Monday, December 28, 2015

Near End of Year

So the Christmas season has been way crazy, with celebrations and preparing to move, so I apologize for the lack of updates.

I've recently downloaded Scrivener and have been working on In Chaos Forged in it, and I have to say, it's been pretty fun.  Scrivener allows you to access your manuscript, notes, references, etc. all in one program.    It's a lot more convenient than having to open multiple windows in a regular word processor, and having to jump to different windows to access notes.  With a complex story like ICF, it's vital that I have access to such notes, preferably without the frustration of having to locate the right window.

I'm doing a trial run in it right now, but I may end up purchasing the program, something I don't normally do.  I've been spoiled by opensource software.

I also did some videos of me working on Libera Battle card art.  Please enjoy!







Everyone have a great New Year!


Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Keyboard Jammin'

Ever since I set goals to revise and/or write at least 500 words a day (excepting Sundays), doing so has now become a wonderful habit that I look forward to every day.  Setting goals and scheduling things has certainly helped me to set a certain lifestyle, and even though I'm still improving my habits and lifestyle, so far working on them has been fulfilling.

I've been more interested in doing videos lately, especially since I rediscovered Windows Movie Maker (you can get it in the Windows Essentials 2012 pack thing if you have PC).  I want to do some book trailers, and I would eventually like to do a regular video series of some sort.  I plan on doing more revision and writing videos, as I love to share my craft-in-progress with y'all.

Readers, what would you like to see me talk about?  Would you like to do a question and answer session on video?  If you have suggestions or questions, please leave me a comment!  I love to hear from my readers.

With steady writing and revision habits, work on In Chaos Forged and Gift Search have been very regular, and I am chipping through both manuscripts.  It's been so cool to revisit the Legend of Draconite and really expand my original vision with the series.  It will be an amazing day when I publish Book 5.

I've been putting off revision on Book III of the Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Memory because of work on both of the before-mentioned projects.  Even so, I go back and look at the LI manuscripts often and read through parts of them to remain familiar with the story and characters.

Life is exciting!

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Revision Fun to Finish November

Hello everyone!  I wanted to share some more revision adventures with you via video, and I hope you enjoy them!









Saturday, November 28, 2015

Book Review: The Shock of Night

The Shock of Night (The Darkwater Saga, #1)The Shock of Night by Patrick W. Carr

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


“Despite their conviction of my guilt, they weren't stupid, and the village idiot could piece the reason for the attack together.”

Willet Dura stated this over 200 pages into the book. After 300 pages, I still couldn't “piece the reason” together for why anything was happening in this story. Maybe it was because I would read this before bed, so I was tired, but I've read engaging books while being exhausted and understood them. I didn't finish this book, but I may finish it at a later time.

This book had some interesting concepts going on. Religious orders and magical gifts that enhance people's abilities were some of the biggest ones. The concepts and setting took a background to the story probably too much. World-building should contribute to the plot, but there was such a lack of world-buildling that it weakened the plot.

Points in the plot were presented briefly before jumping to another plot point, and then to another, and another. Then we would return to one of those plot points, and then jump back to another one or a new one. Characters were mentioned that I had never heard of without explanation, or hadn't read about for a while, as if I as the reader should know everything about the characters already. The story became rather convoluted and jerky, and I easily became lost in the overall plot.

Part of my problem with the story was the whole ordeal about Willet's “vault.” I guess cracking it can make a guy a vegetable, but I don't understand why it was so important that they do it except to figure out how he stumbled out alive from the Darkwater. When I put this book down I had finally gotten somewhere interesting. Another problem I had were Willet's investigations into these different murders, but I had a hard time tying their importance together because the narration didn't give me enough information. When Willet talked about the village idiot, I felt kind of insulted, because I was deep in the dark at that point.

I had a hard time understanding the role of the Vigil. They pretended to be this really secretive group of people, and for some reason their gift is really outstanding, yet they openly interact with the king and members of the religious orders. They don't bother a lot to keep themselves hidden. They can read the memories of people...and that's about it. In the book the leader of the Vigil warns about reading too many memories from multiple people to learn who's guilty...but isn't that what you would use it for, just in moderation? I didn't understand the reason for the Vigil's existence, or why they held so much sway except to shatter people's minds (while implying to be the “good guys”) and they only seemed to be there to hound the main character.

I wanted to like this book. I like a good tome of fantasy. However, this book was all over the place, and when one of the only times I can read is right before bed, I need a book that's easy to understand while still maintaining good twists and mysteries. This book strove to hold up its fantastical elements, but it was too busy stumbling around trying to piece a convoluted plot together to let those elements shine.

I think maybe if I return to this book at a later time and start from the beginning I may be able to piece things together better.

Also, there were lots of comma splices.




View all my reviews

Friday, November 27, 2015

Hammer of Fire Writing Fun

Some more video updates!  I'm having fun with the Screencastify Chrome extension, and I'm glad I can share writing and revision in-process for y'all to enjoy.  Today is a writing session with In Chaos Forged, Book 1 of The Hammer of Fire.





Saturday, November 21, 2015

Revision Session Fun and more Patreon!

Hello everyone.  I discovered a Chrome extension that allows you to record videos and audio, called Screencastify, and I decided to share some revision fun with my readers.





I hope to do more recorded revision sessions in the future, and I hope you'll enjoy my wacky commentary and radical revision skills...heh.

Also, I mentioned getting on with Patreon to help fund some of my work.  I decided to narrow down my Patreon platform and use it to help fund the Libera Battle trading card game project.   You can take a look here at more information.  You can donate a small dollar amount per month, and if we can get enough interest in the project and reach specific milestones, I will make Libera publicly available on The Game Crafter.  When you become a patron, you will have access to Patreon-exclusive posts I plan on making, including progress art for the cards that I haven't shown on Xenithar's Musings or Libera Battle - Official Website.  You'll also have access to a gallery of all the completed cards thus far, and the gallery will grow as I complete cards.

When I got on Patreon, I first thought about getting funding to do book giveaways and give out other goodies like art, but I may save that for a future time.  Libera Battle has a definite, final goal, but will also be ongoing as I create booster packs and future decks.

Have a wonderful evening and weekend!

Friday, November 20, 2015

Patreon

Hello everyone, I hope you've had an awesome November so far.  All these projects have kept me busy and happy.

Recently I've been trying to find ways to supplement our income, and I rediscovered Patreon.  I had learned about it through my brothers' ARC comic project, and I'm planning on launching my own platform on Patreon.  This entails giving you, my readers, more goodies when you pledge a certain amount of dollars to support my artistry. They would include original stories, art, and maybe other things if I think them up.

Progress has been steady on Gift Search, In Chaos Forged, and the Libera Battle TCG.  In Gift Search, I did a ton of revision on the first 1/3-1/4 of the book, jumping back and forth a bit, before continuing on to revise the next part of the manuscript.  In Hammer of Fire, I've been trying to figure out how the story's going to end, and how it will lead up to that point.

I've been thinking about getting beta readers for when I finish drafting In Chaos Forged. I would like to get some serious critique on this book when the time comes, especially since it's so different from other Libera stories and it's the start of a new series.

Keep an eye out for more updates, and have an awesome day!

Thursday, November 5, 2015

Gift Search Excerpt

Hello everyone.  It's been a crazy week as our family has prepared to contract for a home, but I've found some time to give y'all an update.

I'd like to share with you an excerpt from my revision of Book 2 of The Legend of Draconite: Gift Search.  I've found that as I've edited and revised this book, I've had to do a lot of rewriting of scenes.  There were holes in the plot and more detail about the characters, world, and how magic works that needed to be worked in.  It's been a lot of work to rewrite, but it's been fun too.

The below excerpt isn't the final product.  I'm still in the editing stage and have modified little of the original draft of this excerpt.  This is a rewrite of Leader's escape from the imprisonment Luna put him in, and it was a great opportunity to explain more of the nature of magic, as well as involve an antagonist that originally didn't play much of a role, the demon Alalt.

Without further ado, please enjoy!

Thursday, October 29, 2015

How big is the Southern Isles?

No, this isn't the Southern Isles from Disney's Frozen.  I'm talking about the Southern Isles of Libera, the Heart of the World, where the backbone of the Chronicles of Libera's stories takes place.

I randomly decided to compare a piece of our world's map with the Southern Isles.  I used Google Maps to use a scale of 50mi/inch, and tried to scale my Southern Isles map (which is a little under 40mi/inch, I believe) to the Google map.  I used an area that includes Utah and some surrounding states.  What came out was really interesting.



I don't think much about comparing the scale of our world to Libera, although I do have a general idea of how far characters can travel in a few days or weeks on foot or horseback.  I think I've tried to do a scaled comparison of the Southern Isles before, and it's actually kind of surprising how big the area is.

Fun fun.

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Friday, October 23, 2015

Libera Battle site

I've created a website on Blogger for the Libera Battle TCG, and plan on adding further updates for the game on that site's blog.  So you won't see much in the way of my trading cards and stuff on Xenithar's Lair anymore.  You can subscribe to the Libera Battle Official Website via email, or if you're not already following me on Google+, you can follow me and receive automatic updates from the blog via Google+.

Right now the LB Official Website isn't much to look at, but I will try to consistently build and update the website as I create the trading cards.

Thanks!

Saturday, October 17, 2015

More Libera Battle info

A spell card from the Dark Paths starter
deck.
Work on the TCG Libera Battle continues.  I've really enjoyed creating the fantastic art and cards for this game, and grow more and more excited about getting it printed.

I just wanted to talk a bit more about how I will be publishing Libera Battle.  It will be available on The Game Crafter website.  There will be 2 different starter decks: The Growing Gyre and Dark Paths.

The Growing Gyre deck circles around several heroes and spells associated with more of the "good side" of the spectrum.  It will be the easier of the two decks to use, and should suit beginners.  The Dark Paths starter deck features more villains and characters associated with villains, as well as spells and other cards that make the deck more difficult to use.

Darrin, a Re'sgalan that appears in Book 3
of The Legend of Draconite: E'lsra,
is a character I've never drawn before
this project.  He is part of the Dark
Paths starter deck.
The number and variety of cards in these starter decks constitutes a small percentage of the total amount of cards I will be making.  I plan to eventually publish booster packs on Game Crafter that will include all new cards, and will have a mix of character, spell, item cards, and more.

The starter decks will include a downloadable manual (as Game Crafter wasn't able to actually print the manual) and a game mat, which also turned out pretty awesome but that I won't share at this time.  The game components (dice, dice stickers, and counter chips) must be purchased separately.  This is so a player can buy both decks if they want without purchasing components each time.  It also makes it cheaper for the player to buy the decks.

I upload cards to The Game Crafter as I make them.  Here's the current game page; Libera Battle is not available for purchase, of course, but you can see the number of cards increase as I go.



Books!

While publishing Lithia on Createspace, I lowered the prices of all the books!  Yay! Below are the current prices:


Everyone have a wonderful weekend!

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Lithia: As you've never seen her before

Hello readers!  Lately I've briefly put aside the Libera Battle art project and have prepared Lithia for publication on Amazon Createspace.  In the process, I've created art for a cover, as you can see to the right.

This was such a neat picture to paint.  Like the previous Lithia book cover, I hand-drew the lines and scanned it in before coloring.  As I painted, I wasn't going for a completely realistic look.  I took it very easy as I painted, and was able to create lush detail without stressing myself out over realism.  For example, normally for character hair I use a default brush in GIMP that has several dots in it.  However, for this piece, "Lithia Sees," I used the default oval brush.  As I used it with my tablet's pressure opacity, I layered over the shadows several times, which gave the appearance of different layers and strands of hair.

I chose to draw her blindfolded for a few reasons.  One of them is because the part of the story where she does wear a blindfold is very pivotal to the story and her development as a character.  Another reason was because I thought the subject would generate interest as a book cover and make an onlooker curious about this character.

Friday, October 2, 2015

Keeping Track of a Complex Story

As I've written In Chaos Forged, the complexity of the story grows, and as the complexity deepens, so will the length of the story and the Hammer of Fire series overall.  How do I keep track of the details in an increasingly complex story?  I'll offer a few things I've done for In Chaos Forged and other stories I've written.

  • Keep Side Notes - As I introduce new concepts, people, and groups into the world, I'm usually not able to explain all the details of those things right away, especially when I write about factions. 
    • For people, I'll keep notes on their personality, their abilities, and how they interact with other characters.  I haven't written large character sheets for them, though; I'm the kind of writer that discovers a character as I go along.
    • For concepts and factions, I'll create a document detailing the what, the why, and the hows of the ideas.  What is the concept?  What do they do?  Why did they create the faction?  How does the idea work?
    •  I've kept most of my major notes on computer documents, but I also have a notebook app on my smart phone where I can keep notes on the go.  I've also used a hard notebook to keep many notes in.  Small notebooks that can fit in your pocket or handbag are very useful as well.
  • Use Bookmarks - In a word processor, there should be an option to insert bookmarks throughout the manuscript.  I use Libreoffice and Openoffice.  Go to Insert>Bookmark... and you can type the name of the bookmark and press okay.  It will insert the bookmark wherever you have clicked the cursor in the manuscript.  You can press F5 and it will bring up a document navigation screen, and there will be an expand option to look at and access your bookmarks by double-clicking.  I've used this tool to mark important events, settings, and ideas in the story that I may need to refer back to later for consistency.
  • Think about your ideas often - I've found that thinking about my story ideas often while not writing or editing helps things click together and I can note them down later.  My life is a little crazy, but I still find time to think about my stories.  Your brain is like a computer, and if you ponder an idea enough, it's likely to fit together and make your story work, no matter how complex your story is getting.

Hope these tips help the writer out there who is also digging through an epic story!

Friday, September 25, 2015

Book Review: Chivalrous

Chivalrous (Valiant Hearts, #2)Chivalrous by Dina L. Sleiman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Chivalrous was an odd mixture of adventure, relationships, and faith. They weren't balanced together very well, but there were a few elements of the story I really liked

I don't have a favorite character in Chivalrous, but I do like how most of the characters interacted with one another. The main male character, Allen, thought almost constantly about God and his faith, and while that got overbearing at times, I like how it affected his decision-making.

I liked Gwendolyn more in the parts where she wasn't being a sissy and more of a tomboy, but I can understand her backing down at times because of her abusive father. Also, her relationship with Allen was the most interesting aspect of this book. It was an insta-love story, which I don't normally like, but I honestly didn't know if these two were going to have a happily ever after with all the twists and turns in their romantic plot. The romance between these two saved the story, I believe.

The other main character is Rosalind, Gwendolyn's lady in waiting. I enjoyed her character through most of the book; she's a loyal friend that sometimes shows some snark. However, towards the last half of the book,the author added a pointless sub-plot about abortion with this character that was never resolved, and I don't understand why it was included in the story.

The character Merry from the first Valiant Hearts book made a cameo appearance. I guess she's a Robin Hood character, but she was a damsel in distress in this book, and her part in the story seemed kind of pointless except to show how bad the bad guy was. Why make her the victim, and she never makes another appearance in the book. The whole ordeal with Merry was meh.

I probably would have liked this book better if I had read the first book in the series, but this book does okay as a standalone. 3/5 stars.



View all my reviews

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Trading Cards

I've managed to turn a lot of my focus from Libera Battle to my writing projects, which is a good thing, but I'm still trying to be somewhat consistent with my card creating.  Below are some more cards that I've created for your viewing pleasure.

 
 



I was particularly excited to do the "Black Griffin of the Sapphire" card, as it was a ring I had fondly imagined while writing about the ring's owner, Othorro, but never drawn.  I'm not really thrilled about the background, though; I couldn't figure out what to do, so I turned to GIMPs fractal explorer script.

The Captain Hoofwind card is probably going to print darker than I intended, so I may go back and lighten the picture a little.  For Bronwyn I referred to a pencil drawing I had created that details her armor a lot better than this character card.

I imagined Bronwyn having metal plate armor that resembles an insect's carapace, a grasshopper in particular.  It has spiny protrusions and sharp angles.  The sketch of her also has detail on her wings, which I always enjoy drawing.  I considered using the drawing for the card, but I didn't in this case.  I may use hand-drawn pictures for future cards, though.

Have a nice evening :)

Friday, September 18, 2015

Getting Out

This month and in October I have the opportunity to play soccer as part of a regional Stake tournament.  I was excited when I learned about the sign-up, and yesterday was our first game.  I thought I might not be able to go because my knee was bothering me, but I got some cleats and shin guards anyway and got really excited and decided to go.  I didn't regret it.

I pounded across that field and managed to catch the ball a few times.  I say catch, and I mean with my feet mostly.  I was afraid I wouldn't be able to endure, but I was on the field most of the time, and though I was tempted to switch out several times during the first half, I stayed on the field.  It was way fun, and I look forward to the rest of the games.

I talk about soccer because I thought it would be a good outlet for me, to do something good for myself besides staying at home.  It allows me to get out and meet other people, as I don't have much of a social life at the moment.  It's also good to know that I'm healthy enough to play soccer, and I plan to continue to get into good shape and keep it a habit.

Friday, September 11, 2015

Making a Character Unique

Something I've learned during character building is that it normally takes one or two unique traits to help me make them unique characters.  Once I have those few traits, I can build off of them and learn about the other personality traits a character has.

I've really realized this while writing In Chaos Forged.  As the story has grown, I've been dealing with more and more characters.  I think I'll soon be juggling as many if not more characters than I did in Founders.  The biggest challenge has been the main character, Jivasi.  He's naturally very curious and hates to rub against authority (although in strenuous circumstances, he will), but at the same time very loyal to himself and to those he thinks he can trust.  However, I have to be very careful not to deviate from the core of his character and make him sound like other characters, like his cousin, Ndegana, for example.  Ndegana is outspoken, and is normally very good at forgiving himself.  He doesn't like to dwell on past mistakes, although some come to haunt him quite a bit.  I have to be careful not to mix up Ndegana's outspoken personality with Jivasi's quiet curiosity.

I've jumped back into revising Gift Search, and a character I've had the opportunity to explore more is a villain named Uty, who didn't get much air time in the original Sunstone manuscript.  She had more show time in the Revisited manuscript, and she's getting even more in the beginning of Gift Search.  She's such an actress, I've discovered.  She knows how to put on a royal air, but at times her temper shows.  She can switch back and forth between royal serenity to venomous cruelty.  Like all characters, it's been hard really writing about her starting recently, but it'll be interesting to see how things turn out with this character.

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Refocus

Boy have I been distracted.  I've managed to work on book projects lately, but I feel like the way I do things isn't very organized.  I do it a day at a time, and haven't seriously scheduled myself when it comes to my writing and art projects.  My life revolves around mostly my little boy, and some around my husband and his crazy school schedule.

Most of my extra time recently has been taken up with editing one of my old projects and working on my trading card game.  However, I've jumped back into writing In Chaos Forged, and my mind has been turning to revising Book 2 of The Legend of Draconite: Gift Search.  Currently I'm writing a whole new prologue for Gift Search, and there will be at least one new chapter before the original chapter 1.  It's amazing the things I notice about the story and characters I need to address that I never noticed seven years ago.

I've been lax on updating my social networks, and I'm making it a goal to update my major ones once a day with something.  I think my Facebook page has been the most neglected of my social sites, but today I updated the art album and posted an update about my TCG.  Probably the hardest one to update regularly is actually Xenithar's Musings.  However, my goal will be to post on here at least once a week.  Readers, feel free to hold me accountable if I'm not living up to these goals.  Spam the comments! ;)


Thursday, August 20, 2015

First Spell Card

Here are a few more cards to share, including the first Spell card I've created for the Libera Battle TCG :)  I had a lot of fun with Trithor, and the Spell card image was one of my more complex coloring projects in regards to getting the layering right on GIMP.  I'm very happy with how both of these pictures turned out :)



 

Friday, August 14, 2015

Looking back at Founders

One of my biggest and most soulful writing projects was Founders.  The idea for Founders first came from The Legend of Draconite series, as the Founders of the Draconite clan were mentioned in the series.  I started doing more conceptualizing in Summer 2008 during a college tour in California, where I took notes on the world and characters.  I even printed out a map of our world's environs to get a better idea of what Libera's environs as a whole could be like, as it was the first time I was exploring the whole world rather than the smaller world of Den'verden, in inner Libera.

Monday, August 10, 2015

Drawing Fat People is Hard

Here are some more trading cards to share:

 

The art on the second card definitely isn't my best work, but I decided to leave out a lot of detail from the character to emphasize the dark in his clothing.  I'm pretty happy with how Azull turned out, though :)

If I remember correctly, when I was listing the character cards and creating their stats, I think I debated having Hunter as a magic class, but it made more sense to make it the type of character, as Hunters come in all sorts of magic classes.


Friday, August 7, 2015

Trying Not to Burn Out

Lately I've been feeling burned out emotionally, and feeling that my daily life has become somewhat monotonous.  I love being a mother, first and foremost, and the opportunity to work on writing, editing, and art.  With my little one, it can be hard to find time to do personal things when he's vying for my attention.

However, I still pray and hope, and I think God has given me a bit of a break.  My son has been napping so well it's given me time to work on my TCG art project, Libera Battle.   I hope to someday complete this game and do expansions based on my written works.  It's been a great opportunity to do some speed painting and practice my style.

Below are some additions to the character cards.

 

The Ayaka Di'rutia card took me quite a while to finish, as I wasn't able to sit down just one time to do it.  It's definitely one of my favorite cards so far.  Also in this card series, I'm including some characters from The Legacy Incarnate series from books that I haven't published yet.  Atul is one such character.

I've been working on these cards alphabetically.  There were some other characters I forgot to add to my card list after I created some cards, which will be out of alphabetical order.

As always, you can watch some of the progress of this project on The Game Crafter as I upload cards and possibly modify the other game components.

It feels good to be able to post something on here again.  I've been at a loss about what to post besides art and book updates, and while I'm interested in the politics of my country, I don't want this website to turn political.  Hopefully I'll post more variety of things on here in the near future :)

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

World of the Southern Lizardmen

In an effort to share more of my work with readers, I've placed a word count meter in the left column of Xenithar's Lair.  It measures my progress in my current WIP, In Chaos Forged, by word count.  I put a goal of 300,000 words on there, as the further I write ICF, the longer I think this book is going to be.

I've mentioned an overall summary of The Hammer of Fire in an earlier post, but I want to elaborate more on the first book, In Chaos Forged.

HOF takes place in southern Misten, about 1200 years after the end of Book 5 of The Legend of Draconite: Ascension.  Between the Ascension and this current time period, a group of Crin outcasts from northern Misten made their way south, led by a religious leader turned heretic who wielded a great hammer and carried a book prophesying of a great hero.

Monday, July 6, 2015

Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream available!


Yay!  Let us all rejoice!  Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream is now available on Createspace, Amazon, and Lulu!  You can buy a paperback from Createspace and Amazon for $15.99, and an eBook version on Lulu for $3.99!


I am so happy to finally release this project to the public.  This book has been such an adventure to write and edit and revise, and it has turned out to be a wonderful story.  I hope all my readers enjoy the adventures of Sabra and her hot-headed companion Deborah!  I definitely look forward to polishing Book III of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Memory, but until then, I hope Incarnate Dream sates your hunger for adventure!

Friday, July 3, 2015

Incarnate Dream Release...postponed

Hello everyone.

Well, I had hoped to release Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream today, but I found out that Createspace was having issues getting my cover art through quality check, so until I resolve the issue, the release of Incarnate Dream will be postponed.

I will get this sorted out as quickly as possible.  I'm sorry about all this.  Thank-you for your patience.

Monday, June 29, 2015

The Dream is Coming Soon!

I can't believe how fast June has passed by; it's almost over already!

The giveaway is closed for any entries.  Unfortunately I didn't get any entries, so no one got free ebooks :( However, this won't be the last time I do a giveaway.

This Friday is the release of Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream on Createspace in paperback, and as ebook on Lulu!  Within a few days the paperback will also be available on the Amazon market.

Incarnate Dream prices:

  • Createspace and Amazon: $15.99
  • Lulu: $3.99


Mark the date and keep an eye out on these sites to get your copy of this fantastic story!  Also, the ebook of Sunstone is still $0.99 at Lulu!

My readers are probably already wondering about Book III: Incarnate Memory.  I may not get around to editing Book III until the end of this year, as I'm focusing my energy on Hammer of Fire 1: In Chaos Forged and another project besides my trading card game.  I won't talk about it for the time being, as I'm afraid I'll lose my energy for it if I announce what it is at this stage in the project.

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Lower Price

Ah, promotion.  Book 1 of The Legend of Draconite: Sunstone on Createspace has a new, lowered price of $12!  I looked into lowering the price of Incarnate Journey and the forthcoming Incarnate Dream, but because I want to keep my distribution channels through Createspace, the Legacy Incarnate books will each be $15.99.

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Giveaway Day 8

Lately I've been seriously preparing to submit a manuscript to a traditional publisher.  I've felt encouraged by the Spirit and by my husband to really start reaching out with my work, and I hope that I'll be able to find a publisher and earn a little extra income.

Today is day 8 of the ebook giveaway, and I'm still waiting for emails.  Please check out the giveaway page and have fun doing a scavenger hunt!

Today's character interview will be with Gage Mon from the Legend of Draconite series.

Me: Gage, what's your favorite food?

Gage: No introduction?  Well, okay...

M: I'm sorry, Gage.  Let's start over.  Gage is a character in the Legend of Draconite series who becomes the Draconite of Speed after the death of Valena Maurn. He can be hotheaded at times, but is very loyal and is eager to correct mistakes he makes.  He's detail-oriented and a friendly guy overall.

G: Ah, thanks Sarah.  I appreciate that!  Maybe you could have left out the hotheaded part.  I'm not that bad...

M: So, food?  Do you like food?

G: Yes, of course!  My favorite is creamed tuna.

M: I'm not sure whether to like that or feel sick.  I do like tuna...but creamed tuna?

G: Well, you don't have to like it.

M: Sorry.  Anyway, what's your favorite hobby?

G: Ever since I became a Draconite warrior, I've had less hobbies, but I've managed to stay with the Fighter's Guild.  I enjoy learning new sword techniques.  It's a good thing the Draconites do a lot of weapons practice!

M: If Libera existed, I should like to learn from them.

G: ???

M: *Avoids breaking a fourth wall somewhere* One more question: who do you really like?  Is it Kierra or Telk?

G: I'd rather not discuss relationships here...and I don't like that smile you're giving me.

M: Well, thanks Gage, and have fun sword-swinging!


Stay tuned for more updates on Xenithar's Lair!


Monday, June 8, 2015

Ebook Giveaway - Day 1

The ebook giveaway for Sunstone, Incarnate Journey, and Incarnate Dream is now open!  Please look over the rules at the giveaway page and have fun hunting!  Sorry for the delay in opening; unfortunately I'm not a full time author, and have other obligations.

Also for a limited time, the ebook of Sunstone will be only $0.99 on Lulu.com!  Hop on over below and take a look at this fantastic story about magic and magic machines and magic raptors and magic magic....


Live Streaming Author

Recently I've discovered a smartphone app called Periscope, where you can live stream video from your phone to a private audience or to anyone in the world.

Saturday, June 6, 2015

Incarnate Dream Release Date

My readers have probably been waiting a while to hear this: the release date of Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream!

I think I mentioned on an earlier post that I was going to release it towards the end of June (correct me if I'm wrong).  However, the release date as both a paperback on Amazon and Createspace and an eBook on Lulu will be Friday, July 3, 2015.  Just in time for Independence Day :)

Next Monday, June 8th, the eBook giveaway for Incarnate Journey, Sunstone, and Incarnate Dream will begin!  I will open the rules for the giveaway on June 8th as a separate page on Xenithar's Lair, and it will be available through the top navigation bar.  This month's contest will be a scavenger hunt with varying levels of difficulty!  I'm excited to see the entries that come in!

Please keep an eye out on Xenithar's Musings for the beginning of the giveaway and other updates!

Friday, June 5, 2015

Ebook Mania! (And character Q&A)

Book 1 of The Legend of Draconite: Sunstone is now available as an eBook at Lulu.com!  The reason why I'm releasing Sunstone and Incarnate Journey before Incarnate Dream as eBooks is because technically they've already been published.  Lulu also makes it super easy to publish eBooks. I had looked ubti Smashwords, but they have this humangous publishing requirements guide I don't have the time or will to look through, while Lulu only had 1 simple web page for ePubs (although I'm just publishing my books as .pdfs, as they didn't want to cooperate as ePubs).

I'm selling the ebook at $2.99.  Please check it out!



Today I will be doing a Q & A with one of my characters. (Does that sound schizophrenic?) Please welcome Zarem, the omnipotent god figure of the Chronicles of Libera.

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Incarnate Journey is EBooked

Now available in both paperback and ebook!
I'm happy to announce that an eBook version of Book I of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Journey is available on Lulu.com!

I decided to go with Lulu for my ebooks.  You can make both ePub and PDF ebooks on their site.  I tried to make it into an ePub book, but I don't think my word processor and their conversion software agree with each other, so I settled with a PDF, which is only available on Lulu.com.  Like the paperback version it's 6''x9'', although most if not all e-readers allow a reader to customize the look of the manuscript.

Does it bother me that the ebook is not more widely distributed?  Not really.  I'm happy having the hard copy on Amazon and an ebook available, even if it's on another site.  In either case, please take a look and enjoy.

Incarnate Journey is going at $3.99 on Lulu.  Please consider buying and downloading yourself a copy, or if you wish, wait for the giveaway this month!  (More details on that to come!)

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Journey and Free fantasy eBooks

Book I of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Journey is available on Createspace, and soon on Amazon!  I'm still prepping Book II, and I'm figuring out the eBook situation for them all, since they're currently not on Lulu.

However, I've been thinking about using Lulu instead of KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) to publish my eBooks.  KDP doesn't provide free ISBNs like Lulu does, and I'm cheap and don't have the finances to buy my own ISBNs.  I'm just hoping it won't be too big an inconvenience for readers to go between two different sites for different versions of the same book.

I'll soon announce the release date of Incarnate Dream.  In the meantime, I'm planning on giving away free eBooks of Sunstone, Incarnate Journey, and Incarnate Dream.  Keep an eye out on how to qualify for free books!  Unfortunately I won't be giving away hard copies like I did with Sunstone, but that doesn't mean I'll never do it again.

Please tell your family and friends that there will be free ebooks of clean, epic fantasy available soon!  In the meantime, please check out the Createspace store for a look at Incarnate Journey!


Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Making Trading Cards

Earlier on I mentioned that I've started to create trading cards. I'd like to share some of my work with my readers on this fun art project that is keeping my digital art skills in tune.

The cards are for a trading card game I'm creating, with the working title "Libera Battle." In this game each player chooses certain characters from the Libera universe and pits them in battle against each other, using certain other cards to upgrade their own characters and damage other characters. It has been fun to create the game and think of different ways to strategize and play.  I have all the rules written out; it's now a matter of creating the game and testing it out!

Book Review - Taken, by Dee Henderson

I had selected Taken from Bethany House Publishing for the blogger reviewer program hoping to get away from the Christian Romance books they seem to feature a lot their lists. Unfortunately this book, which at first appeared to be a mystery thriller, did not do that for me. If Bethany House does nothing but publish romances, someone please let me know, because that would make a lot more sense. (However, I don't think this is the case, as I've read most of the Tales of Goldstone Wood books they publish, and not all of those are focused on romance.)

There was nothing thrilling about this book, and the mystery aspect was pathetic. This is my first real jump into mystery/thriller fiction, and I was not impressed.

In a traditional story, you have several parts: introduction, build-up, climax, aftermath, and conclusion. This entire book was aftermath with a weak conclusion. All the exciting stuff the story mentions (abductions, survival, action, maybe even adventure) already happened before this story happened.

This book is about a lady who approaches a detective after escaping her captors, hoping he'll help her regain a normal life. During this, there is an awkward romance between the two I simply could not relate to, but I'll discuss that more in my Story part of the review.

Characters

I'm having a hard time knowing where to begin with the characters. The two main characters are Matthew Dane and Shannon Bliss. At least their names are easy to remember. I hardly got anything relevant out of Matthew's character; most of his inner thoughts and reflections were about Shannon (how stoic she can be, how she has hardened herself, how beautiful she is, maybe I can have a relationship with her, etc.), rather than his own feelings and thoughts about himself. I did not relate to this guy at all.

Shannon was a bit more interesting, but we never get her POV. Psychologically she was a realistic character, such as reacting in fear to the family that held her captive (though we only meet one member of the Jacoby family, and he's not blood-related). Even with her hopes and fears, I never related to this character either. It may have been because they weren't involved in any interesting plot to speak of.

There were several other characters, and it took me a little while to keep track of them. There are others I couldn't remember who they were or why they were important.

Story and Writing

If the characters weren't bad enough, the story was seriously lacking. Throughout the book, there is no real build-up to a climax. There are two or three high points in the stories where we actually see something interesting that happened to Shannon, but there is no anticipation, no pertinent suspension. There would be dull, mundane prose and dialogue, and then some “big” reveal. It would be short, and then become dull until the next “big” reveal.

The only part I really liked was when I got a look into one of Shannon's diaries, where she talks about her captivity. However, we only get a look at entries once or twice throughout this tome of paper. Once in a while Shannon decides to talk about what happened too, but...that's it. Everything else they talk about wasn't important to me.

This book is probably about 75% dialogue. There is paragraph after paragraph after paragraph of dialogue. Most of the dialogue is “Let's do this, this, and this. You, go do that. You and you, go do this, and then we'll talk about it more later.” Another large point they talk about is, “Don't push it, or we'll stop talking.” or “We'll only go a certain amount of time before leaving.” Those 3 examples almost completely summed up the entire book's dialogue subjects. Sometimes I couldn't keep track of who was talking because of the lack of breaks between dialogue paragraphs and because of the characters' “tones” of voice.

Most of the characters had the same tone. Most of the time they spoke like robots, using phrases and words normal people wouldn't use in everyday conversation. For example, Matthew is praying to God at one point and he says something to the effect of “thanks for helping her find the fuzzy slippers and me amused.” What? “Me amused”? A normal person would more likely say something like, “Making me smile.” Maybe I'm milking it, but there's a lot of dialogue that sounds unrealistic and annoying.

When we're not reading lists of dialogue, we're reading descriptions of mundane actions. Probably half of the book's prose is descriptions of preparing food and grammatically incorrect sequential sentences. “He got out the car, walked around, opened her door, helped her out.” “He fried a potato, got out the yogurt, put strawberries on it.” I picked up this book, read it, groaned.

Just when I thought I was truly getting to the end of the story, we get an entire chapter detailing how to sell photos in the photography market. It was borderline pointless. The only reason it was there was to point out Shannon could get dues ex machina rich. The author could have summed this up in just a few paragraphs, but she spent an entire chapter, several pages long, on it. And most of it was dialogue.

The Jacoby family. The story synopsis makes it seem they play a central part to the story. In a way they do, but we only see one person from the family, and he's not an enemy. They mention that Shannon could get hurt by one of the members, but me as a reader never truly grasped how dangerous he actually was, especially with Shannon surrounded by cops and the FBI. If the guy had showed up and done some gun-slinging and gotten his due through Matthew's POV, that would have been a great climax and made the whole story mean something. Instead they essentially mention, “Oh, by the way, while you were reading Shannon's diaries last night, we arrested the big villain of this ENTIRE BOOK.” I'm starting to get ideas for how to rewrite this book to make it better, and it's not even my book.

Now for the creepiest part of this story, and by creepy I don't mean interesting.

This story wasn't about Shannon escaping the Jacoby family, or even about her recovery. This was a romance between her and Matthew thinly disguised as a mystery and recovery story. Matthew is 42 years old, and Shannon 27, and they start developing this slightly unnatural relationship. She ends up staying in an apartment with him throughout the majority of the book (he sleeps in his own apartment, but basically spends every other waking minute in her apartment). They talk about not having sex with each other, but they're always putting themselves in the situation to do so. Twilight, anyone?

They develop this friend/romantic relationship throughout the book, and they never end up dating by the end. Matthew talks about it. Maybe it's good there wasn't a marriage or something at the end. He does mention that if he's going to get married and give her kids, they'd need to do it soon. Creeper.

Conclusion

This was one weird book. The way the story was formatted and presented was terrible, and it needs serious editing to put an actual story in it. No offense to the publisher, who specializes in Christian fiction, but I think the only reason they published this was because it mentions God a few times, not because it's a quality book. I would have gotten the same satisfaction out of reading a police case file, perhaps even more because it would actually detail the trouble that happened instead of getting bits and pieces from a somewhat frustrating heroine.

This book is a great example of how not to write a book, and is now part of my baby's toy box. Have at it, my boy!

I received this as a free book from Bethany House Publishing in exchange for a free review.

Friday, May 15, 2015

Getting Dream Ready

Lately I have been preparing Books I & II of The Legacy Incarnate for publication on Amazon Createspace.  The only thing I need to do before publishing them is to get proof copies to make sure they turn out okay printed, as I've checked and rechecked the manuscripts on the computer.

Since Book I is moving over to Amazon, it's no longer available for purchase on Lulu.  I plan on migrating all my books over to Createspace; right now only Lithia and Founders are available on Lulu.


Thursday, April 23, 2015

Book IV Cover preview


Normally I post completed cover art, but I decided to post what I have so far for the front cover of Book IV of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Key.

For some reason the picture looks gray
on blogger...
As you can see, it's just line art right now.  I use GIMP to illustrate my book covers, and I used a lot of paths on the buildings.  I also incorporated some symbolism relevant to the story and the world of Libera in general.  If you're familiar with the Chronicles of Libera, can you spot the symbolism?

I also base the cover art for this series off of a scene in the story.  By the point of this scene, the characters are pretty worn out, physically and emotionally, but they have each other to lean on soon before the greatest trial Sabra must face in this nocturnal city.

Some of you may have noticed I haven't posted any Strange Blessings serials lately.  I've been caught up in another short story project, which has been uber fun to write, and that I may post here on the Lair. (It's a fan fiction, so I may need the permission of the original creator of the world before posting  it on this, my promotional and authorial website.)

Revision has gone very well on Book II of LI: Incarnate Dream, and I've been teaching myself how to keep consistencies in mind, and to look back at key points in a manuscript so that the story flows well.  I'm nearing the end of the third revision.  The adventure of formatting and completing the one-piece cover art are soon at hand!


Currently reading:


  • Our Lost Constitution, by Mike Lee
  • Shadow Hand, Book 6 of Tales of Goldstone Wood, by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
  • Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien
  • Doctrine & Covenants, published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
  • The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, '' ''

What are you currently reading?

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Book Review: Dragonwitch

Dragonwitch (Tales of Goldstone Wood, #5)Dragonwitch by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I had picked up this book a while back and tried to read it, but life happened and I had to put it down. I wish I had finished it sooner, because then I would have remembered more from Starflower, but oh well.

I have one word for this book: haphazard. I wish I didn't have to say that about this book, seeing as the previous four in the series were well-done in terms of writing, story, and characters. However, I really struggled with Dragonwitch, and it didn't live up to the expectations I had gained from the four first entries of Goldstone Wood.

As I normally do with my lengthier reviews, I'll break my review down into characters, plot, setting, and writing.


Saturday, April 11, 2015

Spring Update

To be honest, I actually hate
Facebook, but I use it anyway
partly for promotion.
Recently I've had a great aversion to social media, so don't be surprised if I don't post much on Facebook or Twitter or wherever else I'm connected.  Probably the most news you'll see of my authoring is if you visit Xenithar's Lair directly.  I apologize in advance if that causes any inconvenience to my readers.

Anywho, I've continued work on Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream.  It's exciting to be nearing the end of my revision.  I think there will always be things that need changing or fixing, but for any artist, you have to come to a stopping point if you want yourself and others to stand back and enjoy your creation.

Also, I've come up with an art design for the front cover of LI Book IV.  It's going to be a black and white palette, and will be the first cover to explicitly feature two main characters instead of just Sabra.  Once I have finished it, I plan on sharing it with y'all.

For my readers, is there anything in particular you would like me to post more about?  Sometimes I'm low on post ideas, even though I try to keep the Lair updated.  Do you want to know more about my characters, stories, writing, or do you want any advice or tips on writing?  Let me know in the comments, and thanks!


Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Strange Blessings - E. VI

Some ways down the road from Mal'ur's eastern gate was a trail that led into the depths of the Dragon's Peak Mountains. It connected to the main road, with a standing sign covered in old Standard scrawl.
Tobias shouldered his rucksack as he made his way up the rise in the road, keeping an eye out for the sign. He wore the same leather tunic he had arrived to Mal'ur in, and carried some personal tools and possessions, along with some food, in his sack. Over his other shoulder hung his blanket and sleeping roll. His waterskin had its own strap and hung near his hip, sloshing with each step.
He was supposed to meet the other pilgrims at the road sign. He wondered if they were young people like him, or if they were adults. Donna hadn't been specific about who they were, so they probably weren't from the school.
Tobias made it over the rise, cocking his head and spotting the sign. A humanoid sentient stood near it, and the closer he came, the heavier his stomach grew.

Friday, March 20, 2015

Hammer of Fire

Today I finished the 2nd revision of Book II of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Dream, and will be moving on to the third and final revision of the manuscript!  I am excited to get this book ready for publication this year, and I hope my readers are as excited as I am to continue the adventures of Sabra the Incarnate.

I mentioned in an earlier post that once I finished the 2nd revision I would announce my secret trilogy project I keep hinting about.

It's called the Hammer of Fire Trilogy.

The three unlucky main protagonists of Hammer of Fire.
Left to right: Jivasi, Ndegana, and Jilanu.  These
are earlier drawings, done in 2013.
The Hammer of Fire circles mostly around a group of the Crin race that live in southern Misten alongside negro humans called the mwaneusi.  It's a tale of an ancient, corrupt warrior faction, a sorority being poisoned from within, and a group of righteous vigilantes all trying to win control of the people and the very land they live on.


Ideas for this tale started brewing in my head in 2012, I believe, and started gaining more momentum in 2013.  Surprisingly, HoF was inspired a lot by the Warhammer 40k universe.  I've never read any Warhammer books; I read a lot about the stories and universe on the Warhammer wiki, and it inspired me to write a darker and grittier fantasy than I normally do.  While Hammer of Fire won't be nearly as violent and gory as W40k, it definitely has a darker edge to it, and will be unlike any of the other Chronicles of Libera books you a have read.

Anywho, keep an eye out on Xenithar's Lair for more updates about this upcoming trilogy and the Legacy Incarnate!


Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Remembering the old days

I did a fair amount of
digital art for this series.
I recently finished reading the Kajt Chronicles, a quartet I wrote during Junior High and a sequel series to the Silver Dragon Legacy.

While the writing was terrible, there is still a lot of potential in the plot, characters, and races, and looking back at the Kajt Chronicles helps me love my younger self more.  What I mean by that is I love the passion and drive my younger self had to write these books.  They are amateur and unpolished.  They stole some ideas from other stories.  Some of my characters are Sues.  But the books were full of my soul.

I also realized how dark and sad the series is.  I remember having so much fun writing it that I guess I forgot how sad the story really was.

For those not familiar with my older works, I'll break it down for you :)

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Strange Blessings - E. V

I have created a list of links to the Strange Blessings entries, which you can find in the right column of the blog.  It should be much easier to navigate the story this way :)

I greet you, mother and father, sister,

I write to you because I am not able to visit to tell you of my news. I hope someone is able to read this to you.
As my honor demands, I will be honest: I do not like going to Mal'ur Academy. I went because you worked hard to get me there. It is hard, and many students find an enemy in me, because I am Hakaan. It is not your fault, nor mine, that there is such hatred at the school. I hid my pride and stubbornness and went for you, and though I have learned some things, most of all I have learned to hate this place.
But there is one good person here, a human woman named Donna Meun. She is kindly, and talks to me like an equal. She told me of the dragon-riders, who are gathering hopefuls to be dragon-riders. I thought much about this thing, and I have decided to travel to the valley on the mountains to be with the dragon-riders.
I told Donna my decision, and she has arranged with me to travel with two other young hopefuls to the valley. I am afraid it will slow me down, as I wished to fly there, but she tells me that my companions can teach me much about dragons and their people on the way.
Please don't be angry with me for my decision. I know our tribe says they are not of Zanoll, that we are only unwilling visitors on this island for many generations, and that we should have nothing to do with the other people, the enslavers. But my decision is final, and I hope this matter will bring peace to all of us.
May you always find peace in serekal, and may the eastern wind lift you.

~Tobias Terrekan


© 2015 by Sarah Bailey. All rights reserved.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Sunstone now available on Amazon!

Book 1 of The Legend of Draconite: Sunstone is now available on the Amazon store!  You can purchase a hard copy of the book for $15 USD.  Please check out the Amazon page for more info and an inside book preview :)


Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Strange Blessings E. IV


Tobias checked out the history volume and hurried back to his dorm, thoughts whirling over what he had read.
There were two dorms on campus, one for females and one for males. Both were three-storied L-shaped buildings around Mal'ur Academy, and Tobias' dorm building, also known as Dragon Dorm, was located on the north side of the academy.
He shouldered his book bag as he jogged up the stairs to the third floor. Boys wandered the hallways, socializing and heading to their rooms. Tobias kept his eyes down as he scooted to the last door on the left. Boys both accidentally and purposefully shoved shoulders with him on the way, and despite a few of the harder ones he received, he didn't say a word.

Strange Blessings E. III

 Update on this story has been awhile coming.  I'm going to try and update this story as often as possible, rather than every Sunday.  I'm hoping to post this serial at least once a week, so keep an eye out for more Strange Blessings!

~~~

Tobias went through the motions in his classes, his mind on Donna's advice. His hands managed to write assignments and he absently made his way from classroom to classroom.
...read up on Chirik the Wise.”
Even though he had a load of homework, Tobias went to the library at the end of the school day. It was in the northwestern quarter of the main building, and was a long, vaulting room. Ladders patrolled several stacked shelves against the walls. Students meandered along the shelves or glanced through selected books on the study tables.
Tobias shouldered his book bag and made his way to the librarian's desk. A green lizardman sat on a heavy wood chair, stamping books with blue ink.
“Mr. Kia,” Tobias greeted. The Crin lifted his head and narrowed his red eyes. It was a moment before he answered, and Tobias tried not to fidget in front of the desk.

Saturday, February 28, 2015

LI Cover make-over & ARC

The first Incarnate Journey design.

As my readers may know, I'm planning on moving my books from Lulu over to Amazon Createspace (although I may do eBooks just on Lulu).  As part of this process, I'll be making new book covers and re-doing old ones.

I'll admit, ever since I completed the front cover of Book I of The Legacy Incarnate: Incarnate Journey, I've never been terribly satisfied about the design.  I felt I had to cram everything into a small space.  I turned to the Mythic Scribes community for some critique on the Incarnate Journey cover, and got some excellent pointers on how to improve the design.

Consequently, I've redone the design.  I'm keeping the art, but the titles and stuff are a lot different...and a lot cleaner and easier to look at.