October Weeks's Blog, page 3

A short blog today to announce that A Cold Winter’s Night, Sera’s first book, is FREE until October 9th on Kobo & Nook. Amazon won’t allow me to put the book up for free since I’m not enrolled in KDP~ sorry to all of the Kindle readers!!! Follow the links below to grab the book:

KOBO ~ NOOK

My creative momentum has been in hyper-drive the last two weeks. I’ve made amazing progress on Sera’s second book, Elvira’s second book, and two other books. Moving revisions from hardcopy to laptop is going smoothly and well. So well that I’m 100% certain three of the books in revisions (Saint’s second book, the Dark Academia book, and the second Eden Hollow book) will be finished by the end of this month…if not sooner, if this energy keeps up.

I won’t deny that I’ve left my day job with copious amounts of notes so I don’t lose my ideas or momentum on projects, and if I was writing fulltime, I likely would be done with at least two of these revisions and almost done with at least one of the first drafts right now. That is all on top of doing work for my Libby Bishop books as well as my spiritual page and daily tarot readings.

At this rate, this autumn is going to be extremely fruitful!

Well, between yesterday (Sunday) and this afternoon (Monday) I have finished first pass revisions on the second Eden Hollow book and the second Saint McGuinness book. So that is three books, including the dark academia book, that are DONE with first pass revisions. I’m so excited!

I’m going to give the books a day or two and then start making the changes on the computer (first round is always on printed pages). This was far more progress than I was thinking I’d make, and that is good for release dates.

I just had to share this news because I’m so damn happy about it!

I had a very productive Saturday! I recorded a new podcast, I got three chapters of revisions done plus notes on another book, worked out, worked on some things for my Instagram spiritual page, and a few other this and that’s are now off the plate. Today was an all-around creative day and I’m quite happy.

As I said in my previous post, I’m still aiming to get at least one new book out this year, but if I can’t manage that, next year…well, next year is going to be a HUGE release year. I do have my flash fiction story releasing with an anthology this year, so while it’s not solely my book, I will have something out this year as short as the story may be. I can’t wait for you all to read it!

I’m making good progress on the revisions for the dark academia book, which makes me so happy! I’ve also made some progress on Tuck 4. I still have three other books (under my October pen name) that are in revisions plus two for my Libby Bishop romance pen name, but I am mainly focusing on the dark academia book at this time. I’m 95% certain that I’ll still be able to meet my personal deadline of when I want it finished and start subbing to publishers, so all in all I’m on track with all the books.

I do still plan to have at least one new book out this year, and at least one re-release, and I will keep everyone updated on that as I have more information. But next year is going to be a big release year, and I can’t wait!

I am happy to say that I have finished the rough draft of the dark academia book I mentioned back in March, the one that has been eating my author world up. I’m giving it a few more days to rest then I’ll start revisions. I’m wicked happy with this story and I can’t wait to fine tune it! This also frees me up to start working on the other four books that are in the revision stage, and I have also started writing on some other projects. But the four that are in revisions are what I’m focused heavily on.

The focus on the dark academia, as well as other things that have come up in life, have pushed my publishing schedule back. Which is fine, though a little disappointing. I’m still hoping to get at least two new books out this year as well as self-publish four books that I’ve gotten the rights back to. But I’m making great progress on everything so I’m not overly disappointed!

As a reminder from my last post, I’m part of a supernatural detectives bundle and I’m so thrilled! The authors I’m among are amazing, and I highly recommend giving them a try if you haven’t already. This is a pay-what-you–want bundle, meaning you can get four books for as little as $5.00 and an additional seven books if you pay more than $20. It’s a fantastic deal, and a great way to find new-to-you authors!

click on the image to go to Storybundle!

More about the Bundle from Margaret:

Stalking the Dead – A Supernatural Detective Bundle

I love detective stories. Reluctant detectives, cynical detectives, detectives who drown their sorrows in a bottle of cheap whiskey. I also love ghost stories and all things uncanny, which means some of my favorite books feature supernatural detectives—those lucky few who investigate flickering lights and strange noises in supposedly empty houses. Those who make deals with trickster gods. Those who navigate multiple worlds and realities.

The Supernatural Detective Bundle contains several stories about ghosts and their unfinished business—some sad, some creepy, and some malevolent. Others are about otherworldly creatures like vampires and gods and their intricate machinations. All the stories are about the people called upon to risk their lives and sanity to solve that strange death, protecting their family, friends, and, incidentally, the world.

Many of these detectives are not-quite human themselves. If your preferred supernatural detective wields a bit of power of their own, you should definitely check out Blood Kissed by Keri Arthur, whose detective is a witch. Or Guardian of Chaos by Michelle Manus. There’s also Lilith Saintcrow’s novel Selene. Or Urban Shaman from C.E. Murphy.

Most of the detectives in this bundle, however, are very human, although they can interact with the dead in some fashion, giving them peculiar insights and advantages in their investigations. In that vein, we have BD Wilson’s Phantom Echoes; Sandra Wickham’s Death Coach; October Weeks’ Over the River; and E.C. Bell’s Dying on Second.

Skyla Dawn Cameron has written an exclusive novella, Haunting of Haywood House, to accompany The Killing Beach, the first in her misanthropic PI series, The Waverly Jones Mysteries.

Finally, there are two boxsets in this bundle: The Olympia Investigations by Sherry D. Ramsey, featuring the first four stories in that series; and the Spirit Caller series by Krista D. Ball, which is a collection of the first four novellas in that series, exclusive to this Storybundle.

Chills and mysteries abound in this bundle, but it’s only available for a limited time, so grab it now, kick back with some bitter day-old coffee, and enjoy.

—  Margaret Curelas

I’m am so excited to have Over the River in this supernatural storybundle!

STALKING THE DEAD

Here is more on the bundle from Margaret Curelas :

Stalking the Dead – A Supernatural Detective Bundle

I love detective stories. Reluctant detectives, cynical detectives, detectives who drown their sorrows in a bottle of cheap whiskey. I also love ghost stories and all things uncanny, which means some of my favorite books feature supernatural detectives—those lucky few who investigate flickering lights and strange noises in supposedly empty houses. Those who make deals with trickster gods. Those who navigate multiple worlds and realities.

The Supernatural Detective Bundle contains several stories about ghosts and their unfinished business—some sad, some creepy, and some malevolent. Others are about otherworldly creatures like vampires and gods and their intricate machinations. All the stories are about the people called upon to risk their lives and sanity to solve that strange death, protecting their family, friends, and, incidentally, the world.

Many of these detectives are not-quite human themselves. If your preferred supernatural detective wields a bit of power of their own, you should definitely check out Blood Kissed by Keri Arthur, whose detective is a witch. Or Guardian of Chaos by Michelle Manus. There’s also Lilith Saintcrow’s novel Selene. Or Urban Shaman from C.E. Murphy.

Most of the detectives in this bundle, however, are very human, although they can interact with the dead in some fashion, giving them peculiar insights and advantages in their investigations. In that vein, we have BD Wilson’s Phantom Echoes; Sandra Wickham’s Death Coach; October Weeks’ Over the River; and E.C. Bell’s Dying on Second.

Skyla Dawn Cameron has written an exclusive novella, Haunting of Haywood House, to accompany The Killing Beach, the first in her misanthropic PI series, The Waverly Jones Mysteries.

Finally, there are two boxsets in this bundle: The Olympia Investigations by Sherry D. Ramsey, featuring the first four stories in that series; and the Spirit Caller series by Krista D. Ball, which is a collection of the first four novellas in that series, exclusive to this Storybundle.

Chills and mysteries abound in this bundle, but it’s only available for a limited time, so grab it now, kick back with some bitter day-old coffee, and enjoy.

—  Margaret Curelas

Was away from the blog longer than planned A few updates:

~I have started revisions on two of my four first drafts. Those are going well!

~I have been writing like crazy in my notebooks on a story that came out of nowhere. I’ll share that it’s a blend of dark fantasy, dark academia, and horror. The strange thing about this story is that it’s writing completely out of order and in scenes, not chapters, so I’m seeing the story through snippets and I’m actually loving the chaos of it! I’ve had one other book write out of order, but that was middle/end/beginning and in full chapters, which is far different than getting the book in scenes. I’m finding this fascinating and I admit that it’s taken up a lot of my writing time and that’s why my revisions are moving slower than normal.

~I’m still trying to find a good balance on my other socials, but what I’ve been doing is slowly raising my follower and view count so I’ll take that as a win

My plan is still to self-publish three to four books this year, and the new book (that’s writing in the notebooks) will be submitted to a publisher when it’s ready. So stayed tuned for updates!

One of my goals this year is to streamline my social media pages so they aren’t as cluttered and are a touch more organized in terms of content. I’ve gone through my TikTok and Instagram pages and deleted a bunch of posts and am trying to post once a day on each page. So far, so good in that regard. I’m horrible at keeping up with trends, but I’m learning what types of posts are best and started using Instagram Reels a little more, which has helped with interaction with other authors as well as readers.

If you listened to the latest podcast, you’ll know that I’ve started an Instagram page for my spiritual stuff and tarot reading (plus the chakra healing and energy healing). I’ve recorded additional mediations as well but those aren’t posted yet. If you want to follow me for this on Instagram, you can find me HERE.

I’m happy to report that writing is going well on all projects! After looking at my schedule and finances, I may have to push back on some of my planned releases, but I will have at least three new books out this year. I also am focusing on two that I plan to submit to agents/publishers.

Stay tuned for updates~ a lot is coming down the pipe

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season

2023 was a good writing year for me, surpassing my expectations (especially since I was dealing with burnout and and bad mental health). I have four books that are in the revisions stage and several books that have been writing extremely well. The books that were released/rereleased:

The Arena– Tuck Houston, book 3 (rerelease)

AMAZON ~ KOBO ~ NOOK

Salt & Iron, an Eden Hollow Story (rerelease)

AMAZON ~ NOOK ~ KOBO

Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be (brand new novella in the Isles & West World)

AMAZON ~ NOOK ~ KOBO

I also have a fantasy flash fiction piece coming out as part of an anthology (details coming soon!), which I am so excited about! I can’t wait to share this one

And while writing hasn’t always been easy this year, my word count has been amazing and I could not be happier. I’m looking forward to releasing new books next year (self-published as well as indie press), and I will also be submitting to traditional publishers as well.

Thank you for being here with me and sharing the journey. I can’t wait to bring you new stories in 2024!