Cate Rowan's Blog, page 5

Just a quote about reading that I loved…

Hat tip to The Passive Voice for posting this:

The library is inhabited by spirits that come out of the pages at night.

—Isabel Allende

That’s just how I always envisioned it. Books do take on a life of their own, don’t they?

May whatever you’re reading right now spur your imagination.

 

New Release, New Cover Art, Kobo, and Pinterest Love!

Yes, I have a new release! It’s a lovely little confection of a novella called Kiss That Frog: A Modern Fairy Tale.

A cynical LA artist reluctantly pet-sits for her young niece’s frog and discovers magic in the terrarium.

Magic in the terrarium…oh yeah!

One of my final readers has called this story “every woman’s grown-up fairy tale,” and I had a blast writing it. Even the cover was fun to design.

Here’s where to sample or nab it:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Smashwords (all e-formats)

All Romance eBooks (all e-formats)
Kobo (yes, all my books are finally at Kobo!)
Apple (coming soon—but Smashwords has it in your e-format right now)

By the way, I’m over at the Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood blog today talking about Frog, and about the magic of story. (Psst…I’m giving away a couple of copies of Frog there, so feel free to stop by!)

I’m also showing off the new covers for my Alaia Chronicles series (Swords and Scimitars, The Source of Magic, and Kismet’s Kiss) at the Ruby blog, and that makes for a fun before-and-after comparison. I’d love to hear your thoughts about the changes.

Oh, I’m on Pinterest now! Come see my page and follow me. :)

Free, free, free, free, free… plus story news

W00T! My fantasy short story “Swords and Scimitars”−a hero’s journey and part of my Alaia Chronicles series−has gone free on the Amazon Kindle and free at Apple’s iTunes. Psst—folks can also read it for free at my website. Have at it, peeps!

Meanwhile, during my June NaNoWriMo a novella called Kiss that Frog elbowed its way to the front and demanded to be written NOW. It ‘s a fun contemporary fantasy romance that’s separate from the Alaia Chronicles series. So, in addition to work on The Soul of Magic, I finished a draft of KtF a few days ago and I’m in the middle of edits. I already found a perfect cover image, too, heh heh. It’ll be out in a few weeks, Lor’ willin’ and the creek don’ rise, so look for the announcement.

New snippet from The Soul of Magic (Rokad and Qiara’s story)

The Soul of Magic: ”A loyal but bitter mage whose powers were snuffed out while protecting his sovereign must tutor a willful and seductive princess whose inborn gifts could save the world—or plunge it into chaos.” That’s my current logline for this novel, which I’m working on during Camp NaNoWriMo this month.

The Soul of Magic has haunted me (in a good way) for years. This is Rokad and Qiara’s story, and it takes place in the time between The Source of Magic and Kismet’s Kiss. It’s actually the second novel I ever began, more than a decade ago. I never finished it back then, and now I can see some of the reasons why. I’ve attempted some revisions over the years, but now I have a set of updates I think will really work.

Yesterday, the first day of NaNo, I had a blast. As I wrote in my Facebook profile, “Rokad and Alvarr, you crack me up. Too bad Qiara wants to throw things (daggers, most likely) at you both.”

As NaNo keeps rolling, I may continue to share some of the draft with you. Warning, it is indeed a draft. NaNo is about getting new words on the page and not about polishing them!

To refresh your memory, Prince Alvarr (a mage) and Jilian (his Source, and now wife) were the romantic couple in The Source of Magic. Their daughter, Qiara, is now grown…and has caused herself a world of trouble, which I’ll discuss in more detail later.

The following snippet occurs somewhere around chapter three or four, and takes place at a royal brunch given to honor Rokad’s return to Ysanne castle. Qiara has her reasons for being uncharacteristically quiet during it. Varene (the heroine of Kismet’s Kiss) makes an appearance here, as well as Thoren, Alvarr’s great-uncle, and Sara, Jilian’s mother. I hope you enjoy this visit with old friends!

 

Rokad caught a hushed commotion behind him. “You always serve the right side of the table, not the left. So I get to serve him.”

“You owe me, Lisette, and you know it.”

He glanced over his shoulder to see two serving maids fighting over the bread basket and darting glances at him.

“Ah, just like old times.” Alvarr’s mouth quirked.

“I want it stated for the record,” Rokad said, “that I am sitting as still as a tree.”

Alvarr snorted.  “Then you’d better mind your branches.”

Jilian raised a graceful hand to her mouth and snickered.

Another woman spoke behind Rokad. “You are perfectly scandalous, young man.”

Rokad turned to find Sara, Jillian’s mother, beaming at him. He chuckled and rose to his feet. “Is that a problem?”

“Never in my book. Come here, you scoundrel.” She wrapped her petite arms around him in a fierce hug, and then stood back to beam at him.

“Now Sara, was I truly that bad?”

“Wouldn’t have minded if you were, Handsome.” She gave him an outrageous wink.

Thoren, her escort, looked a tad crestfallen. “Well now, if you really like the younger ones…”

Sara tucked her arm in Thoren’s. “Do stop. Jealousy doesn’t become you.”

Thoren spluttered; Rokad clapped him on the back.

When he’d returned to his chair, a third serving maid, perhaps the overseer of the first two, appeared at his elbow with the breadbasket. She looked perfectly prim. Just for fun, Rokad gave her a slow smile and let it spread from his mouth to his eyes. He watched her melt from proper to girly in the space of three seconds.

“Such a weapon,” Varene said, laughing after the server departed with a happy sigh. Varene turned to Qiara at her side. “I told you what he was like. Never a day without the castle humming about him.”

“So I see,” Qiara said. The stiffness in her words drew Rokad’s questioning gaze, but she’d already turned away to speak to her mother.

Alvarr cut his poached green egg into forkfuls. “I’m sure there’s a betting pool among the kitchen staff by now. I should probably find out the odds.”

“So it’s to be like this, is it?” Rokad asked in a falsely aggrieved voice.

Jilian broke away from her conversation with Qiara and waved her fork at him. “Don’t decry us for your reputation. You’ve only yourself to blame, and a castle of single women to satiate.”

“I’m so glad you added single to that sentence,” Alvarr drawled.

“My darling,” his wife said, “you should be.”

Rokad nearly choked on his bite of tinder-deer.

Alvarr gave Jilian a sideways glance and his smile bloomed. “That’s one way to keep me on my toes.”

“It’s good for the soul.” Jilian covered her husband’s hand with her own.

A fun interview, an audiobook update (& snippet!), and thanks…

Emily at Cents-ible eReads has a fun interview of me up today. She asked some great questions. :-) And the interview also has (thanks to the amazing Jennifer at AudioLark, my audiobook publisher) an excerpt of the audiobook for The Source of Magic! Yes, you can hear a three-minute snippet from Chapter Three, so head over there and enjoy. (Psssst… the full audiobook will be released this fall. W00T!)

Oh, guess what? Now that my run with Amazon’s exclusive program is over, I’m able to put Swords and Scimitars up as a freebie at my website here. Yay! I’ve also relisted it at Smashwords, where it will—eventually, after it gets approval for their Premium catalog—be distributed to many other ebook stores. With luck, that will help other readers find my novels and grow the community for the Alaia Chronicles.

Cents-ible eReads was one of the places that mentioned my freebie for Swords and Scimitars last week (yay!). Here are some other places I’d like to thank:

- Sharrel at Free Books Daily: http://www.freeebooksdaily.com/
- Snickslist: http://snickslist.com/books/
- Josh Cook at Free Book Dude: http://www.freebookdude.com/
- Paula at Flurries of Words: http://flurriesofwords.blogspot.co.uk/
- Tom at KindleMojo: http://www.kindlemojo.com/

I think I caught everyone, but in case I missed a site, my apologies—and my gratitude.

Now, dear reader… go check out the interview and audio goodie!

New covers, a FREE short, and audiobook progress….

First up, FREE, yes FREE: My 5-star historical fantasy short story Swords and Scimitars (a prequel to the award-winning Kismet’s Kiss) is free at Amazon TODAY through sometime Sunday 5/20. Nab a copy and please tell your fantasy-loving friends to grab one, too! This story is one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. Pssst: remember that anyone with a computer or smartphone can read Kindle books for free, even without a physical Kindle device. Get S&S here:

Amazon US | France | Germany | Italy | Spain | UK

I had my very first download from Spain today, thanks to the giveaway. How cool is that?

Cover updates: I’m in the process of finding/creating/commissioning a good series design for the covers so they’ll look distinctively mine—alike enough to be clearly the same series, and yet unique enough to catch the eye. While I adore, adore, adore the covers for Kismet’s Kiss and The Source of Magic, they don’t look like they’re part of a series. I haven’t figured the new design out yet (not for lack of dozens of lost hours, alas), but meanwhile I have an updated cover for Swords and Scimitars and I refreshed the cover text for The Source of Magic. Here’s some visual yumminess for the time being:

Desert-y goodness!

Ooh, reach just a little farther...

Series name: Since all my published books/stories take place on Alaia, I’m calling the series “Alaia Chronicles.” Eventually I’ll add the following subseries (these names were my original plan):

Alaia Chronicles: Women of Fate (for The Source of Magic and its sequel coming out later this year)

Alaia Chronicles: The Women of Kismet (for the Kismet’s Kiss sequels coming in 2013)

I’m not sure what I’ll name the subseries of the two origin stories (Swords and Scimitars and Swords and Lute, coming soon). Have an idea? Send me an email and I’ll thank you in the stories!

Distribution news: My run with KDP Select (Amazon exclusive) is almost done for Swords and Scimitars, and I look forward to making it available in other stores, including B&N, Apple, and Smashwords—and right here at my website!—within a few weeks.

Wheee, the audiobook: As you might remember, The Source of Magic will become an audiobook this year, thanks to the publisher AudioLark. I’ve chosen a wonderful narrator and I’m very excited about her work. As an author, it’s a thrill to hear my words, my story, being read by a professional narrator. It’s a whole new perspective on the story, and I’m giddy about hearing the entire audiobook soon. With luck, it’ll be finished and available at Audible by the end of the year. =-)

I hope all is well with you this lovely May. I’ll be back in a few weeks… with a new release. :-D

It’s International Time Travel Day!

Happy Birthday, Einstein, and thanks for the fun!

To celebrate, join twelve Time Travel authors across North America as we celebrate International Time Travel Day with great GIVEAWAYS.

Funny or scary….sexy or sweet…rollicking adventure stories…

ESCAPE WITH TIME TRAVEL!

To add to the festivities, I’m giving away an ebook of The Source of Magic at the blog of Melodie Campbell: http://funnygirlmelodie.blogspot.com/. In fact, visit the following blogs/websites TODAY, March 14, and leave a comment on each for your chance to win free books that celebrate time travel in all its guises. Here are the participating authors and their giveaway locations:

Madeline Baker

Melodie Campbell

Pauline B. Jones

Chris Karlsen

Laura Martello

Troy McCombs

Theresa Ragan

Terry Spear

Lizzie Starr

Cheryl Kaye Tardif

Nicholas Wisseman

and, of course, me—Cate Rowan. :-)

Enjoy. And go get your free books!

It's International Time Travel Day!

Happy Birthday, Einstein, and thanks for the fun!

To celebrate, join twelve Time Travel authors across North America as we celebrate International Time Travel Day with great GIVEAWAYS. <== YAY!

Funny or scary….sexy or sweet…rollicking adventure stories…

ESCAPE WITH TIME TRAVEL!

To add to the festivities, I'm giving away an ebook of The Source of Magic at the blog of Melodie Campbell: http://funnygirlmelodie.blogspot.com/. In fact, visit the following blogs/websites TODAY, March 14, and leave a comment on each for your chance to win free books that celebrate time travel in all its guises. Here are the participating authors and their giveaway locations:

Madeline Baker

Melodie Campbell

Pauline B. Jones

Chris Karlsen

Laura Martello

Troy McCombs

Theresa Ragan

Terry Spear

Lizzie Starr

Cheryl Kaye Tardif

Nicholas Wisseman

and, of course, me—Cate Rowan. :-)

Enjoy. And go get your free books!

New Release: Swords and Scimitars (short time only!)

Unfortunately 2011 was a very rocky year for me, personally… but 2012 is looking wonderful. I now live in the middle of utter gorgeousness (the Colorado Rockies—I've always been a mountain girl at heart!) and I'm leading the life I always wanted. It's funny how life works.

So I'm excited to tell you I have a new release out, and at just 99 cents! But keep reading to learn why it will be available for a limited time at some stores.

"Swords and Scimitars" is a prequel to Kismet's Kiss and The Source of Magic. It's a historical fantasy short story that tells of the origin of the sultanate of Kad.

Immortal twin brothers. One enchanted sword. A tragedy that propels them into legend.

The lives of well-born twins Kismet and Taso are easy and carefree—endless days of bedding women and fighting battles among the gods—until sorcery drives a wedge between them that slices deeper than flesh. Kismet has striven to be the ultimate warrior, but a mistake costs him his brother, his family, and his homeland.

He carves out a new life in the desert, rising to the command of a realm and an army, yet can't escape his past. When two women beg for his aid against tyranny, he must sacrifice his freedom and his long-scarred heart to help them.

"Swords and Scimitars" is a 7,000-word short story (approximately 25 pages) about the immortal founders of verdant Teganne and desert Kad, two rival realms divided by magic—yet bound by blood, mistrust, and love.

Note: This short story is NOT a romance… at least not in the traditional sense. Heck, this is Kad, so you know things will be a bit unusual. :-)

Why "short time only"?

Because I'm likely to enroll "Swords and Scimitars" in the Amazon Select program, which requires exclusivity for at least 90 days. (Boo! Hiss!) So I wanted to make sure my loyal readers have an opportunity to buy it first, in whatever format they want, for a week.

To get a free sample or purchase this digital story for just 99 cents, head to the following retailers:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Smashwords (multiple formats available, including PDF, .ePub for iPad and nook, and .mobi for Kindle)

MORE NEWS!

Yes, more… The Source of Magic is going to become an audiobook this year. Wheee! AudioLark, an audiobook publisher that specializes in romance, will be rolling The Source of Magic out to Audible and other distributors. The tentative release date is August 2012. Hooray for Alvarr and Jilian!

As for the future…

I'm working on a new short story (or possibly a longer novella) about Kismet's brother, Taso, who founds Teganne. I want it to be out in the next couple of months.

Then it's on to The Soul of Magic, the romance of Rokad and Princess Qiara. It takes place in time between The Source of Magic and Kismet's Kiss, and in the realms of both Teganne and Kad.

After that…it's on to Kuramos's wives! (They're seriously annoyed that it's taking so long to get to them, but it'll be worth it. :-) )

Oh, and somewhere in there will be The Ocean Between Us, another fantasy romance contest winner about a siren mermaid and her prince.

I hope you're enjoying a beautiful winter. I am, from my wonderful hidey hole in the Rockies, and I hope to have several of the above stories available in 2012. I'm honored to share my fantasy worlds with you!

My Year: Serious Highs and Lows…

I have a new post at the Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood today talking about developments in my life and my writing. Let's just say that 2011 was not at all the year I expected. Still, Kismet and Mother Fate seem to be looking out for me. ;-)

There's a new short story on the way, too. (Or at least I hope it's just going to be a short story. As I mentioned in the comments there, it's being ornery and keeps trying to grow!)