Shearing a dragon?

A while back I worked with this girl in sales who shared my passion for great fantasy stories. As I like to do with enthusiasts, I brainstormed and decided to create an original character in the Neverqueen series.

Raven is a hermit (or shall I say a hermittess, for she is a woman). She lives deep in the forests west of Turser's Mountains and she keeps a companion that is, perhaps, not unique to fantasy, but what she does with this companion is. Her companion is an old dragon.

Raven keeps the dragon in chains. She feeds him and even sees to it that he enjoys good conversations with her, but all the while she pulls off his thick scales one-by-one and sells them to passing traders.

What does the dragon think of this arrangement? Find out when you read the Neverqueen series.

Q: WHAT WOULD YOU, AS A READER, ENJOY SEEING IN ONE OF MY FANTASY NOVELS?

Introducing the dark fairy

In my upcoming novel Neverqueen a new villain enters The Sword of the Dragon story world. A dark fairy by the name of Genj.

Do you remember Hermenuedis, the Art'en wizard? If so, you will find this new entree fascinating. He was the wizard's right hand, as thoroughly corrupted as the Art'en himself. But after an absurdly long time has passed this dark creature has latched on to a new master, none other than Turser. In Swords of the Six we watched Specter slash Turser's face with the scythe blade, and now it is time to reveal Turser's later fate.

I do love creating memorable characters, and in Genj I believe I have accomplished that goal.

Look for Neverqueen to arrive on your Kindle, Nook, and in Print on November 5th!

"Neverqueen" A new series ready to begin!

That satisfied feeling I have right now is because Neverqueen the first book in the new series is finished today!

Also, the cover underwent a minor change that has made it 'pop' better. The heroine's eyes needed to be glowing. All part of the story. And a key part of the story!

Story pitch line is next and a summary to tease all the Fantasy lovers out there.

Coming November 2013!

The importance of visualization

You have heard the adage "Don't judge a book by its cover" but how often have you found that to be true?

When I look for a new book to read, especially if it is fiction, my eye turns first to the intriguing, unique, and beautiful covers. With fantasy novels I think this is especially important. Without good art the reader will have  a poor understanding of the type of story that is hidden between the covers.

Introducing the latest artist to do a book cover for me, Petra Rudolph. I discovered Petra on Elfwood and proceeded to explore his website. He is highly talented. You can learn more about him and his work at Dracoliche.com

The sketch you see here marks the beginning of the upcoming cover for Neverqueen book 1. I hope it intrigues you! This book will released Fall 2013 along with book 2 in this new series. Neverqueen is an expansion of The Sword of the Dragon series.

Neverqueen (book 2) The Suffering Challice

In the midst of starting a full-time sales job, I am working on another fantasy novel. You have heard me talking a bit about my offshoot series from The Sword of the Dragon, this one titled Neverqueen. The idea at the moment is to release the first TWO books in the Neverqueen series simultaneously in 2013 with a focus on ebook promotion and sales.

In lieu of that, I have started writing Neverqueen: The Suffering Chalice. The story is going to be a lot of fun. In particular I am excited about one concept in the story: a chalice that is literally suffering. In some way I want the chalice to be alive. Sound intriguing? I hope so... I know I am looking forward to finding out where this story takes me!