Running Up That Hill

Coffee?  Check.
Music?  Check.
Manuscript?  Check.
I've got 20 pages left to edit and then the book is finally back in the hands of my editor.  When I received this edit, I chopped about 2,000 unnecessary words from it.  At last check, I had added just over 14,000 shiny new words.  The bulk of those 14,000 words form a new subplot that will come into play in future stories.  The new subplot not only adds more tension and difficulty to the story for my main character, but gives readers a closer look at one of the main secondary characters, Bronx.

Bronx is an interesting new character.  A troll who works as a tattoo artist at Asylum, he has the prerequisite size and strength to qualify him as what you would expect from a troll.  But he's also very intelligent, compassionate, and thoughtful.  He doesn't speak much, lending weight to his words when he does finally venture a comment or question.  He is also quick to protect and defend his friends.

Today will see me finishing up the book, sending the book and mailing other things, and then coming home to plot at least one short story.  I'm clearing my schedule for one day.  Tomorrow. 

Tomorrow is Tuesday -- new book day!  Tomorrow sees the release of Kerrelyn Sparks's new book, Sexiest Vampire Alive.  I love her Love At Stake series.  It's vampires and shifters, but it has a great sense of humor.  I've been reading a lot of her and Lynsay Sands while I've worked on this book.  Those books keep me in a light mood as I'm trying to write.  I am trying to write a somewhat lighter series than Dark Days.  No, I'm not cracking jokes and having silly things happen -- I'm just not good at comedy.  But Tattoo Artist doesn't have that same oppressive heavy cloud hanging over it as Dark Days.

If you're looking for something new to read, I highly recommend Kerrelyn Sparks.  I happened by chance into her first book, How To Marry A Millionaire Vampire.  I was at my first book convention and I was in line to get a signed ARC of Kim Harrison's new book and Kerrelyn was also there signing her new book. I was lucky enough to get both.  I enjoyed it when I read it, but didn't think too much of it because I was into darker things at the time.  But I picked up a couple more of her books over the past few years.  A reread How To Marry A Millionaire Vampire a couple years ago, and it hit the spot!  I've since bought all the other books in the series and regularly reread them.  They are light, funny, engaging, and heart-warming.

I think there's 11 books/stories out so far with another coming in the spring.  You don't have to read them in order.  I didn't.  You won't be lost.  However, I think you will get a little more out of it if you do because you see each of the vamps fall in love, making you fall in love too as the story builds.