Camellia Dawn's Blog

Today is the release day for Inner Demons, the fourth book in the Under Demon Rule Series.

I am so excited for you to continue in this world with me.

Update One: I’m so excited to announce that Inner Demons has officially been submitted for publication. All of the final edits are complete and approved. It has been a long time coming but it will be out June 2 and in the hands of readers!

Second Update: Under Demon Rule Book 5 is well under way! I should have the first draft finished by the end of May. (That’s the goal anyway

I am so excited to finally share the cover of Under Demon Rule book 4 with everyone!

Inner Demons has been in the works for a long time, but I am so happy with how it turned out. I hope you have just as much fun reading it as I did writing it.

Here it is…

Writing Update:

These crazy times have actually been very beneficial for me. I’ve been able to plan out a book schedule for the rest of the year, and I think it’s going to be great.

I am currently working on creating a page so you all can keep up with my schedule with me. (Hopefully it will keep me accountable haha)

Anyway, staring in June, I plan to release one book each month for the rest of the year. I’ve been spending all my free time writing and have managed to complete 2.5 books! That means that no matter what, you’ve got at least three more books coming this year! YAY

I’ll be the first to point out that I totally suck at keeping up with a blog. The good news is, however, that in the midst of all this chaos we find ourselves in, I suddenly find myself with a lot of free time on my hands. That means I have more time to write books!

Some updates:

First, Under Demon Rule Book 4 has officially been submitted. While I don’t have a specific release date yet, it should be out this Spring. I can’t wait for you to read it.

Second, I just started writing the first book in a planned six book series that I’m super excited about. No specifics yet, but unlike my first series, this one will feature the same main character throughout. There will be magic, ceremonies, school, a lots of romance.

I will do my best to give regular updates from now on. Thank you for sticking with me!

Camellia

First thing I want to say is thank you! The Demon’s Healer has been on the top 100 bestseller for 2 months and it’s all thanks to you guys! I never thought it would get this far, and I can’t wait to see how you guys like the next books.

I have discovered that writing full-time and have a full-time job and going to school is very difficult. Adding keeping up with a blog was just too much. I originally wanted to post on this blog twice a week, then it went to once a week, now I’m trying twice per month. But, I want to apologize now if I miss a post now and again. My priority right now is to get the books out as soon as I can while making them the best they can be.

Saved by His Demons, book 2 of the Under Demon Rule series came out a few weeks ago, and I hope you guys love it as much as the first one! I am hard at work on Book 3 with a submission deadline in August. Hopefully you will have it by the end of October!

Again, thank you for all your support!

Camellia Dawn

Honestly, I could separate my outlining process into multiple parts… you know what? I’m going to do that. So, here is part 1 one of how I outline.

Characters.

For me, the most important part of my writing process is getting to know my characters. What are their names? What do they look like? What are their hopes and dreams? Their biggest fears? Regrets? What do they hope for? What is their goal? Motivation? The list goes on and on.

Usually at least one aspect of their character (haha) comes to me naturally, and I have to figure out the rest. For example, I knew immediately that my main character in The Demon’s Healer was a healer. I knew he was abused in the past and had trust issues, especially when it came to mates/mating.

From there, I developed his past. I figured out he wanted nothing more than to protect his brothers and make a home for them. That led to the question of how they lived currently, earlier, the past. How had they gotten to where they were now? Ari and his brothers didn’t have a great childhood, but it wasn’t horrible. Nothing truly horrible happened to them until they moved out on their own and started adulthood. (You will learn more about what happened in the book).

The next part is what they look like. I knew they struggled to get food so they would be fairly skinny and pale.

Prince Brennen on the other hand, grew up in a lavish lifestyle. (He is a prince after all). He is also a demon, so I wanted him to look like one. He is tall and has a muscular build. However, he is also dying of a mysterious illness that nobody can figure out, so he has lost some of that muscle mass. He is also pale from staying indoors so he can rest.

There is a lot that goes into creating a good character, but the most important thing (and often most difficult) is their names. I always save naming my characters for last because I think names should represent how I see the characters.

I knew I wanted a feminine name for Ari because he is petite and sweet. He’s been hurt but is full of love and emotions. I chose Aribel because it was close to Aribella. Brennen’s name was more for his title as prince. Brennen isn’t a stereotypical “masculine” name, but it feels more royal if that makes sense.

Honestly, everyone comes up with their characters in different ways. There is no right or wrong. My advice: make the characters feel real. Make them seem as if they could be standing right there in the room with you. You should know them well enough that you know how they would answer any question or if they have any unique mannerisms or quirks. You could always try interviewing your character or writing a diary entry from their POV. Whatever you need to do to get inside their head.

Well, there you have it. Finding my characters is really just a bunch of brainstorming, and to be completely honest, they don’t always stay exactly how I imagined them before starting a book. Just like any person, you learn more about them as you go along. So, don’t get too discouraged if you can’t answer all of these questions right away.

Next week I’ll dive more into the actual outline itself, so you won’t want to miss it!

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!!

The Demon’s Healer is now available for pre-order! It will be released on May 21, 2019. If you want it delivered directly to you the day it comes out then pre-order now.

As a special thanks, I am giving away free ARC copies up until the day of release. All I ask is that you review it. That’s it! Drop a comment down below or go to the “contact me” page if you are interested.

Until next time!

I think one of the most asked questions writers have is whether or not outlining is necessary. As someone who has tried both outlining and not outlining, I have some thoughts I would like to share.

First of all, there are many different ways to outline. You can do a chapter-by-chapter outline, a three-act outline, a plot point outline, Freytag’s pyramid, save the cat beat sheet outline, etc. There are endless possibilities, and those are just if you choose to outline before you start writing.

You can also outline as you go. This can mean that every few chapters, you go back and outline what you’ve done, or even that you only outline a few chapters at a time. You can even finish the first draft and then go back and create an outline before you revise your manuscript.

There are so many options to choose from, it can get a little confusing.

What am I? I am a plotter. I outline the hell out of my novel before I write a single word. Do I recommend this method for everyone? Of course not. Do I recommend that everyone consider some form of outlining? Yes.

Figuring out where your story is going isn’t the only reason for an outline. As I’m writing a series, my outlines have saved my life more times than I can count. Can’t remember who was attacked in that one book? It’s in the outline. Can’t remember what happened to that character? It’s in the outline.

However, my main reason for outlining is because I learned the hard way that my mind jumps from one idea to the next very easily. I once wrote a book that was a mystery thriller only to turn into a sci-fi dystopian halfway through the novel. It was a disaster. I outline to keep my brain on track so I can finish the damn thing.

If you believe yourself to be a hardcore pantser, then I recommend one thing to you. Either create the most basic outline with three points that you know are going to happen (ie. beginning, middle, and end) or outline as you go. What I mean is for every two-three chapters you write, go back and write a one-two sentence summary of what happened in each chapter. It will only take you a minute and could save your manuscript’s life later.

Anyway, thanks for listening to me ramble. I hope you get something out of it. Stay tuned: Next week I plan on breaking down my outlining process from beginning to end. It’s going to be a wild ride.

Updates:

The Demon’s Healer has been submitted for final approval! I should receive ARCs any day now, and I am so excited. Keep an eye out for some excerpts coming to you soon!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

My name is Camellia Dawn, and I write books. I love coming up with new worlds, characters, romances, shenanigans, and more. My favorite thing to do is sit down for hours and dream up new things I can write about.

I live in East Tennessee with my two cats, Nyxi and Cleo, and a very patient fish, Carlos. (I feed him. I do… really!) I love reading and hoarding books. When I’m not sitting behind a computer, you can probably find me buying more books than I could ever read, binge watching Netflix, or cuddled up with my cats with a really good book.

I love talking with my readers and always do my best to respond to all my emails, so feel free to contact me.

My first book, The Demon’s Healer, is in the final stages of editing and should be released in the next few months! It doesn’t have an official release date yet, but when I find out, it will be announced here first. I can’t wait to share my new world with everyone. The second book, Saved by His Demons, is in the works, and I am in love with the characters. I think you’ll really enjoy them and their journey.