We’re only two days awaaaaaay!!!! :D
Thank you so much for your shares, social media comments, and emails! I only just figured out this week how to put the share buttons onto blog posts, so it’s been super cool to see that you’ve already been using them!
I wanted to use a Les Mis joke about two days more, or Annie and the sun coming out the day after tomorrow, but I’ve been in seven hours of class for a TESOL course. Joke topics was about as far as I got.
That said, your excitement is infectious. It’s my book, and somehow you guys have got me even more pumped for it! I swear you guys are all secretly wizards or something.
In Case You Missed It
Hidden in Sealskin is the story of Adren, an outlaw who hates humans, as she sets out to steal a sealskin in exchange for a cure for her insane unicorn. Matters are complicated by Nadin, the awkward teenager who insists on helping Adren and who Adren isn’t sure she can trust, the mystery surrounding the sealskin, and the awakening secrets of Adren’s mind.
When asked for three words to describe it, three came to my mind at once: fun, mysterious, and magical (the unsettlingly cool kind of magical, not the cute, fluffy kind).
Reviewers have called my previous work (Dreaming of Her and Other Stories and The Illuminated Heart) “like stepping into another world” and “touching and compelling.”
Stuff the Editor Likes
You know you have an excellent editor and excellent beta readers when, while telling you all the things that you need to fix, they tell you what they love. Here’s some of the lines from Hidden in Sealskin that stood out for them:
Taryn Hunchak (Beta Reader)
“Let me help you. I’m sure I could do something, and I don’t think you’re really after anything bad. I don’t think you’re like that. And maybe, with my help, you won’t have to steal.” [Nadin] rubbed his nose.
Well. It wasn’t anything Adren hadn’t already thought. Minus the not having to steal part. She would definitely have to steal.
And also:
Even the best plans fell apart when enacted. It was only a matter of when and how.
Elizabeth Fowler (Beta Reader)
Not only would she work for a human, but even humans considered the work meaningless. Adren was certain that hell had a quarter exactly like this and, if she had any say in the matter, people like Lord Watorej went there after death.
E.J. Clark (Editor)
Never, as far back as she could remember, had she met anyone in a situation so like her own. Oh, saints, how she wished it was safe to tell him. A memory flashed into her mind of a little girl running up to her father to whisper a secret in his ear, her fair hair bright against his black clothing. Her mind snatched at it like someone dying of thirst would snatch at rain, but it fled before she could grasp the pictures, and all that remained was an ache.
It’s More Than Just This One Book
While Hidden in Sealskin has its own, complete storyline, it starts off a series that will span two countries, get into the deepest secrets of the world’s magic, and uncover the real reason behind the existence of Adren, the unicorn, and Nadin. There will be dragons, werewolves, fairies (the old kind), tree spirits, a nightmare (the demony kind), and more.
I already have outlines for the next two books, wherein Adren gets asked to clear the name of a werewolf, Nadin gets imprisoned, and fairies conspire to keep them both in the dark about their true purposes. One of those applies to both books, but you’ll have to read them to find out which. :)
The next book also features a realistic wooden model of a severed hand. One must keep one’s imprisoned characters occupied, after all.
But, self-contained as each of these books are, each subsequent story builds on a deeper story. One which you will only understand if you start with Hidden in Sealskin.
Coming Next
The next post is Book Day. On Monday, after four years of work, Hidden in Sealskin will be available for you to own. But, more than that, I have a special, limited-time offer for you that I’ll go into more detail in on Monday.
It’ll work for you even if you want to get your copy at the upcoming Edmonton Expo, and will require only one step on your part before you see me.
And, trust me, it’ll be totally worth it. You will not believe how much it’ll be worth it.
Your Turn
How will you be celebrating Hidden in Sealskin‘s Book Day? I’m definitely seeing ice cream in my future. :D
