Finishing Out the Year

Well, now that we’re on the downside of this year I thought I’d write a blog to catch up on what I’m working on. It’s been an eventful year, a whole lot of ups and downs for so many people. And my circle has been no exception.


Primarily, I’m finishing up the audiobook of Sanctuary of Echoes. Unquestionably, this has been the longest audiobook I’ve ever recorded. But I have to say I’m pleased with the way it’s turning out. This book has always been one I’m very connected to. In some ways, it exudes the things I love most about New Orleans, particularly its atmosphere, its architecture, just the unique way of life that exists there and for me is unlike any other place.


If all goes well, I’ll send the files to Audible in a week or two and then hopefully it will be released before the end of the year or just at the beginning of next.


In addition, I’m saying goodbye to Kindle Vella, or rather it’s winding down. For those of you who are not aware Amazon decided to pull the plug on their experiment, and all Kindle Vella books, serial stories, will be pulled off the platform at the beginning of February. Where that leaves me is with several completed books needing editing, then publishing, and several uncompleted ones. So, my work is cut out for me. I just submitted my last episode to Vella this month. It was from the collection of short stories entitled “Mystical Diversions” and the completion of a tale called “Kylie” about a woman on the threshold of crossing over, and the adventures she has in transition, definitely bittersweet.


So, that wraps up things for me just now. And by the way, if you haven’t checked it out yet my publishers, Cornerstone Book Publishers is having a 40% OFF book sale until Nov. 28. Drop by and check out their wide collection. I enjoy foraging around the Spiritual/ New Age section, great inspiration for writing.

Take Care,
Sending everyone peace and best wishes during the holidays,
Evelyn

End of Kindle Vella

Just a few days ago, I got an email from Amazon announcing that they were ending their Kindle Vella program. For those of you who don’t know about it, Kindle Vella was a platform for serial or episodic stories in which readers would pay to open new episodes.

I have spent a good amount of time publishing a number of stories on Kindle Vella, some of which I’ve completed and republished as books, including The Lady in the Blue Dress and Dumaine Street.

For me, my time at Kindle Vella was extremely helpful on a variety of levels. Writing on a tight schedule and juggling different stories at the same time stretched my abilities in a way that wasn’t always comfortable but extremely beneficial. Also, learning to master the pacing of episodic writing in terms of story structure I found sometimes challenging but also exciting.

All in all, I don’t believe my time there was wasted by any means. Some Kindle Vella writers have expressed a desire to migrate to other episodic story platforms and while at present I have no such plans, we’ll see what the future brings. I will keep you posted. At present I have three Kindle Vella stories that are incomplete on the platform. One is a collection of short stories, Mystical Diversions: Supernatural Tales of the Ouachita Mountains. I will be completing one short story in the collection before all the Kindle Vellas are pulled in February. The other two are The Vine: A Portent of Crows and An Unintended Witch. These two I will complete as novels on my own time.

I want to thank those who have supported my dive into the world of episodic storytelling with Kindle Vella, and I will keep you posted as to what the future brings.

2024 – What’s Percolating?

While 2024 will no doubt be a ground-breaking year in many ways, on a much smaller scale in my arena, I have quite a few projects on the horizon.

In 2023, I saw the publication of two new novels and audiobooks, The Lady in the Blue Dress and Dumaine Street, which originated as Kindle Vella stories. In 2024, I anticipate the release of two more works: The Story of Enid, a sequel to The Broken Vow, and The Alchemist’s Bride. Both of these originated on Kindle Vella as well.

I’m also planning to continue my audiobook work, releasing not only these two novels in that format but also some older works. This is the year I plan to release Sanctuary of Echoes in audiobook form. I don’t like to show partiality to any of my work, but Sanctuary is one I’ve always kept close to my heart.

In addition to this, I’ll be continuing my work on Kindle Vella. I currently have two Vellas in progress: The Vine, which is a direct sequel to The Tethering, and An Unintended Witch. I also hope to start a brand new book there, the fourth installment in the New Orleans Paranormal Series. If you want more information on any of these works, please visit my Books, Audiobooks, or Kindle Vella Pages on the main menu of the homepage.

So, 2024 is shaping up to be an exciting time, but I truly believe it’s also a time of great consequence. Our decisions this year will impact us profoundly in the coming years. We must think long and hard about what kind of country we want to live in and what kind of world we want to live in. Do we want to have peace and tolerance for one another, or do we want to dictate to our sisters and brothers and thus put our own freedom in jeopardy? Something to think about: every action and every inaction has a consequence.

All My Best to Everyone,

Evelyn

Book and Vella News

As we’re approaching the end of November, I wanted to release an update on some exciting things that are happening now and are around the corner. I was very pleased this month to see the publication of Dumaine Street. Presently, I am working on an audiobook version of the book, which should be out sometime in December.

On the Kindle Vella front, as well as having five completed Kindle Vella stories, I have two that are still ongoing. This month, I have released new episodes for “An Unintended Witch” as well as “The Vine: A Portent of Crows.” If you have yet to try Kindle Vella, it’s a unique reading experience where you use coins purchased at Amazon to unlock new episodes. The first three episodes are always free to read, and Amazon is usually eager to give you several hundred free coins when you sign up. So, check it out. It is optional to continue if it’s not for you.

So, that’s it for now. I really hope everyone takes some time to enjoy the holidays this next month and keep on reading. 🙂

An Unintended Witch

As an orphan, Rory Finn was raised by her Aunt Monique to be a practitioner in the arcane ways of magic. Then, last year, a powerful wizard initiated her but subsequently vanished from her life. Now, however, Rory is determined to walk away from the old ways, course correct, and establish herself as an artist in New Orleans. The problem is that her old life won’t let her go. And that enigmatic wizard is back and more than eager to help her curb the turbulent occult forces burgeoning within her.


The Vine: A Portent of Crows

Deborah Brandt has found the man of her dreams, literally. Unfortunately, Daniel Wren comes with a lot of baggage, particularly a mother who counsels them from other spiritual planes, an Uncle formidable with psychic abilities, and a family lineage involving a specific destiny for him and Deborah. The problem is when their beloved city of New Orleans seems under siege while Deborah is just trying to find a way to fit in and cope. Can she ever be the woman he has been looking for?


Dumaine Street

Voices in her head, catastrophic emotions, hallucinations — Rebecca Wells is more than convinced that she is losing her mind. And as a last-ditch effort, she contacts a self-professed counselor who seems convinced he can help.

Gabriel Sutton has abandoned the world of medicine to navigate a realm filled with psychic phenomena. Diagnosing Becca with extreme empathic abilities, he struggles to help her stabilize her gifts while trying desperately not to fall in love with his patient.

From the realm of vulnerability into a crusade to use their profound gifts to rescue others from peril on the other side of death, these two follow an astonishing and unpredictable path into each other’s hearts.

The Long Hot Summer

Well,

I hope everyone is finding a way to keep cool this summer. I know how terribly hot it has been for so many. For me, though in hiding from the heat it has been a productive for me. Just yesterday, I posted the last episode of The Alchemist’s Bride at Kindle Vella. This means I will be looking at a release date for the book sometime this Fall or early Winter. I will also be posting the final episodes of The Story of Enid at Kindle Vella early next month, so that would put a release date for that book probably the beginning of next year. But of course, if anyone is interested in reading those tales now, drop by Kindle Vella. The first three episodes of anyone’s Vella stories are always free.

Currently I am working on edits for another book, the paranormal romance, Dumaine Street which hopefully will be out either late next month or early September. And in addition, I am also juggling audiobook work. Recently, I released The Lady in the Blue Dress and The Tethering: A Portent of Crows as audiobooks and stay tuned because there are more in the works as well. So, try to enjoy the rest of your summer. And please stay cool.

E.K.

The Alchemist Bride

Emmeline Lescale might as well be an orphan. Her mother is dead, and her father wants nothing to do with her. She has been raised by an aunt in Vacherie, LA and virtually treated as an unpaid servant. But suddenly, her neglectful father insists she come live with him. New Orleans in the 1880’s is no place for a proper young lady, especially when her father is embroiled with a mysterious young doctor whose interests venture deeply and dangerously into the world of the supernatural.


The Story of Enid

When one realizes that a long-lost soulmate has been reincarnated, it poses some complications. When you have been a werewolf for nearly a millennium, the complications explode exponentially. Ethan Garraint understands that he should stay far away from Erin Holt, but she is in his city, New Orleans, and possibly in danger. And the truth is, he doesn’t want to stay away. He only wants to remind her of the lifetime they lived long ago, when they were more than lovers, when they became legend.


The Lady in the Blue Dress

When she was a child, Mika Devalieur was introduced to her grandmother’s most precious possession — a priceless and mysterious painting that she simply called The Lady in the Blue Dress. Upon Adele St. Clair’s death, the painting is left in the care of her granddaughter with only one stipulation. Mika must hand over the family heirloom to a total stranger. Mika Devalieur desperately wants to deny her beloved grandmother’s last request, but she can’t. Torn between her Gran’s last wishes and her desire to hold onto the Lady, she ultimately journeys to rural Virginia, where an enigmatic man shows her that this painting is only the beginning.

What quickly becomes clear is that James Clairmont knows much more about her and the Lady than he is letting on. He begins to slowly unravel a powerful supernatural connection that spans three generations of her family. Mika finds herself desperate to uncover the entire truth before she falls in love with a man filled with so many secrets — secrets about him, about her, and most especially about The Lady in the Blue Dress.


The Tethering: A Portent of Crows

 Deborah Brandt’s beloved Aunt Gena always told her that she was special, a bit different, and would have to live her life unlike other people. Of course, this she disregarded as the ramblings of her lovely but notably eccentric aunt. Although there were the things that Aunt Gena said that seemed true — like Deborah being sensitive to energy shifts, having potentially psychic impressions, and dreaming of a spirit guide — none of it could be real. But the most ridiculous thing that her Aunt Gena told her before she died is that there is someone special out there for her. She said that he is an extraordinary man who is not only her perfect match but someone who she would learn from so that they could help the world in difficult times. How ridiculous! It sounds like a fairy tale, and no such person exists.

Daniel Wren is unique. He has been raised and trained from a young age to hone his psychic gifts. He lives in a world unimagined by most. And he has been waiting for years to contact his counterpart, soulmate if you will. But the problem is that she is painfully unaware of the type of life that he lives and the life she would be entering into if they came together.

His dilemma becomes how best to proceed. How can he win her over and move forward before outside forces take that decision away from him?

West End – “Coney Island” of New Orleans

Did you know that at the turn of the century New Orleans’ West End was known as the “Coney Island” of New Orleans?

From about 1880 to the 1930s, a resort area along the banks of Lake Pontchartrain drew many inhabitants in and outside of New Orleans. This marine resort thrived and was complete with a board walk, hotels, and several food service, dancing and entertainment establishments as well as amusement rides.

Read all about West End as well as a few other New Orleans’ treasures in episode 9 of my Kindle Vella,”The Alchemist’s Bride.” (The first three episodes of any Kindle Vella are always free to read.)