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Elena May

Goodreads Author

Born

Sofia, Bulgaria

Website

http://www.kingdomofashes.net

Genre

Fantasy, Young Adult, History

Influences

Balkan, Central Asian and Scandinavian folklore, history and mythology

Member Since

June 2016

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Elena May writes fantasy in dystopian and historical settings. Born and raised in Bulgaria, she has studied in New Zealand and the US, worked in Germany and the UK, participated in various research or volunteer projects in Israel, Liechtenstein and Turkey, and traveled to over forty-five countries. In 2020 she relocated once again, this time to the land of little mermaids, ugly ducklings and snow queens.

Out of all the places she has visited, the one that provided the greatest inspiration for her Nightfall vampire series is foggy London. She spent a year there, sharing a tiny basement room with a humongous rat and wishing her landlord allowed cats. In the absence of cats, she faced the rat in battle, armed with both modern and traditional we ...more

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Can you tell us a two-sentence horror story?

Elena May I joined a three-week sailing trip and took all the basic necessities—water, dry and canned food, a swimming suit, a scuba set, sunscreen, and my Kind…moreI joined a three-week sailing trip and took all the basic necessities—water, dry and canned food, a swimming suit, a scuba set, sunscreen, and my Kindle. Once the shore was far behind, I opened my Kindle and read, "Your battery is empty."(less)

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In your bio it says thay you were born in Bulgaria but you are writing books in english. So I was wondering do you have advices for a foreign amateur writer who wants to english books? :)

Elena May Hi Mert. What a great question! Many authors from all around the world want to start writing in English to reach a wider audience, so you’re in good c…moreHi Mert. What a great question! Many authors from all around the world want to start writing in English to reach a wider audience, so you’re in good company. I’m not sure if you’re interested in just how to write a good quality book in English or also in how to get it published, so I’ll address both points.

On the actual writing, here are a few things that have helped me and many others:

1. Read as many books in English as you can. Read different genres and different writing styles. Read fiction and nonfiction, articles, blog posts, news stories, essays, even informal online forums. Read well-written works and think about what makes them good. Read poorly written stories and think how you could improve them. And don’t limit yourself to the written world: movies, songs, games, and plays are great resources as well.

2. Don’t just passively consume English-language media. Write! Write book reviews. Write responses to posts. Find international pen-friends and write them long emails. Try to write something—anything—in English every day. If nothing else comes to mind, even a short journal entry would do.

3. This part is the trickiest if you’re not used to that, but it’s also the most important. When you write in English, you should THINK in English. You shouldn’t think in your native language and translate your thoughts when you put them on paper. Unless you are a very skilled translator, this will not only make your writing process longer, but will also lead to strange, literally translated phrases, and your text will likely fail to convey your original meaning.

On the same point, whenever you’re unsure about the meaning of an English word you plan to use, don’t simply look up the translation in a bilingual dictionary. Often, the same concepts don’t exist in every language, and translations are not exact or can have different connotations. In some cases, the translation can be straightforward: a “dog” is always a “dog,” but other words, such as, for instance, “splendid,” could be translated as many different words in another language, and each of them might miss subtle meanings. If you’re uncertain about a word, you should check it in an English dictionary that provides a definition with examples. Many such dictionaries are available online for free (e.g. dictionary.com)

Even after you have a perfect book, publishing it might be tricky. It’s very hard to get an agent if you don’t live in an English-speaking country, but, fortunately, nowadays self-publishing is a great option and you have many opportunities to produce a quality book. You’ll find tons of advice at the “Self-Publish Like a Pro” section on my website: https://kingdomofashes.net/category/s...

Best of luck with your writing!(less)

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Elena May’s books

Average rating: 4.07 · 1,562 ratings · 178 reviews · 4 distinct works • Similar authors

	Kingdom of Ashes (Nightfall, #1) 3.89 avg rating — 846 ratings — published 2016 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Men and Monsters (Nightfall, #2) 4.39 avg rating — 557 ratings — published 2018 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Snowflake in the Tea 3.99 avg rating — 101 ratings — published 2018 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Throne of Blood (Nightfall, #3) 3.54 avg rating — 28 ratings — published 2021 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

32 posts
Elena May's Blog

Throne of Blood Character Reveal: Alfa

It's time for the last Throne of Blood character I wanted to show you before the cover reveal on Tuesday. Meet Alfa!

More details and a full-resolution picture on my website

Happy reading! 💖 Read more of this blog post »

1 like · Like • 0 comments • flag

Published on August 01, 2020 10:54 • Tags: character-art, character-reveal, throne-of-blood

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Series by Elena May

Nightfall (3 books)
by

Elena May (Goodreads Author)

4.08 avg rating — 1,431 ratings

Elena is Currently Reading

Elena May is currently reading

Throne of Blood (Nightfall, #3)

by Elena May (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-writing, currently-reading

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Elena May said: " As I did with Men and Monsters , I'm planning to use this space to share news on writing and publishing progress. Stay tuned!

April 22nd, 2021

Thanks to all Nightfall readers who have been patiently waiting for this book! The wait is almost over ...more "

Apr 22, 2021 04:51AM · see review