Hello again!

Apply to get your review copy of War with Elves for Profit and Amusement here:

War with Elves: Review Copy

I say this every time, but reviews really, really, really, really help.

People are just more willing to give a new book a try if there are reviews to back it up. I know that personally, I like to check out the 1- and 2-star reviews to see what some people disliked, and then weigh it against the more positive reviews.

People on the review team will get preference for review applications, as well as anyone who has reviewed or beta read for me in the past. I'm more than happy to accept new applicants as well!

A brief tangent about Tolkien-style elves

Why did I choose to write this industrial-revolution-era fantasy book with silver-haired, willowy, pointy-eared, Tolkien-style elves?

As someone who has been obsessed with The Lord of the Rings since my early teens, the better question might be: why did it take me so long to write a book with elves in it?!

What drew me to Tolkien's work and Jackson's films most were the elves. Nothing in the world was as cool to me.

I had Legolas action figures. I would name my character in video games 'Legolas' and only use bows and arrows. I would choose new books to read based on whether the cover had an elf on it. I got into real-life archery. You get the picture.

Weirdly, I wrote 6 elfless books despite this lifelong obsession. I guess I was afraid of getting it wrong? Or maybe I thought they should remain as Tolkien's special 'thing'? Whatever the case, I was definitely avoiding it out of some vague apprehensiveness.

Finally, with my seventh book, I decided that I had a good enough take on my own elves to justify trying it. It's not the first book ever to feature elves in this kind of time period, but it's still a fresh enough combination for me. It was fun to write! Fourteen-year-old me would be proud.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading, and if you had a 'weird elf phase' like me, I hope my elves can live up to your expectations!

New blog has dropped!

Every 36 months or so, I actually get around to writing a blog post for the blog that was supposed to be updated every fortnight.

For those of you who are interested in writing, this one is some advice on fixing scenes that are either too heavy in plot or too heavy in character.

What to do with plot/character-heavy scenes

The navigation isn't the best on the blog part of my website, so I'll include a few other random blogs here in case they spark your interest:

The fantastic prose of Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake

Were the curtains really just ... blue? Or: what your english teacher was trying to say

Enjoy reading!

Are there any blog topics you'd like to see? I'm open to suggestions—I really need to do it more regularly!

Cheap & Free Book Recommendations

Click on the images to learn more

Thanks for reading!

Until next time!

Are there any blog topics you'd like to see from me? Shoot me an email and I'll see what I can do!

Contact me about anything at all by simply replying to this email.