Authors, Kai Strand & LA Dragoni

Though I haven't published any new books this year, I have been busy boosting my library of audiobooks. Here is what I have available on Audible, Amazon, iTunes under both my pseudonyms: The Weaver Tales series by Kai Strand The Weaver Finalist in the 2012 EPIC Ebook Awards and the 2012 Global Ebook Awards In a town of word weavers, Mary suffers through her third year of Novice Word Weaving. Mary thinks her troubles are over when she meets a gnome-elf who grants her a wish. But instead of weaving a better story, she's weaving strange yarn charms to accompany her still pathetic tales. The Wishing Well Molly Minstrel is treated worse than Cinderella by her mom and sisters. When Molly meets the magical creature, Unwanted, she wishes her problems away. However, you must first understand what you need before knowing what to ask for. Molly will have to look within for the solution to her troubles.  The Lumpy Duckling Lumpy may be hefty with a misshap...

Distraction – Noun the act of distracting. the state of being distracted. mental distress or derangement: That child will drive me to distraction. that which distracts, divides the attention, or prevents concentration: The distractions of the city interfere with my studies. I had an unfortunate week. My step mom died. I got a head cold. I gave a presentation. And I had a new audiobook release. Needless to say I’ve had difficulty concentrating. I was so distracted, I completely forgot about this post. I’m sure readers would be clamoring for my wise words if I didn’t post anything (cough, cough) so I’m throwing this up on the blog as a place setter and to illustrate that even when you work to keep yourself focused on your goals, life – and death – happens. We’ll miss you GrandMad. But we’ve missed you for awhile. I’m so happy to know you are whole again. And on the opposite end of the spectrum (because, seriously, isn’t that typical of life?) here...

This month #InkRipples is talking about book covers and I’m exploring the making of a book cover. Last week I shared the progression of a couple covers as I worked with digital artists. This week I want to share the experience of working with an illustrator. Oh my gosh! So cool. (It’s all cool, actually, but whatever.) My first published novel was The Weaver , published by Guardian Angel Publishing, a publisher of books for children from 0 – 12. The majority of the books they publish are picture books, which require heavy illustrating, but my book was a middle grade novel – no illustrations required. Or so I thought. The publisher paired me with illustrator K.C. Snider for my cover art, because we live close to each other. K.C. invited me to her house to see her studio. Then we went to lunch and talked about my book and what I might want on the cover. Keep in mind this is my first book. I’ve never collaborated over a cover before. Never thought about what a cover should lo...

Five years ago today I became a published author with the publication of The Weaver. I suppose technically I was published before that with several short story publications to my name, but my goal was to have a book published, and that goal was realized on December 10, 2010. I still chuckle at how anti-climactic the moment was. I found The Weaver available on Amazon. I lifted my laptop and spun it in all directions to show off the Amazon page to my family. Then the oven timer beeped and I got up and finished cooking dinner. Yeah, being a published author is just that sexy. But I’ve had many amazing moments too. The Weaver was a finalist in a couple award contests I entered it in. It received (still receives—bless all you reviewers out there) really positive reviews. And it opened the door for me to step into classrooms. One of my favorite things to do as an author is to be able to visit with readers. Plus, it doesn’t hurt when you walk into a room and hear a child whispe...

For more info & for a complete list of blogs, visit the #IWSG site Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! The co-hosts for November are: Tyrean Martinson   http://tyreanswritingspot.blogspot.com/ Karen Walker   http://karenfollowingthewhispers.blogspot.com/ Denise Covey   http://dencovey.blogspot.com/    Stephen Tremp    http://authorstephentremp.blogspot.com/ Please be sure to visit their sites to thank them for hosting! *** Today I'm insecure about book signings! I have an event coming up in a real live bookstore. I've done bookstore events before and I really, really enjoy them-when people show up! Those of you who've had events before know it's hard to attract guests to book signings, plus this one is t...

If you'll be participating in Cyber Monday, I wanted to let you know about a couple deals I'm offering on my print books. First, have you visited my MARKETPLACE ? I recently set up a storefront through Square, which allows me to offer signed copies of my books. In order to celebrate the recent release of THE LUMPY DUCKLING, I'm offering 10% off your order when you get a complete set of the Weaver Tale series. These books are written for 9 - 12 year old readers. They are individual stories, all set in the same fictional village of word weavers (storytellers). The softcover are $9.95 each and the hardcover are only $15.95 (already discounted from the Amazon price). But the 10% discount applies to the complete order, so load up on all my books or several copies of a favorite story to share with the kids, teachers, librarians in your life. As long as you have one complete set of the Weaver Tales series on your order, you qualify to use discount code #WTSDISCOUNT upon chec...

I'm excited to announce that I have signed the contract for my seventh published book! (Faints dead away) THE LUMPY DUCKLING: Another Weaver Tale will be published by Guardian Angel Publishing (date undetermined). If you couldn't tell by the name, THE LUMPY DUCKLING was inspired by The Ugly Duckling. It is a story about best friends. Since I have the best best friend in the entire world, I know how to tell a best friend story. Though the story itself is nothing like our friendship, I did make sure to incorporate letter writing into this story, because my bestie and I live 1100 miles apart and write a lot of letters to each other. Our friendship has grown deeper because of it and I wanted kids to see that there are all sorts of ways to develop a true lasting friendship. LUMPY will be the third book in my Weaver Tales series. Each book is a stand alone. They are set in the same fictional village of The Tales. The residents of The Tales speak in story and are known as Word...

If you are in or around Central Oregon this weekend, be sure to stop at the Redmond Street Festival to visit with Kai Strand. She'll be in attendance with her books and some beloved SWAG. Just look for the Central Oregon Authors booth and stop in to say "HI" When: June 15 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, June 16 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Where: 6th Street, Downtown Redmond, OR Between Forest and Deschutes.

This time of year it can be difficult to choose which books to buy for the children in your life. Well, I want to make my books just a bit more desirable for you. Naturally that means SWAG! Awesome, epic swag that you can include with your gift. If you buy either of The Weaver Tales ( The Weaver or The Wishing Well ) your swag pack will include: Greeting cards featuring Unwanted (blank inside) Sticker featuring Unwanted Book lover sticker Bookmark Pencil(s) Signed, personalized bookplate If you buy Save the Lemmings your swag pack will include: I Love Lemmings magnet Lemmings sticker Book lover sticker Bookmark Pencil(s) Signed, personalized bookplate Oh, imagine the sparkle in your child’s eye when they can ‘join’ the Save the Lemmings cause, or defend the poor misunderstood Unwanted! Not only will they have hours of joy reading the books, but they will also have lasting, coordinating keepsakes – straight from the author. How do you ...