Thoughts on ending a series

Right now I'm almost done with edits for Aeralis, the fifth and final book in The Frost Chronicles series. And I'm kind of sad about it.

TFC is the first series I've ever successfully written. Well, okay, I've written a few sequels to a few unpublished things from my days as a young hopeful writer, but I've never stuck with one story world for five books before. I didn't think I'd like writing a series very much, so I only originally planned to write three books. But there's something really nice about it--you already know the world and all the characters, so by the time you get around to writing books 3+ it's just like visiting old friends.

So I'm trying to really make Aeralis a good finish to the series, and I tried to take my time with it and make sure it wrapped up every character's story in a way that I found satisfying. And honestly, I feel a little cranky about the idea of starting a new series. It's like transferring to a new school, away from all your friends. But! I have some GREAT ideas that I am really, really excited to write. Apprehensive, yes, but also excited.

But back to TFC...a lot of things about writing a long series like this one surprised me. For one thing, I didn't expect to end up having so much story. I feared I'd run out of things to tell and have to start fluffing the story around the end of book two, so I planned to have only three books, but as I wrote the story and the characters' journeys kept growing and so I kept telling it. I changed the number to four eventually, but when I was writing Bluewing (book four) I realized I needed AT LEAST one other book to fit everyone's endings in. My husband said I was "George RR Martining" by continuing to extend the series, and that I'd better finish writing these books before I died. That made me laugh. I plan to write dozens and dozens more books before I die, hopefully.

The characters surprised me, too. They had secrets that I discovered gradually. They had more to say than I'd ever expected. They fell in love in ways that surprised me, and some of them died when I wasn't expecting it, either. They truly took on lives of their own.

It's been a wonderful journey, and I'm honored and thankful for every reader who shared it with me.

Hopefully Aeralis will be available in late September! Check back at the blog or sign up for the newsletter to be sure you don't miss the release.

Weavers is Available in Print!

Hello, everyone!

Weavers is now available in paperback, so if you wanted to purchase that format of the book, you can do so now!

WEAVERS is available for Kindle and Nook!

Hi everyone!

Great news--Weavers is now available for purchase on the Kindle and on the Nook!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!

Click here for the Kindle version!

Click here for the Nook version!

The print version and Smashwords version will be available soon, so stay tuned.

Hope everyone enjoys it!

Weavers Publication Updates

Hi everybody!

Today I've been doing lots of last minute things...like checking formatting and uploading files! Weavers should be available for purchase in all the usual places--Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords--in just a few days. I will let you know via this blog as well as through the new releases newsletter, so be sure to check back here or sign up for that newsletter if you're eager to get your hands on a copy.

Thank you to everyone who has messaged, emailed, or tweeted me about your excitement for Weavers. You guys mean so much to me. Seriously. You are all the best. I really hope you love the book, and I can't wait for you all to read it.

Weavers Teaser #2

Today we have another excerpt from Weavers, the newest and third book in The Frost Chronicles!

(Weavers releases reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally soon! If you want to be sure to get a copy as soon as it hits stores, sign up for my new releases newsletter here.)



Excerpt:

The boards of the Mayor’s house gleamed the color of bleached bone in the pale sunlight, and dagger-like icicles glittered along the roof. Even the footprints left by soldiers’ boots looked like ugly scars. Everything about the house felt dangerous now.

I held my breath as I climbed the back steps and rapped three times on the door.

A servant opened it. She regarded me with a frown. “Yes?”

The password. Ann would recognize it and know I needed to see her. “I—I need to show Ann Mayor some yarn,” I said. “I’m Lia Weaver.”

The girl shook her head. “I’m sorry, but she cannot see you now. You’ll have to come back.”

Then she shut the door in my face.

I knocked again, and this time, when the girl opened the door I pushed against it.

“Hey!” She threw up an arm to block me.

“I have something to tell Ann Mayor. She will be angry when she finds out that you wouldn’t—”

“Let the girl in,” a voice purred, and I froze.

Korr.

 

There you go...another short little teaser! I'm going to have more news about the release date very soon, and good news--it's going to be earlier than I expected! So stay tuned!

Weavers Teaser #1

Today we have an excerpt from the newest and third book in The Frost Chronicles, WEAVERS!

(Weavers releases at the end of January. If you want to be sure to get a copy as soon as it hits stores, sign up for my new releases newsletter here.)

As promised, an excerpt:

It was too dark to make out the wagon tracks that crisscrossed the frozen dirt like scars on a mangled cheek, but I knew they were there because the sight of them was branded in my memory forever. Soldiers carted prisoners along this road all year long. From one such wagon, Gabe had escaped across the river and into the Frost. The wind blew against my cheeks, teasing water from my eyes.

Adam’s hand brushed my shoulder—a single, light touch. A question. Was I ready? The moonlight glinted off his eyes. In response to his unspoken words, I stepped forward into the field toward the road.
I was ready.

We reached the river. Here the sky loomed over us, steel gray and too big, and I shivered. I couldn’t feel safe under such a large sky after a life beneath the trees. The water glittered like ink as it glided past, smooth and unstoppable. Once this river had formed the boundary between the Frost and Aeralis, the place the Farthers would not cross. But no longer. Now they had spilled over into our land, bringing with them their oiled weapons, their crude mechanical technology, their glove-clad cruelty.

Adam crouched beside the water and dug another small hole. He filled it with supplies and marked the place by drawing the Thorns symbol on the trunk of a sapling above it.

I stared across the river at the road as he worked. The sense of danger I felt looking at it mingled with a sudden, intense need to stand in the place where so many others had made their escape. I turned and scanned the bank of the river.

There—a fallen tree stretched across a shallow point like a bridge. I jogged down the bank and scrambled up the roots. My heart galloped. My mouth was dry. I grasped the rough bark of the tree and hauled myself up.

Adam followed at my back like a shadow. I expected him to grab my arm, hiss in my ear to stop, to tell me to wait for him while he crossed alone. But he didn’t.

The tree trembled as I crossed it, but it bore my weight easily. I reached the other side and jumped down. The Frost was at my back. Aeralis’ border was before me. A shiver spread over my skin. I tingled from my scalp to my fingertips. I’d never been on this side of the river.

Adam landed beside me. I caught the flash of his quick smile in the blackness.

“I just wanted—” I began.

His voice was just a tickle in my ear. “You’ve never been across the river, have you?”

The warmth of his breath against my skin made me flush. I nodded and moved away an inch. There was a tension between us now, a dance of avoided topics and guarded looks. Perhaps the unlikely attraction had always been there, lurking just beneath the surface. But since I’d almost kissed him in the barn a few weeks ago, the feelings had grown into a thrumming heat that filled every word, every look, every interaction. I didn’t know how to deal with it. He’d become woven into the fabric of my existence, mingled with the air I breathed. If I reached out, he was there. If I spoke, he answered.

Yet we were separated by a gulf of unspoken feeling that neither of us would express.

Well there you have it, folks. A short little bit of a scene between Adam and Lia. Hope you enjoyed :) And before to look for Weavers in stores at the end of January!

Cover Reveal for WEAVERS (Frost #3)

Ladies and Gentlemen... some more news regarding the next book in The Frost Chronicles!

We have a COVER REVEAL for my next book!

Weavers, the third book the The Frost Chronicles series, releases in just a few weeks. I'm super excited about it, and I hope you guys are, too.

So without further ado, here is the cover!

* drumroll *

I really liked the way this one turned out, and I'm rather proud of it. Like all my covers, I designed it myself, which is my favorite part of the entire independent author process.

And here's the book summary again...

Every day, life in the Frost grows increasingly perilous for its inhabitants. The Farther occupation continues, and food is becoming scarce. And Lia Weaver’s family is facing increasing perils, too—Jonn pushes his health to the brink as he works to uncover the secrets of Echlos, and Ivy risks everything to get food for the family. And for the second time, the Weaver family is harboring a fugitive, but Lia doesn’t trust her.

Lia has personally braved many struggles—a Farther occupation, family secrets, a heart torn between two men, and Watcher attacks—as she struggles to keep her family safe. But now she will face her greatest challenge and uncover the Frost’s deepest secrets as she completes her most dangerous mission yet for the Thorns.


It's pretty short, because I don't want to give ANYTHING away. Lots of really awesome stuff happens in this one, folks. :) :) I'm so excited for you guys to read it!