New Year, New News!

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**

It is the first Friday of 2023! Can you believe it? I surely can't. 2022 came in hot and fast, and the overall consensus was that this year needs to come in nice and quiet-like.

Well, I started 2023 with my first bout of COVID, so the year is super disrespectful already. I've been in bed since Tuesday, when I woke up ready to go to a scheduled doctor's appointment and realized something wasn't quite right. The past few days have taken me through rotating symptoms, and I'm grateful they all didn't hit at the same time. My doctor prescribed me treatment, so I started it last night. It gave me grapefruit mouth, but so far, so good.

On that note, some things I've gotten done the past few days:

• I rewatched The Witcher and The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf. I am in the middle of rewatching the first 3 episodes of The Witcher: Blood Origin, which I watched with my sister last Saturday and had planned on finishing with her before I ended up in quarantine. I also watched all the bestiaries, and the narrator is so goofy.
• I finished the audiobook version of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, which I read NINE YEARS AGO. I had to search both this blog and my old blog to remember that I was still over on my old blog when I read it. I even forgot how I found the book in the first place. It was in an article about Black fantasy authors! Here is the post, if you want to peek at it. That was back when I used Random.org to pick a page from the book, and seeing the line that I chose, it's funny because I just heard the line a little over 24 hours ago.
• I spent about 7 hours playing Apex Legends, and I don't know if it was being in bed or having to focus more because of the coughing and nose-blowing, but I played really well. Even won a couple of games. Yay!

Realizing I was at the end of the week, I knew I had to get a post up for today, especially because my book contract has now officially ended! That means I am free to self-publish again! This past year, I've spent most of my writing time revising Divided Princess, but I also had help from my friend, the author MultiMind (highlighted on my blog here), preparing Fractured Princess for its re-release, so I made some updates to it as well. I plan to have more information in the next few weeks, but I will be back at my local Comic-Con with a new edition of the book, hopefully in paperback and hardcover and featuring a newly designed version of the original cover by Racheal Scotland! I'm really excited about it.

So this far, that's the best thing to come of 2023, helping to balance out the bad, and it's only the beginning!

April Writing Update

 

Good news! I've been writing!

Certainly not like Kermit in that one meme, but I have been getting a few hundred words down on "paper," and that's better than I've done in a long time. It's the motivation of the light at the end of this current tunnel. I have a goal again, so I'm ready to get to work.

I've also been tweaking a few things in Fractured Princess for the next release. More will come on that later. Explanations will be involved, as well as one or two Instagram videos to accompany, maybe even a Live.

Oh! I also learned the other day that the poetry site I once posted two of my poems on has revamped, and now the archive of poems is gone. So, I plan to dive back into poetry and publish a slam book. The question there is, should I use a different pen name for poetry and pending romance stories? I don't know if I have the bandwidth to think of a THIRD pen name (as Debra Renée Byrd is my second). *sigh* I'll get back to you all on that.

Even more good news: I have this month's posts all written and scheduled out! So that means, if nothing else, I've been writing blogs again! I'm so glad I moved the posts to Fridays.

Black Author Spotlight: MultiMind

 

Welcome to the Black Author Spotlight!

The goal of this segment is to highlight black authors who are often marginalized and ignored in the publishing industry. Black writers usually turn to self-publishing--an already densely populated industry--to have their stories seen, and it is said that we have to work twice as hard to get half of what our white counterparts have. Hopefully, shining a little light on these authors will help to signal boost the work they are putting out there.

This month, I am highlighting MultiMind!

From her website: MultiMind resides in her hometown, Baltimore City, Maryland. She tries to find time for her countless hobbies, from 3D printing to bookbinding to virtual reality. And her vociferous cat. She writes books that are fairly Black, quite queer, and very much embedded in the world of Sci-Fi, Fantasy & Horror. She also pens the blog Black Witch, about being Black and Pagan.

Her book Dreamer debuts on March 18th and is available for pre-order now!

Vera has unusual dreams - anything she dreams comes alive. Dream Traveling, her family calls it. Doing it all her life, Dream Traveling doesn't affect Vera as much as it used to. She has her rules and her methods - as long as she follows them, all is fine.

Until she sees something she discovered she couldn't handle. Now, her dreams are plagued by The Hunter, a deadly character that wants nothing more than to haunt her mind and leave behind a bloody spree. Vera must find a way to get The Hunter out of her head before he makes sure she never wakes up again.

So much for "sweet dreams".

I started reading this one recently, and it's descriptive and imaginative, and this cover is ethereally creepy. Vera and the characters around her are fleshed out well. I've stumbled on the first creepy moment in the story, and I can't wait to see what happens next!

Pre-order Dreamer on multiple platforms, and buy MultiMind's other works through her website.

You can also visit and follow MultiMind on Twitter and Goodreads.

UPDATE: You can now follow MultiMind on Instagram!

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If you are a Black author who would like to be in the spotlight, email me the following information at debreneebyrd@gmail.com

Name or Pen Name

Genre

Website/Blog

Social Media handles

Book (if any) and where to buy

Permission to use photos

May Review - Road to Re-Release

 

© Creative Commons Zero (CC0)

It is the LAST Wednesday of May, and I can't believe it. We are almost halfway through 2021. I hope everyone is doing well, has been healthy, and has been able to get a good start on some goals!

Things are really starting to move for me. I meet with my publisher next Tuesday to discuss release dates. If anyone has any resources for reading book questions, I need to bring some to that meeting, and I don't know the first thing about it! I mean, I've obviously been reading books since I was 5, so I can come up with some. Just the thought that there would be a reading group discussing Fractured Princess blows my mind. I also have to choose my preferred audiobook narrative, and I definitely have imagined having an audiobook for FP, but wow!

I hope the people who already bought it are willing to buy the first half of the new version when it's re-released. That's a big worry of mine. I also made some pretty significant changes to it, so maybe that will reel them in.

I also need to prepare for more face-time and promotion up to and through publication. I have no idea what that will look like and what kind of time it will consume, but hopefully it will be smooth, especially because I have a full-time job. I don't expect to become a millionaire book 1, so yeah, I have to keep working while I'm . . . working.

So anyway, here's to what I expect to be an exciting Summer!

IWSG: The Dinner Party Question Revamped

 HAPPY SEPTEMBER!

It's already about to be Fall, my favorite season, but it is also the first Wednesday of the month, which means it's time for another installment of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! As always, a big thank you to Alex J. Cavanaugh for all of the work he does. Visit his website to view the co-hosts for this month. You can also join us by visiting the IWSG website.

This month's optional question is: If you could choose one author, living or dead, to be your beta partner, who would it be and why?

Just one?? Eesh. Because she is still alive, and I have a small chance of meeting her one day, I won't say my favorite living author, N.K. Jemisin. I would be terrified to let her see a beta version of my work, even though I'm sure she would be really nice about it.

My official answer is my favorite author who is not living, and that is Octavia Butler. Her writing changed my life and my outlook on being a speculative fiction writer so much. She even had a similar experience with her mom about not writing "normal" fiction. I would love to pick her brain about my writing style and choices.

Though I'd still be terrified a little.

Let me hear your answers!

February Writing Update

This will be a short post. February is moving much more quickly that January, I believe. It's already the 3rd Wednesday of the month, which means I share a writing update. As of yesterday, I have successfully done the following:

• written 1326 words in Divided Princess
• written 460 words in my asexual romance WIP

Winning!

I'm glad the brain juices are flowing again, and hopefully once my treatments are done, I'll eventually get back to full gear. I'm halfway there, and I feel like this experience will turn up in a story, too. I would just like to be far away from it if it does.

One of the things I'm trying to work out for DP is the meat of the plot. I know what's happening and partially why, but I need to figure out the underlying why that brings it all together. I have A and Z. I just need the rest of the letters to fall in line.

Welp, that's all for this week! What are you working on?

Monthly Review: July 2019

© Creative Commons Zero (CC0)

All right, I have 77 e-mails to sift through, so let me hammer this out quickly!

So, first, the Ace/Aro Conference in New York was AMAZING. Just to see so many asexuals and/or aromantics in the same room was refreshing. We had small breakout groups for individualized spaces, such as POC, and to see that many black people and other people of color who are ace/aro was especially exciting. I hope they do it again next year.

Oh! I also met an ace/aro fantasy writer who had a panel, Ashia Monet. She actually lives in Philly, so I'm going to keep up with her work and hope to see her again! Her book is called The Black Veins, and here is a list of places where it is available.

I went on a stay-cation last Wednesday until today for my birthday. I had time off from work, but definitely not church. I didn't spend one full day home. At least I have a real vacation coming up in September; my sisters and I are going to Trinidad & Tobago!

So, I turned 35 on the 19th, and I went to the beach to eat and see The Lion King, which sent me right back to my childhood. I have very few complaints about the movie. The moment it ended I quietly yelled, "Yay!" It was great, and the additional jokes they threw in for Timon and Pumbaa were PERFECT. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. If you cried when Mufasa died the first time, you will again (I didn't either time, but maybe I'm dead inside).

Also on the 19th, at 11:51pm, Fractured Princess was released through Amazon! The ebook released on the 20th like it was supposed to. I was so nervous because I had to resize the title at nearly the last minute, and I thought the processing would be delayed. Thankfully, it was not! People I know are already buying the book, and I've purchased my Kickstarter backers' books as well as books for purchase at the RELEASE PARTY my older sister set up for me. It is this Saturday, and I am nervous. That's a lot of people putting their attention on me!

Before that, I will be speaking with Young Adults from my church about the process of getting this book published, and geez, what a process it was. I started writing it in 2004, put "the end" down on Draft 1 in 2010, and then the rest is rejection after rejection and revision after revision until I knew it was ready and took the helm to publish it myself. After I decided that, it only took 7 months to get it done! I'm so thrilled.

I have a quarterly goals post for next week, and then it will be AUGUST. Slow down, time!

Has your month gone well? Let me know!

IWSG: Fractured Princess Cover Reveal!

Happy July! It's my birthday month, and I have a lot to be excited for!

But first, please visit Alex J. Cavanaugh and the Insecure Writers Support Group website to join us and/or visit the co-hosts and other participants. It's a great space to share our insecurities as writers, as well as our successes!

Late Update: I forgot the question of the month! What personal traits have you written into your character(s)?

Some of my characters are a little emotional, indecisive, or say what's on their mind without filtering it. I try to break those traits up so you don't have one big mess of a character, but you can definitely find those traits of mine in my stories. And any time I get to mention my character is left-handed, I do! South Paws unite!

All right, and now, I have a cover reveal to share with you all! Since I started the journey to self-publish my YA fantasy, things have fallen into place at a great pace. I was only a little delayed with the cover, as you may remember (my cover artist went into labor!), and after not even waiting that long after that, I was able to share the cover with my backers yesterday.

So now, I want to share it with you guys! Fractured Princess will be available through Amazon on July 20th. Here is the blurb:

Jonnie is the last princess of the Crystal Bearers, once a powerful people. When she was a baby, the metal army destroyed what was left of them, and now it is hunting her. Her watchmen keep her just out of the metal army’s reach, but she has spent her seventeen years running and hiding. Instead of standing by while her watchmen keep risking their lives for her, she decides to learn how to fight alongside them.

On the journey to hone her skills, long hidden secrets about her people reveal a connection between the Crystal Bearers and the metal army that only fuels Jonnie's will to defeat it. But the more she learns about her own powers, the more she realizes she may be responsible for the metal army – and the destruction of her people.

And now, here we go! . . . 

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Also, enjoy your 4th of July!

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It's so pretty! I keep looking at it. If you've followed my character Q&A's and remember my sketch of Jonnie, that's her face. Racheal is a master. I love it. Please follow her on Instagram at rsarts if you love her work and ever want to commission her.

All righty, I will be going around to visit other blogs, so I hope to see you soon!

Wednesday Words: My New Project!

It's after 10 am, which I guess is normally the time I remember I forgot to post, so good morning! I set aside the 2nd Wednesday of each month to share what I am writing and/or reading. Today, I am going to share a piece of the YA/NA project I've begun working on (that magical princesses one I keep ranting about). It has a few kinks in it (I've almost successfully forced myself not to go back and touch anything yet because of NaNoWriMo. I was just trying to get words onto pages), but it's still exciting that I'm moving onto new work again. The tentative title is The Queen's Daughters, and here is a snippet from the chapter "The Festival."

Also, just for some context, my MC Ash and her sisters have been paraded back to their father's castle with their dead mother to a celebration of their "return home." Ash's power (she can conceal herself, her thoughts, and/or her feelings so no one else can see or detect her/them) isn't noticeable in this scene, but her sister Naiyalah's comes into play: she can both take in thoughts and emotions and project her own onto others.

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“My darling girls,” our father says softly. He looks at each of us in turn, and his eyes mist over before he blinks them dry. “I am glad you have returned to me.”

Words lodge in my throat, as they should. Instead of what I want to say, I follow my sisters and kneel, head bowed, hands folded demurely in my lap. He comes to Zuraiyah first, lifts her chin and guides her to her feet.

“My beauty,” he says and kisses her left cheek. “Welcome.” Then her right. “Welcome.”

“Thank you, Auba,” she says in a small voice.

We didn’t have to speak small with our mother.

He moves to Naiyalah next. She is “his purpose.” A kiss on her cheeks, a welcome for each as well.

I close my eyes for the briefest of moments before his touch to my chin. I open my eyes and stand. Of the five of us, I have his face. He always smiles proudly at that. I did too, once. I am his favorite. There has never been any denial of that.

“Ashula,” he says even more softly. “My love.”

Another pulse of calm from Naiyalah when I just want to explode and burn the whole world and curl up and cry.

“Auba,” I manage to say.

He cups my face and kisses my forehead. “Welcome home.”

“Thank you.”

He pulls both Babri and Katri up and wraps his arms around them, kissing Babri’s head, then Katri’s. “Welcome home, my sweet girls.”

They were six years old when we first returned. They had both cried and whined and held onto our mother as the royal guards came for us. Never having met our father, they couldn’t understand why our mother was sending us all away. Now, after seven years of visits, his pampering, and none of the memories of before, they aren’t quite old enough to hate this man the way the rest of us do.

Or at least the way I do.

I close my eyes again, take a deep breath. I must. We still have hours to go in this long, awful night.

“The Heavens have blessed us with my daughters’ return,” he calls to the crowd behind us. “Let us praise them and welcome peace back to our land.”

We turn towards the masses as they take up their cheering and singing once again, as the drums bounce off of the walls and more wine is poured before the festivities resume. We have done our part to mingle, and so we may return to our platform. Our father has already moved onto his, just above us. As we climb the stairs, we each must meet his eyes and bow our head. He smiles and does the same. Fortunately, we do not have to smile this time, although I’m certain we’re supposed to be at our height of revelry by this time. I can no longer muster the strength for it anyhow. I simply nod and return to my throne.

Once we are all seated, the steward returns, after once again tasting his wine before the guards, to refill our chalices. He bows and pours. He clears his throat as he stands straight and moves on to me. Beads of sweat form on his brow as he pours my wine. When he straightens his back again, his body stiffens. With one wispy gasp, he collapses dead at my feet.

Wednesday Words: What I Write

I forgot I created a logo for this day.

Happy Hump Day! Can you believe next week is THANKSGIVING? This year has flown by with a vengeance.

On another note, this blog is late because I woke up late and got to work 45 minutes behind schedule. Oy.

Anyway, while I said I would set aside 2-5th Wednesdays for what I'm reading, I thought I would use this post to share what I write for those who don't know.

I have been a speculative fiction writer for most of my writing life. Unlike many writers, I wasn't initially influenced by books I read, but by X-Men: The Animated Series and later (if you don't yet know) the Final Fantasy game franchise. It wasn't until my teen years that I started writing based on what I was reading, but I've also written fan fictions and poems based on music videos, songs, and another TV show from New Zealand called The Tribe (post-apocalyptic, parents are dead, kids rule the world. You can imagine).

While I dabble with contemporary pieces every now and then, I always return to speculative fiction: fantasy, sci-fi, horror. Those are my first loves. I have yet to finish a sci-fi (well, no actually, just one, but I lost it to an old computer) and haven't written horror in a long time, but I infused a little of it in my current work-in-progress. As a writer, I've always leaned more towards the dark side of fiction and am not at all turned off by disturbia. There is death in my stories, and there is almost always blood, but I would like to think there is also heart and light through it all. I never want to drag a reader down into the pits without pulling them back out into the sun.

So one day, when I'm finally published, I hope to have gained at least a few fans through this blog, and I thank you who have already followed this new incarnation.

More about my current WIP can be found up in my tabs under "Fractured Princess," and my last two Tuesday Tales directly link to the story.

Writers, what do you like to write? Readers, what do you like to read?