2017 Release Round-Up

Just in case you missed anything--

In February, DAUGHTER OF A THOUSAND YEARS hit shelves, which is a book that broke me to write and continues to break me in new and different ways in release. It's also about Eric the Red's daughter Freydis, and the rise of Christianity around the year 1000 AD and the marginalization of pagan beliefs, reflected both in the past and present, because it has a contemporary timeline too! Woooooooo Dual Timeline Historical Fiction. Anyway. Grab it if you haven't!! There's some connective tissue there that will particularly appeal to fans of my Fate of the Gods books! And it is a book about Heathens by a Heathen, if that sort of thing speaks to you, too.

In July, I finally and at last released FACETS OF FATE, a collection of my Fate of the Gods novellas and short stories, which included TEMPTING FATE (Mia's story), TAMING FATE (Eve and Ryam DeLeon's story--particularly appropriate to the holiday season!) and the all new FINDING FATE (Marcus's story, and also a sort of epilogue to the Fate of the Gods trilogy), as well as Bride Price (about Adam and the DeLeon boys), Mortal Flesh, and a bonus Athena "chapter" that takes place during the events of Forged by Fate.  This was kind of a passion project of mine. I'd wanted to do a paperback collection like this for a very long time, because Tempting Fate was e-only and so many friends and family members wanted everything in print. So now it is! Go forth and complete your novella collection!

In October, we published A SEA OF SORROW: A NOVEL OF ODYSSEUS, the latest H-Team collaborative novel. I'm one of six awesome authors retelling the Odyssey from the perspective of the monsters, witches, and women Odysseus leaves behind. If you enjoyed the H-Team's SONG OF WAR, A YEAR OF RAVENS, and A DAY OF FIRE, you'll definitely want to get your hands on A SEA OF SORROW as well!

In addition to all of that, I also recovered my Fate of the Gods trilogy--all new cover art, and as an incentive to all of you who already have FORGED BY FATE, FATE FORGOTTEN, and BEYOND FATE in print, some bonus scenes in the back of each of those books. You'll probably be MOST interested in the additional three chapters of Eve's life in the ward in the back of FATE FORGOTTEN, but don't miss Thor showing off his power in the back of FORGED BY FATE or the left on the cutting room floor scene between Thor and Eve at the end of BEYOND FATE. The scenes in Fate Forgotten and Beyond Fate are exclusive to the print editions and won't be available anywhere else, so hopefully you'll enjoy it! Really, there's never been a better time to introduce your friends to Fate of the Gods!

Finally, that Orc Saga short story I promised you all is in process--not QUITE finished yet, because it has been a YEAR, but look for it in January-ish. And then it'll be Orc 3 time for Author me! It's the only project currently on my docket for 2018, and now that I have relearned to love writing again, I'm hoping it will all go smoothly!

Fingers crossed and the happiest of holidays to all of you! May your last week of 2017 be bright, and 2018 bring you forward momentum and blessings!

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FACETS OF FATE Cover Art!

If you're a newsletter subscriber you got to see this already, but for those of you who haven't subscribed yet (*eyebrow waggle*) -- how about some cover art?!

Cover art designed by Eileen Wiedbrauk -- who has done ALL my Fate of the Gods covers from day one!

A few more details to share on FACETS OF FATE:

1) This book will release FIRST in paperback. Not because I want to trick anyone (the ebook release will follow shortly thereafter) but the timetable on MY end is tight with another project that I have to finish first, and I want my formatter to have the time she needs to get the ebook properly pretty, so no one gets something that looks like gobbledegook. Also my personal impetus for releasing this collection is so readers can finally have TEMPTING FATE in print -- something I've been asked about repeatedly since Mia's novella released, so that's what I've been most focused on achieving first thing!

2) If you skipped the Secondary Character series because spoilers -- the *all new* story, titled FINDING FATE will focus on Marcus! For some of you, I know, he is NOT your favorite but I think he deserves a shot at redemption! (Also he really grew on me in draft two and I kind of love the guy!) So if you haven't read BEYOND FATE yet -- you'll want to do it now, to prep before you read Marcus's epilogue!

3) FACETS OF FATE is coming to you in JULY!

4) The other stories included in the Facets of Fate collection:

• Tempting Fate (Mia and Adam's story)
• Bride Price (Previously available only online at Birdville Magazine, and newly revised -- for its BM publication, I removed some of the more specifically Fate of the Gods elements, and I've always wanted to put them back in for you.)
• Taming Fate (The story of Eve and the oft-referenced Marquis DeLeon)
• Mortal Flesh and Homecoming (Two very short flash pieces, previously available only online on the blog.)

5) Also if you're wondering, in my head, that figure on the horse trying to outrace the storm that may or may not be representative of Thor's presence is definitely Ryam DeLeon. Which is 50% of the reason I *love* this cover for the collection, so much of which relates to the House of Lions, and also just the way in which Eve's mortal friends and family get so unwittingly entangled in the affairs of the gods, whether they want to be or not. (I'd argue that this applies to Adam, too, if not quite so exactly.)

Also, those of you in the PORTLAND, OREGON part of the country -- I'll be coming your way for the Historical Novel Society Conference, and on June 24th from 3:45 pm – 5:15 pm  there will be a book signing, FREE and OPEN to the public. I'll be attending as Amalia Carosella, but I'll be happy to sign anything Amalia Dillin that you happen to bring along, should you choose to visit! And I hope you will!

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Amazon | Barnes&Noble 

Amazon | Barnes&Noble

Appearances and Fate of the Gods News

Firstly: ALBACON!
I have a schedule -- and I look forward to seeing some of you there!

Friday:

• I'll be taking part in a panel on Ways to Publish on 1pm during the Writer's Workshop and available to offer critiques at 4pm. (I'm also planning to attend the lunch on Friday, so you can catch me then, too!)

Saturday:

• I'm signing at 4pm! Come see me! There will be Butts!
• I'll have a full selection of Amalia Carosella AND Amalia Dillin books for sale through Flights of Fantasy Books and Games at the con, so if you don't have paperbacks yet, you can grab them there!

Sunday: 

• 11am panel on Mythology in Science Fiction and Fantasy!

Second Best: Another Opportunity to Say Hello!
And if you won't be making it to ALBACON this year, I'll also be taking part in Local Author Day at Barnes and Noble in Colonie Center on Saturday, April 2, 2015 as Amalia Carosella. I'll be thrilled to sign anything you have by Amalia Dillin as well, but only Helen of Sparta will be available for sale at B&N.

If you already have a signed copy of HELEN, consider stopping in to pre-order BY HELEN'S HAND, coming May 10th! I'm hoping to have some bookmarks for BHH on hand, as well as bookmarks and magnets for HELEN and my Amalia Dillin books.


Lastly: Fate of the Gods
You might have noticed that my Fate of the Gods books are currently unavailable from your favorite vendor of choice -- but don't worry, they'll be back VERY shortly. Paperbacks will continue to be available via all the usual channels, but ebooks will be kindle only for the time being (though I hope not forever). I apologize for any inconvenience this might cause. Please hang in there while I get things sorted on my end during this hopefully brief time of transition!

And now I am back to the writing cave -- fingers crossed this manuscript doesn't actually kill me before I'm done. See you at Albacon or Local Author's Day!

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Talking about Eve in the Fate of the Gods trilogy and Beyond!

In honor of BEYOND FATE's forthcoming release on September 16th, I thought I'd point you all to my previous posts on Eve, just in case you missed them somewhere along the way, and to set the mood for the EPIC CONCLUSION to her story.

More on Eve! Inspired by BBC4's Beyond Belief 

You remember when BBC4 gave me five minutes to talk about Eve in my books? Well, I probably could have talked for an hour, but here are some of the things I discussed that didn't make the cut into the program -- points which I think are very important, in regard to how we interpret and reinterpret Eve and the Creation story itself.  Just a teaser here:

"Eve as sinner/temptress, is so often used as a convenient scapegoat for, if not outright architect of, all the woes of man, which itself is problematic (not unique, mind you, as Helen of Troy is another example of a woman put into this same position, we just haven't based the entirety of western culture upon her "mistakes"), but it becomes a very troublesome interpretation when it is compounded with a more literal and conservative approach to Biblical Myth, which places Eve as the archetype of all women, painting us all with the same brush and giving us all the same perceived "weaknesses" as a result."

My most favorite Eve -- maybe because it looks
like Adam is the one doing the seducing!
by Peter Paul Rubens
via an older upload from wikicommons

Images of Eve (and why I loved Rodin's)

Oh, Eve. So often the seductress in her imagery! But we don't give much thought to her pain or her suffering -- to her loss, even her sacrifice. But Rodin did. And his sculpture is both heartbreaking and beautiful in its perfection. I'm really glad I had the opportunity to see it for myself, and share those images with you all, on the blog!

Guest post on Vicky Alvear Shecter's blog
Vicky asked me to really dig in to why I chose to reinterpret Eve's character and particularly the Creation story in Forged by Fate, and I was happy to oblige her with a guest post on the topic, but here's a taste to lure you, if that isn't reason enough:

"So what if Eve had agency? What if she understood what she was doing, and all the ramifications, all the consequences? And what if, even knowing all that, eating the Fruit was still necessary? What if what was happening around her compelled her to consider that option and make that choice, eyes wide open and heartsick?"

Fate of the Gods: Regarding Eve
A little bit more about why I wanted to retell Eve's story -- it all goes back to a pamphlet I photocopied on a long ago day. Eve has an understated strength, I think, more often defined by the choices she chooses not to make than the actions she takes. But restraint is worth its weight in gold, imho! 
And last but not least:
The (Norse) Genesis Story, Part II: Man

In which I compare and contrast the Norse genesis of the first man and the first woman to the Biblical account -- it's interesting that both traditions kind of tell the story twice. Complete with quotes from the source material! For your reference and information (and mine!)

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Publishing is Hard (I)

One thing I've noticed since I started this journey of writing with the intent to publish is that the whole entire experience is kind of designed to drive authors and writers crazy. The journey to publication is like a crucible, burning out the impurities -- those authors who shouldn't be making the trip, and ANY idea or sense of entitlement in an author. There is truth in the expression "If you can quit writing, you should." Save yourself the heartache. Seriously.

For myself, something I've noticed, is that before something good can come of it, I must be beaten and broken into the dirt. I must be seriously reassessing my life choices to seek publication at all. I must be giving up on writing entirely in a serious, bone-weary way. I must be wallowing in my despair of ever finding any (further, more,) success. And not only because I've been on submission for an eon, or because I was in the query trenches for an even longer age, but because everything in my life around me is blowing up, too. Financial woes. Personal woes. Business woes. Family woes.

But ultimately, it is always darkest before the dawn. Because once I reach the bottom of that pit of despair where I am verging on surety that I have made a terrible decision and it is time to just give up on chasing this dream, because it is just never going to happen, and it is not fair to the people around me that I keep investing so much into it at their expense, that is when I get an email or a phone call that changes everything.

The first time this happened, it was after my Grandfather had suffered his first stroke, and things were looking pretty grim. The house was a revolving door for guests -- family members coming and going to help my grandfather with his recovery -- and it was very likely, as unsuited as I was to the whole of it, that I, too, would be burdened with some portion of his care. My life was rapidly spiraling out of my control, and I felt very much as if I was being crushed under the weight of family obligation and expectation, with a heaping side of crippling guilt.

I remember one night, I had sunk to the cool, blue linoleum of the kitchen floor in front of the refrigerator, and I looked up at my cousin standing by the door and said: "I can't do this. I think I'm going to quit writing. I have to." Without hesitation or consideration, she said immediately: "No, you're not."

Within days, World Weaver Press contacted me about my Fate of the Gods books. And I flew through the house, sprinting to the guest room/living room/office where my aunt from California was staying, and that same cousin was ensconced, ready and waiting for me to "just check my email quick" before we started watching the summer Olympics, and the news burst out of me in a rush. I had an offer of publication. Someone wanted my books. Someone believed in my books. Someone believed in me. It was a lifeline. A sign, so close on the heels of my late night confession of doubt and despair.

I wasn't quitting writing after all.

At least not yet.

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