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UNQUIET Update – April 25

The title of the new book and series is official. Book one is UNQUIET. The series is UNQUIET SERIES.

Things are very unquiet. I wish I could muffle these voices for a few hours at night for some kind of reprieve. Two mornings in a row I woke up with severe jaw pain from grinding my teeth. I knocked out about 2,000 words yesterday and woke up today with no pain. Coincidence? No. I blame these characters and all the unquiet. Today I hope to do another 2,000, if anything to save my teeth.

And again, I have new distractions in the household. Rescued feeder rats now living in a three-story rat condo with access to daily snacks of Cheerios and Cheez-Its. They know they are surrounded by predators, but one of them chooses to snooze the day away anyway, and the other has decided to spend all her time on the top level TEMPTING THEM.

Here’s the dog as she watches them and imagines what they taste like.

Here’s the dog after being told, “No, you can not eat the rats.”

The cats are so crazed from temptation that they refuse to be photographed.

Progress of UNQUIET
First draft: In progress (33,368 words)
My revisions: Not started
Editing: Not started
Proofreading: Not started
Formatting: Not started
Final proofread: Not started
Cover art: Not started

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New Series Update – March 21

I was wrong about this book not having dogs in it.

I was right about it taking forever to get the first draft out.

7,438 words added since the last update is about half what I hoped to do. But it is progress though, so… yay?

Progress of New Untitled Series Book 1
First draft: In progress (23,338 words)
My revisions: Not started
Editing: Not started
Proofreading: Not started
Formatting: Not started
Final proofread: Not started
Cover art: Not started

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New Series Update – February 13

Current progress is 15,900 words and a two-year-old lab/cattle dog mix.

Wait, progress? Who said that? I’d call her more of a hindrance to writing. Because she’s so darn sweet, and desperately needy in the way shelter dogs are when they aren’t quite sure you won’t dump them somewhere like their last person did.

But yeah, the book. I think I’m going to love this book, and hopefully so are you.

There are no dogs in it (yet?), but there are some dog-sized…things.

I think I have a title, but it seems too soon for a title so I’m going to keep it to myself for now.

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New Series Coming Soon

I’m about a thousand words into a new book I hope to release in late 2018 or early 2019. This a completely new series with new characters in a different world than The Alignment. It’s still our world, but with fantasy elements that draw from different myths.

This early in the writing I’m also doing a lot of research, dividing my time between pounding out words and reading non-fiction to help build the story. I can’t tell you what kind of non-fiction because that would be spoilers. ;)

It’s still fantasy though, so anything goes. I might take that research and turn it upside down. But here’s what you can expect: A broody, haunted heroine who breaks all kinds of rules. A guy-next-door hero who might just be too wholesome for her. Strange corpses under beds. Unquiet spirits. A building underground war. Cool cars. And a love story that complicates everything.

The best way to follow along is by subscribing in the right sidebar or following me on Goodreads.

If you’re looking for something to read while you wait, check out my Recommended Reads.

Thanks to all my wonderful fans who WANT MORE. I hear you, and you mean a ton to me. Consider me ON IT. :)

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Recommended Reads: THE MAN I LOVE

Characters so real and honest that when tragedy strikes it’s shocking and chilling and so utterly traumatizing. Five hundred stars. Because it’s that damn good. Don’t read this book unless you like reading books with a hand over your mouth and a storm in your heart. But yes, do read it, because the writing is too good to miss.

There are some lulls in the plot early on, and at times it’s a serious slow burn, building lives and characters with lots of talk of ballet. I’ll admit I almost set it aside. Don’t set this book aside. Keep going. Once you reach the thick of it there is no option to set it down until you reach the end.

I read books to find complex, real characters who temporarily–and sometimes forever–become a part of me. I read books to find raw human struggle and survival and portrayals of deepest love. This book has all of that.

THE MAN I LOVE (THE FISH TALES BOOK 1) by Suanne Laqueur
Amazon | Goodreads | Suanne Laqueur’s website

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THE ALIGNMENT Free on Kindle Through January 2

THE ALIGNMENT is free on Kindle right now and has already hit the top 10 in more than one Amazon category! :D :D

It’s free through January 2nd. Tell your friends! It’s great opportunity to start a new series at no cost to them.

Indie writers rely completely on reviews from readers, and I’m eternally grateful for every one. Thanks to everyone who’s left a review. You are my heroes. If you haven’t left a review and would like to, here are some handy links. :)

THE ALIGNMENT: Amazon | Goodreads
THE TWO: Amazon | Goodreads
THE OAK AND THE MOON: Amazon | Goodreads
THE CATALYST: Amazon | Goodreads
THE WARRIOR: Amazon | Goodreads

I now have bookmarks for all five books. If you’d like some, contact me and I’ll mail you some for free.

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Translations: THE WARRIOR

Here are the translations of the Irish words in THE WARRIOR.

Stop here if you haven’t yet read THE WARRIOR (or any other books in The Alignment Series). These translations could be spoilers.

Here is a very amateur photo of the total solar eclipse we experienced here last summer as a protective buffer. This was taken during the short moment of totality, when shadow covered the land like dusk in the middle of a sunny summer day.

Content warning: explicit language

Translation of the Irish Words and Dialogue in THE WARRIOR

Le do thoil
Please

Comhghuaillithe
Allies

Aon scéal?
What’s up? (A casual greeting. Literally means “Any news?”)

Dúile daoibh
The elements to you (a Bevan/Moore/O’Dowd way to say hello)

Dubhealaín
Black magic

A dheartháir
Brother

Cén t-am é?
What time is it?

Máistreás na nDúl
Mistress of the Elements

Oíche mhaith
Good night

Claí Mór na Réaltaí
The Milky Way (literally “Great Fence of Stars”)

An Láir Bhán
The Milky Way (literally “The White Mare”)

Póg mo thóin
Kiss my ass

Imeacht gan teacht ort
May you go without coming [back] (This is a harsh insult, comparable to “Fuck off” in English. There’s an element of wishing the person dead in it.)

Le do thoil
Please

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THE WARRIOR is Here

Raised as enemies, trained as warriors. Alone they must battle each other. Together they will end the war.

THE WARRIOR, the fifth and final book in The Alignment Series, is now available on Amazon.

Sample or buy now: Kindle | Paperback

The Alignment is a contemporary fantasy series about two rival families and the people caught between them. If you haven’t read the first book, the Kindle version will be free on Amazon December 29th through January 2nd. This series is very sequential so the books should be read in order. Subscribe by email in the right sidebar to receive notice when my books go on sale!

It’s hard to believe this story has come to an end. I don’t know if it will ever turn off in my head, but for now it’s being pushed aside for different characters and new stories and worlds. I’ll probably be forever haunted by the voices of TB, Liv, both Sloanes, and now Rex. It’s very hard to say goodbye to them, not to mention Christian, Martin, Tara, Winnie, Will, Shawn, Aaron, Marcas, Rosemary, Paul, Eleanor, Fran, Órlaith, and Inis. And River, Trib, Friend, Buzz, Nicky, Ali, and all the coyotes. And dare I say Dillon? I can’t consider him a villain. Not completely, anyway.

Thanks so much to my wonderfully patient and talented team: editors Debra Argosy and Max Dobson, formatter Colleen Sheehan, and the artists at Damonza.com. This book is beautiful inside and out because of them.

Signed copies are available. If interested please fill out this form. If you buy the whole set you’ll get a little discount. :) And they all come with matching bookmarks.

I hope THE WARRIOR is a satisfying finale. It’s being released at $2.99 as a thank-you to the fans who’ve been waiting years to finish this story. Price will go up soon, so get it now!

THE WARRIOR
Book Five of The Alignment Series

Captive in the Moore estate, Sloane Bevan sees an image that evokes her grandmother’s warning: When the moon aligns with the oak, a danger will come for you. To her family she’s a warrior. To the Moores a destroyer. But she holds knowledge of magic the Moores lost, knowledge they want to extract before they kill her.

Rex Moore is out of patience. He has trained his whole life to battle and end Sloane Bevan. Now she’s in his house and his family has ordered him to wait. This is the first order he’ll defy, the last order they’ll give. Once he kills Sloane, the Bevans will fall and he will claim his birthright as king.

To end the age-old war between their families, one must destroy the other. Sloane and Rex understand their destiny, but no one predicted the larger battle they walk into. The mutual enemy they unveil. And the impossible allegiance necessary to survive it.

Sample or buy now: Kindle | Paperback

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