August Update: What I've been up to!

This month has absolutely flown by! It's time for my monthly update on all things happening in the Writer's Nest. Firstly: 

What I've been reading

This stunning sci-fi/space opera has one of the most strikingly original concepts I've come across in a while! It's complex and unique, and well worth reading for SF fans. Amazon

I was interested to read Ink and Bone, first and foremost because it's about libraries and books - how could I not want to read it? This is an engaging story based on alternative history that was completely up my alley, and I read it in a day! Amazon

I really enjoyed the Legend trilogy, and I was excited to read Marie Lu's new book. The Young Elites is beautifully written and the world-building is well done. The protagonist, Adelina, is more of an antihero than a traditional heroine, which was refreshing. A page-turning read! Amazon

I also picked up this free box set containing some fabulous sci-fi stories. Top favourites included Susan Kaye Quinn's Open Minds, Anthea Sharp's Feyland: The Dark Realm, and P.K. Hrezo's Diary of a Teenage Time-Traveller.

I was lucky enough to receive a review copy of The Duality Bridge, the second book in Susan Kaye Quinn's Singularity series (read my review of the first book, The Legacy Human, here!)

The Duality Bridge picks up where the first book left off, and once again, I was hooked from page one. Eli struggles with the aftermath of discovering he's something other than human--or ascender, the advanced human-machine hybrids created in the Singularity. The worldbuilding in this series is complex yet completely engaging.  The series flawlessly combines thought-provoking ideas with a breathtaking pace and three-dimensional characters. I'm thoroughly invested in this series!
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I finally got to read Lair of Dreams, and I was beyond thrilled to be approved for a Netgalley copy! I've been anticipating this one since 2013, so Lair of Dreams had a tough act to follow after the absolutely fantastic The Diviners. The scope of the narrative widens in the sequel, introducing new characters and adding new dimensions to old ones, and the world of the Diviners grows. Again, a sinister ghost forms the central mystery of the book--this time, people fall victim to a mysterious sleeping sickness, and just as with the first book, the engaging mystery had me turning the pages. As before. the level of historical detail and worldbuilding is stunning and really brings the story and characters to life. I confess I preferred The Diviners, purely because the creepiness factor was higher and I've never found a book quite like it before. But Lair of Dreams is a solid sequel set in a vividly realised alternative history.

What I've been writing

In writing, I did final revisions on Indestructible and another editing pass on the two sequels. I'm currently working on the final major revision round on Book 2 with notes from my editor.

I also did more revisions on Collision (Alliance, #3) after feedback and sent it to more CPs and beta readers.

And I did first-round revisions on Darkworld Book 4. ALL the edits landed in my inbox this month!

And I finished outlining my next trilogy and worked on the first book (still no titles, though).

I have release dates! Demon Heart (Darkworld, #3) will be out on the 19th October, and I'll be publishing Collision (Alliance, #3) in November. Then... 2016 is going to be very exciting. :D

Total words written in August: 15K (+15K added in edits)

What else I've been up to

Delinquent: An Alliance Novella came out!

I went to Lake Como, Italy with my family. :)

Plans for September

• Final edits on Books 2 and 3 in my YA post-apocalyptic series (Book 3 goes to the editor next, and once I'm done with the major revision, I'm going to do a final pass on the whole series to make sure no more continuity errors slipped through!).
• Final edits on Collision (Alliance, #3) after my last round of feedback.
• Finish this round of edits on Darkworld 4 and send back to CQ.
• Continue drafting YA SF Book 1.

...if my workload's anything like August, some of these will probably carry over into October (also depends on the level of changes needed in edits).

Coming up on the blog in September: a long-overdue post on marketing, and another on my thoughts after six months of indie publishing (spoiler: it's awesome). At the end of the month, I'll also be making the official announcement about my YA post-apocalyptic superhero-fantasy series!

And in next month's newsletter: a subscriber-only giveaway and a sneak peek at the covers for Demon Heart (Darkworld, #3) and Collision (Alliance, #3)!

Plans for the rest of the year

Once I'm done with edits on my YA post-apocalyptic series, I'll start planning the release properly. I also have cover art scheduled for next month, so it's all getting real! Look out for the series announcement in September!

In October, as I said, Demon Heart (Darkworld, #3) releases on the 19th. :) I'm almost done with Round 1 edits on Darkworld 4.

With the Alliance series, I should finish edits on Collision in September, and I'm planning to put the pre-order up in October. Then I'll be going through the usual process--final proofread, formatting, uploading to retailers, ordering proof copies. After the new-release-promo chaos is over, I'll be starting the next round of revisions on Alliance Book 4! At some point I also need to get cover art for Books 4-6, too (probably October, once I've sorted the cover art for my new series).

And of course, I'll still be drafting. I'm hoping to finish the first drafts of all three books in my YA SF trilogy by the end of the year!