Schedules!

Here’s what happened in the last 1,5 months:

• I’ve finished the first draft of Sword & Mirror

• I’ve got it back with the 1st round of edits from my editor

• I’ve just finished outlining book 2 this morning (yay!)

• I’ve come up with an action plan for the next year o.O

So what happens next? I want to get the edits done this week, so I can start on book 2 next week! Also, I went on vacation last week. I visited Cyprus! <3 It’s been a dream of mine to go there for… more than 20 years now. AND while I was away, my little yuzu saplings has sprouted. 4 of them! I’m very proud of them, we’ll see how they fare. I’ve planted some tangerine and lemon trees, too. I like citrus, what can I say? :)

Oh, and I’m planning on watching MIB3 in the cinemas this week! Have you already seen it? What did you think? It’s gonna be awesome, right? I mean, two Aesirs are involved, it’s gotta be ;)

More time to write

So, as promised, I’ll try to make my posts more frequent. Today, I’ll tell you about how awesome and scary it is to leave your day job.

I was offered a new contract at my job, but it wasn’t good enough to stay, that’s the harsh truth. Also, I wanted to do something more or just some stuff differently, (make it more efficient), and things just didn’t move. And here came this opportunity with a leeway of a few weeks.

Anyway, I’ve decided to dedicate most of my time to novel writing. Because that’s what I really enjoy doing. I’m sick of the 8-5 job at an office. That’s how it is. So, on one hand, I’ll have more time to do what I love doing (novel writing), on the other hand, it’s a bit scary when you realize there’s no income in a couple of weeks. Eeek.

I’m eager to see how far momentum goes! Already, I’ve written a bunch and I have more brain for the little things, you know. Like blog posts. Or details in my stories. It’s nice to see these things changing back to what they were supposed to be :)

Logo reveal & a funny story

I’m revamping my website a little bit and I’m proud to announce that I have acquired a wonderful logo, curtesy of lovely Liz of LKO Designs. You’ll see it everywhere already, but I’m going to put it here, anyway :D

Oh, and about that funny story I mentioned in the title? As I was playing around website design I was thinking of the menus and thought I have too many. And I was like, why do I even have a blog? I post infrequently, no one ever comments, I just shout it out to the colourful abyss that is the internet, what’s the point, when I could be writing, instead?

So I decided to remove it. And then on a hunch, I went to website analytics. I like looking at maps, what can I say. It’s always so exciting so see where my readers visit me from. For those of you who don’t own a webste/blog, this analytics also tells you your most popular page.

And guess what? It was my blog.

MY. BLOG. That I thought no one ever reads. I realized people do visit, they just don’t comment. So here I am, thinking I should try to keep a bit more frequent schedule with blog posts. For you. Because there are people listening and that makes me happy, because people read what I write. Thank you <3

And please don’t be afraid to comment. What to comment? For example, how do you like my new logo?

Back to cover nr1 AND ANNOUNCEMENT

I think I like my old cover better, so I changed it back! Sorry for any confusion, it’s not easy waddling through the realm that is publishing! I’m still learning. And I want to learn to make better books for you, Dear Reader <3

I’m working on another project, actually. You can read my new book chapter-by-chapter as I post it on Tapas! It’s called Sword & Mirror, you can read it here.

That’s great, you say, but WHAT’S IT ABOUT?! Here goes:

An accident forced Ciara to rebuild her life. During a seemingly innocent museum visit, she is accidentally transported back to 16th century Japan.
Katsuo is a man with fearsome reputation, a powerful warlord of the sengoku jidai. He decides to keep a close eye on the woman who escaped the clutches of his mortal enemy.
While Ciara is trying to make sense of the world around her and desperately wants to find her way back home, Katsuo wonders if she is just another pawn in the game called war. Both hide an ancient, dark secret which could ruin them or save them.

The gorgeous artwork is made by the talented Dani. On another thought, I need to work on my blurbs! Let me know if you can suggest me how to tweak my blurb, I’m eager to read it. In the meanwhile, I’m working on something that will be worthwhile ;)

Cover reveal!

I got a new cover for The Snow King! I'll re-publish this weekend using that cover on Amazon and Smashwords, which means you'll be able to see it at other retailer's stores. I think I keep the original cover on Tapas for the time being.

Important things:

1. Are you interested in a sneak peek for The Fir King? You'll be able to find it in the newly uploaded, Author's preferred version! Or, if you forward me the e-mail of your earlier purchase, you can ask for the sneak peek and I'll happily send it to you!
2. I have a newsletter now. Don't worry, I'll only send one or two mails per month. Why would you want to subscribe, though? Easy: you'll get extra content (an extra long chapter from The Snow King), and if this wasn't enough, you'll be the first to know when I publish the next book. Here's the link to subscribe: NEWSLETTER.

Happy holidays and enjoy the rest of 2017. You deserve to enjoy, it's been a rough year! Sit back with a cup of hot cocoa and read a good book ;)

Oh, and ZEH NEW COVER:

Ta-daaam~

How do you like it? :)

It's live on TAPAS!

Hello, what a surprise, so many blog posts in such a short span of time! Wow, what happened? Am I sick? No. BUT well, The Snow King's second edition is officially available since yesterday on Tapas website and mobile app (android & iPhone).

How to use Tapas? You register and/or download the app for free. It's better if you use both the mobile version and the desktop version, because they have a bit of different functions available. I usually switch between them. Anywaaaaaay, just click on the link and read :D The first 2 "episodes" are completely free, and you can unlock each new episode with a key. You'll notice there's already 1 key available to you, so you can actually read 3 episodes for free ;)
You can buy keys with coins and you can get them by a) watching adds on the mobile phone every now and then b) purchasing them.

You know, I was very adamant refusing in-app purchases in the past*. But then I came across a story I so badly wanted to read and I was just too impatient to wait till I could watch ads again (there's a limit per day on them), and... well, if I buy coins to get keys, not only am I reading the stuff sooner, but I support the author, as well. So win-win. Now I buy a certain amount of coins each month and that's my reading-allowance :D

Thesecoins can be used to "tip" authors, as well. Think of it as showing appreciation for their hard work :)

(*still not using them for games. no way.)

Amended launch date

Hey All,

I should've known Murphy wouldn't let me off so easily... Due to unforseen events, my launch date was delayed. Now it's all solved and we agreed the new date would be 5th September.

Be sure to get the Tapas app before that! ;) (It's completely free - there are optional in-app purchases which supports authors.) The Snow King will be back with new chapters and never-before-read scenes! I'm very excited! :)

See you on launch day! Frisco time, so it might actually be 6th September for those of us in Europe!

BIG NEWS

I've come here to break tell you some news, but seeing my posts, I've just realised it's been 1,5 years since my last update. Oh gosh, I'm such a shitty blog poster...

Ahem, anyway, where was I? Oh, yes, BIG NEWS!

Have you heard of TAPAS app? Formerly known as Tapastic? No? Yes? Let me quickly tell you the gist of it. It's a mobile application (also available on desktop, but with less functions), and originally it was only for comics. People upload comics, people read comics and they interact with each other, enjoying fab stories!
And they've started accepting submissions for novels! I think you know where I'm going with this ;) The Snow King has been accepted! I'm currently working on a deadline to deliver an even better second edition than the first one was. Hope you'll love it! My book will be available mid-August on Tapas and as soon it's done, I'm updating the Kindle version, too.

So what does this mean to you?
1) There will be some extra chapters!
2) There will be one extra chapter exclusive on Tapas at the end of the story!
3) You can either read on Tapas (website or app) or buy the Kindle book version. Actually, I'm going to distribute it on more channels, not just Kindle. So if you held back before because of a lack of Kindle or its app, now there's nothing that can stand in your way of reading an awesome winter fairy tale!

What does this mean to me? I actually have a publishing contract. Hopefully, more people will read and enjoy my book and that is, in itself is a splendid thing! Save the date: 14th Aug! Or 15th, depending on your timezone ;)

PS.: I'm uploading a short story to Tapas in the meantime. Feel free to check it out.
PS.2.: The fresh Chapter 1 is available on this website exclusively, until it's published elsewhere.