Keizara - Part One: Dean By XchylerConn

Keizara - Part One: Dean by XchylerConn


Get Keizara - Part One: Dean here

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an entriguing tale that follows the young lives of three siblings in search of a way to save their family. Their parents had been kidnapped by an evil being and they hope to do everything in their power to get them back. Keizara is an land of imaginable powers and so much potential to grow into a place that anyone would want to visit.

XchylerConn is very descriptive and has a wonderful mind for creativity. This may be a short story, but it is part of a series that I can't wait to read more of. She grips the reader from the instant the story starts and keeps you flipping the electronic pages until the end. This is definitely worth reading and an author to watch for.

Elements of Distraction... Oohhh shiny!

As a writer, heck, as a person... I have always been prone to distraction. In the past, I required that distraction stay as far away from me as possible when I was working on something. I'm one of those people that loses focus very easily. So easily, in fact, that it has taken me over half an hour to get this far into the post because I keep getting DISTRACTED!!!

Okay, and I'm back...

What was I saying again? Oh, right, distractions... They seem to take over my world when I really want to work on my writing. It's sad to say that seems to be the only time when I get really distracted.

Everywhere you look on the net, there are suggestions on how to avoid distraction. The main ones that I always come across tell you to shut off your phone, turn off the tv, disconnect the internet and pretend that there is no outside world. Tell everyone and everything that you are in DND mode and the first time the cat doesn't listen and tries to get on your lap, toss it out the window so that it stays away... Well, maybe just put it out of the office and close the door.

I've tried all these things and none of them seem to work anymore! Every time I want to start working on a project, I can't seem to get going. There are so few distractions that I find I can't focus on what is before me. It also doesn't help having a significant other that is more needy than my cats, when it comes to my 'ME' time. Okay, another exaggeration but still close. Why is it that when someone closes a door, the person on the other side always needs to know what's going on?

But I digress... The point that I was getting to was that I tried something different. For a couple of months I have been trying to write the first in a series of short stories entitled, The Mind Entangled. It was just a short story and should have been quick and easy to write. Yet no matter how many times I tried, I just couldn't stay on task. Finally, this past Monday, I decided to throw in every distraction I could find. That's right, folks! I broke all the rules. The TV was on (but to a low volume). My phone sat on the arm of the chair. I even had my cats laying at my feet.

After fighting with myself for so long, attempting to avoid the distractions, I discovered that I was causing more distraction by removing the elements that could supposedly lead to it. I got more writing done in two days than I had in two months, just by adding in the 'dangerous' components listed above.

What I've been trying to say this whole time is that IT'S DONE! Yes, I finished Part One of The Mind Entangled and it came out pretty good and even longer than I expected it to be. Of course, it still needs to go through a final round of editing, but I'm very happy with the results.

My intention is to have it up and available to the public for download on May 20th. Watch my blog, my tweets, my fan page, etc... for more updates.


The Mind Entangled

After living what seemed to be a perfect life with the perfect man, Adrianna makes a life shattering discovery. When his supposedly dead family shows up, disturbing truths come to light. Everything about her life was a lie, especially her husband. Through powers unknown to her, Torstein controlled every move she made, every thought she had.

With her life falling to pieces around her, could only focus on one thought. Not who her husband was, but what?

Work in Progress

As my readers know, I'm supposed to be working on the sequel to The Blood Moon of Winter. I did start it and and get a decent chunk of it done too. But today, I got sidetracked...

I opened it up to start writing and my fingers changed course. All of a sudden, I was writing a completely different story, one that had nothing to do with Lilyana or Makayra. After filling 2 pages, I have decided to keep with it for a bit and see where it goes.

As always, I write by the seat of my pants. I have no idea what it is about, who the characters are, or even what genre it is. So far it is a pretty good beginning though! I don't know how long it will be. It could be a short story or it might turn into a full length novel. I won't know until further into it. I have to go with my gut on this one though.

I hope that my readers don't get too disappointed. They might like this piece just as much as the last!

AND... Don't worry readers. I absolutely promise that I will get back to Beyond the Known Horizon very shortly. I've officially dedicated time each day to work on it.

Jump by Jen Wylie

Jump by Jen Wylie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Purchase Jump here.

I love how this short opens and closes on the same note. I remember my mother always using the same line, "Would you jump off a bridge..."

This is a fun tale, referencing all the cliches that are typical in your standard horror or fantasy story. It gave me a chuckle, as I made my way through it.

Simply put, reading this short story made for a great way to pass my time and I'm glad that I did.