Category Archives: Writing

DOGE- Supernatural Division (a fun satire story)

I’ve been a little stressed by the news lately, so last night my husband cautioned me to avoid discussing politics online. Bwahaha! In light of that suggestion, I decided to write something that had been on my mind since it was first announced. How could I resist poking a little fun with a title like Department of Government Efficiency? Of course, I had to add some supernatural twists to put some space between the fictional story and the real world. Names and locations may have been altered as well.

No idea how this will go over, but if you all enjoy it, let me know. I’ll write more episodes in the future and post them here on my website for free. This is honestly just a stress relief for me.


DOGE Supernatural Division (episode 1)

“Department of Government Efficiency, Supernatural Division, who is calling, please?” Ruby asked, leaning back in her comfortable ergonomic chair.

A hushed male voice came over the line, “I have an anonymous tip.”

She leaned forward and began typing on the computer, starting a trace for the call. “Of course. Your privacy is especially important to us. Go ahead.”

“I discovered some discrepancies in the blood storage database where I work.”  The caller’s voice dropped lower. “I think they’re taking allotments somewhere but claiming it was expired and destroyed.  There’s been some questionable labeling lately.”

Ruby tapped her manicured nails on the desk, waiting for the computer program to finish locating the caller. “Why do you believe it wasn’t destroyed?”

“The night team was supposed to handle it, but they checked out two vans at ten pm and left together, according to outside camera footage. They didn’t return until an hour before dawn.  When I arrived for the morning shift, all four cases of blood bags were gone, and the furnace was cold.  No way they destroyed them.”

The program finished, revealing the caller was at a gas station in San Antonio. Ruby frowned. That city was one of the hubs for distributing vampire blood in Texas. The law was very clear that every ounce of it had to be accounted for and dispersed equally among vampires. Well, mostly equal, the older and richer ones “claimed” they needed more to subsist, but she had her doubts.

“Can I get the address to the warehouse?” she asked, though she already suspected the answer, it would help for him to confirm it.

“It’s in Dallas,” he said, rattling off the rest of the details.

Ruby inwardly cursed.  She’d really hoped it was San Antonio, but this paranoid caller had gone out of his way to not be caught.  No matter.  They’d pull the gas station security cameras since they’d need this man as a witness whether he liked it or not.  Good thing there was a specific elixir to provoke full cooperation.

“Very well.”  She opened a new window on her computer and began typing. “The Department of Government Efficiency, Supernatural Division, appreciates your assistance on this matter. Remember to pay your taxes and have a wonderful evening.”

Then she braced herself for her next call to Wizard Elron in Dallas. Ruby sure hoped he didn’t bring up her lack of children again or her three cats.  Why he thought it was his business, she didn’t know.  He hadn’t said anything since she gifted him a hundred cans of kitty food last Christmas, though.

***

Three hours later…

High Wizard Elron strutted toward the building with his three young lackeys in lockstep behind him. His black silk cape billowed at his back, and as he came to a stop, he set his hands on his hips as he studied the large structure.  He was ready to knock some heads together after learning of the audacity of this distribution warehouse for trying to skim blood for anything other than legal purposes.  He’d get to the bottom of the matter.

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Random author updates for January…

I hope those of you who have gotten a chance to read Cast by Flames enjoyed it. Though it ties up most loose ends for the series, obviously certain elements related to Galadon and Rayna couldn’t be completed in that installment.

Back in November/early December while I was waiting on edits to come back for book 7, I reached chapter ten for Galadon. I’m pleased to say that after quite a few late nights this past week, I’ve gotten to the halfway point for the draft. Some of it has been written during the day as well, but my two little boys interrupt me a lot. Christmas break is almost over for my 7-year-old, which will cut down on the chaos at home with only the 3-year-old creating distractions.

I don’t want to say too much right now since I know some people haven’t finished Cast by Flames yet, but you will find out why Galadon’s mother left him on that specific plot of land in his installment and it’s no small reason. Later in January when more of you have had a chance to catch up, I’ll post the first chapter of his book to give you a sneak peek at what’s to come.

In other news, I’m still waiting to hear when Cast by Flames will be released in audio. I’m guessing at least 2-3 months to allow time for recording, editing, etc. I’m also going to work on getting the last three novels into paperback soon. Some of you have asked about that, and I do want to get it done because I’d love to see those covers on physical books. It’s a matter of setting aside the time for it.

If you have any questions/comments, feel free to leave a comment below!

Kerbasi spin-off series

I’m going to get down to the nitty gritty of my thoughts over the years on this topic for those who have been hoping Kerbasi would get a full novel or series. Of course, he did get a holiday novella from his perspective (Sensor Series book 4.5) and a short story included at the end of Darkness Wanes (book 6), but those were shorter reads. Not to mention, a lot has happened to him since those were written, especially at the end of the Dark Destiny Series. I won’t spoil that twist for anyone who isn’t caught up, but it was a game changer for Kerbasi.

Anyway, since I finished the last spin-off with Cori and Bartol, I’ve been pondering how to handle the next chapter in that universe. There were a lot of ways to go with it. I could do a PNR single-novel spinoff, but I honestly think only the hardcore fans of the Sensor Series would pick that up, and I’d be lucky if I made my money back on the publishing expenses.

Next, I considered Kerbasi being the main lead for 2-3 books with a female side character who he’d eventually fall for in the story. She would get little or no time told from her perspective. This sounded better, but it still didn’t get me very excited. I have a lot of ideas for brand new series in my head I’d love to write, so if I want to do something with Kerbasi next year and keep those on the back burner, it has to be an angle that is super motivating for me to focus.

Then it came to me that I need to create an urban fantasy female lead who has some sort of interesting power but also a lot of issues that will get Kerbasi’s wings in a twist and instigate the event where they meet. I want them to clash hard against each other somewhat similar to how Lucas and Melena did (with their own unique journey, of course). It’s gotta be slow-burn, yet explosive so I could go four to five books and give them time to settle into a true relationship. There will be hot, spicy elements when the time is right for it as well, so it’s not going to be clean. Just giving fair warning for those who might need it.

Something about starting the story with the female but also giving Kerbasi his fair perspective (similar to how it goes between Bailey and Aidan in the Dragon’s Breath Series) is what feels right to me. That’s generally my happy writing place where I feel my best for writing. Also, it will work for any new readers who want to jump into this new series without knowing all the backstory of the two previous series.

So this is the tentative plan. As soon as I’ve finished the Galadon novel at the end of this year, I’ll do a deep dive back into the Sensor World because I need to refresh myself after the long break. After that, I’ll begin writing and give you all a tentative book release timeline and hopefully have figured out a series title by that point. I’m sure I’ll also share some excerpts to tide you over during the wait.

And for those wondering, I will squeeze in some appearances of the other Sensor Series characters, but they won’t feature heavily due to the fact Kerbasi will be in Melbourne, Australia. The long distance will make those opportunities more limited (I know from experience it’s a super long flight and none of the nephilim can flash that far). Having said that, ten years will have passed since events in Destined for Eternity (Kerbasi needed time to settle into his new life), so I definitely want readers to have a chance to see how the crew in Alaska is doing.

That’s the update. Hope this gets you excited for the next chapter in that universe and feel free to ask questions!

Note on the Dragon’s Breath Series and an excerpt

As some of you know, I’m in the midst of writing Cast by Flames, the final book in the series with Bailey and Aidan (not including the spinoff). There is a lot to cover in this novel, but it’s coming along well so far, and I’m finding it easy to write. Well, except for one little twist.

Long ago when I released the first book, I let readers know this one would not contain spicy elements. Some may recall this, some may not, and people who started it later probably never knew about that promise. I wanted readers who prefer not to have naughty parts in stories be able to enjoy the series. Also, I’d rather that when my boys get older they can pick these books up and it not be awkward. I’ll just have to steer them clear of the others.

Having said that, it was tough to stay within my promise while writing Torn in Flames because obviously Bailey and Aidan had a lot of pent up passion when they reunited after five years. I had to walk a fine line to show that without it going too far. It wasn’t easy! Since beginning Cast by Flames, it has gotten even more difficult. As I was writing the final part of chapter five, I deviated into “forbidden” territory because I just had to get it out of my system.

Later, I mentioned it to the readers in my Facebook Fan Group and how I’d have to heavily edit the scene later. There was a large response of people who thought I should still share it somehow (ideas varied on this). I ended up revising the scene with a lot more of what I wished I could have written had I not been holding back (even with crossing the line a bit). Then I posted the 1700 word scene in the group. They loved it.

I know I have a lot of readers who are not in that group who may wish to see it as well. As a result, I’m posting it below. Keep in mind that this scene takes place in the midst of the next book, so there are some brief mentions of things going on in the story, but they are vague without context and shouldn’t feel like actual spoilers. No one who has read it so far has had an issue.

If you’re still with me and want to read it, continue below. Please do keep in mind this is just a draft and has not been edited except me running through a few passes to try catching any typos/issues. Hope you enjoy!

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Torn in Flames dragon map and character sheet

In anticipation of Torn in Flames releasing in a few weeks, I have a question for you all. I have a map of where all the pertinent dragon territories are in the U.S. My beta readers and editor found it helpful to keep track of clans in the story. There are more mentioned in this installment than previous ones.

Keep in mind, it is a generic map I altered with colors, name labels, and territorial lines for my purposes. It’s out of my price range to have a professional do it, unfortunately, but it does the job. I referred to it many times while writing the novel. I just can’t include it in the ebook because I got the country outline from a separate source. This map does not list every clan that exists because if they have no relevance to the story or my personal notes then I’m not taking the time to name or outline them. So a blank area does NOT mean it’s free of dragons. I already had this question and they know who they are, though in their case they were just messing with me. I will say the Cast by Flames (book 7) map has an even more comprehensive map because I did have to add a lot more clans for that due to the plot, but you won’t get to see that one yet.

Also considering creating a Torn in Flames character list explaining who is who if there are enough interested people. I make a spreadsheet for each novel I write, but those have a lot of details that are for me. This would be a cleaner version in a PDF document with a couple of details on who each person is for this installment to use as a quick reference for readers.

Please let me know in the comments below (or on Facebook) if you all would be interested. It would take extra work on my part, but I would be happy to do so if readers think they’d find the map and/or character list helpful.

If this does happen, I’ll let you all know when the document(s) are ready and email them to those who wants them prior to the book release.