New Cover Art!

You'll be noticing new cover art for Whom the Gods Love and Whom the Gods Hate if you've purchased them. I tried fiverr, and so far that was a bit of a bust. I still have a couple people who should get back to me, so maybe I'll still get something out of it yet. We'll see. I am thinking of making a post about what that was like. I read quite a few blog posts about fiverr that were older, and things have changed on that site since those posts, so maybe some would be interested in an update on the fiverr experience. But for now I made my own covers. I am by no means a graphic artist, or even a Photoshop expert. But hopefully these are a little nicer than my first attempts. Here is the first new cover. In the next couple of days I'll post the cover for the third title of the trilogy, Whom the Gods Fear.

Long Hiatus - Back in Business!

It's been a while. A little over a year ago today I had my port taken out. The last couple of years have been, well, let's just say interesting. After everything was said and done, I was left with catching back up to my life.

This is just a quick post to let everyone know, the third book in the series I have written, Whom the Gods Fear, is currently about 80% edited. I have to get a cover together and get it up on Amazon. It will go up, hopefully shortly after Christmas. I'd say before, but I don't want to do that and then not make a deadline. When I release Whom the Gods Fear, I intend to also bundle up Whom the Gods Love and Whom the Gods Hate into a collection that will be at a discounted price, so future readers can get the whole set or the individual books.

I also have two books finished in a new sci fi series I'll be debuting early next year. I've been busy, as you can guess. In a couple weeks I'll post part of the first chapter of the new series, so you can get a feel for it. Until then, here is a picture of a fractious cat. (I know he's fractious, because it says so on his vet summary.)

Spring update

I'm posting a quick update on my progress on Whom the Gods Fear. It's in the editing stage now so we're getting really close to a completion date. I know it's a little early to be talking about what I'll be getting to next once the Tanavian Chronicles come to a close. This trilogy has been a lot of fun to write but I'm ready to do another single volume work again. My next book will be science fiction. It's a departure from what you are used to, but I assure you, sci fi is my favorite genre. It's always been a little surprising to those who know me that I wrote fantasy first, but those were the stories that spoke to me at the time, so that's what I decided to write.

When more of the book comes into shape, I'll post a chapter so readers can get a feel for my sci fi writing style. I hope you enjoy it as much as my fantasy. I've had some questions about whether or not I'd ever return to Tanavia once I finished the trilogy. I've not ruled it out, of course, and if a story inspired me, of course I'd write it and publish it. Tanavia is a rich world with a deep mythology. I may indeed return to it one day. For now, I hope you enjoy the end of the current story arc.

My next blog entry will have another lovely piece of fan art from the book Whom the Gods Hate. I can't wait to show it to you. Until then, enjoy the spring!

Brrrrr!

It's been a while since I posted an update. Now that the holidays are over and the uncontrollable-teeth-chattering cold has set in, I'm back indoors and in full gear finishing up the final book in the Tanavian Chronicles. It seems hard to believe Whom the Gods Hate was only published a little over 4 months ago and I'm already rapidly nearing the point where I'll begin editing on the final book of the series. I'm just that excited to finish the story for everyone.

Back to winter, which I'm sure at this point many are bemoaning. I've always liked winter. I know at times like this it can be hard to appreciate the coldest of seasons (having spent the day digging out my walkway bundled in every layer of clothing available to me... trust me, I fully condone the griping), but winter is the necessary evil I gladly submit to in exchange for the turning of the seasons. We couldn't have fall, my favorite season, without the winter. I do also enjoy snow, particularly the way it drastically changes the landscape around us overnight. If nothing else, Jack Frost's belligerent attitude trapping me inside is the perfect excuse to get my body back inside and my mind back in Tanavia. So with that, I'll get back to it. Until next time!

P.S. check out the fantastic tribute to Calvin and Hobbes there! It's one of the best of the Calvin inspired snow art found here.

National Cat Day

Yes, it's true. Today is national cat day. It is the day we worship our overlords, those fuzzy little rumbling creatures that order us about on a daily basis. So much so, they even created their own day. Surprisingly, we don't seem to mind that much.

You may recognize this little ruffian from my profile picture. This is one of most bossy bosses. She rules the house.

In honor of National Cat Day, I'm choosing a glossary entry on a creature of the feline persuasion. Again, this creature is mentioned and has some importance in Whom the Gods Hate, but there isn't as much described in the book as there is in my glossary. While this cat might not be as likeable as the smaller versions we're used to seeing in a cozier setting, it will have to do.

Protean Lions

Protean lions are twice the size of their nearest relatives, but that is not where the danger lies--protean lions have the ability to change their color. Their coat is composed of clear hairs, each of which picks up its color from the skin beneath, which can change color subtly to match protean's environment. The protean's range of colors isn’t as dramatic as some of the lizards of Tanavia, limited to shifting among blacks, browns, greys, whites, and any of the shades in between. They also have fine tuned enough control of their color-shifting that they can form splotches on their skin making them look like they are covered in dappled shadow. They are excellent predators, often killing prey before they are ever noticed. They hunt from natural ditches, log hallows and trees. They are also known to occasionally hunt in some of the taller grassed plains, but they prefer to stick to forested areas. They will hunt and kill almost anything that is not significantly larger than them. Proteans tend to stick to hunting grazing animals but have been known to take down the unwary human now and again. While they typically avoid humans massed in large numbers, they will attack individuals or small groups without hesitation. Unless fully equipped, a group of five or six humans can be and often is taken down if they encounter a protean. Proteans store what they don’t eat in one sitting in trees or occasionally in small ditches. Even a fully equipped, well seasoned group of a half dozen encountering a protean is likely to lose at least one or two members before the creature falls. This is due to the difficulty in landing a killing blow on the swift creature. Their necks are quite muscular, and few sword blows could penetrate deep enough in one blow to fell the beast. Spears can be used to pierce the heart, but the accuracy required to land such a blow in the face of a charging protean is rare. Other than their ability to change their coats, protean lions have the same general characteristics of other large cats. They are solitary, and do not gather in packs like some great cats. Further, they are highly territorial, with ranges  that can extend for several miles. They are not common, live in isolated areas rarely frequented by humans, and only hunt when hungry, so reported attacks on humans are infrequent. Note the term, “reported.” As the beasts are so adept at killing before they are ever seen, many unexplained disappearances in unpopulated areas should rightly be attributed to the protean.

On art and insects

I got a nice surprise this weekend. A reader sent me a lovely drawing of a scene from the newest book, Whom the Gods Hate. This awesome picture was too good to keep for myself, so I asked if it was okay to include on my blog. Permission granted, so here it is. The original is very large, so hopefully this squished little blog version does it some justice. I love the comic book style. It reminds me of those Prince Valiant comics that were in the Sunday comics when I was a kid - those may still be in the Sunday comics but it's been years since I've picked up a newspaper. Thank you, super fan!

I'm roughly a third of the way done with the final book in the trilogy. It's coming along nicely. I'm excited to complete the story of these adventurers for you. In the meantime, here is an entry from the glossary on a creature that plays a small part in the newest book, Whom the Gods Hate. This insect gets mentioned in passing and has some "screen time," but I go into more detail in my glossary about the little beastie than in the book.


Husks – Husks are an insect like creature about the size of a dog. They have long legs and thin, brown bodies with dark non-uniform spots. Husks usually live in small hives of twenty to thirty individuals. They build their brown wood-like nests high in trees. The hives are hard to spot as the husks use tree bark to create their nests which acts as a natural camouflage. The name Husks comes from what they do to their prey. They are blood drinkers and will attack large animals in groups, draining them completely leaving behind “nothing but the husk,” as the saying goes. Though they do not desiccate their prey, it has long been misperceived that they do. Rather, the drained body decomposes strangely due to the anticoagulant the husks inject into their prey. The anticoagulant coincidentally draws moisture to the surface of the body making the body dry out in a short period of time. Husks are dangerous to any travelers who enter woodlands where they are known to live, but due to their specific requirements – they have trouble living in lower altitudes and warmer climates -- they are not a prolific species.

Whom the Gods Hate Now Available!

Apologies for the late publishing. A confluence of unfortunate events was determined to derail my plans this summer. Now, finally, I've managed to get everything in order and publish Whom the Gods Hate the sequel to Whom the Gods Love. In celebration of the release of the second book in the trilogy, Whom the Gods Love will be free for 48 hours starting tonight at midnight. If you haven't had a chance to pick up the first book, during the promotion would be a great time to do that.

As I mentioned before, I've already begun writing the third and final book in the trilogy. With luck, I should be done with the next book before the new year and ready to edit it. Being the final installment in the trilogy doesn't necessarily mean I'll never revisit Tanavia, but I have so many ideas for new books that I think I'll take a break from the world of Tanavia for a while and explore some other worlds.

I hope that everyone enjoys Whom the Gods Hate and I look forward to bringing the story to an exciting close for everyone. I'll be back next week with another entry from the glossary and more news. Thanks for reading!