Dear dragon fans, it looks like 2018 has arrived! The years seem to go by quicker than ever, but I hope everyone enjoyed 2017 and is looking forward to the upcoming year. Let’s begin with the good stuff: To celebrate the new year, I invite you to try your luck at the $100,- USD Amazon Giftcard Giveaway that I am part off. Just click the link and get over to SFF Book Bonanza and see what you have to do to enter. Imagine all the books you could buy!
Looking back at 2017
For myself the last twelve months have flown by. It was a good and busy year. Here are some of the highlights that stood out for me:
Trips that took me to far away places—from South Africa and the Emirates to Minnesota in the USA. Each place has such a different feel and different people (not to mention the wildlife) that it’s great for all kinds of inspiration.
More closer to home, I was so happy to finally see our garden fence project finished. It might seem trivial to most, but it was about time as we were without a fence for more than a year (oops :)). The summer days were spend in company of the wife and kids—exploring forests and spending many hours in the pool. Several gnome villages were discovered among the trees, though unfortunately no dragons were found. We plan to continue our search this summer again if possible.
So were there any struggles? Sure! We’re currently battling moisture and fungus problems within the house, which is never fun! But we are gaining some ground and I hope the battle is won in a matter of weeks. We also have a long standing dispute with one of the companies that helped us when we bought the house. Every time we think it is solved, it ends up dragging on even further. Both are definitely things I am looking forward to put behind us in 2018.
New Years Resolutions
Thankfully, with such a busy year I did manage to get SOME writing done in 2017 and I was relieved to see my manuscript of Wavebreaker finished, so I could focus on revising and editing. I am happy with where the story is at, but the length of it bothered me. It was much longer than anticipated, so I took the decision to cut it up into two parts. So, for my new year’s resolution I want to publish BOTH parts within 2018. Wavebreaker – part one ‘Trickle’ is currently being edited and I am working hard to launch the book in the next few months. After that, I am diving right into the editing round of part two, to make the gap between the two books as short as possible.
Secondly, Sebastian, our main character’s friend from the treetop village, will be getting his own moment in the spotlight. A novella with him starring as the main character will be released in the near future. The story will jump back in time, when Sebastian was held captive in the Stone King’s mine. All in all, there’s plenty to look forward to within the Stone War Chronicles universe in 2018.
Best wishes
I do hope everyone will have a great 2018! With lots of great stories to read, or write. And don’t forget to live your own story to the fullest: Perhaps you will do something that scares you? Or eat lots of great food! And I certainly hope that you tell those you love everyday how much and why. Do you have any new year’s resolutions that you wish to share? Feel free to leave them in the comments or talk to me on Twitter or Facebook.
– A.J. Norfield
