Update – November 2017

Hello, all. I suppose by now, you’ve all given up on monthly updates. I don’t blame you. It’s been awhile. There are a couple of very good reasons for that.

Where the hell did Tracy go?

I’ve not been the most visible writer in quite some time. Truth be told, that trend will continue for a while longer. How did I abandon thee? Let me count the ways:

1. Our glorious public school system

Let me tell you something. The state of education, particularly in my state, could not be more pathetic. Especially when a special needs child is involved. My kid has always come first, and when the situation reached a point where I was contacting his school almost daily in fury, I yanked him out and started homeschooling. As I’m sure you can imagine, this eats up a significant portion of my day. My entire morning is taken up with class. The good news is, Kiddo is thriving at this point, making significant strides. The bad news is, obviously, less time for me to write.

Less time to write, you say? Ah, and yet…

2. The crazy book release timetable

Last February, I was blessed with a three-book contract with Carina Press, an imprint of Harlequin. Let me start by saying, I am delighted to have signed the Warriors of Risnar series with them. It is a thrill to be with them for this. Carina’s enthusiasm for Risnar tells me that this series is going to delight a lot of readers.

The best news of all? Those three books are all currently scheduled to be released in 2018. If Risnar tickles your fancy…and boy, do I get to my happy place on this new world…you’ll be glad to have the series coming at you fast and furious.

What has that got to do with not hearing much from me? Well, though the first book was finished at the time I signed the contract (until my remarkable editor got hold of it, haha), there were two more books to write. Within a year. My typical time to write a book, from start to finish, is six months. No problem, right?

Wrong. With the first book not to be released until early 2018, I still had to write books to pay the bills for all of 2017. At least four of them.

Six books. In twelve months. And that was with Carina being gracious enough to delay the book releases later than they’d originally hoped. I had one year to write Warriors of Risnar 2 and 3, Alien Revolt, Shalia 11 and 12, and Clan and Conscience.

Cue the panic.

I’ve juggled a schedule that at different points had me working on all six projects at the same time. Now you know where I’ve been. Schooling half the day and writing every waking moment beyond that. Seven days a week. During the family vacation. During a hurricane evacuation. Every day. There has been little time for anything else. Updates and most marketing have fallen to the side as I set this keyboard of mine a-smokin’.

After eight months, I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Shalia’s Diary Book 11 – done. Alien Revolt - done. Warriors of Risnar 2: Worlds Apart – in Carina’s hands with edits pending. Two more books, Clan and Conscience and Shalia’s Diary Book 12 are nearing completion.

It’s nice to be at this point. But there is still a lot of writing to do. Let me fill you in, while I have a moment to do so, on the status of all those works-in-progress.

Stages of the Books

Clan Beginnings: Clan and Conscience – Clan Ospar’s story has been through two rounds of edits, with at least one more to go. It’s looking good for its November 17 release.

Fighting murderous enemies. Battling each other. It’s the perfect recipe for romance, Kalquorian-style.

On the surface, young Dramok Ospar has it all: money, prestige, power. Yet what he dreams of most is outside his grasp. His drive to prove himself has left him lonely, with no one to turn to…except the Nobek bodyguard who is decidedly unimpressed with his accomplishments. Oh, and there’s the matter of the local crime syndicate trying to kill him too.

Nobek Jol faces his worst security assignment ever: guarding the most irritating Dramok to draw breath. It’s not that Ospar isn’t handsome, intelligent, brave, and charitable. It’s just that he’d be so much better gagged into silence.

Temple of Life priest Imdiko Rivek wishes for inner peace and total enlightenment. He knows he won’t find it in the lethal world Ospar and Jol inhabit. However, fighting the allure of the pair to achieve perfect tranquility is proving to be more difficult than he could have imagined…plus the fact that their enemies think he’s the perfect target to bring Ospar and Jol to heel.

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Shalia’s Diary Book 12 – The end of our journey with Shalia (sob!) is nearing completion. I have edits to go through once the first draft is done, and there is no book release or blog start date available at this time.

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Warriors of Risnar: Not of This World - A victim of repeated alien abductions since childhood, Jeannie Gardner is experimented on by a race called the Monsuda. When returned to Earth, she does her best to live a normal though lonely existence. Taken by the aliens yet again, Jeannie runs away from her tormentors and finds herself on a planet far from Earth. Naked and starving, she’s all but given herself up for lost when another species stumbles across her and offers help. But are these striped people who call themselves the Risnarish friend or foe?

Kren Bolep is head of law enforcement for the Risnar village of Hahz. He doesn’t know what to make of the odd creature with her unarmored skin, clawless fingers, and fangless mouth. All he knows is that she comes from an enemy lab, and Monsudan creations must be destroyed.

Despite the obstacles of different languages and customs, Jeannie and Kren forge an unlikely bond. For Jeannie, Kren offers the chance to trust in others once again. To Kren, Jeannie represents the longed-for companionship the women of his own species can’t give him. Desire grows as they surmount the obstacles that cannot keep them apart.

Yet Jeannie must prove to the governing Assembly of Risnar that she is not a Monsudan creation, destined for execution. Even if she and Kren can convince the Elders, another danger looms: the Monsuda want their lab subject back and will do everything in their power to reclaim her.

Carina Press has tentatively scheduled Not of This World to be released the first week of February 2018.

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Warriors of Risnar: Worlds Apart – Submitted to Carina Press and in edits. Release date sometime around May 2018.

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Warriors of Risnar: Worlds Collide – Two-thirds of the first draft is written. Release date late in 2018.

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At this time, I have not started the next Clans of Kalquor book. I do not know when I will do so. I will be taking a short break after Worlds Collide is finished, and then I can start fresh.

I also cannot commit to resuming regular updates quiet yet either. For now, the schedule is still packed. I’m glad I’ve been able to finally sneak in a moment to tell you all what’s going on and why I’ve been MIA more often than not lately. Thanks for your patience! And enjoy Clan and Conscience later this month.