SINGLE VERSION
a novel by Scott T. Barsotti
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The large cockroach skittering, scuttling across my desk doesn’t faze anyone. Except me. No one else even looks at it, I just catch it out of the corner of my eye. People got used to this far too quickly. It wasn’t too long ago that a cockroach, any cockroach let alone one this big running across a desk, would have resulted in screams, shouts, and directives to KILL. Not anymore. Cypermethrin and . . .
Oh wow - we’re at just under two weeks left to the deadline, and 212 of 250 orders reached - so only 38 to go! You are all amazing and I am so excited, and I know we can get there - if you can order one or two more, or send it along to friends or family, please please do; we’re so close!
Also, as thanks, here is a piece of chapter four, as a preview:
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The final hazard was a dragon.
Oliver, flattened against a canyon wall, hissed, “Did you expect this?”
“No!” Tir peeked around rock again. “That’s new. Not in any of my books.”
“I thought they were extinct!”
“Not at all. They don’t come across the border, though. They live on magic. Oh—of course, this is your Seeing Pool, it’s entirely magic…I wonder if it drinks from the Pool itself, or—”
“You can practice comparative magical zoology later!” He risked one more glance. The Pool itself was visible beyond the not insignificant obstacle of dragon. It formed a natural spring, welling up into a bowl shaped of smoky transparent stone, carved over eons by the drip of Fairyland-sourced water. It shimmered under the slate-and-cloud sky at the end of the skinny rock-walled trail. It lay only a few steps distant, but: dragon.
Not a cuddly faithful tamable beast as in some children’s puppet shows. Not huge, about the size of a big cart-horse, but absolutely not small as a house-pet lizard. Ugly. Black-scaled, spiky, fanged. Ochre glow down near its belly. Built to be a predator and bring death. It lashed its tail like a vicious cat, waiting. It knew they’d come.
Tir gave him a mildly annoyed glare. “If anything I’d be a writer of magical romance, and it’s research—”
“I know that!”
“Give me your sword, then.”
Oliver passed it over, no questions asked. It was a good sword; no fancy name or lineage, just plain strong steel and solid craftsmanship.
Tir closed a hand around the blade, not the hilt. Oliver almost interrupted right then, but no blood appeared; he kept an eye on Tir’s fingers, though. He’d grown up with legends about magic and the cost thereof.
Tir murmured low words and stroked his hand along bare steel, a disarmingly intimate gesture. Oliver might’ve been imagining the way the sword thrilled to his caress, a ripple passing along the surface. Might’ve been.
He had a flash of astonished wondering: was this how Tir would touch someone he loved? With strength, with coaxing, with unhurried deliberate fingers and palm?
He swallowed. He tried not to think about whether magic always moved like this for Tir: a slow sweet seduction, a pulse-beat, a swell of desire.
Everyone knew the Crown Prince’s loyal companion was a fairy. Oliver had never seen his best friend as a fairy before.
Tir blinked, shook himself, came back from whatever dreamy precipice he’d been on. “Here.”
“Was it good for you,” Oliver tossed back, a joke in the face of strange uneasiness. Tir’s hand stroking his sword, Tirian beautiful and inhuman and wrapped in invisible sorcery. The teasing landed badly.
“I put myself into it,” Tir said. No perceptible reaction to his failed joke-attempt. Only sincerity and practical focus, which of course should be the case, in the face of a dragon. “My own magic. It should work.”
“You could use it. Um. If it’s…yours?”
“You’re better with a sword than I am, and it’s your Quest.” Tir shoved the sword into his hand and pulled both long knives instead. “I don’t know if it’ll work. I’ll be your distraction. Just try to cut its head off; there’s no such thing as a mythical vulnerable spot. Ready?”
“No,” Oliver said. “Are you okay? I mean…I don’t know. Are you?”
And Tir’s eyes got less guarded, more affectionate, more familiar. “I’m fine.”
They ran into battle—for the first time ever—together. The world transformed. Became a crazy collision of black scales and lunges and scorching fire. Oliver had indeed trained with a sword, but never against a horse-sized heap of fangs and claws and spiked tail; he ducked, dodged, felt the sharp sudden sting of a tail-barb scrape one leg. A flicker of blue flowed past him: Tir, he realized belatedly, turning rock-dust into sparkling motes of magic, calling a Fairyland-beast to him.
He stumbled on a rock; the dragon’s head swung his way and snarled. Fire bubbled up: not ready yet but building. Tir threw a knife instead of magic this time. It whirled back to face him.
1.) SnarkyDarkSy
I’m so humbled. A syndicate on Inkshares, SnarkyDarkSy just backed Kingdom of Dreams! What’s a syndicate, why is that a big deal? A syndicate is a collection of kind humans made up of readers and usually fellow writers that form a group based on their mutual tastes. They vote monthly on which Inkshares project they feel is worthy enough to be published, then pool their own hard earned money together as a collective to support its publication. There are literally hundreds of projects to choose from. To be chosen is an honor, to be chosen by my fellow like-minded and very talented writers-I’m speechless. All I can say is a gracious thank you. Please visit their page on Inkshares and see their selections here. See you soon Snarky’s!
2.) 21 Pre-Orders Needed for Guaranteed Publication!
With that syndicate selection and just over a dozen new orders, we now are 21 orders away from guaranteed publication! Thanks again to my new backers and double-dippers, you are making this wild dream of ours into reality day by day!
3.) Toys For Tots = 8 Days Left...
So with this small flurry of pre-orders, we are building a healthy donation to give to Toys For Tots on December 20th. For those not in the know, for every pre-order I receive until 12/20/2016, I am matching every book ordered with a like donation to Toys For Tots that I will post here.
If the book is published, I will also donate extra copies to Toys For Tots as well. How cool is that that they take books? So let me know if you’d like your book donated or just want to buy an extra copy to donate to a needy child excited to receive and read a shiny new book with pictures to boot!
4.) Next Up?
More sample chapters, at least one more special giveaway.
Kind Regards,
Hello, lovely readers!
We’ve almost reached the end! The Geek and Sundry contest ends on October 31st, which is just a few days away! We’re holding 4th place, but 5th place is making a determined run. I would LOVE to achieve that 4th place finish, so tell your friends to order! And if you haven’t ordered yet, time is running out, and I’d greatly appreciate your support.
At this point in the contest, many authors are offering incentives. The first place authors are even offering to critique your writing! How cool is that? Unfortunately, I can’t quite do that. So for what it’s worth, here’s my offer:
If you or someone you refer pre-orders my book before the contest ends, I will--wait for it--solve a math problem for you. That’s right! Send me a problem of any level through calculus, and I will explain how to solve it for you!
Hey, I’m a math tutor. I’m working with what I’ve got.
Now that I know people will be lining up in droves, I’d like to seriously say, thank you so much for your support. Honestly, with over 200 books in this contest, I did not expect to do this well. So thank you, and if you’ve got anyone else you can recommend The Fairy Stepmother, Inc. to, I’d be appreciative to the infinitieth power.
Best,
Maggie
To my readers: I am both humbled and thrilled to share the exciting news that King’s Daughter just made the Top 10 finalists in the Launch Pad Manuscript Competition. Dreams do not happen without the investment of friends and dedicated supporters, and each of you has brought me one step closer to achieving mine. Though this is a long-held goal pursued with a singular focus, it is not ultimately about me. It is about you--the people I hope to impact, entertain, and inspire with storytelling. There’s nothing I’d rather do with my life than this--take the seed of an idea and develop it into a full-blown offering to the world.
When challenged for his use of questionable racing tactics, three times world F1 champion Lewis Hamilton said, “I had to help myself, because no one else was going to help me.” A gritty sentiment from a gritty competitor.
Photocred: Sky Sports (Lewis, on the right, reminds me of how grateful I am that us writers aren’t forced to shout slam poetry to the death in order to get published.)
The extreme self-motivation and tenacity demonstrated by these athletes is undeniably tremendous, whether you’re a racing fan or not. They’re inspirational. To other drivers, athletes, and yes, even fiction writers.
It’s difficult to stay motivated. It’s hard to keep going. Each of us who are in this together, know exactly what I mean. But when I see champions like Nico Rosberg —the man on the right who trounced Hamilton in spite of his questionable tactics— single-mindedly chase down his dream over decades, I’m reminded that only by overcoming adversity, over and over, can I make it to the other side. The world needs people to persevere, and champions like Nico provide motivation so that we may.
I will never claim to be in the same league as a world champion like Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, or Jensen Button —to name but a few contemporary F1 bigwigs— but each and every morning that I wake, still in it to win it, I know I get a little closer to the other side.
I’m proud to be at 60% of my Quill goal —I still need just over 100 pre-orders to meet it— and I’m unspeakably grateful for the amazing show of support I’ve received from the people in my life thus far. Most of all, I’m overwhelmingly daunted to know that there are hundreds more people I need to touch with my story, to achieve my publishing goal.
But if this journey were an easy one, I wouldn’t be given the opportunity to know what it’s like to persevere (said every masochist, ever).
All that said, I’d be lying through my teeth if I didn’t say that every little bit counts.
If you’ve been thinking about reading my first chapter (https://www.inkshares.com/books/where-the-sun-sets/book_segments/the-last-welcome), sharing an awesome and heartfelt story by a debut author with a friend, or even thinking of placing a pre-order and just haven’t gotten to it yet, now’s a great time revisit the notion!
I have just over a month left to reach my pre-order goal. When I hit it, it will be because of you.
PS - I have a new video! Check it out here: https://youtu.be/ozTWldcFDNE I’d love to hear what you think!
Have a great evening & thank you for reading.
Donna
