The song that inspired me while writing GIRL OF MINE:
(Watch until the end. There’s a surprise!)
A interesting tidbit about GIRL OF MINE:
My dad always worried about the cost of the electricity bill. If he walked past my bedroom and noticed that my light had been left on, he would turn it off and holler,
“That’s okay, Taylor, I got your light.”
It became a bit of a joke in our household. My siblings and I loved to try and catch my dad leaving on a light, just so we could say,
“That’s okay, Dad, I got your light.”
Now that I’m an adult with my own family, the term takes on new meaning.
The message behind it has worked its way into my new novel, Girl of Mine.
My father brought me into this world, he cared for me, and he taught me well. He gave me my “light,” my life.
He nourished my “light” and helped me become the person I am today.
Taylor Dean lives in Texas and is the mother of four grown children. Upon finding herself with an empty nest, she began to write the stories that were always wandering around in her head, quickly finding she had a passion for writing, specifically romance. Whether it’s paranormal, contemporary, or suspense–you’ll find all sub-genres of clean romance in her line-up.
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The downloads have begun! The Kindle version of Unexpected Peril is now available, with the paperback and Nook on its way. I’ll soon be traveling to Alissia’s hometown for a book signing, and I can’t wait to meet with those readers.
The writing of Unexpected Beginning, the fourth book in the series, has begun, and I promise many exciting things to come.
I will be editing Unexpected Metamorphosis again, as my writing style has changed over these past years, and I feel the need to strip that book of some of its extra words. The story will not change and nothing will be added. I’ll only be pulling words. This second edition will only be available at Amazon, and the first book in the Alissia Roswell Series will be pulled from all other venues for a while. Until then, it will remain free, but that will change when the second edition comes out.
Hope you enjoy this part of Alissia’s adventure. Please leave an honest review so I’ll know what you think of my writing. I love to hear from my readers.
It’s that time again! Time to plot out the next novel in the series. Yes, I have an idea of how the story will go, and I have many scenes already in my head. However, the details are not finalized, and until I can visualize many of the scenes, I won’t fully dive into the writing.
That’s where nature comes in. I often get asked if the outdoors inspires my writing, as it plays an important role in the alternate reality I’ve created. My answer to that question is a definite yes. I love the outdoors and do most of my writing from spring through fall while sitting on one of my porches. (The winter months are not fun for me, as I hibernate indoors. It’s also the editing season. I hate cold weather and love southern humidity.)
Last month my family took our first backpacking vacation during my children’s spring break. We took a ferry to Cumberland Island, Georgia. We then hiked nine miles (was supposed to be seven but got a bit lost) and set up our tent. The following day we hiked to the beach and then had to do more hiking to gather water. We woke up early the next morning and hiked seven miles back to the ferry, and that was the end of our adventure.
During those long walks on the beautiful island and while living a primitive lifestyle away from people, I did a lot of thinking about Alissia’s story. The fourth book starts off with her backpacking through a dark forest, so I paid close attention to my surroundings while walking along the trails on the island. I took in the dry weather, the sounds of small scurrying animals, and the tropical foliage.
The same goes for the backpacking trip I took last weekend with my husband and a group of other hikers. While hiking near the waterfalls, I paid close attention to the purple flowers that had fallen along the trail, the small copperhead snake hidden in a rocky crevice, the beautiful white flowers in the trees, the wet, slippery stones that I almost fell on, and the mist coming from the falls, dampening their surroundings. I especially paid attention to the water holes at the bottom of the falls, as I have plans for using those details to create the setting in my current book.
While hiking to our campsite on the first day with the family, my youngest children did some complaining (quite a bit, actually). However, when I asked them to help me design the creatures I’ll soon be writing about, my thirteen-year-old daughter surprised me by taking an interest. (The other two did not. There were a few eye rolls and comments about having an author for a mom. Apparently, our family conversations are not considered normal.)
It was fun to see my daughter create their size and special powers, along with many other details. I’ll be using many of her ideas and admit that I’ll be building off of her design for these creatures, and I’m very proud of her.
That same daughter created the video I’ve uploaded to Youtube, and I hope you’ll watch it. She did it all by herself. (Honestly, I have no idea how to use the iPhone app she used to create it. This was ALL her doing.)
Over the next month I’ll be savoring the outdoors. I plan to paddle board, hike, ride my mountain bike, and read/work poolside. It’s during this time of the year that Alissia’s story is truly perfected. I may look like I’m not working while doing these activities, but my mind is plotting away, getting the details just right.
Notice my two daughters reading while hiking on our first day? Obviously, the children of an author 🙂
Although the fourth book in the Alissia Roswell Series is still in the writing phase, I would like to expand my list of beta readers. As a beta reader, you’ll need an eReader of some sort, and I would email you the final version of the book before its release. Your job would be to let me know if you notice any mistakes not caught in the editing stage and then to give an honest book review on Goodreads and Amazon. You will receive the book free and weeks in advance of the actual release.
If this is something you’re interested in doing, be sure to sign up for my newsletter. Once I’m in the editing stage, I’ll send out a notice and will start accepting submissions. There is a limit to the amount of betas I need, and I will add that those most active in book reviews (active on Goodreads and Amazon) will mostly be considered.
With the coming release of Unexpected Peril, I’ve decided to put Unexpected Metamorphosis on Kindle Select. That means the eBook version will no longer be free or available for sale anywhere other than Amazon. For now, the other books in the Alissia Roswell Series will continue to be available at all major online bookstores, and nothing will change for them.
Unexpected Metamorphosis is my debut novel, and since its release and with the writing of more books, I can see a great improvement in my writing style and technique. With that in mind, I’ve decided to go through it again and make some minor changes. Nothing will change as far as the story itself. I just want to go back and make it stronger–end each chapter more intensely, get rid of a little repetition, and drop some of the he/she saids.
Although it’s receiving great reviews, my perfectionist personality wants to clean it up more before I start promoting it aggressively. I want it to be the best it can be, and I want it to be as strong as my other work.
These changes won’t happen for another month or two, but I wanted to let you know what I’ll be working on before I dive back into writing. As for the release of Unexpected Peril, everything is on schedule for the Kindle release on May 26. The paperback version is also progressing along. Everything has been formatted, and I’ve gotten more beta readers going through it to make sure the files are clean and checking for any mistakes missed in the intense editing phase. It will soon be here, and I can’t wait to share it with you. It’s a bit different than the first two, and I’m eager to hear what you think of it.
Unexpected Metamorphosis now FREE at all major online bookstores!
Autographed paperbacks can be purchased through the publishing company via Paypal for $14.00, or $26.00 for two. That includes U.S. shipping and sales tax. Please be sure to list the name and address you would like your copy mailed to. Also, be sure to write whose name goes inside the book and any special message if you have a preference for what is to be written.
