Renna Ashley's Blog, page 2

It's ABTOB Release Month!

It's September! That means the countdown to A BROKEN THRONE OF BRONZE release day is on! Only 24 days to go! (cue the excited screaming here).

I am so, so excited for you all to finally read this book. Many of you have been here since the beginning, when I posted my first TikTok video, and I am so excited for the wait to finally come to an end. While this isn't my first time publishing a book, this is the first time that I've had people waiting for one of my books to release. Because of that, writing and publishing this book has been so, so exhilarating, but also nerve-wracking. Once ABTOB officially goes out into the world, it becomes its own entity--it won't be just mine anymore, but yours, too.

ARC reviews are really coming in now as we approach release day, and I wanted to thank every ARC reader who has read and reviewed so far! I can't tell you how appreciative I am that you all took aside the time to read and share your honest feedback. Reviews (both positive and negative) help authors like me so, so much, because it lets potential readers know what to expect and gives them information to go off when making the decision to pick up my book. Thank you!

If you're still waiting to get your hands on a copy of this beauty, hang in there! I cannot wait for you to meet Cryssa and Viridian and immerse yourself in the Of Metals and Curses world.

Until next time,

Renna

The Light at the End of the Tunnel...

So I've been radio silent everywhere--Instagram, TikTok...this blog (cue the side eye)--but it's only because I've been busy getting A BROKEN THRONE OF BRONZE ready for release.

As an indie author, writing, editing, and polishing the book itself isn't where the work ends. Then comes the formatting, hiring a cover designer (or designing it yourself, like I did), and more of the housekeeping things that go into publishing a book. If you read my July newsletter (if you haven't signed up for my mailing list yet, stop what you're doing and go do that!!) you probably know that July was a very editing focused month for me. I did all the major story edits and rewrites in July, and wrapped up minor flow edits into the first days of August.

I just finished formatting the eBook, paperback, and hardcover editions of ABTOB, and have made the product pages for those in Amazon and Barnes & Noble. (Yay!) Print copy pre-orders should go live on Barnes & Noble's website very soon! Stay tuned for my August newsletter to be the first to know when those are available ;)

Now, all that's left to do is send out ARC acceptances and get ARCs out into the world! (Eek!) I can't wait to see what you all think, and hope you love Cryssa and Viridian's story as much as I do.

Since I'll be traveling for two weeks the second half of the month (and hitting the ground running with my second year of law school when I get back) the pressure is on to get all book-related tasks done before I leave (hence, the stress). But, all the hard work is so worth it, and letting ABTOB out into the world and into the hands of readers like you will be so, so rewarding. I can't wait!

Hopefully I won't be so radio silent from here on out, but I make no promises

Until next time and happy reading,

Renna

Rough Draft? Check!

After months of drafting, I've finally finished writing the rough draft of A BROKEN THRONE OF BRONZE (cue the excited screaming here).

Whoa. What a ride writing this book has been! I've had such a wonderful time seeing where this story would go, and really feel like I went along for the ride with the two lead characters, Cryssa and Viridian (our kick-ass FMC and dark-haired MMC).

I've sent off my manuscript for feedback, and now, it's time for the dreaded editing stage (sigh.) For me, the drafting stage is the fun part. But I know how important editing is. This is the time to refine the story, make substantial revisions and changes, and all the tweaks (whether big or small) that will make a huge difference in turning this book into the final product you'll ultimately hold in your hands. The journey's not over yet, and I have some exciting news to share with you all on Monday, July 3rd.

Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful day, and I'll catch you next time!

Renna

Get to Know Me!

Hello! My name is Renna!

I'm a bookworm, cookie-monster, life-long fantasy reader and writer. And I'm a soon-to-be published indie author.

My current WIP (work in progress) isn't the first book I've written, but it will be the first book I've published in the fantasy romance genre under this pen name. If you like women with swords, swoon worthy MMC's, and fantasy worlds that will make you forget you're reading, then follow along to be part of my author journey! I'd love to have you along for the ride :)

My WIP is still relatively early on in the drafting progress, but my goal is to publish before the end of this year (2023) or early 2024. I can't wait to get this book into your hands. I know it's going to be a good one, and I hope you love it!

Here's some of the tropes and elements I've already included, and will be featured in the first book of my upcoming series:

Enemies to lovers (um, yes!) Spice Fae Knife to the throat trope Ballroom scene Forced marriage Loose Beauty and the Beast retelling

For updates, subscribe to my blog, or follow me on TikTok or Instagram to see sneak peaks from my WIP.

Hope you all have a wonderful day, and I'll catch you next time!

Renna