Alaire and Hunter

As promised while I am in the process of editing Thicker Than Blood, I want to post more to help better involve you in the upcoming book.
If you've been reading the books in the series since the beginning, we all know the story of Alaire and Hunter. There's no spoilers in knowing that Alaire once called himself "Hunter" when he was in Destin. This name originated from the fact that he would hunt White magicians at night. Originally in the first couple of drafts of CWP I had never decided about this dark lifestyle which Alaire once led, but it finally made its way into the book. After all, not every hero is perfect. Hunter was also mentioned in Shadows and Embers, since we took a closer look at the magicians when they were a part of Destin.
Now in the third book Hunter has not left us, but instead we take a deeper plunge to find out exactly what he did. Alaire is faced with dealing with the horrendous crimes he committed as Hunter. Alas, Hunter will also be a dilemma because he might be "dead," but couldn't he easily return if Alaire allowed him to? It sounds like our hero led two different lives, and that was one of the main reasons I nicknamed him "Hunter" for his darkest moments in Destin.
So far in the series each one of our heroes have been faced with dealing with something from their past. Celestria was faced with coming to terms with her magic, Leal sought out revenge for his father's death, and now finally we have Alaire, dealing with who he once was. It was a bit challenging writing scenes that flashed back to Hunter, simply because I've become used to how Alaire is now, but in the end it worked out. It added something unique to the story that was also different from the previous stories, so I'm curious to see how it turns out when the book is released.
What do you think: Will Alaire overcome his bloody past, or should we expect Hunter's return soon?

Kindle Matchbook promotion for Shadows and Embers

 
Before I go I do have several announcements to make. For one, SandE is now a part of the Kindle Matchbook promotion on Amazon. This means that if you have purchased a paperback copy of SandE from Amazon in the past or you do in the present/future, you are able to purchase the kindle version for a discounted price of $0.99
This promotion will be ongoing, and I encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity. The kindle version is usually $3.99 without the purchase of the paperback. Be sure to check it out on Amazon.

Editing progress in Thicker Than Blood
As for the progress I have made with edits for the upcoming book, I am working on chapter two. Fortunately I have my spring break coming up in April, so I plan on spending a lot of that time editing and revising as much as I can. I have been using this great program that helps me edit, so it has been running pretty smoothly so far.

Remember to check back in for more updates and more discussions. Have an idea of what I should post next? Leave a comment, and I'll get back to you!
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Editing

The editing process has began to prepare Thicker Than Blood for publication. I started the moment I finished the book, and now that I've found a useful editing program that also helps me it is a lot less stressful than I remember. Useful editing is a stressful time for me; both times I did it before for my book made me feel as though I just simply did not have enough time. This time it's different, and maybe it is because I have learned that editing cannot be planned out to be finished at a specific date. Regardless, I feel relieved with the fact that I do have more than enough time to edit and still release this year. The other part of it that is a relief is knowing that all of my ideas are down on paper; everything is there for me, and now I can go through and add and/or delete whatever I feel is necessary.
Since editing might not be all that interesting for you to read about, I do promise to have a variety of topics posted on the blog. I would love for everyone to be involved in this process as possible, and I've been looking through old posts on the blog to see what I have done. What I did notice is that with CWP I had a huge countdown, and for each day that passed there was a new post with more talk about the book to pull readers in. Unfortunately I did not have the time to do that as much with the release of Shadows and Embers, but I do plan on doing it again with this book. I don't want to leave any corner untouched, and I definitely want to involve everybody. After reviewing this material, I've come up with a list of different posts you can expect:

• Behind the character and/or behind the name
• Fun facts
• Scenery/setting choices
• Giveaway(s)
• Teasers
• Excerpts from the book
• Quotes
• Cover reveal
• Countdown
• pre-ordering details
• release (with links to purchase)

The ones in green text won't be happening until I have a release date or until publication (depending on what they are), but everything else will be coming up little by little. Stick around and don't miss out!

Lindsey R. Sablowski

Book 3: At the end!

 
This snow day turned out to be quite productive, and I am happy to announce that at 81,438 words my third book, Thicker Than Blood, is now officially complete.
February was a crazy month for me, hence why I was M.I.A. on the blog, but with moving and having two new cats that want to play with everything in the house my boyfriend and I have been very busy people. Nonetheless, I am grateful I had off of work today to finally sit down for several hours and just write. I was not expecting to finish the book today, but once I started writing I could not stop. So here we are at last at the end of the writing stage.
I learned a lot while writing this book, and even though this is my third full completed novel I found myself learning and making mistakes along the way. Writing is not something that is meant to be rushed, and no matter how well I thought I knew my characters they managed to surprise me now and again. I originally intended to finish this book in February, but life also catches up and can delay what needs to be done. Now that I am done with writing I will be jumping right into the editing stages to prepare this book for publication. I'll admit I was excited when I finally reached the end of this book and could announce it. Considering that it was July when SandE released and it's just now the beginning of March that I am finishing TTB, this book has taken a lot of time and energy.
As for publication, I am still expecting to release this book later this year. I don't see that editing will stop me from reaching that deadline, and as I have mentioned before once I see what needs to be done with the book I can more accurately estimate a release month. I am so thankful to all of my readers and fans out there who have been patiently waiting for this book, and I promise you once it releases it will have been worth the wait. I can't wait to share Alaire's story with you, so please be patient for a bit longer while I work with it and make it perfect and ready for you to read.
When I was writing the book I thought a lot about this day when I would finally be finished, and now that I'm here I will admit its such a relief. Editing will no doubt take a lot of focus and time, but it will bring me one step closer to publication. Before you know it we'll be having the cover reveal, and since I'll be in the editing stages for a while I'll be sharing sneak peaks and quotes directly from the book. Don't worry the journey is far from being over. As a matter of fact it's only begun, and Alaire wants you to come along with us.
As usual, check back in for more updates. I'll be sure to post something exciting very soon after I rest a while from all of this writing.
Lindsey R. Sablowski

New Home

Just wanted to stop in quickly and wish everyone a very happy Valentine's day. I won't be posting on Valentine's day because I'm moving into my new home with my boyfriend that day, so I expect all weekend we will be busy. Also, due to the move it maybe be a couple days before I am settled and able to post an update about my third book. I do, however, plan on posting an update sometime next week if we're settled and I have the time.
Thanks everyone for your patience and understanding. Enjoy the holiday and your weekend!
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Behind the Title: Thicker Than Blood

As I mentioned on the blog earlier when I first revealed the title to my third upcoming book, I have been waiting for the perfect timing to talk about what went into deciding on the title and the like. Fortunately today is another snow day and I'm off work, so that means I've had plenty of free time to write and now even post on the blog.

Even though Alaire's story was not originally planned to be in the 3rd book, it had a different title than the one you see now. Originally it was titled The Secrets We Share, and Alaire's story would not be revealed until the 4th book. When I finished SandE and started writing this book I decided it was in need of a title change because I wanted it to be something interesting that would pull the readers in. While the original title focused around the idea of foresight, the title I changed it to focuses on an even bigger theme in the book.
As we found out when first meeting Alaire Sencler in Cursed With Power, he lost his family tragically when he was a young boy. He's never had a family he can call his own, but by the third book in the series Alaire has come across a secret that will change everything. While the war approaches he contemplates about the saying "blood runs thicker than water." Those he is willing to fight alongside in the war are no blood relatives of his, but so then that leaves the question of how true the saying is. Might water actually run thicker? Only time will tell, but hopefully for his sake and the sake of others he will find out for himself before the end.
What do you think about the title for the third book? Remember even though the book has not released for publication yet, you can still mention it on Twitter using #thickerthanblood .
Progress update:
As for progress in Thicker Than Blood, I typed up both chapter 23 and 24 today. Outlines are all complete, as I have mentioned before, for the last remaining chapters. At the most I only have four more chapters to write/type before I reach the end of the book, then onto editing, and then of course publication. Once again I will be self publishing this book and it will be up on Amazon, and once I am done writing the entire book I will post a preview of it on Createspace for readers to preview before its release. Total word count is up to 71,823, so at this point the only goal I am focusing on is finishing the book so that I can begin edits.
That's all for now, and I expect to have more to share later on. Please leave your thoughts on the title and any questions in the comments.
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Kindle Countdown Deal for Shadows and Embers

For the next three days the sequel to Cursed With Power, Shadows and Embers, will be a part of the Kindle Countdown Deal.  This means instead of paying the normal price of $3.99 you can purchase your kindle copy for a discounted price. Today the price is at $0.99 -don't miss out! This deal will end January 21st at 12am, so purchase your copy while the countdown lasts. To purchase, simply go to Amazon.
 
For those of you who are not familiar with the book or have not read it yet, Shadows and Embers is the second book in the Magicians series, following Leal Irvine's story. Now is a great time to purchase your copy before the third installment in the series releases. Remember book #3 is expected to be releasing this year, so the clock is ticking down.
Update on Thicker Than Blood:
As for the third book, Thicker Than Blood, I am currently at 63k. Once I type up what I wrote earlier this morning and yesterday I expect to be around 64-65k, which puts me awfully close to my goal of 70k. The last couple of chapters are all planned out; now it's just a matter of writing them. Once the book is entirely complete I will have so much more details to share, and as I have mentioned before I'll be sharing quotes and so forth. I am doing everything I can to make sure this book releases this year, and so far I don't foresee anything that would hold me back. When I reach the end I will definitely post a reflection on what it was like to write the book, how the ending felt, and what lays ahead.
Lindsey R. Sablowski

Love is thicker than Blood

The saying goes that "blood runs thicker than water," but we are all aware that is not always true. For Alaire Sencler, he has never had a family around to believe in the saying. Instead in the upcoming third installment in the Magicians series we follow Alaire on his journey and decide for ourselves which is stronger: blood or love.
 
Don't worry, though, there's still plenty of action, magic, and secrets at bay. I've mentioned before that I want to talk about more specifics of what the third book is all about, and so I'll let you in on some more. For one, we're going to find out more about Alaire's gift. We have all known for quite some time now that he's special and unique, but now that he's telling the story we can find out exactly how. In addition, the magicians are running against time as the war quickly approaches.
As for some quick, fun facts you might not have known, here's a few for now:

• The third book was originally not meant to be Alaire's; he was meant to wait until book #4.
• There are numerous meanings to the name Alaire, including and not limited to "joyful, happy, precious" and etc.
• The setting changes from Neutadt, Transylvania; Wyndor, realm of the foreseers; and another location in Transylvania

While I don't have a lot to share right now (mainly because it's 1am), I am happy to say that I have reached 62k in the book and planned all the way up to chapter 28. So far from the outlines it looks like chapter 28 could be the last chapter of the book, but that number could change once I start typing the other chapters. As of presently I am in the middle of chapter 22, but it feels good to know that everything is already planned out and I don't have to worry about where it is going to end. Overall, I know exactly where this book needs to end and what the next one needs to focus on.

I promise you can expect more as this month continues on, and for the most part I am trying to post at least once every week if time permits. As I said before it's late, so I'm off to bed. Check in again soon for more of an update.

Lindsey R. Sablowski

Alaire's Journey: Nearing the end

It's a snow day here in Maryland, and since I have the day off from work I decided to spend the extra time I have working more on my upcoming book. I'm expecting to hit 60k either tonight or tomorrow night, and with that in mind I've realized that I am nearing the end of the book. Already I am writing myself notes of what needs to happen for the book to reach its end. Alaire's journey has been a lot of fun for me; at the book I admit it was stressful and difficult to push through, but now I have the voice down and am writing easily. Cursed With Power was approximately 80k, Shadows and Embers finished at 90k, and this third book could go either way. I expect to go over my goal of 70k, but as to whether book #3 will be longer than the second book or slightly shorter I cannot determine at this point.

  

It's a new year, and as promised I am working hard to make one of my resolutions come true. The sooner that I complete writing Thicker Than Blood the sooner I can begin editing and revising. Once edits begin that brings me one more step closer to publication, which I am so eager to start focusing on. Baby steps, baby steps... 

There's a lot I have learned about Alaire from writing this book, and as I near the end I see that I know him now much better than I did four years ago when I first came up with his name and created him as a character. The exciting part about seeing the end in sight is knowing that I will have another book to release this year, and then I can begin working on book #4. At nearly 60k I am on chapter 21 and looking toward the end, preparing to tie together loose ends, answers questions, and leave the readers eager to find out more in the fourth installment to the series. 

So what can you expect as I progress to the end?

Well, so far I have not shared any quotes from this book, and I am planning on choosing some of my favorites and sharing those. There will be more posts about Alaire, definitely excerpts or teasers once I am in the editing process, and much more. Whether you've read the first two books or not, there will be plenty of ways for you to become involved with this third one without spoiling anything from the past or future of where the series is headed. This series has a lot to look forward to, and as I have said times before Alaire's story is not the end. There are two more books expected to release after this, and it's all a matter of me sitting down and writing them. I enjoy each one of these books, spend as much time as I can with each character to know them as well as the last one. I don't have to say goodbye to Alaire yet, but I encourage you to stay with me as we venture to the end. I'll share fun facts about the game, ask your opinion, and hopefully have you wondering what's next.

Alaire was Celestria's hero, and now it is time for him to be the hero of his own story. Check back in soon as we dive in for a closer look into Thicker Than Blood. Until then, enjoy the snow!

Lindsey R. Sablowski