Crooked Raven | Sneak Peek

Less than a week before Crooked Raven is out for the world to read, shred, burn, or hopefully enjoy 😜 To get you excited I’ve decided to share a couple glimpses into the story! So keep reading if you’re interested in an exclusive preview…

This is my last post before Crooked Raven is released to the world! I’m not panicking. Nope. Not one bit. …I know it’s hard for sarcasm to come through text so if you missed it, well, there it was because I am definitely a bit panicky about people being able to simply buy and read my book without me there to grant or deny access. I love being the gatekeeper to my work (I can be a bit of a control freak) and now my little booth is being torn down to become a public space. And it’s not strangers reading my books that has me nervous really. It’s the people I know. The people I’ll have to see in my day-to-day life that I’m terrified of having read my books. Because if a stranger doesn’t like it, well, the internet is full of trolls for anything and everything (whom I’ll likely never have to meet) so take it with a grain of salt, yeah? But if a friend or family member or colleague were to ho-hum at my book I’d simply be crushed.

So if you know me in person and don’t like my published work then just lie to me because I can take criticism from just about anyone except my familiars. *Shudders*
(I know I’m weak. Get over it.)

Also a quick heads up on self-publishing a book. It’s a stress-bomb of a challenge. Part of that is because I wrote this book three years ago and I’ve had to reacquaint myself with the story as well as do more edits and spellchecks, another part of this is because technology seems to be against me for once (seriously, everything from image files getting messed up to formatting issues previously fixed somehow returning with a vengeance), and of course part of this is the fact that I was so nervous about committing to publishing that I let deadlines pass me by (something I normally never do) and now I’m working down to the wire (which I hate). But mostly it’s because self-publishing your own work is simply a stressful endeavor.

I’ve had to teach myself not only the process of uploading a paperback and eBook to Amazon’s respective publishing services (Createspace & KDP) but because as simple as it sounds and as simple as they “try” to make it, it’s still stupid. Well, for a paperback you just have to put it into a .pdf then upload. Bam. Done. (Okay there’s actually a bit more to it than that). But somehow doing an eBook is ridiculous. At least for me (probably only for me). It requires lots of formatting and steps to make sure it’s embedded into the .html file so that it translates correctly to the .mobi final product. I tried several different tactics and programs for formatting and everything just seemed to hate me haha (What is it about this book that has turned technology against me??) BUT I’ve learned (and like a nerd I wrote out a “Formatting for Dummies” guide in case I forget what I worked so hard to figure out) so fingers crossed from here on out it’ll be Easy, Breezy, Beautiful (Cover Girl. ha).

Maybe another day I’ll write a post with some self-publishing tips…?

But today is not supposed to be yet another rambling post from me. So with no further ado here, as promised in the title, is an excerpt and a teaser from my upcoming novel Crooked Raven (Out June 26th! Links below).

Note: I hope you’ve been seeing all the teasers and excerpts I’ve been sharing on social media especially in my Facebook group “Talismonium” and if you have then feast your eyes because this post holds an exclusive sneak peek not shared anywhere else.

3…2…1…

Excerpt #1

Weaving through the crowd dodging begging hands and sticky treats they searched for any sign of Israfil. Sarai cried out as a man in a terrifying wolf-mask smashed into her, a part of a freshly brewing brawl. People in masks were everywhere bearing the faces of all sorts of distorted animals and mythical creatures. Everywhere they turned there were sagging mouths, horrid horns, twisted noses, but always two dark shadowy holes where the person’s eyes hid from the world.

Trying to escape the pandemonium they pushed through the crowd but the crowd pushed them back. A man with a Harlequin mask stumbled into Adrianna as the darkness swirled and the stage lights pulsed and all became a rushing spinning charm of disillusionment tossing their group about in its storm when suddenly a single clear note rang out like that of a tiny silver bell yet it cut sharply through the tent.

And just like that the nightmare disappeared. The audience turned towards the stage seeking the source of the spellbinding sound.

“Where’s Adrianna?” asked Jack sharply.

“I don’t know,” panicked Sarai turning every which way in search of their friend.

“Up there!” Shaun cried pointing to the petite form of Adrianna climbing up to one of the high-rise platforms. It was wider than typical, constructed for a show where dancers often used it in their routines before leaping off and catching their aerial silks or prancing delicately along the tightrope. They all watched Adrianna as she took a step towards the ledge. Her movements seemed slow, almost as if in a trance.

Understanding flashed across Jack’s face and he bolted.

Excerpt #2

The waning sun cast deep shadows across his strong form and his keen ears picked up the sound of scuttling feet on the watchtower trees. “Facta!” someone cried out, probably Peter whom actually enjoyed guard duty.

“Non verba,” he replied in a growl. As he began his descent down the slick steps into the camp he felt a mob of eyes staring with fear slowly widening in vague recognition. His confident pace advanced him to the center of the clearing where his fellow Whispers circled around curious and wary. Abel stood waiting at the head of the crowd with his arms crossed.

“What have you done, Geoffrey?” accused Abel. “What did Titus want?”

“We made a trade,” rumbled Geoffrey…