Halfway there! 100 pages and counting

Time is a funny thing; it can work with you or it can work against you.  By this time next week I'll already be starting back with classes at my college.  On the other hand, this week I'm already halfway through my upcoming book and so eager/nervous to be finished.
(Note: This is not the official cover)  The exciting part about writing this book -and I hope that will always be exciting for each book I write-is getting a feel for the characters, finding simple reasons to fall in love with them and then the next minute being sucked into their world.  Now my inner editor has been driving me crazy, begging me to edit every single thing I write, to analyze every single period.  Truthfully, I've been ignoring that urge.  Yes, there is a lot of editing to be done, but I want to focus on the story for now and once it's complete then I can edit.
Several readers and fans have been asking a lot of questions about the upcoming book, which I'd like to address on here for everyone to see.

What's it like writing from Leal's perspective?  Don't you miss Celestria?
I'm sure this won't be my first time admitting it, but Leal can be difficult at times.  He my first full time male character -one that I have to stay with at all times, the one whose head I have to walk around in till I know him better than the back of my hand.  And yes, I do miss writing from Celestria's perspective.  We grew a special bond together, and I loved the fact that we ended up relating to one another in ways neither of us planned on.  She is dearly missed as a narrator, but there's so much more to tell, and I don't want anyone to miss out!
Who's your favorite character so far in the book?
In Cursed With Power my favorite character was Alaire.  He seems to have that effect on people, doesn't he?  Now with the sequel I'd have to say it would be between Nicia or Leal.  I like Nicia because she can be mysterious; you never quite know whether she's the best thing for Leal or his worst nightmare.  She has a good heart, but there's also a sense of sadness that makes you wonder what really goes on in her head.  Then Leal is the opposite... He has insecurities, but he'll make jokes to avoid facing them.  He carries a lot of weight on his shoulders, but in his head he's always trying to make the right decision -and for that I admire him.
Is there anything you've written that's surprised you -something you hadn't planned?
The idea of starting the book a year before Leal meets Celestria was always something I contemplated, but now that it's actually happening I really like the twist.  Probably the most surprising part so far is that Nicia has a major role... in my head before I started writing the book I never knew who she could be, and she seemed like a minor character.  Now she has potential for much more.
Can we expect ARCs of Punished With Destiny?
I will try my best to obtain ARCs, and I'll probably have a giveaway of some sort to decide who wins them.  Keep checking in on the blog for more details! :)

Speaking of giveaways....
I wanted to have a giveaway sometime this month, but I've decided I'll wait until the spring (March) to have one so that way -regardless if PWD is releasing that exact month or not-everyone has something to look forward to.  I will have more details as the month approaches closer.

And in case you were wondering what else I've been doing...
So I recently dyed my hair this week -I already miss the blonde!  There are some blonde highlights, but for the most part I have a brownish/red color now.  It will take some getting used to, but I think I'm starting to like it.  I might add in some more highlights in the weeks to come.  We'll see!

Oh, and I finally got my nose pierced!  My nose feels weird, but I love the little diamond stud.

So there's the update -it was driving me crazy that I hadn't posted because I've been so busy.  Hope everyone has a wonderful week, and enjoy your night!  I'll be back later this week with more to share.
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Guardian: Alaire's untold story

Whether you've read Cursed With Power or not, I'm hoping this is a story you'll be interested to read.  The first time we -and Celestria-meet Alaire in the book is after Celestria's first encounter with Aldemund.  He rescues her when she is so close to death that there seems to be no hope.  But did you ever wonder what it might have been like from Alaire's point of view?  How he made it in time to save her, and what he thought of her at first glance?  I'll leave it to Alaire to shed the light....

Guardian: Alaire's untold story

A man ran through the streets, shouting about magic being practiced in the streets and a woman dying.  Several of the townspeople shook their heads at him as if he were a drunk, but there was no mistaking the fear in his eyes.  Humans were not capable of understanding magic, and in a way I pitied them for it.  It seemed cruel at times that we lived among them with powers and advantages that they themselves could never grasp.  Regardless, I felt drawn in by his words, and at the words 'dying' my heart sank.  As Dark magicians we were at the end of our days, but to the rest of the world that did not stop the violence.

You might not be ready for this... I thought, but I refused to listen to my conscience.  There was the slightest chance that the woman could be a Dark magician, and thus I felt I owed it to her to run as fast as my legs would allow me.

 The swarm of people made the battle impossible to miss.  It had been around the corner from where I had been standing, but there was too much commotion to make sense of what was happening.  Silently, I pushed past the locals and made my way to the front of the crowd.  There were two magicians fighting -a man and a woman-but the shouting through the streets had been true.  The man, whom I had never seen before, was brutally beating down on the redhead woman.  It seemed I had come too late, for all too soon I realized the man had grabbed hold of a broken piece of a staff.  I gasped in horror, envisioning in my mind how the blow would be fatal and kill her instantly.  She looked horrified like a cat that was drowning in an ocean, but meanwhile I stood with my fists clenched and jaw tightened.

You weren't ready for this.  Don't be a coward... save the woman! I thought, watching as the man raised the weapon above the woman's head.

Releasing my fists, I extended my arms out and cast a spell.  The energy flowed from my hands and hit the man's arm in a matter of seconds.  He dropped the half-broken staff, grabbing tightly onto his injured the arm.  The spell was not one of the strongest, but it was enough for him to glance at me and then run away into the dark alleys.  All eyes focused on me, and I mumbled an apology before rushing to the woman's side. Her eyes darted in various directions, suggesting that at any given moment she would become unconscious.  For the first time I was able to see her all of her features: the soft and alluring red glow from her hair, the curiosity in her eyes, and the unmistakable thin, pink lips.  It was like I had known her in times before in a way that I could not explain.

"My god, I've found you...." I whispered just as her eyes closed and her body fell limp.  A majority of the locals had already walked away from the fight, but I reassured the few that remained that she would be safe with me.  Without another word, I picked her up in my arms and carried her away from the town to the only haven I knew.

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If you'd like more posts like this with different POVs from Cursed With Power or other possible story lines I can share without revealing spoilers, leave a comment and let me know!  Hope you enjoyed it.  Alaire sends his love :)

Lindsey R. Sablowski

If time could kill, deadlines would be deadly

Lately I've been keeping an eye on my calendar, and it seems like January is coming to an end much sooner than any of us would like for it to.  This means college starts back up again, and unfortunately for me that means no free time for my book -at least not until March once spring break hits.  Due to this timing seems to be worth everything at this point in my progress with the upcoming sequel.  Four months ago when I was working on Cursed With Power I spent four months from the acceptance letter in May to the release in September working on the book as often as time would permit me to.  Alas that was before college and work entered into my life, so as you can imagine it's a different situation now... and I'm not even finished with the first draft yet.

Regardless of the deadline I've set on the book, I do intend to stay with it.  This book is exciting -and at times scary-to write especially with there being new characters, new locations, and the challenging change of all... a new narrator.  I want readers to have something they can immerse themselves in again, to fall in love with new and old characters, and to be on the edge of their seat up till the very end where they can't wait for the next book.  This series will require a lot of work -mainly on my part- but in the end I'd like to hope that we'll have more fans and readers join along the journey.  So deadline or not, I will do my very best to have the book ready so it can release in the spring.  If I'm a month or so later than I originally planned out it'll only be because during all of that time I am still making the book everything that it can be.  

 

Either way, we're in for quite the adventure this month and definitely this spring.  In the meantime while you wait there will be contests to be announced and much more talk about what's to come next.

Lindsey R. Sablowski

Behind the Character: Esmour

Originally Esmour was a very minor character in Cursed With Power.  And by minor I mean he was mentioned perhaps once in the first draft of the book.  Obviously before it was published Esmour's true character shined through, and the readers were only able to learn as much as Celestria.  Still the point has been clear... there's a story to Esmour we haven't heard yet.  When will we hear it, though?
At this point it's no secret that Leal will be answering some of our questions about Esmour in the upcoming sequel, Punished With Destiny.  I will not be revealing any spoilers -never do and never will-but I'll be talking about the "birth" of his character as well as some other material that isn't something you might simply know from reading the books.
Meaning of the name: Initiating action, pioneering, leading, independent, attaining, individual
Most of the time the actual meaning behind the name has nothing to do with my process in choosing a name for a character, though I'll admit in this case Esmour does have qualities that fit the personality attached to his name.  If one thing was ever certain about him from the beginning, it was that he would be the antagonist.  For the longest time it was difficult to decide just what exactly made Esmour the feared man magicians knew him as.  That's what is fun about the job, though; you can decide the story behind the characters, whether you use it or not.
Esmour has a significant role as the leader of Destin, an organization he created with who he believed were some of the best and talented Dark magicians.  As we learn early on in CWP, Alaire and Leal were part of this organization.  We won't actually understand the full details until the sequel releases, but I promise you Leal has quite the story to tell.
What you won't find out from the books is that Esmour has a lot of promise as a narrator.  The Magicians series is meant to be a five book series, but if it were to go over well I'd consider writing a prequel in which Esmour would tell his story.  This would include his life before Destin, how he became such a powerful leader, and more depth into the secretive life he led.  There are plenty of journals and notes in my room that could help with building the story line for the book, but this is simply a consideration and perhaps something I'll decide on entirely once we're closer to book 5 in the series.

Until the sequel, the questions are still yours for the asking.  What do you think: Is Esmour the true villain or a hero?
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Upcoming sequel, book signing... oh, and a deadline

First off, I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays.  I'm a little late on returning, but lately life has been catching up -a phrase I'm becoming too familiar with these days.  Over the week I put out the money for 20 copies of Cursed With Power and 25 business cards for my upcoming book signing (January 19th).  It's in Maryland, but if you live in or near the area feel free to leave a comment and I'll include the address for you.  I will say it was money well-spent because in the end I always look forward to these book events; it makes me feel like CWP is coming alive. (If that makes any sense?)  So far all of the signings I've had has been with my fellow authors at Old Line Publishing, so it's also nice to finally put faces to the names I've seen on book covers.
Someone asked me the other day what it's like writing the sequel to Cursed With Power, since with that book I had no actual deadline and with the sequel I've made my own deadline.  Old Line isn't requiring that I have the second book finished by a certain date, seeing as they're not signing me on until I send it to them, but regardless of that I personally would like to have the book finished to release in spring.  It can be quite a struggle at times, and I'll admit some days I write more (or less) than other days, but in the end I do believe it'll be worth it.  The fact that readers are finishing CWP and awaiting the next book is enough to keep me going, and at the end of the day that's what gives me hope.

Anyways, I have some writing to get back to, but remember to check back in because in the next day or so we're having the blog redesigned! :)  Night all!
Lindsey R. Sablowski