Spring Flowers = Time For The Weirdness Hat 🌸
Mar 01, 2023 4:01 pm
In case you've been hanging out on my newsletter for a long while and managed to forget just how WEIRD C.L. Carhart actually is, well....
I'll have you know, last night I put some violet petals in my rice.
The floral flavor isn't quite as obvious when you stick violet petals into cooked food, apparently. Last spring, I added them to a salad, which gave my taste buds an explosive burst of 🌺🌹🌸🌼. In rice? I hardly noticed their presence.
My husband concurs.
Now we're hoping salad ingredients will be on sale at the grocery store, so we can experience that true moment of violet-y goodness sometime soon. Might add a few snips of field garlic (a.k.a. wild onions) to keep things interesting. 😉
Okay, now that you've had your yearly (weekly?) reminder that C.L. Carhart likes to delve into weirdly wild food, what's she been up to on the writing front? She keeps mentioning a "secret project." Is it about time we find out what that is?
Glad you asked.
HNWA Giant Box Set Incoming
I've been blabbing on and on about my paranormal romance series, Elemental Bloodlines, for quite a while now. That's mainly because I learned some lessons after publishing my first series—like how it's a bad idea to not commit to a genre, and how the first book in a series has to be "utterly spectacular" if you want readers to dive into to a long journey featuring the same main character(s).
I missed the mark on both with my first series. -facepalm-
Of course, when I published my debut novel, Arcane Gateway, back in March 2021, I didn't have YOU along for the ride. At that point in my author career, I was pretty much dependent on social media (worst EVER method of catching readers' interest) and friends & family. As much as I love my friends & family, I learned pretty quick that most of them aren't into Weird Carhart Teutonic Romantic Fantasy With Antiheroes And A Dash Of Time Travel. 🤪
Who woulda guessed?
So why am I beating the proverbial dead horse and trying to resurrect my HNWA series from the dead NOW? I mean, the series is already complete—bonus epilogue included for readers who bought the box set of Books 4-6. Six books, two box sets, two bonus stories, and just a handful of readers who've read them all. Shouldn't that give me a fair hint to move on?
Probably.
But it hasn't.
Right now, I'm revamping my author website into a Shopify store with the hopes of officially donning the hat of "businesswoman" rather than "indie author dependent upon retailers (who take a sizeable cut of profits)." That way, if all the online retail monoliths crash & burn, I can still shove my eBooks in your mouth from my very own website. 💖
And that's the only place you'll be able to find the HNWA Giant Box Set.
But Why?
I can guess what you're thinking.
"Look. I already bought the HNWA 1-3 box set last May when you first published it. Yep, I read the bonus epilogue about Muniche's destruction. Maybe I even read the HNWA 4-6 box set when it came out in August. And I read Vreni's short story when I first joined your newsletter. Enough's enough. Why would I want to buy ANOTHER version of Swanie's saga? Don't I have all of it already?"
Answer?
Nope. You don't have all of it.
But this is your chance to get all of it now & forevermore. See, the difference about selling eBooks on my own website—as opposed to selling them from retailers like Amazon or Kobo—is that once you buy an eBook from me, that means I can send YOU any updated versions that come down the pipeline....
For free. 🎉
Because if you buy from my website—and therefore from me personally—I'll keep your email address in the depths of my authorly heart. Which means anytime I happen to make substantial changes to an eBook, I can send out fresh copies to readers who have bought directly from my website.
And trust me, I've got some meaningful bonus scenes simmering in the cauldron known as the HNWA Giant Box Set. Some of which might include spicy romance between Swanie & Augustin, along with touching moments when Swanie's children discover their elemental magic for the first time. 💕
Here's a quick overview of what you'll find in the HNWA Giant Box Set:
- Book 1 - Arcane Gateway - Swanie juggles elemental magic and unrequited love while trying to maintain a normal life. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 1992-2000.
- Bonus Story - Veiled Magic - Swanie and Vreni explore their newfound magic and grapple with young love. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 1993-1998.
- Book 2 - Mystic Passage - Swanie travels to the past to uncover her people's mystical secrets, only to fall desperately in love with a priest who serves a demon. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 1044-1045.
- Book 3 - Astral Fantasia - Swanie faces a loveless marriage and tragic loss while her city’s destruction looms on the horizon. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 1045-1066. **This book includes the bonus epilogue from the HNWA 1-3 box set.
- Book 4 - Cryptic Pathway - Swanie contends with an unwanted fate and a bond that shatters her dreams. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 2000-2002.
- Book 5 - Lurid Curse - Swanie faces the dark side of magic as demonic forces strive to claim her most guarded secret. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 2002-2020.
- Bonus Story - Winter Flame - Vreni inches closer to seizing elemental magic of her own with her partner's help. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 2006.
- Book 6 - Numinous Fortune - Swanie joins with Augustin to shatter a demon’s hold on her destiny. Teutonic Fantasy Realm, 1074. **This book includes the bonus epilogue from the HNWA 4-6 box set.
You'll also find every single cover art for all 8 books. Plus a brand-new cover art sporting Swanie & Augustin in a rather sweet pose! Did you notice it in the header up top? 😍
Here's another look at it. As usual, J. L. Wilson Designs nailed my vision for Swanie's twisted journey into the arms of her one true love. (I've linked my cover artist's website to the photo since this box set will NOT be a pre-order.)
Just how soon will I have my Shopify store up & running, so you can get your hands on the box set & all its future updates? I'm working toward a March 10th goal to celebrate my official 2-year anniversary as a published author. Got lots to do on the back end first, so next Wednesday I'll let you know how things are coming along. Might have a secret snippet to share next week, too!
It's Freebie Time!
It's been far too long since I've been able to share a book fair stuffed to the brim with no-strings-attached freebies. Not sure if my indie author peers are backing away from the concept of permafrees to try other sales strategies. (Times are tough for all of us, so I totally understand if that's the case!) Luckily, my author friend C. Gockel has a sweet book fair chugging along for one more week, and it's sporting over 40 fantasy & sci-fi eBooks that are free on most retailers.
Check it out, and if you haven't grabbed Arcane Gateway yet, now's the time!
Books You Might Like
This week I've got 2 eBooks to share courtesy of my fellow indie authors. One's a freebie with newsletter signup, while the other is on sale at most retailers. Are you looking for a magical, witchy read or would you like to run with werewolves? These books have got you covered.
Grinnell is sent to find the barou master to help someone he considers family. What he finds is a beautiful woman he can’t ignore.
Mehanna has magic in her blood but she doesn’t know how to control it. The one time she tried went horribly wrong. She blames it on the fact she had no one to train her. She had been dumped on the planet as a child with no memories, and left to her own devices. The only thing she can create without an issue is a piece of fruit.
Grinnell learns she has trapped the woman he needs in a mirror. In order to complete his mission, he offers to help her find out where she came from and find someone to free the barou master. They find someone who helps Mehanna free the barou master and unlock her memories which reveal she has a real problem. She has a wizard coming for her. He wants her power and sent her to that planet on purpose.
Grinnell and Mehanna have to defeat this wizard before he destroys everything they hold dear.
Chloe Weiss’ dreams have finally come true: She's a null no more, her wolf has finally come. She's now a full member of her pack in the remote Appalachian ‘weretown’ of Hunstville.
Even better, she's mated to the pack's next alpha, Jackson Swift. However, now that she's on the other side of her happy ending, things aren't quite as rosy as she'd expected.
The women of her pack resent her status as alpha's mate and suddenly there are rumors that Chloe is an Omega, a werewolf so weak they are banned from ever mating. Worse, an old friend of Jackson's blows into town full of disapproval...and competition. It seems no one likes Chloe except Jackson.
Then women start disappearing, violently kidnapped from their homes and never heard from again. There's a killer on the loose in the small town of Huntsville, and the one wolf he'd do anything to have is Chloe.
Now Chloe will have to fight...for Jackson, her place in the pack, and her life.
🌸 Floral Pix 🌸
Yesterday, when my husband and I snatched a couple violets during our morning walk through the neighborhood, he also took some pictures of the other wildflowers & cultivated flowers reaching for the sun. In case your part of the world is still buried in heaps of snow, here's a reminder that spring will come!
Now I'm off to mess around with Shopify & write some more bonus content for my HNWA Giant Box Set. Looking forward to having YOU join Swanie in her saga-length journey to love, acceptance, and victory. 💖
Talk to you soon, and stay weird!
C.L. Carhart
Get Arcane Gateway for free: https://books2read.com/hnwaag
Get Veiled Magic for free: https://bf.clcarhart.com/jp1vp51i52
Check out all of C.L. Carhart's books: https://books2read.com/clcarhart
This week's book fair:
https://bf.clcarhart.com/permafree-science-fiction-fantasy/6hs70h3hjo