Clare C. Marshall's Blog, page 13

Faery Detective Agency: A You-Choose Story

Description

You’re Faeryland’s newest sleuth, lucky you! Your reputation precedes you as a master problem solver, even though your magic can be pretty wonky at the best of times.

And you’ve just landed your first major case: the daughter of Baroness Isabella Marcio is missing! Baroness Isabella Marcio has a reputation for being an airy faery and you’ve dealt with her in the past, but now that her daughter, Lillian Marcio, has disappeared without a trace, the heat is under you and you alone to find her.

There’s just one problem.

A box that cannot be opened has just been delivered to your door. It radiates a powerful, evil magic, and you can’t help but feel that it’s a threat against your life…and the baroness’. And the tick, tick, tick sound that comes from within, it almost sounds like a countdown.

You need to find Lillian Marcio before it’s too late…before the tick sound ceases, and the evil from the box is unleashed.

***

The Beginning

The wooden box has been ticking for two hours straight, ever since it arrived this morning, and you can barely take it anymore. You’ve just been given the biggest case of your career as a detective: find Lillian Marcio, daughter of Baroness Isabella Marcio, and you can barely concentrate with all the racket.

Your boss, Mr. Gaviff, is also not pleased. The dwarf bursts into your office and points a stubby finger at it. “Get rid of it. Now.”

“I don’t think I can,” you reply. “It stinks like evil magic. What if I throw it away and it casts a curse on me? I can’t have that, not when I have a baroness’ daughter to find.”

“You don’t have a choice. That box…” Mr. Gaviff leers at it, and takes a step away from your desk, and looks worried. “Fine. Find Lillian Marcio. Get the baroness off my back. She’s sent three pigeons this morning about her daughter, and we have to resolve this disappearance quickly before the media makes it into a scandal.” He frowns at the box. “I can’t help but feel that box has something to do with the Baroness Isabella, whether she sent it herself or perhaps one of her social enemies…or something much more evil entirely…”

You glance at the box again. Its lined with ancient runes you don’t recognize, and it’s no longer than the length of your hand. Its delivery this morning was strange, as it had no return address, and when you tried to open it, with magic and by throwing it against hard objects, it started ticking. No one ever sends you anything, except bills, which you struggle to pay. The timing of its arrival and you being put on the baroness’ case…could it be connected? Or just a coincidence?

“What are you going to do?” Mr. Gaviff asks you gruffly. He folds his large arms across his burly chest and stares down at you. He doesn’t like it when his detectives sit around all day.

Looking at your case files, you have a couple of leads. Lillian Marcio was last seen at the local bookstore, Fae Reads, downtown. You could fly there and ask if anyone has seen her. You could also go talk to her mother, Baroness Isabella Marcio, to find out more about Lillian’s life and who her enemies might be.

Or…you know of a goblin who deals exclusively with ancient artefacts. You could shirk your duties as a detective and take the evil box to him to look at, maybe it will provide some clue as to why it keeps ticking. But you’re not even sure if it relates to the Lillian case, and you only have 300 gold coins in your purse–a visit to the goblin will be costly, but it could give you peace of mind.

Remember: wherever you go, you will have to take the box with you. It will probably attract attention. That box is evil, and it’s kind of loud, and your boss doesn’t want evil, loud things sitting around his office.

What will you do?

Choice 1: Go to the bookstore and ask if anyone has seen Lillian Marcio.

Choice 2: Question Baroness Isabella Marcio about her daughter.

Choice 3: Visit the goblin to find out more information about the evil box.

What are you waiting for? Sign up for the Faery Ink Press Book Club to have a say in the next chapter of the story!

Things I Learned At C4 Con

I just finished a long weekend at C4 Con in Winnipeg! I had a great time with S.M. Beiko (aka, Samantha, aka Sam), she’s super awesome. We shared a table and she was super nice to let me stay with her again for my second visit to Winnipeg.

Those of you not familiar with my “things I learned” series might want to check out Things I Learned At My First Convention (KeyCon, also Winnipeg) and Things I Learned At My Second Convention (When Words Collide, in Calgary) that I wrote earlier this year.

Comic Cons are Not Book Cons

You’d think that because comics are half writing that this would mean people at comic cons would be interested in buying books. This is not the case. Sure, I had sales, but I had some pretty high expectations for this con and I was just blown away at how much I was not selling.

People go to comic cons to buy merchandise from their favourite shows, meet celebs and get their pics/autographs, dress up, take pictures of people who dress up, and buy a ton of comics/cool art. So while my stuff falls into the science fiction/fantasy/horror genre that all this stuff is in, it doesn’t automatically mean that I’m going to make thousands of dollars at a con that boasts a 30,000 people attendance.

A number of things such as the stuff below factors into this, such as…

Location, Location, Location

The Winnipeg Convention Centre is huge. Just huge. Because a TON of people go to this thing. Line-ups out and around the registration area, just hundreds and hundreds of people waiting to get in. And two floors of merchants and other activities. And it’s all just a maze. I got lost a couple of times looking for my table because after walking down a couple of rows, you start to see the same stuff and it gets a little confusing.

Most of the authors/publishers were in a row near the “autograph alley” which was where all the celebrities hung out. This was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because we got to see Avery Brooks, Walter Koenig, Ron Perlman, and James Marsters pretty closely! A curse because it was sort at the “end” of the convention: people would wander by, and then seeing that there’s only the celebrities nearby, they turn around to look for more merchants to browse at.

Location isn’t something you can really change or help when you attend a con. You can just make the best with what you’re given. And I think we did pretty well. Being near other vendors that are similar to you has its pros and cons.

Pros: Your row becomes its own mini “author corner” and people will linger longer looking at all the books, and then can quickly make a purchase decision and not have to wander around the con to purchase which book they want. Also, people can quickly evaluate what books appeal to them in a short amount of time, and direct their attention toward which book table suits their interests.

Con: Increased competition. This didn’t really apply for our little row, since Sam and I were the only YA book vendors in our row (I think) but for the others, it was mostly fantasy vs more fantasy vs more urban fantasy. This is where superior book design comes into play for your product!

I should also note: not every book vendor in our little row was independently published. Chadwick Ginther had his own table, and he’s published by Winnipeg publisher Ravenstone. He’s a great example of a guy who does a lot of his own marketing–usually on his own dime. Not every publisher will send you to a con, all paid for, especially small publishers.

Organization

Obviously it’s not easy to put a con of this size together. But as a vendor and especially as someone who pays to go and attend this thing, it’s important to have your act together. The information we were sent–especially the times of operation–did not match the actual times of operation. There were frequent announcements that seemed to contradict one another, a ton of corrections that we weren’t sure were final iterations. It made the whole affair feel a little unprofessional, and more like a chore to attend instead of a joy.

Ebooks Are Not Swag

I had a surprising number of people try to take them because they thought that they were free. I guess that’s because I had them in a business card-type holder (because they look cool and actually professional in it) and they were in the front. So I had to make sure when people picked them up, to say right away, “Those are eBooks, and they are available today for purchase.” One girl didn’t get that and almost walked away with The Violet Fox, though I repeated it 2-3 times in our conversation. She said, “I have to pay for this now?” I guess she might have thought that you could take them and pay for them online? No.

What’s maybe worse is I had some people who didn’t even know what eBooks were, young people too! And I was sure that Comic Con would be the place to sell lil eBooks, because they’re a) cheap and b) convenient and c) technological. Nope. Sold nowhere near what I did at KeyCon.

On the last day, I ended up putting bookmarks over the card holders with “EBOOKS” written on them, so that it was obvious that you couldn’t just take them.

For next time, I think I’ll have clearer signage, but not just that–have a display case of eBooks, that clearly says, these are lil eBooks, and you buy them, and then have them in a flat collectible card case or jewelry case.

The Best Thing That Happened to Us All Weekend…

…was when Walter Koenig, Chekhov from the original Star Trek series, came to our table. He said hello to me and was looking at my books, and asked, “How old are you?”

“Twenty-five,” I replied.

“And you did all this?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I said, a little shy.

He looked impressed, and said that he was “in awe” of me.

He chatted to Sam and I for like 15-20 minutes, asking us all kinds of questions about publishing. He told us of his publishing woes with some of his fiction, I guess some of his books were mismanaged. At the end of his story he said, “Oh well, I didn’t come over here to talk about myself.” And we were like, “Oh no, that’s okay.” And we talked more about the publishing business, how it’s tough, how you can’t just put out a book and not market it, or rely on a famous name to make a book sell.

At the end of our combined spiel, he looked blown away. “Will you guys be my managers?”

We laughed. Of course it was a joke. But he did ask for our business cards.

He was a really sweet man. He visited every book vendor in our row and talked to them, asked how things were going. Not sure if the other celebs did that or not. But he seemed genuinely interested in all the writers selling their wares.

It was so funny when he left the convention on Sunday. He came down our row, smiling, popping his coat collar, and disappeared into the crowd, as if he were saying, “Hehe, no one will recognize me now!”

So awesome.

Will I do it again?

I’m not sure. I sound a little bitter in this post because there were more things that annoyed me about this con than other cons. C4 Con needs to get its act together if it wants to attract book publishers and authors and be a real force in promoting those kinds of artists. That’s not to say I didn’t do well at the con. I covered my expenses, including the cost of my trip from Calgary to Winnipeg and the cost of the table and the money I spent buying food, and made a little extra. I did get lots of exposure and social media followers because of it. But in terms of whether C4 Con was a good fit for me as a book publisher, I think I may devote my resources to a different con next year.

Crowdfunding The Silver Spear

I promised everyone I’d have a big announcement on The Violet Fox‘s birthday. So here it is.

First of all, some “bad” news. I’m switching up some of the release dates. Originally I had The Silver Spear release date planned for June 13, 2014, and The Hunger Inside (Sparkstone Saga #3) for September 13, 2014. I’m switching these around so that The Silver Spear’s release date is now September, and The Hunger Inside is now June. I think this makes more sense. It allows me to go right from Dreams In Her Head (Sparkstone #2) right into The Hunger Inside without taking a break from the world. From a marketing standpoint, I can build momentum easier if I have these two books coming out within a few months of each other. And the third, most important reason I’m doing this is so I have more time to plan the BIG NEWS…

I’m going to do a crowdfunding campaign for The Silver Spear in June, 2014.

Eep! Yes, it’s true.

This crowdfunding campaign would be to raise money for the print run I’ll be doing. Pretty much everything else will be covered by that point in the game. The number I’m looking at raising at the moment is $4,000. I will have a more precise number closer to the day, but that is the minimum I’ll need for the minimum print run.

All information will be posted on the official crowdfunding page, RAISE YOUR SPEAR, if it’s not at the blog.

I’m under no illusions here–this is going to be a LOT of work. Especially marketing wise. I’ve made some strides in the past year but I have a long way to go. Which is why I want to give myself more than six months to really put this together.

So…Kickstarter or Indiegogo?

I haven’t decided yet. I keep flip-flopping on this. It wasn’t until about a month ago that Kickstarter allowed Canadian projects, and at this time of writing, I’m leaning towards them. Indiegogo looks great, and the main draw for me is the flexible funding–the ability to keep any money raised, even if the goal is not met. However, more projects are successful on Kickstarter not because they’re more popular, but because people can pledge their money “safely” knowing that if a project is not funded, their credit card isn’t actually charged. All or nothing. Good for the investor, scary for the project creator like me!

Perks?

Yes, there will be lots of perks. I’ve made a tentative list and I’ll release it as soon as it’s mostly finalized.

Please stay tuned for more details!

Stars In Her Eyes: Amazon Bestseller!

I’m very excited to announce that for the past three days, Stars In Her Eyes has been on the Amazon Bestseller list!

It’s been going up and down but it’s just nice to see that it’s gaining traction, especially when I’m so close to finishing the first draft of the sequel, Dreams In Her Head!!

It won’t be long before I’ll have to get my editor in order, and also start arranging cover art…and marketing. November is going to be crazy busy with C4-Con in Winnipeg, Hal-Con in Halifax, and of course, Faery Ink Press’ second birthday! I’m hosting a big party on Facebook with Lady Amber on November 13. There will be games and prizes and lots of fun, so you should all stop in and say hi!

So if you haven’t bought a copy of Stars In Her Eyes and you were thinking about it, do it now, on Amazon!

Things I Learned From My Second Convention

A follow-up to my first “things I learned” article about KeyCon 30 in Winnipeg.

When Words Collide in Calgary was my second convention I attended as Faery Ink Press, and I feel like I improved on my table presentation from last time, as well as learned some new things! So I thought I’d share them all with you.

Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help.

What would I have done without Avery Olive? This awesome Alberta author manned my table for at least two hours if not more (in one hour stints) while I gallivanted off to sit on a panel or host an editing session. She is awesome! Her book, A Stiff Kiss, published by Crescent Moon Press, is available on Amazon and all sorts of other places.

And of course, the wonderful Samantha Beiko was there and was awesome company as well!! Her book is The Lake and the Library, published by ECW Press.

Panels and Presentations Make YOU An Expert!

I did so many things at this con, and they helped me get off my butt and out into the community that was When Words Collide. First, I was on a “Live Action Slush” panel, where a designated reader read the first page of a submitted manuscript. The manuscript was usually submitted by someone sitting in the room! We gave feedback on the first page, and whether as editors we’d read the next page. It’s so hard on those panels, because in that situation, even if I disliked the first page, I’d still skip ahead to see what the rest of the sample was like.

In addition, I gave a presentation about author websites, where I talked about some of the things I do with my website, and WordPress in general. I also did a Blue Pencil Cafe, where over the course of an hour, I edited the first page or two of a person’s manuscript and gave them advice about writing and publishing. I really enjoyed that, I feel like I helped those people.

Finally, I did a small reading–but it was at the end of the con and there weren’t many in attendance, and by that point, I was mostly angling to get back to my table and do a final push in sales.

Something I Improved Upon: Signage, Table Dressings…AND Banner!

Since I’m doing four conventions this year–two of them will attendance into the thousands–I decided to splurge on a tall banner. I went to Digital Post and spent a tidy sum and gave them a file that Dave designed. And it was totally worth it. I was right by the door, and when people walked in, and saw my banner, you could see in their eyes the impression it was making. People stopped, and browsed, even if only for a second. It was extremely effective.

The one side effect of the banner (and in general, of me branding myself as a publisher) is that people approached me and asked if I took submissions. I do not. A LOT of people asked me if I will in the future. So for the record: maybe. It doesn’t make sense for me to take submissions when really this is my “hobby business” and commit to producing a product that I can’t effectively distribute. My books are paving the way for potential future books.

Unfortunately, the banner came undone at the bottom. Either a cleaning person knocked it over night or the mechanism wore too quickly…so I’m going to have to take it back to see if it can be fixed. Hopefully it can!!

The Lil Ebooks That…Couldn’t?

When Words Collide is a book con. It’s for writers, and heavy readers, and publishing professionals. Most of these people seem to prefer physical books to print books so I sold WAY less eBooks here than I did at KeyCon. There was also more competition between the vendors since everyone was selling books, or something related to books. However, the lil eBooks did get lots of compliments and authors seemed to take it away as a good idea. I had two people almost mistake them for business cards so next time I will have clearer signage ON the little eBook stand that clearly denotes prices.

I expect to sell a ton at C4 Con and Hal-Con though, since there will be more of a variety of people who might be more eBook readers!

**

Two cons down, two more to go. They’re not until November so I have a few months to breathe and focus on writing, book signing, and my freelance work! Hopefully you’ll join me either in Winnipeg at C4 Con or in Halifax at Hal-Con in the first and second weekends of November respectively!

Hear My Voice On The Blitz!

You may have noticed I’ve been sharing/commenting/talking about a certain radio station a lot–92.6 The Blitz. It’s run by long-time community theatre guy and author Thomas Amo. He started the station about a month ago as a fun project but now it’s really turning into something–people are tuning in all over the world to listen to classic rock and find out about the newest indie book news.

A few weeks ago I was privileged to be interviewed by Tom “Slick”! Here’s the full interview if you missed it live. We talk about my newest book, Stars In Her Eyes, my editing business, and the struggles of independent publisher distribution. I had a great time talking with Tom and though I was a little nervous, I think it went fairly well.

The Blitz airs weekdays 9am-12pm PST here.

You-Choose Interactive Fiction Event

On July 17, 2013 I hosted my first-ever You-Choose Interactive Fiction event on Facebook! I brought a story, and in a four hour period, people voted on where the main character should go next!

Things definitely got VERY silly! I’d love to do another one in the future. I’m not entirely sure that Facebook was the best medium to use–sometimes it’s a little slow to update. I’d probably also recruit some help in the future–it’s not easy writing engaging updates, responding to questions, and keeping track of votes all at once!

Here is the transcript. Choices that had the most votes are in bold.

Description

Guess who is Fairyland’s newest sleuth? YOU! Not only are you the newest addition to Fairyland Detective Agency, but everyone thinks you’re a pretty great problem-solver, for a fairy.

Just one problem. Sometimes your magic is a bit…unstable. Okay, two problems. Your boss just dumped a doozy of a case on your lap: find a lost magic wand belonging to Baroness Isabella Marico, a rich but airy fairy whose reputation and fortune depends on you returning the wand discreetly.

Oh yeah. One more thing.

If you don’t find the wand in four hours, a hungry ogre will hunt you down, kill you, and sell your body parts to a restaurant that specializes in fairy cuisine.

So, no pressure…

Post #1 – The Beginning

“So what’s with the ogre?”

Your boss is trying to hurry you out of the Detective Agency, but you still have questions. Lots of questions. Such as, why does this ogre have to come after you specifically if you fail to find Baroness Isabella’s wand? And why in the land of fae do you only have four hours to find it? You don’t think you can even fly across all of Fairyland in that time.

“The ogre works for the baroness,” your boss–a clean-shaven dwarf–explains. “From what I heard, Baroness Isabella Marico doesn’t like scandals. If it gets out that her powerful wand is missing, she will lose face in fairy high-society. Doesn’t help that her hermit of a husband left her a few days ago.” He waves you outside, and you almost stumble over the steps. “If you don’t find it in the given amount of time, we don’t get paid, and it’s the ogre’s job to eradicate any loose ends. And I can’t have any more incidents. I’m tired of hiring people. Although…” He looks worried. “Keep your guard up. Isabella isn’t the brightest of fairies, and she’s desperate. The ogre might already be watching you.”

Great. Your very first case, and your life might already be over.

You’re standing in the middle of a bustling street. Elves, fairies, dwarves, and a sprinkling of human servants swarm around you, going about their daily lives, with no idea that a bloodthirsty ogre could be upon them at any second.

With you, you have the case file, which includes information about what the wand looks like and its particular powers, a profile of Baroness Isabella Marcio, and information about her social and professional life. You also have your wand, and a pouch of multi-purpose fairy dust (useful for treating wounds, spelling the weak-willed, and sometimes, muting the effects of iron). As a fairy, you have the ability to fly, and a limited range of offensive and defensive spells.

As you see it, you have two options. Question Isabella–or come up with an alternate plan to buy yourself some more time.

It takes about 15 minutes to get to Isabella’s manor, which is up a hill on the outskirts of Fairyland City. She might be your best bet in finding out more about how to defend yourself against the ogre, if it comes to that–not to mention actually finding her missing wand.

Every wand is unique and individually tuned to its wielder…but maybe if you went to the wand shop, you could get the craftsman to make a decoy wand. That way, if you don’t find the real wand within four hours, you could give Isabella the decoy, and switch it out for the real deal later.

What do you do? Remember, you only have so much time!

CHOICE ONE: Go to Isabella’s manor and question her about the last known whereabouts of her wand.

CHOICE TWO: Go to the wand shop and get a decoy wand crafted.

Post #2: YOU GO TO ISABELLA’S MANOR

It takes you 20 minutes to fly to Isabella’s manor. Between air traffic, and your wings aching from a strenuous workout from the night before, you are flustered and a little out of breath by the time you’re standing before the large gates–silver, of course, to keep out werewolves and shapeshifters.

There’s a guard by the gate. He looks as sleepy as you feel. When he sees you, he rouses, as if he wasn’t just about to fall asleep.

“What do you want?” he demands.

You tell him your name, and that you’re here from the detective agency to question the baroness.

“Detective Agency? Oh no, no, no,” the guard says emphatically. “The baroness is quite fed up with the media questioning her about her *former* husband. She will see no one today.”

Your heart sinks. You try to protest, to tell him that you’re not from the media, but the guard has his orders. You look up at the gate. It’s quite high, and stretches around the acres of pristine forest and greenery–you could try to fly over it. The guard would probably get mad, but you are on a time limit here.

There’s another option…you could always explain to the guard that the baroness’ wand is missing. Baroness Isabella would not be pleased if she found out that you told her lowly guard that her powerful wand is missing, but it might be the only thing that will convince him.

What do you do?

CHOICE ONE: Fly over the gate.

CHOICE TWO: Tell the guard that Isabella’s wand is missing, and that’s why you have to see her right away.

POST #3 — YOU FLY OVER THE GATE

“Well…have a good day…” you say to the guard.

“Hmmph!” he replies, and crosses his arms.

You tiptoe a few steps to the left, and, when the guard averts his gaze, you take to the skies.

You’re almost to the top of the gate when you hear distant shouting from below. The guard is not quite so sleepy anymore! He totally sees you and is calling for help. You flap your wings harder, and you’re over the top and into Isabella’s property!

Unfortunately, Isabella–or her former husband, perhaps–is not stupid enough to only have one guard at the gate. Looking down, you see six more fairy guards running on the grounds, and then taking to the air! Some of them wear iron-resistant gloves, and carry iron handcuffs. If you get put in one of those, say goodbye to your powers.

You zip around the guards as they yell at you to set down, when you notice a female fairy in one of the many windows. She’s looking at you in absolute horror, and you recognize her from the case file–it’s Baroness Isabella Marico! You wave.

But these guards are almost upon you. And your wings are getting pretty tired! You’re going to have to set down soon…and risk getting put in irons.

What do you do?

CHOICE ONE: Fling some of your fairy dust on the guards to distract them, and then fly for Isabella’s window.

CHOICE TWO: Set down, try to explain things rationally and show them that you’re not a threat, and pray that you’re not put in irons.

POST #4 — YOU FLING FAIRY DUST AT THE GUARDS!

Dipping and diving all over the place, you dig into the pouch attached around your waist and fling precious black dust over the three nearest guards. It hits them in the face. They scream, but their screams fizzle out into a low groan as the effects of the dust hit them. Their eyes lose some spark as they begin to come under your control.

But there are still more guards behind you. You zip towards Isabella’s window. She’s watching with horrified interest as you fly towards her like a moth to the flame. You can almost hear her screams through the glass as she bolts the window shut.

“No, no, I’m here from the Detective Agency, about your–” You dig open the file and are about to flash the drawing of the wand inside when one of the guards grabs you from behind, and throws you towards the ground. You spiral out of control!

Well, at seeing their new master attacked, the guards under your control spring to action! They begin attacking the guards who aren’t in your control.

You hit the ground pretty hard. You see stars, and you’re pretty sure you’re going to be an ogre’s lunch when a female face appears before you. It’s the baroness!

“What in the land of fae! I didn’t order a new cleaning lady!” she says as you slowly recover your senses. “You have made an awful mess, Cleaning Lady. Controlling my guards! Flying in restricted zones! I should have my darling orge eat you RIGHT NOW!”

“No…detective agency…” You weakly hold up the file for her inspection.

It takes several minutes of convincing, but once her puny brain understands that you’re here about the wand, she mutters a few words, and all the guards fall asleep. Some of them tumble to the ground–it’s a rather silly and embarrassing display.

All in all, by the time you’re inside Isabella’s manor, dirty but alive, you’ve lost 35 minutes. She sits across from you, drinking jasmine tea (she didn’t even offer you any!), and finally it’s time to ask her some questions. What do you ask her first?

CHOICE ONE: Ask about the last known whereabouts of the wand..

CHOICE TWO: Ask about her divorce (very scandalous!)

CHOICE THREE: Ask about the ogre that will eat you if you don’t find the wand within the next 3.5 hours.

POST #5: YOU ASK ABOUT THE WHEREABOUTS OF THE WAND

“Baroness, if you could be so kind to tell me where you last had your wand–”

“Ugh! Cleaning Lady, if I were to spend all my time keeping track of things instead of doing my baroness duties, where would I be? I’ll tell you. I’d be a cleaning lady. Or, perhaps a dancer. I rather like dancing…” She stares past you, into some fantasy world where she is probably dancing.

You snap your fingers in front of her face, and she comes back to reality.

She sighs. “I was at a party last night. Stuella’s party. Did you KNOW that she was wearing the EXACT charm I was wearing? Pretty sapphire…I should show it to you!! No wait…” She rethinks this. “You’d probably just steal it from me.” She narrows her gaze.

You know a thing or two about Stuella: she’s in your case files too. Stuella De Sanco. She’s Isabella’s chief social rival. They’re constantly having parties, trying to upstage one another. Quite exhausting, you feel, and perhaps a waste of money, but it keeps the fairy noble class quite entertained. It’s a pretty good bet that if the wand is anywhere, it could be in Stuella’s hands. Stuella isn’t as powerful a fairy as Isabella, but you’re pretty sure she’s got deeper pockets.

“Thank you for your time,” you say, and you stand to leave.

“Wait, wait! Where are you going?” Isabella demands. “I didn’t dismiss you! There’s still 100 rooms left for you to clean, so you better hurry up if you hope to earn your supper tonight.”

“I have to find your wand, before your ogre EATS ME!” you exclaim. You’re really getting quite frustrated with her.

She seems a little surprised at your outburst. “Oh…right. Well, I’m coming with you. You seem to have things in order, but why I’m trusting a cleaning lady to find my precious wand, I do not know. I must have had a good reason. Oh well! Are we going to Stuella’s place now? I must take a shower first. No, wait. You must clean my 10 bathrooms! No, wait…”

Great, Isabella wants to come with you? On one hand, she may be useful on getting into places you cannot. On the other hand, she is completely frustrating and may slow you down. What do you do?

CHOICE ONE: Allow Isabella to come with you.

CHOICE TWO: Use your magic or an item or your wits to convince her/force her to stay.

(We had a tie)

POST #6: YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT TAKING HER WITH YOU, BUT SHE IS PRETTY ANNOYING….

((I really liked Tony’s suggestion about telling Isabella to clean up, but the majority voted to take Isabella with you…so I’m compromising for hilarity’s sake!))

“Um…why don’t you clean yourself up, Baroness?”

Her violet eyes widen. “DO YOU THINK I SMELL???”

“Oh, um no…” There is a stain on her dress, from where she dripped a bit of jasmine tea, and her hair is a little frizzled from being outside. “But don’t you want to look your best for when we go to Stuella’s palace?”

She seems to see the logic in this. “You are right! I’m so glad I hired you. Let me take a shower. And then, ANOTHER shower for my wings. And then, a bath.”

Uh oh. You’ve created a monster. Or contributed to one. In any case, she might be gone for a while. And you’ve got maybe 3 hours left.

Five minutes. You’ll wait five minutes, then you’ll tell her you’re leaving. You can make your way to Stuella’s alone…right? Right. You totally know the way there. Can’t miss it, it’s on the opposite side of the city, the giant gold palace. She definitely has more guards, though. And she’d LOVE to know that Isabella’s wand is missing…she’d even leak it to the press if she had the chance. Oh boy. This is not going to be easy…

There’s suddenly a fearsome pounding coming from the front door. It makes the china in the cabinet rattle. And there’s a lot of china in this room. Like, 6 cabinets full.

You leap to your feet. There are only a few creatures in the realm that could have the strength to make all those cabinets tremble. In the distance, you hear water running, but the sound is eclipsed by the door breaking down, and something loud and thundering tearing down the many halls.

The ogre is here. And he has your scent.

Isabella’s shower stops running. “Cleaning Lady, will you get the door, please?”

“ISABELLA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” the ogre cries in its deep roaring voice. “ME WANT ME FOOD. GIVE ME FOOD. FOOD IS HERE!!!”

Food is YOU. He’s going to find you! What do you do??

CHOICE ONE: Isabella’s manor is big, but not unnavigable. Find a way out of here fast!!

CHOICE TWO: Face the ogre and try to reason with it/use an item or magic.

POST #7 — RUN AWAYYYYYYY!

It’s time to get out of here. You are NOT going to be fairy stew!

You take off down the nearest hallway, with the ogre close behind. Fun fact about ogres: their eyesight is generally terrible, but they make up for it with a great sense of smell. So getting out of the house as fast as possible would be ideal.

The hallway turns into a pantry, and there are a number of drawers and cabinets. You think about looking through them for some sort of snack, but even this one second of hesitation allows the ogre to catch up to you. When he sees you, he roars!

“LUNCH TIME!!”

Uh oh!

You dash through the pantry into another hallway, and you see a giant window to your right. Pulling it up, you thank the fairy goddesses that it’s not locked, and you throw yourself out into the open sky. You tumble towards the earth but you gain control of your flight, and manage to avoid hitting the ground.

Sneaking a glance around your shoulder, you see the ogre shaking its fist at you. Its roars echo over the courtyard, but they’re not loud enough to rouse the still-sleeping guards. Isabella rushes to the ogre’s side, dripping wet from her bathing, and you’re not sure, but you think you see her scolding the beast…and the ogre looking extremely embarrassed.

This case is getting odder and odder by the moment. The sooner you find Isabella’s wand, the sooner you can get back to your fairy life.

It takes you another half hour to get to Stuella’s place. To avoid a skirmish with her guards, you tell her that you are here on business, and would like to ask her information about the Baroness Isabella. After her guards consult with her handmaids, and the handmaids consult with Stuella herself, they finally agree to let you in–this whole ordeal takes another twenty minutes. You’re getting jumpier–the ogre and/or Isabella could arrive at any moment and unleash hell upon you!

You’re standing in the foyer of Stuella’s palace. She won’t let you in any farther. She has long, flowing dark hair, and deeply arched eyebrows. Her wings are smaller compared to the average fairy. You’re not sure she’s a great flyer.

How do you handle Stuella? Will you be diplomatic and not reveal Isabella’s secret about her missing wand, but make up some excuse to search her house? Or have you had enough of Isabella, and reveal everything to Stuella in the hope that she is more sane, and will actually be of more help?

CHOICE ONE: Make up an excuse to search Stuella’s property for the wand.

CHOICE TWO: Tell Stuella about the missing wand.

POST #8 — ASK TO QUESTION STUELLA’S HANDMAIDENS & SEARCH THE PREMISES

“Miss De Sanco, if I could have a minute with your handmaidens, I must question them on behalf of my organization.”

Stuella looks annoyed. “You called me away from my duties just so you could question my handmaidens? I thought you were here on business regarding the baroness!”

“Yes, I am, Miss De Sanco, but I must be thorough–”

“Do not bother me again.” She swirls around. “If you are not off my property within five minutes, I will report you to the authorities.”

You’re fine with that. Hopefully it won’t take more than five minutes to find the wand. Isabella and the ogre will know where you have gone, probably, so you have to be quick.

You use your magical ability to sweep the premises for sources of power, and Stuella’s handmaidens. You believe they might be weak-willed enough to fall under the influence of your fairy dust…maybe. Your mental search of the premises confirms that the place is very powerful, but you don’t pick up on any particular trace of a powerful wand. Though, it could be masked by the power of the place.

It takes less than five minutes to find the head handmaiden. She’s in the kitchen, ordering some other handmaidens about. When she’s alone, you sneak up on her and fling dust in her face. After an initial struggle, she falls under your control–though it takes a few minutes for the dust to kick in.

“What do you know about Baroness Isabella Marico’s wand? Did she have it at last night’s party?” you ask.

“Oh she had a LOT of nectar. Was flashing her wand about, talking about how she didn’t need her husband to be happy. She was angry,” the handmaiden replies. Her pupils are dilated, and her voice is rather monotone–but it seems some undercurrent of her personality wants to shine through. The dust will not last long on her.

“So when did you see her last, with the wand?”

The head handmaiden looks thoughtful in her drugged state. “She was headed for Stuella’s room. Wand at the ready. Like she was going to…attack…”

“Attack Stuella? Was Stuella in the room?”

“She…retired…early from the party, with a gentleman friend.”

Oh. OH.

Isabella’s recent divorce…her apparent rage at the party…Stuella retiring early. Could that mean that Stuella was having an affair with Isabella’s husband?

The dishes in the cupboards shake. The ogre has found you!

The handmaiden shakes her head, and rubs her eyes. She looks confused. “Where am I…who…?” Things become clear. “GUARDS! Intruder! Help! I’ve been dusted!”

You hear Isabella’s screeches from the foyer: “My cleaning fairy escaped, and I KNOW she’s here! STUELLA WHERE ARE YOU HIDING MY CLEANING FAIRY?? My ogre will EAT you BOTH!”

Yikes! Now that you know that Isabella has a huge grudge against Stuella, and that she may have intended to use the wand as a murder weapon, this changes things. You’re certain that the handmaiden was telling the truth–it’s hard to lie under fairy dust. But it doesn’t explain why she would have reported the wand missing…

What do you do?

CHOICE ONE: Head for Stuella’s room to see if the wand is hidden there.

CHOICE TWO: Confront Isabella about her potential plans to murder Stuella.

POST #9 –YOU HEAD FOR STUELLA’S ROOM!

You’re not 100% sure where Stuella’s bedroom is, so you use your limited magical ability to search the premises once more. It’s in the west wing of the palace–fortunately, far away from the ogre, stampeding all over the place, and Isabella, and her frantic screaming. There’s a scurry of guards rushing for the kitchen, and the foyer–Isabella and the ogre are enough of a distraction that hopefully, you shouldn’t have much trouble.

After about five minutes of sneaking around, you finally have found Stuella’s room. And, to your surprise, you hear noises. Giggling. And you’re fairly certain Stuella is in there, you can feel her presence. She did say she was busy working.

You burst open the door, and almost leap back in surprise. Stuella is busy, all right. Busy being in bed with…a clean-shaven dwarf.

Wait…that’s your boss! Mr. Gaviff! Your boss is Stuella’s lover. But…wait, why would that make Isabella angry?

Unless your boss is Isabella’s husband. It’s possible, the husband is rarely seen in public, always kept to himself, and there was wild rumours about him being a dwarf or a gremlin or some uncommon race in Fairyland.

But it’s almost too unbelievable to be true! Why would Isabella hire her husband’s detective firm to find her wand, especially if she knew that he was sleeping with Stuella?

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Mr. Gaviff shouts, pulling the covers to hide himself.

“Get OUT!” Stuella screams.

“I’m…I’m sorry…” You’re at a loss for words. And it’s this precious bit of surprise that allows Isabella and the ogre to catch up with you.

“STUELLA!” Isabella screams at the top of her lungs. “You have my wand. You have MY HUSBAND!”

“What? I’m not your husband,” Mr. Gaviff says. He leaps out of bed and pulls his pants back on.

“ME HUSBAND!” the ogre roars.

Wait, what?

“OUT, OUT, OUT!” Stuella keeps screaming.

And that’s when you notice–in the pocket of a bathrobe hanging over the bed, there’s something sparkly, and wand-shaped. Could it be…?

“All of you, settle down!” you shout. And to your surprise, everyone does stop their jabbering.

Now that you have everyone’s attention, you have an opportunity to clear up the confusion about who exactly is Isabella’s husband, or you can grab Isabella’s wand to either give back to her, or use against any one of the occupants of the room.

((This is a pivotal decision!! What you choose to do here will dramatically affect the ending. CHOOSE WISELY!))

CHOICE ONE: Ask Isabella just who in the land of fae IS her husband.

CHOICE TWO: Grab the wand and give it back to Isabella

CHOICE THREE: Grab the wand and use it against someone (please comment to say who you’d like to use it against!)

FINAL POST — YOU GRAB THE WAND AND USE IT AGAINST THE OGRE!

The wand isn’t yours, and when you use a wand that isn’t tuned to your personal energy, unexpected results occur.

A blast of flame shoots from the tip of the wand–a sparkly star, by the way–and hits the ogre square in the chest. He falls to the floor with a thunderous thump, and it doesn’t look like he’s breathing.

Isabella screams. Her wings beat so rapidly that she lifts into the air, before crashing back to the ground…laughing. “My husband…”

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE??” Stuella exclaims. “My love…”

“Your love? You were with HIM?” Mr. Gaviff looks in disgust at the unconscious, possibly-dead ogre. “No, no, I am out of here!” And he hurries from the room.

“Now neither of us can have him!” Isabella says. “AND the cleaning fairy found my wand. And his fortune is mine! I WIN!”

Stuella is horrified. “Get out, Isabella. You are finished. There’s no way you will get away with this.”

“I’ll tell EVERYONE about your multiple lovers, AND I’ll tell them you’ve stolen my wand and wanted to steal EVERYTHING that’s mine!”

She’s got a point–Isabella’s husband being an ogre is scandalous, but nowhere near as scandalous as Stuella stealing Isabella’s wand.

ENDING: THE CLEANING FAIRY

You did, in fact, kill the ogre. The fairy authorities, seeing ogres as a menace, don’t charge you with any crime. However, it does make the news. The ogre was quite rich–apparently he made his fortune from blasting iron mountains so that fairy building companies could expand and create new housing and businesses. These businesses are quite angry with you for destroying a resource, but there are other ogres in the world.

Mr. Gaviff wishes to avoid scandal, so he fires you. After some negotiation and some apologies, Stuella becomes an investor in his detective agency and now he’s richer than ever.

Even though she’s crazy, Isabella is apparently very grateful for the “service” you’ve provided her. She employs you as a cleaning fairy for real. And since you’ve got no job, you figure you might as well take it. She pays you like, 200 gold pieces a day, and that’s way more than you make as a detective anyway. Plus, you can still use your detective skills as a cleaning fairy, since Isabella is ALWAYS losing things.

THE END!!

Summer Faery Fun Book Blast!

Summer isn’t over yet! It fact, it’s really just beginning. So that means it’s time to do a book blast, giveaway…and SALE!

Image by katmary on Flickr.

SALE!

Yes, I’m having a summer sale. 25% off books and eBooks in the Faery Ink Press store when using the coupon SUMMER2013. The coupon will be active from August 13 to August 16, 2013. But I need your help getting the word out!

How It Will Work

Calling all book bloggers! Sign up for the event using the form below. Between August 13 and August 16, 2013 you will post information about Faery Ink Press books. Currently, I have three books: Stars In Her Eyes (YA sci-fi/adventure), The Violet Fox (YA Fantasy/Adventure), and Within (Supernatural Thriller/Contemporary). You can blog about one, or two, or all three! You will be provided with blurbs, links, book covers, and whatever else you need once you sign up.

Why Am I Doing This?

This book blast/sale is in part to celebrate my 25th birthday, on August 13, 2013. I was originally going to do a big party for my birthday online but seeing that Faery Ink Press’ 2nd birthday is November 13, and I didn’t want to have 2 parties, I opted to do a smaller event for myself and a bigger event for my brand. The sacrifices I must make to promote my books!

Giveaway?

I will be doing a SWAG giveaway! 2 People will win a Faery Ink Press bookmark, sticker, and button!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SIGN UP HERE!

After signing up, an automatic email will be sent to you with everything you need for your post. If you haven’t received an email, check your spam mail! If you’d like something that’s not in the email, or you have questions, please email me at clare [at] faeryinkpress [dot] com. Thanks!

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Awesome Participating Bloggers!

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Thank you!

Progress Update: June 2013

This month at Faery Ink Press I’ve tried to be more conscious about my online marketing efforts. Ever since I announced my publishing schedule for next year, I’ve been hyper sensitive to what really needs to get done. And if I’m going to be successful, I realized that I need to pay more attention to what sort of marketing I engage in. So here’s an overview of the activities I did, what worked, what didn’t, and what I’m going to do better in the future.

Reach for the Stars Giveaway

For the good part of June, I held a giveaway. The goal: increase Facebook likes. Facebook is a place I haven’t really paid much attention to it in my online marketing. I’m much more active on Twitter. The idea was to hold a regular old giveaway with one catch: the prize would be based on the total amount of likes the Facebook page had. The more likes, the bigger the prize. Read more about the giveaway here.

I read somewhere in the depths of the internet that the average amount of likes you receive from a Facebook-based giveaway is about 150, and I got about that many likes. I was hoping to get to at least 750, but I’m not disappointed by the outcome. Many of my likes came from the new NerdGirl Facebook page, which promotes indie authors. Others came from my site itself, and Twitter. I was more active overall in the past month so that probably encouraged some more likes as well.

One positive thing I’ve noticed over the past month is that people have been much more interactive on the Facebook page. This, I like! Makes me feel like I’m actually talking to someone when I’m posting updates and stuff.

Giveaways are a fairly decent way to create buzz for your website, but my feelings about them are mixed. On one hand, part of me dislikes giving away my work for free. On the other hand, I know that the more people who read my work–especially Stars In Her Eyes and The Violet Fox, being firsts in their series–the more people I have to market sequels to. It’s a tricky dilemma that I struggle with daily.

Blogging

It was my goal in the past month to post at least four articles to Faery Ink Press. And I met that goal! Links:

7 Uncommon Creatures in Young Adult Fiction
5 Factors Influencing What Young Adult Fiction You Read Next
3 Lesser-Known Fairy Tales for Faery Tale Lovers
5 Superpowers in YA Fiction You Wish You Had

After coming home from KeyCon, I vowed to take a more active approach to my blog marketing and social media marketing. I’m also giving a presentation in August at When Words Collide about author websites, so I’m working on getting this site in top form. I re-designed the blog page and the article page, and also re-tooled the sidebar a bit.

I saw an increase in web traffic for the month of June because of my blogging as well, as well as an increase in my ranking with Google. Traffic was highest on days where I actually published an article, and tapered off during the next few days. However, the Cinderella fairy tale article I wrote months ago still gets visits every day.

Writing Progress

Since my aggressive publishing schedule announcement, I’ve had to double down on my writing. Well, sort of double down. I haven’t been doubling as much as I’d like.

Current word count for Dreams In Her Head: ~16,000

Current word count for The Silver Spear: ~21,500

Projected word counts for both projects are 50,000 and 90,000 respectively. Writing-wise, I would love to be done a draft of Dreams In Her Head by the end of July. This will give me lots of time to get it into shape, and then into production. I find Dreams In Her Head a little tougher to write as there are more books in the series. I have to be careful to leave the correct trail of breadcrumbs in the right places to inspire curiosity and give enough reveals to satisfy the reader.

The Newsletter (Faery Ink Press Book Club)

I sent out two newsletters in June, which is a success because I’m trying to stick to a “every two weeks” schedule. The You-Choose-The-Way story I’m doing has effectively increased engagement in my newsletter. My click-through rate has doubled from about 5% to 12%-13% per newsletter, so I’m pretty psyched about that.

I’d like to take the story and flesh out all the other choices, and turn it into a real book, maybe. I have a few other you-choose type projects I was working on. I’m on the fence about whether or not to offer them for free. The newsletter story I don’t plan to have go on forever: there’s a definite goal in the story (you are a bookseller, you have to get to town so you can sell your books). But I don’t want it to be too short for if I do decide to charge money for a full version. So I’ll have to give this more thought.

Future Projects

I’m planning a book blast for August. It will be my 25th birthday so this is how I am celebrating! Also in August is the When Words Collide Convention, at which I am reading, giving a presentation, sitting on panels, and also manning a table. So basically I need to clone myself before then!

7 Uncommon Supernatural Creatures In Young Adult Fiction

Image by alphadesigner on flickr

Young adult fiction is saturated with supernatural creatures: vampires, werewolves, angels, demons, faeries, zombies, and unique combinations thereof. But what about all the other creatures in the world’s mythos? I think they deserve some attention. Especially since you never know what’s going to trend next. Here are seven supernatural creatures that just might inspire you when you’re reading or writing your next young adult novel.

1. Jinn

Here in North America, jinn are known as genies–wish-granting, often friendly but usually mischievous creatures who live in lamps or other old pottery. But that’s just a western adaptation. Jinn appear in the Qu’ran, and are made of a smokeless fire. They can be good, evil, or mischievous, just like faeries. Like humans, jinn have free will. Some Muslims believe that each person has their own personal jinni (singular form of jinn), called a quarin.

Thoughts: I think that wish-granting/fairy-god-mother type creatures are underused in young adult fiction–at least as female or male lead characters. I’m sure there’s no shortage of those types as mentor characters. What about a story told from the point of view of a jinni-like soul who has to aid her charge in exchange for getting what she wants?

2. Ghouls

A ghoul is a creature–often undead–who eats human flesh. They are often found in graveyards and were first mentioned in One Thousand and One Nights. In Arabian folklore, they dwell underground but also sometimes in deserts, where they take the form of an animal and feeds on young children. It can drink blood, steal money, and also eats the dead.

Thoughts: I did not know when I was researching this article that ghouls are Arabic in origin! Every time I think of ghouls, I think of their portrayal in Supernatural, the TV series. They’re able to take the form of those they’ve eaten. So creepy!

3. Faeries

Photo Credit: miskis on DeviantArt

Okay, yes, I did just mention at the top that faeries were a common young adult fiction supernatural creature. But the term “faery” encompasses a wide range of creatures: gnomes, changelings, goblins, trolls, and sometimes more ethereal creatures, closer to angels. The great thing about faeries is the variety of types and cultures. Banshees are sometimes described as dead. Some see them as demons, or demoted angels. In J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, the origin of fairies came about when the first baby laughed for the first time. In Celtic Mythology, the faeries were driven into hiding by humanity. In the really old Celtic lore, the fairy folk lived on separate planes.

Thoughts: I think the whole “SURPRISE! Turns out you’re a lost fairy queen and it’s time to marry the fairy king/prince and/or take back the realm” is a little tired in YA fiction. I’d like to see more books where we explore the Celtic mythology of faeries a little more–because it’s not all a happy fairy land with beautiful creatures. Example: Spriggans. They’re supposed to be super ugly.

4. Dragons

Photo Credit: chasestone on DeviantArt

Dragons have two distinct cultural parents: Asian mythology and folklore, and European folklore. The oldest representations of dragons depict them more like serpents, but they’ve had legs since the Middle Ages. Common characteristics of dragons is their ability to breathe fire, but some dragons are also poisonous. They often are said to hatch from eggs and live for eons, and are very wise creatures. Dragons in Russian folklore often have heads in multiples of threes.

Thoughts: There’s just so much lore surrounding these creatures that it’s hard to know where to begin! I think my favourite folklore story surrounding dragons is that the Vietnamese people are descended from a dragon lord and a fairy/angel. How cool is that? Dragon blood and fairy blood. There’s a story in there! You should also check out the faery tale The Dragon and the Prince in the Fairy Tale Collection.

5. Unicorns

Photo Credit: Amethystana on Deviant Art

Unicorns are like white horses with a long pointed horn on their forehead. Greek natural history writers were convinced that unicorns were real–they were like the Loch Ness Monster of the Middle Ages. Their horns are popularly thought to cure disease and purify water, and are made of a magical substance called alicorn. Until the narwhal was discovered, and the existence of unicorns was pretty much debunked, people would buy “unicorn horns” and “unicorn horn powder” from apothecaries to cure their ails.

Thoughts: I really enjoyed reading the Acorna series when I was in high school, by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth A. Scarborough. It was about an alien girl who was found in space by three humans, and turns out, she’s from a race of telepathic unicorn people. Not strictly YA, but very enjoyable for those who like science fiction.

6. Harpies

Harpies are half-woman, half-bird creatures. In Greek mythology, Zeus stranded Phineus on an island and blinded him because he revealed mankind’s future. He sent harpies to steal a buffet of food every day from him before he could eat any of it. In Dante’s Inferno, they exist in the the middle ring of the seventh circle (violence). In this level, people who commit suicide are transformed into trees and fed on by the harpies. While often violent, early depictions of harpies are of beautiful women with wings and bird feet: only later depictions such as Aeschylus’ The Eumenides show them as ugly.

Thoughts: The suicide realm was the saddest and the creepiest of all the realms in Inferno, I thought. Aside from that, I find it interesting that the later depictions just can’t deal with the earlier versions of beautiful harpies–that something has to be ugly in order to be violent. I don’t think I’ve read any young adult fiction with harpies in it…can you think of any?

7. Mermaids

Mermaids, as you probably all know, are creatures with the body of a human and the tail of a fish. Sometimes associated with sirens, mermaids are usually depicted as beautiful women with long hair. Everyone should be familiar with Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid: unlike the Disney version, to return to the sea she is told by the sea witch she must kill her prince. She can’t do it, and dies. However, in her death, she is surrounded by the daughters of the air, and told that because of her noble deed of NOT killing the prince, she can earn a human soul if she completes 300 years of service with them. In Eastern Europe, mermaid-like creatures called rusalka (they lack a tail) are actually restless spirits, who have died violent deaths.

Thoughts: Mermaids are on their way up, but they haven’t attained vampire or werewolf status. Lost Voices by Sarah Porter is a mermaid tale I’ve read that incorporates the Eastern European version of mermaids with the Western version.

Aliens are Paranormal Creatures Too.

In the Sparkstone universe, there are a variety of aliens that make up the Collective. The Collective is a group of aliens who secretly control Sparkstone University–and are very interested in the students that go there. It’s up to Ingrid and her new friends to find out the Collective’s true agenda and protect the students that go there. Read more about Stars In Her Eyes and the Sparkstone series.

So what do you think? Do you have a favourite supernatural, paranormal, or mythological creature? If you had to choose to be a supernatural creature, what would you become?