Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Sword of Senack Has Been Published

Today is a big day for me. "The Sword of Senack" (my first fantasy novel) has been released and I'm so excited about this that I'm giving away a Kindle Fire to one of my lucky readers!





But the great news doesn't end there.
In addition to this, Wayman Publishing will be giving away $50, five signed copies of "The Sword of Senack" AND considering new talent for publication! Please check out The Senack Contest for more information about the art and writing contest.

Here's some info about my book,



Feel free to grab this code if you'd like to help spread the word.
Aliya Fisher knows nothing about her true heritage until a vindictive sorceress kidnaps her brother and sister. The young adventurer must take up her birthright, battle eerie creatures, and find the Sword of Senack if she hopes to best the witch. But even if Aliya finds the famed weapon and survives the perilous oceanic journey, the enchantress is far more than she appears. How does one defeat an immortal who lusts for revenge?



Why did I write this book?
As many of you know, my first book "The Golden Sky" is about my son who died.  Well, years after his death, my daughter struggled with the loss.  So I did the only thing I couldI got her mind off of things by telling her an epic fantasy about how her brother went into the ocean to find his one true love. My daughter followed, hoping to save him.  
    The story led to many adventures with pirates, witches, mermaids and leviathans.  As the saga grew with mysterious characters and twisted plots, my daughter and I somehow found peace through the symbolism and surprise ending.  Most people know none of this while reading the book, but I thought it might be neat for you to remember while reading the following excerpt.  It's amazing how one simple idea led to a four-part series.
    Note: I've called the Scribe "Aliya" and my son who passed away "Jack."  I hope you'll enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it.


Excerpt
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I pushed myself from the floor. Small holes ran down its length, and fog piped from them. 
    "Hello?" I said into the haze. "Hello? Is anyone there?"
    "Aliya? Is that you?" Jack asked.
    "I thought you were dead!" I shouted, then rushed through the fog, closer to the sound of his voice. I plowed into my brother. "Jack, you’re alive. You’re okay. Don’t leave me. Do you hear me? Never again!"
    I should have known something was wrong. I should have known. He hugged me back and laughed in spite of himself. "I feel like I’ve been waiting to see you . . . forever. We left home so long ago," he said.
    I looked around. "Where are we?" I asked, releasing him from the hug, but grasping his hands, unwilling to let him go completely. The fog billowed so thickly that I couldn’t even see my own wrist. A strange foreboding crept into my mind.
    "Aliya," Jack said, "I think we’re dead." At the mention of death, the fog reversed its flow. The air cleared until I saw everything around us. The room was quiet. We were in the very center of what appeared to be a meeting hall. Many creatures sat around in a large circle.
    "We have met here to witness the fate of these two mortals—Jack and Aliya Fisher," a Mer-son said. He had fish-like eyes and a square jaw. "We are those who have witnessed their actions while under the water, and we are the ones who may allow them a second chance at life. This is allowed only because a great evil is amassing, and the oceans may need these children."
    He
wore a dark cloak and held a thick staff. He sat in the largest chair, and as his skin caught the light, it shone so brilliantly that it dazzled my eyes. Many of the creatures around him had fish tails, and although they sat in a waterless room, they appeared to breathe quite easily.
    I tried acting brave, remembering stories about the afterlife. I moved forward.  "Did we really die?"
    "Back to your place," an old Mer-son woman commanded. I remembered seeing her somewhere during my time in Malinia.
    "You are not dead, at least not completely," the man said as he looked from me to Jack. "We call this place the Eve of Death, and you are here because a choice awaits you. There are two doors at the side of this room, two different destinies. One door will lead you back to Deltre, to your bodies, but the other door leads to Gault
a Mer-son’s Hell."
    I studied the doors. The left one shone bright and golden with emeralds and rubies, while the right door’s tarnished surface spoke of death and pain. The latter one had a strange feel to it, and a putrid wind blew through a crack beneath it, as if sending poisonous gas into the room.
    "I cannot tell you which door leads where," the leader continued, "Only you can decide that."
    Jack’s brow furrowed and he looked at me. "Do you think there’s a trick to it?" he asked.
    "I’m not sure," I said. 
    "There is one consolation," a Mer-son said, "if you do not choose to open a door, then you can go with us to the place beyond reproach." He tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair. "But know, if you stay, your body in Deltre will perish."
    "I want to go back," Jack said. 
    "As do I," I added.
    "But is it worth the risk? What if we choose the wrong door?" Jack asked, and a silent worry ran between us.
    The leader cleared his throat. "You must choose, for the longer you stay here, the closer you are to death."
I could almost taste the finality of his statement. I turned to the doors, and as if by chance, a butterfly fluttered from the bottom of the ugly one.
    "A butterfly," I said, shuddering, thinking of the choice before us. I’d thought that door led to Gault, but now I thought we must go through it.
    "Butterflies stand for deception," an old Mer-son woman said before cackling.
    "I still want to go back," I said, "our family
needs us. Even though the risks are high, my mother needs me."
    "We'll do this," Jack said, "together." 
    I walked to the disfigured door, the one speaking of death and pain, the one standing to the side of the beautiful golden door.     
    "What are you doing?" Jack asked. "I’ll bet anything that leads to Gault. It doesn’t look like the door to someplace nice."
    "But it’s the way to Deltre," I said. Green wind swirled from under the bottom of the one I wanted to open. It smelled so horrible that I wrinkled my nose.
    "That ugly one isn’t the right door," Jack insisted, placing his hand on the jeweled one. As he was about to grasp its knob, my hand shot to the deformed door next to it. If the butterfly stood for deception, maybe the richly decorated door was a trick.
    "You can’t have death without life," I said, and flung the unsightly door open. The greenness beyond it pulled Jack and me into the opening. As we fell, still hand in hand, through the door, I wondered why I’d thought the smell was so awful before.


I'd like to thank these wonderful bloggers who have helped me spread the word about my book:

Been there, done that

The Blog Starts Here

Coming Home to Myself

Crazy World

K. T. Hanna

My Life in Writing

Odie Langley

Padded Cell Confessions

Paige Kellerman

The Poptart Manifesto

Rhyme Time (who's having a book launch today too) ;)

Vive le Nerd

 

If you've posted something for this event, 

please let me know and I'll include your name on this list.






Now . . . onto the giveaway!
How to Enter to win the Kindle Fire


Please make sure to follow the Rafflecopter rules below. You must complete the MANDATORY entries to reveal 82 more easy, possible ways to earn entry points towards the Prize. Please remember, the more entry points you gain, the better your chances are of winning. So Good Luck!

The hosts for this giveaway are:


1) The Crazy Life of a Writing Mom
2) voiceBoks - The Voice of Parenthood
3) Makobi Scribe
4) WikiMommy - The Information Site for All Things Mommyhood
5) Just Married with Coupons
6) Simply Stacie - Product + Book Reviews, Giveaways, and more!
7) Sassy Mama in L.A.
8) About a Mom Blog
9) Planet Weidknecht
10) Coming Home to Myself
11) It's Rhyme Time
12) Good Steward Savers
13) Sweep Tight
14) Moms with Voices Media


a Rafflecopter giveaway





Click on this picture to visit my author site:
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Please feel free to browse around, 
check out my upcoming books and projects--just have fun.

45 comments:

  1. I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  2. Woo hoo! Yay, Elisa!

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  3. Congratulations on this achievement! From what I've read it looks great!

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  4. Good luck today! Wow that giveaway is crazy.

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  5. Congratulations. This book is a real gift to Zeke and your family -- you're immortalizing his short life.

    Parts of the excerpt are sad. Jack said, I think we're dead."

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  6. Congrats! I'm super excited for you and I definitely hope this launch blows away your expectations. As for myself, well I finished it last night. Heh, just in time for the launch. :)

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  7. Excitement mounts! I'm about to post about it; just a few things to format. Congrats!!

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  8. Congratulations my friend, I got both of your books and am currently reading the one about your son. I am so glad I got them both. Have a wonderful day. I also posted a lot of pictures of the book with your web address on Pinterest.com Hope it helps too.

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  9. Aliya Fisher's brother and sister go missing.

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  10. Congrats! I'm so proud of you! Good luck today. Call me later so we can make a plan for tomorrow!

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  11. Congrats!! I love your reason for writing this. Wishing you much success and happiness. :)

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  12. Congrats on your second book, so awesome. And you have a ton going on for it too, very nicely done. Thanks for the little nudge my way too.

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  13. I hadn't been up on blog posts lately so what a day to finally get to stop by! Congratulations!! I have given you a shout out today and I can't wait to read you book! ...just need to find my Kindle so I can go buy it ;)

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  14. Congratulations! I am envisioning the movie version. ☺

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  15. Yay! and Congrats!!!! Can't imagine how excited and relieved you feel to FINALLY release it to the world! As always, thank you for the easy-to-grab buttons. Makes singing your praises that much easier!

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  16. Wow, congratulations on the release of your book. How exciting. I absolutely loved reading the extract. What a shame my kids are too old now, but will wrack my brains and think of friends with younger kids. The cover is gorgeous. I love that you and your daughter have used your grief in such a positive way. So courageous. Will tweet this and FB for you :)

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  17. I'm so proud of you. This is such a great accomplishment!

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  18. Congratulations! (look at me and my big words! lol) This is exciting! We need a girls night out to celebrate!

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  19. very nice!!! congratulations! liked the excerpt. looking forward to reading the whole thing...

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  20. Dear Elisa,
    Happy, Happy, Happy Day!

    Peace

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  21. Aliya's brother and sister go missing.

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  22. Aliya Fisher's brother and sister go missing in the first chapter.

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  23. Wonderful news...super giveaway
    Stopping in with vB

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  24. You are an inspiration! I especially loved learning the history of how the story for your new novel was born. That is just awesome! Good luck to you!! I'm sure the book will be a huge success!!

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  25. My goodness! Almost 10,000 entries. I think every person who enters should buy the book. I've ordered mine from amazon!

    Love,
    Janie

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  26. So happy for you!! Congratulations!!! :):)

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  27. How wonderful!!! I'm so happy for you, it sounds like a beautiful book!! I'm smiling just typing this!! Sending much love and congratulations!!!

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  28. The book sounds awesome. Will check it out on kindle tonight :)

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  29. So awesome!! I'm so happy for you :) I'm heading over there to check it out right now!!

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  30. Wow! I'm truly impressed! I am not usually drawn in by fantasy type stories, but I think knowing how this story came about makes it more enticing to me!

    I mentioned on my recent post about my daughter being a twin. She mourned the lost of this twin for years without me realizing it. Then, when her brother died, she was in high school and she was mourning both losses. Eventually she consented to counseling and that helped her come to terms. Thinking about her, and how you helped your daughter cope, makes me doubly interested in reading your new book.

    I am going to finish The Golden Sky first though!

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  31. Sounds awesome! I wish I could be that creative when it comes to writing fantasy stories, etc.That's great that you can write stories for your kids to help them in their life--what a fantastic talent to have, good for you!

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  32. congratulations. the excerpt is so good. i am really looking forward to reading this book. the story behind the story is so beautiful.

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  33. kindle fire!
    jhoorm01atyahoodotcom

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  34. Having trouble with the rafflecopteer..I am following on the twitter pages but it wouldn't let me add my user name to the comment section. It is joyh82

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  35. Congratualtions! I wish you much success! Your book looks awesome and I cannot wait to read it! I entered as many of the Rafflecopter tasks as I could- but many of them were covered up with comments and I was having trouble. Aliya's brother goes missing.

    Yeah for you!!!! :)

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  37. Congratulations on your new book. Wishing you much success and happiness. Your story seems very interesting and you are extremely creative to write this.

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  38. Congratulations! - I'll post your code in my blog to help spread the word.
    Wishing you tons of success!

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  39. Aliya Fisher's brother and sister go missing, well are kidnapped by the vindictive sorceress.

    myfreebi3s at yahoo dot com

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  40. congrats to you. It sounds interesting. Good luck with it

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  41. Congratulations!! Wonderful News!!

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