Category: A Dance Of Water And Air

Rainbow Snippets January 8-9

1/8/2022

It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets! The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ.

Today, I'm sharing a snippet from A Dance of Water and Air, the first book in my Elemental Magicae series about two princes who must find a way to save both their kingdoms from a plot against them, and hopefully find a way to be together too. I thought about this series because it happens in winter, and we just got snow here. So, a snippet of A Dance of Water and Air involving snow, which is something Edmund sees little of in his home country.

Edmund turned back to the window. Snow was indeed falling lightly to the ground. An almost childlike delight filled him. He’d thought the view beautiful before, but with the softly falling snow and the hushed stillness it brought, it was perfect, like a painting.

“I love that smile.” Arden’s whisper startled Edmund, and perhaps Arden too if his widened eyes were anything to go by.

“What?”

Arden bit his lip. “The way you smiled when you saw the snow, as if you took such joy in the simple sight of it. I wish I could see you smile that way more.”

Find out more about A Dance of Water and Air here. Thanks for reading today, and I hope you're all staying safe and well.

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Rainbow Snippets October 9-10

10/9/2021

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When they arrived at the border, they were met by a contingent of Aither guards who joined them for the rest of the journey. Edmund’s own guards would see him safely delivered to the castle and then return home, leaving him on his own but for Peregrine and one personal guard. The sense of vulnerability and exposure was odd and unfamiliar—he’d spent his whole life surrounded by guards loyal to his family and kingdom. The idea of not knowing whether he could trust anyone made him uneasy. Logically, he knew they had to protect him, if only to protect their own queen and the alliance she’d made. But it was little comfort, especially with a looming threat to Thalassa.

He found some distraction when the landscape began to change. They climbed upward—rolling hills becoming higher and steeper, air that had been pleasantly warm on the coast taking on the chill of autumn, leaves that had still been green at home changing to red and rust and gold. Edmund’s first sight of the mountains pulled a gasp from him; he might have been embarrassed if Peregrine hadn’t done the same.

You can find more about A Dance of Water and Air here. Thanks for reading, and I hope you're all staying safe and well.

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Rainbow Snippets September 18-19

9/18/2021

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It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets! The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+

This week, I'm sharing a snippet from A Dance of Water and Air, the first book in the Elemental Magicae series. In this book, Prince Edmund must make an alliance marriage with Hollis, queen of the neighboring kingdom. But he and Hollis's brother, Prince Arden, find themselves growing closer instead. Then, Edmund is accused of trying to kill the queen. Arden helps him escape, and they flee, hoping to clear Edmund's name and save both of their kingdom—and find a way to be together. This is Arden's first sight of Edmund when he arrives in the throne room to be presented to Hollis. (I went a little over the sentence count—sorry!—but I thought it was necessary.)

The tall doors, polished wood with silver and gold set in a fluid pattern over the entire surface, were pulled open, and Prince Edmund stepped through.

Arden hadn’t expected the punch of instant attraction and didn’t much care for it. He had certainly been attracted to people before and had a couple of discreet liaisons when he’d found a potential lover he could trust, but he’d seldom felt an attraction so sudden and visceral, one that had him wondering what it would be like if he dragged Edmund off to bed.

But this was his sister’s intended—for an alliance marriage that was meant to secure the safety of their kingdom.

Still, Arden understood his own reaction. Edmund was breathtaking. He had light brown skin and shining dark brown hair that waved around his face. He was tall, with broad, strong shoulders tapering down to a narrow waist and hips and long legs. The heavily embroidered silk jacket and slim pants he wore—obviously in the style of the Thalassan court—showed off his body to its best advantage. He carried himself as the prince he was. No uncertainty, no unnecessary deference in his posture, even as he walked into a foreign court very nearly alone, and Arden respected him for it.

You can find more about A Dance of Water and Air here. Thanks for reading today, and I hope you're staying safe and well!

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Rainbow Snippets July 3-4

7/3/2021

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It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets! The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+

Continuing my first lines theme, I'm sharing the beginning of A Dance of Water and Air today. Dance is the first book in the Elemental Magicae series, currently complete at two books (though I keep thinking I might return to the world one day). In this book, Prince Edmund is sent to a neighboring kingdom to marry its queen but ends up falling in love with her younger brother, Prince Arden. When Edmund is accused of trying to murder the queen, he and Arden flee. They'll have to unravel treasonous plots to save both their kingdoms and find a way to be together. In this snippet, we're in Edmund's point of view. I went a couple of sentences over because I thought it made a better stopping point.

Edmund swam, long limbs slicing through the clear, warm water. His mind quieted in the repetitive motion, in the weightlessness and the comfort of being surrounded by his Element. Everything washed away, leaving him calm and relaxed, the only time he ever was lately.

If only he could stay there.

He imagined it for a moment. Spending his life swimming and sailing. All his time in the soothing embrace of the water, or at the shore or bank, feeling Water’s power, learning to use its magic. It was a lovely dream. A lovely, impossible dream. With that thought, tension—the tension his morning swim had briefly dispelled—came flooding back.

You can find out more about A Dance of Water and Air here. And, A Dance of Water and Air and all of my other books are 50% off in the Smashwords sale this month! Thanks for reading today.

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Read an Ebook Week Sale!

3/7/2021

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All of my books are 50% off in the Smashwords Read an Ebook Week sale through March 13th. You can find them all here. Go grab some books!

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Rainbow Snippets February 20-21

2/20/2021

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It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets! The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+

Last week, I shared the snippet of Griffen and Kirill's first kiss in The Envoy's Honor, which inspired me to take a little break from snippets from that book and share some other first kisses. I decided to start this week with Edmund and Arden in A Dance of Water and Air. In this scene, Edmund has been accused of trying to murder the queen he is supposed to marry and was thrown in the dungeon. Arden, the queen's brother, has decided to break Edmund out.

Two figures crowded into the doorway; Edmund had just realized who they were when one of the men spoke.

“Edmund,” Arden gasped. “Are you all right?”

“Arden—”

Arden rushed forward and pulled Edmund into a kiss, a kiss that tasted of fear and desperation and a brilliant sweetness underneath the rest. The suddenness of it, the impulsivity of Arden’s kissing him in front of others—in a dungeon of all places—froze Edmund for half a second, but then he was kissing Arden back, and he never wanted to stop.

You can find more about A Dance of Water and Air here. Thanks for reading today, and I hope you're all staying safe and healthy!

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Books on Sale if You Need a Distraction

3/17/2020

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NineStar Press is having a big sale so readers can get their hands on some books to read while isolating at home. It's a scary time, and I know I use books to comfort and distract myself. If you do too, here's a great opportunity to pick up some new ones. Everything at NineStar is on sale through the end of March! With regards to my books, A Dance of Water and Air is free (which has never happened before!) and the others, including newly released The Prince's Consort, are all 40% off. Find all of my books here.

Go forth and read, my darlings. Do things that make you happy (we all need a little happiness), while also washing your hands, not touching your face, and staying home as much as possible. Take care of yourselves.

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Rainbow Snippet January 18-19

1/18/2020

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It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets. The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+.

It's supposed to snow here today, so I thought I'd share a snowy snippet today from A Dance of Water and Air. Edmund is from a place where it doesn't snow often, though I do have to admit I share his feelings about snow...when I don't have to go out in it!

You can find out more about A Dance of Water and Air here. Thanks for reading today!

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Happy Anniversary, Edmund and Arden! (And a Giveaway)

10/1/2019

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A Dance of Water and Air has been out in the world one year today! I love this book and this world and these characters, and not only because it got me writing again at a tough time. The beginning of the idea for this book came with the question: what if a prince was supposed to marry a queen but fell for the wrong sibling? Everything in A Dance of Water and Air spun out from there. We have Edmund, prince and heir to the throne of Thalassa, obligated to marry the queen of neighboring Aither to create an alliance between their countries. Upon arriving in Aither, he finds intrigue he didn't expect and friendship with Arden, the queen's younger brother, that deepens in ways he doesn't anticipate. When Edmund is accused of trying to assassinate the queen, Arden helps him escape, and they run, trying to get Edmund to safety and pull two kingdoms from threat of way...and acknowledge that they've fallen in love. There's also elemental magic, found family, and MCs who are cis and demisexual and trans and bisexual. The romance ends happily in this book, but the fantasy plot is continued in A Harmony of Fire and Earth along with a new romance (and more of Edmund and Arden too). The story ends there for now, but I already want to revisit this world, so we'll see what happens...

Leave a comment below for a chance to win a copy of A Dance of Water and Air. I'll pick a winner in a week.

About A Dance of Water and Air:

Edmund is heir to the throne of Thalassa and a wielder of Water magic. Devoted to his kingdom and his duty to it, Edmund can do nothing but acquiesce to an arranged marriage with the queen of a neighboring kingdom. The marriage and the child it is required to produce will seal an alliance between Thalassa and Aither that is vital to Thalassa’s safety, and far more important than Edmund’s personal misgivings.

Arden is the younger brother of Aither’s queen and a wielder of Air magic. Raised in the politics of the court to support his sister’s rule, he understands the alliance is important to Aither, even as he worries about his sister marrying someone she’s never met. When Edmund arrives in Aither to prepare for the wedding, Arden is tasked with helping him settle in at court. As they spend more time together, Edmund and Arden develop a close friendship, then stronger feelings, but with Edmund’s wedding approaching, they must hide their feelings, even from themselves.

When someone tries to assassinate the queen, Edmund is blamed, and Arden rescues him before he can be executed for a crime he didn’t commit. To prevent a war between their kingdoms and protect them from a dangerous enemy, Edmund and Arden will have to discover who wants to pit Aither and Thalassa against each other and mend relations between the two kingdoms as they evade those searching for them—all while finding a way to be together.

Add A Dance of Water and Air to your Goodreads shelf.

Buy A Dance of Water and Air:
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Travel and Inspiration

9/20/2019

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If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you may have seen me mention my recent trip to France and Barcelona. I posted some pictures here and there, but I've been meaning to write a post about it since I got back earlier this month. I've put it off because of day job work and writing and preparing for The Spymaster's Secret coming out and adjusting back to my home time zone (I mostly have my sense of time back finally!).

But I didn't want to forget to talk about it because it was a lovely trip. I went with family and met wonderful people and saw beautiful things and learned lots of history and ate amazing food (so much pastry!) and drank so much wine. I was ridiculously lucky to get to go. I've always loved travel, but recent years haven't seen me able to travel as much as I would've liked. This trip was a fantastic opportunity...and also reignited my travel bug, which might not be such a great thing depending on when my next chance to get away is!

It was also a really inspiring trip in a lot of ways. But here's one very fun and exciting one. Does something look familiar about this particular chateau?

I got to visit Chateau de Chambord in the Loire Valley, which you can probably tell from the cropped cover photo above is the castle used on the cover of A Dance of Water and Air. I was so exciting I was absolutely shaking when I realized where I was! I only wish I'd know—I would've brought a copy of the book along and taken some pictures with it! This is absolutely one of my favorite of my book covers, and Chambord makes a lovely palace for Edmund and Arden. Not having the book didn't stop me from taking a bunch of photos anyway. It's a such a beautiful building! Here are a few more photos (including one of my in my very large summery hat) and one of the whole cover.

Travel has always been so inspiring for me. Being in new places, experiencing new things, learning, soaking up culture and art...all of those things have always sparked ideas and creativity. The worlds and characters in books owe so much to the bits and pieces I've absorbed on travels. I think this trip will do the same. This year has been a difficult one for writing for me—I've talked about why before, and I'm not going to go into it again here because I'm trying to be upbeat and ride on the giddy wave this recent trip caused. I'm hoping the little sparks of story and character and setting ideas that began floating around my head during this trip will get me writing steadily again. The Chateau de Chenonceau and Carcassonne's walls and towers struck me as sort of magical and fairy tale, and the countryside and coast were so beautiful. Returning to Paris makes me finally want to write that story set there that's been floating around in my head for too long. I need to finish the next Chronicles of Tournai book (and maybe this trip did shake some things loose because the end of that is finally coming together!), but after I finish, we'll see where my imagination takes me...

In the meantime, while I let my subconscious decide where we'll go next, here are a few of the (hundreds of) pictures I took while I was away.