Michelle L. Levigne's Blog, page 19
April 6, 2024
The Storytellers Episodes are Baaaaack!
Today on the Ye Olde Dragon's Library storytelling podcast, we have a new storytellers episode. It's been a long wait, but we're back to chatting with authors again.
For the next couple of months, we'll be chatting with authors who have stories in the Fairytale and Classic Monster anthologies here at Ye Olde Dragon Books.
Today's podcast features: Jordan Campbell, Deborah Cullins Smith, Yvonne McArthur, Jessi Roberts, and Meaghan Ward. They'll be chatting about their stories in the anthologies, along with current and future projects, where they get inspiration, and how they approach the challenge of creating their stories.
Find these authors online:
JessiRoberts: Thecomic: https://theredtattoo.the-comic.org/comics/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jessi-L.-Roberts/author/B07TF9RV3V
YvonneMcArthur: YvonneMcArthur.com.
MeaghanWard:
"AGood Night to Be Alive" in Stories that Sing Anthology - This was alsoturned into a podcast and if anyone would like to listen to it for free theycan find it at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/havok-story-podcast/episodes/A-Good-Night-to-Be-Alive-ebb7q5
"IronHood" in Casting Call Anthology.
"ThePrincess of Callanway Broch" in Tales from the Tower
"TheWeight of Raven Feathers" in Perchance To Dream
Connecton instagram @meaghaneward .
JordanCampbell: Amazon.com:Jordan Campbell: books, biography, latest update
DeborahCullins Smith: Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/deborahcullinssmith
OnAmazon, and YeOldeDragonBooks.com
March 31, 2024
New Release: THE BEASTLY BEAUTY, Enchanted Castle Archives Book 2
New release today!THE BEASTLY BEAUTY is the sequel to LIARS' QUEST.
NOW AVAILABLE in paper, ebook, and audiobook, from Ye Olde Dragon Books, at the Ye Olde Dragon Books website or your favorite online retailer.
To celebrate, ALL the Enchanted Castle Archives stories are on sale, for a limited time.
Save $2 on the full-length novels (BEASTLY BEAUTY and LIARS' QUEST) or $1 on the short stories, in both ebook and audiobook, at the Ye Olde Dragon Books storefront.
What's the series about?
THEENCHANTED CASTLE ARCHIVES
Theenchanted castle lies somewhere in the enchanted forest, which touches allkingdoms.
At onetime or another. There's no predicting when the portal into the forest willopen.
Gettingin is difficult.
Gettingout is even harder.
Thecastle moves about in the forest, needing an anchor. And a princess.
Theforest moves from kingdom to kingdom.
Until twowanderers stumble inside, and meet in their separate quests to break curses andfind answers.
LIARS'QUEST
An orphanservant, Ash successfully masqueraded as a boy until she was nearly 15 -- thena spoiled brat nobleman's daughter accused her of assault.
Aquixotic justiciar got involved, and with both girls revealed as liars,sentenced them to a quest. Ostensibly, the one who succeeded in accomplishingthe list of deeds would be proven the innocent, injured party.
Ash fledto avoid being captured by the spoiled brat's servants and forced to do all thequest work for both of them. Along the way, she stumbled in and out of troubleand learned a great deal of magic -- including the magic born into her blood.
Hertraveling companions: Fang the bunny, who complicated things when he was onlypartially turned into a vampire, and a spirit ring, to allow the justiciar tospy on her adventures. When the ring decided to become Ash's friend, thenthings got interesting.
THEBEASTLY BEAUTY
Ash waswarned, and she tried to be careful, but with the Purple Sky magicians huntingher to carry out Lathia's vendetta, there were only so many options open toher. The magic awakening in her blood and breaking free of the binding spellsof her enemies made her even more vulnerable to trouble. And attractive to newallies and new enemies.
When sherode through the wrong magical doorway and found herself in the enchantedforest, Ash knew she needed to find her way out as quickly as possible. Theenchanted castle, however, had other ideas. It needed a princess, and clever,resourceful, magical Ash was just what it had been waiting for. She refused tobe a princess, but the castle apparently wasn't listening.
As shegained new allies and discovered just what clever traps awaited her, Ashsettled in for a battle of wills that might occupy her for the rest of herlife. Was it any wonder that when her only freedom lay in being beastly, shedove into the magic and the mask … and maybe enjoyed it just a little too much?
March 27, 2024
Sarai's Journey -- on sale now
In honor of the season, and because opening night of the Easter pageant at my church reminds me of this book I wrote quite a few years ago -- based on a script I wrote for the pageant but was never used -- I am offering the 2 books in the Sarai's Journey series for sale at the Ye Olde Dragon Books website.
Save $2 each on either ebook or print.
Heretic's Daughter
Sarai's Journey, Book 1
Sarai knew her life's path from childhood.
Daughter of a wealthy, respected rabbi, sheprepared herself for marriage to a man of equal wealth and status. Her fatherindulged her curiosity, and provided her an education rare among women of thosetimes. She used the healing talents Adonai had given her, to serve others.
However, her father's teachings about the Messiahwere in conflict with the high priest, and many in the Sanhedrin. He believedthe Messiah would first come as the Suffering Servant, not as a triumphantwarrior to rescue Judea from the tyranny of Rome. He was labeled a heretic,ostracized from the Temple. When he died, Sarai's world disintegrated. Hersuitor vanished, along with all his sweet promises.
Reduced to nothing, Sarai devoted herself to theman who kept his promises when everyone else abandoned her.
Then she encountered a rabbi named Jesus, fromNazareth, who fulfilled everything her father had taught about the Messiah. AsJerusalem was split by the question of who Jesus was, Sarai faced the mostpainful decision of her life.
The man who risked everything to rescue her, orthe duty she owed to Adonai?
Break her promises and lose everything she hadregained, or destroy her soul?
Inn of the HealerSarai's Journey, Book 2
Sarai refuses to renounce her faith in Jesus, andher husband, Simon divorces her. She finds shelter with other followers ofJesus amid the turmoil after the crucifixion and news of the resurrection. Whenher friends decide to journey to Damascus for safety and to establish an inn,she joins them.
Discovering she carries Simon's child leads topainful decisions. She claims to be a widow, and prays Simon will not hear thenews and take her child from her. Within the safety of the inn family, shebuilds a new life for herself as a healer.
The Inn of the Three Sisters becomes thegathering place for the slowly growing fellowship of Christ's followers. Saraiputs her education to good use, recording the memories of those who walked withJesus and heard Him teach.
Then her old life in Jerusalem reaches out toclaim her, calling on old loyalties and friendship. Returning to her formerhome to help those she still loves means risking discovery, possiblycondemnation. Her duty as a healer, and as a follower of Christ, requires astep of faith and courage that seems beyond her. The consequences of herdecision will change her life, and the life of her daughter, forever
March 25, 2024
Ready for More Fairytales ... twisted inside out and upside down?
Releasing May 1, TALES FROM THE FOREST is the 4th Fairytale Anthology from Ye Olde Dragon Books.This time around, we're taking Red Riding Hood and really pushing the envelope. There's some silliness, some humor, some heartache, a lot of danger, some sibling rivalry, some magic, some sacrifice and risk.
We have a number of returning authors, and return visits to fictional places that are starting to become very familiar.
Here's our lineup of authors and their titles:
THE CASEOF THE MISSING LEGS: Rosemarie DiCristo and Pam Halter
FACE THE WOLF: Kathleen Bird
THE WAYSOF A WOLF: LindsiMcIntyre
A CACTUSAMONG WOLVES: Yvonne McArthur
KELLI ANDKIRMIZI: MichelleHouston
WOLVESAMONG THE LAMBS: Deborah Cullins Smith
THE CURSE: Angela R. Watts
DRESS REHEARSAL: Jim Doran
THENIGHT OF THE MINDBENDER: Stoney M. Setzer
WOODLANDCRAVINGS: RachelA. Greco
CRIMSON SPY: Jessica Noelle
RED WOLF: Michelle L. Levigne
Available at your favorite online book seller, and Ye Olde Dragon Books.
March 13, 2024
COMING RELEASE -- and a chance to get a FREE ebook short story.
Coming April 1
The next book in the Enchanted Castle Archives series. Sequel to LIARS' QUEST.
You can listen to chapters of THE BEASTLY BEAUTY now on the Ye Olde Dragon's Library storytelling podcast.
Either go to your favorite podcast app and subscribe, OR you can go to Ye Olde Dragon Books and listen to the latest episode on the podcast page.
There are lots of short stories taking place in the enchanted forest and the enchanted castle, featuring 'Na -- short for Belladonna -- the daughter of the heroes of the novels.
You can get the ebook of THE BEASTLY BEAUTY right NOW from Ye Olde Dragon Books, nearly 3 weeks early. The audiobook will be available by the end of the week.
And if you buy from Ye Olde Dragon Books, you'll get a new, not-yet-released short story, ASH, BREAD, AND THE BOY. This is an adventure of Ash, the heroine of THE BEASTLY BEAUTY, that was originally part of the book, but cut out during edits. FREE, in ebook. Just buy from Ye Olde Dragon Books, and you'll get a follow-up email using the email address you provide when buying your ebook or audiobook.
You can buy the other short stories in the Enchanted Castle Archives series at your favorite online store, or at Ye Olde Dragon Books. But what might be more fun is to buy the anthologies put out by Ye Olde Dragon Books, where these stories originally appeared. Either the Fairytale Anthologies or the Classic Monster Anthologies. Visit our website and check them out!
TALES FROM THE FOREST, Fairytale Anthology 4, will be releasing May 1, featuring stories that take Red Riding Hood and turn the story inside out and upside down!
March 1, 2024
February 29, 2024
CELEBRATE a new release with a FREE ebook short story!
INQUEST, AFV Defender book 4, releases today, March 1.
In paper, ebook, and audio.
You can buy the ebook and audio on the Ye Olde Dragon Books website and anywhere on the web that sells books.
The Defender is sent on a mission beyond charted space with the crew of the notorious Inquest, and their equally notorious, rule-breaking captain, Illean Shryne. The Inquest crew always comes back from dangerous missions covered in glory, but that is rarely so for the ships teamed with them. Will the Defender and her crew survive? Or has their misfit luck finally run out?
So, how are we going to celebrate this book release? Simple:
FREE Ebooks!!
Purchase INQUEST from Ye Olde Dragon Books, and you'll get an email offering your choice of 5 AFV Defender short stories, as a thank-you.
OR: buy the book elsewhere online, and email 2OldeDragons@gmail.com with a copy of your receipt/screen shot of your order, to get your short story. Our ebooks are on Overdrive and other library subscription outlets, so you can send a screen shot of your reservation order for your local library, and get the free short story.
Sound good?
February 28, 2024
New release sample: WHITE ROSES
Listen to the Books on the Ridge podcast for a discount code to get $1 off ebook, audiobook or print from Mt. Zion Ridge Press!
"Likelyprospect?" he greeted Angela, as she came back down the hall. They pausedin front of the large room where the reporters worked.
"Maybe.But we really don't have any openings. Something about her caught my attention.I'm not sure what." She rubbed her temples and attempted a smile."Please tell me Dad isn't trying to install another arcade game on thefile server?" She gestured at the cluster of workers gathered around thestacked unit of CPUs and printers, with a jungle's worth of cables leading outto the other computers in the office.
AndrewCoffelt had inherited the Tabor Picayunefrom his father and had gladly embraced every advance in technology. Curtsympathized with Angela, because her father was a little too eager to rest onhis credits as publisher, semi-retired yet still in the office every day. Hisdelight in trying out new software on the office system was a constant sourceof frustration for Angela. The only thing that kept her from banning her fatherfrom the office was the fact that his experiments hadn't interfered with thepublication of the paper. Not yet, anyway.
Curtsuspected that even if Andrew caused a power blackout of downtown Tabor Heightsfor a week, Angela still couldn't ban her father from the paper. They bothloved it too much. He just wished she wasn't stuck with being the adult whileher father enjoyed his second childhood.
"Ithink he's just checking out the FBI site that Loni decided to access. Trackingthe White Rose and identifying him has become the favorite hobby here,"Curt offered.
"Unfortunately."Angela's brown eyes lost focus. Then she shuddered, wrapped her arms aroundherself, and continued down the hall to the lunchroom, her shoulder-lengthblack hair streaming out behind her with the impetus of her exit.
"Somethingwrong?" He followed her.
"Everythinglately reminds me of the White Rose. That woman who was just in here—”
"Lookslike both his targets?" He nodded when she stared at him. "I noticed.She reminded me of someone I knew when I was a kid."
"Youmight have known her. Toni said she lived here for a few years. ToniNapolitano. Sound familiar?"
Curtstarted to say no, then choked. "Short for Antoinette?"
Heremembered Angelique's little sister, trying to tag along with them when theirgang from school went to play kickball. A scrawny kid, she pouted a lot whenAngelique told her to stay home. Curt thought she was four years younger thanhim, putting her in third grade while the rest of them were in seventh.
"Yes,Antoinette. Her credits are impressive. She brought a folder full ofclippings." Angela sighed and put down the coffee carafe without fillingher mug. "We can't really afford another reporter on staff right now. Butit wouldn't be fair to just tell her no without at least examining herwork."
"Lookat it this way." Curt's smile felt stiff. "She looks so much like theWhite Rose's targets, would you feel right giving her a job that would have herall over town, letting him get a good look at her?"
"That'snot funny." She dumped cream and sugar into her cup before reaching forthe carafe again.
"Iwasn't trying to be funny." He glanced toward the open door of her office."So, those clippings she brought. What did she write?"
"Everything.Her specialty seems to be investigative reporting. If you ever feel like youneed a partner, I'd seriously consider her."
"Nah,not yet." Curt stayed in the kitchen when Angela went back to her office.
Investigative reporter, huh? He felt sick withthe certainty of what brought Toni Napolitano back to Tabor Heights. Somehow,she had heard about the White Rose, the two women he had terrorized, the one hehad killed. She heard about the notes, demanding undying love and purity; thewhite roses left on doorsteps and even inside the victims' houses. The threatsagainst any men who trespassed on his territory.
Just like he had done, had Tonimade the connection between the White Rose and her sister's murder? Did shefeel duty-bound to hunt him? Just like Curt felt duty-bound? After all, hefound Angelique's body, left lying like so much discarded forest trash in thepark.
February 27, 2024
Upcoming release: INQUEST
Releasing March 1
These are the adventures of the E&Dship, AFV Defender. While they aren't quite as death-defying as acertain other notorious ship in the Fleet, they're developing a legend of theirown. Some good. Some bad. But most important, they're a family, with all thebenefits and drawbacks.
Every day is a new adventure. If their misfitluck doesn't finally run out on them.
INQUEST: AFV Defender Book 4
Signals are coming from beyond the edges ofcharted space. All indications are that they are being generated by the brokenpieces of a Gate, used by the ancient Gatekeepers to scatter all the Humanraces across the universe.
Except that as far as anyone knew, nothing coulddent a Gate, forget break it. Yet the legendary warrior, Etrusca, scatteredpieces of broken Gate across known and unknown space. Now, a response is comingin. As one of the top E&D (Exploration and Diplomacy) ships in the AllianceFleet, the Defender heads across the galaxy to find out just who or what issending the signal.
Except this time, they've been partnered with theInquest. The only ship in the Fleet with a stranger reputation and record thanthe Defender. The notorious Captain Illean Shryne and her crew of rule-breakersand miracle-workers always manage to escape from the jaws of death and returncovered in glory. Unfortunately, the ships sent on missions with them don'tfare so well …
February 25, 2024
New release sample: BRIGHTEN YOUR CORNER
Listen to the Books on the Ridge podcast for a discount code to get $1 off ebook, audiobook or print from Mt. Zion Ridge Press!
“He claims I broke his heart,” Cilla said, punctuatedby the snap of the measuring tape as it retracted back into its case. She snickeredas she wrote down the measurements of the display window.
“Grandpa should have broken his head.” Melba chuckled.“Our grandparents had that big old house the Gallery took over. We used to havesleepovers, all the cousins, maybe once a month. Ernie decided he would play Romeoand tossed rocks at the dormer windows to get Cilla’s attention. The problem is,he used really big rocks and broke Grandpa and Granny’s bedroom window. The bigbuffoon actually refused to pay to replace the window, because he claimed Grannyinsulted his family, getting her landscaping rocks from someone else. Can you believethat?”
“Ernie’s father and uncles had a landscaping business,”Cilla explained.
“Well, that’s a chunk of Cadburn history I neverheard,” Tracy said, punctuated with a chuckle. “So Miss Cilla, you’re a heartbreaker,are you?”
“There’s gotta be a heart to break,” she muttered,and stepped over to the built-in counter that divided the front room in half, lengthwise.She extended the measuring tape down the long side and paused to run her fingersover the dings and gouges and dents and what certainly looked to Melba like burnmarks in the wood.
“Some common sense would have been nice, too,”Melba added. “Remember the time he showed up to take you on a date, and he wouldn’ttake no for an answer because he had paid Boyd for the right to take you out? Hewanted exclusive access to you for the entire week.”
“Wait,” Tracy said. “Who’s Boyd?”
“Our money-grubbing cousin.”
“Makes those stereotyped ambulance-chasing lawyerson TV look like Boy Scouts,” Cilla added. Then she giggled. “Remember the time hetried to convince Aunt Myrna to join some pyramid scheme, and when she didn’t givein fast enough, he stole the old glass piggy bank where she put her egg money? Shewent chasing after him with her rolling pin and he fell going down the steps and…” Her laughter faded into a sigh and she shook her head. “Oh, my, listen to me.Gossiping.”
“It’s not gossip if you’d take Ginny’s adviceand put all those family memories into a book and sell it as humor,” Melba said.
“And get sued by three-quarters of the familyfor embarrassing them.”
“They did it to themselves!” She snickered. “Wereally should. Even if it’s just as a joke. Let’s talk to Charli Hall, since sheknows writing. Or Saundra Bailey. What do you say?”
“It might be fun,” Cilla admitted and chuckled.
