Hello Bookdragons!
"Wait? That's it? But Melissa!!! We still have to defeat the dragons at Fort Squall! We still have to find the other three Dragon Stones! We still have to kill Kane! How can you do this to us?!?"
Well, we have come to the end of another book. Parting is always such sweet sorrow. While I realize we have yet to reclaim Squall's End, doing so in this book would far exceeded my usual book length. Currently we are sitting at 165,000 words. I aim for about 170,000 and sometimes I exceed that (Talon the Black) by just a smidge.
But moreover, I didn't tackle that part of the story because I'm experiencing a little indecision on how I want to handle it. Therefore, I need to give myself some time to meditate on the next steps of Claire's journey. Time to plot the correct path forward.
This book was all about Claire coming into her power, learning how to be the woman she needs to be, in order to make a great queen. But I recognize that being queen isn't something that's learned overnight. As Pelwyn said, she will continue growing her entire life. And I'd like that to be the case in each of these books.
The next book will be Bedelth's story. He's always been a very mysterious one. His color is sunset orange, in case you've forgotten. He might just be one of the prettiest of them. But I can't put "sunset" in the title, so I guess his book will be called Bedelth the Orange. In case you haven't noticed, there appears to be a little something going on with Saffra and Bedelth. This is our chance to get MUCH more of both of them.
I loved showcasing Koldis in this one. I know he's a favorite. Starting off as a bit of an ASS in the first book, he's definitely captured our hearts. Not just his lovely emerald color, but his sarcastic personality. He and Claire have developed such a unique playful dynamic. I appreciate their bond of friendship, loyalty, and love. I enjoyed putting the two of them together in this book. I hope you did too!
A short discussion on mates and Shields. I know many of you have expressed your desires to see our beloved Shields get their own happily ever after. I love HEA stories. While some of them, like Verath, is more a HFN (happy for now) he will still be happy. HEAs are my favorite kind. I understand that the traditions in Dragonwall run deep, but they are not unbreakable.
I thought long and hard about how to handle Koldis and Taylynn, starstruck lovers. I struggled with Talon's decision. Would he permit it? Would he forbid it? In the end, I realized, everyone just wants to be loved and accepted.
Talon has spent hundreds of years alone, believing he would never share his life with another. Believing that even if there was a mate out there, that mate wouldn't want him. I think that's set him up for a different perspective on mates as compared to past kings. Past kings have never had the struggle he did. So they expected their Shields to understand what they'd be giving up. Talon, however, is so besotted and happy, he wants all the brothers he loves most, to share in that same happiness. Isn't that...cute? So after I thought about that, I had my answer.
Now for the question you are ALL asking. "WHEN WILL YOU START POSTING CHAPTERS FOR THE NEXT BOOK? HOW LONG DO WE HAVE TO WAIT??" Believe me, I might not be a mind reader, but I know that thought is on the tip of your tongue. For those of you who've been around a while, you know I always take a break between each book. Often, six months pass before I start posting chapters of subsequent books.
Why?
I can't let this book sit and collect dust. The draft is now complete. But, that means it's time to edit it. Not just edit, but also publish! Every book in the series gets published in ebook, hardcover, and paperback. I know many of you want this little gem on your bookshelves. It's how I supplement my hobby financially. While it's not enough to pay the bills or quit my day job, it definitely helps. And I appreciate each and every one of you who supports me in this way, and those of you who can't afford to, but still go and leave reviews for my books on goodreads/amazon, and votes and comments on my chapters, or even those of you who share these stories with your friends, helping to spread the word.
What comes next? For book five, I first need to outline the story. I hope you don't think I'm some brilliant god who has this whole dang seven book series plotted out to a T. Because...I don't. Plotting book five is where I sit down and flesh out what I want to happen. Usually it starts as a rough outline and follows only my main characters. In this case, I'll be focusing on Claire + Talon/Saffra+Bedelth. Even though all our favorite chars will still get a couple chapters of their own. After the outline, I will begin writing the story. I never start posting chapters until I have at least 8-10 on deck because I like to work ahead. It keeps my stress levels down.
While I'm doing this, I'll be working hard on other projects, like my Lady Witch series, which I hope to publish in the fall, and also another secret project I've hinted at, which is my Color of Light series. Storm of Shadows is almost complete. The draft has been rewritten 3 times. It needs a few more revisions. I am hoping to publish it in December. But I plan to post chapters here on Wattpad well before that. So you can expect in the next month or two, a book to hold you over (if you're not already following my LW series).
It is also my hope to publish Koldis the Green in November-ish.
I realize these are all big dreams. Publishing five books at the end of the year, while beginning the writing process on Bedleth the Orange.
Oh, and did I mention? I have a full time engineering job. So, you know. Big dreams. We shall see how far I get and how well I do.
Okay, that's enough rambling from me. I'll leave you with a huge THANK YOU for all your continued support. If you want to keep up with me while I'm not publishing here on Wattpad, feel free to follow my instagram where I share my love of books with the world. My handle is in my profile. You can also subscribe to my author newsletter that goes out every other month with updates.
Much love to every single one of you!
-Mel