July 2, 2025
What else is between? The Demo Tapes collections! Shorts designed to fit between the moments of the novel, giving the reader a more rounded, better enriched experience when they read Trevor’s Song.
Reminder that the Complete Demo Tapes is available only at my store.
Another reminder that Trevor’s Song and the rest of the Trevolution (well, except the Collected Demo Tapes) is FREE this month, but only at Smashwords. Grab your copies, or just pay the $1.99 for the Complete Demo Tapes.
Oh, wow.
That’s all I’ve got to say.
And yeah, I know I say this about every book I edit. Know why? My clients come to me having done the super hard work. They are working hard and writing books that get better with each one. I’m so thankful to be their editor.
I will not finish this read-through today. Which… AARGH. Now I have to spend four days in the woods at a huge craft festival, wondering what happens and how it all resolves.
Although we got home from the festival site later than I’d anticipated, I still managed to get my words in and I’m still ahead of schedule. The bad news is that the festival’s going to interrupt that and come Monday, I’ll be at a deficit again. But I’m so much happier with the story.
It’s not always write what you know. It’s write what your gut tells you is the right thing.
Also, don’t forget that the Tales from the Sheep Farm books are part of the Smashwords Summer/Winter sale, as well. They are all 50% off during the entire month of July, so go grab some deals.
Not steep enough of a discount? Get over to Kobo, where the ebook of Maybe the Bird Will Rise is 99c.
Is that not enough? Well, stay tuned… today’s the day between, after all! There might be (there will be) something else on sale tomorrow, but for only a quick six days. Don’t blink; you don’t want to miss it.
And a reminder, if you’re in Western PA, to come on out to the Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival, where we’ll be hanging out and selling books. Our books. We’re right by a food truck court and a bunch of picnic tables, and across from the bathroom, and does it GET any better than that? Oh, yes it does — the trees right there are pretty tall and we might be in shade most of the day!
Stop in and make the long days fly past for us. We’re looking at 12-hour days the first three, and only nine on Sunday. Only.
So. Ready for the Book of the Day?
My Nemesis, by Charmaine Craig
There ya go! That link, of course, is an affiliate link, and I’d love it if you’d use it. Any funds I get — from book sales, from editing fees, from affiliate links, and from when you simply stuff my ko-fi with cash, or a thank you for picking up the Beta Reader’s Guide and/or the Writer’s Guide to Library Events — all goes to operational expenses here at West of Mars. With over a hundred miles round trip a day for the Festival, that includes my gas tank this week!
May 29, 2025
What’s with all the Sheep Farm books?
Well… Amazon’s selling the Large Print editions of the first four at a HUGE discount. Up to 70% off! Go get ’em while you can:
Maybe the Bird Will Rise
Populated
Safe House
Saving Sima
Otherwise, yes, this is the last day before a break here on the blog; I’m taking the next week off to move my kid across the country. It hasn’t hit me yet that this is it, that she won’t be popping home every few months between gigs as she works her way up to a permanent position. This is it. This is us going to the permanent position.
I’m still absolutely gobsmacked by this edit I’m in the middle of. I’m letting it sit until I get back, so I can do the second readthrough all at once like I usually do. This is where I catch inconsistencies, so I need things as fresh as possible in my brain. I’ll be spending a lot of time checking my notes for things I know I need to address and scrolling and searching so I can refer back to page numbers and stuff.
In other words, I’ve taken two days off as I get ready for this trip. Call this a gift before a break; a gift to myself!
I don’t know what made me check Amazon’s Large Print prices when I sat down last night to write — I know they often do smaller discounts, but not big ones like this! But there were these HUGE discounts and I kinda had to tell the world because hello? Between 65 and 70% off? Y’all gotta know about THAT deal!
In other words, my last writing session before a break was… not much to talk about.
However, I did get two royalty reports last night! One was from my Large Print editions (hmm. Maybe that’s why I checked Amazon?) and one from Hoopla. I’m sending thanks to all of you who are buying and borrowing my books! I know you’re having fun with them, but if you’d like to see the rest of my books back on Hoopla, please request them!
I’ll have the tent out tonight at the Greensburg Night Market, so if you’re local to Greensburg, PA, come on out and visit us! I’ll be with authors Mary Walsh, Maryann Parfitt, and Doug Solter, for your reading needs. (I do have a Large Print copy of Populated with me, if you can’t wait for Amazon to deliver yours, but that’s the only one. And I’m asking $20 for it, not the $8-and-change that you can get online.)
I Did Something Bad, by Pyae Moe Thet War
(affiliate link)
And come ON! How perfect is that for the last Book of the Day before a break?
I’ll be back once the kid’s moved in and I’m home safe. Be good, stuff my ko-fi ’cause this has been an expensive move for me, not just the kid, buy my books, book my editing services (well, I’ll have limited email, so catch me soon!), and all that!
May 15, 2025
Community’s a way to heal the blahs, right?
I sat down to write last night and looked at the page and thought, “I just don’t have it in me today.” It’s a continuation of my birthday/Mother’s Day and I’m just tired y’all.
But both sides of the front railing are done! All that’s left is the last bit of landscaping, and this project is, six months later, DONE.
I’m going to miss all the contractors. So is Freya Cat. She loved the activity.
I’m deep into this project I officially started yesterday but actually started on Tuesday — when I say on my invoices that I’m starting work now, I’m not kidding!
This is a bit of a unique edit for me, as it’s mostly looking for small points where continuity doesn’t work. It’s great fun and I’m taking lots of notes and trying to keep ’em all organized by storyline/detail.
I’ve got openings if you need me… such is the beauty and the horror of working on Send When Ready!
Like I said above, I looked at the page and sighed. I did get maybe a hundred or so words in; just enough to outline where I’m headed, and then gave in to the blahs. And then I fired up Netflix and decided to just let it all marinate. If it counts when my friends and clients do it, it counts when I do it too.
Need a digital copy of Maybe the Bird Will Rise?
This Cursed House by Del Sandeen
(affiliate link)
May we all flush away the blahs and get back on track. Right now, the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and my neighbor just got back from walking her kids to the bus stop.
May 14, 2025
Permission to Enter features women in transition periods in their lives. Grab a copy. Request it via Hoopla — it used to be there! — and read it through Libby if your library has it. Not all do.
Transition day around here really means I’m transitioning to a new edit, although I may have actually started it yesterday. What can I say; I love what I do. (Also? Thanks to the clients who are quick with payment! You are always my favorite clients.)
I do have a couple of errands to run today first, though.
Like I said, I’m starting something new that’ll take me up to my week off. Don’t think it’s a week at the beach; I’ll be moving my youngest over a thousand miles away. And yikes, do we have a lot to do between now and then!
Another night of exceeding my thousand-word goal with Absolutely Alyssa. I was hoping to hit 10k words, but fell a few hundred short. Not bad, though, to be so close! It’s still a lot of fun, although it is VERY much a rough draft.
I woke up to royalties this morning! That’s always fun, and it’s so wonderful to see people reading the whole series. And this report contained royalties for the Legacy launch… it was my best book launch yet. May you all keep reading with me and helping me reach new readers, too.
If you’ve been wanting to grab a digital copy of Maybe the Bird Will Rise, keep an eye on your favorite retailer between now and the weekend. That’s all I’m saying. Remember it’s always part of your subscriptions at Kobo Plus, Scribd, and others. Got a Fable group? Why not read it together? And it’s on Hoopla — remember to request the rest of the series — and in some Libby systems.
Last Night at the Telegraph Club, by Malinda Lo
(Affiliate link)
That’s it! Remember to feed my ko-fi if you’re enjoying the content — I’m not paywalling it, and appreciate your support. Send your reader friends to my books and your author friends to my editing services.
Not all transition periods hurt, and I am eager to get to work today!
April 24, 2025
I have a super busy day today, and we are starting off with a delightfully chilly morning. (Saving Sima’s here because it’s set in the late fall and there’s a couple times where characters are cold, and what do you mean that’s a lame reason?)
Wow. A lot going on here!
Today’s the monthly Pennwriters meeting, and I am meeting someone before it even begins, on a quick personal matter. All’s good, and the Pennwriters meeting is one of my favorite diversions of the month. I always suggest this type of format to other writers who want to connect — we have no agenda. We just sit and chat and conversation meanders from the personal to the professional, and we swap tips and team up for things and commiserate and it’s just a wonderful vibe.
I got yet more reports from Kobo Plus, and thank you to everyone reading the Sheep Farm books via Kobo Plus! Don’t forget most of the rest of my catalog is available too, and I of course recommend the short story twins, Permission to Enter and Broken but Undaunted. (The “most of” is because the Complete Demo Tapes is only available through my online store.)
And yes! Safe House is still on sale! Again, thanks to everyone who has picked it up so far, and if you haven’t yet, what are you waiting for? Yes, you can start the series here.
And since it’s Indie Bookstore Weekend, I encourage all my Pittsburgh friends to stop by Blythe Books and pick up hard copies of the Tales from the Sheep Farm series. All are pre-autographed. And if you ask, you can get your hands on the only copies of Saving Sima, Legacy, and Permission to Enter that I left there when I did my last restocking run.
OR
Come see me at the Bad Bitch Bazaar on Sunday. Not quite an indie bookstore but a pop-up bookstore, my friends Mary Walsh and Paige Staudt are going to join me on Craig Street and we’ll be glad to put our books directly into your hands.
Wow. Is that enough? It’s more than enough for me!
Like I said, one of the expected edits arrived. I won’t make much of a start on it today, with the Pennwriters meeting and all, but I can’t wait. My roster of authors works very very hard at their craft and I can’t wait to see what this author has come up with.
The Curious Secrets of Yesterday, by Namrata Patel
(As always, it’s an affiliate link!)
How’s that? Lots going on. Wasn’t I just complaining the other day that life was boring?
It’s these chilly mornings. I’m tellin’ ya. It’s the chilly mornings.
And a reminder: If you’re into what I’m doing here, feel free to buy me a bottle of fountain pen ink. Other ways to support me include buying my books, but also reading through services such as Kobo Plus or even your library apps! I get paid if you read that way, too, and it’s always good to support your local library. Plus, your tax money is underwriting the costs, and when else do you get such a great benefit from your tax dollars?
April 18, 2025
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I am STOKED about today. (I’m also considering pre-napping.)
Lunch with a couple of good author friends, and then I’m hitting the road to Ashtabula, Ohio for the Indie Author Bash, hosted by author Chelsea Banning and Pretty Good Books. I was a late addition to the roster of 50 authors, and grateful they had room to include me. And I get to meet Chelsea! We’ve been buddies on Threads for a bit now, and if you open a copy of her Of Crowns and Legends, you might see my name in it, depending on which edition you get. Might. Maybe. Go look for yourself.
So that brings us to the daily updates:
Not much to report. I’m talking to other editors, and we’re all agreeing that right now requires flexibility in our pricing and billing practices. The times are what they are, so let’s survive them together.
(And remember: Editors deserve living wages, just like every other person out there.)
I’m still waiting on those seven manuscripts… three have been promised imminently, so let’s see which arrives first. My money’s on the longest one.
Not much to say here, either. I got a bit of work done, but also was fighting a migraine. Spring allergies? The lovely scent of mushroom manure left by the landscapers as they correct the damage done by the contractors? I’m not sure, but it did go away quickly.
Safe House is still on sale! Grab your copy, and remember there’s a further discount if you buy it at my shop.
Island Queen, by Vanessa Riley
As always, links to Bookshop.org are affiliate links, and any pennies earn there go to operational expenses here at West of Mars.
If you like what you see and want to be more directly involved in that “editors deserve living wages” part, here’s my ko-fi. Or send a friend over for an edit.
And if you’re at the Indie Author Bash tonight, be sure to say hi!
