The Warriors Short Story Competition

Hi all!

If you're not a fan of the Warriors, or Warriors Cats, series, you may not have any idea of what I'm going to talk about today. Warriors is a book series written by Erin Hunter, a penname for multiple authors. The Warriors series focuses on groups of cats, called Clans, that live around a forest and later on a lake. There are hundreds of characters from the series and the authors have written 60+ books. If you haven't seen my other blog posts on Warriors, you can check them out here and here.

The latest Warriors book to be published

So, when it was announced that Warriors would be holding their first ever short story collection, I could feel the younger version of me getting excited. Despite all of the fanfiction that has been written on the series, the website has never held a competition for all the authors out there. This competition has been split to under 13s and over 13s. 500 words have to be written, following on from the prompt that they have provided.

Although I wish they would have given us a higher word count and more freedom to write what we wanted, I still think it's an interesting prompt. We are introduced to a few cats from ThunderClan and also given a few hints as to what we can write about. I have decided that I will continue to write from Brightpaw's perspective, and pick the story up from when they leave camp. I'm not sure about what characters to include yet, as the word count is so low that you can't introduce that many. But I do have an idea of where I want the story to go.

Some tips for if you do want to enter:

Don’t include too many characters - you’ll run out of words more quickly.

Don’t focus too much on description - you don’t have enough words.

You don’t need to follow the prompt to the letter - if you want Brightpaw to head to RiverClan or twolegplace, go with that instead! Don’t feel pressured to make her interact with her siblings or Swiftpaw.

StarClan does not need to appear - you can just write an ordinary day if you want to.

Want to switch POV? - Don’t be afraid to do this if you don’t want to write about Brightpaw or ThunderClan.

Foreshadow if you want to - You can foreshadow any future event you want.

If this competition is successful, I hope they do more. Perhaps they could give us the freedom to write about any events from the books, or even for people to use their own characters. I'm hoping that they will expand on this in the future, as it could lead to some amazing stories from fans. I would also love to write more about my original character, Russetheart, as it's been years since I've revisited her story.

The competition entry page

I still read every Warriors book that comes out now, and I can't wait to start writing my entry. The deadline is the 10th December, so I'm hoping to finish NaNoWriMo and then start working on my entry. Perhaps after the winners have been announced I'll share what I wrote about in a separate blog post!

If you're a fan of the series and want to enter, I'd advise you do it. After all, you haven't got anything to lose! If you want to check it out, you can here: Competition Page.

And the entry page is here, with the prompt and rules: Prompt and Rules.

Good luck to anyone who enters!

That's it for this week, see you next week!

81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology

Hi all!

This week I wanted to inform you all of a new anthology that I have been published in: the 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology. This anthology includes 1000 stories by 1000 authors, all 81 words long each. This anthology has been years in the making, but was published yesterday!

81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology
1,000 Stories by 1,000 Authors – A World Record Breaking Book

Profits from sales of this book go to the Arkbound Foundation…

…a charity that aims to widen access to literature and improve diversity within publishing by running projects that empower people from disadvantaged backgrounds and deprived communities to get their voices heard.

The 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology contains 1,000 stories written by 1,000 authors who submitted their work to the 81 Words Writing Challenge run on Chris Fielden’s website. Each story is exactly 81 words in length.

The 81 Words Writing Challenge was created to raise awareness of the importance of careful editing, support authors, celebrate diversity and raise money for charity. Every story submitted to the challenge has been published so that writers can gain the experience of having their work edited and then see their stories distributed in print and eBook formats all over the planet.

The publication of this book has also set an unofficial world record for the most contributing authors published in an anthology. You can learn why it’s an ‘unofficial’ world record by reading the book’s introduction.  Profits generated by sales of this book are donated to the Arkbound Foundation.

This book was brought together thanks to Christopher Fielden, who has put together and published many anthologies. All of them raise money for various charities, and you can take a look here: Writing Challenges.

That’s it for this week, I hope you check out this anthology and support Chris! See you next week!

Famished - Excerpt

Hi all!

This week I thought I’d share a short excerpt from one of my reader magnets - Famished. This is the prequel story to Mute, and is completely free to download when you sign up to my mailing list.

You can sign up here: Famished

All it knows is this relentless hunger. It can't remember the last time it ate, but its stomach is telling it that it never has. It paces back and forth in its cage, its flat nostrils flaring. It knows that food is out there, it just needs to find it. 

***

Violetta can't help but stare at the screen in fascination. The creature prowls around its metal cage like a cat, stopping every so often to look at the camera. Every time it does, she feels like it's looking into her very soul. 

"Violetta. You're needed in interrogation." A voice crackles over the intercom. 

For a moment she's tempted to ignore it. They don't have to know that she's in here, watching the specimen. But, if she doesn't, she'll never get trusted with her own mission. 

Then she could see the creature in action. 

With a sigh she stands up with a stretch, pushing her chair back underneath the table. The creature pauses to look at the camera once more, and it sends a shiver down her spine. 

Does it really know what she's doing? 

Pushing that thought aside she exits the dull grey room into the hallway. Here things are a bit brighter, the walls have been adorned with colourful paintings. Some depict the creature hunting in a forest, while others have it feeding on some poor soul. It makes her want to see the creature again. 

Underneath one of the paintings is the creature's name - wendigo. 

She could stand here all day if they'd let her, admiring the way that the wendigo kills. 

Later. First let's see what they want. 

No-one apart from the higher-ups know people's names. When on a mission however you can choose to share it. She's not sure if she will yet. 

Once she gets past the colourful paintings, she picks the first door on the left. Inside are two men and one woman.

Am I interrogating all of them? 

It's then she notices the small silver knives dangling around their necks. They weren't prisoners, they were her own people. 

"Please, sit down." The woman motions with a fake smile. 

They're all seated at one end of the table with a single chair on the other end. As she sits down, she can't help but feel like she'll be the one who is interrogated. 

"Why am I here?" She asks calmly. 

One of the men, who's short with a thick black beard, is the next one to speak. "You have been chosen for a mission."

Her heart races in excitement. "When?"

The bearded man smiles. "Three months from now. We've managed to get you a job at a university in Plymouth. Librarian." 

"A University?" She repeats. "That's... That's a large hunting ground." 

"Indeed. But as you know we like to test our children in different ways." 

Violetta had always hated to be called a child. She's almost thirty. But that's what everyone is called around here. The Children of Purgatory. The name meant more to her father than her, but God knows where he is now. On some grand mission probably. 

"Is it just me?" 

"No, you and one other," The bearded man leans his hands on the table. "We expect great things from you." 

Her heart swells. "I won't let you down, I promise." 

"Good. Because the person you're working with hasn't been fully initiated yet." 

Her heart plummets. "What?" 

"We picked him up when retrieving this wendigo. Apparently, it was his father. He seems desperate to protect it." 

She can't believe what she's hearing. She had to wait years for her first mission and this guy gets one without even joining properly? Her hands ball into fists under the table. 

What makes him so special? 

***

I hope you enjoyed reading! If you would like to read the rest of the story, you can download it here:

That’s it for this week! Next week will be the launch week of an anthology that I have been published in, so keep an eye out for that! See you next week!

The Machines in Years

Hi all,

With Years coming out in April I thought I would discuss the world of the book. This book is set thousands of years in the future, where humans have almost completely destroyed the Earth with climate change. The humans that are left have built machines that can keep the Earth alive for a period of time. These are named after various Earth goddesses in different cultures. There are children who have been genetically altered to be born with the Gaia Gene, which keeps them alive and unable to age if they are put into one of the Machines. Many or few Gaia children can be born in each machine cycle, so the government keeps tabs on every one that is born. The government uses Gaia children to extend the Earth's lifespan instead of changing their polluting ways. Companies and people can continue to live comfortably, without having to change their lifestyle to save the Earth. No interruptions of comfort to them, and they don't have to take responsibility for their own actions. Now, onto the Machines themselves:

Sif Machine.

The first machine to be built, and revolutionary for its time. It was built at a time where the Earth was near collapse, and society saw this machine as their saviour. However, when a Gaia child was placed in this machine, they would die immediately and only heal the Earth for a few days at a time. They were getting through Gaia children faster than they could be born, so they started building another machine.

Pachamama Machine.

This machine was built alongside Sif's, but once scientists started seeing how Sif was getting through Gaia children, they modified Pachamama. The last Gaia child to be born that cycle was put into the machine. And, to everyone's relief, powered the machine for 386 days. The Gaia child died towards the end of the machine cycle, but their sacrifice gave scientists more time to genetically alter children for the machine. With technology starting to advance once more, the next machine was commissioned.

Terra Machine.

Terra was built using parts from Pachamama. The government took a risk in taking one machine offline to be used for another. This one was twice the size of Pachamama and Sif, and was more technologically advanced. The first time a Gaia child went inside however, they immediately died without giving life to the Earth. This happened a few more times before the scientists sorted the glitch out. The next Gaia child to go inside after it was fixed replenished the Earth for eighteen years. And, when the doors opened, they stepped out alive and barely aged a day. This is when the government came up with the idea of putting the same person in the machine over and over, which reduces the amount of lives ruined by the machine. By now the public had started referring to Gaia children as 'sacrifices' and harassed them whenever they left the machine. With the Gaia child out of the machine, the Earth would slowly start to die once more. People hated the fact that their lives would be inconvenienced every time a Gaia child was given a few days respite.

Privthi Machine.

The last machine to be built before Gaia. This machine was the one that changed everyone's lives. It could hold a Gaia child for fifty years before needing repairs. Fifty years of the Earth being replenished with lush green forests, clean water and little to no natural disasters. Each fifty year cycle was bliss for those who didn't have to go in it. The Gaia child however, never came out the same way they went in. Hallucinations and paranoia became rife, and they never felt like they could rest. So, the government decided to extend their stay in the outside world from a few days to a year with each cycle. Still, it did not improve their mental state much. This machine was burned by vandals in between a fifty-year cycle. Luckily, the Gaia machine was half-built.

Gaia Machine.

The machine that is currently in use in Years. It has been made using parts from Sif and what could be recovered from Prithvi. Gaia has been in use for four centuries. However, it has started to fail. Despite a Gaia child giving years of their life to the Earth, it's no longer enough. Natural disasters occur during each cycle and the ozone is developing holes. The Earth is dying once more, no matter how many Gaia children give their lives to it. So, it's successor is being made, and everyone hopes that it will save them indefinitely without any changes on their part.

That's it for this week, I hope you enjoyed reading! See you next week!

My Favourite Horror Tropes

Hi all!

As it's Halloween today I thought I'd write a horror related blog post! I read and watch a lot of horror, so I thought it would be fun to share some of my favourite horror media tropes.

Ancient Tombs/Pyramids

I love horror that is set in a cramped space such as a tomb. In most cases the villain are undead or angry gods. I love seeing characters try to escape while trapped in such a small area and get picked off one by one. My favourite film with this trope is The Pyramid.

Events After an Apocalypse.

Seeing the world get destroyed by deadly viruses or nuclear weapons never gets old in my eyes. You get to see the characters adjust to their new world and the threats around them. I especially like the virus trope, as other characters see their loved ones deteriorate and develop symptoms.

Creatures That Can't Move.

The way that I've seen this done best is the Weeping Angels in Doctor Who. The monster can't move while it's being watched, but then it's up to the characters to continually keep their eyes on it. At some point, they eventually look away.

I don’t think Rocky would be much help in a horror film…

Cat Scares.

In films, you think there's going to be a massive jump scare but instead it's just a cat. If you've read my other blog posts you'll know why I like this one!

Long Limbs.

I don't know why disproportionally long arms freak me out so much. It always send a shiver down my spine. It's why I used a wendigo in Mute, as they can be known to grow larger the older they are.

Research Labs.

A group of people are working away on an experimental government project in a lab and it escapes! It then hunts everyone down one by one until it either escapes or is killed in a dramatic fashion. The experiment usually has only one weakness, which the characters take ages to figure out. I love this one as you never know exactly when the monster is going to pop up.

Aliens.

An alien creature is accidentally brought onto a ship and wreaks havoc while killing everyone. The Alien franchise is great for this, especially in the second film when there was hundreds of Xenomorphs!

That's it for this week, I hope you enjoyed reading! See you next week!

PS; looking for some last minute horror books? Check out the ones in these bundles!

October Tricks and Treats

Halloween Frights

My Longest Series Yet

Hi all!

On the 1st November I'll be writing the first book in the Original Elementals series: Frostbite. I've already announced it as my NaNoWriMo project for this year, and I'm hoping to hit 60K at least. My writing has been a bit hit and miss since I started writing Street Rats, due to stress and fluctuations in my mental health. I love writing, and I hate it when my anxiety gets in the way of me doing it properly. Hopefully Frostbite will change that.

If you didn't know, the Original Elementals series will be ten books total. They will each have a different main character, and a different adventure in each. You will discover how the originals got their elemental powers and dragons. How elemental powers became widespread, and how this started effecting natural dragon species. Draca will also be in these books, his original self, not his clone. You'll also see how the books about the originals were written, and if all the details inside them really were correct...

This will be my longest series yet, and my most ambitious. I'm hoping they'll all be around the same length as the books in the Elemental Dragons series - around 300 pages. I'm aiming to have all books written in two and a half years, with other standalone books written in between. This will not effect my publishing schedule, which is currently two books a year. In fact, once Years has come out, I have the following publishing plan:

Celestial Plague Trilogy - October 2022, April 2023, October 2023

Curse of Anubis Quadrilogy - April 2024, October 2024, April 2025, October 2025

Of course, this could all change! Especially as one day I would like to increase publishing to three books a year. That all depends on how much people like my books, however!

Original Elementals will be a long adventure, and I'm hoping a fun one. It might be the only prequel series that I write as I currently have no plans for sequels or prequels for any of my other books. I just love the Elemental Dragons universe so much and I just think that I have so much more to give it, hence Original Elementals. I thought I would answer a few burning questions you might have below...

Will there be a sequel series?

Maybe. I have ideas, but I'm trying to piece it all together. It could happen, it could not.

Will the main characters in Original Elementals act exactly like their Elementa Dragons clone?

In some instances, they will. But, the originals and the clones have had different upbringings and experiences. They won't be exactly alike, but you'll definitely be able to see all the similarities.

Will their dragons act differently as they aren't bonded?

Yes, although they love each other they will be more prone to acting out and disobeying orders. They're also more likely to take off at any moment, as there's no physical connection between them. This will cause bumps in the road, but the originals will have to figure out how to overcome this in their journey.

Will the Wyrms make an appearance?

Yes, but not in their evolved form. The scientists helped them evolve a hundred years after the events of Original Elementals, so they will be tiny parasites in these books. They will mostly be seen with Draca, as they used its body as a host in the past.

Will there be a cat in this series?

Of course! My Twitter followers voted on a grey and white cat, the name is currently tied between Aspen and Flurry. I like both names, so I might do another poll to decide!

There's only nine originals - why are there ten books?

That's a secret you'll learn once I get to that book!

Will we discover why dragons were separated into class systems?

Yes! Before the events of Original Elementals, there was no such thing as common, uncommon, rare and premier. The books will explain how this came to be, and the repercussions of this. It will also explain why common dragons are seen as the most dangerous, and why fifteen is the age that people get their dragon egg.

That's it for this week! I hope you enjoyed reading more about Original Elementals and are looking forward to reading the series. See you next week!

PS; looking for some new horror books before Halloween? Check out the ones in these bundles below:

October Tricks and Treats

Halloween Frights

Mute Now Available on Amazon

Hi all,

This week my first horror book released! It is available in ebook, paperback and hardcover on Amazon.

As with previous books, keep an eye on my Twitter account for a giveaway of a signed paperback copy!

Find out what happens to Audra below…

When Audra goes off to university by herself for the first time, she quickly realizes that nothing will ever be the same again.

After joining a videogame society, she soon finds herself in a fight for her life and those of her groupmates when they are attacked by a mysterious creature. Injured and with her voice stolen by the monster; it is up to Audra to put a stop to the attacks before it’s too late.

There is only one problem - the monster hunting them in real life bears an uncanny resemblance to the one they’re creating in the game.

But Yang doesn’t believe them. As president of the society, he actively tries to get her to drop it and turns the others against her.

With only a mysterious stray cat to help her, Audra has to get to the bottom of the monster attacking them and the connection to the game before it’s too late.

Will Audra be able to save herself in time or will her first year at university be her last?

That’s it for this week! If you check out my new book, I hope you enjoy reading! See you next week.

PS; looking for some new horror books for Halloween? Check out the ones in these bundles:

October Tricks and Treats

Halloween Frights

How Authors Can Use Fiverr

Hi all,

This week I'm going to discuss Fiverr, and how it can help authors!

First off, what is Fiverr? It's a freelance marketplace where you can hire people to do just about anything. From animations to business plans to crochet designs!

I myself have used Fiverr quite a lot for my business. Below are services that authors can use:

Art

Animations

Posters

Book Covers

Blurb Writing

Amazon Keywords

Marketing

Merchandise Design

Advertising Coaching

Book Promotion

Website Design

Guest Blogging

YouTube Videos

Reviews

Sensitivity Readers

I've used Fiverr a lot, and I really love using it! You can have a set budget and find someone who can help with whatever you need. A lot of the freelancers that I've used have been absolutely fabulous. Some of the art I've commissioned can be seen below:

I've also had some book covers done for my reader magnets. I'm not sure that I would have a main book cover done by them as I do like my current book cover designer. I've also heard about a lot of authors getting in trouble for using book covers designed by people on Fiverr. There can be a few freelancers who don't go down the correct routes when it comes to stock photos and rights to use on books. Make sure you do your research before hiring anyone.

However, I love the variety of freelancers that are available on there. You can work with them until you are completely happy with the project. I have plans to use Fiverr more in the future, with more art for posters and reader magnets. I've had great experiences with the freelancers and I'm so glad there is a website like this out there. It makes it easy to hire freelancers and communicate with them until you get what you want. A lot of them have specific add-ons such as expediting your order or adding more detail.

In the near future I'll be getting a cover designed for the reader magnet of Years, and maybe a piece of art for a poster of Nirvana.

That's it for this week, next week I'll be talking about Mute coming out! I hope you enjoyed reading.

PS; looking for some horror books to read before Halloween? Check out the ones in these bundles:

October Tricks and Treats

Halloween Frights

Original Elementals Dragon Designs

Hi all!

Over the past nine months I have been sending polls to my newsletter subscribers so they can vote on the designs for the main dragons of Original Elementals. The final result came in this month, so I thought I would let you all know the results here!

Maelstrom (partner to Marine, the first Water Elemental) - Rare emerald green and white dragon with green eyes.

Frostbite (partner to Frost, the first Ice Elemental) - Uncommon white dragon with pale grey wings and bright blue eyes.

Shadowhunter (partner to Opaque, the first Dark Elemental) - Premier black dragon with dark purple wings and purple eyes.

Devouring (partner to Bonfire, the first Fire Elemental) - Rare black dragon with orange spots and red eyes.

Sunrise (partner to Luminous, the first Light Elemental) - Common white dragon with one pink eye and one red.

Tempest (partner to Squall, the first Wind Elemental) - Uncommon marbled grey dragon with blue eyes.

Stormburst (partner to Lightning, the first Electricity Elemental) - Uncommon dark grey dragon with green eyes.

Turf (partner to Terra, the first Earth Elemental) - Premier black, brown and gold dragon with gold eyes.

Arcturus (partner to Stella, the first Elemental to have all the Elements) - Dark blue and purple premier dragon with white wings and red eyes.

Aqueous, Hazel’s partner from Elemental Dragons

The first book, Frostbite, I will start writing November 1st for NaNoWriMo. The main character will be Franscesca and her dragon Frostbite. As well as introducing dragon partners to humans and elemental powers, they will also discover an evil force that wants to use them for their own gain. The king of the dragons, Zmei, will stop at nothing to get what they want.

When the series is eventually published I will be commissioning artists to draw portraits of each dragon like the one above of Aqueous. I just love seeing the dragons come to life on a poster! As for the book covers, they will be probably be a symbol design instead of a model on the cover. I imagine a dragon surrounded by their element.

The Original Elementals series will be ten books long. I know what you’re thinking: but why are there are only nine dragons for ten books? Well, once I get to book ten, I’ll let you know! This will be my longest series yet, and I’m both excited and nervous to start writing it! Every three books or so I will take a break from Original Elementals to write a standalone book in a different genre, just to keep my enthusiasm for the series going.

That’s it for this week, I hope you enjoyed reading! See you next week!

PS; looking for something spooky to read for Halloween? Check out the books in these bundles:

October Tricks and Treats

Halloween Frights

Elemental Dragons Now Available in Hardcover

Hi all,

Last week I said that I had an announcement to make. And that announcement is that the Elemental Dragons series is now available in hardcover!

My proof copies of the hardcover version of Elemental Dragons

I have wanted to do hardcover since I started publishing, as they are my favourite kind of book. I love that they’re heavier than paperbacks, and the covers don’t bend so they’re not as easy to damage. I was tempted to do hardcover outside of Amazon as when I first started they didn’t offer this option to authors. The options that I looked into were Lulu and IngramSpark, but I didn’t use either. The prices for hardcovers on Lulu was enormous, at nearly £30 a book. I knew this wasn’t an option as hardly anyone would pay that much for one book. Then I looked at Ingram, but they charge $50 for each book that you want to upload and if you want to make any changes then it’s another $50. So, I had to abandon the idea of hardcovers for a while.

Until now, of course!

Not only is Elemental Dragons in hardcover, but all of my future books will be too! They will be the ones that I keep on my shelf as well, although I do like the paperbacks.

That’s it for this week! Let me know if you also prefer hardbacks in the comments. See you next week.

PS; looking for some new books to read? Take a look at the ones in these bundles below:

September Urban Fantasy Sale

Terrifying Adventures - Horror Giveaway