Mega Lesfic Sale ~ Sept. 10-14

Hello fellow science fiction f/f lovers!

Have you ever wanted to read Finding Hekate or Losing Hold? Well, now you can, without breaking the bank! I’m participating in a Mega Lesfic Sale over at I Heart Lesfic THIS WEEK ONLY. The sale runs from September 10th through September 14th, and the I Heart Lesfic has some amazing deals on over 100 books from over 60 authors, including me!

My Cicatrix Duology is up for grabs. Here’s a bit about each:

FINDING HEKATE:
Mia Foley is running away from the attack that changed her life. She’s captain of a new spaceship when the Acedians find her and try blasting her peaceful crew from the black. She must sever her bonds in order to run, again. But she’s grown fond of this crew, particularly Cassidy Gates. Staying with them will jeopardize their safety, and they have much closer fears than the Acedian hunters. Mia’s time is running out. She’s becoming one of them.

LOSING HOLD:
In the sequel to Finding Hekate, after escaping Donavin’s grasp, Mia Foley and her crew crash on a prison planet and need to deal with its inhabitants, beast and criminals alike. Mia hears Donavin in her mind once again and knows the transformation into one of his drones isn’t far off. Trapped in her own body, lashing against Donavin each chance she gets, and fearful that she’ll lose it all, Mia has to rely on her crew—on Cassidy—to save her. But she’s not the only one transforming in her little group, and things never go as smoothly as they could out in the black.

So head on over to I Heart Lesfic today and get the Cicatrix Duology, yeah? Blast off into the stars with my crew, and maybe snatch up some other books, too!

Happy Monday!
Warm regards,
Kellie

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How To Deal With A ~Very Long~ ToDo

Soooooo, I realized recently that I may have said “yes” to a bit too many things. I have a full-time job and three part-time jobs (freelance editing, AWG program designer, and author). For freelance editing, I have it broken down to two types—fiction and non-fiction—and I have ongoing clients in both. I do Tiger Oak editing every night, and this month I’m reading through a Desert Palm Press author’s first book in order to get ready to edit the second one. For the AWG program gig, I’m in the final stages of it, just tweaking things to make the program just right for the conference in September, but I’ve done a ton of work for it over the last month. For my author job, I’m currently in the middle of Round Two edits and trying to prep things for marketing, as well as writing random snippets in book two.

So my ToDo list is…long. Some might say ~Too Long.~ So what do I do when I’ve bitten off more than I can chew?

First of all, I prioritize my work. Week nights are for my freelance editing gig, plain and simple. If I get to work on the AWG program, that’s great! If I get to work on writing stuff, I’m freaking amazed at myself. During the weekend, I switch gears to work on the AWG program and being an author, but I don’t do a single thing freelance-editing wise just because it takes up a ton of my time during the week. I cherish my weekends, when I have more time to work on the program and work on Round Two of edits, as well as brainstorm marketing techniques and write some random snippets here and there.

Secondly, routine is key for me. Since I have a day-job, I already have a pretty solid week-day routine: get up, make breakfast, feed the cats, go to work, work, and then come home. Once I come home sometimes I’m super happy to edit and other times I really don’t want to. Either way, I say hi to my parents and my pets, I change out of my work clothes and into something more comfy…usually pajamas—Don’t judge; they’re fuzzy pants and a sweatshirt!—I make a cup of tea since it’s been raining lately, and then I sit down to edit. I sink into that world for an hour or two. Routine helps me! Plus, routine helps me shake that mindset of “I don’t wanna edit” and actually do the damn job.

Lastly, if I feel burnt out, I take a night off. Simple as that. I have a lot of work to do, but I know myself well enough that if I need a night off, I take a night off. (For me, taking the night off means I watch funny YouTube videos, play games with my family, read a book while sitting with my cats, chat with friends, etc. but it can ~ and should ~ look different for everyone.)

So that’s my remedy for having Too Long a ToDo. What’s yours?
Warm regards,
Kellie

P.S. – If you like my blogposts, go check out my Author Facebook Page where I chat about lots of random things like where I get my writing inspiration, share funny posts I find to ease your week days, and share pictures of my most recent ~life adventures~ and if you *really* want to know more, sign up for my Author Newsletter!

Freelancing FTW: A Whole Year

This weekend I renewed my freelance editing contract with Tiger Oak Media to edit for them for another year, signing and dating the contract TODAY and accomplishing one thing on my ToDo. (I accomplished other things, but signing the freelance contract was a big one.) I can’t believe it’s been a whole year since I first started working with them. So much has happened and so much has changed that I don’t even recognize my life anymore.

Last year at this time I was still hunting for a full-time job, I lived alone in Portland, and I was still drafting Sunkissed Feathers & Severed Ties. A friend of mine who works at Tiger Oak Media reached out to me because she knew I was looking for a job and they had some freelance positions at her company. I applied for the position and got it, landing a part-time freelancing editing gig with them for a whole year! (On top of my freelance editing I do for Desert Palm Press, a part-time job I’ve held for many years now.) I was, of course, thrilled to be editing more!

Now, a whole year after signing that first contract, my life is vastly different. I have a full-time job now too, I live with my sister in Eagle River, and Sunkissed Feathers & Severed Ties will be out in November…with a book contract for the following four books already signed. I still freelance edit, though, proving that some things never change.

It’s just crazy how much can happen in a year, so here’s to another year full of adventure and opportunities…and freelance editing, too!

Happy Saturday.
Warm regards,
Kellie

New Twitter Game – #AfterHoursWIP

Ever since I did my last Twitter hashtag game (#SciFiCircle for Losing Hold last year), I really wanted to do another one. It’s a fun way to meet other writers, chat about whatever you’re currently working on, and dig into some interesting topics. So, for the month of August I’m going to dip my feet into the Twitter hashtag game world once again with my newest endeavor: #AfterHoursWIP.

Here are some details:

• When: THIS MONDAY (8/6/18), 9pm Alaska Time
• How Often: Weekly on Mondays
• Where: Twitter
• Hashtag: #AfterHoursWIP
• Who Can Join?: All writers!
• Sneak Peek at the Questions: “Where does your MC work?”
• Possible Tagline: Worldbuilding after hours…

Eh? EH? Yeah, I’m excited about it and also kinda nervous. What if people don’t join in? I want to test it out for this month, just to see how it fares.

Fingers crossed it goes well, and if you’re on Twitter, join me Monday night!
Warm regards,
Kellie

D&D: You’re A Bard? I Play A Cleric!

“But you do see the way people look at you, devil’s child.”

Dungeons and Dragons. D&D. That nerdy thing some people play on weekends or watch on Geek & Sundry. Yes, it’s a thing. Yes, it does have a troubled past. Yes, it is having a resurgence of sorts now.

And yes, I do play D&D. Why? It’s fun! It’s a communal storytelling experience where the players get to weave together competing goals and motivations. I get to hang out with some old and new friends, AND I get to do some badass things!

Plus, it opened up a new community for me, too. Just the other day, I struck up a conversation with a stranger because of it. The woman was talking about boardgames, and I randomly mentioned D&D. Turns out, she played a bard! Instant connection! So we chatted for a bit about our campaign and characters. It was a lovely, geeky conversation.

In my campaign, we play nearly every Sunday. I play a cleric tiefling named Nevara. Clerics are healers of the group and tieflings have an infernal heritage so they have curved horns, red/blue/purple colored skin, and devil-like tails. My girl Nevara worships an evil goddess named Auril, so she tends to use cold and necrotic magic in Auril’s honor. And, of course, she has a troubled past and is looking for revenge. It’s a fun campaign, full of danger and adventure, cheese wheels and laughter.

If you’re at all interested in theater or roll-playing games, consider giving D&D a try! Those who have played D&D, what did you play?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Warm regards,
Kellie

A Rush Edit: Musings of a Madwoman

Early last month Desert Palm Press contacted me asking if I could do a rush edit on Musings of a Madwoman. A rush edit means I have a shortened turnaround time. In this case since the pub date was insanely close, I gave myself five days to do the developmental edit and two days to do the copyediting. Seven days total to do two rounds of editing.

It was an exhilarating, tiring, amazing experience!

Why? Well, I also work full-time as an office assistant for the State of Alaska. It’s a hectic job with lots of moving parts. So after waking up at 6:30 a.m., going a mile a minute for my full-time job, and then getting back to the house at 5 p.m., settling down to do a rush edit was an interesting experience. I always do freelance magazine editing for Tiger Oak after work, though, so it wasn’t unusual for me to do some editing at night.

What was unusual was how long the editing took me per night. I normally edit for one-two hours for Tiger Oak, but this DPP edit took me four-five hours per night! So for that whole week, I edited until 11 p.m. trying to get the first round of edits complete by Friday. I did it, of course. Thankfully I had the weekend off while the author Jazzy Mitchell did her round. By the following Tuesday, I had completed my second round, sent the manuscript back to Jazzy, and my rush-edit was complete!

It was some seriously long nights. I got a small cold because of it. I was crazy tired. I didn’t work on any Tiger Oak editing that first week and very minimal the second week since I was kinda burnt-out. But I was also really happy with how both rounds of editing turned out.

​Musings just came out and though my part was a small one overall, I am so proud of its publication. Here’s a little bit about the book:

As if navigating life and love aren’t hard enough, throw in a meteorite, and watch what happens. Physical changes and mental abilities make it hard for Marcia to ignore the effects of an extraterrestrial rock. Kiernan has her own challenges when she hears voices and realizes they are not her own. Could the changes they experience be related to their close encounter with a meteorite?

Jazzy is a lovely writer, the plot is intense and twisted, and the characters are relatable. I had a great (if super tiring) time editing her story! You should definitely go check it out.

Hope you have a lovely week!
Warm regards,
Kellie

 

Social Media Tips: For Readers

Social media can be a scary place, a dark ocean just waiting to swallow you whole. But it can also be a connection, a connection to your friends, your family. A connection to your local writing groups, extended writing community, and your fans. It’s scary, but it doesn’t have to be! Here are some quick tips for the lovers of books.

If you’re just starting out and social media is a terrifying, churning sea:

• If you love a book, search for it on whatever social media site you want to use! Doing so will let you make instant connections through book chats, social media groups, and fellow lovers of the book you also love. You may also find some folks who have a differing opinion than you about said book, which can spark some interesting conversations.
• If you don’t see anyone talking about this book that you love, start up a conversation! It can even be a simple as a short tweet about what you like or a longer blogpost examining the pros/cons of it that you share in your social media circles. Chances are, other folks like the book, too, and if they haven’t started talking about it, they will now.

If you’ve waded into the social media depths before and are more confident:

• Join in on a few hashtags for readers: #FridayReads is a popular one. #WeNeedDiverseBooks is a good conversation starter.
• Create images with quotes from your favorite book or by your favorite author. Crafting these are fun and let your book-lover followers which books are near and dear to your heart.

If you wear a trident on your back and can swim in any social media waters, no matter how rough:

• Try creating a social media hashtag game about your preferred genre. It’s a lot of work and takes some foresight and a bunch of planning, but it’s pretty fun. Not only will you gain a lot of interesting insights to your favorite genre, you’ll also be able to start many different conversations, too, depending on what kinds of questions you ask in the hashtag game itself. Plus, hashtag games are simply a fun way to meet new people and chat about how books are awesome.

No matter your comfort level, social media is about having fun and making connections, so dive deep and have a good time!

Happy Sunday!
Warm regards,
Kellie

Creative Without A Community

As many of you know, I recently moved back to Eagle River, Alaska. Okay…so “recently” might not be the best term, as it was over six months ago. But with the holidays and my new job at the State and my freelance editing and some recent celebrations (my sister graduated with her master’s degree, y’all, pretty effing amazing!), it seems like time flew by. Like, it’s been over six months already, how the heck did that happen??

(Which reminds me of time when I was a kid and my best friend Mer and I had this brilliant idea that since time seemed to fly by when we were having fun, we decided to “not have any fun”…needless to say, it didn’t work out so well. But I digress.)

So I’ve been back in Alaska for a while and I’ve discovered something a bit…troubling. I don’t go out much. Now, it’s not like I went out much in the past, as I’ve always been kind-of a homebody, but I did do things. I volunteered for some local organizations, went to writing groups, helped organize a literary reading here in Eagle River. I did things. Now, though, I haven’t really made the time.

Why? Well, I have a day-job that spans from 6:30 a.m. when I wake up to about 5 p.m. when I get back home, and then after that I have my freelance editing job which consists of a really amazing nonfiction editing gig with Tiger Oak Media that I have to do each night for about one or two hours and (a bit more sporadically) my equally as amazing fiction editing gig with Desert Palm Press with a time commitment that really depends on the project, haha! So I’ve been lucky enough to secure two interesting jobs that I get to do each week, and I’m quite proud and happy about it.

However, I’m kinda tired when I’m done with my evening freelancing job, so I haven’t really made time to do anything after that aside from eating dinner, watching something funny on the TV, and then going to sleep. The weekend is my time to recharge, so I usually spend it writing, hanging out with family, and playing games, as well as doing chores and getting prepped for the following week.

It’s worked okay for the past six months, but I’ve come to realize that my system isn’t really the best. This system doesn’t leave much time for me to socialize or rebuild my writing/creative community. I have my online community that I’ve been slowly building in my random tiny snippets of spare time, but in-person connections are super important, too. (Says the introverted person who’d rather pet a stray cat than talk to a stranger. *nervous laughter*)

So, stemmed from that realization, I’ve decided that I need to do better. I don’t really have much time to spare during the week, but maybe once a week I can attend a literary event, like a book reading! I also put my name in the hat to volunteer at 49 Writers, so here’s hoping they get back to me. I’ll be helping the Alaska Writer’s Guild with their conference program like usual sometime later this summer, too. I was also thinking about becoming a member of one of those groups, or maybe the Alaska Romance Writers  of America, since that’ll help support the local writing community. I used to volunteer for Cirque pretty regularly, so maybe they still need some help with things? And maybe I’ll go to the Jitters Critters meeting on Monday nights like I used to? I don’t have any writing to show them right now, but I can help critique.

Hmmm…or maybe I should just try one or two of these things right now, because all of that is kind of overwhelming.

Annnnnd I should also chat with my friends more often, but that’s another story entirely, hahaha…ha…ha… *waves feebly at Alaska friends and whispers, Sorry!*

TLDR: I would like to be more active in my creative community and have lots of random thoughts on how to do that.

What kinds of things do you do to stay involved with your creative communities?

Wish me luck!
Warm regards,
Kellie

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Writing Update: Fantasy Series, Book One!

I AM DONE WITH MY FANTASY MANUSCRIPT!

Or…so I thought when I first penned this blogpost A DAY AGO. Yes, you read that right. On Thursday at 2:30pm I was doing a little mini dance at work because I was finished with my fantasy manuscript, I started writing this blogpost on Thursday evening around 5pm, and then LATER ON Thursday night at 11:30 pm I had an idea for it, got out of bed, and typed it into my computer notes.

Such is the life of a writer.

BUT I am almost done with it. Before moving forward, I’d like to solidify my character/story arcs for the following books. I have a really good grasp on Book Two, with lots of character ideas, a synopsis, and plotpoints I’d like to hit and I’ve even plotted some chapters out already. The other three books? More like vague ideas. So, I’m going to craft a synopsis for each of those three books by mid-April before I submit Book One to publishers.

I wanted to do this anyway for this particular series—since they’re basically standalones in the same world but do have overlapping characters—but I honestly think I had to finish this first book to really grasp how important it is to know where the story is headed and how the characters will get there. (For my own sanity more than anything else, ha!) And that’s not to say the characters and the story won’t surprise me. There were a couple of places in this first book where the story took a turn I wasn’t expecting and I just had to go with the flow and see if it worked. (Spoiler: It did!) But it would be great to have a synopsis of each book for myself…and then also to show the publishers if they ask where I’m headed with the story. Overall, though, I’m pretty excited.

Have a lovely weekend, my fellow nerds!
Warm regards,
Kellie

Read An Ebook Week: FINAL DAY of Sales!

Good morning, fellow readers and writers and creatives of all types,

If you didn’t know, this past week has named Read An Ebook Week by Smashwords, the largest distributor for indie books! (Desert Palm Press, too.) In celebration, their ebooks are 25-50% off and today is the last day for this sale. Because of that, both my books Finding Hekate and Losing Hold are 50% off, too!

Here’s a little bit about Finding Hekate:

Mia Foley is running away from the attack that changed her life. She’s captain of a new spaceship when the Acedians find her and try blasting her peaceful crew from the black. Staying with them will jeopardize their safety, but she’s grown fond of this crew, particularly Cassidy Gates. Mia’s time is running out.

And here’s a bit about Losing Hold:

Escaping Donavin’s grasp, Mia and her crew crash on a prison planet and must deal with its inhabitants, beast and criminals alike. Mia hears Donavin in her mind again and knows the transformation into one of his drones isn’t far off. Trapped in her own body, lashing against Donavin each chance she gets, and fearful that she’ll lose it all, Mia has to rely on her crew and Cassidy to save her.

Intrigued? Good! Get them both (as well as a lot of other amazing reads) today and blast off on your next great adventure!

Have a wonderful weekend!
Warm regards,
Kellie