Gail Daley's Blog, page 2

QuickBooks Invoice Issue: A Small Company’s Customer Service Ordeal

WOW what a morning! I spent it shuffling between an irate hubby and QuickBooks unhelpful customer service department! It seems that QuickBooks which we use for our pool service to issue invoices and stuff started sending multiple copies of the same invoice out to our customers. When I tried to talk to someone about this problem, I was told I wasn’t officially a part of the company because I wasn’t listed on the books. So much fun!

He is understandably irate. For a small company like ours having our vendors quit us because we are clogging up their e-mail by sending multiple copies of the same invoice is a major issue. Of course, for a huge conglomerate like Intuit (QuickBooks parent company) what happens to our company is of no consequence to them despite the fact we’ve been a customer for 30 years. We are only a small account, and the loss of our business won’t impact them at all, but I still feel the sting of annoyance when we can’t even speak to a customer service rep!

Please excuse the rant

I realize the above wasn’t about my books, but I needed to vent. To make up for it it, I’m including a free sample of one of my books you may have missed: Spell of the Magi

Nominated in the Sword & Sorcery Category in the 2019 EFFYs!

In a world where Magic and Technology collide, an Amnesiac Merc and a sorceress hiding deadly secrets must team up to defy the most powerful wizards of Rulari. When Rebecca, a Magi born into a land where her talents mean slavery or death, meets Andre, an innocent man on the run, the two form a forbidden bond that will prove to be their greatest weapon in their fight for freedom. Will they be able to overcome the forces of evil that threaten their love and their lives? Find out in this gripping fantasy adventure, “Spell of the Magi”! 

This book will take you on an unforgettable journey to a distant world where two powerful civilizations, Terrans and Sekhmet, have fled to the planet Rulari to escape a war-torn universe. although the laws of science still work here, more powerful forces govern Rulari: the power of Magic. 

If you enjoyed the classic sci-fi and fantasy mashup of Steven Erikson’s Malazan, Book of the Fallen series, then you’ll love this book!

Download the Sample https://dl.bookfunnel.com/f26tpj9nmy

2024 05 26 Work Journal

The last third of City of Deception seems to be clicking right along. That usually means I’m on the right track with it. This is despite personal things interfering. My Shingles is getting better. I still have a couple of scabs from the blisters but since they aren’t weeping the doctor says I’m no longer contagious. That means I’m out of quarantine. Yay! 

I added a second juvenile character, a teenage girl who was sharing Francisca’s prison. I decided she’s going to be tougher than Francisca. When her parents try to turn her over to the state, Ava gets mad and makes them name her the girls guardian instead.

Exploring Science Fiction Genres: Hard/Soft, Dystopian/Utopian, Space Opera

WHAT DEFINES SCIENCE FICTION?

Science fiction or speculative fiction (often shortened to SF, sci-fi or scifi) is a genre dealing with futuristic science, technology, space travel, time travel, faster than light travel, parallel universes, and extraterrestrial life. Science fiction often explores the potential outcomes of scientific innovations, and has been referred a “literature of ideas,” or future-casting. It usually avoids the supernatural, and unlike the related genre of fantasy, science fiction stories generally deal in plots and stories grounded in by some form of widely accepted scientific fact. Star Trek is based on the premise that man will discover a way to conquer light speed, or access parallel dimensions.

Hard/Soft Science Fiction: is a category of science fiction marked by an emphasis on scientific accuracy. The terms were first used in print in 1957 by P. Schuyler Miller in a review of John W. Campbell, Jr.’s “Islands of Space” in Astounding Science Fiction. The complementary term Soft Science Fiction, formed by comparison to hard science fiction, first appeared in the late 1970s. It was created to emphasize the distinction between the “hard” (natural) and “soft” (social) sciences. Science fiction critic Gary Westfahl thinks that both terms are just ways of describing stories that reviewers and commentators have found useful.

Dystopian/Utopian: utopia and its derivative, dystopia, are genres exploring social and political structures. Utopian fiction shows a setting agreeing with the author’s ideology and has attributes of different reality to appeal to readers. Dystopian (or dystopic) fiction (sometimes combined with, but distinct from apocalyptic literature) is the opposite. It shows a setting that completely disagrees with the author’s ideology. Many novels combine both, often as a metaphor for the different directions’ humanity can take, depending on its choices. Both utopias and dystopias are commonly found in science fiction and other speculative fiction genres and arguably are a type of speculative fiction. Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic are two sub-genres of Science Fiction although you will often find them mixed into the same stories.

Dystopia is the opposite of Utopia. If Utopia is an ideal society, then dystopia is the opposite, or a flawed utopia depending on semantics. Of course, this depends on what the writer’s concept of the ideal society. I agree the description is vague. This is what makes the genre so much fun to write and read. As a genre, dystopian crosses a lot of other sub-science fiction genres as well. The Hunger Games (2008) brought the genre to fore again, but contrary to popular belief the genre has been around a long time.1

Dystopian novels often focus on societies and cultures that appear stable and well established. The post-apocalyptic genre with which it is often mixed, usually depicts an imbalanced or volatile cultures (Mad Max). 

Common Themes in Dystopian Fiction: Poverty, Technology being abused, Oppressive social institutions, abuse of power by governments, etc.

Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction is a sub-genre of Dystopian Science Fiction covering the end of civilization, through nuclear war, plague, or some other general disaster. Post-apocalyptic stories are most often set in the aftermath of the collapse of civilization or society as we know it. Man’s attempt to regain control of his environment after an apocalypse is fertile ground for creating a totalitarian/dystopian society. Common themes in post-apocalyptic literature are loss of resources, global natural disasters including storms, earthquakes, rising oceans, pandemics, loss of technology, widespread radiation, etc.

This sub-genre has been around a long time. In 1826 Mary W. Shelley (Frankenstein’s Monster) wrote The Last Man (a plague kills off most of the population).

The time frame may be immediately after the catastrophe, focusing on the travails or psychology of survivors, or considerably later, often including the theme that the existence of pre-catastrophe civilization has been forgotten or mythologized. Post apocalyptic stories often take place in an agrarian, non-technological future world, or a world where only scattered elements of technology remain. FYI there is a third genre associated with these two: An apocalyptic novel tells the story of the end of the world, which occurs during the timeline of the story.

Space Opera: is a subgenre of science fiction emphasizing space warfare, melodramatic adventure, interplanetary battles, risk-taking, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, it frequently involves conflict between opponents possessing advanced abilities, futuristic weapons, and other sophisticated technology. The term has no relation to music but was coined during the 1930s to indicate clichéd and overused stories in several genres. Space operas emerged in the 1930s and they continue to be produced in literature, film, comics, and video games. The most notable was probably produced by E.E. “Doc” Smith in the 1930’s.

What is Steampunk Science Fiction?

Not to be confused with Cyberpunk Fiction. This genre uses steampower to create some of the same technology we use today through other means. Computers, robots, airships, radios, and communication devices, etc. The steam may be created by use of burning coal or in some cases by a chemical reaction induced by combining two incompatible elements. 

Screenshot

Steampunk: is a hybrid subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that refers to works set in an era where steam power is still widely used;19th century’s British Victorian era or American “Wild West, where steam power has maintained mainstream usage, or in a fantasy world that employs steam power in the same way. Although its literary origins are sometimes identified with the cyberpunk genre, it has marked differences. Inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne are often included. Steampunk encompasses alternate history-style elements of past technology like dirigibles or mechanical computers combined with futuristic technology like multi-function goggles, giant robots and ray guns. Steampunk may be described as neo-Victorian. Steampunk most recognizably features anachronistic technologies or retro futuristic inventions as people in the 19th century might have envisioned them, and is likewise rooted in the era’s perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, and art.

Cyberpunk: Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction taking place in a future setting. It tends to focus on society as “high tech low life” showcasing advanced technological and scientific accomplishments, such as information technology and cybernetics, creating a breakdown or radical change in the social order. Cyberpunk plots often center on conflict among artificial intelligences, hackers, and megacorporation’s in a near-future Earth. The settings are usually post-industrial dystopias but feature extraordinary cultural turmoil and the use of technology in ways never anticipated by its original inventors. Much of the genre’s atmosphere echoes film noir writers and often uses modus operandi from this genre of detective fiction. The genre often features countercultural antiheroes trapped in a dehumanizing high-tech future with primary themes of hyper-corporatism, online intrigue, virtual reality. Sometimes it includes a black-market underground. Its roots extend back to the technical fiction of the 1940s and ’50s, but it was years before it matured. The word cyberpunk was coined by writer Bruce Bethke, who wrote a story with that title in 1980.  It is usually based in a dystopian setting with futuristic elements such as artificial intelligence juxtaposed with the collapse or decay of existing society. 

Military Science Fiction: is a subgenre of science fiction that uses science fiction technology, mainly weapons, for military purposes. Its principal characters are generally members of a military organization involved in military activity. The action sometimes takes place in outer space or on a different planet or planets. It is found in literature, comics, film, and video games. A detailed description of the conflict, the tactics and weapons used, and the role of a military service and the individual members of that military organization generally forms the basis for a work of military science fiction. The stories often use events of actual past or current Earth conflicts, with countries being replaced by planets or galaxies of similar characteristics, battleships replaced by space battleships and certain events changed so that the author can induce what might have occurred differently.

Alternate History: or alternative history (British English), sometimes abbreviated as AH, is a genre of stories in which one or more historical events occur differently than as history recorded them. These stories are set in a world in which history has deviated from history as it is generally known; more simply put, alternate history asks the question, “What if history had developed differently?” Most works in this genre are set in real historical contexts, yet feature social, geopolitical, or industrial settings that developed differently or at a different pace from our own. This subgenre comprises fiction in which a change or point of divergence happens that causes history to diverge from our own.

Steampunk: This genre uses steampower to create some of the same technology we use today through other means. Computers, robots, airships, radios, and communication devices, etc. The steam may be created by use of burning coal or in some cases by a chemical reaction induced by combining two incompatible elements.

It is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that refers to works set in an era where steam power is still widely used;19th century’s British Victorian era or American “Wild West, where steam power has maintained mainstream usage, or in a fantasy world that employs steam power in the same way. Although its literary origins are sometimes identified with the cyberpunk genre, it has marked differences. Inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne are often included. Steampunk encompasses alternate history-style elements of past technology like dirigibles or mechanical computers combined with futuristic technology like multi-function goggles, giant robots, and ray guns. Steampunk may be described as neo-Victorian. It most recognizably features anachronistic technologies or retro futuristic inventions as people in the 19th century might have envisioned them, and is likewise rooted in the era’s perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, and art.

Clockpunk: Steampunk has developed several sub-genres of its own. The most common is Clockpunk. Clockpunk is similar in but rather than focusing on steam driven mechanisms, it focuses on devices that rely on energy stored in springs, using clockwork technology. Science Fiction or fantasy stories using technology primarily relying on wound springs for power can fall under this genre. If the technology involved in the story relies on a secondary source for power, say nuclear, it would remain in the clockpunk genre. Springs do wind down and must be rewound by some means, even if it is something as mundane as human muscle. So, as conceived, clockwork technology relies upon at least one other source of power to wind its gears.

Gaslight Fiction This genre uses steampower to create some of the same technology we use today through other means. It is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that sometimes refers to works set in an era where steam power is still widely used. It differs from pure Steampunk in that the stories have less super-science and are less often associated with alternate timelines.

Gaslamp Fantasy, another sub-genre of Steampunk, also known as Gaslight Romance, taking place in the Victorian era. This realm of fantasy employs either a Victorian or Edwardian setting. It differs from pure Steampunk in that the stories have less super-science and are less often associated with alternate timelines.Romantic Science Fiction: This genre seems to be written almost exclusively for and by women. In many cases, it is simply a love story set in the future or a distant planet. It differs from Sci-Fi Romance in that in many cases the love interest is an alien. These books are easily spotted because their covers most often feature half-naked male figures. These figures sometimes have horns and different skin colors in blue, green or sometimes even purple. They also feature plots very similar to some of the old bodice rippers popular in the 1960s and 1970s, where the woman is captured and then falls in love with the man who captured her. In the Sci Fi genre, the bodice ripper heroes seem to have been replaced by hunky looking aliens who kidnap human women as ‘mates’. If you want to learn more about this category, I can recommend https://www.sfrstation.com

NEW BOOKS

ALREADY OUT

Cloned Ambition

Set in a future where clones are seen as second-class citizens and Normals are threatened by their own creation, Scarlet and her Mate Dagmar must fight for their own freedom and survival. 

Scarlet was created to be the vessel for an aging actress’s brain when she reached maturity. But when her creator dies before the transplant can take place, Scarlet is sold to a clone breeding farm, and only narrowly escapes a terrible fate to rejoin her mate Dagmar and his band of ‘wild’ clones. l

Learn More: https://buy.bookfunnel.com/o0rkubnrl4

Identity, Danger and psychic intrigue collide

Dive deep into the mysteries of identity

Every Shadow has a story to tell

Secrets Are Dangerous—but Not Knowing The Truth Can Cost You Your Freedom…

Welcome to Shangri-la, a planet of psychics and a Utopia gone wrong.  This thrilling science-fiction mystery will keep you guessing until the very end! 

The mysterious Psychic Colony of Shangri-La is home to many secrets, and Tracy Lucent is determined to solve them. After arriving with no memory of who she is, Tracy’s only clue to her identity is a locket with her name engraved inside. With each passing day, Tracy struggles to unravel the threads of her past, but when there is an attempt to kidnap her which she narrowly escapes, she knows she can no longer ignore the mystery of her past. With danger lurking around every corner and secrets waiting to be uncovered, Tracy must uncover the truth of her identity before it is too late.

Learn More https://buy.bookfunnel.com/s74n12bait

COMING SOON – RELEASE DATE AUGUST 31!

Nothing on the Colony of Barsoom is what it seems:  Old-fashioned carriages are driven by robots and run on exotic crystals, Airsleds resemble birds of prey and shoot bolts of energy…

The disappearance of a teenage girl plunges six people into a web of criminal activity on the colony of Barsoom, a Mixture of advanced technology and Renaissance Customs

Learn when it’s available for pre-order! https://books2read.com/author/gail-daley/subscribe/1/72820/

My privacy policy can be found on my website: https://gaildaley.com/Privacy-Policy.php

Learn More: https://gaildaley.com/Become-an-ARC-reader-on-Gail’s-Team.php

2024 05 30 Work Journal

Well, here we are again. Despite distractions from ‘Life (read that Sh*t) happens’ (our business credit card was hacked, and they sucked over $1,200 out of the account before my husband caught it.) Little so-and-sos did it in the middle of the night. If he hadn’t been up at 2 AM and odd hour for him they might have succeeded in draining the account. The bank is working on it and issued me a new card—but they managed to hack the virtual card issued before we even got the real one! It makes me want to go into the bank and sing “You’ve got a hole in your system, dear BofA to the tune of “You’ve got hole in the bucket, dear Liza”.

To keep the pair of us out of jail for disrupting a business, we decided to open an account at another bank instead. Which involves renewing our FBN and unfortunately, we were 10 days late, so we had to start from scratch. Most of this fell on me since it involved spending time in government offices, setting up appointments at the new bank, etc. Time consuming and not especially fun.

However, despite all of that, I did get three chapters of City of Deception done, which leaves me about 69% finished with the rough draft. I ran through the girl’s disappearance, the rescue (where we picked up another teenager in the same fix), the hospital scenes and the new girl’s intro to her new family with Ava as a guardian. I can always tell when I’m on the right track with a book as it just clicks along. The only drawback is I need to make myself go back into the rough draft and expand on stuff. (I do have a tendance to tell not show when I’m writing at light speed). I learned this the hard way when I wrote the Arcadian Web and one of my ARC readers said it was a novella instead of a real novel. I have since gone back in and added and re-wrote some scenes to expand it, so I’ll need to re-do the PB cover.

I decided that when I write these second books, I need to add a phrase about the adventure continuing in the next book, as a reviewer said Cradle of Fire ended too abruptly. The rest of the story takes place in The Clone Initiative, which features Liam as a grown man (he was 13 in Cradle).

2024 05 09 Work Journal

I managed to get another chapter of Deception written today. I’m walking a fine line between creating an info dump to catch readers up on the events that took place in Heirs of Avalon and this book. I’m also shifting the focus onto Ava as she is the heroine of this story without completely ignoring the other four whom I’m demoting to supporting characters. That’s another fine line as well.

I’m also dividing my focus because of some business and personal issues I’m dealing with. My Shingles blisters have scabbed over nicely, but I have to wait until they fall off completely before I’m no longer contagious. Words of wisdom: go down and get the shot! This stuff is extremely painful: on a scale of 1 to 10, it’s about a 12, and it doesn’t go away.

Daughter of Shadows is finished, and I sent it out to some of my ARC readers. If you are interested in a free copy, please sign up to join my ARC readers group: https://gaildaley.com/Become-an-ARC-reader-on-Gail’s-Team.php I can always use more reviews on my books!

Daughter of Shadows

Secrets Are Dangerous—but Not Knowing The Truth Can Cost You Your Freedom…

Welcome to Shangri-la, a planet of psychics and a Utopia gone wrong.  This thrilling science-fiction mystery will keep you guessing until the very end! 

The mysterious Psychic Colony of Shangri-La is home to many secrets, and Tracy Lucent is determined to solve them. After arriving with no memory of who she is, Tracy’s only clue to her identity is a locket with her name engraved inside. With each passing day, Tracy struggles to unravel the threads of her past, but when there is an attempt to kidnap her which she narrowly escapes, she knows she can no longer ignore the mystery of her past. With danger lurking around every corner and secrets waiting to be uncovered, Tracy must uncover the truth of her identity before it is too late.

If you enjoyed the suspenseful journey of identity discovery in books like The Maze Runner and Divergent and the suspense of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, then you’ll love the thrilling ride that is Daughter of Shadows. 

Find our more:

https://books2read.com/u/bPwzrd: 2024 05 09 Work Journal

Abbreviations Used In Book Descriptions

An airship flies through the evening skies in a steampunk fantasy world.

I thought I was familiar with all the abbreviations used in book descriptions until I found this list. Some of these things I’ve never heard of before! They are often used by reviewers and some writers in book descriptions, so I think it behooves ignorant writers like me to at least know what they are.

PNR is the acronym typically used for paranormal romance: Shifters and vampires and mermaids and so much more. Shifters are people able to become various animals. Vampires are simply vampires. It depends on the writer whether they are good or bad. The one thing most of them seem to have in common is drinking blood or sometimes life essence. A few writers of fantasy like Ilona Andrews (husband and wife writing team) treated them as another species (theirs don’t drink blood).

PWF Paranormal Women’s Fiction. These books will have adventure, passion, and LIFE. And they’ll kick ass, just like all our books already do! We are not inventing books with 40+ heroines. We are hoping to define a place for them amongst other genres.

OTP: One True Pairing (the couple that you will root for till the end of time)


NOTP: (Pronounced No-TP) Basically the opposite of an OTP. You do not want this couple together!

BROTP/Bromance: A friendship (between guys) that you adore!

Ship: If you ship a couple, it means that you want them to get together (comes from the word “relationship”).


HEA: Happily Ever After


Book Boyfriend/Girlfriend: The fictional boy (or girl) you only wishcould be your real-life love.


Insta-love/Insta-lust: The phenomenon that happens all too often in books when the couple meets and instantly falls in love (or, sometimes, lust).


Love Triangle: When the main character can’t decide between two romantic partners—most frustrating when this is drawn out for multiple books in a series.


Slash Fiction: A type of fan fiction where two same-sex characters are paired together (often guys). Sometimes slash can just refer to the imagined pairing of two same-sex characters (not necessarily within fan fiction).


OMYM/OWYM: Older man, younger woman/Older woman, younger man

M/M Male/male romance

F/F female/female romance

RH reverse harem – typically one woman several men

MC: Main character (book is told from their POV).


POV: Point of view (the perspective that the book is told from).


POC/BIPOC: People of color/Black, Indigenous, and people of color.


Daphne: A female character who must be rescued all the time (in reference to Daphne from Scooby Doo.)


Mary Sue: A character who is too perfect and/or too good which, strangely isn’t attractive.


Manic Pixie Dream Girl: A type of female character depicted as vivacious and appealingly quirky, whose main purpose within the narrative is to inspire a greater appreciation for life in a male protagonist.


Twist: An unexpected event in a book—typically one that changes the direction of the plot or characters dramatically.

Info-Dump: When the author gives you lots of background information all at once via narration or dialogue.


Bechdel Test: a set of criteria used as a test to evaluate a work of fiction (such as a film) on the basis of its inclusion and representation of female characters. the term was popularized by American Cartoonist Alison Bechdel so it was named after her. Alison Bechdel never claimed to be the originator of the test. In fact, she never gave it a name. She credited her friend Liz Wallace for the idea, but also the work of author Virginia Woolf in her essay “A Room of One’s Own”.


Unreliable Narrator: A narrator whose POV is not trustworthy (could be due to lying, misinformation on the part of the MC, mental health or memory issues, etc.).

GT
Agent: a person who acts on behalf of an author, negotiating with publishers and promoters.

Alpha Reader
The first reader, usually a non-professional, who provides feedback on a writer’s work.

ANT
Antagonist: the adversary or competitor to the hero/protagonist of any story.

APS
Associated Press Stylebook: a writer’s and journalist’s reference manual for rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, and word and numeral usage.

ARC
Advance Reader Copy: free copy of a book given by a publisher to media, librarians, or other readers in advance of official publication.

ASIN
Amazon Standard Identification Number: Amazon’s unique identifier for each book they sell.

AU
Alternate Universe: a fictional universe in which recognizable details are changed to create the story.

Beta Reader
A reader, usually non-professional, who provides feedback on a book after a writer has made revisions inspired by alpha readers.

BG
Bad guy: the Freddy Krueger, Lord Voldemort, or Darth Vader of your narrative.

BS
Backstory: history or background that occurs before the current events of a story.

Character Arc
The inner journey and transformation in personality of a character between the beginning and the end of a story.

CMOS
Chicago Manual of Style: a writer’s and editor’s reference manual for grammar usage, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, and word and numeral usage.

Cont
Contemporary (genre): a genre that, although fictional, depicts realistic events that could happen in today’s society. An example: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.

CP
Critique Partner: a writer who provides feedback on a fellow writer’s work.

Drabble
One hundred words that tell a story. Drabbles, because of their brevity, demand strong verbs, zero redundancies, and minimal showing. They usually require more time to write than longer stories.

F & SF
Fantasy And Science Fiction (genre): make-believe worlds and characters combined with narrative that is based on scientific principles. Think Star Wars by George Lucas, et al.

FF
Flash Fiction: very short fiction, usually containing fewer than 1000 words.

FN/Fant
Fantasy (genre): stories about mythical worlds often populated by magical creatures. Example: Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling.

GMC
Goal, motivation, conflict: important elements for engaging stories.

GN
Graphic Novel (genre): stories that are told using a combination of graphic panels and text. Although a graphic novel may be similar to a comic book in format, it usually encompasses an intriguing plot with character growth. Example: the Logan’s Run graphic novels by William F. Nolan, et al.

HC
Hardcover

Hook
An element that is unique to a story. Always memorable, it may also be controversial.

HR
Horror (genre): frightening stories that often include elements of fantasy. Examples: Children of the Corn by Stephen King and The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.

Indie
An independent writer who maintains creative control and who is not associated with a major publisher.

Juv
Juvenile (audience/genre): usually geared to children under twelve years of age. Example: Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White.

LI
Love Interest

Logline
A brief summary, usually one sentence, that presents the main conflict or storyline, often combined with a hook to stimulate the interest of readers.

LOI
Letter Of Introduction

If you think of more, please write in and add to the list.

Abbreviations Used In Book Descriptions

I thought I was familiar with all the abbreviations used in book descriptions until I found this list. Some of these things I’ve never heard of before! They are often used by reviewers and some writers in book descriptions, so I think it behooves ignorant writers like me to at least know what they are.

PNR is the acronym typically used for paranormal romance: Shifters and vampires and mermaids and so much more. Shifters are people able to become various animals. Vampires are simply vampires. It depends on the writer whether they are good or bad. The one thing most of them seem to have in common is drinking blood or sometimes life essence. A few writers of fantasy like Ilona Andrews (husband and wife writing team) treated them as another species (theirs don’t drink blood).

PWF Paranormal Women’s Fiction. These books will have adventure, passion, and LIFE. And they’ll kick ass, just like all our books already do! We are not inventing books with 40+ heroines. We are hoping to define a place for them amongst other genres.

OTP: One True Pairing (the couple that you will root for till the end of time)


NOTP: (Pronounced No-TP) Basically the opposite of an OTP. You do not want this couple together!

BROTP/Bromance: A friendship (between guys) that you adore!

Ship: If you ship a couple, it means that you want them to get together (comes from the word “relationship”).


HEA: Happily Ever After


Book Boyfriend/Girlfriend: The fictional boy (or girl) you only wishcould be your real-life love.


Insta-love/Insta-lust: The phenomenon that happens all too often in books when the couple meets and instantly falls in love (or, sometimes, lust).


Love Triangle: When the main character can’t decide between two romantic partners—most frustrating when this is drawn out for multiple books in a series.


Slash Fiction: A type of fan fiction where two same-sex characters are paired together (often guys). Sometimes slash can just refer to the imagined pairing of two same-sex characters (not necessarily within fan fiction).


OMYM/OWYM: Older man, younger woman/Older woman, younger man

M/M Male/male romance

F/F female/female romance

RH reverse harem – typically one woman several men

MC: Main character (book is told from their POV).


POV: Point of view (the perspective that the book is told from).


POC/BIPOC: People of color/Black, Indigenous, and people of color.


Daphne: A female character who must be rescued all the time (in reference to Daphne from Scooby Doo.)


Mary Sue: A character who is too perfect and/or too good which, strangely isn’t attractive.


Manic Pixie Dream Girl: A type of female character depicted as vivacious and appealingly quirky, whose main purpose within the narrative is to inspire a greater appreciation for life in a male protagonist.


Twist: An unexpected event in a book—typically one that changes the direction of the plot or characters dramatically.

Info-Dump: When the author gives you lots of background information all at once via narration or dialogue.


Bechdel Test: a set of criteria used as a test to evaluate a work of fiction (such as a film) on the basis of its inclusion and representation of female characters. the term was popularized by American Cartoonist Alison Bechdel so it was named after her. Alison Bechdel never claimed to be the originator of the test. In fact, she never gave it a name. She credited her friend Liz Wallace for the idea, but also the work of author Virginia Woolf in her essay “A Room of One’s Own”.


Unreliable Narrator: A narrator whose POV is not trustworthy (could be due to lying, misinformation on the part of the MC, mental health or memory issues, etc.).

GT
Agent: a person who acts on behalf of an author, negotiating with publishers and promoters.

Alpha Reader
The first reader, usually a non-professional, who provides feedback on a writer’s work.

ANT
Antagonist: the adversary or competitor to the hero/protagonist of any story.

APS
Associated Press Stylebook: a writer’s and journalist’s reference manual for rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, and word and numeral usage.

ARC
Advance Reader Copy: free copy of a book given by a publisher to media, librarians, or other readers in advance of official publication.

ASIN
Amazon Standard Identification Number: Amazon’s unique identifier for each book they sell.

AU
Alternate Universe: a fictional universe in which recognizable details are changed to create the story.

Beta Reader
A reader, usually non-professional, who provides feedback on a book after a writer has made revisions inspired by alpha readers.

BG
Bad guy: the Freddy Krueger, Lord Voldemort, or Darth Vader of your narrative.

BS
Backstory: history or background that occurs before the current events of a story.

Character Arc
The inner journey and transformation in personality of a character between the beginning and the end of a story.

CMOS
Chicago Manual of Style: a writer’s and editor’s reference manual for grammar usage, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, and word and numeral usage.

Cont
Contemporary (genre): a genre that, although fictional, depicts realistic events that could happen in today’s society. An example: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.

CP
Critique Partner: a writer who provides feedback on a fellow writer’s work.

Drabble
One hundred words that tell a story. Drabbles, because of their brevity, demand strong verbs, zero redundancies, and minimal showing. They usually require more time to write than longer stories.

F & SF
Fantasy And Science Fiction (genre): make-believe worlds and characters combined with narrative that is based on scientific principles. Think Star Wars by George Lucas, et al.

FF
Flash Fiction: very short fiction, usually containing fewer than 1000 words.

FN/Fant
Fantasy (genre): stories about mythical worlds often populated by magical creatures. Example: Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling.

GMC
Goal, motivation, conflict: important elements for engaging stories.

GN
Graphic Novel (genre): stories that are told using a combination of graphic panels and text. Although a graphic novel may be similar to a comic book in format, it usually encompasses an intriguing plot with character growth. Example: the Logan’s Run graphic novels by William F. Nolan, et al.

HC
Hardcover

Hook
An element that is unique to a story. Always memorable, it may also be controversial.

HR
Horror (genre): frightening stories that often include elements of fantasy. Examples: Children of the Corn by Stephen King and The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.

Indie
An independent writer who maintains creative control and who is not associated with a major publisher.

Juv
Juvenile (audience/genre): usually geared to children under twelve years of age. Example: Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White.

LI
Love Interest

Logline
A brief summary, usually one sentence, that presents the main conflict or storyline, often combined with a hook to stimulate the interest of readers.

LOI
Letter Of Introduction

If you think of more, please write in and add to the list.

2024 05 09 Work Journal

I managed to get another chapter of Deception written today. I’m walking a fine line between creating an info dump to catch readers up on the events that took place in Heirs of Avalon and this book. I’m also shifting the focus onto Ava as she is the heroine of this story without completely ignoring the other four whom I’m demoting to supporting characters. That’s another fine line as well.

I’m also dividing my focus because of some business and personal issues I’m dealing with. My Shingles blisters have scabbed over nicely, but I have to wait until they fall off completely before I’m no longer contagious. Words of wisdom: go down and get the shot! This stuff is extremely painful: on a scale of 1 to 10, it’s about a 12, and it doesn’t go away.

Daughter of Shadows is finished, and I sent it out to some of my ARC readers. If you are interested in a free copy, please sign up to join my ARC readers group: https://gaildaley.com/Become-an-ARC-reader-on-Gail’s-Team.php I can always use more reviews on my books!

Artificial Intelligence—Yes or No?

Screenshot

There is a lot of controversy these days about using artificial intelligence in your work. I’m not just talking about driving a car or reading your contact list. I’m talking about in the creative arts. There are many artists and writers who claim that artificial intelligence draws from a free association of words and visual items off the Internet. Undoubtably this is true and a lot of cases. These artist and writers contend that anyone who uses artificial intelligence to assist in their work is stealing—but is it? 

This controversy over Artificial Intelligence is quite similar to the controversy that arose when photographers starting demanding a place in fine art shows, and it got worse when creatives discovered they could alter an existing photo creating digital art.

What they’re talking about is something called Intellectual Property Rights. What is that? Basically it’s your creative ideas. And there is no doubt that they belong exclusively to you. However, it has been proven over and over again that more than one person can come up with the same general idea concurrently, so which one of them is stealing from the other? If we want to prevent our Intellectual Property Rights from being stolen, instead of simply barring anybody who uses artificial intelligence, we should learn how to use it properly, and teach creative people how to use it so that they can use it effectively withoutstealing someone else’s Intellect Property Rights. If we write that into law correctly, Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool.

While it is true, today’s Artificial Intelligence cannot create on its own without assistance from an artist or a writer, it’s going to happen sooner or later. Deal with it. No, I do not believe that Artificial Intelligence will replace human writing or human skill with a pen, pencil, or paint. One of my Facebook friends once said that she wanted an Artificial Intelligence that would do her dishes and her laundry so that she could write, not so that it could write or paint for her. That sounded good to me. Let’s face it People, Artificial Intelligence is not going to go away any more than digital art did. It’s here. I suggest everyone learn how to use it properly so they can decide for themselves how it would be helpful to them without theft.

Can this be done? I think so. We’ve all discovered over the past 20 years just how useful computers can be, and I personally see nothing wrong with using an Artificial Intelligence to spark your own creativity any more than watching a TV program or reading a book sparks ideas. Or, in the case of writers, to go in and edit a written manuscript. There is no doubt a well written manuscript, edited properly, improves it. Now, does it create it? No, absolutely not. I personally have used the Artificial Intelligence on Kindlepreneur to improve my blurbs. All this really does, is take what I’ve already written and revise it. It shortens sentences, tells you where you’re unclear in describing your book, and it’s certainly some help in correcting grammar and spelling. And the Lord knows, we can all use help with that. I don’t care how good you think you are at spelling or grammar, all of us allow colloquialisms to creep into our writing, especially when we emphasize something.

OK, I’ve been talking about the written word. Now let’s talk about the Visual Arts. If you think the controversy over using Artificial Intelligence for writing is nasty, wait till you try to talk about it in context of the Visual Arts! when people first started mentioning using Artificial Intelligence to assist in making book covers, I tried to ask a few questions. You would have thought that I was advocating selling their firstborn child when all I really wanted was some information! It’s true Visual And Graphic Arts are a fuzzier area than the written word. The construction of an imaginary world is difficult; visually many artists and writers experience (and non-artists too) difficulty translating what they see in their head onto paper. And yes, there are Artificial Intelligences out there who do draw from other people’s images on the Internet, especially if the writer has not been clear about what they’re asking for. If you are looking for an original image to visually explain your new world, DON’T use an image from someone else’s creation to describe it!

Now, one of my favorite photo resources Shutterstock, also has an Artificial Intelligence that will help you create your imaginary animals and scenery from the text you write. It was free, so I decided well. Why not try it. If nobody will answer my questions. I’ll figure it out myself. It was an interesting experience. The first thing I learned was that the little darlings (Artificial Intelligences) are stupid. If you want an original creation, then you need to refrain from using anything or object from the real world it can grab onto. For instance, the first time I used it I tried creating a creature I made up called a Powderpuff Gargoyle. It’s very small. Unfortunately, I when likened it in size to a teacup poodle. Everything I got as a result looked like a poodle dog. So the first thing I learned was do not compare the image in your mind to anything that actually exists. I did much better when I substituted the words a small mammal. 

Learning to use an Artificial Intelligence is very similar to what I experienced When I was in high school; My creative writing teacher had us describe a car without using the words car or  motor vehicle. We couldn’t use the word tire to describe it what fit on its wheels. Instead we had to say a round, air-filled rubber-like substance instead of wheel. So if you want an alien looking plant, don’t call it anything that resembles an earthly plant. Instead it is a green growing thing; you could say fungus, but then you might get a mushroom. if you use something like broccoli it’s, It’s gonna look like broccoli. Needless to say, the first time I tried to use this thing on Shutterstock, in trying to correct the image so I wouldn’t get a poodle, I gave it fits. It froze up, in effect, I overpowered it. If you want, say an alien looking woman, don’t call her a woman; say a female bipedal with whatever color skin you’re gonna be using. whatever her hair is going to look like, if you say hair, it’s gonna look like human hair. 

No, I don’t think Artificial Intelligence is any danger to us artist or writers. The fault lies in our ability to use it and how we use it. If you give a very general description and you say your alien looks like a Klingon you’re going to get a Klingon. If you say an elf, well, there’s a lot of different descriptions out there to draw from and what you actually  get back will depend on what that individual Artificial Intelligence has available for sources. 

The fault lies in ourselves and our training, not in the tool.

2023 Gail’s Year In Blog

12 06 2023

I got most of milking scene done for Daughter of Shadows. It was funny, but not as funny as I intended Grace being a city girl has never had any kind of contact with livestock before. So she is understandably squeamish about handling the goat’s udder. I might go in and add some dialogue to increase the comedy aspect of it. She is further horrified to discover they will probably be eating some of the pheasant chicks when they’re grown. So is Tracy but that’s because she wants to make pets of them. Most of what I might use about preparing milk for  human consumption were things that I remember my aunt Genevieve doing when we brought in milk from the goats. She would strain the milk through a cheese cloth into a large pot and heat it to a certain temperature to kill any bacteria. I probably need to do some research to find out what exactly the right temperature is as I recall she had a cooking thermometer she used you don’t want to cook the milk just heated enough to kill any bacteria the stuff that’s left on the cheese cloth can be turned into either butter or use it as heavy cream. I think it will be simpler, If I just have them use a small home pasteurizer this would be something that would be essential for people who are producing their own milk and cheese among other things, so I think I’ll go that route. And mention it as being standard issue for colonists on planets where they would be less dependent on our industrialized lifestyle.

12 04 2023

I’ve had a scene in Daughter nagging at me for two days, so I I’m using my usual practice of jumping around at the beginning of the book so that I can get all these little scenes in place. It makes kind of a choppy beginning, and I do have to go back in and smooth out the transitions, but it’s the way I work. For instance, I already jumped ahead and did Talent’s interview with the controller where she verifies that Grace and Tracy can’t be audited for two years since they just came off an Indentured Servant Contract. She’s not happy about it, which is probably why she took couple of wrong steps when she ran into them at the carnival. 

finally sat down and wrote it. It’s just a little short thing about Grace finally discovering her mad at all the things that have been done to her. The family had gone to the monthly carnival to watch the Portal opening, and they’re confronted by Deputy Talent who threatens to report them to the Augers Office. On being told they knew she couldn’t have them audited for two years, She got angry, and reminded Grace that everyone knew she had been living with Baxter Trapp as his mistress. Grace finally gets angry enough to snap back at her and tell her what she thinks of the Indentured Servant law, poor police enforcement, and Talent’s character in particular.

The next chapter is going to be fun. This is the one where Tracy finds the snake in the in the chicken coop or the pheasant coop. I don’t like snakes anyway so it’s never fun when I have to write a scene with them in it, but it does make for a good writing because I can put real feeling into it. Before that, I have the scene where Grace and Tracy learned to milk a goat, which I intend to write as a comedy scene. We’ll see if readers agree with me that it’s funny.

2023 11 26

I did some work on Daughter of Shadows this weekend. Since I’m introducing a new set of bad guys and two new conspiracy groups as well as building up the one hinted at in Babylon Shattered, so I did quite a bit of research and I spent some time on their back story as it concerns Tracy.  I also wrote two of the chapters about them; the first one is in the prologue where they kidnap Tracy and talk about the fate of the others. The second one is where they discover rumors of where the ‘weapons’ have been taken. They also talk a bit about rumors of what goes on in Laughing Mountain and what the PA thinks it knows about it. I haven’t dealt with that aspect since I wrote The Portal Lawman, so I needed to do a bit of back reading. Lots of fun.

2023 11 12

I’ve decided I need to re-read Babylon Shattered again when I’m writing Daughter of Shadows. Hopefully then I won’t need to keep looking up things I’ve already written to keep the two stories consistent. So far I’ve written the prologue and the first chapter. It’s going to be a little difficult to write as I’ve already given Tracy’s age in the first book. And I still need to come up with a male MC. Of course, I could still use Clemintine and Mason and also  keep Tracy and the new male lead too. I’ve done it before. In fact I used that scenario for Heirs of Avalon. I need to give it some thought…

2023 11 11

Cloned Ambition will release on time on November 11. This is the first time in a while I’ve had one go out without having to postpone it release date. I’m already working on the next book daughter of Shadows. I’ve set it on Shangri-La and I’m using Tracy lucent who is a minor character  in Babylon Shattered. Like Babylon this is going to be a cozy mystery. I’ve got the prologue done which I started with just a little brief story about Tracy‘s arrival for  the first chapter. I’m going to skip ahead to the present day.

Since I intend this to be able to be read without having read Babylon, I need to include in the description of the planet society and the indentured servant program. I wish Tracy was a part and I still haven’t decided what I’m going to use for a male love interest. I also need to figure out what the group back on earth is trying to do about having their perspective operatives snatched away. I also need to come up with a really good reason why the group back on earth would try to recapture Tracy lots of potential there.

In the prologue, I included a little teaser about the toddlers and the babies adopted by the couple from Arcadia and from Saint Antoni.  I may develop that later which would probably be two more books, one in the Saint Antoni series, and the other one on the colony of Arcadia. We’ll see.

2023 11 01

Today I have the After-book doldrums. Ambition is finished and I am in the throes of setting up my next book.( since I can’t decide whether I want to do city of deception or daughter shadows first I’ll probably end up setting up both and then writing them at  the same time,  which is always fun. The problem is I know where I want to go with both stories sort of, but I don’t have a jumping off place. Daughter has a nice premise. I swear I spit more time correcting this thing than I do dictating it. Oh yes Daughter well I have a Mysterious young woman with no idea where she came from or  who she is before I can write the book and I have to figure out why she’s there and who she is and that’s a problem, because at the moment I don’t know. Terrible thing to admit I know, but there it is.

I also need to figure out the love interest for Tracy. I’m leaning toward making him work in an unpopular profession like maybe he’s an auger or something which everybody tries to cheat the system so that makes them automatically the enemy but how do I make him sympathetic maybe I can make him a Wilder one of the people who don’t join society but hide up in the hills, but how does Tracy meet him?

With Deception have a little different issue: I’m going to be regulating the four primary characters from the last book into secondary roles, so I have to come up with a really good personality, hook and stuff get the reader interested in the two new main characters which are going to be Judith‘s older sister and her boyfriend. Boyfriends lawyer, a criminal lawyer so he gets it he has a chance to get mixed up into a lot of shady cases, I haven’t figured out an occupation for Ava yet; she had to be recalled back to the city with her father got arrested in the last book, so it needs to be something to take her out of town. I am considering making her a traveling artist, or something along that those lines. we’ll see.

2023 10 27

Sitting the art show today it’s a beautiful show. This will be our last together before next year. 

Ambition is finally an editing, thank you, Lord. Surprisingly, I’m not finding very many mistakes with it. I do see some rough spots that could do with some other with additional attention, so far, it reads, pretty smooth and coherent. And I do like the new cover, but I need to do some more work on some of the animals in Powderpuff gargle I just really don’t like what’s in there and I did find a puma that I can redo to make it to fit the description. I found a really cute a Chihuahua and I think I’ll use as a basis for the Powderpuff gargoyle . I tried out my marker pens that I got. OK but not as good as a paintbrush. So I guess I’m gonna have to try and use learn the paint brush using it with my disabilities. Going to be lots of fun.

I downloaded some weird westerns from Amazon They were fun, but I was about decided that my St. Antoni stuff just doesn’t quite fit in with that  genre. One thing is there a little comicbooky and my stuff isn’t. Actually, a little closer to—well I don’t know what it’s close to.

I’ve also noticed the weird western genre seems to go for illustrated covers and I’m using real people on mine. I can convert them to drawing type stuff but I’m not sure I want to. 

2023/10/08

Only two chapters to go on Ambition, and then I can send it to Editing. Yay! Waiting for the computer to load Photoshop. For some stupid reason it has decided that program has to be ‘verified’. I hate it when it decides to verify a program because it takes so long. Really annoying!

My earache still isn’t going away. Last night the entire right side of my jaw right under the ear was so sore I couldn’t chew anything because it hurt to work my jaw. I’ve used up all the antibiotics, so I’ll have to ask my doctor to refill it or proscribe something else. Not looking forward to that…

2023/10/07

I worked a little on the last recruitment chapter of ambition today. Nowhere near finished of course. I also did a new final (I hope ) cover for it. The one here has been my working cover for the last year. I wasn’t happy with it even after tweaking it several times. I like the new one better. So, I’ll be able to start some cover reveals at the end of October. I originally intended to release this one at the end of this month, but I want to give myself time to do a good edit on it. Yes, that means the book won’t come out until Nov 30th. If I hadn’t run into heath issues, I probably could’ve made the original deadline. Unfortunately, having the use of only three fingers on each hand makes me a lot slower typist. I fear the days of 90 wpm are gone forever.

2023/10/01

Vernon has another procedure tomorrow to blast more kidney stones. He hates them and has been like a bear with a sore tooth all week. The surgery center still has pandemic protocols in place so I can’t go in and wait with him. Not that I could do more than they can, but I could provide support at least.

2023/09/26

[image error]Its’s been an interesting sort of day. I had entered all 3 Magi books in a Black Friday promotion on Book Funnel and got one of them (Paladin) kicked back because the promotor said it showed too much skin (actually what was said was the promotion didn’t allow naked people on the cover! While I admit the clothes are a bit skimpy, she isn’t naked. But oh, well. It won’t get sent out with the general promotion, but it can go out on my newsletter.

Yesterday, I discovered Amazon has blocked updates for the Magi Storm paperback. Not sure why. I can see I need to do some investigating. I wanted to have the entire day when I mess with Amazon’s KDP.

However, I discovered the Word app for my iPad has a dictation feature, so I tried it out. It was interesting because some improvements have been made. There’s no spell/grammar check icon, but it does underline items it wants fixed, and it does have a learn+ feature That allows you to add new words.

Today I wrote part of a chapter on Scarlet’s recruiting techniques when she goes to her first rodeo. (They need people who know how to capture and train riding animals to catch the Porcina herds).

What are Porcina, you ask? Like all the colonies without an industrial base, Halcyon needs a self-sustaining form of transportation. Porcina are related to earth’s Suidae family. Unlike the ones found on Earth, these are herbivores, with exceptionally long legs to enable them to run fast. Like earthly elephants, the males (puecro) usually form separate herds and only get close to the females (puecra) with young (cobs) during mating season.

2023/09/23

Today is a book chore day, chore day for my books—the eBooks for the St. Antoni series have new covers, but I still need to make them for the paperback versions. Two of the books already have HB versions on Amazon, but I intend to put the other 4 on Ingram Spark. Unless that company’s formatting turns out to be more or as difficult as Amazon’s is, then I might re-think that thought. But I might use them anyways as they offer dust jackets for the books and Amazon doesn’t. I just think hardbacks look classier with a dust cover. The new style of hardbacks with the laminated covers looks a little tacky to me. I sure wish D2D did hardbacks…

2023 09 21

I made a book trailer today for Spell of the Magi. Of course, it took me nearly 2 hours to do it. and then another half hour to get it loaded onto YouTube, and then put it on my website! so now it has a new cover and book trailer!

Spell of the Magi

Book 1 The Magi of Rulari

““An intriguing mixture of Fantasy and Science Fiction.”

Nominated in the Sword & Sorcery Category in the 2019 EFFYs!

[image error]In a world where Magic and Technology collide, an Amnesiac Merc and a sorceress hiding deadly secrets must team up to defy the most powerful wizards of Rulari. When Rebecca, a Magi born into a land where her talents mean slavery or death, meets Andre, an innocent man on the run, the two form a forbidden bond that will prove to be their greatest weapon in their fight for freedom. Will they be able to overcome the forces of evil that threaten their love and their lives? Find out in this gripping fantasy adventure, “Spell of the Magi”! 

This book will take you on an unforgettable journey to a distant world where two powerful civilizations, Terrans and Sekhmet, have fled to the planet Rulari to escape a war-torn universe. although the laws of science still work here, more powerful forces govern Rulari: the power of Magic. 

If you enjoyed the classic sci-fi and fantasy mashup of Steven Erikson’s Malazan, Book of the Fallen series, then you’ll love this book!

2023/09/19

October is fast approaching and with it comes spooky movies, shorter days and cooler weather. I’m looking forward to the cooler weather—spooky movies not so much. My wonder-working chiropractor has put me on maintenance, the constant headaches are gone (well except for the occasional migraine but that’s a per usual).  I’m still getting around using one of Andrew’s walking sticks, and that will probably be the norm for me from now on. I don’t know how much painting I will be able to do as the last two fingers on both of my hands are pretty useless, which makes typing difficult as well. But to paraphrase that old Doris Day song. What will be, will be…

2023/09/12

I took a good look at Ambition today. I thought I was almost finished. However, I think I’m going to need to add at least three more chapters. I need to cover Scarlet’s recruiting in more detail. I also need to cover Eyja contacting the other Clone Familia members to get ready to escape to Halcyon if they need to. And then I also need to cover the first Porcina round up. Then the shepherds need find some hooting dog pups while they are looking for some unicorn goats—that should be fun. The following is a sample of the kind of research writers do to write a novel!

How To Tame A Goat

Many years ago, when we started to have a few too many kids and didn’t give them enough attention, we got a crash course in taming wild kids. We learned very quickly that you can’t just leave baby goats out in the pasture and expect them to be as friendly as the family dog. 

Even friendly goats tend to run more when they’re in a big pasture, so start by putting an unfriendly goat in the smallest space you have in your barn. Our smallest stalls back then were 10 x 10, so I put two Does in there, and I started by simply going in there and just sitting with them.

Goats are curious creatures and will want to check you out at some point. You could just take your phone and check email or something like that. Just hangout for at least 15 minutes a couple of times a day.

After a couple of days, I go in there with a pan of grain or alfalfa pellets, although the grain might be more tempting to them. Set it on the ground about a foot in front of me. When they start eating it, reach out very slowly and pull it towards me very slowly.

Then over the course of a few days — or faster if they’ll go for it — pull the pan of grain into your lap. When they are willing to eat from the grain in your lap, after a day or two, put your hand on their shoulder while they’re eating, then start petting them. It may feel like you’re taking two steps forward and one step back every day.

Just remember that they’re prey animals, so the first thing on their mind is that you are going to eat them. They just have to get over that idea. The bottom line is that they don’t trust you.

If these are does that you’ll be breeding, the other thing to remember is that once they kid, they tend to get friendlier when the oxytocin is initially flowing right after birth. So, that’s a great time to spend more time with them and also start to handle their udder.

2023/09/07

Wow, I haven’t had a chance yet to go in and redo the other two magi and books at Ingram spark. I did manage to make it to the Clovis Art Guild board meeting last night. Got to meet our new newsletter editor. He seems like a nice guy, and I think he’s going to do well In that position. I am getting better I just have to take it one step at a time.

I got new covers designed for 4 of the St. Antoni series (the 4 that take place mostly on St. Antoni). Although I may see about adding more color to the Enforcers and Gaslight, because I think they look too similar. I left the two Dystopian books set on earth alone, because they look like they fit the Dystopian genre.

WOW! Who would ever have thought I would write dystopian books? I certainly didn’t. Most novels written for that genre seem to be full of angst, and typify what I consider the “gloom, despair, and agony on me” syndrome. Frankly, a little bit of that goes a lo-o-ng way with me. Yes, I do think there is room in that genre for stories with a more positive outlook. I’m a HEA writer (happily ever after). We’ll see. I’ve just started exploring that particular sub-genre of sci-fi, so it’s yet to be decided if readers agree with me. As of this moment, I actually have two books in this sub-genre published, and I’m working on a third.

2023/09/03

I’m considering moving any books I plan to issue in hardback over to IngramSpark.com because they offer something I’ve been wanting for a while—dust jacket covers for their hardbacks! They do charge a setup fee, but they also distribute wide—something Amazon doesn’t do… I’ve also heard their setup is easy, which Amazon’s isn’t.

Since Vernon is through playing with the electrical (we had to replace the bathroom light switch as it’s little on-off toggle lever simply broke off).

Since I can power the computer back up now, I may go ahead and get the other two magi books formatted for a hard cover…

Formatting them for hard cover turned out to be more of a chore than I anticipated. And I worked all morning. I haven’t even gotten to the corrections that need done back then I wasn’t doing both books separately I was trying to keep it all in one book and then make another copy. It’s so much easier just to do them both at once with the e-book and the paperback book right up there in front of me and making the corrections on both of them at the same time. This has been  working out very well, (especially since they need to be formatted differently), but as I say, I’ve not had time to do that yet. I’m going to need to go in and adjust the margins a little too so there will be less pages. Before I removed the excerpt from Spell of the Magi, the book was almost  up to 700 pages; I’m  not sure if I’m remembering it right but I do believe they have a page limit on the print books.

DEFINING DYSTOPIAN & POST-APOCALYPTIC FICTION—A SUB GENRE OF SCIENCE FICTION

Dystopian/Utopian: utopia and its derivative, dystopia, are genres exploring social and political structures. Utopian fiction shows a setting agreeing with the author’s ideology (Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek) and has attributes of different reality to appeal to readers. Dystopian (or dystopic) fiction (sometimes combined with, but distinct from apocalyptic literature) is the opposite. It shows a setting that completely disagrees with the author’s ideology. Many novels combine both, often as a metaphor for the different directions’ humanity can take, depending on its choices. Both utopias and dystopias are commonly found in science fiction and other speculative fiction genres and arguably are a type of speculative fiction. Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic are two sub-genres of Science Fiction although you will often find them mixed into the same stories.

Dystopia is the opposite of Utopia. If Utopia is an ideal society, then dystopia is the opposite, or a flawed utopia depending on semantics. Of course, this depends on what the writer’s concept of the ideal society. I agree the description is vague. This is what makes the genre so much fun to write and read. As a genre, dystopian crosses a lot of other sub-science fiction genres as well. The Hunger Games (2008) brought the genre to THE fore again, but contrary to popular belief the genre has been around a long time.1

Dystopian novels often focus on societies and cultures that appear stable and well established. The post-apocalyptic genre with which it is often mixed, usually depicts an imbalanced or volatile cultures (Mad Max). 

Common Themes in Dystopian Fiction: Poverty, Technology being abused, Oppressive social institutions, abuse of power by governments, etc.

Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction is a sub-genre of Dystopian Science Fiction covering the end of civilization, through nuclear war, plague, or some other general disaster. Post-apocalyptic stories are most often set in the aftermath of the collapse of civilization or society as we know it. Man’s attempt to regain control of his environment after an apocalypse is fertile ground for creating a totalitarian/dystopian society. Common themes in post-apocalyptic literature are loss of resources, global natural disasters including storms, earthquakes, rising oceans, pandemics, loss of technology, widespread radiation, etc.

This sub-genre has been around a long time as well. In 1826 Mary W. Shelley (Frankenstein’s Monster) wrote The Last Man (a plague kills off most of the population).

The time frame may be immediately after the catastrophe, focusing on the travails or psychology of survivors, or considerably later, often including the theme that the existence of pre-catastrophe civilization has been forgotten or mythologized. Post-apocalyptic stories often take place in an agrarian, non-technological future world, or a world where only scattered elements of technology remain. FYI there is a third genre associated with these two: An apocalyptic novel tells the story of the end of the world, which occurs during the timeline of the story.

2023/08/30

I had the blurbs re-written on some of my older books, (the Magi of Rulari series), along with some new cover designs for them. When I posted them on Draft2digital, to my surprise, I got back in an error code on one of them. When I asked for specifics, I got back to kind of gobbledygook answer, I usually get from Facebook when I ask for something specific answer whatever they squawked.  to say the least, I was disappointed because D2D has always had fabulous customer service, and this wasn’t it. Instead of answering directly, the way they usually do, whoever answered this question sent back a lot of information about something I already knew how to do because I do it all the time and said they already explained what was wrong which they HAD NOT. I have concluded therefore that D2D must have picked up some of Facebook‘s nonexistent customer service reps. They really need to use so they really need to be retraining them, To be more responsive. Anyway, that’s my vent for the day. Thanks for listening.

2023/08/20

I got the  e-book & paperback back covers up-dated with the new blurb information this morning. Then I came down with a migraine and slept the rest of the day

2023/08/18

I decided I needed to push myself more, so I’ve been steadily increasing my activity over the past week.  Tuesday, I sat on the bed and helped Andrew sort our clean clothes. I was very tired afterwards, and my neck hurt, but I did manage. Thursday, I went with Andrew to do grocery shopping.  Very tired then too, but it’s working. 

I did manage a little bit of work on my books. I just need to get the new descriptions into D2D and book funnel. One of Vernon’s buddies is taking us out to dinner at Cool Hand Luke’s tonight, and I’m looking forward to that.

2023/08/14

I need to get off my duff and get Vernon’s invoices made. If I want my life back, I need to push myself more. I’m beginning to think more was going on than just a few simple falls. The headaches have been constant. Dr. Radke manages to relieve the pain for a while, but it keeps coming back, and I’m too  easily exhausted. I don’t like it.

2023/08/12

When My son, Andrew was  a baby, he was very I’ll until his liver transplant at the age of two and a half, I remember a doctor telling us that we had to measure milestones in smaller increments instead of a foot do an inch.  I used to take things like basic hygiene for granted. Well today, when I managed to take a shower and wash my own hair without someone hovering over me, make sure I didn’t fall in the shower or come out of it so exhausted, I had to sleep for an hour it felt like a major accomplishment. 

I still hope to accomplish a little on my books today—I need to update the covers with the re-worked blurbs. I also have to put  in there. I did update all the all the e-books with the corrections you know misspelled words or dropped quotation marks, things like that. I also intend to update the changes on the PDF books for the paperback books, but I have to wait on that because those revisions cost $25 apiece so that won’t happen until after the 15th of the month, I figure I can budget in for a PDF changes a month that’s 100 bucks, that’s what I get for being such a prolific writer. It won’t do all of them, but it will do some of them. I just have to decide which ones are going to get its first update.

2023/08/07

I’m quite happy with my recovery progress today—I actually managed to take a shower without becoming so totally exhausted I had to take a nap afterwards!

I also wrote a little more on Ambition, and I pushed the release dates for the rest of the series forward. Ambition will be the next release, and I pushed the release date to Halloween. Hopefully that will give me time to finish it and do the editing and any rewrites.

2023/08/06

Two of the authors I follow (Donna Andrew’s and Amanda M Lee) released new books yesterday, so I took a break from my own writing to read them. Sometimes you just need to recharge you own batteries. I do it by indulging in reading books by my favorite authors.

2023/08/05

I priced one of those auxiliary drives on Amazon yesterday. The least expensive one with sufficient storage is around $175.00.  Ouch!  but I don’t want to put it off too long, so I guess I’ll just bite the bullet and order one…

2023/08/05

I did a little more work on Ambition today. I filled out the chapter where they first go to Halcyon. I realized I hadn’t been clear about the first group leaving from Laughing Mountain instead of the Phoenix Spa, so I covered that. I had to account for Tash going with them too, since in the timeline Devon hadn’t hired her as an assistant yet. 

I spent the morning yesterday on the chat line with Apple help trying to find out what had happened to my Notes folders on the desktop—they were still there on the i-Pad, so all isn’t lost. The tech did a recovery to try and get them back, but I haven’t checked them yet. 

I do have one of those auxiliary drives somewhere. I need to do a backup on a lot of my files from both the desktop and the i-Pad.

2023/08/03

I’ve been working some on Ambition this week. Mostly chapters I skipped over because other chapters were screaming at me “write me!” I moved the release date to the end of September because with the multiple falls and doctor visits I fell behind on my timeline. I like to have at least a month after I finish a book to do multiple edits and stuff…

I’ve also discovered that the Notes app on the desktop isn’t including my folders now which makes searching for something incredibly difficult.

2023 08/01

I discovered Dragon Anywhere has a few flaws.

For one thing, it’s very difficult to get the documents over to my desktop MAC. I finally ended up copying it to my note’s app, and then emailing it to myself.

Apparently, the program only works with Windows now as the app quit supporting Apple products. The desktop version also costs about $99.00 a month, and as I said, the program doesn’t support Apple products.

I did manage to get another chapter done on Ambition. What with the falls and medical tests, I’m way behind on my publishing deadline for Ambition. I had to push the release date to September 30th. That means the other sequels to the first books had to be moved as well.

2023 07 25

Spent most of the day with kindlepreneur’s free blurb A. I. Rewriting blurbs on my books, including the back list ones. It isn’t perfect—but the program will give you 4 different samples for the same book. What I do is take bits and pieces of each blurb and put them together to get the best one…

2023 07/22

I’ve been experimenting with dragon software for dictation and I’m I am actually quite pleased with lt. All the things that I have issues with regular dictation on the iPad. They seem to have may have made provisions for it.  There is a learning curve, but as it as they do seem to cover all the things that I was worried about, I’m going to have  and take steps to learn it.

Especially since my hands, don’t seem to be getting better. This morning when I woke up and took almost 5 minutes, my left hand, which was my good hand to un-numb. And I’ve noticed it’s got the shakes to so since it appears, I am going to be losing dexterity in my hands. If I want to keep writing , I need to learn it.

Update 

I did use dragon  and wrote several pages yesterday. It was OK. I did need to go in and put all of my characters in ambition in the  special words part. It’s amazing how much stuff apparently my speaking is not as clear as I thought it was. Anyway, I have great hopes for it. But I do need find out how to put it on the main on the main computer too.

2023/07/18

I confess I’ve been trying out the dictation app on my iPad. What with the trouble I’ve been having with my hands, if I want to keep writing I might have to try something different from typing a story into word.  So far, I haven’t been much impressed. The app is too helpful—it keeps attempting to second guess me and getting it wrong. When you factor in it not always hearing what I’m saying accurately, that makes for quite a few corrections that need made.

2023 06/10

3rd fall—although strictly speaking, it was more of a slide than an actual fall. I caught  my house Slipper on the edge of a broken tile in the hall and then stepped on the other one trying to catch myself, bounced off  the linen cupboard and slid down the bathroom door. We threw the slippers away and Vernon brought me home a pair of Sketchers Slip Ins.

It’s a real pain trying to type because the last two fingers on my right hand aren’t working well. Not sure what caused it.

2023/05/26

Well, I’m nowhere near as stiff and sore as I expected to be today, after my second fall in two weeks.   Is it classified as a fall when you roll off the bed in the middle of the night? Banged the top of my head on the nightstand on the way down.  I. Can’t recommend it as a way to wake up.

2023/05/25

What a fun way to wake up in the middle of the night. I rolled off the bed and landed on the floor. Since I’m still working on recovering from last week’s fall—landing in  cat litter and banging my head against the  DVD  bookcases, another fall didn’t make me a happy camper.

2023/05/20

Well, I’m nowhere near as stiff and sore as I expected to be today, after my second fall in two weeks.   Is it classified as a fall when you roll off the bed in the middle of the night? Banged the top of my head on the nightstand on the way down.  I. Can’t recommend it as a way to wake up.

2023 05/05

In case you hadn’t heard, the klutz queen of Fresno (me) took another fall Saturday. On the way down I managed to break the glass in one of our DVD Bookcases…

2023 04 27

I didn’t get much writing done this month. I’ve picked up some type of chest inflammation (very painful to breathe). The doctor is running a bunch of tests. So far, they’ve ruled out cancer (thank you God!), heart failure, and apparently walking pneumonia. The cardiologist did say my blood pressure was out of sight, so he added two BP meds and doubled the one I’m on. Next step is the pulmonologist. Also, a handicap thingy to hang from the mirror of whatever vehicle I’m riding in. I had to borrow a wheelchair at the cardiologist’s office. 

2023/04/10

5 books in my Outlawed Colonies series will be out by the end of April. I plan to write at least 3 books set on each colony.  Book 5 is Arcadia II. I’m still working on book 6 Cloned Ambition. It was supposed to be no 5, but it’s difficult deciding how much to include in Ambition and how much to save for book II…

2023/04/08

Well, I finished the chapter in Cloned Ambition where  Scarlet, Dagmar and the others first set foot on Halcyon. They also get their first site of a herd of Porcina, the animals they’ll be using for transportation and as draft animals. I ended the chapter with Hogun, Killian and Dagmar trying to learn how to rope.

2023 03 26

Up all night with another migraine. I wonder if it’s those new antibiotics they gave me for the bronchitis. I remember the Cipro did that to me. Well, I’ve finished them so hopefully it won’t reoccur. Still too droopy to write on Ambition though. My next chapter is on Napoleon’s relationship with Jason and his growing fascination with Scarlet. Going to shift the locale to Laughing Mountain because the next two chapters are where they discover Halcyon. Dagmar and the others are sent to explore it. Napoleon keeps Scarlet in Phoenix by saying her classes to teach the clones to blend into Normal society are too important to interrupt. The exploratory crew discover the Porcina herds and Dagmar, Hogun, Yael and Killian discuss adapting native animals for transportation and riding.

PORCINA are Herd animals found on Halcyon and domesticated for transportation and for uses horses and donkeys were used for on earth. There are three main varieties: All have large heads and short necks, with relatively small eyes and prominent ears. Their heads have a distinctive snout, ending in a disc-shaped nose. Porcina typically have a bristly coat, and a short tail ending in a tassel. Legs are long to allow for fast running. The body is typically thick and round. A Porcina Equine can run about 30 miles an hour for short stretches. 

Porcina have a well-developed sense of hearing, and are vocal animals, communicating with a series of grunts, squeals, and similar sounds. They also have an acute sense of smell. Porcina are omnivorous, eating grass, leaves, roots, insects, worms, and even frogs or mice. 

The canine teeth are enlarged to form tusks, used for rooting in moist earth or undergrowth, and in fighting.

Porcina are intelligent and adaptable animals. Adult females (sows) and their young travel in a group while adult males (boars) are either solitary, or travel in small bachelor groups. Males generally are not territorial and come into conflict only during the mating season.

Litter size varies between one and four, depending on the variety. The mother prepares a grass nest or similar den, which the young leave after about ten days. Porcina are weaned at around three months and become sexually mature at 18 months. In practice, however, male Porcina are unlikely to gain access to sows in the wild until they have reached their full physical size, at around four years of age. In all varieties, the male is significantly larger than the female, and possesses more prominent tusks.

PORCINA MAXIMUS – About the size of a Clydesdale. They are Used primarily as a draft animal for plowing and pulling large loads.

PORCINA EQUINE are about the size of a quarter horse. They are used Primarily as a riding or carriage animal.

PORCINA PALAWAN are primarily used as either children’s mounts or to pull small carts.

2023 03 25

Up all night with another migraine. I wonder if it’s those new antibiotics they gave me for the bronchitis. I remember the Cipro did that to me. Well, I’ve finished them so hopefully it won’t reoccur. Still too droopy to write on Ambition though. My next chapter is on Napoleon’s relationship with Jason and his growing fascination with Scarlet. Going to shift the locale to Laughing Mountain because the next two chapters are where they discover Halcyon. Dagmar and the others are sent to explore it. Napoleon keeps Scarlet in Phoenix by saying her classes to teach the clones to blend into Normal society are too important to interrupt. The exploratory crew discover the Porcina herds and Dagmar, Hogun, Yael and Killian discuss adapting native animals for transportation and riding.

2023/03/24

Here it is the 24th and I haven’t posted anything this month! Well, I do have some excuse; my guys shared their crud with me and naturally it turned into bronchitis. Vernon is working a Pool Association show this week, so Andrew and I are by ourselves. Unfortunately, Andrew still has it  too…

Hopefully I’ll get more done on my blog this week.  The Arcadian web is due to be released on April 30, and I think it’s ready (Knock on wood—as soon as I say that I’ll find more errors that need to be corrected…)

Anyway, if you are interested in doing a review of this book:  The genre is  science fiction mixed with a cozy mystery and a little romance. I’ve included a copy of the cover. Here is the link to download the book: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/k30czrr2ah

Goodreads Link:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123240684-the-arcadian-web

If you do a review, please notify me of where and when it will be posted.

Thank you for your consideration. I appreciate your time.

Gail Daley

2023/03/04

UPDATE: I’ve revised the release dates and sequence of my Outlawed Colonies series. Since I’m still struggling with Cloned Ambition, I’ve decided to release The Arcadian Web as book no 5, (Its already finished), and Cloned Ambition is now book 6. 

2023/03/01

I lost my phone in my new purse today. Brand new purse with these lovely 3 deep pockets in front so naturally I chose one of them for carrying my phone. It’s about 12”. Well, when I tried to take the phone out to charge it, it wasn’t there, so I asked my son to call it. I could hear it ringing and it was coming from my purse! So, we unloaded the purse, and I could see the shape, but couldn’t reach it. It turns out that one of those lovely pockets has a hole in the bottom! The phone had slipped out the hole and was between the lining and the outer skin of the purse! You can be sure I checked the other pockets for holes!

2023/02/27

[image error]Antheraea Polyphemus… basically a tarantula with wings. Big surprise: this insect can be found everywhere in the continental United States except Arizona and Nevada, and in every Canadian province except Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. Unlike my Marabunta who are carnivorous, these insects are herbivores,

This goes to show that there is never anything new under the sun! I made up the Marabunta, and, lo and behold, there actually is an insect which looks like it! Much smaller of course. All it needs is a stinger and it could be one of the Marabunta in my latest Outlawed Colonies book The Arcadian Web. Of course, it would need to be a lot larger: about 18” tall and about 24” long… 

Release date for the Arcadian Web is set for 4/30/23.

2023/02/22

I got another chapter done on Ambition today. It’s the one where Scarlet and the others arrive at Phoenix. Doing more development on how the clone society actually works, as well as more character building on Yael and Napoleon…

2023/02/20

I need to get started on the dishes, but I’m being lazy this morning. My new glass teapot arrived yesterday—I can just put it in the microwave, which will save getting two things dirty whenever I want a pot of tea in the evenings. It also came with 4 thimble sized cups. They’re cute but they don’t hold enough for more than a swallow or two of tea. Not sure what I’m going to do with them—like the pot they are glass so easily broken. Guess I’ll either give them away or find a place to store them. Vernon and I are attempting to declutter the house, so saving then really isn’t a good option…

I tried to do a little more work on Ambition yesterday, all I succeeded in doing was rearranging some of the chapters through once I realized I needed more development in some places. This book is going to end with the clones arriving on Halcyon and starting to colonize it. I think. For the story to move the way I envision, I’ll need to do something drastic to Napoleon so Yael can take over, which means more character development on him…

2023/02/19

Today was a less than productive morning: thanks to my lovely Apple desktop, I lost a bunch of work. My computer ate my excel spreadsheet I use to keep track of the promotions I do for my books, so I spent the morning partly restoring my list of links to them and to each individual book.  The links for the entire Outlawed Colony series was gone. I retrieved the major ones from D2D, but I still need the others from BookBub, Book Funnel, Goodreads, and a slew of others. I’m considering adding a copy of the links to my book info sheets. At least that way I’ll have an extra copy of them. Thanks for listening to me rant. It does feel good to have a place to vent without someone thinking they need to “fix” things! 

2023/02/09

I haven’t done any writing today. One of my favorite authors (Amanda M Lee) released two new books in two of her series this week, so Instead of writing I’ve been binge reading them.  E. M. Foner also had a new book out. Occasionally, it doesn’t hurt to relax and not work. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy writing my new books, but sometimes I do run out of plot and need to recharge my creativity battery.

2023/02/05

Finished another chapter on Ambition today. I’m about to start the chapter on the fight at Uncle Bobs house. The more I look at it the more I think I might be splitting the book up. I’m also considering killing Napoleon off so I can slot Yael in as the leader of the clones on earth…somehow this always happens. I write a killer outline and about halfway through the book it starts running away with the story.

2023/01/28

Well, I got the chapter about Scarlet’s time at the Clone Farm done. I had to pull out that chapter of Clone Initiative to refer to it since I didn’t want to make any mistakes in it. I suppose I could have copied and pasted it and just added in the new POV, but I didn’t want to do that as I think it would have been cheating. I think I did okay with it. The next chapters involve settling in at the Phoenix Spa, and helping Tally, Liam and company foil Hatchers attempt to recover the infant and toddler clones. I also need to add in Scarlet’s trip through the portal to speak to Dagmar about Napoleon’s attentions.

I got the proof copy of Arcadian Web yesterday. It’s way too rough to let it stand. Fortunately, I have a couple of months for expansion and rewriting before its release date in July.

2023 01/24

The internet is incredibly slow this morning. I have things I need to do, but I left the office before I got frustrated enough to take a blunt instrument to my desktop. This is probably because Apple just did another software upgrade. I wish they would quit trying to fix stuff that isn’t broken!

I’ve been working on Ambition in bits and pieces. I need to write the chapter where Dagmar and the others (and readers) are introduced to the Clone Familia Doctrine. I just had them meet a wounded Abraham (the clone who wrote it). He had been approaching the PGA clone farms and making contact through the fences with clones trapped inside to tell them about the doctrine. He was wounded because some of Napoleon’s raiders mistook him for a normal and shot him.

I also need to write the chapters covering Scarlet’s escape and the abortive raid on Liam’s house. I think it would also be a good time to cover how the Phoenix cult works from the inside.

Holiday Gift

Merry Christmas and happy Holidays (whichever you prefer)

I want to thank everyone for their  Well wishes and prayers for me and my family as we struggled with health issues this past year. I am getting better, although I may never be 100% again. That’s the price we pay for getting old. To celebrate the season, I am sending you the gift of a free e-book. Just Click the link or scan the QR code on the postcard and follow the instructions.

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/tlrw76mpn8

Gail

gift