunate,” Angelique said, feeling nothing of the sort. But she made her back straight and her posture perfect.

Kozlovka needs aid. I cannot fail them in this hour—and with luck Clovicus will be able to help.

The Emperor’s mount shied when he drew too close to Angelique and Pegasus.

“My apologies,” he said as fell back farther in the line of soldiers.

Pegasus had ignored the horse, but when it was no longer so near he snapped in its general direction, his teeth audibly clicking.

“Steady, friend,” Angelique murmured. She itched the crest of his neck. He swatted his tail like an angry cat before letting out his breath.

Satisfied that the constellation had been soothed, Angelique leaned back in the saddle, stretching her senses.

Kozlovka was a northern country, so although Summer had almost arrived the air was cool. The forests were a blaze of green, and the whole country seemed to smell of damp earth.

Angelique tipped her head as she carefully felt for anything magical or off. I can’t sense anything. But magic sensitivity seems to be an art that has continuously avoided me.

She stopped trying to sense the sorcerer when they were granted passage into the gleaming palace. “Pegasus, would you rather remain here, or return to the skies?” Angelique asked when they halted in a courtyard. “I assume sometime today I’ll ride out to start my observation of Sorcerer Rothbart, but I don’t know how long it will be until I am ready.”

She dismounted, cupping Pegasus’ soft velvet muzzle when he pressed against her temple.

He breathed deeply into her hair, then trotted back in the direction they had come, passing back through the palace gates—to the bewilderment of the guards posted there.

Yevgeniy shielded his eyes with a hand as he watched Pegasus. “Will he be alright?”

“Yes.”

Yevgeniy smoothed his beard. “Even with a sorcerer about?”

Angelique tried to discreetly fix one of her underskirts that made the skirts of her gown puff a little. “I don’t know entirely what he’s capable of, but I imagine if he feels endangered he’ll simply return to the sky.”

The Emperor whirled around to gape at Angelique. “Return to the sky?”

“Yevgeniy!” A beautiful woman with shiny blonde hair highlighted with gleaming streaks of silver glided from the castle. She was beautiful and stately with pronounced smile lines and a gorgeous gown.

It took Angelique a few moments to recognize Empress Sonya—for she and Evariste had only called on the Kozlovkan royal family once or twice—and Angelique hadn’t ever met either of the princes.

Empress Sonya smiled as she hurried down the steps and threw her arms around her husband.

Yevgeniy laughed, years falling from his haggard expression as he embraced Sonya. “What a delightful welcome home!”

“Don’t get too excited,” Sonya said. “For it has become painfully apparent to me that our sons—while sweet—are, in fact, dunces.”

Clothing Inspiration

I am neck deep in writing Reign of Magic right now, but I thought I’d take a little time off to discuss inspiration–specifically inspiration for character appearances and clothing.

Most of the time in the Timeless Fairy Tale universe, I have a more specific style of clothing I’m following because of the country of origin. (ie: the Erlauf soldiers have their swallow tail jackets, Snow White and Queen Faina follow the Mullberg style of puffed sleeves, female characters in Verglas wear bunads, Lucien wears puffed petticoat breeches inspired by French fashion, etc.)

The majority of my research time is spent looking into historical fashion, but I do try to put unique twists on the clothes whether it’s through color, fabric, or embroidery. I want these clothes to look beautiful in your mind when you’re reading my descriptions, so to do that I also look up various dress and armor designers to help me write with a more theatrical flair.

Fell and Fair These guys are my go-to for armor, ranger gear, etc. They have an amazing Instagram page that you NEED to check out, but they also have a super could Youtube page. That contains both short films and clips that discuss making armor.

Firefly Path Firefly Path makes gorgeous custom dresses and wedding gowns. She particularly enjoys designing fairy and elf gowns, and she’s a bit famous because she’s designed several fantasy patterns that are available at craft stores, including a pattern for a Princess Zelda gown from Legend of Zelda.

Designer Daddy I’ve discussed Designer Daddy before–he’s famous for his gorgeous re-creations of Disney princess gowns. I like scouting out his work, however, because he makes the dresses a lot more intricate and uses amazing fabrics. (Also, I love his instagram page just because I am a huge Disney nerd, lol.)

What designers/artists do you love to follow, Champions? Share your recommendations in the comments below, and thanks for reading!

Meet the Villains

Curse of Magic introduced one of the most crucial characters to the Fairy Tale Enchantress series–and even the Timeless Fairy Tale world: Liliane, the series’ villain.

Really she’s more like the lead villain. She has her henchmen like Suzu and her own son Acri, so by no means is she doing this alone. Liliane was a tricky character to design because I didn’t want her to be a dark, mysterious threat looming in the background. I wanted to ground her character so she was a tangible enemy. Moreover, I wanted her character to be unusual–or something not often seen as a fantasy villain.

So I chose to make my lead villain a female, a mother, and I gave her a beautiful bright appearance. Most books I’ve read that have female characters as villains really vamp it up so they wear dark colors and are more of a temptress type. Liliane is beautiful, but if you were judging only by her appearance you’d say she looks more like a kind enchantress than a seductress of evil.

Also, as I said earlier, she’s a mom. Acri is a little closer to the typical YA villain–except in the way he clearly respects and listens to his mother. And he is about Evariste’s age, so he’s not some pushover teenager who doesn’t know any better. (Which makes you wonder…what does he know that makes him so quickly follow his mother’s leadership??)

I also gave Liliane powers that weren’t inherently evil–her ability to summon any creature she paints gets uncomfortably close to edging in on Evariste’s portal magic. (Though Evariste’s magic is more rare and more powerful.)

All of Evariste’s scenes were painstakingly designed and written to reveal tiny bits about Liliane and her cohorts. (In fact, I spent the most time on Evariste’s scenes–a pattern that looks like it’s going to repeat for Reign of Magic.) So keep a special eye on his scenes, and know that even the Lord Enchanter hasn’t gotten a full measure of Liliane’s depths just yet.

And as a side reference, Suzu is probably the most prominent member of Liliane’s entourage, and you can find her in lots of different Timeless Fairy Tale books–though she’s rarely referenced by name. You’ll get to learn more about her in Reign of Magic–Acri, too, though CoM serves as his introduction and lets you witness his magic. A good start to his future endeavors.

But as you wait for the next book, don’t let Liliane sway you into thinking she’s a shallow villain with no substance. Because that’s exactly what she wants you to think. But if you study her carefully, you might uncover more than you expect.