What am I up to now?
On a personal note, I finished all three of my children's conferences. My son is in 4th grade, and my twin girls are in first grade (after doing a second year of kindergarten). All three are doing beautifully, and this is the first year I haven't received a phone call due to poor behavior. In fact, I cried in both of the twins' conferences, because their growth astounds me. I'm so grateful to see them learning and growing, and I've definitely shared a giggle, knowing that these children of mine all despise writing. Last year was the first year my son developed a positive attitude, and this year his interest is only if he can type it on a computer. No complaint here.
This year is a big one for me with writing goals. I've taken a few breaks so far to read for pleasure as well as in my genre--YA Fantasy. My favorite reads this year have been Onyx & Ivory by Mindee Arnett (I just bought the sequel and haven't had a chance to start it), The Star-Touched Queen and A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi, and The Last Namsara and The Caged Queen by Kristen Ciccarelli. In both Chokshi and Ciccarelli's series, I loved the second book more than the first.
In 2018's NaNoWriMo, I WON and completed Swords & Cinder's rewrite. Only one scene remains from the original, while the underlying concept remains the same. The setting was moved to Paris and Versailles during the end of King Louis XIV's reign. I sent it to Cps and went to work on rewriting my Adult Fantasy to make it YA. Unfortunately, I received troubling news from my Cps and decided in March, S&C needed reworked again. I completed changes in May and resent my fulls and received many requests when I resumed querying. As the months of waiting tick by slowly, I'm back to work on Saving Kentan. But then came October with its haunting beauty, and I was drawn into a new shiny. For a couple weeks, I let the spark catch the kindling of my imagination. Then hubby pushed me to put it on paper. I haven't yet set it onto a word document, but I've started filling my notebook with words and pictures.
A new folder on my computer contains pics--Ash and Nova and Gregory. MonsterVerse (Kong and Godzilla) meets Stranger Things in this unnamed YA novel--it will have fantasy, historical, and suspenseful elements. In 1912, the world watched the Titanic sink. In November, a hurricane passed through Jamaica, uncovering an island that should've remained beneath the balmy waters. Day reveals beautiful greenery and unidentified creatures that live there. Night plunges the island into nightmare--wasteland swallows the vegetation and any creatures unable to find refuge are hunted. Chaos reigns until dawn, as monsters of legend devour everything that breathes. But the dangers are placed in folders and marked as confidential, as the opportunity for money brings visitors to the island. Everyone who signs on understands--no one steps foot on the island after dark.
When twins Nova and Gregory trade a promising collegiate future for the island's allure, they do not realize the foolishness of their choice. Before the first night falls, Nova finds trouble in helping a hurt animal, and Gregory must decide whether to remain by her side and face nighttime dangers or go for help. Their demise is certain until a strange boy rescues them and leads them to a secret civilization living on the island. Ash faces his community's fury with calm naivety, and they make a plan to return the twins to their people. When no one returns, the twins are forced to join the community and learn the secrets of the island.
Help returns, but with it comes war. The twins are caught in the middle, fearful innocent blood will be spilled before they can explain. But no one cares about what two sixteen-year-old children have to say, and Ash wants war to proceed. Bringing his world into theirs has offset the natural order, and if it's not returned beneath the ocean waters once more, night may come and never leave.
ASH
NOVA GREGORY
