Alexa Whitewolf's Blog, page 2

"The Sage's Legacy" Complete Series Boxet #CoverReveal

Hey all!So I've reached another milestone... Finishing off a series I started when I was 14, and which is VERY dear to my heart. Freya and Brennan's journey through fighting ghosts and facing off with the gods of Ancient Egypt comes to an end in Relics of the Undeworld, the final installment in this urban fantasy series!Book 3 is up and about (see links here) but if you wait juuuust a few more days, the boxset for the entire series will be ready! Already up for pre-order on Amazon and your fa...

Relics of the Underworld #YA #fantasy #newrelease

*Summer Blog-A-Day Event* A huge thanks to Kay for the invite to this wonderful event! I’m choosing to showcase my #WIP, Relics of the Underworld. At the time I’m writing this post, it’s still a #WIP, but will be finalized & published by August 21st, 2018! [image error] Relics of the Underworld is Book III in my Sage’s Legacy young adult series, which contains paranormal and fantasy elements. The storyline started with Freya Hayes in Book I, and learning she was a Sage – a human with the power to fight...

#BookReview Singularity by Eldon Farrell

[image error]

I’ve been struggling to write a one line description of this book with not much luck

#BookReview Singularity by Eldon Farrell

My rating: 5/5SynopsisNathan Miller owns the streets of Union City. A rogue detective protected by a corrupt establishment—his rule is absolute. But nothing lasts forever.Someone has betrayed him and now blog sensation Alexis King knows things she shouldn’t. Coming after Nathan she threatens his authority, giving the elite cause to question his worth.To protect his reign, Nathan must silence his betrayer before Alexis learns enough to topple him. But he’s no longer the only thing to fear in the rotten underbelly of 2035. His search uncovers an evil preying upon the displaced beyond the city wall—making Nathan the next targetMy reviewI’ve been struggling to write a one line description of this book with not much luck

Singularity by Eldon Farrell – #CoverReveal

[image error]

Singularity                                                                     Publication date: August 14th, 2018 By Eldon Farrell                                        Genres: Dystopian, Crime, Superhero, Thriller VIEW THE COVER HERE. Synopsis Nathan Miller owns the streets of Union City. A rogue detective protected by a corrupt establishment—his rule is absolute. But nothing lasts forever. Someone has betrayed him and now blog sensation Alexis King knows things she shouldn’t. Comi...

Singularity by Eldon Farrell - #CoverReveal

Singularity Publication date: August 14th, 2018By Eldon Farrell Genres: Dystopian, CRIME, SUPERHERO, THRILLERSynopsisNathan Miller owns the streets of Union City. A rogue detective protected by a corrupt establishment—his rule is absolute. But nothing lasts forever.Someone has betrayed him and now blog sensation Alexis King knows things she shouldn’t. Coming after Nathan she threatens his authority, giving the elite cause to question his worth.To protect his reign, Nathan must silence his betrayer before Alexis learns enough to topple him. But he’s no longer the only thing to fear in the rotten underbelly of 2035. His search uncovers an evil preying upon the displaced beyond the city wall—making Nathan the next target.COVER REVEALSample chapterOutside Jitters Coffeehouse, Nathan took a sip of his high-octane brew before he cinched the collar of his trench coat tighter. It wasn’t enough to keep the wind from biting at the flesh underneath as it whipped up Carolina Street. He stepped to the curb and saw the wall four blocks north. The new American dream. His melancholy was interrupted when an unmarked cruiser pulled over to the curb next to him. The window slid down, and his partner said, “Time to roll, Miller.” Nathan downed the rest of his coffee in one gulp and tossed the cup in a wastebasket before lowering into the cruiser. Quinn Baker gave him a sidelong look from behind dark shades and offered a smile. “Good to see you, partner. You enjoy the time off?” “What do you think?” Quinn chuckled as they pulled away from the curb. They took the road south to twenty-seventh then hung a right toward the station ten minutes out on Campbell Avenue. “I miss anything?” “Same old shit,” Quinn said, “You know how it is.” “Any leads on the bastard who squealed?” “No, not yet.” They turned onto Stephenson Ave without slowing—to the dismay of pedestrians on the corner. “Don’t worry though, we’ll find them,” Quinn said. “Fucking right we will.” Turning the strobes on, Quinn pushed the accelerator down and ran the light at the corner. They turned a sharp left onto Broadway Ave before a quick right onto Franklin Road. Quinn doused the lights. “Mind if I ask you something?” Nathan clenched his left hand and nodded. “We’ve been riding together for two years and the whole time I’ve been wondering something. Why the hell you live outside the wall? I mean, South Providence? Seriously? You clear more than enough to move on up, so what gives?” The road rose over the railyard, and they left the grim spectre of the wall behind. As they passed over the two-twenty highway, Nathan said, “I was born in South Providence long before the wall—why should I move?” Quinn slapped the wheel. “You shitting me? You might sleep better for starters. Fucking animals out here.” “This is my hood.” Nathan smirked. “I sleep just fine.” Quinn shook his head. “You gotta be the only guy I know who chooses to live out here, surrounded by the displaced.” “Let me tell you something about the goddamn wall, Rook,” Nathan said, “It was a bad fucking idea to start with, and it hasn’t improved over the years. Walls like that have choked the life out of decent neighborhoods all across this country. How we ever allowed Americans to become refugees in our own land . . .” Nathan whistled as he trailed off. “Shameful.” “Rising waters and the big one out west,” Quinn said, “Sixty-five million people is a lot to relocate. The resources just aren’t there.” “So much for the American dream,” Nathan said, “Forget the tired, poor, huddled masses—every man for himself now, that it?” They drove in silence until Quinn took a left onto Third Street. “You weren’t home last night?” “Was getting marching orders from Logue,” Nathan said, “I’ll fill you in.” Quinn made a face. “Later, Singh wants you in his office first thing.” “That so?” “Thought you’d like that,” Quinn said, “Don’t shoot the messenger.” “And what does the captain want?” Quinn swung the cruiser onto the lot and pulled into a spot out front. “Maybe he wants to welcome you back?” They shared a laugh as Nathan got out.Omar Singh waited behind a scratched glass window. His office looked out at the warren of desks that made up the detective pool known affectionately as the Clubhouse. He shuffled paperwork as Nathan darkened his doorway. After a moment, he set it aside and said, “Take a seat, and close the door.” Nathan obliged then waited for him to begin. Singh steepled his fingers and narrowed his gaze. “Have you anything to say?” Nathan glanced away and shrugged. “So, that’s how you want to do it then? Fine.” He opened a folder on his desk. “This is the official report on your suspension. As you’re no doubt aware, IA found insufficient grounds to uphold it.” Nathan smirked. Singh slapped the folder shut. “They may have cleared you, Miller—but I haven’t. You have a history as long as my arm of complaints against you. Allegations of misconduct, excessive force, bribery, you name it. So, why should I reinstate you?” Nathan stared back at him. “I could fire you right now, and there isn’t anything you can do about it. Your union is behind me, Miller. They feel you’re more trouble than your worth.” “You know what, Captain?” Nathan said, “I don’t give a shit what the fucking union thinks.” “Tough guy, huh?” Nathan licked his lips. “Fuck you.” He stood up and turned to leave. “Sit down, Miller. I haven’t dismissed you yet.” Nathan stared at him with contempt. “I said sit the fuck down!” Nathan took his time before he complied. “Jesus,” Singh lowered his voice as he asked, “Just what the hell happened to you?” Pointing to the window, he said, “You used to be one of the best detectives out there. I’ve read your file—you were exemplary once.” Nathan didn’t rise to the bait. “Fine,” Singh tapped the folder and said, “I’m not going to fire you—yet. For some reason, I believe you can be exemplary again, so I’m going to give you that chance. This is it, Miller. Step out of line one more time, and you’re out of here. Are we clear on that? You get so much as a parking ticket, and you’re done. You have no room for error. I know you’ve seen The Ransom—press this department doesn’t need. Even the brass protecting you will agree with that. So be glad I’m on your side. Get out of my sight, and don’t make me regret this.” “Some reason?” Nathan straightened from his slouch. “Would you like me to tell you the reason you’re keeping me around, Captain? The Commissioner—your boss—has instructed you to do so. Isn’t that right? He wants me on the street. He knows you need me out there. It must really get to you, huh? Wanting me gone so bad but being unable to do a fucking thing about it. Getting the gutless union and IA behind you and still . . . just powerless. So please don’t act like you’re doing me some fucking righteous favor here. You’re not—you’re doing what you’ve been told to do.” A sinister grin played across his face. “I’m fine with that, Cap. But, just so you know, I’m gonna continue to do what I do out there. I’m not changing a goddamn thing for you. “You want to fire me?” He removed his badge from his pocket and held it out to him. Singh didn’t take it. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Turning his back to Singh, he strutted to the door. “Don’t think I won’t do it, Miller. I don’t care who has your back.” On his way out, Nathan added, “The last captain thought like you too. You’ll notice he’s not around anymore.”get it NOW: Goodreads / AmazonAuthor bioEldon Farrell was born in Guelph, Ontario, growing up just down the road in Brantford. A designated professional accountant, he’s a graduate of both Fanshawe College and Laurentian University. He still resides in South Western Ontario together with his lovely wife Emily and their young son Connor. An avid reader and writer of suspense fiction, he is a lover of language and an unapologetic fan of DC Comics.Eldon's website: https://eldonfarrellauthor.com/Follow Eldonon GoodReads!

My Interview with Romanian Newspaper, The Observator

This interview was originally published in The Observator, in Romanian:

http://www.observatorul.com/default.asp?action=articleviewdetail&ID=18516

Tell us a bit about yourself and your Romanian connection. Why do you write under a pseudonym? 

I was born in Romania in 1992. When I was only 11, my parents moved to Canada. We lived for a bit in Montreal, then moved to Toronto, and I ended up in Ottawa for University and stayed here. Though I never lived under Communism in Romania, my parents did,...

My interview in The Observator

A few weeks ago, I was approached by the editor of The Observator (a local Romanian newspaper) for an author interview. Through my mom, they'd heard of my publications and thought it would be a good opportunity to showcase me to the Romanian community. Below is a simplified English version of the article :)Enjoy!NOTE: The interview is now live and published on their site: http://www.observatorul.com/default.a... Tell us a bit about yourself and your Romanian connection. Why do you write under a pseudonym? I was born in Romania in 1992. When I was only 11, my parents moved to Canada. We lived for a bit in Montreal, then moved to Toronto, and I ended up in Ottawa for University and stayed here. Though I never lived under Communism in Romania, my parents did, and growing up I still remember my father telling me not to speak “too loud” for fear of neighbours hearing my political opinions. This approach of his would continue even in Canada, and I think seeing him, specifically, with the wounds of that time period, I learned to grow up wary. Writing under a pseudonym protects me and my family, and gives me the freedom to be two people at once. In private, I can be Iulia, daughter, mom to two dogs, wife, hard worker. And in public, I get to be Alexa, the intrepid author who’s not afraid to speak her mind, jump into controversial conversations and lend a helping hand to fellow authors. What would you say sparked your writing? Why do you love writing?Moving to Canada was hard for my young self. In Romania, I learned English but had only started to learn French. Since we landed in Montreal, this meant I was at a disadvantage. So while I poured over books to learn the language, and fed my thirst of knowledge, I also started envisioning worlds of my own. It was really the move to Toronto that sparked my writing. On top of my strong European accent when speaking, coming from a French province into an English one means you’re stuck in the middle. You’re either too French for someone, or too English. Faced with this new type of discrimination, I retreated into myself and aside from the good friends I grew up with in high school, my focus went to my books. That’s when I started my first series for young adults, The Sage’s Legacy, and by the time I was halfway through high school I had finished two manuscripts. Writing was/is what makes me the happiest. With each stroke of the pen (or keyboard!) the reality around me falls into a faint echo, replaced by the beauty of the world I create. The conflicts and obstacles in my novels are surmountable, whereas in real life, that’s not always the case. The control and the ability to lose myself in writing is what really makes it appealing to me,Do you have a favourite place to write, or do you give free reign to your thoughts wherever when the mood strikes?I could honestly write anywhere, as long as the inspiration is there. I’ve written at work on short breaks and lunches, in class while listening to a professor give their lecture, in the park while walking my dogs… I think even at a restaurant once! All I need is pen, paper (napkin, flyer, you name it) and I’m gone. My husband jokes that I forget everything else around when my characters start “talking” to me, and I suppose that’s true. I love writing by water, be it on a beach or by a cottage near the lake… Nothing puts me at ease more than the quietude. If I could have a boat, it would be perfect!But you work, and you’ve gone to school. How do you find the time to write?Yes, I can’t say that I get bored that’s for sure. One of the things I find the hardest to understand is someone speaking of a passion yet finishing with “I don’t have the time”. That has never been my issue. When I worked 40hrs while in university full time, I found an hour in the middle of the night to write. When I was in class, I would take my notes and jotted all over my notebooks in the margins were ideas for a chapter, or a character, etc. Now that I’m out of university and juggling a job as well as a family life, I take every free moment for myself and use it to write. It’s how I was able to put out 4 novels last year, and finish my series on Avalon this year plus start a new one. Perseverance, and a lot of sacrifice, is the name of the game. Did you always know you were going to be an author? And would you say living in Canada helped your pursue your writing career or hindered it?I didn’t always know… To be honest, towards the end of my high school, I went through a phase where I stopped writing. My mom was always there for me to encourage me, but I can’t say the same for the rest of my family. And sometimes, going through hard times means taking time off what makes you happy and focusing on yourself, to make yourself happy. That’s what I did when I went to university, and it was only after I dealt with some things and met my husband that I reconnected with my love of writing. His support and my mom’s were instrumental in me deciding to go back to writing and making a career out of this.And despite what I mentioned above, the discrimination and hardships, I think living in Canada helped me pursue my career. I never would have known of the variety of ways you can get published if I’d been in Romania, and the events in my life in Canada are what sparked my love for writing. So yes, there is definitely a silver lining there, something much easier to see now as an adult than as a child going through it. What’s your writing process like – how long does it take you to write a book, edit it, etc.? Do you incorporate your Romanian heritage?Chaotic is the word. If you saw one of my manuscripts in its rough stages, you wouldn’t be able to make heads or tails of it. Half of it written in a notebook, a quarter on napkins and other papers and the remaining quarter on my tablet. No coherence to the chapters from the outside, since I write each scene as it comes to me. More often than not, I start writing my stories in the middle, continue to the end, then return back to the beginning. Depending on the novel, I’ll spend about a month on a rough draft, then go through edits. I have a professional editor and cover designer that I go to, then I get my manuscript back and work on making all the changes myself. It’s a strenuous process, but the satisfaction when I write “The End” and put that last period, nothing quite compares to it. As for my Romanian heritage, I think it shows in anything from the way my characters tackle their obstacles to the phrasing I use sometimes.I joke that as much as I grew up near mountains with folklore, writing about werewolves and vampires wasn’t my go-to idea. Rather, I started with a retelling of King Arthur’s story (of all things!) that follows its most obscure character, the Lady of the Lake. My Avalon Chronicles series was my debut published work, followed by my young adult series I wrote when in high school. At first read, neither really have anything that screams “Romanian writer!”, but I’ve been told the personality shows through, especially in my female characters. What are common traps for aspiring writers?Get-rich-quick money schemes. You wouldn’t believe how many so-called “publishing companies” exist in North America that promise you’ll get published, take your money, and do absolutely nothing that you can’t do yourself. The best weapon is knowledge, so for any aspiring writers out there, the best thing I can say is: do your research. And ask yourself if you’re willing to spend money on something that you can do yourself, with a lot of hard work? Do you try to be more original or deliver to readers what they want? What are your series like?I can’t write a recipe. What I mean is, most books out there in a specific genre follow a “recipe”. For romance, it’s always a boy-meets-girl story, and they either hate/like each other, followed by a relationship, followed by a big misunderstanding, and ending with a happily ever after. Most fantasy/scifi novels now seem to use the Hunger Games and Divergent recipes – hero/heroine loses someone dear to themselves and rebels against the governing authority.For myself, all my series fall into at least two categories. That’s the problem with being unique, is that you don’t quite fit in a box. So my Avalon Chronicles series, it’s a mix of fantasy but also paranormal romance. My young adult series, it’s a teenager-type book but also filled with fantasy and paranormal elements. And my latest wolf series, well, that’s nothing like any werewolf story you fell across!Tell us more about this latest series, the one on Transylvanian werewolves. It’s called Moonlight Rogues, and the first book is out now, First to Fall in both ebook and paperback formats. Now, for starters, I rebelled against writing werewolf books. The main reason is because they’ve become so popular yet predictable, and I wanted to write something unique. Even once I wrote this, I told my cover designer I specifically wanted a model that was “dressed and not cheesy” so when she came up with the cover, I was blown away.Anyway, when I finally gave in to my inspiration and worked on the first chapter, what I got was not an alpha werewolf, but a Romanian varcolac. Then his entire pack expanded to include werewolves from various folklores, including Brazilian, Celtic and Italian. Needless to say, the book does have a romantic element. But above all that, we follow the story of Dominic Kosta, a werewolf who’s given up everything for some peace and quiet in the middle of nowhere. Yet just when he thinks he’s found the girl to spend the rest of his life with, his family from overseas comes tumbling in, destroying everything in its wake.There are very strong folkloric elements in this, including the idea of the Romanian varcolac, the Greek vrykolakas creature, and even an appearance by our good fairy, Ileana Cozanzeana.As with most of my series, this one has evolved and will now have at least four books to follow each main werewolf, as more and more folkloric elements are introduced. Critics for now seem to be generous, accepting my new take on the paranormal romance of werewolves and enjoying the ride.What else can readers expect from you in the future? And should they wish to reach out to you, how can they do so? More books, for starters! Even as I’m working on these stories, more seem to be gathering in my mind, and I have no doubt I’ll end up with a few more series down the line. I’m really excited about my new novel for this fall 2018, Blazing in a Storm of Ashes. It follows the story of a phoenix, of all things, who has to go on a quest through the Romanian Carpathian Mountains, accompanied by a demon and an angel that are her guardians. It’s a story full of action and fun, and I only hope I can do Romania justice in descriptions! Of course, I’ll also be releasing my second werewolf novel, Second to Surrender by the end of the year, so that’ll be a load of fun.As for reaching me, that’s easy ! Type Alexa Whitewolf in Google, and you’ll be led to most of my social media sites. I also have a website at www.alexawhitewolf.com where my books can be sampled and purchased.

Fruits of your labour: The Importance of taking a minute to live life

People have this notion that being an author, especially self-published, means you live the easy life. That somehow everything falls into place miraculously and you do less work than most “traditional” authors out there. (Don’t believe me? Read Kristina Adams’in-depth blog post here) The reality is quite different. Speaking as a self-published author who turned down two offers to publish with (small) traditional publishing houses, I can say that I didn’t know what I was getting into. I chose...

Fruits of your labour: The Importance of taking a minute to live life

People have this notion that being an author, especially self-published, means you live the easy life. That somehow everything falls into place miraculously and you do less work than most “traditional” authors out there. (Don’t believe me? Read Kristina Adams’in-depth blog post here)The reality is quite different. Speaking as a self-published author who turned down two offers to publish with (small) traditional publishing houses, I can say that I didn’t know what I was getting into. I chose the self-published route because I like having control over the content of my book, and over their pricing and how much I earn from each sale.Had you told me the work is three, sometimes ten times as hard, maybe I would have chosen differently. But be as it may, I am happy with the path I walk. This year (which barely started but already feels like it’s slipping away), I had a bit of an epiphany, one can say. And I wanted to share it with whoever reads this, because maybe it’ll help some other poor soul who decided to burn the candle at both ends – like I did.At the beginning of the year, I had one manuscript on the back-burner (it was a revised story already written years ago), plus two in the works. #AuthorConfession: I busted my ass off to put out Avalon Nightmares and First to Fallfor their respective launch dates of February 21st and March 21st – yep, within a month of each other.People asked me after how I did it, while working full-time and having a life outside of writing. The truth? I sacrificed. A lot. Because when you want something to happen, you need to work hard for it. And for me, that meant I either cut into the time I spent with my husband, or my dogs, or for myself. So I chose the latter and for three months, was averaging around 3hrs of sleep per night and writing/editing/revising in every spare minute.My editor thought I was crazy working so hard, and they weren’t the only ones! But the result? I launched both books, ran a giveaway on my own website, topped my mailing list with a few new contacts and even made some sales! First to Fall was particularly successful – I’m not talking hundreds of sales, but I’ve been averaging 1-2 per day at full price since it launched. Which, to me, is a great result considering my marketing efforts were on the, um, down-low, so to speak.That being said, it was towards the end of this period that I had my little epiphany. Despite the success and feeling good for meeting my (crazy) goals, I was beyond exhausted and sleeping 12hrs on the weekends to make up for missed sleep. (Sidenote: it doesn’t work!)And then my husband suggested a mid-week getaway into a valley in Quebec, with a spa package included. Though it was cold outside, we arranged for a dogsitter and hopped in the car after work. The drive was relaxing on its own, with a myriad of beautiful landscape nearby.And while the hotel we stayed at was nice, what really blew me away was the spa. In the warm water, with the trees surrounding, my brain finally found the peace it needed. By the time we finished our 3hr soak and returned to the hotel for some food and wine, I was more relaxed than I’d been in months (since before Christmas, really).So if you take one thing away from my story, it’s this: putting everything you have into writing is good, almost necessary for self-published authors; but don’t stop taking care of yourself in the process. Burnt out is nothing fun, and it won’t bring you success any quicker.Life is meant to be enjoyed. So while you’re writing and coming up with new worlds, don’t forget to enjoy the one you live in :)