My best Writing Advice.

     Don't quit your day job. Trust me. I know it will be hard, but even just going down to part time will be better than quitting. It takes time and money to build your name as an author. Even if your first book is a hit, it will take time to write, edit, and perfect, all while getting your name out there. One self publishing author I spoke too said it took her three years to earn a wage.

     Do yourself a favor, keep your day job until the checks start coming in.

~Skadia

Leora’s mother opened the seal and read the letter. By the time she reached the end she was in full blown tears. -A Paladin She'll be. Skadia Trazon 

Breaks

     Sometimes we work ourselves to our limit before we remember that we need a break from time to time. You have them at work to help keep employees "sane" and to break up the mental wear and tear on the brain. Sometimes, you need to do that in real life too.

     I love writing, I do it almost every day (if not every day!), but some days are more taxing on me than others. Days when I work on editing my work, normally after a chapter I don't even want to get a glass of water, let alone do anything else. Those days kill my productivity more than anything else. Even worse, I cannot take breaks while editing, or I won't want to go back. Some days, I need to make myself do it.

     When writing it's easy for me to set up breaks. "Write 1,000 words, then go make some lunch." Super easy and after the break I'm normally ready to jump right back into my work. Some days I mess up and let myself play video games during my breaks. While they inspire me to write, they also are a big distraction. Progress is progress.

     Even more important that a fresh mind is a working one. Some days my depression hits me hard. Like the days where I have a hard time dragging myself even out of my bed kind of hard. Days like that I use as my "off" days. Most days I try to at least do one productive thing, but on days like that, I change things up. I tell myself that I don't have to do anything, that it's my day off and that tomorrow will be better. Some days it works. Some days I even get things done and feel more proud of myself, while helping myself pull out of the negative feelings.

     It's okay to take breaks. To take some personal time for yourself. Do it. You will normally feel better and get more done!

     What are some ways you make yourself take a break from normal life?


     I also think that each post now will contain some small parts of whatever I am working on or a hit on what I have been reading as well with some tidbits from that mixed in. Keep you all on your toes.

"The great man pulled his wife off and looked her in the face. “I’ll be home soon my Zena.” He kissed her head, stooped down and picked up his children. “You ladies have to take care of your mom while I am gone, alright?” The two younger girls squealed as he planted mustache kisses on their cheeks."  -A Paladin She'll Be, Skadia Trazon

 

Book Review - Winterwood

     I just finished reading Winterwood (Rowankind book one) by Jacey Bedford. It is a book that follows a female pirate through an adventure. Jacey Bedford is a new author to me, and one that I will happily be looking out for in the future. This is the first in a series so it's a great place to start. My review here is all based on my own personal opinions and likes. I personally like fantasy novels that feature main female leads. It was one thing that really drew me into this book. It's filled with magic, romance, and adventure.

     "It's 1800 - Mad King George is on the British throne, and Bonaparte is hammering at the door. Magic is strictly controlled by the Mysterium, but despite sever penalties, not all magic users have registered. Integral to many genteel households is an uncomplaining army of rowankind bondservants, so common-place that no one recalls where they came from."


     Some things that I really liked about this book, the writing. Very few errors and if there where the story sucked me in to the point where I missed it. The twists and turns were not normal for books like this and Jacey built a world on magic on top of our own that blended the two almost seamlessly.

     The main Characters are full of life and faults. Ross Tremayne, the main character of our story and lead pirate, is a widowed cross-dressing privateer captain. Her dark secret is that she's a witch. Magic is what lead her out to the sea, but it's also what brings her back ashore. Lot's of twists and turns with this character and another main character, David. But if you want all of that, you'll have to read the book.

     I personally could not relate to many of the characters, however they each enthralled me with their own magic. As a pagan I was happy to see the "Lord and Lady of the Forrest" in there. It brought a smile to my face.

     Overall I was happy with the book as a whole. Normally I want to rewrite things, but that wasn't the case with this one. I'm just excited to read the next one.


     I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of magic.

Working on something for tomorrow

Title says it all really. Not much a post today because I am working on that review of Winterwood. That way you can all have a quality post of it. Enjoy your day!

Inspration

     Sometimes you need a pick me up. Some days that comes from something as simple as coffee. Other days you need a bit more of a push to get things done. Still others nothing seems to be able to draw out the words from your soul.

     That's okay. It happens, even to the best of us. Nothing is always simple, if it was, everyone could do it.

      Sometimes pulling yourself out of a funk can be hard. A few things I do to keep things moving, I'll share with you today.

*Read a book. Really, go pick up your favorite and start reading. Find what about that book makes it good to you. Learn from that.

*Start Free Writing. Free writing is a good thing to do to just keep your brain moving and your writing going forward. Just type whatever is in your mind. It can be as simple as I don't know what to write so I'm just going to tell you about my dog.... It doesn't have to be productive, it just needs to be done.

*Go back and Edit. Take a few steps back and go back and work on editing if you are stuck. At one point you had the story in your head, going back can sometimes job your memory.

*Write a different part. That simple, stuck on one part, write another! You can always go back and write between them.

Find what works best for you and work with it! Sometimes even writing prompts can get your words flowing.

Happy Writing!
~Skadia

Rise from the Grave - Magic the Gathering Fanfiction

(Just a quick fanfiction that I slapped together. If you like it, let me know, I'd love to do more.)




 The Litch rose up before the woman, his crown of ice framing his dead skull. His armor creaked with each step he took towards her, and the cold rolled off of his frame in waves, chilling the air around him and freezing anything he came into contact with. The tip of his frozen blade dug a thin trench through the earth as he moved forward. The ice king’s horde roared behind him, and as their maws opened a blue glow illuminated the sky.

    The age-old Litch stopped. Both feet squared and with a single hand he raised his two handed ice blade to the sky. Behind his helmet his eyes glowed as the waves of chill turned into waves of magic. The undead leader roared into the sky and a rumble followed his call.

    Miles away the earth split in half, ice and rock crumbling and shattering as the magic took effect. From under the earth rose a beast. In its glory day it was a great dragon, but now after time and death had ate away most of the flesh the creature was more bone that anything. The magic wrapped around the bones and pulled the beast up from the ground. Its wings stretched wide for the first time since its demise, and its skeletal body took to the sky the beauty and grace of a dragon still in the very essence of its bones. With a few beat of its wings the miles of ground rushed by.

    Liliana sucked in a cold, deep breath. The Litch was sucking the life out of everything around her, and while she had worked with them in the past, she had never really gotten used to that. She watched as her enemies lined up and looked to the sky. She had heard the earth rip itself apart. She stood there, terrified as what was once a dragon rose up before her. What started as a small speck in the sky turned out to be a monster from before the ice age. And it was hungry. She swallowed hard and clenched her fist.

    Liliana stood there, a small glow around her. She was battered from her trials. Parts of her clothing was charred from a fire bolt spell. Other parts were still soaked with muck from the swamp lands. She had bruises all over and more than half of her legion had fallen. It was looking hopeless for her, but she would be damned if she gave up now. Liliana Vess did not just give up when things got hard, she normally rode them out. She pulled herself together and faced the sky, her head held high and her eyes honing in on the skeletal dragon.  “This ends today Nevinyrral!” Her purple magic spiraled around her.

    “Oh does it now? Pretty lady, you think you can just come in here, steal my horde of treasure?” The Litch laughed at her efforts to intimidate him. He had armies, and a treasure trove of resources. “But you are right, it will end today.” He pulled a device out of his robes and smiled. The Litch took one more step toward her, and with that step, disappeared into thin air. His army however, and the hovering dragon still watched her every move, their mouths glowing an eerie blue. 

    “Strike!” She summoned and pushed her hand forward. Her personal horde of undead lurched toward the enemy as her magic pulled them. The beasts and creatures drug themselves and hobbled with a speed that was unnatural. A few that were a little more together dropped to all fours and charged the enemy, running half of the beasts own team in the process but no one seemed to notice or care. It was chaos to say the least.

    The skeletal forces charged each other, clashing in the center. Liliana worked her magic and threw spells left and right, making the skeletons crumble before her. The bones piled up around her and mixed with her own forces at her feet. A sick grin crossed her face—they could be replaced. A shrug followed the thought, as they were also already dead. The skeletal dragon hovered above and circled the battle that unfolded before it. Liliana looked up to the sky. The beast was dead.

    The Litch might have control over this creature, but in the end, it was still dead, and she was a necromancer. Liliana sucked in a deep breath and took a few steps back. Her own warriors flew forward into the throws of the battle to keep their mistress safe. The necromancer steadied her breathing and pulled the energy around her. Her hands twisted and turned, cupping the flowing energy and drawing it all into her. This would be the biggest thing she had ever done so far.

    She threw her hands toward the beast that was munching on both allies and enemies. The magic rushed from her and flowed around the dragon. “You will obey me.” Her purple magic flowed around the beast’s glowing bones and slowly took over the blue light, smothering it under its own purple hues. “Death is no excuse for disobedience.” She called to the sky and the creature withered and pulled against itself, the two magics fighting and tearing it apart.

    The skeletal dragon plummeted to the ground, its massive body crashing into its own ranks. The blue glow of the undead was snuffed out under the creature. Liliana pulled and heaved, her will curving and flexing the magic that controlled the dragon like a puppet. It stood up, now a deep purple glow in its eyes. It lashed out and grabbed the nearest Litch knight. With one bite the blue glow stopped and the two halves of the body fell to the ground. The dragon roared and the forces around it stopped mid battle.

    The ground trembled below. It was just like before when the Litch awoke the dragon, but it was different. A smell of sulfur was in the air this time along with the stench of death. Liliana looked to the horizon and saw a massive cloud of smoke rising from the tip of a mountain. There was a scream from the Litch king’s forces. The skeletons cried as they fell apart, the blue glow going with them. Within a moment the world seemed to stand still. Even the dragon’s bones did not creek in the wind. 

    “What just happened?” The necromancer whispered to herself.

Gift Short- A Haunting

     (Part of a small series I am working on for fun for a friend of mine. Everything posted here is unedited, if later I decide to make a collection out of them, they will be edited at that time.)



 “This house is going to be it Jake, we’ll flip this one and everything will start getting so much better.” The gray fennic fox draped her arms around her fiancee. She sighed happily and nuzzled into his warm fur. The German Shepherd wrapped one arm around his mate and sucked in a deep breath. The scent of the old house filled his nostrils. It was going to take a lot of work.

    Sense the two had gotten together they had dreamed of flipping houses, now that Jake stepped down from his job they seen the opportunity to do what they had always wanted to do. “You bet baby. I can’t wait to get started.” He licked her head. The two entered the empty house. Much of it was falling apart and a lot needed updating, but they got it for a good price. Well, good enough for what it was. Almost too good. When they asked the realtor why it had been on the market for so long, the cat shifted and looked around before telling them it was just a strange house. 

    Sun danced through the open windows as they aired out the stale place. Jake went right to work working on schismatics and getting supplies. He shuffled through the house and went down into the small basement. The floor wasn’t finished but he had all of that planned out. It needed a lot of work, but it would be worth it. A few loose boards on the floor caught his blue eyes. His ear flicked. “Well no sense in leaving these down here, they’ll have to go up anyway.” He smiled to himself as he went to pick up the boards. They were stuck fast to the floor. He grunted and trotted up the stairs. “Hey Trix, where is the hammer?” 

    “I think it’s over there.” She pointed into a corner where a pile of tools were. “Why?” She turned her head, her massive ears focusing in on her lover. 

    “There are some boards down in the basement that are stuck. I’m going to just haul them out.” He picked up what he was looking for and went right back downstairs. He returned down to the basement and slid the hammer under one of the boards, and like magic it lifted right up. He scratched his head, his fingers running through his dark brown fluff. “Strange.” He shrugged it off and pulled up the other boards and ran them up and out the stairs. 

    “Everything okay babe?” The fox stood up and walked over to him. Her hands fell on his chest and she kissed him softly. 

    “Yup. That’s all done, tomorrow I can get some more done. Want to watch Game of Bones?” There wasn’t a lot of things moved into the house while they worked but they weren’t about to give up their favorite T.V. series. 

    “Of course!” Trixie bolted to the couch and flopped down. “I wonder who they’ll kill off in this episode.” The series was on the third season and half of the original characters were long sense gone. Some deaths were cool, like killing someone with liquid gold. Others ripped your heart out. 

     The two settled down and ate dinner while they watched the show. Then retired to bed fairly early. The physical work of the house seemed to drain them. It was just cleaning but it seemed like the hours were dragging them down. 

    Jake bolted upright mid dream. The house felt like it was shaking. He leap from the bed and raced down the stairs, almost tripping over himself half way down. He halted at the base of the stairs. His blue eyes went wide and he whimpered. The front door was wide open. Still locked, but open. He himself had shut and checked that before bed. How could this be? He pondered for a moment and rushed over to shut and relocked the door. He did a sweep of the house, checking the basement. No one had entered. He shrugged it off and drug himself back to bed. 

    “Everything okay?” Trixie had woken up as Jake had rushed down the stairs. 

    “The front door was open.” His words were hallow as he spoke them.

    “How the hell?”

    He rolled his shoulders. “No idea, but everything is fine. I’ll check the lock in the morning.” They both fell back asleep and dawn came sooner than either of them wished. They both woke up still tired, but it seemed like for no reason. 

    Trixie had breakfast on the table when Jake came down. “Morning babe. You feeling okay?” She looked at her lover in the eyes. They were still blue, just not nearly as bright. Almost tinted. It hurt her heart. 

    His voice was gruff and harsh. “I’m fine. I’m getting to work.”

    “Didn’t you want breakfast?”

    “No.” He grunted and walked off down to the basement. 

    Trixie was worried, but she let him go. The hours went by and when more than half the day passed she decided to check on him and bring him something to eat. She put all of her love into the sandwich that she could. She went down to the basement. She dropped the plate and screamed. Before her was a horrific sight. The love of her life was sitting on the floor, covered in blood. A pile of bones lay before him. “Jake, are you alright?” She called from halfway down the stairs. He didn’t answer. She walked down the last few stairs and spoke louder. “Babe, are you okay?” 

    His head turned without his neck moving. “Yes.” Was all that he said. His eyes were rolled back into his skull and his tail lay flat on the ground. He was not alright, and Trixie knew it. As her foot touched the unfinished floor a chill ran through her. This was bad. “What are you doing down here?” His voice was hallow as the words left. 

    “I’m worried about you, I think we need to get out of the house.” 

    “No!” He lunged at her. His hands around her neck. He wasn’t himself. That was clear. “You will never leave.” He growled at her.

    Trixie reached out and grabbed the closest thing to her. The old brick came crashing down on her partners head. It wouldn’t do any damage but it knocked him out. She gasped for breath and rushed back up the stairs. Her fingers dialed nine one one and as she punched in the numbers she raced from the house. It wasn’t long before the ambulance showed up. They took Jake to the ER. 

    “You alright pup?” Her hand stroked his head as his eyes opened. They were bright and blue.

    “What happened?” 

    “I hit you with a brick.” She explained what happened. He remembered none of it. “I’m going to call someone to cleanse the house.” The next morning a witch showed up. “Thank you for coming so soon.”

    The panther waved her hand. “It’s my pleasure. Give me an hour and everything will be fine.” Sure enough, within an hour she was done.  

    Trixie walked back into the house and it felt so different. It felt clean and bright. Jake came home and over the next few weeks everything went back to a normal house.