Monday, December 31, 2012

Glitches, by Marissa Meyer

Not to be confused with Marissa Mayer of Yahoo, Marissa Meyer is the author of the Lunar Chronicles, a high-tech futuristic fairy tale series for young adults. Glitches is a short prequel to Cinder, the first novel in the Lunar Chronicles, which introduces the character of Cinder, an orphaned cyborg who is transplanted to a new and confusing life with yes, a mean stepmother. The richness of detail in Meyer's writing draws the reader into the world of the Lunar Chronicles, and the fast-paced story Glitches is a fast read that's sure to leave readers hungry for more. Fortunately, the next volume of the Lunar Chronicles, Scarlet, is set to debut in February.

Glitches is currently available for free (through January 3rd) for Nook or Kindle, or look for it on Tor.com.

Happy New Year!

2012 has been quite simply life-changing for me. Never did I expect when I listed "Write more" as a priority goal for the year, that by December I would have written an entire manuscript of a novel -- especially since the idea for this particular novel didn't even come about until August 2012!

2013 is completely uncharted territory -- I will have queries going out to agents soon, and I have a whole batch of new challenges to face, so I'm taking the goals in baby steps rather than year-long planning this time. Besides, I wrote such good, worthy goals in 2012 that I think I should keep working at them.

As we wished the (very surprised) cashier in Munson's Chocolates: Have a safe, happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Welcome!

Welcome to my newly revamped blog!  I'll be posting some reviews here soon, along with updates on my work in progress, This Hallowed Home.

This Hallowed Home is an historical fiction novel set in Gettysburg, PA immediately after the Civil War battle has been fought there.  The central character, Jennie Wills, and her husband, David, find themselves caught up in the process of bringing the town back to normal after the chaos and destruction of the battle, including the grim task of setting up a national cemetery for the fallen soldiers.  However, when the dead have been buried and President Lincoln has departed after delivering his famous Gettysburg Address, the Wills family finds that their lives may never be the same as they were before war came to their home town that is now "hallowed ground."

I wrote the first draft of This Hallowed Home in November, as part of National Novel Writing Month  (NaNoWriMo), which was an eye-opening experience for getting to know my own writing and for getting a feel for the life of a professional writer.  For more information about NaNoWriMo, I highly encourage you to visit their website at http://nanowrimo.org/.  I am now into the editing process, and hopeful about moving forward from here.