sarahlin

Skyvenom: Chapters 48-49

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 48

At last Esaire could see them: the Ichili woman and the hated outsider. Investigations had failed to reveal Peanen's real name or world of origin, but Esaire felt like he was finally within reach of him. No more lies, no more gimmicks on either side, just soulcrafter against soulcrafter. They would decide everything today.

His group had to wait in hiding as the two flew their sleigh further away from the miserable town...

Skyvenom: Chapters 46-47

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 46

Theo tumbled from one atmosphere to another, his stomach lurching, and instinctively kicked away from whoever had grabbed him. Instead of the sharp winds of Deuxan, he felt the suns of Noven glaring from all sides. He barely registered them as he looked back at who he'd kicked.

It was a man wearing a gold robe with his hands stuck in the pockets. More importantly, he was definitely from Earth.

"Hey there," the ma...

Skyvenom: Chapters 44-45

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 44

Krikree likes her soulhome. When she was just a scout, she didn't think about it much, but now she likes it. The old hive was something she had been given, this is something she created for herself. It is not permitted, it would get her in trouble in a normal hive, but Krikree has scouted very far and there are no more rules here.

She has built her soulhome in the same way as Theo-sister, in part because he is very sma...

Skyvenom: Chapters 42-43

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 42

All at once it was the melee again, except this time Fiyu stood alone. She didn't wait for them to taunt her, simply unleashed every technique at once. For just a moment the outpouring of cantae, enhanced by all her materials, managed to throw them back.

Then the terrible man with the bronzed skin pushed through her lightstorm, grinning like a skull. Fiyu wanted to use her incorporeality skill to escape him, but at tha...

Skyvenom: Chapters 40-41

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 40

When Fiyu heard that the next event was to be the final one, in some sense, she experienced a deep sense of dread. She had known that the first armistice was about to end, she simply hadn't evaluated what that meant. Deuxan was already violent enough given the current limitations; it would become even worse when Enemy Esaire and the others could attack with impunity.

Was she prepared? Fiyu felt that she had been soulcr...

Skyvenom: Chapters 38-39

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 38

All three of them flew over the city and Fiyu monitored their environment dutifully. She would never lapse in her focus, of course, but it was true that the longer they went without threats, the more distracted she became.

Having Friend Theo back was largely positive, though with a slight negative edge. When it was just Fiyu and Friend Nauda, she felt like it was easier to think about their relationship and what the ap...

Skyvenom: Chapters 36-37

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 36

After all the negotiations with Strongholds, Theo was glad to go back to the relative simplicity of the border between Occoire and Greater Ostic. He didn't have private rooms there, much less a suite, but he'd gotten used to the city in a surprisingly short period of time.

To avoid drawing too much attention, he'd set up a tent from his soulhome out near the edge, next to one of the primary metal conduits. The metal cu...

Skyvenom: Chapters 34-35

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 34

They had only nine days from the melee to the next encounter, which could easily be trivial or brutal. Ordinarily, the best use of nine days would be soulcrafting, but both Nauda and Fiyu lacked the right sublime materials and were several steps away from substantial breakthroughs. What they could do, given that short time to change in a meaningful way, was train.

Nauda desperately backpedaled across their training roo...

Skyvenom: Chapters 32-33

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 32

Now that they had a weirkey, Theo was tempted to go rushing off across Deuxan, but he restrained himself. In part because moving around such a hostile world was an easy way to invite more trouble and in part because there were several matters he had to deal with first.

Fiyu, Senka, and Krikree had investigated the coalrag thoroughly and agreed with his own analysis: it was a perfectly ordinary sublime material. When he...

One Week Break

As previously announced, I'm taking this week off. Chapters will resume October 26.

Skyvenom: Chapters 30-31

Here are your chapters for this week. I am going to take next week off as a mental health break. You will get a different post that weekend, then more chapters October 26.

-

Chapter 30

Theo could play many roles in a battle, including striking and defense, but in a melee this chaotic, he thought his most important role was crowd control. He applied constant gravitational fields, oppressing or distracting as many opponents as he could. The Authority from the Demon Court was f...

Skyvenom: Chapters 28-29

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 28

With another Deuxan week available, Theo returned to his basement and hoped he wouldn't be distracted too much. By his count, he had fully dug out four of the nine rooms that would form his basement, and over the course of that week he should pass the half-way point and finish the sixth.

Of course, they weren't truly complete until they were fully walled, but his stone plates were doing fine for the interim. Once he wa...

Skyvenom: Chapters 26-27

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 26

It took a full day for Theo and his allies to be placed in their rooms, which was more due to pomp and politics than logistics. There seemed to be entire wings of the grand palace available for guests, so they had an entire suite of rooms. They were the nicest Theo had been given in Deuxan... except for the fact that Senka was sitting in the middle of the floor, shoving a lamp into her mouth.

"Senka, get that out of yo...

Skyvenom: Chapters 24-25

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 24

Esaire floated a few feet off the floor to hover beside a hanging ring that Theo hadn't noted previously: if that was the speaking position, he wasn't sure how non-Authorities were supposed to use it. In any case, his old enemy spoke smoothly and calmly.

"This outsider and I have fought on several occasions. Most recently, he destroyed my family's operations on the world of Tatian, including killing several of our alli...

Skyvenom: Chapters 22-23

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 22

Now that they finally had a multi-lateral agreement to negotiate in Accilonia, the sword hanging over Theo's head should have pulled back, but he couldn't relax. Vistgil hadn't shown up to annihilate everyone, so it wasn't a worst case scenario. But the threats he faced now were more insidious.

Since the interrupted battle, Nourise had barely spoken to any of them, instead engaging in her own preparations. The unspoken...

Skyvenom: Chapters 20-21

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 20

After the feast, there was nothing to do but prepare for their assignment. Whether they chose to travel to Western or Southern Ostic, they were going up against a Stronghold in charge of an important court, so there was no sense in rushing.

Despite all the work that it had taken to reach that point, Nauda was satisfied. Every Deuxan court wanted to use them as tools, and it seemed like even Esaire was being used, but t...

Skyvenom: Chapters 18-19

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 18

Being fitted for clothes was an alarming experience. Fiyu had accepted it as a child, with close relatives, but to have strangers touch and measure her? She had refused, instead taking the knotted line of string and entering the veiled room herself to perform her own measurements.

Even telling the Deuxans every detail about herself felt unsafe, but they were already tittering over her shyness, so Fiyu overcame her qual...

Skyvenom: Chapters 16-17

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 16

The storm lasted almost until they arrived at Central Ostic, then their claustrophobic bubble within the sand popped to reveal a new vista. Metallic sands still stretched on the periphery, but the city itself absorbed an increasing percentage of the horizon. To his surprise there was no outer wall to keep out the sand storms, just a ring of pillars that flashed past underneath too quickly for him to examine them.

Once ...

Skyvenom: Chapters 14-15

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 14

Soon enough all of the Deuxans had tossed their armaments into one of the ambush holes and surrendered. The weaker ones were sent back to another hole, where they would be out of the way, while the Authorities and some of the others who were more important grouped together on the surface.

Part of Theo wanted to make them stay on their knees, but he decided that would be unwise. This group didn't seem capable of fightin...

Skyvenom: Chapters 12-13

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 12

"Alright, we need to begin with some deeper theory."

Though they were all there to listen to Senka, they formed a rough circle with the sleigh as one side. Theo realized that he'd forgotten to eat during his recent thoughts, so he chewed a few nuts while he listened. He tried to throw in some of the Arbaian crystals, but though they crunched between his teeth, his soulhome couldn't quite accept them as food. Krikree c...

Skyvenom: Chapters 10-11

Here are your chapters for this week.

-
Chapter 10

Technically the city of Anguedan was unchanged, without so much as a cobblestone or roof tile damaged in the battle, and yet it felt ruined. Nauda walked the streets and knew that everything had changed. The inhabitants wouldn't turn on her, because this was all far above them, but now she was embroiled in something much bigger.

They'd taken a day for recovery and planning their next step, and due to the hit she'd taken, ...

Skyvenom: Chapters 8-9

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 8

There had never been any question in Theo's mind that it wasn't over.

Even without Esaire's poison and ultimatum, it was obvious that the two of them would face off again, so he'd planned accordingly. The only thing he'd wondered about was whether Esaire would make another attempt or whether Theo would have to take initiative. After some peaceful time in Anguedan, he was beginning to suspect it would be the same issue a...

Skyvenom: Chapters 6-7

Here are your chapters for this week.

-

Chapter 6

As Fiyu investigated the city, she remained constantly on alert. It seemed unlikely that there would be any great threat from Anguedan itself: there were no Authorities, few Rulers, and little organization. But with the invocation of the Demon Court and other great powers, it was possible that a Stronghold or Dominion could show up at any time to threaten catastrophic retaliation.

But if that happened, Fiyu a...

Skyvenom: Chapters 4-5

These chapters get most of the central issues in these books established and set several plots in motion, but they also take a moment to breathe. There's a vocal contingent of progression fantasy readers who don't want anything except the main character, and they won't like the fourth chapter, but I figure it's best to lean into what makes this series unique and keep building out the Nine Worlds. And I figure that this audience, at least, will enjoy a certain new POV that's a touch experiment...

Skyvenom: Chapters 1-3

Here we go, new book! Chapters should be posted every Saturday from now on until the completion of the novel. It may just be a temporary bump from the release, but I'm pleased to see so many new readers along for the ride. ^-^

-

Chapter 1

As an Authority, Theo was capable of opening most doors, whether via weirkey or soulcrafting or raw force, but now he found himself facing one that might need to remain closed. He took a step back and the motion was half a ...

Skyvenom starts in July

Thanks again for everyone supporting the launch.

I'm always left with an odd mix of emotions after a release, a large portion of them weariness. It's a real flood of feedback different from the usual. The book could use your ratings or reviews on Amazon, if you haven't left one yet.

Anyway, because of this exhaustion I haven't done as much on editing Skyvenom as I should have. However, the book is...

Thank you for my best launch ever!

The normal pattern for book series is that the first book sells the most and each sequel sells less. Well, TWC has been doing the reverse: the first book didn't sell terribly well, but each subsequent book has done a little better. Of course the first book has still sold the most total, but new readers in between books have pushed the launches higher and higher.

Wakespire was an exception to that trend, which worried me, but now I'm inclined to attribute that to the different promotiona...

Deathseed Release + Biggest Sale Ever!

For anyone who hasn't seen, Deathseed is now available on Amazon! Check it out:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1QZKS5W

The book started off with some low ratings (within hours of release, sadly), so it could really use some love from everyone who has already read it here.

For the first time ever, I'm putting the rest of the series to 100% free! If you've read here or via Kindle Unlimited, this is your...

Deathseed Release Date + Plans

Still busy, so I'm going to keep this short: the official Amazon release date for Deathseed will be on the 14th. I am locked in now, so this is happening.

I will also be doing my big sale that weekend: all books in The Weirkey Chronicles will be made free for a limited time. A perfect opportunity to grab them if you use KU or otherwise want a copy, and I also hope to make posts promoting the series. Maybe we'll see some new readers that way.

Work on Skyvenom continues to go well. ...

Skyvenom Chapter Preview

Hey guys. I am a bit wiped to do any major post today. While Skyvenom is not ready for regular posting, work is being done, so please enjoy this preview. Read if it would whet your appetite, but skip if you would prefer not to wait. Releases, sales, and more chapters relatively soon.

-

Chapter 1

As an Authority, Theo was capable of opening most doors, whether via weirkey or soulcrafting or raw force, but now he found himself facing one that mig...