In October, I added to my dragons-hoard of books after an excellent time thrifting/antiquing. Looking ahead, I plan to read four exciting titles: “The Wild Huntress,” “Godkiller,” “Realm Breaker,” and “The Uninvited Guests,” each offering unique stories blended with mythology, fantasy, history, and mystery, perfect for my TBR. The TBR never truly ends does it?
Continue Reading →I can’t believe it… is that… an (almost) on time monthly update post? Your eyes do not deceive you! This post is finally not late. October is my favorite month of the year! As my birthday month, spooky season, and the anniversary for my first book’s release-there’s a lot of stuff happening in October! Submissions, College, and Work As I’ve been taking more Creative Writing courses in college, I’ve been writing a lot more short form fiction. I’ve finished some flash-fiction and submit them to a few magazines that I think could be interested–so fingers crossed there! In college, I’ve…
Continue Reading →They say you are what you eat, and that applies to creativity as well. I believe the books you consume have more an effect than you might first think. For me it started with working freelance, I edited a wide range of stories from across all sorts of genres. Then I found interest in many more areas. Then I began my minor in Classical Humanities, and began reading classics and learning about Greco-Roman myths and religion. There is a noticeable difference in my writing process and works since I began reading widely. As I learn more history, religion, languages, and…
Continue Reading →The long-awaited update is here! I have much news to unpack, from chatting about college life, writing work, and a recipe I’ve been baking nonstop since Fall started! So let’s kick off October with a recap! With the release of the Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, there has been a lot of new lore for the community to unpack. I’ve been watching lore breakdowns from channels like VaatiVidya and FatBrett who do a phenomenal job at bringing new discussions to the table. As I’ve been getting into Latin studies and Greek and Roman religions in college, I’ve been…
Continue Reading →So I’m sure you’ve noticed, I haven’t posted anywhere in a while. In short, I decided to take a break. At first I was simply too busy to post and kept trying to find the time to prep something to put out there, but that time never really came around. I had finals for my Summer courses and a ton of planning and work to do in preparation for Fall semester. I’ve also been working on writing the sequel to The Final Born, the rewrite for The Spellbound Abbey, and the Deathless Project. Not to mention my freelance work! After…
Continue Reading →Today, with the digital age writers have many tools at their fingertips to help finish that first draft. Whether you’re drafting a novel, a blog post, or even just writing for fun – the right tools can make the world of a difference. In this post, I wanted to go over free tools, and paid tools! Read on to become a pro at utilizing the best tools for writers! Free Tools While there is importance in paid tools for quality, that doesn’t mean there aren’t good free options out there! So here are a few free tools you can find…
Continue Reading →The Final Born Updates… So… The Final Born released this month! It has received so much love since it’s release date – I am so glad everyone is loving it so far! We had a few hiccups with Amazon not showing it being available at first, but now you can get the book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kindle Unlimited, and direct on my website under the books page for The Final Born. I’m honestly so hyped to have the book out, but also I’m kinda like… what now? I’m working on book two on and off and working on some…
Continue Reading →For writers and authors understanding the writing process from start to finish is essential! You learn more and more every time you go through it. It is a complex and fulfilling journey, but is there one correct way to navigate the writing process? So many authors have so many different methods… Is there a one-size-fits-all writing routine? Absolutely not! It is excellent to try many different writing routines to change it up or discover what works for you, but just because a method is done by a famous author doesn’t mean it will work for you. I’ve tried a hundred…
Continue Reading →From the dark and mysterious worlds of Lordran in Dark Souls to the adventures between the pages Meggie goes on in Inkheart — I’ve been inspired by many types of stories. Stories captivate, they become a bubble away from the world to exist in, even if just for a short while, to go on an adventure. Whether that be through books, video games, movies, or tv shows — stories entertain, teach, and inspire creativity in others. Since I was very young I’ve always wanted to be an author and write stories of a wide variety (usually within a fantasy genre) but as I grow…
Continue Reading →Balancing creativity and marketing can be rough. If you’re an indie author like me, you have to be a writer and full-time content creator just to get your book a safe start when you publish. After two book launches and loads of writing posts, I’ve tried many systems to organize my social media system. From scribbled notes to all sorts of online programs meant to streamline the process, I believe I’ve found the best mix of programs and systems to use to make social media less of a headache for indie authors. So in this article, I’m going to review:…
Continue Reading →The Final Born Updates… Some news for The Final Born as we get even closer to the release date! I had quite a few fun things happen in April! First off I ran a a giveaway for a hardcover copy of The Final Born as well as many bookish goodies in April. The winner has already received their box and posted it on Instagram! I’ve never run a giveaway before, so that was fun! I’ll try to run another one soon. Over on Insta there are two book tours running for The Final Born, you can see the posts via…
Continue Reading →The Final Born Updates… Not as much news for The Final Born as there was with the cover and release date reveals in February – but we’ve still had a few exciting things to share this month! We have a playlist up on Spotify now to suit the mood of the story, I’ve been listening to it nonstop. It includes songs by Florence + the Machine, Lord Huron, and Of Monsters and Men. (My favorite song in the playlist is Rule # 4 – Fish in a Birdcage by Fish in a Birdcage!) Be sure to check it out here…
Continue Reading →It’s always fun to consider how you can relate to others. What common interests are there? What do they read compared to what I read? What are their favorite books? In my upcoming novel The Final Born, the main three have many similarities, but wildly different taste in books! Do you have similar taste to the main three of The Final Born? Calypso Pallas First off, Calypso. Cal is the last princess of Vasyla. Being born under the star of the white tern she is believed to be cursed and many of her own people despise her for it. Calypso…
Continue Reading →We’ve all reached that point in our lives where we feel stuck. Someone hit pause on us and we sit and watch as everyone else runs ahead. Whether you’re fresh out of high school, struggling in college, or stuck in your golden years looking back at the past it is easy to look at yourself and compare to those around you. With the rise in social media, this can be especially difficult. When you scroll through media to forget about your struggles, all you see are other people’s successes. While once it was just your social circles you would compare…
Continue Reading →Today I have a whole ton of art to share with you all! From the race designs that will be featured at the beginning of the book to the chapter headers and the map – this book has a whole lotta art going into it. So let’s just dive right in! The Map… The map shown above was made by Saumya Singh (@Saumyasvision/Inkarnate). While most of the story takes place in the capital city of Lyreas – many important figures from the districts of Vasyla come to the capital for the end of year festivals. Some of our characters venture…
Continue Reading →As I begin to work on the drafts for the sequel to The Final Born, I thought I’d do a little post on drafting motivation. So you’re working on your first draft. Everything is going perfectly, you think you’ve found the one! This is it! This will be your big break! But then the butterflies go away. The pages lose their luster, and the story seems bleak. Suddenly, any other idea seems better and it feels like everyone else is doing much better with their own work. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Every writer goes through a slow…
Continue Reading →When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature. ― Ernest Hemingway Making realistic characters can be a difficult task, but it can be rewarding when done correctly. With a realistic character, your readers will find them and their actions believable. The story will pull them in, and they will root for the characters, and find joy in the character’s joy, and sadness in their sadness. A believable and realistic character is one of the most important aspects of a story. So for today’s article, we will be going over a…
Continue Reading →In my upcoming book, The Final Born, there are three main characters. A cursed princess, a secondary heiress, and an amnesiac guard. Calypso Pallas, Ophelya Nephus, and Leandre Elias. As these three characters try to forge their own path and control fate – they also hold the fate of their empire in their hands. Will they change the ending to their stories? Or play right into their expected ends as the struggle against it? Well, you’ll have to read the book to find out! But for now, lets discuss the characters… First off, we have Calypso Pallas the cursed royal…
Continue Reading →This post has been a long time coming – I absolutely adored this book! I wanted to do a full review of it for a while but never quite had the time but now that book two is releasing I thought now was perfect to create some hype and show some love for the first book! Before we get into the review, let’s talk about the book! The Calling by L. C. Pye is a Dystopian Fantasy set in Landore: a place separated into five callings which keep the people in segregation. Creating a discord and isolation between each faction.…
Continue Reading →It’s finally time for a major update on what’s happening with my next book: The Final Born! So far it’s looking like a late spring or early summer release in 2024! But before we get there, we have a few updates to discuss… So it’s been a while since I’ve posted here as it’s been a while since I’ve had anything to post! Book progress was a little slow for a while as some feedback I was waiting on was delayed but it was well worth it as the book has vastly improved with the last revision! I even have…
Continue Reading →Time for a new book review! This was a book I was very excited for and I was so thrilled to be included as an ARC reader for When Gods Fall! From the first page I was enchanted – S. E. Bouvier’s writing style is extraordinary. Before we get into the nitty gritty of the pros and cons of this book – here is the blurb… Two sisters. Both destined for greatness. One will rise. One will fall. In the Freefolk camps, magic is forbidden, and the gods are dead. Alena has lived in the camps all her life but…
Continue Reading →Chaos has fallen over Ystara as the Ash Blood plague has either turned or killed many of the people of this country, and after a century of sleeping in an empty sarcophagus – the mage Liliath emerges unharmed from the fall of her country. Unscathed and unaffected, her awakening does not signal coming peace, no she doesn’t care for her people. Instead Liliath sets her sights on four young Sarancians, as they all hold something she needs to complete her quest, one that brings death and destruction with it. The Angel Mage by Garth Nix follows a three musketeers style…
Continue Reading →I’ve beta-read more unpublished novels than I have been reading published ones as of late. I enjoy helping other writers polish their books, just as I adore getting feedback for my own stories. Getting an outside view of your work can be incredibly valuable — it can help you notice something that would have gone unnoticed until after the story is published. It can lead to a more polished story and a more satisfactory writing process. Writing a book is difficult work, with self-publishing many writers choose to revise and edit their books themselves. This is why Beta Readers are…
Continue Reading →Hello Darlings, welcome to my new author website! This has been long in the works to craft a site that I can actually edit and work with without losing my mind. I am not very tech-savvy, but I finally put together something that isn’t a headache to add new posts to. So time for some updates! Why have I not been posting consistently? Well, life. I’ve been focusing on organizing and planning for my education path and for my freelancing work and I have finally reached a point where I have time to focus on writing again. I am nearly…
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Mason Monteith, Author Blog 