Every writer finds it.  It’s rare, but it happens.  Once in a while, a story takes hold of you and forces you to keep writing.  You let things slide; dishes pile up in the sink, the house gets a little dusty, the cats and the kids have to whine at you to remind you they need to be fed.  But nothing supersedes the story. You’re compelled to keep working on it. You lock the door to your office and huddle there over your keyboard while the story forces its way from your imagination onto the paper.

Momentum.

That’s what every professional writer wants. Momentum. The kind of drive that pushes you to lose sleep, miss meals, forget appointments or snarl at any mortal foolish enough to interrupt you. Once momentum gains hold of your life, it’s hard to let go of it. Why, you may ask?

 Because a writer’s greatest fear is losing momentum.

There is a way to have your cake and eat it too.  Writers need to learn how to ride their momentum.  What I mean by this is very simple–scheduling. I’m a firm believer in scheduling. If I could schedule every second of my day,I would.  Right now, for example, I’m riding a huge wave of momentum.  I’ve got three projects cranking along at top speed.  However, I also have two projects (of mine) in edits plus I have to edit projects professionally for other writers.  How in the world am I going to accomplish it all?

Let’s start off with your schedule.  What suits you best? Do you write better in the morning, when you’ve had your first cup of coffee?  Or, like me, do you write better once the sun goes down and the house gets quiet? Your priority as a writer is to determine your peak time of day for work.  For me, it’s night.  The morning is the worst.  So, when I wake up I take care of the non-writing things: cleaning the house, feeding the critters, running errands.  Then, I look to my second priority–which is editing.  I take my editing seriously. I’m dealing with another writer’s work and it’s my responsibility to help them produce the best work possible.  So, I block out a two hour section in the late morning when I work on the editing projects I have on my desk.  My mind is alert–after all, I’ve already cleaned the cat boxes–and I can concentrate on the technical aspects of someone else’s work.  One thing I’ve learned is that since I’ve started editing, my own writing has improved immeasurably.

You may not edit professionally, but you still edit.  Rewriting is the most important part of the writing process, whether you revamp a story five times or thirty.  No matter who you are, there is no such thing as a perfect first draft.  So block out some time to rework your stories every day.  Even just sitting back and reading them without a red pencil in sight can give you insight into how your story flows. If not that, it’s a good time to blog. Stretch your writing muscles. Do a little world building. Do something writing related that will help your mind to expand and relax.

Then, whatever else you do, take some time for yourself. Have some coffee, watch some TV or read a good book for a while.  Me time is more important to a writer than you may think.

Now, finally, it’s time to catch that wave.  The momentum has been pushing against you all day.  The story is excited; it’s ready to come to life.  Shut yourself away in your writing space and pick up the story where you left it off yesterday.  You may be asking yourself why it’s important to take time away from that momentum.  Why not just get up and start writing first thing and go the whole day pounding out the story and to hell with the rest of it?  The answer is simple: the more focused your mind is upon the project at hand, the better the result.  Just as with musicians, authors have to practice. We have to exercise our minds, stretch them out a bit, before we turn to the project at hand.  There have been mornings when I ignored my schedule and went straight into writing.  Trust me; that’s usually where I have to rewrite the most. If I follow my schedule, I can ride that momentum with a clearer mind and a deeper focus on the story I’m working on.  But, to get the greatest benefit from that momentum, you have to learn how to channel it so that it works best for you.

You may find that your writing world is the direct opposite of mine.  I’ve always been jealous of those people who wake up at 5 a.m. and immediately sit down to write with clear minds and absolute focus.  I’m just not that kind of girl. What I can tell you is that if you find yourself in the grip of overwhelming momentum, there are ways to channel that energy and make every word you write count in the end.

Happy writing!

Well, it’s nomination season and the gods have been good to me again–so good that I’m still reeling.

You remember last year when The Reckoning of Asphodel was a Top Ten finalist in the Preditors and Editors Annual Readers’ Poll as Best Sci Fi/Fantasy Novel of 2007? This year has surpassed last year and I am literally gobsmacked.

 The Gift of Redemption has been nominated by P&E for Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Novel of 2008.

The Temptation of Asphodel has been nominated by P&E for Best Novel of 2008.

I have also been nominated in the Authors Published in 2008 category!

I’m am completely overwhelmed by the honors that have fallen upon my books and myself.  Just the fact that this is a readers’ poll, where readers nominate and vote for the books, makes it very special to my heart–and those of the other authors nominated as well.  There are quite a few of them from Aspen Mountain Press also nominated, plus AMP was nominated as Best E-Publisher! If you wanted to vote (and of course you do, why wouldn’t you?) go to http://www.critters.org/predpoll/. You can find The Gift of Redemption under Science Fiction and Fantasy Novels and The Temptation of Asphodel under All Other Novels.  You can vote for me under the Authors category.
Then…hold on…it gets better. I have something to show you–twice:

The Gift of Redemption was nominated by Love Romances and More Cafe as Best Sci Fi/Fantasy novel of 2008 AND Temptation of Asphodel was nominated for Best Cover Art of 2008–that wonderful bit of work done by Renee’ George! Voting opens at LRM on January 5th, and I’ll post more about that later.

Until then, please allow me a moment to thank all of the great readers and devotees of Aspen Mountain Press for your continued support and love for our product.  We work very hard to bring you quality literature, and judging from the love we’re getting through various awards organizations our hard work is paying off.  I wish you all a very Happy New Year with all of the blessings and joy you deserve upon you!

Hey there!  I’m completely excited–Temptation of Asphodel, the third book in my epic fantasy series The Asphodel Cycle, has been released today by Aspen Mountain Press. I was pretty flabbergasted to find this blog entry about Tempation’s release today –http://jpscribble.blogspot.com/

 ”…I should tell you that I am not, generally speaking, a fan of epic fantasy. Summers’ offering, however, is just head and shoulders above the other books I’ve read in the genre. Her characters are complex, fully-realized people (or gods, as the case may be), rather than coming across as something a fanboy might have worked up on a D&D character sheet first …”

 Dang.  I love blushing first thing in the morning.

I’ll be hanging around on Facebook all day for a book release event.  Feel free to drop by my Temptation of Asphodel Release Party and leave a note on my wall there–I’ll be giving away copies of Asphodel books all day! I’ve got an excerpt up and live on my blog and my website in case you want to check those out.

Hope you American folks had a great Thanksgiving. 

The Temptation of Asphodel

Author: Celina Summers
Artist: Renee George

Tamsen has learned to sacrifice everything as she plays the game of the gods but as she nears the end of her quest, everything changes again.  The hunter becomes the hunted, the ally becomes the foe and behind it all lies the hand of a third, unknown god who tries to lure her from her destiny. Can she hold firm against the temptations that are thrown in her path, or will she fall into failure as generations of Elves have done before her? As the rumbling memory of an ancient war settles over the realm of Ansienne, Tamsen’s faith falters. When she is drawn into conflict with immortal enemies, she discovers that the line between obedience and temptation is much narrower than she thought. Temptation can be dangerous, but obedience can kill.

For those of you following my fantasy series The Asphodel Cycle,  I have good news!  Tamsen and Brial will be back in the third installment of the series, Temptation of Asphodel,  on November 28, 2008.

This is my favorite cover to date!  Renee George is the artist and she did a fabulous job.

The Asphodel Cycle 3: Temptation of Asphodel

Tamsen has learned to sacrifice everything as she plays the game of the gods, but as she nears the end of her quest everything changes again. The hunter becomes the hunted, the ally becomes the foe and behind it all lies the hand of a third, unknown god who tries to lure her from her destiny. Can she hold firm against the temptations that are thrown in her path, or will she fall into failure as generations of Elves have done before her? As the rumbling memory of an ancient war settles over the realm of Ansienne, Tamsen’s faith falters. When she is drawn into conflict with immortal enemies, she discovers that the line between obedience and temptation is much narrower than she thought. Tempation is dangerous; obedience can kill.

If you want to know more about The Asphodel Cycle, check out my website Shoot The Muse!  The prologue is up and live for Temptation of Asphodel plus you can find out more information about the world of Asphodel and the previous two books in the series.  You can check out reviews, awards, and my own strange little world there–and don’t say I didn’t warn you! The book trailer for Temptation is also up if you like that sort of thing. ( I do; I’ll admit it.)  You can also find out more about the first two books, The Reckoning of Asphodel and The Gift of Redemption  at the Aspen Mountain Press website.

As a fantasy writer, I spend a great deal of time building the worlds that I write about.  It’s a unique tool of the speculative fiction writer and one of the most difficult things to do. How do you create a world that is completely credible? What elements do you need?  How much work is it really?

It’s a lot of work.  I’ve always approached world building with a single goal in mind: if someone asks me a question about my world, I already have to know the answer. The world of Asphodel, which I write about in my fantasy series The Asphodel Cycle, is complex and huge.  As a matter of fact, my world building file is as large as the first book. It’s crammed full of history, short stories that take place outside of the Asphodel plot, character profiles, maps, religous procedures and rituals and a long mythology.

But I’ve been developing Asphodel for years.  Recently, I got an email from a young writer still in high school, asking me how he could learn to build a world as complex as mine.  That was when I developed this short list for him to start off with.

World Creation For the Beginner

1. Physical - maps, climate, topography(Is your main town in the mountains? A port city? On the plains? Is it warm? Cool?  What are the borders? And always remember that rivers can NOT flow uphill–you’d be surprised at how many people forget that

2. History-this means government, military background, currency, the biggest trade product, anything that would have an effect upon the characters (Democracy or dictatorship? Standing army? Navy?  Agricultural or industrial nation?  Gold-based currency or paper?)

3. Mythology-gods, worship practices, temples, magic( Is this a monotheistic society or is there a pantheon? What rituals are used in worship? Big white marble temples or humble outdoor shrines? How does magic work?)

4.Time - calendar, units of measurement (Solar year or lunar year?  How long?  How long is a month?  Clocks? Sundials?  Hours, minutes, or some other sort of measurement?)

5.The current situation. Every world has a here and now.  What makes this time so unique?  Is the change to come or is it already here?  Who affects it and how?

and the most important….

6.How this world affects the protagonist–and how the protagonist reacts to it.

These basics can get anyone started. A quick note about magic for fantasy writers–

Magic is hard to write.  You have to make something that is inherently incredible into a believable action.  Wouldn’t it be nice if your protagonist could just wave his hand and change the world?  Unfortunately, that makes for boring fantasy, even if your protagonist is a god. There have to be limits established from the beginning: who can work it, how they work it, when they work it, what they need to work it, and what the consequences of working it might be.  Be careful when you’re writing about magic, folks–poorly defined magic can ruin the credibility of your ENTIRE story.

A quick caveat for sci-fi writers: your science had better be accurate.  Although you may love the spectacular explosions in space when you’re watching Star Wars, there’s not only no fire in space (no oxygen to feed it) but there’s no sound in space. Keep your science facts straight so that you can build your science fiction with credibility.

World building is the skeleton upon which you hang the flesh of your speculative fiction story. There is no such thing as too much world building.  Allow me to repeat that: there is no such thing as too much world building. However, for the fledgling writer these basic starting points should help you to kick off your own fantastic journey through the imaginary worlds that live in your mind.

The Asphodel Cycle is my baby and I’m very proud of it.  With the first two books already released and doing well (The Reckoning of Asphodel and The Gift of Redemption) the world I’ve created is thriving. This holiday season, Temptation of Asphodel will expand that world even more.  Although the world of Asphodel is immense, it all began with these six points and exploded from there.

Hopefully, these will help you as much as they have me.  Good luck and happy writing!

Hear ye, hear ye!

I am pleased to announce my super duper special contest for the release of The Gift of Redemption!

Are you ready for this? You can win–

1-downloads of both The Reckoning of Asphodel and The Gift of Redemption!

2-a $25 gift card from Best Buy–which I recommend you use to buy the DVD of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust. *grin* Only because Asphodel knocked it out of #1 at Fictionwise last summer…

3-an antique book–great classic piece of literature from my personal collection. I’ll give you choices, and you pick the book!

and FINALLY…

4-you can be the only person in the world to get the complete Asphodel historical backstory file–which is almost a book in itself!

Rules:

1. I am so stealing this one from Nathan Bransford: You may only enter once; Once only you may enter. No multiple entries please.

2. Email me at kaantira@hotmail.com . In the subject line, write ASPHODEL BLOG CONTEST. Leave me your name and email addy. IF YOU DON’T LEAVE YOUR ADDY I CANNOT CONTACT YOU IF YOU WIN. *just thought I’d let you know that*

3. Be present at my release party on June 6, 2008 where I will announce the winner with all sorts of hoopla and fanfare! I’ll be hosting my release party at Love Romances & More Cafe  –an all-day event with other writers, other contests, other prizes and general all-around brou-ha-ha!

Sound like fun? I sure hope so! Be sure you stop by the Cafe’ and say hi!

Oh, and just in case you didn’t know:

EIGHT DAYS  until the release of The Gift of Redemption: Book 2 of The Asphodel Cycle!

I’ve got a lot to tell you guys, so I’m going to try to shotgun it for sanity’s sake.First off, the second book in The Asphodel Cycle–The Gift of Redemption–will be released by Aspen Mountain Press on June 6, 2008!  I’m really excited about this sequel and how it take Tamsen and Brial down some very interesting–and dangerous–paths.  The prologue of Redemption is up and live on my website–Shoot the Muse!–so drop by and check it out.  This Friday, May 23, 2008, I’ll be hosting an all-day author’s chat at Love Romances and More Cafe.  I’ll be giving away prizes, posting excerpts, stealing the Cafe’ statues, and generally wreaking havoc all over the place.  If you get a chance, stop in and say hello.  I heard a little birdie say that there was going to be a super duper better-than-good prize package given away, but I can’t say for sure if it’s true or not.  *giggles*

Great cover by Jinger Heston–love it!

The Asphodel Cycle 2: The Gift of Redemption

After the defeat of the Duke de Spesialle’s armies, Tamsen de Asphodel finds herself weakened and ill. The toll of the magic she called has ravaged her body, but the demands of the Elven Realm and the kingdom of Ansienne call her to continued duty. With Brial at her side, she ignores her fragility and dives headlong into the political turmoil of both nations. Unfortunately, her uncle Spesialle is not finished with her yet. When she finds herself at his mercy, she must gather all of her wits and courage to combat him. And when the gods demand an answer to the question: What gift can buy the redemption of the Elves? Tamsen must decide if she is brave enough to give the right answer.

Raves for The Reckoning of Asphodel:

“…She weaves a tale that is both familiar and unexpected; because she remains so true to the genre, readers can trust her to lead them to explore untried paths in a familiar fantasy landscape…”–MyShelf.com

“…This is a serious fantasy novel, not the verbal equivalent of a computer game…”–Novelspot.com

“…THE RECKONING OF ASPHODEL is a masterpiece in word building, character building and delivering a story so complex and heart felt, the reader is caught up in it all until the last page is read…”–Love Romances & More

COMING JUNE 6, 2008 from Aspen Mountain Press and other distributors!  God, I love posting this blurb!  There is definitely a lot of fun still to be had in Asphodel.  I hope you come share it with me.Be sure to keep an eye on my blog Elf Killing and Other Hobbies for updated information and news on other ways that you can win!

Hey there guys!

Sorry I’ve been out of circulation for a while, but I’m up to my ears in writing projects and recovering from a small medical procedure.  Nothing to worry about: I’m fine.  Just busy and disinclined to get off the couch.

As proof of how out of it I am, I discovered something today completely by accident.  The Reckoning of Asphodel was named the Winter 2008 staff pick in Fantasy from Love Romances & More!  How silly am I?  I should have been shouting out about this a couple of weeks ago.  You can check it — and the other Staff Picks– out here.  

Secondly, I selected a winner on my blog contest on February 14th.  Although I mentioned it on my blog, I quite stupidly forgot to tell you guys about it here.  So….CAITLIN HOY congratulations!  You won a copy of The Reckoning of Asphodel as well as first dibs on a free copy of Gift of Redemption when it is released in June!  Email me at kaantira@hotmail.com so I can mail you your copy and I really hope you enjoy it.

 Have a great day, and I hope you are all experiencing better weather than the standard Ohio roller coaster of late winter.  Seventy degrees yesterday, three inches of snow last night, and ice today…no wonder everyone’s sick.  Take care!

Celina

I just wanted to stop by and let you know a few wonderful things that have happened to me lately.  First, I was nominated by the lovely folks at Love Romances and More as Best New Author of 2007 and my book, The Reckoning of Asphodel was nominated for Best Sci Fi/Fantasy Novel of 2007.  Thanks, everyone, for the honor and to everyone who voted.  Then, Asphodel was nominated for Best Sci Fi/Fantasy Novel of 2007 by Preditors & Editors for their annual Readers Poll.  I’m very proud to announce that Asphodel placed tenth–and I now have a shiny new .gif image to add to my various sites.  Asphodel has been getting great reviews (again, thank you LR&M for the fabulous five hearts review!) which is fabulous because the second book in the series, The Gift of Redemption is due out this spring from Aspen Mountain Press.

So, because of all these wonderful things, I’m running a BLOG CONTEST!  Yep,  you too can win a copy of The Reckoning of Asphodel!  All you have to do is visit my blog and post a comment and you’re entered.  Contest ends on Valentine’s Day (cuz I luvs you guyz) and the winner gets not only a copy of my book, but a brand spanking new not shared with anybody LOLCat AND a reserved copy of Book Two.  You’ll get your copy the day that Redemption is released!

On top of that, if you bring a friend and have them mention your name in their post, I’ll enter you again.  Just think how many entries you could have if all of your friends stop by! Go to Elf-Killing and Other Hobbies (follow the linkie) and enter.

So this is my universal ‘thank you’ for everyone who has helped Asphodel become successful.  Have a great day!

Celina

I love writing.  I spend over ten hours a day at my desk.  And I am so happy that Aspen Mountain Press saw fit to publish my debut novel The Reckoning of Asphodel.  For now, just before the sequel The Gift of Redemption comes out in the spring, Asphodel is starting to get some great reviews and even an award.

Let’s start off with this: The Reckoning of Asphodel is epic high fantasy.  It has a strong female protagonist and enough romance and chivalry to satisfy the romance reader.  There’s also enough blood, guts, war, magic, and prophecy to make the fan of traditional fantasy happy.  Personally, I love epic fantasies.  Tolkien is my hero, just as Hope Mirrlees was.

More on that in a bit.

First review was from Love Romances & More.  Asphodel received five out of five stars and this is part of what the reviewer said: “…THE RECKONING OF ASPHODEL is a wonderfully complex story that lures the reader in and delivers a fast pace ride that leaves you breathless. All this reviewer could do was hanging on for the ride! New author Celina Summers delivers a stunning novel that captures the readers’ attention on the first page and never lets up until the last page is turned…”

Melissa at Dogwild *some of you know her ;)* said in her very lovely review “…The Reckoning of Asphodel is high elven fantasy at its best and I can’t wait for the rest of the story to unfold. This story needs to be in print so I can drag it around with me for reading without banging my laptop up…”

Then came this weekend.  I received a third review from Novelspot.com which read in part: “The Reckoning of Asphodel, by Celina Summers, is traditional high fantasy, with chivalric knights and wood-wise elves, beautiful princesses and wise female seers, good and evil sorcerers and magicians. It’s written in the language typical of the genre. It is, however, much better written, with more complex characters and situations, than many similar books. This is a serious fantasy novel, not the verbal equivalent of a computer game…”

That’s not what got me.  This was: “…The style reminds me a bit of Hope Mirrlees’ Lud-in-the-Mist…”

Oh my goodness.  Dang.  That blew me away.  Well, that and this:  

Don’t really know what to make of that one.  Those of you who voted for Asphodel, thank you.  If you enjoyed that first book, I sincerely hope you catch the second.  The Gift of Redemption, Book Two in the Asphodel series, should be out in 2008.  I’ll give you more details as soon as I can.  Thanks for suffering through my bragfest too.

In the end, you have to give it up for the authors and editorial staff at AMP.  There’s something for everyone here, and you can’t go wrong with the books that AMP offers.  If you want to learn more about me or the Asphodel series, check out my blog or my website.  Follow the linkies and you can find a wealth of information.

Once again, thanks!