Introduction to My Fantasy Books
Now is as good a time as any to finally talk about my fiction.
For the past three years, I have been publishing my works of fiction on Kindle Vella.
Vella was Amazon’s attempt to create a serial platform like Wattpad. Having long been a fan of Charles Dickens, who published his work in serial form, I was delighted to hear something like that existed on Amazon. I joined the program during what seems to have been its best time.
Due to certain restrictions placed by Amazon, it was difficult for Vella authors to promote their work. As the realization set in that Vella would never be as popular as Wattpad, people stopped participating.
The End & the Beginning
Today, I received the email that they finished the wind-down; it was bitter. Their decision to close was announced last year, in September. The authors were given a date—February 26.
I just checked the links to my stories. Vella, and all that was achieved there, is indeed gone. The opportunity to connect with that audience is lost. I am grateful for the time they gave me, and the readers who encouraged me.
Through Kindle Vella, my fiction writing improved. It provided the right sort of pressure, under which I learned to work. If I knew that, as soon as I published an episode, it would be read by followers, it meant I had to put forth my best work.
To my best ability, I did. I think some of that habit has helped me start my Substack site confidently.
The loss of Vella struck most authors there quite harshly.
I, for one, had a story on Vella that had made it to 250+ episodes. There were enough loyal readers to keep me updating twice a week. I was spinning several storylines that, in my opinion, were going well; now they won’t be completed.
I joined Substack as soon as it was announced that Vella would be closing. I saw that this was a place primarily of nonfiction. I did not imagine I would ever grow to enjoy writing nonfiction.
However, here we are! I became so invested in finding real stories and shedding light on them that I have very nearly abandoned my fiction projects, with the exception of The Graveyard House (because I am posting that here as I go along).
In honor of Kindle Vella and the readers that, as of yesterday, I no longer have—I realized now is as good a time as any to finally talk about my fiction.
Before I started digging into the lives of authors, I had already enjoyed the process of spinning new worlds and creating happy endings. Truthfully, I believe that I will always be a fantasy writer, above all other things.
I chose the indie path because I like the freedom of being able to do what I want with my storylines. I can have as many subplots and sequels as the characters decide.
There are benefits to this, as well as challenges; I’ve experienced both and still believe the path I took to be worthwhile.
The First Story
My earliest memory as a writer took place when I was 8-10. I had a Lisa Frank notebook, one of the journals that had duotone pages; they were pink and blue. If you were around during the Lisa Frank craze, you know what I’m talking about!
For some reason, I had decided that the best place to write a story was under the dining room table. There I was, penning something in my still messy handwriting. I no longer remember what I was writing, but the memory matters, because it reminds me that as a kid, storytelling was already the most important thing to me.
I participated in NaNoWriMo in my early teens. I have mostly forgotten what those stories were about, except for the one that had a dragon, because of the cover I used. Since there was a dragon in the story, I drew my own dragon. I now see it wasn’t a very good dragon, but what matters is that it made younger me happy.
(I also remember this story because someone exclaimed “Self-publishing is literary suicide!” when I mentioned I was getting my own copy made. Needless to say, I disagreed, and still do. Besides, since when does one personal, printed copy count as self-publishing?)
The First Bound Books
In 2016 I did venture to indie-publish a couple of books that I did not outline. Dissonance and Serenade were the beginning of a story that I know was meant to feature titles that are music-related; since I did not outline them, I quite forgot how that series was going to end.
(“That is so unprofessional,” I can hear people exclaim—the same people who used the term literary suicide. “You make self-published authors look bad!” I had considered unpublishing them, but when I went to do it, I hesitated.
Teenage me worked so hard to write, edit, and format those books, and she was so proud to see them go live on Amazon! I could not do it then, and have no desire to now. How could I disappoint that young writer? Quite simply, I do not advertise these books. They exist, and they hurt no one).
The Sea Rose Saga
The published work I am most proud of, and which I do advertise, is my Ladies of the Sea series.
This was a story I had started long before, but which truly took on life during Kindle Vella. In that time, I published all of the episodes under the title of The Sea Rose Saga. It was chosen as a Top Weekly Pick several times, while Vella still had life.
After I got to know these characters, they refused to shut up. This series continues, and promises that it’ll be long. The first two books have already been published; I’ve had some kind reviews.
I have a completed draft of the untitled third book, which I meant to publish last year. Joining Substack and gaining my ‘sea legs’ here distracted me; I couldn’t take the time to focus on the novel. I plan to edit and publish it this year, perhaps in the winter, around the same time that The Graveyard House will become available as an eBook.
The Sea Rose (purchase here!) and The Sea King (purchase here!) follow the character of Lady Rose, a part-Mermaid who was born into a world where Merpeople are mistrusted and disliked. It’s not set in a specific year, but I’ve always imagined it to be Regency.
Rose is the daughter of an earl who was murdered for his choice to defend Merpeople and try to portray them as beings with dignity and sound minds, rather than just ‘fishpeople’. It also follows Lady Meredith, another part-Mermaid who, we soon discover, plays a much greater story than she expected.
The Sea Rose, book one, consists of the first twenty-three chapters I’d published on Vella. All of the books after that were rewritten, as I could not figure out how to work the massive Vella-length, 400,000+ word story into a series that made sense.
I believe that my writing improved considerably between the first book and the third, but it’s not uncommon for authors to struggle with reading their own work.
If The Sea Rose hadn’t already been published, I would be obsessively rewriting it—again!
Other Stories
Vella was also a place where I tested different ideas, some of which flourished, while others didn’t. That doesn’t mean I will not return to them; some just need more focus.
A few of these other stories include:
Sandbanks was the tale of a magic school where wealthy ladies and princesses went.
It began when I had a vision of a princess accidentally setting a ballroom on fire. Since that was the only scene in my mind, I began asking questions.
Why did she do that? Was it on purpose? Did she get punished for it?
I do plan to return to that story; it is more of a high-fantasy novel with complex worldbuilding, so it’ll take time.
Mermaid was a spinoff of The Sea Rose, a novella recounting the childhood of Lady Meredith before her life became the nightmare that we read about in book one.
Some of the details in Mermaid no longer count, as I have developed her backstory better since then, but that doesn’t mean that Mermaid is of no value; I’ve considered editing it into a novella that readers might download for free, a trailer, if you will.
Next on Substack
Davy Jones’ Daughter, which I plan to release here on Substack in the summer under a different title, is about just that: in my version of the legend, Davy Jones has a daughter, but since women are bad luck on ships, she could never go with him on his adventures.
She’s living life as an embittered spinster, stranded in a little seaside town—until Ewan Crane, a sailor who survived eight shipwrecks (would you call him lucky? I’m not sure) shows up.
Angry and nursing his wounded sailor’s pride, Ewan Crane wants to know why Davy Jones never ‘recruited’ him on the Flying Dutchman, while all of his friends were recruited. (I guess some characters have a strange idea of priorities; most people would be thankful to be passed over, but not Ewan.)
This novel is completed, also the first in a series, and will be released as a Substack serial when The Graveyard House is finished.
Be sure to keep up! All of my Substack serials will go behind a paywall when I reach the final chapter. The reason is that they’re to be released as proper books afterward.
Life After Vella
The Graveyard House is, obviously, my current favorite project. When I started writing this tale, it was meant for Vella, but as soon as they announced they were closing, I released it here instead.
It’s been received well by Substack readers, a fact about which I am grateful. The characters have started taking on minds of their own—a sign, I believe, that it is a good story.
It explores graveyards and death in a way that is lighthearted and almost comical, which seems to have helped me grapple with the death of my grandmother this week.
At least, it’s helped as much as it can; I have no doubt that, later, the absence in her wake will be too great.
It has helped me to avoid the prospect of death being completely bleak and hopeless. I don’t know how to describe it; the only thing that I know for sure is that writing is, and always has been, a great escape.
I can’t wait to tell you more stories, fiction and nonfiction.
The fact that here, people subscribe to read my writing, is mind-blowing. Thank you for having followed me on this journey so far.
We still have tons of words to read and write!
Are you a fan of fantasy stories? I would love to know what you’re reading right now, as well as what you are writing!
It's a long hard slog, writing such a long series, and an even harder slog getting it before readers' eyes. I admire your persistence. Small publishers go under all the time, sometimes taking everything with them. Your rights to your own book can sink without trace. I hope the next stage for your stories proves to be less ephemeral!