"Wait, you're a CO-AUTHOR?"
Yes. Yes I am. I know I haven't been keeping folks updated (for many reasons of my own), but it is true. I have spent the last year or so co-writing a book with a fellow author and close friend, F.P. Spirit, and now it is FINALLY PUBLISHED! And I am so excited!! The book is titled "Princess of Lanfor" and it is available on Amazon as an ebook, and will be in paperback as well later this month! For more information about this awesome book (and F.P. Spirit), please watch this YouTube video I put together to announce the book, explain a bit about it, and featuring me, myself, and I reading an excerpt from it! When you are finished watching, don't forget to share it with your friends! Get the news out, because I think the world needs to see this book!
I cannot tell you how happy I am that the second installment of Tales of the Wovlen is FINALLY DONE and PUBLISHED! Can you believe that it's been 3 years since I published the first book??
I have been so frustrated with this book, because it took forever to get it written, edited, and formatted. And I know you've been frustrated because "What the heck is taking that author so long to get the next book done?!" and "She keeps setting a date, then pushes it back. What's up with her?" But, the frustration is finally over. At long last, the book is published! You can buy the paperback at CreateSpace (which gives more of the royalties back to the author). Or you can Pre-order the Kindle ebook on Amazon. Unfortunately, it will be a while before I can offer signed copies for sale. If you would like to preview the story before you buy the book, that's not a problem! You can read the prologue (chapter before the first chapter) here: Thank You For Loving Me You can also read a snippet of chapter 9: Annaka & Arden Please, please, PLEASE leave a review of the book on Amazon after you've finished reading it. Just a simple, honest review will be fine. Even bad reviews are helpful! Every review I get boosts my book's stats, regardless of how many stars they are. So please, help this poor author get her belated book noticed by reviewing it on Amazon, blogging about it, making a video review, and sharing it with your friends via social media or in real life! As a bonus, if you are a proud book worm, like to make book suggestions to others, really want to review my book specifically, and have a blog or Youtube account to share that review on, I will send you a FREE ebook of The Dragon's Due for you to review! Just send me a message on my Facebook page, and we'll iron out the details there. You can also help out by sharing the image above! It can be pinned to Pinterest and I will be sharing it to my Twitter and Facebook pages, so please pop over to one (or all) of those and click LIKE and SHARE (or retweet... or pin it... whatever the case may be). Thank you guys for all your help, patience, and support thus far, and please enjoy the continued adventures of Keegan and Pharrgon the dragon!
I was cleaning up my documents on my computer when I ran across this random story. I have no idea where I was going with it, I don't even remember how I came up with it, but it had a certain charm to it that prevented me from deleting it forever. So, I brushed it up and decided to post it on here. Enjoy! ![]()
“They’re going to lock me up. I’m going to be locked up. I’m a freak. I’m the stuff horror stories are made of. They’re going to lock me up.” She kept repeating the last part over and over again in whispers.
He thought a moment. He could feel her fear. She was overwhelmed with it. He knew how she felt: in her mind there was no end in sight. “Yes, they will lock you up,” He said. She went silent instantaneously. “If you continue to submit to your fears, your nightmares, and your anger, then yes; they will have no choice but to lock you up. But,” he added “If you step out of your comfort zone, take control of your fears, learn how to be yourself again, and use your power for good, then no one will ever be able to lock you away. Not mentally. Not physically. Not ever.” A blue dinner plate sized eye looked out at him, moist and glassy with tears, and the serpentine slit contracted, focusing on him. “But… I’m so, so…” The curtain she hid behind shivered as she did. “I don’t want to be locked up again. I don’t want to be a monster. I’m so scared.” She whispered the last part. He nodded. “That’s to be expected. I don’t believe anyone blames you for feeling that way.” He held his hand out toward her. “You don’t have to face this alone, Nova. You have friends, and they are ready to help you. I’m ready to help you.” He added the last part slowly. She stared at him for a long moment, then she shifted and moved. Slowly, a giant, clawed, scaly paw moved out to meet his. As soon as the light hit her paw, she froze, staring at it in horror. He pushed his hand out farther, drawing her attention back to him. He gently wrapped his fingers around one of her massive digits, giving it a reassuring squeeze. She swallowed hard, loud enough to plainly hear, then she took a deep breath. “Okay. I can do this. As long as someone is willing to give me a little help, I can help myself.” He smiled, “That sounds like the Nova I know.” A faint smile spread over her features, then she moved out from behind the curtain and into the open. Her scales glittered as the light touched them and the wings on her back trembled lightly. The end of her long tail twitched back and forth anxiously. She crouched low on her four powerful legs, and her head hung close to the floor. He reached down and put his hand under her jaw, gently pulling her head up. “A dragon does not bow her head so low to the ground.” He said as she slowly lifted her head to his eye level, “She carries it tall, with a grace and strength and confidence that will make her ancestors proud.” “I don’t feel very confident.” She said in a soft, quivering voice. He nodded. “You know that. I know that. But nobody else has to know that, right?” She stared at him for a moment, her eyes twitching as she thought about his words, then she lifted her head and stood to her full height, pushing her chest out and folding her wings in tight. He smiled at her. “That’s what a proud dragon looks like.”
“The red dragon knows we are here...”
A witch on the hunt. When the Princess Erewhon is taken captive, Keegan must set out to rescue her. Little does he know that he is playing into the witch’s hand. Nightmarish monsters, dead dragons, dragon slayers, and insane warriors are nothing compared to what lies in wait – a red dragon so terrible, even Pharrgon and Walneff dread to face it. If he somehow survives, then Keegan must still face the witch who has sworn to kill him. It seems the only way for Keegan to win this battle is to die. He must pay – THE DRAGON’S DUE ![]()
If you haven't been keeping up with the challenge, you can catch up by checking out this category right here: The Writing Challenge Series
Today's Challenge: the first sentence of the first chapter of your first published novel/story. "This was not going over well at all." - Tales of the Wovlen: The Dragon's Son Um. Well. That was underwhelming. I really need to work on my first sentence hook. It would have sounded better if I had gone with "He expected his brother would disagree with him, fight with him even, but not threaten war and raise an army in one breath." or "He'd expected to challenge his brother, not a demon." or "His brother throwing a tantrum was expected, but threatening to unleash a crazed dragon and start a war was going too far." Because, you know, dragons are instant attention grabbers and great hooks. So are demons. And wars too. ANYTHING is better than "Well. That didn't go so good. Derp, derp, derp." ![]()
If you haven't already, be sure to check out DAY ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE & SIX of this challenge!
Today's challenge is: Your favorite character out of all the characters you’ve ever written. This is really hard. It would either be Pharrgon the regal dragon, Walneff Feldost the riddling prophet, Gillion the Jester, or Vliron Nightstalker the rogue assassin. If you’ve read my first book, then don’t worry - you haven’t met Gillion or Vliron yet. They are introduced in book #2, which is coming out really soon (No, really! It really is! I swear!). Trust me when I say that Gillion and Vliron are AWESOME. Because, they really are awesome. And you don’t have to take my word for it. You can ask any of the testers who have pre-read the 2nd book (or parts of it). I have heard that they think Gillion and Vliron are awesome, though, they are starting to split into teams on who they think is more awesome - Team Gillion and Team Vliron.... my awesome characters may end up starting a fan war.... Anyway. Where was I? Oh yes – favorite character. If I judge by which character is fun to write, I think Gillion would be my favorite. He is such a cut up! If I want something funny said or done, Gillion is my man. If I want something crazy or spastic done, Gillion is also my man. If I want someone to make some awesome ninja moves and kill monsters Legolas style, all while smiling and cracking jokes, Gillion is definitely my man. However, on the other end of the spectrum, I've had a lot of fun with Vliron. He is just the opposite of Gillion. If I want somebody to do or say something mean and cold, Vliron is my man. If I want somebody other than Pharrgon to scare the monsters, Vliron is my man. If I want someone to be a suspicious, sneaky, and befuddling character that the reader likes one minute and hates the next, Vliron is also my man. If I want someone to take a really bad beating..... then Keegan is my man. Though, Vliron has taken some really nasty ones as well. Picking a favorite character is impossible. I like them all for different reasons. I like writing them and learning their styles. I like torturing them and seeing how they respond. I like killing them too. Yes. I know. I have issues. I plan to capitalize on that though! Would any of you be interested in buying one of these T-shirts should I start an online shop?:
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Hey! This is going to be a really fun challenge today, but don't forget to check out DAY ONE, TWO, THREE, and FOUR if you haven't been keeping up with this challenge so far.
Today's challenge is: Your protagonist is somehow transported to this world, meets you, and learns that you are responsible for creating his/her world. What is the first thing he/she would say or do after learning this fact? Well..... I'm doomed. Keegan is technically my protagonist in Tales of the Wovlen (he's such an idiot, but we won't get into that). If he found out that I was the person who caused the red dragon to kick his people out of their kingdom, turning them into nomads (the life he was born into), and that I wrote the prophecy about the Dragon's Son, picked him for the job, and then sent the army that massacred his friends and family....... Yeah, he'd try to chop off my head. And yes, I'd scream and run like a little girl. He may be an idiot, but he gets ugly when he's angry, and I have a highly developed sense of survival. If Pharrgon (the dragon) was with Keegan, though, he would be more understanding. He'd see that I created the safe forest for him to hide in, all the wonderful creatures for him to enjoy, put Keegan in his life, and made him the formidable beauty that he is. He would try to help Keegan see the positive side to all of that, and he would certainly keep Keegan from chopping my head off. There is also one other delicate little thing that Pharrgon would be thankful to me for, but I can't mention her right now because...
Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! Make sure to wear green, or you'll get pinched (that's what happens in my house)!
By the way, don't forget to check out DAY ONE and DAY TWO of this challenge, if you missed them. So, today's challenge is: a trope in your genre that gets on your nerves. I'll be honest; I had to look up what "trope" meant. Trope - a: a word or expression used in a figurative sense : figure of speech ![]()
Ooookay. A cliche! I got it now. Why didn't you just say so?
So, what is a cliche in my genre (fantasy) that gets on my nerves? I have no idea. Cliches very, very rarely get on my nerves. There is something about the predictable that makes it familiar, like an old friend, and I like that. Thinking about it now, there is one cliche in fantasy that, only recently, I have come to find a little annoying. It is the super strong, tough, battle hardened, young female characters. In most of the fantasy books I have read, the female characters are either warriors, assassins, mages, barbarians, or some other type of Xena Warrior Princess or Red Sonja "bad-A". Plus, they are always young and hot. Now, I'm not saying that tough, young, hot chicks are bad or unrealistic. I'm a tough, young, hottie if I say so myself, but not all women are young, hot warriors. Some are gentle and delicate - the healer, and the priestess. Some are quiet, regal, and proud - the queen, the duchess, and the farmer's wife. Some are fun-loving and flirty - the bar maid, the gypsy girl, and the merchant's daughter. And don't forget about the sassy boss - the cook, the store keeper's wife, and the governess. Not all women are Xena warrior princess, or Lessa the dragon rider, or Arya the elfin princess. Also, battle hardened warriors are definitely NOT young and hot. They are beautiful in their own way, but they have many scars and they are tired and worn thin, because they have seen many, many gruesome battles. The only reason this cliche has started to bug me is because of the reviews a friend was getting on his first book (The Heroes of Ravenford by F.P. Spirit). I LOVED his book. I adore one of the female characters introduced in it. But many of the reviewers who read it were upset because of the "lack of strong female characters". Excuse me? What in the cube kingdom of gelatinous are you talking about? What happened to the "stop using cliches" sermon? Everyone wants "fresh content", but as soon as one of their favorite cliches are avoided, they throw a fit. I guess what actually gets on my nerves in the fantasy genre is the readers. Authors are always getting preached at to create original stories free of cliches. But then they get bashed if they publish a book without cliches. Shut up, you picky readers! Either read the book and enjoy it, or go write your own. Then let's see how well you handle criticism from other readers like yourself who love/hate/love/hate/love/hate cliches. OH! And one other thing that annoys me about the fantasy genre: NOT ENOUGH DRAGONS. When I read a fantasy book, and there aren't any dragons, I feel just like this chick from Game of Thrones:
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Don't forget to check out The Writing Challenge - Day One.
Today's challenge: a one sentence summary of your current WIP (work in progress). Oh boy. Let me see. How do I put this? The witch did not really die at the hands of the hero and has possessed an important character, causing the dragons and the giants to emerge from hiding and help the Dragon's Son stop her before she summons an ancient demon and starts a world war. Can you guess which book it is that I am working on? That's right: book #3 in Tales of the Wovlen. Now, I will leave you to fret about your favorite characters because, yes, they are in peril and, yes, some of them are going to die! Be afraid. Be very afraid. ![]()
I didn't really know what to post about today, so I thought I would just post a few writing prompts.
What is a writing prompt? (Believe it or not, I have actually heard that question a few times.) A writing prompt is an idea to get you started writing. My favorite prompts are for books and stories, but you can find writing prompts for nearly anything. If you use them for writing stories, you can find them in just about every genre - fantasy, science fiction, romance, etc. Today, I am going to share a few writing prompts that I made. You can find more of them on my website under WRITING PROMPTS. As you will notice, my obsession with dragons carries on into my writing prompts (and everything else I do, to be honest).
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Kathryn FoglemanAuthor of the fantasy series, Tales of the Wovlen, Kathryn spends a great deal of time in the world of her imagination, having tea with fire breathing dragons, writing books on flying space ships, and practicing her mad scientist laugh with gusto. However, on occasion,she returns to this world just to play with her dog and blog about her fun. My BookGrab a Button!![]() Archives
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