Kaylena Radcliff's Blog

It’s the Wednesday before Thanksgiving! Get some good reads under your belt as you get ready to loosen your belt for tomorrow- plus, keep an eye on several e-book sales starting on Black Friday- including Tower of Cortico on Kindle (more on that below!)

Reading and just read

Much of my reading has been kid-oriented lately and focused on read alouds the whole family can enjoy. With both kids, I’m reading Martin the Warrior by Brian Jacques; the oldest and I are going through Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling; and the youngest and I have enjoyed a book of classic fairy tales together. I’ve gotten a lot of good practice with doing various voices. I mean, I’m still not great at it, but I’m getting better!

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My personal reading has been a little drier, save for Kumasagi Part 1: Destin. I’m also trying not to read too much fantasy as I work to finish the draft of the final book of The Elmnas Chronicles (read more below!)

Audio Adventures

A lot of car rides this busy fall has meant a lot of kid-friendly books. Here’s a bit of what we’ve listened to the past few months:

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

While my kids are really familiar with the audio drama production of the series, it’s been a long time since we’ve read/heard the actual story. The easy-to-listen-to audiobook we found on Spotify helped reintroduce the full story to my family. Now here’s the big debate: in what order should we read the rest?

Our next audio adventure as a family is a book I’ve been trying to read for a while: The Green Ember by S.D. Smith

Lots of action and great character development. We were getting a little impatient about the big reveals (takes well past chapter 20ish to get there), but once you do- everything picks up and it gets VERY exciting. We’re almost finished the first book- can’t wait to hear the conclusion!

And finally, a personal read for me: The Call of the Wild and Free by Ainsley Arment

This book is great encourager on jumping into homeschooling. It seems more geared toward first timers and was lighter on research in the first half of the book than I was hoping. However, there are some good reminders for seasoned homeschoolers as well as helpful ways to articulate your own style (and the schools of education usually associated with those styles). There’s a lot to like in this book, especially if you are someone who appreciates a more anecdote-forward approach to topics of interest.

Seasonal Reads

Something I just discovered and have found absolutely delightful is Letters from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien. This little book is a series of letters Tolkien wrote as Father Christmas for his young children every year as they grew up, as well as a number of beautiful, detailed drawings. Tolkien’s development of Father Christmas and his right hand “man”, the Polar Bear, becomes more Hobbit-esque over the years. I originally got it on Kindle to read for a book club, but after seeing the drawings and original letters, I had to purchase a physical copy. (Amazon was running a sale on the hardback, but it looks like it just expired! Still, you can get it here.)

For other seasonal (but perhaps less whimsical) reads, watch this space and my other social media for a special sale on my Christmas-themed demon-killing duology: “Grandpa Got Run Over by a Bane Deer” and “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence.” Sales start November 30th and run through December 9th. Don’t miss them and tell your friends!

Gate Watchers Sale: Starting Nov 30

Finally…writing! Writing is hard okay

I was blessed with the opportunity to get a way for a few days last week and do some heavy book planning and writing for Elmnas Chronicles Book IV. I’d been hitting some real brick walls the past few months and realized (after like, 12 hours) that a lot of it had to do with the way I had originally organized the story. Writing seems to be coming faster after the Great Shuffling. I remain hopeful that this story will be drafted soon. And after that, I’m looking at some big things to include for all you “extra stuff” people— I’m talking maps, appendices, timelines, short stories, the works! But that’s all after the draft is off to the publisher. Until then…keep bugging me!

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BLACK FRIDAY SALE: Tower of Cortico

If you’ve been waiting for the perfect time to get your e-book copy of Tower of Cortico, the time has come! This high-seas adventure fantasy will go on sale on Black Friday- November 29th- for $1.99! Don’t miss out and buy a million copies for everyone you know.

Tower of Cortico- Kindle

Get reading!

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I was supposed to be camping this week and enjoying clear views of the night skies during the new moon. The weather had other plans, so we had to bag it for another new moon- but thankfully, I was able to redeem the time: I’m pleased to share my latest story available to read on Kindle: A Time to Embrace!

Every abyss walker knows: the upworld is no place for the peoples of the sea. But when Sai uncovers an upworld object, his curiosity gets the best of him. Little does he know, a greater treasure awaits him on the surface. When terrible danger threatens his newfound discovery, Sai must choose between life and death itself.

Get a fresh and fantastical twist on a popular fairy tale with this magical short story.

This gender-bent Little Mermaid-esque story originally featured in the excellent anthology, A Time for Everything, but you can now read it as a standalone! Get it on Amazon Kindle, free to read on KU.

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Read: A Time to Embrace

Fall: A Time for Poetry!

Yesterday at the autumn equinox, one of my favorite Youtube channels - Periapsis Press - hosted a fall poetry reading. Both the discussion and poetry shared were lively and interesting, and included work from fellow Substacking authors Hannah Abrahamson (she reads “Libra and I” around 25 minutes in) and Jonathan Shuerger (Jonathan sing his work at the 33 minute mark!)

Author Leslee Sheu also read some poetic excerpts you’ll find in my book, Tower of Cortico! She introduces an excerpt from a shanty I wrote called “The Young Sailor’s Folly,” around the 10:45 minute mark. Later on, she also reads a short excerpt from an in-world poet named Seripedes. At any rate, tune in and watch the whole thing- it’ll get you in the mood for fall!

Periapsis Press Fall Poetry Reading

Out and About: Community Event

If you need signed copies and other swag, join me at the West Nantmeal Community Day in Elverson, PA on Saturday, September 27, from 10 AM to 3 PM. I hope to see you there!

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If I had to venture a guess, you probably came to my newsletter/Substack through my YA dystopian fantasy, Mouse. Or, if you’ve read other things I’ve written, it was most likely something that same speculative vein. But did you know that my very first published work was not dystopian, fantasy, sci fi, or horror, but historical nonfiction?

Over 11 years ago, I published The Torchlighters Biography Series: Corrie ten Boom through Christian History Institute to serve as a companion to CHI’s animated series, The Torchlighters. This award-winning biography aimed at elementary-aged children tells the true story of Corrie ten Boom, a middle-aged Dutch Christian who joined the Resistance in Holland and hid Jews in her home.

As you might have guessed from the “Biography Series” in the title, there were supposed to be more biographies. That didn’t happen. The world got Mouse, Fox, and Lion instead!

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After a few years, my Corrie biography quietly went out of print, but I still had some copies to bring with me to book events. It always did well, and it got me thinking.

What’s stopping me from getting the biography back out there?

I’ll spare you the boring details, but Corrie is making a comeback! I’m still working on reprints of the physical book, but the Kindle version is available NOW! And, from Wednesday through Friday, you can pick up the e-version FREE.

Get biography FREE

Corrie is a fantastic resource for parents who want to introduce their children to the history of World War II and the Holocaust in an age-appropriate way. Perfect for homeschooling, use in a classroom, or self-study, this book includes colorful illustrations, historical photos, a timeline, term definitions, and more. Check out reviews on Amazon to learn more, or visit Goodreads with the link below.

Read reviews here

Did you enjoy Tower of Cortico?

Speaking of reviews, what did you think of Tower of Cortico? I’d love to hear your feedback, but more importantly, I’d love for you tell other readers what you think. Did you know that your thoughts (both good and bad!) helps people to find new stuff they like? If you had a chance to read the book, go ahead and drop a quick line on Amazon, Goodreads, or your blog!

Leave a comment

In the meantime, I’m working on the last book of The Elmnas Chronicles (I promise!), and more stories from the world of Alluvion, the Gate Watchers serials, and a potential middle grade novel are brewing as well! Stay tuned for another short getting an e-version SOON.

Until then, keep reading!

14th-c. Russian icon of the Twelve Apostles

Do you see biblical narrative as living history?

This isn’t a theological “gotcha” but a genuine question. As I began editing the latest issue of Christian History and reviewing familiar stories of the apostles found in the Gospels and in Acts, I realized something. Often, and unthinkingly, I was reading God’s Word as a decontextualized story. Specifically I was reading about the apostles’ lives as if they weren’t really people, but more like literary supporting characters.

In one sense that’s true. When we read the Bible, we’re seeking to learn more about the God who reveals himself to us through it. But God reveals himself to us in a true story—one in which the Son of God really walked and lived with his family and friends.

MORE TO THE STORY

Insight into the lives of the 12 disciples who became Jesus’s apostles—specifically, Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James the Younger, Thaddeus, Simon, and Matthias—gives us another dimension through which to understand our Savior. If you read this issue of CH, you’ll see this was the goal of the early church fathers who served as both historians and theological encouragers when recording more on the apostles’ lives.

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The biblical canon gives us the best starting point for learning about the apostles, but scholars have also gleaned many details about the apostles outside of Scripture. While reputable ancient sources tell us much of what we can be confident in, the apocryphal writings, as bizarre and as theologically suspect as they often are, corroborate some facts and provide a fuller picture of the apostles’ lives. This includes the places the apostles may have evangelized and the fates they possibly suffered.

The apocryphal Acts of Peter and Paul shares the fantastic legend about Peter’s confrontation with the sorcerer Simon Magus. When Simon Magus flies with help from demons, Peter commands the demons to drop him. They obey, and Simon Magus falls and dies at Emperor Nero’s feet!

Though less historically reliable, fantastic legends and miraculous deeds popularized in these apocryphal writings still inspired the imagination and faith of later believers, especially as they were retold in the superheroesque tales of the Middle Ages.

This book can be best described as Christian history fan fiction!

Another useful feature of this issue is its help in sifting through the identities of the apostles and of other faithful followers—for example, how do we distinguish the stories of James the son of Zebedee, James the son of Alphaeus, AND James the brother of Jesus? Finally we’ll get a closer look at other disciples important to the mission of the very early church, including the thirteenth apostle, Paul, the Gospel writers, and the women closest to Jesus.

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THEY WHO WALKED WITH GOD

Just as I have at times neglected to contextualize the apostles in history, I also have forgotten these New Testament writers and figures were people—people who did normal things like eating and sleeping, laughing and crying, stumbling and failing. And yet they also walked with Jesus. They learned at his feet, despaired at his death, and exalted in his Resurrection. On these normal people came the power of the Holy Spirit, enabling them to write down what they heard and touched and saw: the living God, the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world and opens eternity before us. It’s a marvelous thought that forever after their encounters with Jesus, these regular men lived—and died—to proclaim him.

And now, reading Scripture with a little more understanding than before, I think marveling is the right response. How marvelous it is to read the conviction, joy, and love in the apostles’ words, to see their transformation as ordinary people who came face to face with our extraordinary God. It’s my prayer that as you discover the apostles’ stories, you may obtain their same confidence and hope: “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Pet. 1:8–9).

This moment in history is adapted from my editor’s letter in CH issue #156: What happened to the apostles? You can read the entire issue for FREE with the button below:

Read: What happened to the apostles?

You can also subscribe to the print publication for free, though we ask you consider donating to support our mission and offset printing costs.

The sun’s out (and so is all the humidity, which is what will really get you), my book is launched, and it’s time to jump back into reading for fun again! Looking for a few good beach reads? Well, you’re in the right place. Here’s what I’m reading (and what I just finished reading) this July.

Good ReadsThat Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis

This final book of the Ransom trilogy has a high and difficult entry point- academic jargon and the political minutiae of academia, medieval cosmological symbolism, and allusions/references to Arthurian legends all jammed into the first few pages/chapters could easily offput most readers. (I'd personally like to think I'm not an idiot, but the near impenetrable density of much of the book sure made me feel that way.)
However, Lewis's characters, as usual, carry the themes and plot masterfully, and give the reader plenty of personality to identify with and are intriguing enough to keep the reader going.
This is a book the reader needs to digest. When I first finished, I'd have given it a 3, but as I've had time to think about it and delve into each layer, my opinion keeps climbing. Climactic points of the novel were bizarre and fantastic; each character had depth and purpose; themes and concepts that seemed at first too distinct came together with a final and fascinating cohesion. This is not my favorite book by Lewis, but I understand why others may claim it as their favorite.
Would recommend for: Lewis enthusiasts, sci fi & fantasy readers who don't mind extra thought/research as needed, big-brained trad bros
Would not recommend for: casual sci fi & fantasy readers, Ayn Rand

Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

You know, you’d think after being exposed to endless adaptations of Frankenstein in media, I’d have been able to identify Shelley’s Frankenstein with the Frankenstein (and Frankenstein’s monster) of popular culture. The two are very, very different, and this book wasn’t at all what I expected. That’s not a bad thing! But if you managed to never read this in high school and you decide to pick it up now, just keep in mind how horror as a genre has evolved since this foundational writing.

The Giver by Lois Lowry

A dystopian story that centers on Jonas, who, after growing up in the carefully curated and choiceless existence of his community, is selected to be the next Receiver of Memory when he comes of age at 12. The writing is concise but not simplistic, gripping and page-turning without the typical intense action you see in today’s dystopian fiction. So far, I’d definitely recommend!

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Audio AdventuresDune By Frank Herbert

This is a masterful tragedy that tells the story of Paul Atreides, a betrayed Duke’s son who becomes Muad’Dib- a legendary messianic figure on the desert planet of Arrakis. A seminal sci-fi work with many layers of political intrigue, religious commentary, and ideological insight, the book is often incisive and cynical. However, it’s also beautifully written, and Herbert paints virtue and nobility in his morally complicated protagonists in a way that makes you admire them (and he depicts his villains as really, truly despicable). There’s also some real weird stuff that happens. However, I think I’d recommend this to most avid readers of sci-fi if they haven’t picked it up already. And if you have read it, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

A story I can return to a hundred times and enjoy just as much as the first. This audio version, read by Andy Serkis, is delightfully well-done. Not only does he voice his iconic Gollum, but somehow he also mirrors the on-screen counterparts of characters Bilbo, Thorin, Gandalf, Balin, and more. And the songs! *chef’s kiss*

My children both love story as well. It is 11-year-old girl and 7-year-old boy approved!

The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman

This prescient book takes a hard, scholarly look at modern identity, specifically sexual identity, and offers a cogent historical study of how we got here. Trueman starts with Romantic-era thinking and works through the perception of self, sexual morality, and identity especially as developed via the influences of Freud and Marx.

I’m finding the book both rigorous and fascinating, but it is not for the casual reader. If you do better comprehending visually versus auditorily, I suggest grabbing a physical copy- but the book is on Spotify in its entirety and free for Premium users!

Your recommendations?

What book are you bringing to the beach/lake house/cabin this summer? Give me your favorites so far.

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If you’re still looking for your beach read, why not try Tower of Cortico? Like The Princess Bride (80’s cult classic film, not the book, which I haven’t read), this high seas adventure is full of all the things you need in a good story: magic and action, great friendships and sweet romances, high-stakes battles and personal sacrifice.

Get Tower of Cortico here!

And, if you’ve read it already, consider leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Bookbub, or wherever you like to review books. Just a few words can help readers like you find what they’re looking for!

Review on Goodreads

Launching at Bookish at the King of Prussia Mall: Tower of Cortico, a high seas adventure fantasy for all ages! Come out from 1 PM to 4 PM on June 28th to pick up your copy, get it signed, as well as get some free swag and a chance to win a free copy of A Time for Everything.

See you then!

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Book deal FOR YOU: Scars of the Heart, Shadows of the Soul

Wanted to share this great dark fantasy story with you from award-winning author, C.S. Johnson, that I think you’ll like: Scars of the Heart, Shadows of the Soul.

Once upon a time, the kuychi scars were not only a symbol of survival, but of power and death …
Lohli is a young woman who wants to gain a kuychi—a mystical shadow-mark that not only symbolizes courage and strength, but gives power to their bearers. While plenty of others, including her own father and Tlaloc, the heir to the Chiefdom, desire kuychi for their power, Lohli wants a kuychi in order to find her sister, Lokan, who has mysteriously disappeared.
With the unexpected help of Wayron, a young man whose own past is marred by secrets, Lohli must uncover the hard truths and hidden darkness in her world.
Ultimately, she must discover what true bravery demands—and just how far she'll go to save those she loves.

With plenty of twists, surprises, and sweetness, Scars of the Heart, Shadows of the Soul is a short, dark fantasy story from award-winning, genre-hopping author C. S. Johnson.

You can get this story on Kindle for $2.99, but use the button below to get it for only 99 cents!

Scars of the Heart for $.99!

In my last update, I shared that Tower of Cortico would be launching in August. As it turns out, good things sometimes arrive much sooner than expected!

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(The packaging is not lying. The books are HEAVY!)

Thanks to the efficiency of the publisher and Amazon, I’ve got plenty of books to share! With that in mind, please plan to join me at Bookish in the King of Prussia Mall (King of Prussia, PA) on Saturday, June 28th for the official launch party of Tower of Cortico. While you can preorder the book on Amazon NOW, I’ll be selling and signing these copies the day it launches. Plus, attendees will get some fun swag, a chance to win a copy of A Time for Everything: A Speculative Fiction Time Travel Anthology, and the opportunity to support a very local, very awesome book store. Specific time for the launch TBA, but expect an afternoon event.

If you can’t make it but still want a signed copy ASAP, send me a message and we’ll talk about how to make that happen. Or you can go ahead and place your preorder now, which, as I can now share from experience, won’t be too long after the launch!

Preorder Tower of Cortico

Either way, I can’t wait to share this new high seas fantasy with you! If you were supposed to receive an ARC and haven’t yet, send me an email at KaylenaRadcliffWrites@Gmail.com to get it today. And if you’re new here, read on to find out what Tower of Cortico is all about!

Stalling a world war isn’t a job for everyone, but when duty calls, Captain Thaddeus Norcross answers. Even so, when he catches the suspected provocateurs, a mysterious woman and her nonhuman companions, he gets more than he bargained for.
Meanwhile, the clock is ticking for Princess Katarine. Racing against a rogue faction of mages and a magical weapon of unprecedented power, she must recover that which is most precious to her or risk losing her home and family forever.
The question will the meddling captain be a hindrance or a help?

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If you’ve been following along here for awhile, you may recall that aside from being a fiction author, I also work for Christian History Institute— currently, as the managing editor of Christian History magazine. When I first started with CHI over a decade ago, I would not have branded myself as someone particularly interested in or knowledgeable of history. (I always loved a good historical story, but all those dates…how could I be expected to bother about those?) Nevertheless, after getting a chance to help with curriculum for an animated episode about the life of Augustine, something of an armchair historian awakened. One thing led to another, and now it’s my day job to learn about all kinds of fascinating things that have happened in the church’s past.

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Maybe this is a hot take, but I think that a certain affection for and understanding of human history is a crucial part of writing good fantasy. Historical patterns correlate to fantasy tropes; a broad-base historical knowledge enriches the backstories of fantasy worlds; and nuanced understandings of past events inspires nuanced fantastical plots.

You never know when some of that will come out in a story you’re writing, but having that codex in the back of your brain is an easy source of inspiration!

At any rate, this walk through history is brought to you by our current issue of Christian History, on a lesser-known theological movement called the Mercersburg movement.

An unassuming grave

If you’re at all familiar with Lancaster, Pennsylvania, probably the first thing that comes to your mind is its well-known Amish community, and the bucolic imagery their lifestyle conjures: miles of rolling farmland, horse-drawn buggies on country lanes, cows and sheep and chickens free-ranging in grassy fields. And you’d be right—at least about surrounding Lancaster county.

Lancaster itself, however, is a real city, one as historic as neighboring Philadelphia, and with the same fingerprints of colonial and revolutionary America all over it. During a recent visit, I went in search of some of that American history in Woodward Hill Cemetery.

On a blustery spring day, dragging my elementary school-aged children along after a two-mile trek, we entered the grounds most famous for housing the grave of the country’s fifteenth president, James Buchanan.

We’d get to Buchanan, I told them. First, I was on the hunt for another grave, which was a bit less famous and a little more difficult to find. We kept our eyes peeled as we stalked the grounds. I only caught it thanks to a passing glimpse of the Chi-Rho symbol I knew should be there, but there it was: the final resting place of John Williamson Nevin.

Who?

Again, those familiar with Lancaster probably don’t think “John Williamson Nevin.” Before editing this issue, I knew nothing about him. But the life and work of John Nevin—a minister in the German Reformed Church, a scholar and theologian, and the architect of a nineteenth-century ideology known as the Mercersburg movement—has a greater bearing on American Christian history than you might realize.

In the upcoming issue of CH, you’ll meet Nevin and his fellow theologian, Philip Schaff, a scholar, historian, and minister in the German Reformed Church. Working first from a seminary located in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania and later from college and seminary campuses in Lancaster, the Mercersburg thinkers challenged the zeitgeist of American Christianity in the nineteenth century by swimming against the tide of revivalism and its iconic practices.

They also developed, wrote about, and shared a particular vision for the church they encountered in the United States. Before ecumenism even existed as a concept, Nevin and Schaff imagined an impossible future: one in which Catholicism and Protestantism could find common ground, recover the good, and slough off the aberrant in both traditions. Such a position invited heated controversy and charges of heresy.

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They desired to see a gathered worship that recovered ancient practices and a Christianity that centered the presence of Christ, namely, in its understanding of the Incarnation and the Lord’s Supper. Again, controversy ensued, as some saw their views as far too Catholic. But along with their students, the two thinkers defended their hopeful vision of a recovered and united Christendom for the rest of their lives, facing off with various factions—Charles Hodge and the luminaries of Princeton Seminary, Charles Finney and his fellow revivalists, and finally, influential leaders of the German Reformed Church.

Mercersburg for the 21st century

What came of these strivings might not be readily apparent, especially as national turmoil in the Civil War eclipsed the movement’s influence. And yet as the twentieth century dawned, rife with greater evils outside the church than the conflicts within, the Mercersburg vision of Christian unity looked more appealing to believers both in the United States and around the world.

As I have had the opportunity to learn about the thinkers of this movement myself, I am surprised by the fingerprints I see in both my local Pennsylvanian history and in theological thought more broadly throughout American Christianity. Like the unassuming but beautiful gravestone I found in Woodward Hill Cemetery, the ideas of Mercersburg have been present but unnoticed.

Today, as Christians seek to find their roots in the ancient church and interpret what that means for a common future, many are discovering the writings of Schaff, Nevin, and other Mercersburg thinkers for the first time. A Mercersburg revival might just be at hand.

We did eventually make it to James Buchanan’s grave! This was, surprisingly, a trip highlight for them.

This article is adapted from the editor’s note in CH #155: The Mercersburg movement. If you enjoyed this short feature, you can read more at Christian History’s website for free with the button below!

Discover the Mercersburg Movement here

Happy Cinco de Mayo and welcome to May! As the grass grows greener, we also get closer to the release of Tower of Cortico. Keeping this update short, sweet, and to the point. Without further ado, here it is!

If you like:

Magic, fantasy races, and mythical monsters

Noble heroes and villainous villains

Enemies to lovers

Naval battles and high seas adventures

This is a book you don’t want to miss!

There’s still time to get on the list to receive an advanced review copy. Expecting e-copies in late June- don’t miss out!

ARC team sign up

Book Launch at BOOKISH

If you need the smell and feel of paperbacks in your life, then please come out to the book launch party at Bookish at King of Prussia Mall on August 9th! Specific details coming in June, but here’s what you can count on:

-books to buy, signed by me, the author!

-cool swag and maybe candy

-Q&A with the author

-If it’s not too loud, a public reading

Also, if you live in the area and you haven’t been to Bookish before, make sure you stop in for a visit! Owned by local author Becky Minor and Scott Minor, Bookish is a huge amplifier of indie authors and voices in Christian sci fi and fantasy.

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One other event: Quakertown Alive!

Visit me at the authors’ corner on Saturday, May 17th in Quakertown, PA for their annual spring festival, Arts Alive! Get signed copies of The Elmnas Chronicles and other works.

I’ll be looking to plan other summer events. Have a local festival that I should know about? Let me know by email or here on Substack.

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It’s almost here!

Things are moving fast for my latest fantasy novel, Tower of Cortico. Today, the cover was finalized! Here it is:

Yes, it’s just a teaser, but I couldn’t give it all away just yet, could I?

If you want to be among the first to see the cover of Tower of Cortico (and hey, also the first to read it!), sign up for an ARC.

ARC List Sign Up!

If you can’t commit to be an ARC reader at this time, look for the full cover reveal when I announce the release date and the book launch party. Coming soon! Watch this space for details, and make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss it.

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Other news

This week I’ll be attending HopeWords: A Writers Conference. Aside from learning and being encouraged in the sessions and getting a little hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains, I plan to use whatever spare time I have to write. I’m looking forward to some space to continue working on The Elmnas Chronicles. With a lot of prayer and a lot of perseverance, Book IV will be drafted this year. There’s so much to write, and so little time to write it! If you have any time management and/or writing tips handy, feel free to share them. I need all the help I can get.

In the meantime…

From the writings of Alluvion: Elemental Magic

In the world of Alluvion, you’ll find most of those with magical ability draw their power from elemental sources. Here’s a little from the scholarly studies of Flavian H. Reem, in his essential work, In Your Element: A Novice’s Guide to Source Magic.

Why does magical ability have an elemental source? What is this magic, precisely, and how does it work?

The answers, at present, are myriad and sometimes controversial. Ancient thinkers believed this extraordinary force as old as the world itself, a gift from the Creator to creation, as recorded in Alluvion Epica Mundi, the oldest holy book in existence:

So the Divine gave to each race a part in his power: water to the west and fire to the east, earth to the north and air to the south, so that they may know him. Thus ever after the peoples sought the elements, but only those whom the Divine willed could grasp it.

Recent scholarship has provided new and less ethereal theories. Still, research supports the oldest theory: the drawing of particular sources may indeed have a genetic and even cultural component, perhaps related to the sources most readily abundant in the regions in which each magically inclined race has evolved and adapted.

At any rate, in this volume we deal not with the why, but the how. The following pages will provide novices of every elemental inclination the foundational mechanics necessary for successful wielding. …

Whether you have newly discovered your gift or are a veteran user who desires deeper understanding, this guide will serve you well.