April: A Month Of Planning And Plotting

Of Lies and Zombies turned one-year-old this month! For what feels like forever, I worked hard on writing, editing, and publishing All The What Ifs and Of Lies and Zombies. It sucked up all my writing time and plotting energy. And if I'm honest, completely sapped me.

Yet during that time I had plenty of new story ideas. With my first two books shipped off into the great big world of publishing, it’s time to get back into the swing of exploring new ideas and finishing up current works in progress.

What are these stories? I’m glad you asked!

Magic Story of Magic (a working title): Magic Story of Magic is an adult fiction romance/coming of age story about a young woman named Lily Banks. Magic Story of Magic is a blast to write. It’s rooted in the real world, but filled with impossible magic tricks. It has lame jokes and kissing and to repeat MAGIC TRICKS (a thing I’m having far too much fun writing). The first draft of Magic Story is SO CLOSE to being done. I'll have updates on the cover, book blurb, and more soon!

Something Dumb To Do (the third book of the Richmond High series): The third book in the Richmond High series Something Dumb To Do is Quinn’s story. Told is a present and past switch off, Something Dumb To Do is the story of a girl trying to avoid her parents’ mistakes, while she denies the pesky truth that sometimes the past isn’t what we perceived. The first draft of Something Dumb To Do is roughly halfway complete and will include characters from All The What Ifs and Of Lies and Zombies! But I ain’t sharing who. Something Dumb To Do’s cover is already in the works. It’s so stinking cute, and I can’t wait to share it.

Book Four of the Richmond High series: This book has me in knots already, and I can’t say much about it yet. But here’s what I will share: Ashley Morgan is back but as a secondary character who will play a pivotal role in a high school girl’s life as she faces a major, life alerting decision. Sound familiar? Kind of. And that’s all I will say for now.

I’ve got more ideas in the works (for example an adult fiction with a social media twist and a fantasy story inspired by a Death Cab for Cutie song). I could keep going, but we'd be here for a long time.

Not only have I been plotting new stories, but I am blogging regularly again! There are four new monthly features on Ang Writes: Ang’s Top Five which features five books based on a random theme, a book review of an indie favorite, On My E-reader a shout out to the ebooks I’ve bought but haven’t read yet, and a monthly wrap up that's ever changing.

It’s a year of words, my friends! Reconnecting with the joy of writing just for fun without strings attached or publishing goals looming over my head. It’s amazing and freeing. And I can’t wait to share more with you all soon!

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Happy Birthday, Of Lies and Zombies!

Today Of Lies and Zombies is one year old!

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Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you readers and reviewers for your encouragement over the last year! Thank you for buying a copy. Thank you for telling others about Of Lies and Zombies. Thank you for reaching out to me and letting me know what you think of Katie Bell. Thank you for writing a review. Thank you for sharing pictures of the book. Thank you for your encouragement and kindness. I am forever grateful. And I'll never stop saying thank you!

Haven't read Of Lies and Zombies yet?

Here's the book blurb!

And a link to Amazon.

You're welcome! 

Book Description: 

Katie Bell has a plan: the ‘Epic Summer of Epicness Before Senior Year' plan. There will be late night parties with her best friend Trevor and Grandma Frankie’s Chunky Monkey Chocolate Chip Cookies for breakfast. And maybe, just maybe, she’ll run into her nameless savior from Feldman’s party. Things she will be avoiding: her estranged father and workaholic mother 

Katie has a golden rule: when life gets too real avoid it by lying. But on the last day of junior year, when the lies won't stick and reality closes in, she is forced to run as far and as fast as she can straight into oddly familiar Logan. When Logan asks Katie to help him film a zombie movie, Katie jumps at the chance. 

Because Katie’s got a new plan: the ‘Avoid Reality at ALL Costs' plan.
Unfortunately, reality doesn’t play by Katie’s rules.

On My E-reader: The Raven's Wing

This month's On My E-reader pick is the irreplaceable, larger than life Michael Wombat's The Raven's Wing. A man of many yawns and Sunday Pix on Twitter, Wombat is engaging and entertaining. When he published The Raven's Wing, I snatched it up faster than you can say, well, wombat. Let me tell you why!

Book Description: They say you should follow your dreams. They never tell you what to do when the dreams start following you.

The year is 1322. Minstrel John has enough on his plate with his wife's funeral. He could do without the naked woman who keeps forcing her way into his dreams, the angel dropping skulls in the village church, the stranger that attacks him for no reason, and the sexy, one-eyed, fire-dancer who is after only one thing - his music. Then there are the voices in his head, compelling him to investigate a mystery that just keeps on growing.

Based on a true story, this is not history, this is the 14th century as experienced by those who lived there, and who saw it as the leading edge of time. As John discovers, demons and magic can be very real.

Reasons I bought it: Aside from the aforementioned Twitter stalking, his love of gimlets, and the yawns? Let's talk covers! This one is an eye-catcher. And the tagline "a medieval adventure" had me at hello. Moving beyond that, the description is unique and filled with so much potential for a hardy laugh and mind-blowing intrigue. The real question would be: WHY WOULDN'T I BUY THIS? I'm looking forward to enjoying this magic in the very near future.

Pick up your copy on Amazon!
Make sure to check out Michael Wombat on Twitter and his website.

Have you read The Raven's Wing?

Did you review it? Share it with me!

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

A Book Review: A Symphony Of Dragons

This month's book review is the lovely Lisa Shambrook's set of short stories A Symphony of Dragons.

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Book Description: Lose yourself in the enchanting worlds of fantasy, contemporary, steampunk, and post-apocalyptic, and let your imagination soar on a chorus of dragon wings. This lyrical collection of tales embracing change and desire, love and belonging, passion, sacrifice and triumph are composed with gossamer threads of dragon fire. Seven bewitching stories, including a Hope Within finale and a prelude to the forthcoming Seren Stone Chronicles. Let the song of dragons lead you…

Stories included: A Symphony of Seasons, The Apothecary's Art, Between Ice and Fire, Beneath Freya's Dragon, Noctilite Tryst, Paroxysm, and The Legend of the Seren Stone.

Ang's Review: A beguiling set of short stories filled with magic, heartbreak, and wonder, Lisa Shambrook's A Symphony of Dragons is a charming read that I could not put down. I gobbled it up in one sitting. The Legend of the Seren Stone hooked me! And I am eager to get my hands on the first book in The Seren Chronicles.*

Pick up a copy today on Amazon and other major retailers!

*Update: Currently I am beta reading The Seren Stone (book one in the Seren Chronicles). Y'all, obviously I can't share anything. However, if you're a lover of high fantasy, this series is for you! Don't walk, run to Lisa's Twitter and follow her so you can keep up on all the awesome to come. You will not regret it!

Ang's Top Five Standalone Fantasy Novels

Fantasy is one of my favorite genres. From kidlit like A Wrinkle in Time to middle school/young adult novels like Percy Jackson to epic adult series like Dragonlance, I'm down for it all. It's a good thing this list is limited to five picks or else we'd be here a long time, my friends. And for a fun twist, let's look at standalone novels. Without further ado, I present to you, five of my favorite standalone fantasy novels.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

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We're kicking this list off with a book
I've reread multiple times and love with all my heart.
It's dark and twisted.
Romantic and magical.
There's a reason I read The Night Circus over and over again.
That reason: it's so damn good.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

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While many readers love Gaiman's adult fictions,

in my humble opinion, his youth novels are where he shines.

The Graveyard Book is dark and spooky with undertones

of a sinister world while still maintaining a hopeful vibe.

The Graveyard Book is Gaiman at his best.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

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Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful. Book.
A classic fantasy novel with so much heart,
Tuck Everlasting takes on love and death.
And what it fundamentally means to be courageous and live.

Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin

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A clever take on the afterlife,
Gabrielle Zevin's Elsewhere left me in a puddle of tears.
Beautifully bittersweet, Elsewhere is one of
the most emotional books I've ever read.

Chime by Franny Billingsley

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Back when I was book blogging

I was offered the chance to read the Chime ARC.

I'd never heard of the author but decided to take a chance.

And I'm so glad I did.

Here's part of the review I wrote:

First and foremost, Chime is a beautifully written novel.
Each word picked for not only its meaning,
but its sound. Each phrase carefully crafted to grab our attention,
keep us hooked, move us, delight us.

You can read my full review of Chime on GoodReads.

What are your top fantasy novels?
Are you equal opportunity like me: able to read adult and children's fantasy?
Or are you loyal to adult or YA fiction?
Do you have a standalone fantasy favorite?
Or do you stick to series?
SO MANY QUESTIONS!