Rachel Rener's Blog, page 14
December 9, 2022
Big, Wonderful, Exciting Happenings
Happy Friday, everyone!
Fair warning: this update is long and a bit of a rollercoaster - there is good news, bad news, mixed news, and generally awesome news. But please stick with me 'til the end; I promise it's worth it!
Okay. Let's rip off the Band-Aid and start with the ,bad, news.
I'm just gonna give it to you straight: I won't be able to finish Talia and Zayn's story in time for the current release date for Linked, February 13th. In fact, because the scale of this series has exploded into full-on epic fantasy (with maps and fully-developed elvish languages and fae battles and ALL that juicy Tolkienesque stuff) I won't be able to finish their story in one book, period.
Which brings us to the ,mixed, news...
Yup, you guessed it.
There will be one more deliciously steamy, hilarious, multidimensional installment in the Gilded Blood series in order to give Zayn and Talia the proper send-off that they, and you, deserve. Perhaps if I’d removed the steamy sex scenes, inappropriate jokes, snarky banter, Hollandaise sauce, and bad-mannered dungeon trolls from ,Linked, we could have reached a final – albeit hasty – conclusion within the confines of Book 3's beautiful front and back covers.
Alas, you and I have put too much time and emotional investment into these books to settle for a rushed ending. And Talia and Zayn deserve a fully fleshed-out story…including a few moremoments in the flesh, amiright? Hence the "mixed" news.
The Good News: you won't have to say goodbye to our favorite Miami tattoo artist as soon or as abruptly as you previously thought.
The Bad News: you will have to wait until the spring (May 16th, to be exact) for ,Synced, the final, glorious, epic conclusion to the Gilded Blood series. But I promise it will be worth the wait. (And the lack of sleep, on my part.)
Which brings me to my next piece of news: the ,good, kind.
Linked, the epic, sweeping, penultimate installment of the Gilded Blood series, is FINISHED!!! It still needs to go through editing and proofreading and beta-reading, but the story itself is done, and I am very, very happy with it. Plus, because we're now ahead of schedule, the SUPER GOOD NEWS is that you'll get to read it one week early, On February 7th! And for those of you on my exclusive ARC team, you can expect your advanced copies in mid-January. Isn't that exciting??? That's, like, A MONTH AWAY. (Holy CRAP, where did the year go?!?!)
Okay, okay... Last, but certainly not least, here is that ,generally awesome, news I promised:
The release date for the Jinxed audiobook has been set: February 14th, exactly one week after Linked's release! (Happy Valentine's Day to us!!! ❤️❤️❤️)
As soon as I have a pre-order link from my publisher, you'll be the first to have it! In the meantime, if you haven't listened to the, Inked audiobook, I cannot recommend it enough - even if you've read the book already. Tara Novie absolutely NAILS Talia's voice, and breathes life into her and all the other characters in a way no one else possibly could.
(By the way, if you have listened to the Inked audiobook, it would mean a LOT if you'd consider ,leaving a review . They help the algorithm, they help me score brownie points with my Publisher, and heck, they always make me smile, (particularly as I've been suffering from a smidge of seasonal affective disorder and burnout.))
So there you have it! The good, the bad, the mixed, and the generally awesome! And now, for those of you wonderful saints who have made it this far, here's a special treat: FAVORITE. After perusing my signed book shop, type that into the promo code field to enjoy $10 off any signed book of your choice.
Because I love you.
Yes, you.
Now what are you waiting for? Go get yourself some books. I hear they make you smarter and up to 11x better in bed.
XO
Rachel,Please don't reply to this email, as it won't make it to my inbox! For all direct replies, you can email me at ,RRener13@gmail.com :)
November 28, 2022
It's almost ready!
The Lightning Conjurer Complete Series Omnibus is in its final stages of production! 776 pages. Fully revamped and colorized interior. Gorgeous, jaw-dropping new cover art. I am SO excited to mail these out in the next couple of weeks!!
Just look at this cover!
With a stunning interior to match!
Each of the four books will feature differently-colored chapter headings. This is from the first book, The Awakening.
And this is a glimpse of the 4th book, The Reckoning!
If you missed out on the Kickstarter, never fear - you can pre-order your signed and numbered limited edition here. But I will only be printing 100 copies total, and slots are filling up FAST. If you'd like to secure your copy, please place your order as soon as you're able to!Thank you SO MUCH again to everyone who helped make this Kickstarter a reality! ❤️
November 22, 2022
Obsidian Saturday Eve Special
I won't be able to keep up with the big boys of publishing (or their hefty advertising budgets) this holiday season, but I'd still like to give back however I can! So instead of pouring tons of money into ads, I'm just doing a quiet sale with the biggest discount I can afford. Please feel free to pop on over to my shop or pass the news along to a fantasy-philic friend!
By the way, everyone who places an order this week will also be included in a drawing for an INKED audiobook - for you or your favorite audio-loving pal!
Happy "Obsidian Saturday-Eve" Bargain-Hunting! And remember to be nice to retail workers, especially this week ❤️
November 8, 2022
INKED is now available at Audible!
Whether you've read this book, not read this book, added this book to your TBR, or actively avoided it due to FOFILWAFC*, believe me when I say, you will NOT be disappointed with Tara Novie's brilliant. soulful, and hilarious performance.
Find it here, and then come back and let me know how far you made it before spitting your drink all over the place.** (I personally made it about...half a chapter.)
* ℎ ℎ**,Podium Audio , ℎ, ℎ- ℎ ℎ ℎ .
November 3, 2022
We're funded!!!!
Now that the Lightning Conjurer special edition omnibus is ONE HUNDRED PERCENT BACKED (with 8 days to go!!!), it's time for me to start loading up on gorgeous swag!!! Especially since I'll be able to get these stunning hardcovers out before the holidays!
For anyone else who'd like to get in on this project, there's still one week left!
I'll be working my tush off to get everything ready and shipped before Christmas. In the meantime, let's all take a moment to admire the rough concept art for the dust jacket!
Thank you so, so, so much to everyone who has supported the project so far!
October 28, 2022
TLC Omnibus concept art ⚡️
I want to stress that this is an incredibly rough sketch just to nail the concept, but since The Lightning Conjurer hardcover omnibus Kickstarter campaign is 80% funded with a whopping 14 days to go (), it felt like a great time to post an update for those of you who have so generously contributed!
Best news of all - since the artist is already diligently working on the redesigned cover, and the interior designer is available to dive in at the end of November, I'm thinking there's a 96.5% chance we'll have the books in your hands by Christmas/the end of Hanukkah.If you haven't signed up for the campaign, you can do so here. All patrons at the $55+ tier will get a limited edition, signed and number hardcover omnibus as well as a Lightning Conjurer t-shirt (and a bunch of other goodies!)⚡️
Whether you're a $100 patron or a $1 patron, thank you so much for helping to make this happen!
For all direct replies, please feel free to email me at ,RRener13@gmail.com ,.
October 13, 2022
On this day of mirth and birth, which officially marks my...
On this day of mirth and birth, which officially marks my 35th revolution around the sun, I'm doing something so scary, so daunting, so big and labor-intensive, I *almost* didn't do it. And then I thought, "You know what?" * * "You only turn 35 once!" * * "LET'S DO THIS!" * , *
Now, where was I? Oh, right. LO AND BEHOLD, I've launched a Kickstarter to create a gorgeous, limited edition, signed and numbered, hardcover omnibus of the entire Lightning Conjurer series: tinyurl.com/tlc-omnibus
Many many years ago, wayyyyy back in 2018, I wrote The Lightning Conjurer when I was still struggling to make money as a baby author and was therfore forced to skimp and pinch where I had to. Because of that, I've always dreamed of giving the collection a beautiful, hardcover omnibus with a full exterior and interior makeover.
Now, thanks to turning literary tides and the boundless generosity of my readers, I think we can finally make this happen. And not just any old omnibus. I'm talking high quality hardcover omnibus (an 800+ page chonker!), a gorgeous dust jacket, and a beautiful interior to die for. The paper weight will be nice and heavy, and will have page embellishments and decorations throughout the entire book. As for the BRAND-NEW cover art, imagine a dramatic, dynamic, digitally hand-painted scene with Aspen, arm raised high above her head, conjuring lightning from the sky in all of her dazzling, powerful, breathtaking beauty. (YEAH, I KNOW, RIGHT?!)
Sailor Jupiter - my 2nd favorite lightning goddess!
As my articulate and brilliant friend, JA Andrews wrote in her newsletter yesterday, a Kickstarter is where creators themselves can raise money to fund a project.
Making a brand-new hardcover omnibus with new artwork and everything else is prohibitively expensive. BUT, if I ran a Kickstarter, and knew that I would need to sell at least X number of copies to make it feasible, and that would cost $Y, then I could set up a Kickstarter to raise that $Y by basically allowing people to preorder their copies. If enough people were interested, and I raised the $Y, then the project would happen, I’d get the books printed and shipped, and we’d ALL get GORGEOUS books.
If not enough people were interested, the the project doesn’t happen, no one is charged money, and we all just think wistfully of pretty books we could have had. But I, as the author, don’t lose lots of money trying something that flopped.
The Kickstarter campaign is launching RIGHT NOW!
;
I am launching a Kickstarter to give The Lightning Conjurer series a gorgeous, limited edition, signed and numbered hardcover omnibus. And it would make my entire month if you would consider being a part of that. Everyone who donates, regardless of amount, will get something special (like a custom t-shirt, free Inked audiobook code, and a gorgeous signed poster, to name a few)!
Check it out here!
Regardless of whether you are able to donate or not, thank you so much for being the greatest readers an author could ever hope to have ❤️
--
PS: if you have not yet read The Lightning Conjurer, the whole entire series - all four books! - is currently on sale for just $4.99 on Amazon, and free forever on Kindle Unlimited!
Enjoy!
(Please do not reply to this message, as it won't make it to my inbox! For all direct replies, please email me at RRener13@gmail.com.)
October 10, 2022
Of Dice and Friends
D̵o̵ ̵y̵o̵u̵ ̵l̵i̵k̵e̵ ̵D̵n̵D̵?̵ Scratch that, do you like awesome storytelling with face-palming, laugh out loud, totally improvised moments? Or better yet, being able to s̵a̵b̵o̵t̵a̵g̵e̵--er, "affect" the story itself? Or, best of all, getting a signed and numbered, limited edition figurine of yours truly? (Well, in non-flammable Teifling form, that is.)
If you answered yes to any of the above, come join our crew over at Of Dice and Friends Podcast! Did I mention that all 10 episodes are for your listening pleasure?
Get your cute butts over here!
BTW, this is the free, hand-painted, limited-edition figurine you get for being a Patron (starting at $2 a month!). We decided that anyone who donates 4 figures or more will get an actual visit from the real life Tana (a.k.a. Me) who will then take said patron out for ice cream
October 7, 2022
BEST. NEWS. EVER.
AHHHH!!! I cannot remember the last time I was this excited to make an announcement! (I had to temporarily disable the Caps Lock key to make sure I didn't write this entire post in capital letters )
The Gilded Blood series has been picked up by Podium Audio, the fastest-growing audiobook publisher in the world, and is coming to Audible NEXT MONTH!
As much as I have loved working with Podium, I am head over heels in love with the performer we hand-selected to bring Talia to life: Tara Novie, actor, singer, New York native - not to mention a nice Jewish girl (with enough spunk to stop a fachan dead in his one-legged tracks)! She had me dying with laughter from the very first sentence of her audition.
Mark it on your calendars! INKED is coming in exactly one month! Better yet, pre-order now and have the antics delivered straight to your listening device at 12:01am on November 8th!
(Which just so happens to be the hatchday of the real-life Biscuit!)
HAVE I MENTIONED I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS?!?!
September 25, 2022
All Signed Books Back in Stock!
After repeatedly selling out of certain titles, we are back in stock, baby! And to thank you for subscribing to the site, I'm including several promo codes just for you.
Plus, as a bonus, I will randomly select two new orders to include a SIGNED, premium poster of Linked for free!
Thank you so much for all of your support!
(Please do not reply to this message, as it won't make it to my inbox! For all direct replies, please email me at RRener13@gmail.com.)
