Kelly Apple's Blog, page 57

Finding what works

A big part of writing is figuring out what works for you. Mentally, physically, whatever. Some people swear by certain writing programs, some say plotting is key to a solid story. Still others will tell you that the only way to achieve X is to do Y.

(For the record, I have a knee-jerk reaction to any piece of “advice” that implies there’s only one way to do things. Do what works for you. No matter if the next guy down the line thinks it’s a waste of time.)

Finding what works takes trial and error. I have my most productive days when I get up early and start writing by 5:30am. If I sleep in at all I can still get the words written, but it seems to take me twice as long. Getting up before the sun isn’t going to work for everyone. Some people are naturally night owls (I LOVE staying up late, but I don’t get any productive writing in when I do) and some people have other obligations that make an early wake up out of the questions.

And that’s okay.

My early morning writing schedule has been awesome this month. I’m churning out about three times my usual word count. Part of that is the story I’m writing. It’s in my head and it wants to get out. So I write. And write. And write some more. Part of it is having that dedicated time in the morning when no one else is up that allows me to focus. Part of it is being a part of the writing community and participating in word sprints with others.

(As someone who is TERRIBLE in group situations — both online and in real life — finding a group I feel comfortable in has been key. In the wrong group, I tend to hover on the sidelines and watch. With my current group, I enjoy getting involved. For me, that helps the creativity flow. I’m not worried about how or when I’m going to interact next. I’m not fretting about little things that aren’t important. I’m just writing.)

Thus far in July, I’ve been working on the first in my Grimwood series. I’m taking on a few well known stories and giving them a twist. Book one is nicely dark. There’s talk of dark magic and people who are sacrificed to fuel it. There’s a man held captive by a witch and a girl who’s willing to risk her life to save him. And yes, there’s sex. When two people have alone time in my worlds, that tends to happen.

Next up: finishing the final book in the Monstrous Tales series and working on the second book in the Stronghold series. There’s a lot of fun stuff coming in the next few months. Just you wait!

The post Finding what works appeared first on Kelly Apple.

My Writing Process – Blog Tour

I was invited by the fabulous Jodi Redford (seriously, y’all, she’s fabulous. If our Facebook convos don’t convince you of her awesomeness, I’ll take a long blink in a room with the Weeping Angels. Ooh. That reminds me… *pops in next ep of Doctor Who*) to share a little about my writing process.

So. I have some questions to answer. (Also, I’m drinking sangria as I write this up. I make no guarantees as to the coherence of anything contained within.)

1. What am I working on?

Currently, I’m writing the first book in my new dark fairy tale series. The series is going to be called Grimwood and when I say it’s dark, I mean there might be some mention of a witch who harvests body parts and keeps a man hostage in a tower. GOOD TIMES. I’m also working on the second book in the Stronghold series. ZOMBIES! ROMANCE! DIRTY SEXIN’ DURING THE END OF THE WORLD! End of the world sex is the best sex, AMIRITE?

2. How does my work differ from others in my genre?

Err… This might be the sangria talking, but (a) I love writing what I write and (b) I mentioned Doctor Who in the first paragraph of this post. That clearly trumps all other posts/books out there. No, wait. That’s not right.

Okay, seriously. I really do love writing what I write. Which isn’t to say that others authors don’t love what they write, but I think that excitement and passion go a long way toward turning what could be otherwise boring words into something that resonates with readers. Also, monster sex. PEOPLE LIKE THAT.

3. Why do I write what I do?

I kinda touched on this in the last answer, but I write what I want to read. I wrote The Wicked Woods because I got tired of reading about women who were ashamed of being turned on by monsters. Ari likes what she likes and she doesn’t fight against that attraction. I wrote Sanctuary because I had this image of two people trapped in a stairwell with the ravenous dead outside. I wanted to know how they got out of that situation. I wanted to see them survive and find love during the darkest time they’d ever encountered. The Grimwood series is dark. I like dark and twisted stories. BOOM. The muse is fed.

4. How does your writing process work?

For the most part, I tend to have a scene in my head that fuels the story. Everything else springs from that. As far as actually writing goes, I’m incredibly productive in the early morning hours. I get up early to get my first bout of words in and go from there. I tend not to outline, but I do write my blurbs before I start writing and that helps keep me on track as far as where I want the story to go.

Once I start writing, things tend to fall into place. Something I’m incredibly grateful for since it keeps the words flowing.

I’ve tagged two people for next week’s posts: Romantic suspense author Christi Snow who writes passion and adventure on the road to Happily Ever After and urban fantasy author Amanda Shofner who satisfies her desire for adventure with the written word and helps others do the same at The Path of Least Revision. Hop onto over to their sites next Monday to see how they answer these questions.

The post My Writing Process – Blog Tour appeared first on Kelly Apple.

It’s a new month! Let’s get writing!

Look at that. July 1st. The kids are out of school and a new Camp NaNo is starting today. I’m not going to pull any punches: I love the various NaNoWriMo events that take place throughout the year. It’s inspiring to know that thousands of other people are writing right along with you. I’m taking this Camp NaNo a little easier than ones I’ve done in the past. My word count is lower, but I’m expecting to get a lot done all the same.

What am I going to be working on this month? I’M GLAD YOU ASKED! As of the writing of this post, I’m ridiculously close to finishing the final installment of the Monstrous Tales series. That means the bulk of July will see me writing book 2 in the Stronghold series and finishing up book 1 in a new dark fairy tale series. I finalized the covers on the first three books in that series last week and can’t wait to start unveiling them.

One of my non-writing goals for July is to be a little more active with blog hops and other events of a promotional nature. So you might start seeing a few more posts on this here blog as I attempt to get into the swing of things. Or maybe I’ll just hole myself up in my writer’s cave and shut out the rest of the world. WE’LL SEE!

Until next week!

The post It’s a new month! Let’s get writing! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Blurb and cover reveal for Monstrous Tales #9!

And here’s the cover and blurb for Monstrous Tales #9. Not going to lie, I’m having a mini freak out that this series is almost over.

The Wicked Lovers (Monstrous Tales #9)

Ari’s chance to free her beloved is here. With her allies standing beside her, she must face down two territorial females and save her imprisoned love. All while trying to keep the human world blissfully ignorant of the monsters moving among them.

Easy, right?

Her monstrous friends might be willing to fight on her side, but having that many alpha males in one place could be a recipe for disaster. And that’s before her mom starts getting nosy, her best friend shows up heartbroken, and her mysterious bloodline tempts her to give into her urges.

What’s a girl who loves monsters to do when she’s surrounded by hotties while facing a potentially life-threatening situation? Her wicked lovers are about to find out.

Warning: This book contains a girl who lacks inhibitions, one weepy best friend, a mom who sees more than she lets on, and a slew of supernatural lovers. No horizontal (or vertical) surface is safe when Ari’s lady garden starts making demands.

I’m aiming for a late June/early July release for this installment. While I’m sad to see her go (and still kinda freaking out!), I’m excited that Ari’s finally going to get back to her big, green love.

Until next week!

The post Blurb and cover reveal for Monstrous Tales #9! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Stronghold #1 – Out now!

Sanctuary was the little book that ate my brain. Not literally. Although there are zombies in it, so you can see how that could be a possibility. Anyway. This is the book I had to put aside writing Monstrous Tales #9 for because I COULDN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT HOW TERRIFYING IT WOULD BE TO BE TRAPPED IN A STAIRWELL WITH THINGS THAT WANTED TO EAT YOUR FACE OFF RIGHT OUTSIDE!

(Don’t worry, I haven’t abandoned Ari and her quest to save her man. The next installment of the monster lovin’ girl will be here before you know it!)

So. Sanctuary. It’s live on Amazon!

Sanctuary (Stronghold #1)

When the dead become ravenous monsters, you either find the strength to survive or end up like them.

Liss and Drew had been acquaintances before they were trapped in the stairwell with the living dead outside. Now they had to depend on one another to stay alive.

With food scarce and safety even scarcer, the two have to make a choice: Leave their safe haven and find somewhere they can dig in for the long haul or let themselves die trapped in a place that seems to be getting smaller every day.

Drew has a plan, one that will give them a chance to survive. The question is… can he convince Liss to trust him and his plan before she’s too weak to outrun the zombies?

This series is going to be a mash-up of zombies, post-apocalytpic survival, and romance. And by that, I mean my characters get inappropriately naked sometimes. End of the world sex! Everybody’s doing it!

On an unrelated note, a question about my Demonkind series popped up recently and I thought I’d give y’all an update. Yes, there will be more books in that series. When I originally started writing Demon Restrained (book 1), I hadn’t planned it would be a series. As the book progressed, I saw a lot of potential stories I wanted to explore in the world (not to mention Bas and Evie’s relationship needed a more concrete ending!). Making sure the world building is solid was something I needed to address before releasing book 2.

So the short answer is, yes, there will definitely be more books coming. I don’t have any concrete dates in mind for when they’ll be released, but they will see the light of day at some point.

On that note, next week brings the cover and blurb for Monstrous Tales #9! Until then!

The post Stronghold #1 – Out now! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Blurb and cover reveal for Stronghold #1

Here it is! The blurb and cover for book 1 in my upcoming zombie apocalypse series.

Curious how this story started out? I walked into a stairwell one day and stopped dead in my tracks. I knew as soon as I stepped into it that it was going to be the opening scene for a story. There was no question about it. Two people trapped in a stairwell with the hungry dead beyond the doors. I could SEE it. I started writing what would become Sanctuary that same day.

Sometimes inspiration strikes in the oddest places and you just run with it.

Sanctuary (Stronghold #1)

When the dead become ravenous monsters, you either find the strength to survive or end up like them.

Liss and Drew had been acquaintances before they were trapped in the stairwell with the living dead outside. Now they had to depend on one another to stay alive.

With food scarce and safety even scarcer, the two have to make a choice: Leave their safe haven and find somewhere they can dig in for the long haul or let themselves die trapped in a place that seems to be getting smaller every day.

Drew has a plan, one that will give them a chance to survive. The question is… can he convince Liss to trust him and his plan before she’s too weak to outrun the zombies?

I’m excited about this entire series. Zombies! And kisses! But not kissing between the zombies. Because, eww.

The post Blurb and cover reveal for Stronghold #1 appeared first on Kelly Apple.

New series alert!

If I follow my normal schedule, I should be posting the cover and blurb for Monstrous Tales #9 today. Except… I got caught up in writing a different project and don’t want to post the Monstrous Tales blurb yet juuuusssst in case my characters don’t do what they’re supposed to. I mean, how awkward would that be if I was all “Hey, characters, this is what my blurb says you’re going to do. It’s on the internet, it must be true.” and my characters just laughed at me and were all “Bite me. We’re doing what we want.”? Yeah. So, instead, I’m going to tease you with the series that’s been sucking up all my time lately.

I’ve planned out a four book arc that will introduce the world my Zombie Apocalypse Love Story takes place in. This new series takes place days after a world wide zombie outbreak and focuses on a set of survivors hiding away in an apartment complex in a small town. Book one is nearly finished and I’m having so much fun with all the blood and guts and angst that goes along with surviving something horrific like that.

The working title of the series is Stronghold and the books are going to be (in no particular order) Sanctuary, Refuge, Haven, and Stronghold. I’m busy finalizing covers and finishing book 1 this week!

What does this mean? Likely, this book will be coming out within the next couple of weeks. Monstrous Tales #9 will be pushed back a bit to the end of June/beginning of July. As much as I love that series, I needed to take a little break from writing it. A girl can only handle so much monster peen, you know!

(Yeah, I never thought I’d hear myself say that, either!)

So. Zombies. They’re what’s for dinner. Or you’re what’s for dinner. Or you’ll be reading about them soon. ONE OF THOSE!

Until next week!

The post New series alert! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Monstrous Tales #8 – Out now!

Sasquatch on deck!

That’s right. The hairy humanoid has found his way into Ari’s bed. It’s hard not to be excited about a hairy guy who climbs trees, ISN’T IT? Maybe that’s just me.

Anyway… The Wicked Sasquatch is now LIVE!

The Wicked Sasquatch (Monstrous Tales #8)

Word has come down from the prophetic naga and the time to save Ari’s imprisoned love is rapidly approaching. There’s only one more monster she needs to gather to ensure his safety— the sasquatch, a loner who is the last of his kind.

Finding him will be the easy part. Convincing him to help is where Ari will have to use all her wiles. But when this particular girl sets her mind on something, she won’t let anything stand in her way.

This wicked sasquatch might have just met his match in this monster-loving girl.

Warning: This book contains a hairy humanoid, a sassy jaunt through the woods, and some sexcapades that might be illegal in several states. You know what they say about men with big feet, right?

The Wicked Sasquatch is available at Amazon — Amazon – US | Amazon – International. If you need to catch up, Monstrous Tales Volume 1 and Monstrous Tales Volume 2 are currently available on multiple platforms.

I’m in the middle of writing book 9 (SO MANY MONSTERS IN THAT ONE!), so Ari’s story is definitely heading toward its inevitable *ahem* climax. I’m also working on a story I like to refer to as my “zombie stairwell” story — two people trapped in the stairwell of an apartment building as zombies roam about just beyond the doors. Zombies are a particular passion of mine, so you’ll be seeing a few books set during a zombie apocalypse.

Until next week!

The post Monstrous Tales #8 – Out now! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Fellow author book release!

We all have at least one person who supports us and doesn’t pull any punches when it comes time to tell you you’re doing something dumb. Thank goodness, btw, because I’ve had some ridiculously dumb moments in my life lately!

If you’ve read any of the acknowledgments in my books, you might recognize the name Amanda Shofner. She’s the stick that can either dangle a carrot (puppy pics! requests for pictures of half-naked men!) or poke me into getting done what I need to get done.

I’m pleased as punch to announce that Amanda has released her first fiction book into the wild. Elusive Memories is the 1st in her The Hunted series and it’s full of enough twists and turns to keep you guessing! I’m not trying to brag or anything, but I know some of what Amanda has planned for the future with this series and I’m going to go on record as saying YOU WANT THIS BOOK!

Elusive Memories (The Hunted #1) by Amanda Shofner

The Northern Alliance Betterment Society, better known as the Hunters, has persecuted the Gifted for years. When Sam Benson is taken and her memory stolen, she certainly isn’t the first victim of the Hunters. But she’s determined to use her family’s influence as memory-bringer elders to make sure she’s one of the last.

As soon as she escapes the Hunters’ compound, anyway.

Two Hunter guards claim to be working to get Sam free, but only one has her best interests at heart—and holds the key to mounting an offense against the Hunters. With her memory fractured and the Hunters set against her, can she choose the right person to trust?

Find Amanda

| AmandaShofner.com | @amshofner | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon |

Fast paced and twisty enough it’s making me spell “twisty” wrong EVERY TIME I TRY TO TYPE IT. Who doesn’t like that?

The post Fellow author book release! appeared first on Kelly Apple.

Blurb and cover for Monstrous Tales #8!

GUESS WHAT? This book ended up giving Ari a little more… depth than I was expecting. Well, maybe I won’t go that far. Instead, I’ll say we find out something about Ari that I didn’t intend to address. And it’s kinda awesome!

Without any further ado… The Wicked Sasquatch…

The Wicked Sasquatch (Monstrous Tales #8)

Word has come down from the prophetic naga and the time to save Ari’s imprisoned love is rapidly approaching. There’s only one more monster she needs to gather to ensure his safety— a sasquatch, a loner who is the last of his kind.

Finding him will be the easy part. Convincing him to help is where Ari will have to use all her wiles. But when this particular girl sets her mind on something, she won’t let anything stand in her way.

This wicked sasquatch might have just met his match in this monster-loving girl.

Warning: This book contains a hairy humanoid, a sassy jaunt through the woods, and some sexcapades that might be illegal in several states. You know what they say about men with big feet, right?

Need to catch up on the series? There’s a page for that!

The post Blurb and cover for Monstrous Tales #8! appeared first on Kelly Apple.