It’s amazing how quickly life can get derailed when you move across country. In September, I moved from Southern California, where I’d spent the last 15 years of my life, to a mid-size town in Washington state, just a few miles south of the Canadian border. I went from hot, dry, and flashy, to cool, damp, and quiet.
I couldn’t love it more.
However, the move and associated life circumstances put my writing on hold for a while. But I’m back and ready to rumble! Here’s what’s currently going on now:
1: New books. They are in progress! My most recent story, Titan Rising, is out to readers right now and I am awaiting feedback for the next draft. In the meantime, I’m working on finishing a story from 2013, Europa Passage.
2: Other writing! Most of my non-fiction writing has been going up on my blog, but I’m going to republish some of it here. It’s time to centralize everything.
3: Bookmark contest. Due to the move, this got shelved, BUT. I want people to have cool bookmarks. Drop me an email with your address, and I’ll send you some, even if you didn’t officially enter the contest.
That’s all for now. More soon!
~Joi
I asked for this. (No, I literally did.) My friend Spectacles occasionally poses his blindbag My Little Pony figures in funny ways to tell a story, so I encouraged him to act out some of the scenes from A Circle of Salt for the contest.
He did not disappoint.
“This is your doing, daughter of the earth!”
“No answer, little not-a-horse? No matter, I do not care what your story is.”
“Do not misunderstand me, Ivan Petrokova. I have seen things you cannot imagine.”
“Doubt all you like, feygirl. Even if my words are not true, I’ll not be killing you today.”
Oh my goodness, the bookmarks arrived, and they look SO GOOD.
I cannot wait for people to see these in person; this pic does not do them justice.
Also, GIVEAWAY ENTRIES! Two pics have been entered so far; remember, you have until midnight on April 3rd to enter! Post a pic to Twitter or Facebook, and tag me to make sure I see it. Here are the current entries!
To celebrate the release of my book, I’m printing up some bookmarks with all-new art based on A Circle of Salt!
BOOKMARKS! (So…beautiful…)
(The bookmarks and book cover art were done by Sabrina Zbasnik.)
First, you need to have a copy of my book: doesn’t matter if it’s digital or hard-copy.
Second: take a picture of the book (preferably, a pic of you with the book, but you don’t have to be in the pic if you don’t want to) and post it to me on Facebook or tweet it to Joi_The_Artist. All photos will be put here on the website so everyone can see them: be creative!
You can send in photos until midnight Pacific time on April 3. On April 4, I will choose my three favorite photos: those lucky winners will each receive a full set of 3 bookmarks. I will also do a random drawing of three photos, and each of those winners will receive 1 bookmark.
Ready, set, READ! And, um, take pictures of it! (And please consider leaving a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads!)
It’s been an interesting few years. After losing my job in 2011, I was unemployed until 2014. I spent a lot of that time sewing, and a good bit of it rewriting my Russian folk tales book. After much hemming and hawing, I finally decided to release it into the wild:
Vasilissa is accustomed to spending her days in a world of eternal summer, but when her carelessness causes harm to a human being, she is exiled to the human world. Vasilissa tries to keep herself aloof, but as she interacts with men and women and learns about their struggles, cares, and bravery, she begins to care more than she thought possible. But Vasilissa is not the only magical being in that world, and it will take all of her strength, wits, and magic to survive. The ancient witch Baba Yaga, and her servant, Koschei, are intent on ruling the world with blood magic. And only Vasilissa’s blood will do.