Did you miss me? Rats. I was afraid of that. But for anyone who may have noticed that I’ve been quieter than usual, I am happy to announce, I should be much more visible now. I’ve been in full-on Edit Mode for the last couple of weeks, but guess what? It’s DONE! The Emissary has been tweaked, nudged, tickled, polished, and otherwise edited to a fare-thee-well, and will definitely be released for public consumption in the next couple of weeks.
I’m pretty excited about this one, as it is a bit of a departure for me in several ways. For one, it’s my first novella, and if rapidity of writing and editing is anything to go by, it won’t be my last. Not quite instant gratification, but darn close. I’m definitely planning on doing more novellas in the future, and the next two will be the second and third books in the Emissary series.
It’s also my first attempt at something in the fantasy/urban fantasy vein–Urban Fantasy Lite, shall we say. Yes, there are paranormal aspects to the Wake-Robin Ridge series, with a few ghosts, an Appalachian legend or two, and some ESP, but this one is definitely new subject matter for me.
The Emissary is a spin-off of my Riverbend series, featuring a character introduced in Finding Hunter, but Riverbend is set firmly in reality, and The Emissary is most assuredly not. Since the story doesn’t take place in Riverbend, I think the genre change works. After all, Willow Greene did pose a question as to whether a certain trucker named Gabe Angelino might, in fact, be a real angel, so she opened the door. Blame her, if you don’t like what walked through. 😀
Telling this tale might have been the most fun I’ve had since I started writing. Look for more info (and possibly an excerpt or two) very soon.
I did miss you and I’m so excited about the book.
Lori
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Thanks, Lori! I’ll be posting an update on the beta blog soon. I’m super excited about this one! Sadly, I’m having to do a mass email delete, because I’m so far behind, I’d have to live to be 135 to take care of them all. 😦 But it’s good to know I’m starting to catch up on other things again.
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Good news. Good luck, Marcia!
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Thanks so much, Olga! I can’t wait to get this one “out there.” 🙂
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Congratulations! Best of luck with The Emissary.
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Thank you SO much, JP! I’m really excited about this one. *doing the happy dance, here*
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It sounds like you have been having a wonderful writing experience, Marcia. Lovely to see you back.
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I have, Robbie. I just LOVED working on this one. And now, I have an angel with huge white wings living in my head, along with the rest of the crowd! 😀 It’s great to be back, though. Thanks! 🙂
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Congrats on finishing the novella, Marcia. It sounds like a winner. Then again, I would expect nothing less from you.
I’ve got a mid-September deadline breathing down my neck so I might be less visible myself for the next two weeks. I can’t wait until I can put it behind me!
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If I had anyone other than my OWN self putting deadlines on me, I’d probably end up hospitalized! Don’t know how you do it. I’m tough enough on me, as it is. Good luck, and thanks for the kind words! 🙂 ❤
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I was beginning to wonder, Marcia. But wonderful that you’ve finished the novella. I’ll be disappearing after the book fair for abouit a month I think – the deadline for the next book looms!!.xx
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We are gluttons for punishment, aren’t we? The novella only took me 6 weeks to write, but then you have all the other finishing up stuff to do. Tomorrow, I’m having lunch with my cover designer, and brainstorming what we want to put on this thing. She’s so good, I can’t wait to hear what she thinks, and see her first creations. 🙂 Good luck on your deadline, Judith! 🙂 ❤
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Oh, good, another Judith Barrow book to look forward to.
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Yay! I am so looking forward to reading this ‘departure’! 😀
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Yay, back atcha! I hope you’ll enjoy it, Debby. And even though it’s a spin-off, this one really can be read without having read the Riverbend books. I can’t wait to see what you think, when you have time to get to it. Maybe by the time I release it, your TBR pile will miraculously have gotten smaller! 😀 ❤
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I can always find time to fit in a short one 😀
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Woohoo. I’m thinking there are going to be MORE of these in my writing future. 😀
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From me too 😀
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Yay. Such a great idea for those who have limited reading time, and I’ve read that novellas are really HOT right now, for that reason. Sure is less of a time investment to get one out there. At the least, I’m going to write one between each full length novel. 🙂
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I have lots planned, the usual problem is finding time. Perhaps that’s a way to do it – make a specific schedule.
Come to think of it, I’m sure that’s what I should do. If only it didn’t take me so long to write a whole novel!
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Yeah, but you write epic fantasy. I don’t know how a person can finish ONE of those in a lifetime. So at least there’s a reason it takes you a long time. Me, I’m just slow. 😯
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Lol, I just enjoy complex plots and those take a lot of words to resolve.
I just started a new writing technique that’s helping me get my words down faster (blog coming up soon) although even that won’t make them any shorter!
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I missed you! Congratulations on finishing the latest book. Another one for my tbr pile. I’ve read the first Riverbend and will soon be starting on the second one. Loved the first one.
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Thanks, Mary! And I’m so glad you enjoyed Swamp Ghosts. It was SO much fun to write that one, because I got to indulge my love of Florida wildlife and habitat, along with the love story, and the whacko serial killer. Hahaha. The other two in the series are very different, as they are more psychological dramas, dealing with the somewhat dysfunctional Painter family. But Finding Hunter is actually my favorite of everything I’ve written. Well, at least until The Emissary. Now I’m all stoked about that! Hehe.
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I have a feeling I’m going to have to read the next two in the daytime or I won’t be able to sleep if I read them at bedtime!
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I don’t think so, Mary. No more deranged serial killers, and lots less wildlife in those two. They really are more contemporary drama. Finding Hunter deals with the introduction of his family dynamics, which are on the skids, and focuses later on PTSD and agoraphobia. It’s emotional at times, but not scary. Neither is That Darkest Place, which deals primarily with survivor’s guilt and the love and determination of these 3 brothers. Now there may be more scary stories coming from Riverbend, but I really want each one to be more or less unique. And all of my books focus on the redemptive power of love, the second two in particular.
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And I should also mention, there are three very different love stories for the Painter brothers spread out over the two books. I do like a good romance tossed in to spark things up a bit. 🙂
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Congratulations and good luck on your latest. I have recently gotten your Wake Robin Ridge Book 1 and look forward to reading it. But first I have to get it back from the reading teacher who saw it on my desk and asked to borrow it.
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Thanks so much! And thanks for giving WRR a try. I will warn you, I’m SEVEN books better now! Hahahaha. My goal is to keep improving my writing skills with each book, and I think/hope I’m making progress. But it’s still a favorite with people I meet at events, so hopefully, you’ll enjoy it. And a READING teacher? Eeeeeeep. 😀
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