News Updates! · 7:27pm Sep 21st, 2023
Hey folks! Been a while since there’s been one of these! But hey, I’m back in the groove, work is progressing, and now it’s time to let you all know what’s up.
And uh, before I even hop into talking about anything else, I can guess what most of you want to know is where Axtara – Magic and Mayhem is in regards to “written” or “in my hands already.”
Well, I have good news. Today is the chapter where Axtara makes the connections required for the resolution to happen and heads right into the thick of it. In other words, I’m starting the finale of the book. Huzzah! Once everything’s resolved, there’s the wrap-up chapter, and then this draft is done!
Draft, mind. I still need to let it sit for at least two weeks, then come back and prep it for the Alpha Readers. Normally I’d let it sit for longer, but I kind of would like to get this out before Christmas.
Is it polished? Well no, it’s a draft. That’s why I want to take the two weeks away from it, without Axtara infecting my brain, to disconnect. Usually I wait longer, but any longer of a wait and we might not see Magic and Mayhem until next year.
I am pretty sure there are going to be cuts. Currently the story is already 17,000 words longer than the first Axtara title, and there’s still the finale chapter and wrap-up to go, so that might climb to over 30,000 easily. I’d rather not have it be that large of a book, so in the prepwork for Alpha I’m definitely going to be looking at where I can cut stuff.
That said, this story is pretty fun. I think you readers will enjoy it quite a bit. I certainly hope so, anyway! It definitely has a lot more scenes with Axtara and Mia, so if you enjoyed those two being best friends, you’re going to get more of that in this story. And if you enjoyed the finance stuff, you’ll get some of that as well. Axtara is still a banker, even if the focus of things has shifted a little bit (as her bank is now well and truly established and she’s focused on day-to-day activity instead of making sure it survives).
I’m still not dropping any spoilers (unless you’re in the Discord, and even then those are pretty light). That will change as things get further along toward release and we start getting previews and cover reveals, but for now, I’m keeping things under a tight tarp. I think you’ll all find it’s been worth it, however. Anyway, the beginning of the finale starts today, and I’m excited to see it all happen myself. Honestly, sometimes writing for me is like being an observer in the room: I’m not crafting anything, but simply writing down what happens as a bunch of characters who live in my head pursue their goals to their final conclusion.
It’s fun, and today I get to take part in it!
But first, I really should drop the rest of the news. So hit the jump.
Sometimes the hardest part of writing is picking up the knife and slicing away the parts that don't help the book. The screams are real. They come from the author.