It’s been a while since I’ve posted here but there’s some cool stuff going on so I figured it was time I updated things. The coolest thing going on right now is that I’m starting to receive the audio chapters for The Dragonfly Season (Streetlights Like Fireworks, Book 2). It’s a pleasure to have this one being recorded by Kerrie Seymour, who’s perfect for Lauren as the main character of this second book in the series. I knew she was right literally within seconds of hearing her audition (by that, I mean I was a few seconds into hearing her audition). She sounded exactly how I imagined Lauren sounding the entire time I’ve been writing her character for both books. So far, I just have the first few chapters but I really love it. The new audiobook will be available sometime next month, so I’ll be sure to post that here.
For any writers who might stop by, you might be curious about my first ever BookBub ad that ran for Streetlights Like Fireworks in July. I was really excited about this and now I know what all the fuss is about when it comes to getting accepted by BookBub. I waited a long time to get a BookBub ad but, as it turns out, the timing was perfect since The Dragonfly Season (Streetlights Like Fireworks, Book 2) had just come out two weeks before. I couldn’t have possibly planned something better than that. As a result, both books had a nice summer and the new book saw lots of sales. Both books stayed high in the Amazon rankings for almost two months too, #1 and #2 positions in their categories and they were also featured as Best Rated and Hot New Release. I hope this doesn’t sound like bragging. It was just seriously exciting and, as predicted in the last blog post, things settled down again by September. So, the BookBub trail for me lasted about six weeks, the first four being way stronger. Can I do that again, please?
As for other stuff going on, I’m almost done editing the third book in the Streetlights Like Fireworks series (title forthcoming). Writing this book has presented a bit of a dilemma for me. Thankfully, many people who enjoyed the first two books have been kind enough to let me know either through reviews or emails. I sometimes get the feeling that what many of these readers like about these two books is the relative innocence of Jack and Lauren, the two main characters, at least starting out. Which brings me to my dilemma. If characters don’t grow and change, not only would the story be unrealistic, it would also be boring. Jack and Lauren aren’t in high school anymore, they’re in college now. Stuff is going to happen between them. It just has to (and the writers out there might wonder at the wisdom of starting a YA series that morphs into a NA series, of sorts). Streetlights Like Fireworks is, among other things, primarily a romance. Sure, the series is about ghosts, psychics, missing persons and crime now too. But I’ve also had to more fully address some aspects of Jack’s and Lauren’s relationship (in YA books, it’s pretty easy to pretend things don’t go very far even if that’s often less than entirely plausible). It turned out to be interesting and, true to Jack and Lauren as characters, slightly unusual (no spoilers, of course). Basically, a bridge had to be built between Streetlights as a truly YA series and the series it will become going forward.
The series is also getting a bit darker and grittier across the board. The way I see it, as they grow as psychic characters, they’re bound to get involved in much more dark and dangerous situations than those portrayed in the first book, which was more mystery with a side of romance. Ultimately, I was faced with either leaving them as kids chasing mysteries during their late high school years (I briefly thought about that but decided against it) or staying with them as they grow to face new challenges and experiences as young adults. Streetlights Like Fireworks is still mostly in the YA realm, essentially. It remains plenty safe. It’s just not quite as safe as it used to be while remaining mostly in the PG-13 category. Still, I wonder if I’ll lose some readers of the series who didn’t sign on for the more mature Jack and Lauren, as well as the edgier situations they encounter. I guess that might happen. Might I gain new readers? I hope so but I honestly have no idea. Either way, I’m excited about the new book being out soon and it’s been great hearing from people letting me know they want more of Jack and Lauren. I love writing those two character so it’s been my pleasure to provide further adventures.
Lastly, tonight is the season kickoff of Doctor Who, Season Nine. I’m mentioning this for no particular reason other than it has me in a good mood. Doctor Who is our family obsession so we’ve been looking forward to this since last spring. As you can see, we’ve officially lit the “Who lights” to celebrate.
So, that’s the update. I’ll be back to post soon when the new audio book comes out or if anything else noteworthy is going on. Hope you’re all having a great September!
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