It’s finally here! The second edition of Unexpected Metamorphosis is now live on Amazon and will soon trickle to other suppliers. Although the story is exactly the same, the latest version matches my current writing style. It also has a new blurb, an updated back cover, the first chapter of Unexpected Entrapment, and a list of all the books in the series–current and future.

If you use a Kindle, I recommend you turn on the automatic update on your device. That way you’ll automatically receive the latest updates for all your books. I recently went into my account and noticed many updates available for my eBooks. Like me, a lot of authors eventually go back to their debut novels and make changes years later. If you turn on the automatic update, you don’t have to manually update each book. Amazon will automatically do it for you.

Check out the new blurb:

Alissia Roswell left her abusive, childhood home immediately following her high school graduation–swearing she would never return. After ten years of hard work, she’s finally satisfied with her place in life. Highly independent, she takes great pride in needing no one other than herself. When she learns of her father’s sudden death, she decides to return to her hometown for the funeral. A visit to the old oak tree concealing her teenage diary pulls her into an alternate world, where her body begins to change in mysterious ways. As everything spins out of her control, with danger lurking around every corner, she’s forced to rely upon others. Her mind soon becomes her enemy, haunting her with memories from her past, while her heart strays from her control, teasing her with the incomprehensible notion of love.

Join Alissia on her perilous quest full of adventure, magic, and romance as she travels the challenging road of finding one self–maybe even love along the way.

I’ve also included snippets of reviews on the back cover:

“A twisted and complex plot, with spellbinding intrigue. The characters are deep and multi-dimensional, and the unpredictable, non-stop action builds to a crisis point at the end. Even the romantic aspect is non-linear and captivating.”  Tamie Dearen, author of the Alora Series

“Interesting, different & creative ideas filled this novel with a ton of imagery.” “Love! Love! Love! Can’t get enough of this novel!!!” “The twists and turns kept my attention at all times!” “Unexpected Metamorphosis has everything I love about modern fantasy. New worlds, strong female leads, gripping action sequences, and beautiful scenery that captivates the imagination.”

I’m excited to finally get this edition of Unexpected Metamorphosis out. Although 77% of the reviews on Amazon are five stars, I’m much happier with the quality of writing this update brings to my readers, and I hope you’ll enjoy.

It’s finally done! What I thought would be a quick editing session turned into a complete rewrite of the debut novel I wrote a few years ago. Although Unexpected Metamorphosis currently has a 78% five-star rating on Amazon, it did not match my current writing style, and I wanted to update it.

Going back through my first novel showed me that I’ve grown and learned a lot as a writer over the past few years. I pulled 20,000 words, strengthened some of the scenes, deleted Alissia’s overanalyzing, and took out the passive voice where it did not belong.

Although all of my books go through professional editing, I’ve learned that using an editor does not guarantee a perfect novel. I’ve currently got three books out, and I’ve used three different editors. I’ve learned a lot in the process.

Before the second edition of Unexpected Metamorphosis gets published, I’m looking for beta readers. The story is exactly the same as before, just better writing. If you’re one of my current readers and want to read this version, please let me know. If you’ve never read my writing and would love a fantasy romance filled with adventure, you’re welcome to an eBook copy. You don’t have to be an adult. It’s a clean romance (with heated kissing), and some of my readers are young teens.

I’ll end this post with a glance at two scenes I changed. Can you see the difference in the strength of the wording?

Old Version:

Suddenly, she felt as if she was being sucked into a swift tornado, and she began to rapidly free fall in a spiraling motion. White lights flashed past her, and her stomach lurched as pain began to rise up within her body. Although she tried to scream, her voice was no competition for the loud, train-like sound surrounding her. She soon became light headed, and everything went dark.

Barely conscious and in severe pain, Alissia could hear the distant sound of dripping water. The soil beneath her cheek was dank and when she opened her eyes, she could barely make out the cavernous walls in the dimly lit surroundings. The pain was too great to move, and she soon lost all consciousness again.

She awoke some time later, and it felt as though a fire was raging inside her body. She tried to scream before losing consciousness again.

New Version:

As if being sucked into a tornado, a strong force propelled Alissia into a rapid spin. White lights spiraled around her, and her stomach lurched as a sharp pain rose up within her body. Although she screamed, her voice was no competition against the roaring, train-like sound filling the air. Becoming lightheaded, she closed her eyes, just as her body slammed into an unyielding, rock-solid surface.

*****

Barely conscious and in severe pain, Alissia tried to focus on the distant sound of dripping water. After a while, she noticed an earthy scent coming from the rough surface beneath the side of her face. Opening her eyes, she scarcely made out a cavernous wall in the dimly lit surroundings. With her pain too great to move, she soon lost consciousness again.

Sometime later, her eyes shot open, as her back arched in pain from a raging fire coming from within her body. She tried to scream before her mind shut down, pulling her back into darkness.

Old Version:

She no longer felt the uncontrollable pain caused by seeing Grady with Nevara, and she went to the bathroom and washed her face. As she looked at her swollen face in the mirror, she determinedly told herself it would never happen again.

Anger flashed in her eyes as she reminded herself it was her fault she had gotten hurt. She had allowed it, ignoring the promise she had made years ago to herself. Grady had only done what was to be expected. She should never have put herself in a position to get hurt. No one was to blame but herself.

New Version:

No longer feeling the uncontrollable pain caused by seeing Grady with Nevara, Alissia went to the bathroom and washed her face.

“This is your fault,” she hissed, glaring at her reflection in the mirror. “You knew better than to trust someone.”

A distant memory surfaced, making itself real again.

                  A teenage girl’s green eyes glared into a bedroom mirror, her face swollen with tears and a bag of bloody clothing clenched in her fist.

                  Staring at herself in disgust, she vowed, “Never again. You will never be a victim again.”

                  A tear threatened, and she lifted her chin determinedly. “And there’ll be no more tears from you, either. You knew love wasn’t meant for you, and you should never have expected it.”

Alissia closed her eyes as the memory faded. “You put yourself in a position to get hurt,” she whispered. “Grady only did what was to be expected.”

Unexpected Metamorphosis and Unexpected Entrapment is available online as a paperback and many forms of ebook at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Smashwords

Also available on Itunes

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.

I often get asked why I chose Jesup, Georgia, as Alissia’s hometown. To me, there was no other choice. She needed to have knowledge of living off the land. I didn’t want that to be a foreign concept for her, and Jesup is the one place I know she would learn how to hunt, fish, frog gig, and beach seine. How do I know this? Because that’s where I learned how to do all those things.

Unlike Alissia, I was not raised in Jesup, nor did my father teach me those things, except fishing. I have family there and have visited the town my entire life. Having moved around for the majority of my life, I have lived in many places, yet Southeast Georgia holds the most outdoor culture.

From pulling potatoes out of the ground to pulling nets from the ocean, you can do it all near the Georgia coast. The land is full of wildlife. I have memories of raking for crawfish to use for catching catfish in the deep, black-water ditches. Not only were those ditches filled with fish, but moccasins and gators were abundant also. (And those blasted yellow flies!)

Alissia’s memories of beach seining on Jekyll Island were my memories, as were the alligators and frog gigging. Since I threw her into a reality filled with nature, I wanted her to have a past filled with that lifestyle. She couldn’t be squeamish. She needed to come from Jesup. I guess the words to Hank William Junior’s old song comes to mind when I think of Jesup. “A country ‘girl’ can survive.”

This post will surprise most of the people who know me now, living outside of Atlanta. I don’t fish or hunt anymore, but the memories are there. I still have my hunting guns locked away. Who knows? I may use them again one day.

If you’ve never been to Southeast Georgia, I suggest you visit Jekyll Island, St. Simons Island, and Savannah at least once in your life. There’s plenty of fresh seafood and lots to do and see while there. The locals are friendly, and you’ll love their accents. Who knows? You may not want to leave.

As a reminder, I will be in Jesup this Saturday at the library from 12:00 – 2:00 for a book signing.  I will also be in Ludowici on Monday at Coastal Manor from 2:00 – 4:00.  Hope to see some of you there 🙂

This was taken in 1995 on the first day of hunting season, but I didn’t get a deer that day.

In 1997 I killed my first deer (got three that weekend). This was in middle Georgia, not Jesup.

Although I have many scenes I enjoyed writing and I often enjoy rereading in Unexpected Metamorphosis, I thought I would share this one with you.  In case you haven’t read the novel, this is just one of the many fun scenes between Alissia and Luke.  She and Grady share a different kind of chemistry.  If you’ve read the first two chapters on Amazon or when I posted it on my site, then you’ve met Grady.  Here’s a peek at Luke:

              Luke stared at the men thoughtfully for a long moment before saying, “You do understand I have a problem, now that you know where she is and who she’s with.”

                Alissia stood frozen and watched as both men looked up into Luke’s eyes and began to beg for their life. They promised they would tell no one they had seen her. When their voices began to rise in panic, Luke struck each of them in the mouth and warned them to calm down. He put restraints on them, and they looked at Alissia, whimpering as if begging her for their life. Nolan was crying by now, and Alissia could stand no more. Hurting them was one thing, but killing them was another.

                She quickly crossed the short distance between them.

                “Stop this. L –”

                Luke’s head shot up, and he interrupted her in a warning tone, “If you say my name, I will kill them now.”

                She cringed beneath his cold stare. By the time she could think of a response, he was already tying a long sock around Nolan’s mouth. Instead of demanding him to stop what he was doing, she decided to try talking to him as if she was talking someone down from a ledge. In a soothing voice, she said, “You really don’t want to kill them. We can find a way out of this. I promise. We can figure something out. Just talk to me.”

                He grabbed his shirt and put it on without buttoning it, and then he looked at her.

                “Alright, we’ll talk about it.”

                Her relief was short-lived as he swiftly picked her up and replied, “But not here.”

                He was fast, and he was strong. Within an instant, she found herself being carried down a narrow hall. His left arm was under her bottom, and his other arm held her firmly in place with her chest against his. She tried to lift her head, but his hand held it securely in place. As she struggled in his arms, she wildly kicked both of her legs. She heard him excuse himself to someone, and he explained that she was a very passionate lover. She wondered why her feet had not made contact with anyone.

               “You know how Gazzerian women are,” he said to someone, with a laugh.

                She felt herself being carried up a flight of stairs, and that is when she was able to turn her head just enough for her teeth to find flesh. She then found satisfaction in hearing him groan as she bit down.

                Her bite did not last long because she soon heard him unlocking a door. Her teeth let go of him, and she held both of her legs out so that they caught each side of the doorframe as he tried to walk through. After a short struggle, he was able to get inside the room and close the door, and then they fell on a bed with him on top of her. He caught both of her hands before they made contact with his face, and he dodged the head butt she tried to give him as he pinned them down. As she struggled beneath his body, she realized they were in the same position as the first night they had met when he had tackled her. She was pinned beneath him, and he had his forehead on her shoulder while breathing heavily into her chest. Everything within her hoped the bite she had given him was more painful than the kick in his groin.