Farewell 2011! Greetings 2012!

Posted on January 2, 2012 by Melanie

Welcome to the new year! 2011 is gone, along with a lot of changes.

Over the past year, I released several books, updated a few, and continued writing. This past year saw not one but two Starfire Angels books (Crystal Tomb and Origins of Dark Angel), plus two others.

Coming in 2012, I have a fifth book of the Starfire Angels series to release in the summer. I’ll know a better release time as it draws closer. For now, I can only say summer, but it looks like I’ll have a first draft done in early February, possibly even by the end of January. Forever Dark will be numbered as Book 4, but it will NOT be the last in the series. It will cap off a good subseries focusing on Raea and Elis. What comes next is other characters–Keepers, Shirukan, humans, etc.

Also this year, I plan to write a new teen paranormal romance trilogy. I will provide titles when I get closer to releasing the first book and have a cover. For now, the working project title is simply Devil Child, and the story is influenced by my Tiger Born (Demon Age) ebook but in a modern Earth setting. In fact, I’m considering using my hometown, because New Salem has such a wickedly charming sound to it. I also have an outline for another SF/paranormal crossover standalone, possibly a novella, which might end up being part of a series of complete retellings of old fairy tales with twists so you almost wouldn’t recognize them.

I don’t know now if I’ll be revamping White Dragon Prophecy. I have the rights back from the publisher, but it will take a LOT of work to make that read as I would want it. I’ve been out of that world for a while now and the introduction in Legend of the White Dragon: Legends summarizes what WDP is. I don’t know if it’s worth my time when what I really want to do is write new stories. Please forgive me if this was something you wanted me to do. Besides, I also want to write another Demon Age novel, continuing the story of the revolution arising on the world of Derandria.

I have so much to think about, but I don’t write quickly. I find that by taking my time and letting ideas simmer in my mind, I write the stories much better in the first draft than if I rush things. This is why I can’t write more than 2-3 full novels a year.

Thank you for making 2011 such a fabulous year for me! I never expected to do so well. I don’t know what 2012 will bring, but I am grateful for what we’ve been able to share so far.

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Ereader Winner!

Posted on December 26, 2011 by Melanie

Congratulations to Andria C., the winner of my Nook or Kindle giveaway! She will be receiving a Kindle (her choice) and took up the option of having me sign the back. Thank you to everyone who entered and/or expressed your support!

I also want to point out that on New Years I’m giving away a set of four signed paperbacks of the Starfire Angels series–Starfire Angels, Broken Wings, Crystal Tomb, and Origins of Dark Angel. The giveaway listing is on Goodreads. Click here to enter the drawing (but you’ll need to sign up for a Goodreads account, if you don’t have one). Only six days remain! That’s right, I’m giving away the book set to celebrate the new year. Start it out right with a set of all the books available in the series to date.

Thank you for all your support! May the next year be better than the last for everyone!

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Only 2 days left!!

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Melanie

That is, two days left to enter for a chance to win an ereader of your choice (under $100) from me. You can’t say you didn’t know (unless you just started following me) since I’ve had it posted on my website for something like seven months.

In appreciation of all my wonderful readers, I’ll be drawing one name from all the entries I receive until Christmas for their choice of a Kindle or Nook. It’s easy. Just send me an email with the subject SA GIVEAWAY (because my bestselling series, Starfire Angels, has made this possible.) Send it to me at the email address linked here, melanie_nilles at yahoo dot com.

Hurry! Only two days remain to get in the drawing.

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goody bag

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Melanie

Just a quick update today.

First, for those eager for news about the next Starfire Angels book, Forever Dark has passed 44,000 words, which is about 2/3 the length of the first book but only somewhere around the middle of this book. I have a lot to resolve yet. If you follow me on Facebook, you’ll get hints of what this one will bring.

Next up, I have some links for those looking for a good deal. Have you heard of Pixel of Ink or Cheap e-reads, or any of a number of blogs listing cheap books? There’s another to add to the mix, Bargain Books for Your Nook. Yes, this one focuses specifically on Nook users. I’m glad to be a part of it, although I don’t do much with it except promote it. I’m a Nook user and proud of it, like the ladies who sparked this idea and started the site. If you’re a Nook user too, check out some of the deals posted every day.

Also, I’d like to congratulate the ten winners of the signed paperbacks of Origins of Dark Angel. All the books shipped out yesterday and probably won’t arrive until after Christmas, given the slowdown of the U.S. Post Office this time of year.

I have another contest going on Goodreads for a set of four signed paperbacks of the Starfire Angels books available to date–Starfire Angels, Broken Wings, Crystal Tomb, and Origins of Dark Angel. You can enter by following this link– http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/18152-starfire-angels.

And just to make you laugh, there’s this little video I found:

http://youtu.be/5WJmxi3vYRU

Sorry, I can’t embed media for some reason. Btw, do NOT be drinking or eating, or you’ll likely spew it on your monitor when you laugh so hard!

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Starfire Angels…At least 5 books!

Posted on December 9, 2011 by Melanie

A lot of readers are only buying the first three (Starfire Angels, Broken Wings, and Crystal Tomb), but do you know there’s a fourth book already available with a fifth coming in summer 2012?

That’s right! You can now enjoy Elis’s story in Origins of Dark Angel. It’s available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Apple already. Better yet, it also has a paperback available.

Look for this cover:

Coming next year (summer 2012) is Forever Dark, which will be numbered as Book 4 but is really the fifth book in the Dark Angel Chronicles.

This will NOT be the last Starfire Angels book. I have more planned! Don’t give up. Keep watching my website (www.melanienilles.com) and this blog for updates.

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Equine Beau-ty

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Melanie

These are some pics of my horse Beau that were taken a couple months ago. The first is gorgeous, but it’s a dangerous habit when he’s excitable that I’m working to eliminate through training him to move forward instead of up. Luckily, he only does this on the longeline. Still, it’s so gorgeous that I’m ordering a large print of it :)

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guilty as charged

Posted on December 1, 2011 by Melanie

Okay, I admit it—I sometimes read reviews of my books. Ssh! Don’t tell anyone. If my friend found out, she’d slap me, because I keep saying I’m going to quit and told her to slap me if I ever do it again.

Often, it’s the support of readers that I need to keep me going when I have self-doubts. The 1-2 stars or “This sucks!” ratings/comments can tear me down faster than I can regain my confidence, so I generally try to avoid seeing them with the reminder to myself that reviews are for readers, not authors. Sometimes, I gain insights, feedback that helps guide my writing in future stories. That is invaluable.What I like are the insightful reviews that show the good and negative qualities of my storytelling. Grammar seems to be subjective, depending on which decade you took English. Oxford comma or no Oxford comma…anyone? British spellings or American spellings? Need I say more?

But what tells me if I did something right is the reaction the reader had to a story. Did the story and characters affect them strongly? That’s when I know I’m on the right track. It’s not about just having people go through motions or describing a setting. It’s about evoking emotions in readers.

One of my stories that does that, which is lesser known (probably because I don’t do much promotion), is my fantasy novella A TURN OF CURSES. This story seems to get equal numbers at all ratings levels so it tends to average around 3 out of 5 stars. Why? Because it has a bittersweet ending. When I read reviews of A Turn of Curses that say it was a sad ending, I know I did something right, even if they gave it a low rating (usually because of the ending). I moved them to feel for the characters, and that’s the ultimate achievement. (Feedback from beta readers on TIGER BORN said the same thing.)

I always write first for myself. A story has to move me. When that happens, it’s easier to make others feel as I do. That’s when the magic happens.

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What’s going on?

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Melanie

Life has settled down for me with books, but it is the holiday season, so…

1. Cats are into the Christmas tree. Mischievous furballs, Dargo and Harlee, are taking turns pulling down garland. Dargo also loves to sit in his cat tree in the window and pull off the window decorations.

2. Winter is finally arriving in the northern plains. We’ve had light snow fall that melted within a day, but we have yet to get anything that stays. I’m not complaining, but for the sake of allergies in my household, we could use something to keep the dust down.

3. I’m busy writing. All that I have written and want to publish is available. I don’t have anything waiting on the sidelines. It kind of sucks but at the same time is quite liberating.

4. Forever Dark is the current WIP. I did some editing on it while I was editing Origins of Dark Angel (now available!) and took out about 5-6,000 words. In the last week, I’ve added just as many as I took out, except the story is better focused on what it ultimately decided it should be. I also have a new POV character in this one and bring back characters from previous stories, especially Origins of Dark Angel. You’ll want to read that one in the Starfire Angels series before Forever Dark. With all luck, I’ll have a first draft done by the end of February. The story won’t be out until summer 2012, however, to allow time for editing.

5. I’m slowing things down for now. I’m all caught up in writing, so I’m going to slow down to releasing 2-3 books a year. I still have plenty of ideas to keep me busy, but I want to be able to focus on each book and give it my best, as I’ve been doing. So far, I’ve
mostly been editing and getting stuff out that I had written in earlier years.

6. And #5 leads me to say something about Legend of the White Dragon…I may have released it after Starfire Angels, but it was written several years before that series.The first ebook, Legends, is free at major retail sites now.

7. My horse, because I can’t leave off an update without saying something about him. Beau is happy in his new home and is fully recovered from his mild suspensory ligament injury. He’s rebuilding muscle and actually gets a little lazy sometimes. The big thing is that he’s recovered and getting back into work. That’s great for me, because I see forward progress in our dressage training instead of going backwards or plateauing.

That’s it for now :)

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Guest Author Allison Bruning

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Melanie

Today, I welcome Anna, one of the characters of Calico which is book one of the Children of the Shawnee series by Allison Bruning:

December 24, 1755 – Ohio Wilderness

Snow falls all around my tiny cabin nestled deep within the French fort. I lay bound to my bed, large with child. My only companions are the wife of the French captain and her children. Today is Christmas Eve.  I watch the snow fall outside through my window.  I wonder if we were in France, where might I be? I can only imagine the grand Christmas ball thrown at Versailles. The music floating in the air as beautiful couples twirl in rhythm. The joyfulness of the season emulating throughout the palace, the midnight mass in the cathedral, family dinner with the House of Orleans, and presents. Oh, how life at the French court is drastically different from what I have here.

I lean back and close my eyes. Just as the birth of Jesus brought hope to the world, this Christmas I have been given hope by my French husband. What a wonderful, most blessed gift! I found love where no love should be. I was a British lady. What British lady falls in love with French nobility when there is a war going on? Oh and the love we share is magical! I giggle like a child everything I think of it. I am so happy! Never in my life have I ever been so elated. All my life, I hadn’t been a person to my father but a tool he could use to further his own objectives. He beat, molested and raped me all my life. He forced my brother and I to have incest. But that wasn’t the worse of it all. Last winter, my father held a rifle to my brothers head and forced him to beat me to death. My poor brother. He didn’t want to do it. But I pleaded to him to kill me. For I knew if he wouldn’t father would kill us both. Alexander had complied. Thank heavens he stopped beating and stabbing me when he did. I was so close to death. Afterwards Alexander gave my torn body to François then disappeared.  Oh, what a gift François is to me. He healed me back to health, gave me a child and a new life!

This Christmas I am grateful for the many blessings God had bestowed upon me.  I have a wonderful husband who adores me. I am large with child. Alexander and I have reunited. Our parents are dead and France protects me.

I hear the front door close and my husband’s voice in his office. François has returned! I rise from my bed and grab my robe. I have grown too large to wear any clothes other than my chemise. Alexander believes I carry more than one child. No meal can satisfy my ravishing appetite.   I place my robe around my large body, tied it in the front and open the door to my husband’s office.  Oh, what a sight he is to my eyes. He stirs my soul with just one glance. I stand at our door watching my husband converse with his younger brother.  The war had taken a break for Christmas Eve yet even now my husband and his brother plan their next attack. How strange it seems that the world can find peace on Christmas yet the very next day act as if nothing had transpired. I do not understand it. Have we learned nothing from Jesus’ birth? The hope of the world.

You can purchase the book at…

http://www.amazon.com/Calico-Allison-Bruning/dp/0979017254/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_1

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/calico-allison-bruning/1104972692

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just testing

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Melanie

I just wanted to post and test a banner I updated for advertising on another website, but if anyone else wants to display it and link to starfireangels.melanienilles.com, be my guest!

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