A Mini Vacation

A year ago, for I and my husband's 10th anniversary, we got out of the city and travelled to Banff. While we enjoyed the trip all-around, the mind-blowing thing for me was the hot springs. Despite being within a few hours drive from Calgary, I had never been to them before. I am one of those women who is almost always cold, so the feeling of almost being too hot was amazing and I loved it. Since I've discovered it, we have gone back twice more on day trips. Yesterday was the most recent trip. It was rainy and cold; mixed with the hot water, again, I was in heaven. It's nice on warm days, but I much prefer cold days instead. I brought back pictures of the hot springs, if not me in it... I'm one of those people who refuses to take my phone into a pool.

This is the view from the front steps. You can see a bit of Banff in the background but look at how close the clouds were to us. It's one of the reasons I love heading up into the mountains. That hill on the other side actually goes much higher and its all covered by clouds.

This was the hot spring pool.  Not as rustic as it originally was, but the fog, low clouds, heat and rain combined to make it a truly magical experience.

This is what is left of the original springs... while without the clouds it looks dull, with the clouds and fog it looks rustic and wonderful. You can expect me to try to slip it into a book one of these days.

I adored the trip! If you haven't been to the Upper Banff hot springs, five out of five will go again is my recommendation.

Als, I wanted to remind everyone that tomorrow I'll be at Owl's Nest Books, signing books and chatting up customers from 11am to 2pm. Take a look at their site, it's a gorgeous little shop. You can expect some pictures as always!

Updates!

This week I have a few small announcements to make, so you're getting a half post, rather than a full one.

The first bit of awesome news is that I am only 100 pages away from having the sequel to Hunter's Gambit, tentatively titled Lord's Curse edited, and while this week has been a setback to editing (darn summer colds), I should have no problem finishing this draft before the end of Camp Nanowrimo in July. From there, I'll need to find an editor and take it through another edit. Unless something odd happens, I am still expecting to have that novel coming out late this year.

The next bit of awesome is that I have another signing set up! On July 6th, I will be at Owl's Nest Books (815A 49th Ave SW, Calgary, AB) from 11am to 2pm! I am super excited to have another signing. The table may even be bigger this time, which will be super exciting. I will let all of you know how that one goes, and of course, I'll have pictures!

For my third update, I am plugging a new book that I finished reading a couple of weeks ago and loved. The Woman in the White Kimono by Ana Jones is a book about a woman trying to discover her father's secrets and another woman who is that secret. Based on the true stories of Japanese brides left in Japan after the war, this story left me in tears. The writing is beautiful, the story is compelling and it highlights a little known time in history, one that both countries would prefer to forget. If you haven't already picked this one up, it would make a great addition to your summer/winter reading list.

My last fun bit of news is that I have been doing sketches nearly every day for the last little while. If you'd like to join me, tag me on Instagram and post your own sketches or just enjoy other's people art. If you don't follow there, here are my latest pictures!

These are some pre-sketches where I planned out what I wanted to do for a full artwork for the video game Journey. I haven't gotten started on it yet, but I think it will look gorgeous when its done.

Some days, I get stuck on an image. In this case, the demonic, dead eyes of an Oddish from Gen 1 pokemon was my inspiration.

This fairy turned out wonderfully, except for her hands. She was supposed to be just leaning on a table on her wrists. something about it just didn't work. I may have to revisit the character one day. 

Kitten! Nothing else needs to be said.

This one turned out surprisingly well. The only thing that could have gone better is the outlining. I kind of preferred the sketchy look it had before I outlined it.

A few errors but I like the way she turned out. I may have o revisit the character in a less stiff position later. Also, I can't decide if she's a nobleman's daughter, or simply the daughter of a commoner with a rich suitor. What do you think?

Jessica Jones. Her neck is way too long, her leg is way too thin, and the liner pen didn't work with the Copics and reactivated in multiple places... despite that, I kind of like it. 

I saw a hoodie dress and wanted to draw a character in a similar outfit. I quite like the way it turned out.

I'll was drawing with one of my Youtubers. The prompts were aardvark, lemur, pink, grey and unicorn. Mine turned out way more lemur than aardvark, but I like it. I'm hoping to paint it later. If I do, I'll update it here. 

My First Signing

I originally had my signing date set for a late weekend in April and as you probably know, that ended up changing. I was stoked until I realized that it was the same weekend as the Calgary Comic Expo. Now, I was not afraid. I unabashedly think I wrote a great novel. However, I also know that I am a completely unknown author at this point and that the Calgary Expo draws in Sci-Fi and Fantasy fans from all over the country. That would have been wonderful, except that they all would have been at the Expo, not hitting the local bookstores. So, I opted for a different Sunday, early in June, and they were kind enough to agree to the change. 

I spent the extra time making sure that I had a great setup for the day! I bought some black velvet and made a table cloth. I created a cross-stitch logo. I bought and painted crates that would match the colours on my book, picked up fairy lights and book holders to stand my book up with. I even ordered a large poster of my cover and had bookmarks created for it. The table was a bit smaller than I was hoping, but I made do. My husband kept me calm and we set up, deciding to only use one of the crates. We strung the lights simply over the top of the crate, behind the books and over to the books that were standing up.

I greeted nearly everybody personally that walked in. Anybody who looked over at me, I smiled at and most of them were asked if they wanted to hear about my book. Most agreed, and everybody that did seemed interested. Not everybody bought, of course. A few picked up the book eagerly only to put it down and wander off, and a few that were hesitant about taking a copy from me took that copy home with them in the end. What surprised me most was the gentleman who asked if my book was already a movie, and swore up and down that it needed to be made into one, based entirely on how evocative my cover was. 

I was so proud...

Unsurprisingly, I discovered that when I was standing up, a lot more adults were willing to come over and talk than when I was sitting down, while anyone younger than 18 seemed to find me less threatening more approachable when I was sitting down. About half seemed surprised to find out that I was actually the author, and that I was willing to sign their books while I was there.

The crew said that it was quieter than a regular Sunday. Despite that, they said that I seemed to get a lot of traffic at my table simply because I engaged with people, whether about my novel or not, and that I had a much nicer set up than some of the authors they'd had in. They took a few extra books at the end, making that the second store in the city of Calgary that carries my book physically (the other is Owl's Nest Bookstore) and I am super excited about it!

What do you think of my table? Did you like my set-up? 

Where I'll be during When Words Collide 2019

It all feels like its happening so fast, and yet too slowly. I admit fully that the feeling might be exacerbated by my seasonal allergies and the current air qualities where I live. The air outside my window is shades of orange and grey with grit and smoke due to the fires happening in the province. I only hope that they get them under control and that no more towns need to be evacuated because of the fires.

So what exactly is happening too soon and not soon enough? When Words Collide, of course! Taking place on August 9th, 10th and 11th, it has been confirmed that I will be on four different panels this year, three of which will be on Saturday, and the last happening on Sunday. Saturday begins at 10 A.M. with Awakening to Social Sensitivity with Diane Terrana, Erin Weir, and Jay Martin. Directly after that, at 11 A.M., I'll be running to Writing a Character who Could Never be you with Adam Dreece, Colleen Anderson and Halli Lilburn. I am extra excited to realize that I'll be on a panel with Adam Dreece. He steals the show on every panel he's on, so I'm going to have to up my game to keep up with him. I'm looking forward to it and I expect we'll end up having a really great conversation. Later that afternoon at 2 P.M., I'll be on Villains, Antagonists and Other Baddies with Arelene F. Marks, Kevin Weir and Susan Calder. 

I got to see Adam Dreece earlier today for the release of his new book, 5 Critical Things for Successful Book Signings. It was certainly a timely release for me. Hopefully, this will help me to be even more engaging at my signings. It's a great book so far, and if you're an author in need of help on how to think about your author platform or how to improve your signings, definitely pick it up. I'm about seven chapters in and loving it!

Continueing the madness will be Sunday morning with another 10 A.M. panel, East and West: How our Mindset Changes the Way We Tell Stories with Calvin Jim, Laura VanArendonk Baugh and Jennie Bennett. I've done a panel with Calvin Jim before and love the conversations he and I have had. While I haven't been on a panel with Laura VanArendonk Baugh yet, I can't wait to see her point of view on this topic. For our last panellist, when I was thinking of other authors who might have a very interesting view on this topic, I immediately thought of Jennie Bennett, who writes K-Pop romance novels. I still find the idea intriguing and I can't wait to see what she brings to the table. This is the panel I am most excited about. While some of that is because it was my suggestion, a lot of it is just the people I'll be sharing the desk with and I think the discussion will be intense, interesting and inspiring to everyone. 

The times have remained pretty stable, but I'll let you know if anything changes between now and WWC so you can plan your weekend accordingly. 

If you just can't wait till WWC to meet me, I'll remind you that you don't have to. My signing at Sunridge Chapters is a go for June 9th from 1-3 P.M.  Come down and ask me any questions you might have about Hunter's Gambit, take a picture together or ask me about book suggestions for your own to-be-read list. If you don't already have a copy of Hunter's Gambit, you can pick one up and get it signed, along with everything else you need to keep your summer reading list active.

Also, thank you for letting me play with this for one more week! I promise I'll get back to the Sian Ku religion next week!

An Update

My finger is doing much better, but I didn't want to push my healing by doing a long blog post, even if I am loving the religion posts I've been sharing with you all. Instead, I'm going to take a step back and talk about the future.

I'm going to keep writing. No big surprises there, but it should still be said. That obvious bit out of the way, I'm hoping that I'll be able to have the sequel to Hunter's Gambit, tentatively titled Lord's Curse, out for near the end of the year. I already have book three written and I'm hoping to have the rough draft for book four finished this November during Nanowrimo. That's really far ahead to be planning, which is why I'm not giving specific dates for anything yet.

I'm still working on my art, though less in a selling fashion and much more in fun fashion. Also, I may be extending some of my creativity into playing around with making jewelry. Mainly because I wanted to create a new necklace for myself, and when the pieces I ordered arrived, I got over thirty instead of the four or five pieces I thought I'd ordered. Weird, but I figure if the first ones work, I'll put them up for ordering. It can be relaxing to work with my hands on something like crafting or painting or cross-stitching to recharge myself for writing.

In much more interesting news, I'm sure you all remember my book signing happening early next month on June 9th. While I am amazingly excited to be having one, I have even more exciting news. This year I'll be at When Words Collide again!

When Words Collide is Calgary's premier author and book festival. In addition to three full days of panels and presentations put on by your favourite authors, there is also a full signing on Saturday night, a merchant gallery for you to purchase books (open throughout the event), meetups, parties, book launches, readings and more! This year I will be one of the presenters and Hunter's Gambit will be available in the merchant gallery. I will also be part of the signing for the first time ever.

The panels I'll be on are Awakening to Social Sensitivity, Writing a character who could never be me, Villains, Antagonists and other Baddies and East and West: How our mindset changes the way we tell stories.

This post is getting long, but I want to tell you how incredibly excited I am about being part of these panels. I actually suggested East and West, which is going to be an in-depth discussion of the differences in plotting and structure that are common in North America and Japan. If you've ever noticed that animes and light novels seem to move at a different pace and with different plot points, e.g., not following the three or five act structure, this is why.

I'll have more on the times I'll be presenting, what rooms I'll be in and bring descriptions of the other three in a later blog since the schedule is in no way finished yet.

Will you be coming to my signing? Or maybe to When Words Collide? Let me know in the comments below. 

The religion of Sian Ku

Most of the religions of my world tend to treat with each other like cats in a cage; while the fur does occasionally fly, for the most part, they live in peace. Some are more popular, some are less but none have any belief that non-believers are doomed or must be converted, which has cut down on most religious wars. In general, only those who remain outside the systems and choose to follow no religion are the only ones treated as social pariahs. It is almost universally believed that these people, atheists and agnostics alike, don't have a place to go when they die, that no gods will judge their souls and no one will weep for them at their graves.

Kuzunoha skates this edge and is part of the reason why she is treated with contempt and wariness in Hidan, despite her striking looks and family connections. Most of the priests in Hidan treat her with veiled contempt as well. However, since she has always been free with her money, all but the head priestess of the Sian religion in Hidan ignore her heathenish tendencies. That head priestess hates Kuzunoha, but since it's well known that she didn't like Kuzunoha before she took the position, she has simply taken to ignoring her completely, believing her lost and due any punishment she will receive upon her death. The only priest who seems to be straight out friendly is priest Bendigo, the jovial priest that Kuzunoha asks for a blessing in Hunter's Gambit. Though he hasn't told her this, he believes that she is not irreligious, but that she has been called to service by a deity that she hasn't found yet.

The Sian Ku have a vibrant religion, a tiered polytheistic system. On the lowest level are the multitude of  "little gods". Little gods are created by simple interaction. Every tree, rock, or animal has its own god or spirit and even man-made objects, such as favourite umbrellas or favourite plates can develop their own little god. Thus, the Sian Ku tend to hold nearly everything with a small amount of reverence, since you never know when you may be angering one of the little gods.

On the next tier are the ancestors. Although, they aren't gods, they are honoured and remembered through ritual. It is believed that after death, ancestors will continue to watch over their descendants, influencing their lives and the direction the family takes. Rebirth is allowed for ancestors who wish to return to earth to aid their families in a more physical way, though a few unpopular sects say that there is no rebirth, only a pit of flame in the center of the world for those ancestors who try to avoid their duty to their descendants.

Every Sian ku family has a deity that they are specifically devoted to. The reason why is explained in their creation story. At the beginning of the universe, the world was grey and lonely. Finally, the light rose above the dark, shedding light upon the world for the first time. With light, seeds, long sleeping in the soil, began to flourish. The gods created of this separation (the major deities) were pleased but saddened that there was no movement to the rest of the world. So each chose their favourite plants and plucked them from the earth, turning them into humans, so that they could explore the world created and lay their roots into every land. Every family honours the deity that they believe plucked their ancestors, oh so long ago.

All of the deities can be male, female, both or neither as they choose, though most have a preference that they adhere to. For ease, I've labelled them as their preferences below.

On the same tier as the ancestors, honoured, but usually not worshipped widely are the minor deities. These gods include the goddesses of battle and sacrifice, the deities of service (twelve in all) and Nandemo, Isashi's patron, the god of twilight and between places.

Above them are the major gods, which until recently were led by the goddess of law, Amiterri, Himiko's family's patron. Nearly a century ago, Tomi took over the position as leader of the gods, bringing chaos with him, but also untold wealth for a few. The other major deities are the god of love, the eightfold gods of misery (six male and two female), the thief (the only deity whose preferences are both or neither rather than a specific gender) and the Innkeeper gods, Kisenya, Yusenya and Tonoma, known as the gods of hospitality and guesting rules.

Next week, I'll discuss how the Sian Ku worship, their holy days and their guiding principles.

A reminder that I'll be at the Sunridge Chapters bookstore for a signing on June 9th, from 12-3pm. Please stop by to say hi or get your book signed if you haven't already.

Lastly, one of my favourite authors, Laura VanArendonk Baugh, has a new book coming out soon! All of the details, as well as a chance for you to check out her incredible cover will be going up on Tuesday. Come back to check it out!

On Editing, and a Correction from Last Week

April has been a wonderful month for me so far, even if I am so far behind on my editing goal for Camp Nanowrimo that it's embarrassing. Not to say that I haven't been working on it. In the last three days, I edited three chapters and two of them had major rewrites needed. Which is actually something I'm not surprised by. 

When I was writing this book, I remember that the end was pretty well set in stone and I was writing to it. In the end, that made the book come out with a wishy-washy beginning and around the middle I finally seemed to hit my stride. There are still definite changes and fixes to make, but I have a lot of chapters that are going to essentially be a click and drag for editing, with a few minor lines edits thrown in. So, while the rough draft was getting a story down, this edit is all about making all of the parts awesome. 

If I end up doing the same thing I did last time, the next edit will be the story again, along with adding in detail, this time with an editors hand giving advice. After that, it goes back to the editor for a final all-around edit. When it comes back to me, I go through it with a full list of final minor changes and double check for any grammar issues that my editor may have missed. 

That said, this edit is going quickly. I'm already done about a quarter of the book. I'm hoping to have this edit done this month or next. Unfortunately, I do have some bad news there. My editor who did the work for Hunter's Gambit is no longer taking on editing clients anymore, which means that I'm going to have to do a lot of work, looking for a new editor. I wish her all the luck on her future endeavours, but I will miss the help she gave me with my novel. 

I'll keep you guys updated, but its my hope to get the next book, tentatively titled Lord's Curse, out to you guys this year, most likely just before Christmas. 

I would like to make one correction to last week's post. I mentioned the exciting news that I was going to be having a signing at one of the local Chapters bookstores later on in April. Unfortunately, that date has changed. The signing is still happening but will be on June 9th instead. On that note, I have been buying items for the signing date and I can't wait to show you everything as soon as I have some of the pieces in place. I will definitely make sure that I have pictures to post afterward!

Summer Camp as a Kid was Never this Fun

I may or may not have accidentally lost track of what day it was today... I thought I had an extra day to have this up. So, I apologize for being late and having this been a little bit short. I promise I'll try to have something better and less thrown together for next week. 

For this week though, I want to talk about something near and dear to my heart; Writing! 

April is the first of Nanowrimo's official events this year. Camp Nano, as it was officially dubbed, gives writers a chance to write or edit and unlike Nanowrimo itself, you can set your own goals. Think 50k is too much to finish? You can set your goal for 25k. Want to edit instead? Choose how many minutes or hours you'd like to edit (3000 is usually what is suggested if you're going for something similar to a 50k event). 

As with every year, I am taking part, though I expect that I won't make my goal. Give me November and I can get 50k done without too much trouble. Give me any other month and I'll struggle. I'm currently trying to work past my own limitations and get used to working on a creative endeavour so much. 

So, I can hear you asking, what is my goal for this month? 3000 minutes of editing, which comes out to 50 hours. I'm currently behind on that goal a little bit. I should be at 1200 min and I'm only at 825 minutes. I really need to buckle down, but I'm not horribly surprised. I celebrated my 11th anniversary with my husband on April 1st. My husband had taken some time off for it and we ended up fitting in leaving the city for a few days, so I knew that I would have to work to get caught up. 

The other thing you may be wondering is what I'm working on. I have made it no secret that I have written ahead in this. Book 2 and 3 are written in rough draft and I have started book 4, though it needs a lot of changes to make it match what I've written so far. This month specifically I'm working on editing book 2. I've finished my first round of editing last year and sent to beta readers. With their review, I've gone through the novel and have written down a full set of changes to make. 

Quite a few chapters will need very minor edits, but a few parts of the story essentially will need a full rewrite. I'm hoping to have this round finished by the end of April so I can start sending it to my editor for a professional run sooner rather than later. My current goal is to have book 2 out for you guys later this year, probably in November or December, but that's still very far off so don't quote me on that quite yet. 

On a separate note, I have some great news for everyone! I will be doing a public signing at a local Chapters! On April 28th, I will be at the Chapters near Sunridge (2555 32nd St NE, Calgary, Alberta, T1Y 7J6) from noon to 3 pm for a signing! Please stop by to see me and pick up your copy of my book! While you can currently pick up my book from Chapters, this signing is an important first step in actually getting my novel into stores to sell, so if you're in Calgary, please stop by! 

EDIT: Unfortunately, the date of the signing has changed. Due to circumstances, the signing will actually be held on June 9th. Sorry for the confusion!