Blogging the Fading Lands

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Hey all... this is just a quick post (deadline is upon me) to let you know what's up. 

First, mid January, I found out my current contract (which includes Tairen Soul, The Winter King, and Bel and Gaelen's books) was sold to Avon.  So I had a second change of editors and spent a lot of time on the phone with my agent, my new editor (#2) etc.  (Her name is Tessa Woodward, BTW, and she sounds just lovely.  I'm looking forward to working with her - and with Avon.)

The second thing is, I wanted to let you know that the 5th and final book in the TAIREN SOUL series has undergone a Change of its own. since moving to Avon.  The book has a new name.  It will now be called CROWN OF CRYSTAL FLAME.   

B-but why?  Well, basically, the marketing masters at Avon thought CCF would be more appealing to new readers than TAIREN SOUL, since no one who hasn't read the books will know what a Tairen Soul is (which, incidently, is the exact same reason Dorchester changed the name of my manuscript, TAIREN SOUL, to LoFL and LoLS).

Sorry for the confusion. But I'm growing rather fond of the new title, especially considering all the book elements it plays upon - Ellysetta's crown, Soul Quest crystals, tairen flame, and a big surprise.

Third, there is a release date for CCF posted on the online bookstores, but since I promised my readers I wouldn't announce it myself until after I turned the book in, I've been keeping mum on the subject.  Once I turn the book in, I'll make an official announcement to everyone on my announcement list - and here on the website. 
And now...back to my computer.  Ellie   has just fallen into the clutches of the evil Vadim Maur.     Oh noes!!!!!!

Well, everyone, the new year is here, and with it some exciting news, and great New Year's Resolutions.

King Goes to Germany

As I mentioned before, my publisher sold the German rights to KING OF SWORD AND SKY, and the translation is well under way. The book is currently available for preorder from Amazon.de, the german amazon.com... and just look at the absolutely gorgeous cover they put together.

Tairen Soul Update

I'm finishing up the TAIREN SOUL manuscript, the fifth and final book in Rain & Ellsyetta's story. My goal is to be done and have the MS turned in first of Feb to my new editor, the lovely and talented Leah Hultenschmidt. My first (and much beloved) editor, Alicia Condon, (to whom I dedicated QUEEN) has gone to Kensington to take over as Editorial Director of the Brava line. (Some of you may know the previous Brava Ed Dir, Kate Duffy, passed away last year.) I will miss Alicia. She was a lifesaver on QUEEN. But I'm looking forward to working with Leah.

In any event, as soon as I turn TS in, I'll announce the confirmed release date to members of my Announcement List and post it on my blog, twitter, etc.. (If you haven't already joined the announcement list, you can do that on my website, www.clwilson.com on the "Contact C.L. Wilson" page under "Friends of the Fey")

New Year's Resolutions

On a personal front, this year is my year for getting control back in basically all aspects of my life. One key place I've decided to start is losing weight and getting in shape.

As an author, especially an slow writing author, much of my day consists of sitting at my computer, typing on my keyboard. I haven't gotten my Dragon Naturally Speaking software to work halfway well enough to dictate a book while walking on a treadmill (and the process of "speaking" a book is sooooooo different than letting the words flow from my fingertips, that I don't know I could successfully do it even if I could get DNS humming), so BICHOK (butt in chair, hands on keyboard) is it for me. Though a required part of my job, the sedentary nature of BICHOK results in a number of not-so-great side effects - like the appearance of increasingly high numbers when I step on my bathroom scale, increasingly wide waistbands in my clothes, bad posture, back pain, and carpal tunnel.

Last Nov, I decided enough was enough. Its time to lose weight and get in shape. Now, I've done all sorts of diets, and lost weight on them too. But I've always gained the weight back--and more. (This is why I hate the term "losing weight". It's never really lost. It always knows exactly where to find me again! And it usually brings friends!!! )

So, as part of my New Year's Resolution to lose weight, get fit, and regain my youthful girlish figure (or at least a not-so-bad-40-something figure), I've joined Weight Watchers online, and asked my DH and kids for a Wii fit for Christmas.

Now, I hate exercise. I hate to sweat and get all icky, sticky, & stinky. Worse, I hate to be bored, and there's nothing more boring to me than running on a treadmill or lifting weights . But I luuuuuurve video games :) Wii Fit is absolutely the perfect melding of exercise and video games. So my sister and I are doing WW online together and playing the Wii version of The Biggest Loser plus Wii Fit (Yoga, etc) and Leslie Sansone's fabulous Walk Away the Pounds.

Let me tell you, Biggest Loser, even on "powder puff" level, kicks my tookis! Sweat? Uh, yeah. I do. But in just 3 days, I'm already 3+ lbs down. Water weight? Some of it. But some is ugly fat. YAY me!

As an Aside

As you can see, I've also discovered smileys for blogs. I'll try not to get too obnoxious with them in future posts. I don't know how to activate smileys for comments - at least not on blogger. If anyone knows how, let me know. I'm trying to figure out how to create a tag cloud as well. I use a custom template for blooger, hosted on my own website, so the "gadgets" available to most blogger-hosted blogs aren't available to me, and I've wasted days trying to track down a solution.

Question of the Day

For those of you who have fought the weight loss battle (and it is a battle), what are your tips and tricks for losing weight and keeping it off? Also, have you made any New Year's resolutions you'd be willing to share?

Holiday shopping is at full swing, though thankfully here at the Wilson house, most of the shopping is already done. (Just have to buy the "big gift" for my son and presents for my cousins' children and I'm done! YAY!)

If you're still looking for great buys, Dorchester Publishing has a fabulous romance stocking stuffer sale going on. For just $2.99 a book, you can get some terrific reads...including (among others) funny greats from Emily Bryan, Christie Craig, and Angie Fox, and magical paranormals from American Title winner, Helen Scott Taylor, and my good friend, Elissa Wilds.

Audio Book Update

LORD OF THE FADING LANDS is now available in audio book (on CD or MP3 download - which is way cheaper than CD, BTW). I've been in contact with the audio company and hope to have a recording snip to play on the website soon, so you can hear what it sounds like.

LADY OF LIGHT AND SHADOWS will also be out in audio this month.

QUEEN Release Prize Update

And for those of you who've been waiting for your QUEEN Countdown and Release Celebration prizes, all but two final prizes went into the post yesterday. (They know me by name at the post office now.) I'll get the last two prizes out next week.

TAIREN SOUL Update

I'm still busily writing away on TAIREN SOUL. Currently having a lot of fun with the Feraz. Gotta love those witches! *gg*

Blogging Next Week

I'll be blogging a couple of places next week. On Thursday, December 17, I'll be blogging with Ninc (Novelists, Inc.) and on Friday, Dec 18th, I'll be blogging with Night Owl Romance. If there's any particular subject you'd like to hear about, let me know.

Labels: CL Wilson Happenings, Holiday shopping

New Dorchester Reader/Author Forums

My publisher, Dorchester Publishing, has revamped their online forums. It's a thread-based communication forums where readers and Dorchester authors can get together online to talk about books.

You can access the forums from the Dorchester Home Page through the "online forums" link at the bottom of the page or directly via http://forums.dorchesterpub.com/. Simply register and click the link in the registration confirmation email to begin posting. And spread the word - the more people who interact on the forums, the more fun and informative the forums can be.

Lord of the Fading Lands Available in Audio Book

The long-awaited release of the audio-recording of LORD OF THE FADING LANDS is finally here. "Now available" updates to Amazon.com, Borders and B&N are in progress, but the book is currently available in CD format from the Dorchester website and in downloadable MP3 format from AudioBookShop.com.

Labels: CL Wilson Happenings

To all my American readers, I hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving. May your day be filled with family and friends and all the food be delicious!

Anyone who would care to share their special Thanksgiving Day recipes, I'd love to hear them.

QUEEN Countdown and Release Week Celebration Update

Prizes for the QUEEN OF SONG AND SOULS countdown and celebration are starting to go into the mail. The first batch went out last week. The next batch went out Monday. I'm still waiting on a few things--and replenishment for some books I ran out of, some posters, and a few wall plaques. All books sent to US locations went via Media Mail, so it may take a few days to reach you. I will post a notification when all items have been mailed.

Daily Winners

And the winners of yesterday's daily prizes are....

(1) Original Tairen Wall Art Plaque, "Tairen's Play" by artist Heather Carr

And THE WINNER is.....Amanda W!

(1) an autographed copy of LORD, LADY or KING.

And THE WINNER is.....Kate!

QUEEN SIGHTINGS

I had pre-ordered the book from Deep discount because my midterms were going on and didnt want to be distracted by it. So it arrived this Monday (I know a little late but I did that on purpose) and I was ecstatic. My midterms are over and now I can truly enjoy it!
~Flushing, NY

QUEEN Sightings Winner

And our final day's winner for the QUEEN Sighting Promotion--who will receive a $10.00 certificate to the bookstore of her choice--is..... Ally M!

Congratulations to ALL our QUEEN Sightings winners - and THANK YOU SO MUCH for participating. I loved each and every picture and story - honestly, I probably got more of a thrill from it than anyone else, so thanks :) You helped make my release week a real joy.

Grand Prize Winner

The SPECIAL GRAND PRIZE , the ultimate prize of our Release Week Celebration, is a Fading Lands gift basket which includes:

• Set of three Tairen wall plaques, including "Arrival at High Reaches", "Tairen's Play", and "Steli Chakai"
• Autographed set of Tairen Soul novels, books 1 through 4
• Autographed set of Tairen Soul collector cards
• Assorted trinkets and goodies

Thank you for your patience!!! The lucky winner of our fabulous Release Week Celebration's Grand Prize is.....Old Bull

Congratulations to all our winners!!!

A very heartfelt thanks from me for everyone who came out to share in the QUEEN Countdown and Release Week Celebration fun. This book was a long time coming for me, and a long, hard writing road. I truly hope you all will enjoy the book as much as I have enjoyed sharing the last five weeks with you. You've helped make this release as wonderful as I could ever have hoped for.

Beylah vo, kem'mareskia, te Miora felah. Thank you, my friends, and joyful life. May Light always shine upon your Path and your life be showered with blessings.

Join me for a Duck Chat

I'll be visiting the lovely ladies of The Good, The Bad, and The Unread today for a "Duck Chat." Their interview was one of the best I've done in a while, so come check it out. :) They've asked me things no one ever has before, and I just had a blast. Hope you'll enjoy it too. :)