Wielder's Fire and Writing in the Zone

At last I can announce the launch date for Wielder's Fire, the third and final book in my Wielder's Storm trilogy. 25th May! I'm super excited.

The first two books are currently available for free on Kindle Unlimited.

Wielder's Prize: Without training or discipline in the art of magic wielding, she is a danger to everyone, but there is someone worse on the high seas who wants her dead.

Wielder's Curse: Dark visions haunt her. Shadowy assassins stalk him. Together they must stop a powerful enemy from destroying their world.

Wielder's Fire: Marooned on an island, stripped of her magic, Jasmine must find a way of mending her heart and defeating the oncoming storm.


What are your rituals when you need help getting into the ZONE?

Below is my daily ritual when I'm editing. It looks different when I'm writing a first draft. With first drafts, I'm more focused, but that might be because I handwrite them while relaxed on the comfy couch. A necessary choice for less distractions.

After breakfast, I go for a morning walk.
Ready to start working, I sit down at my computer and check my sales. Because I can't help myself.
I check my emails for anything urgent.
My desk cries out to be cleaned and organized.
Nope. I have work to do!
I open the file I'm editing.
I stare at it for ten seconds then realize I need a glass of water...
and maybe some chocolate...
I settle back and check my emails again.
I do some editing...
until I come to a difficult section that requires more thought.
I stretch.
I get more water.
Facebook calls.
I ignore it.
Facebook calls again. I check it.
Fitbit tells me I need to get up and move around.
Why not? It's a good time to grab more chocolate. Don't judge. I'm editing!
I do a bunch of editing.
My stomach tells me it's time for real food.
Brain stops functioning mid-afternoon.
I try to keep working anyway.
I fail.
I give up and play a game, or read, or go for another walk.

As for "helping me get into the zone" for work? Well, it's more just a matter of deciding to stop being distracted and get on with it. Scheduling the same time each day to write/edit also helps. Deadlines are awesome too. Oh, and when the hubby is being super distracting because he is working from home due to the pandemic and we share the office, I put on headphones and listen to epic music (nothing with lyrics). That works a treat.

What are your rituals? What do you do to focus?

This post was written for the IWSG. Every first Wednesday of the month, members post on their blogs about their writing insecurities or offer some encouragement to others. If you are new to the IWSG or want to learn more, then please go HERE.

Review Copies Available, Cover Reveal, and My Writing Journey #IWSG

Happy New Year everyone!! May 2020 be a year full of joy, grace, success, and awesomeness. May there be no dramas except in the books you read.

Cover Reveal:

I will be releasing book 2 of my Wielder's Storm series on January 27th. Below is my grand cover reveal for Wielder's Curse.

A dark vision. A dangerous curse. A girl caught in between.

I'm currently giving out a limited number of Review Copies. If you are interested, let me know in the comments or send me an email.

If you haven't read book 1 yet, Wielder's Prize is available as an ebook or paperback on Amazon.

OR, you can read it FREE on Kindle Unlimited.

Check out my affiliate link above for Amazon's 99c limited deal for the first 3 months. Or try the 30 day free trial deal. Either way, you'll be able to read my book for free. Win, win.

If you don't own a Kindle, just download the FREE Kindle app for your phone, tablet and computer. Easy peazy.

The IWSG question: What started you on your writing journey?

When I was young, I got ridiculed for my slow, stuttered reading ability. So I avoided it. Then I came across my mum’s collection of Enid Blyton Famous Five books. Adventure stories about kids, for kids. I devoured them in the privacy of my own room. I had no easy access to books, so that’s where I stopped. It wasn’t until a teacher read The Hobbit to the class at the end of primary school (Middle Grade?) that I discovered the joys of fantasy. True escapism. At the age of twelve or thirteen, I read The Lord of the Rings. I couldn’t put it down. The boring books I had to study in school could’ve turned me off reading for life, but then I discovered my high school library. So many fantasy and science fiction books to read! I was hooked and from there, it was inevitable I would want to write my own adventure fantasies.

How did your love of books, reading, and writing develop? 
--

With the New Year comes a time of renewal and refreshment. My book, Cling to God, is a daily devotional that you can use to refresh your faith every day of this new year. 

Available in paperback and ebook:

Amazon, Kindle, Nook, B&N, Kobo, ITunes, Goodreads

And please consider leaving a review.

Young Adult Fantasy ARC Giveaway #IWSG

If all goes well, I'll be releasing my debut novel in October. It's a young adult fantasy adventure set on the high seas. Although it's part of a series, it reads as a standalone. I have completed the maps for it, the covers for all three books in the series and I've even worked out the formatting for the ebook (For the ARC version, anyway--there are still some tweaks I want to do). That was a victory and a half. The formatting for print is yet to come. Eek.

Right now I'm looking for lovers of fantasy who are interested in an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of Wielder's Prize, book one in the Wielder's Storm series. In exchange I'd deeply appreciate an honest review. Shoot me an email (lynfaw[at]gmail [dot]com) or say "Pick me! Pick me! Pick me!" in the comments ;) I'll be sending out a limited number, so be quick.

My current tagline for book one: No training. No discipline. No time.

The IWSG question of the month: Has your writing ever taken you by surprise?
Sometimes I do a detailed outline before I write. Other times I just wing it. When I wing it, anything can happen. Surprises galore! It's lots of fun. Of course, outlining does the same, only earlier in the process.

July Reading

July was a slow reading month because I was down with the flu for half of it and super busy the other half. It was also a month of thrones. Giggle.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas is a young adult fantasy, the first in a series. I quite enjoyed it, though it wasn't quite what I expected based on the cover and blurb. It still carried me away to another land, and I like that in a fantasy.

The Templar Throne by Paul Christopher is the third in the series about Doc Holliday's adventures of tracking down ancient Templar relics. Each book has been different in its own way and all of them have been enjoyable. I think there's another four or five in the series. They are a light, fast read and full of action and intrigue. The first is The Sword of the Templars.

That's all I have for July. I've been reading lots of short stories lately too. It makes me want to write more short stories.

What have you been reading lately? Has your writing ever taken you by surprise?