C.L. Wilson's Blog

A Harmony of Fire, Pre-Order Your Copy Today!

So my boy, Bri (that would be the lovely and talented Brian Feehan, my BFF Christine’s son and our mutual writing and plotting partner), has his debut novel coming out next summer. It’s a completely cool fantasy romance unlike any you’ve ever read before. And if you haven’t done so already, you totally need to preorder your copy today! I’ve got mine.

Brian’s Harmony of Fire is the first book in his Alice & Owen series about two magically gifted “Etherealists” with powers that make them a target for some pretty bad supernatural powerhouses.

The “We” (think angels/demons/uber-powerful supernatural beings) walk among us—beings who existed long before humans ever did, filled with powerful magic. Owen and Alice are both Etherealists, rare humans born with magic and a target for those We that wish to take it from them. 

When she was nine years old, Alice’s soul was forcibly tied to one very powerful and evil We. She escaped and was trained as a weapon so she might one day break the bond that chains her and return home without endangering everyone she loves. 

Owen is a musician with a very special gift who is trying to outrun his past while keeping those around him safe in an increasingly dangerous world. Only through finding each other do either Alice or Owen have a chance of survival.

For those of you who don’t know, Brian’s been part of our “Starfish Club” brainstorming team for over a decade. He’s been an instrumental part of our group, with fantastic ideas and loads of talent. He’s an utterly delightful human being and one of my favorite people on the planet. He and his beautiful, much beloved Michelle are two of my favorite gaming partners for cards and Catan and whatever interesting new game Brian discovers then teaches us all to play. So even if he wasn’t my best friend’s son, I’d urge you to go buy his book and give him your support. And not just because it’s a great book (which it is), but because really good peeps deserve really good things to come their way. So send lots of goodness Brian’s way!

Get your copy of Harmony of Fire today! Then be sure to friend him on goodreads and facebook and all the other social media site stuff. (And if you’re feeling a little naughty, drop him a line to tell him you think the movie Aquaman with Jason Momoa is The Best Movie EVAHHHHHH!!!! He’ll love you forever! :wink emoji :wink emoji :wink really damn hard emoji!)

Thanks y’all and big hugs!

Now back to my regularly scheduled programming. I am trying to finish JAGUAR KING and make forward progress on my half a dozen other WIPs. Wish me luck!

Totally apropos, since I’m trying to wrap up Jaguar King, which is set in a pre-industrial South American-inspired land on my fantasy world of Mystral, I’m thrilled to announce the upcoming release of THE WINTER KING translated for the Brazilian market.

Titled O REI DO INVERNO (The King of Winter), this new version of THE WINTER KING will be published as a digital-first edition to the Brazilian market on August 15, 2021 from HarperCollins Brasil.

I’m so excited to have Wynter and Kham’s story translated for a new community of readers. And I absolutely love the cover!

I hope you and the ones you love remain healthy and well during this unprecedented time in global history. I’m hunkered down in Florida, with my husband and my two US-based children. My third daughter remains in med school in Australia. So far (knock on wood), everyone in my family remains coronavirus free. We are all social distancing, working, studying, and writing from home. The daughter who isn’t with us is currently doing her ICU rotations at one of Brisbane’s hospitals, but she assures me that the minute her hospital receives their first COVID-19 patient, she will be sent home.

For anyone who has or has a family member who has contracted the virus, you are in my thoughts and prayers.

Just to thank you all for your continued patience and support and to offer a little gift from me during this stressful time, I’m posting this snippet from my current WIP, THE JAGUAR KING, the third book my Weathermages of Mystral series. Enjoy.

Excerpt from THE JAGUAR KING, by C.L. Wilson

(c) Copyright 2020, C.L. Wilson, All rights reserved. This is an unedited work of fiction.

“Come quickly!” Taraq hissed, waving at Miq from the branches of a nearby banyan tree. “Something’s happening.” Not waiting for a response, he turned, sank back into his cat, and raced nimbly across the network of branches.

Miq melted into his jaguar form to more easily navigate the tangle of tree limbs. Powerful muscles flexed in his chest, forelegs and hindquarters as he leapt from his tree to the one Taraq had occupied. Thick, curved claws sank through bark and into the wood beneath to secure his purchase. His sensitive whiskers twitched and his eyes glowed gold as his magic responded to the thick miasma of evil that emanated from Cuora Zinoctl. It was so strong, it all but overpowered him. Miq chuffed and his tail smacked the banyan as he fought off the dark lure that dragged at his cat, making his mouth fill with saliva as every predatory instinct leapt to savage life. A snarl nearby—Cholu keeping watch over him—snapped him out of his brief trance. He shook himself roughly, chuffed his thanks, and followed Taraq’s scent trail through the arboreal highway towards the city of their enemy.

As he drew closer to Taraq’s position, he could hear a commotion. Shouting. The screams of shadow cats. He couldn’t feel the priests, though, thank the Seofne. For the moment, Miq was not a danger to his b’alam. In the days they’d spent scouting the city, trying to find a way in through the barrier, they’d learned that the shadow cats could sense Miq’s presence from a farther distance than the priests, but they had no power to control or influence him. That power lay solely with the priests—and only some of them, at that.

Taraq, who once more wore the skin of a man, crouched amongst the densely leafed upper branches of a massive kapok tree. Miq shed his fur and crouched beside him, and together they both looked down at the city below. The crown of the kapok tree, some two hundred feet above the forest floor, provided an unparalleled view of the deceptively beautiful Cuora Zinoctl, with its shining white stone pyramids, neatly ordered buildings, manicured gardens, white-stone-paved streets, and peaceful reflecting pools.

At the moment, the city’s facade of perfection and peacefulness had been shattered by some sort of uproar that had set the whole city in turmoil. Alarms were blaring. People were shouting. Scores of warriors and half a dozen shadow cats were all converging on the open stretch of ground that bordered the pyramid backing Gulah Zin’s palace, another pyramid to the right of the palace, and the walled gardens that linked the two. More shadow cats and numerous black-robed priests spilled from the temple to Ur’Xal that stood at the center of the city.

A single, small, dark figure ran before the gathering mass of pursuers, and the gap between them was closing quickly. At first Miq thought the figure was one of the priests, but as the figure grew closer and burst through the flowering hedges and greenery into to open, he realized that the swath of black swirling around the racing figure was hair, not cloth.

And the figure was a woman.

A young, naked woman with skin the color of burnished mahogany and waterfall of flower-bedecked black hair that fell to the back of her knees.

As she neared the magical barrier that enveloped the city, Miq realized something else.

The woman was glowing.

Golden light beamed out from her, surrounding her in a sphere of brightness as if her body was a blazing torch.

Miq grabbed one of the thick liana vines hanging from the branches nearby and shimmied down it. He called just enjough of his jaguar to makes curved claws sprout from his hands and feet as he dropping into a tangle of banyon limbs below and ran down them until he reached the ground.

The rainforest floor was a shadowy place. Little sunlight pierced the overhead canopy to reach the ground below. Shrubs and bushes grew in a dense thicket all along the perimeter of Cuora Zinoctl, leafy branches thrusting forward to fight for their share of sunlight that beamed down upon the great stone city. The magical perimeter that kept Miq and his b’alam at bay was a smoky haze, barely visible to the eyes but blaring across all of his senses, emanating a malevolent wrongness that set his teeth on edge.

Secreting himself in the shelter of the riotous shrubbery, Miq parted the leafy vines and branches with his fingers and peered through.

The woman was fifty yards from the barrier now, and whether she saw it or not, she showed no signs of slowing down. Behind her, the shadow cats had outpaced the guards and were closing on her fast. Her eyes, he saw, were green. A bright, blazing, vivid green. They glowed in her face even more brightly than the light glowed from her body. So brightly, they obscured the features of her face and made his own eyes hurt to look upon them. As if the sun itself blazed out of her eyes. It was the most astonishing and fascinating thing he’d ever seen.

He forced his gaze away and found that his vision was obscured by great spots of shadowy color, exactly as if he’d stared directly into the sun. Miq blinked and rubbed his eyes, but it took several seconds before the blinding spots faded enough that he could see again.

By the time he did, the woman had almost reach the barrier. Only another five or ten yards to go, but Miq felt his heart sink. She wasn’t going to make it. The shadow cats were almost upon her. One of the guards chasing her stopped long enough to put a blowgun to his lips and fire. The woman flinched and stumbled, reaching around blindly to pluck the needle from the back of her right thigh.

She took another staggering step, two. Her right leg collapsed. She went sprawling.

A lesser woman would have given up. Even many a strong woman would have given up. But not this one. She didn’t cry. She didn’t scream. She didn’t make a sound. She simply started crawling, dragging her limp right leg behind her. Determination shone from her as clearly as her light. No fear. No tears. Just pure, steely will. Blazing for all to see.

Admiration, fury and helplessness warred inside Miq, twisting his gut. There was nothing he could do. He and his b’alam had spent days trying everything in their power to breech the barrier to no avail. They couldn’t leap through it. Their claws couldn’t pierce it. Not even the jungle could cross the boundary. Not one leaf or branch or twisting root.

Behind the woman, the leading shadow cat prepared to spring.

Since coming to Cuora Zinoctl, Miq and his b’alam had kept themselves concealed, never daring to reveal themselves to the warriors in the city, not to the shadow cats that roamed the perimeter at night, and especially not to the priests walked along the barrier each day presumably to verify that whatever evil magic they’d used to construct it remained strong and potent.

Not one of his b’alam had dared risked exposure, too wary of the power the priests might wield against them.

But at the sight of the brave, fearless sun-eyed woman about to be slaughtered by the corrupted cats that wore his same fur—mere yards from his hiding place, no less—Miq found himself incapable of just hiding and watching her die.

He leapt from the bushes, a roar bellowing forth, so loud the birds in the canopy overhead exploded into squawking flight and the spider and howler monkeys screamed shrill warnings to their family groups.

The shadow cats behind the woman faltered.

Hey everyone!

Thank you so much to everyone who has been waiting so patiently for my next book. I have been receiving many emails and messages asking for a status update, and although I have been keeping my FB friends updated, I thought I’d better post a blog and website update as well.

For those of you who may not be aware, I lost my father two years ago, and I basically stopped writing for eighteen months. When I finally got back on an even keel, I focused on getting back into the writing groove, and for the first time ever, I successfully won National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) by writing 50,000 words in one month! That 50k was new words on JAGUAR KING! YAY! So the next complete novel from me should be JAGUAR KING, and I hope to have news on that relatively soon.

I currently have several stories in progress. Though my main focus is working on JAGUAR KING, I have several other manuscripts started. The hope is that when I get stuck on one story, I can go work on a different one until I get unstuck; thereby continuing forward progress on a regular basis. That’s the hope, anyway. Fingers crossed!

So, what are the projects currently under way?

THE JAGUAR KING – Book 3 of the Weathermages of Mystral series. I’ve received quite a lot of mail asking for an update on this. I currently have 138,000 words written, but have another 30,000-50,000 words to go before it’s done. After that I have to spend several months revising before I submit for publication. I will keep you apprised as the situation changes and will post scheduled release date as soon as I have one!
Bel’s books – Fading Lands novel starring Belliard vel Jelani. I actually started it a few years ago and was going gangbusters but had to switch over to THE SEA KING. Frustration and delays ensued, as you all know. But I’m continuing to work on Bel’s story.
Melliandra short story(ies)/novella – Fading Lands story(ies) featuring our favorite little Eld girl. I’m not really sure if this project will be a novella, a full length novel, or a series of short stories yet, but I’m working on it and having so much fun
Untitled Fading Lands novel featuring the Sief of the Pale (the icy land north of the Feyls). This will either be a novella or a full length book. Not sure yet.

My BFF Karen Rose and I having a running joke. We both tend to be, uh, wordy. (I’m talking 180,000-235,000 word “bug cruncher” novels.) Then she was asked to write a novella. Her “novella” ended up being 130,000 words, which is the top end range of 400page novel. Her publisher said, “I have an idea! Write novellas from now on!” LOL. Since the last time I set out to write a novella, I kept struggling to keep it to 40,000 words (max novella length), I think we share that problem too. So, I’m hoping to write a novella, but it may end up being a full length book. Not “epic” (ie., bug cruncher length), but still full-length.
Untitled Earth Girl Meets Alien book. As part of my grief-therapy reading binge, I started reading sci-fi romance and fell in love. I have started one of my own, which I’m really enjoying, though it will probably be self-published under a pseudonym since its much different from my other work

The SEA KING is a Kindle Monthly Deal now through January 1, 2020.  It’s just 99 cents for your kindle copy! Just click the link today and get your copy today

Buy Kindle Sea King for 99¢

I was asked this past weekend at the Coastal Magic Convention if I ever share deleted scenes.  I typically don’t.  I keep every word I’ve written (I keep thinking I’ll repurpose them), but mostly that’s a trick I employ to fool my brain into thinking I haven’t cut words from a book.  (My brain thinks ALL those words should STAY! LOL!)  But here’s a scene I wrote for THE SEA KING that I ended up cutting due to manuscript length and also to keep the focus on Gabriella’s situation rather than diverting attention to Autumn.

I had a lot of fun writing this scene where Gabriella works her “Sweet Summer” magic on the Verminous Vermese.  Hope you enjoy!

(c) Copyright 2017, C.L. Wilson, all rights reserved.

Konumarr Palace, Wintercraig

“You are a fool, sir!  His Supreme Greatness, Korin beda Kahn, Maak of Verma and Cho, and Soliph of the Seventh Sea has made an offer of unprecedented generosity, gifts even the gods themselves would find worthy.  Yet you, with so casual a disregard for the great honor and the hand of friendship the Great Maak extends to you, dismiss his generosity out of hand?  You will regret your short-sightedness!  Such an offer will never come again!” Shaking with rage, Ambassador Galil beda Turat, envoy from one of the most powerful rulers in all of Mystral, whipped the edges of his red silk lined cloak around his lean body, whirled on his mirror-polished boot heels, and stalked out of the throne room of Wintercraig’s summer palace.

He stormed down the hall, and nearly plowed down two, exquisitely gowned, dark-skinned beauties as he rounded a blind corner.  Recognizing them as two of the beautiful princesses  known as the Seasons of Summerlea, he drew his body up in a stiff line and sketched a bow so curt it bordered on rudeness.

“Princheskas,” he bit out.  The Seasons were the eldest three daughters of the late King Verdan of Summerlea’s four daughters.  The fourth and youngest daughter, the one most of the world hadn’t even known existed until last year, was now Queen Khamsin of Wintercraig, wife of the ingrate who’d just summarily dismissed the greatest proposed marriage contract offered in the history of all Mystral.

Galil settled his fierce glare on the two black-haired Seasons, Spring and Summer.  “Your king is a fool,” he spat.  Fury boiled inside him.  Back in Verma, he would not have deigned to speak to the females of his host’s household directly, but this was Wintercraig.  The women here walked about freely, unveiled and unescorted, bold-eyed, and bold-tongued, even to the point of speaking without permission in the presence of men!   As if women were equals to men!  When every who had an ounce of common sense could plainly see that man, by Fortanu’s great design, been created to rule over woman.  “Your sister Autumn could have been Maakina of the richest lands in Mystral, Solipha of the Seventh Sea.  The Maak would have clothed her in diamonds, set the crown of an empire upon her head, laid the world at her feet.  Instead, your king kicks sand in the great Maak’s face.”

The two black-haired, dark-skinned princesses—whose Summerlander warmth seemed so out of place in this cold land of golden-skinned, pale-haired folk—exchanged a look.  The armed Wintercraig guards standing at the door to the throne room started towards the three of them, their faces hard, eyes flat.

The taller of the two princesses, the one called Spring, waved the guards off, and addressed Galil directly.  “I take it Autumn has refused the Maak’s offer of marriage again?”

Gail drew in a sharp breath.  The word “again” was a slap in the face, an inhospitably rude reference to the fact that this refusal marked the tenth time Maak Korin’s marriage contract had been spurned—as it had been every year since the Princess Autumn had turned a properly marriageable thirteen.  She was almost twenty-three now.  Past her prime child-bearing years, but her beauty was still so enchanting the Maak was mad to claim her.  So much so that in his latest offer, he’d even vowed to dispossess his other forty wives, to set Autumn Coruscate above them as his Maakina, his first wife and empress of his many lands.

As insulting as the reference to this being the tenth refusal was, however, that was not the reason Princess Spring’s remark made blood rush to Galil’s head until he thought his skull might explode.

No, it was much worse than that.

For ten years, Vermese ambassadors had made the annual voyage to the Æsir Isles—first to Summerlea and now to Wintercraig—to present their Maak’s generous marriage contract to the king who ruled Autumn Coruscate.  For ten years, those ambassadors had been turned away.

But this was the first time, in all those years, that anyone had ever dared suggest that the person refusing Maak Korin’s proposals was Autumn Coruscate herself.

“She has refused?” The Vermese envoy hissed, his hair all but standing on end.  “She?” He bared his teeth at the two princesses with such fury and outrage that the guards leapt forward again, this time shoving themselves between Galil and the Seasons.

Surely, Galil thought, I cannot have heard right.

He spoke Eru, the common tongue, as did all inhabitants of Mystral, but his Vermese accent was much different than that of a Summerlander or one of the Winterfolk.  It was possible he had misunderstood Princess Spring’s meaning.  Surely, that was the case….

“You are not suggesting…”  His voice trailed off.  “You cannot mean…“ The insult was too grievous.  He could barely bring himself to even think such an abomination, let alone give it voice.

He sucked down a deep breath, mustered his will, and forced himself to ask the unthinkable.

“Are you saying a woman has refused the Maak?  Your sister?”  His voice rose.  His whole body flushed hot with rage. “Wintercraig’s king has allowed the Maak to be scorned by a female?”

“Step back, please, sir,” one of the guards instructed.  His words were polite.  His tone was a granite brick, hard and unyielding.

“Such insolence!”

“Step. Back. Now,” the other guard bit out.  And where his partner’s tone had been granite, this guard’s command was a sharp, unsheathed blade.  There was no missing the threat.

“This insult will not be borne!” Galil shouted.  “His Supreme Greatness, the Maak Korin beda Kahn has treated with you with all honor and generosity.  And you repay him with indignity?  You grant power over his proposal to a woman?”

“Your Excellence, please, calm yourself, I beg you.” Princess Summer spoke soothingly from behind the protective shield of her guards.

At the sound of her voice, the terrible rage boiling inside Galil’s skin began to cool.  Now here was a proper woman, gentle, soft, yielding in all the right ways.  Summer Coruscate, the second of the late King Verdan of Summerlea’s three daughters known as the Seasons, would never think to set herself above a man.  She would never try to rule the gender born to be her rulers.

“Gunter, Lod, step aside, please.”  The princess laid gentle hands on the arms of the two White Guards.  Though their flinty eyes remained fixed on the Vermese envoy, the two guards parted and allowed Summer to step between them.

She was a beauty, Galil noted.  Not as breathtakingly stunning as her more exotic younger sister, the auburn-haired, purple-eyed Autumn—who for years had been celebrated as the most beautiful woman in all of Mystral—but still quite lovely.   Soft, black curls, gentle eyes as blue as a summer sky, a pleasing feminine way about her, modest and reserved.  Yes, she wandered Konumarr Palace freely and spoke without permission,  but that unmannerly boldness could easily be trained out of her.  Just looking at her, at her soft, dark beauty, the lovely, deep calm of her eyes, just hearing the fragile timbre of her voice, Galil could tell that Summer Coruscate possessed a pleasing, natural subservience that would appeal to even the most demanding of Vermese men.

“Ambassador Galil, please, forgive my sister.  Spring would not have spoken had she known her words would give you such offense.  And there is no cause for it.  Regardless of Autumn’s desires, the ultimate decision about whom a princess will wed lies with our king, as it does in most monarchies.   Even though the ways of Wintercraig as so much different than those of Verma and Cho, you cannot believe that King Wynter would cede his authority on so important a matter?”

She sounded so sincere and distressed.  Perhaps he had misunderstood after all.    “I would not wish to think so, no,” he conceded with a scowl.  “Even so, the Great Maak’s offer—a gift of such unsurpassed generosity its like has never been seen before nor ever will again—has been refused.  Refused!” His outrage began to ramp up again, quickly gaining steam.

Princess Summer reached out a slender hand as if to lay it upon his arm, then caught herself just before her fingers touched him.  She snatched her hand back.  Her cheeks flushed a charming rosy color, and her thick lashes swept down to veil her sky blue eyes in a show of feminine modesty that leeched his anger even further.  It pleased him that she had reached for him in clear appeal.  It pleased him more that she had remembered her place and had a strong enough natural sense of feminine propriety despite her upbringing to be embarrassed by her untoward boldness.

“Forgive me, Your Excellency, but I’m sure you know of the events of this past winter?”

Stiffly, he replied, “I do.”  After Wintercraig’s king had conquered his southern neighbor, Summerlea, Falcon, the former prince of Summerlea, had raised an army and hired fleets of Calbernan mercenaries to mount an invasion of the Æsir Isles with the goal of retaking Summerlea and conquering Wintercraig.  They might have succeeded had not the Calbernans switched sides in mid-invasion to fight an army of Frost Giants and ferocious wolf-like monsters called garm.  The particulars of the final battle were still unclear, with each whispered claim more fantastical than the last.   Some claimed the Ice God, Rorjak, had returned only to be defeated by the combined armies of Wintercraig, Summerlea, and Calberna.  Others claimed that a traitor in Wintercraig had tried to defeat Wynter and claim his crown for themselves.  While still others claimed that Queen Khamsin had personally led an army into battle to aid her husband.  Which, of course, was ridiculous.

Though, granted, it was conceivable that the Calbernans would have followed a woman into battle.  The blue-tattooed islanders lived in an upside down society where their warriors actually submitted to the rule of their women—their land a queendom rather than a kingdom, their family Houses traced through the maternal line, with daughters the heirs instead of sons.  Galil and His Supreme Greatness Maak Korin would like nothing more than to see Calberna swallowed by the sea, their blasphemous culture eradicated for all eternity, but the Calbernan’s command of the oceans and the ferociousness of their island defenses made that an improbability.  So, Galil and the Maak had watched the combined Summerlander-Calbernan attack of Wintercraig with hopeful eyes.  Had Wynter of the Craig succeeded in taking out Myerial Alysaldria’s only son and the largest Calbernan fleet with him, Calberna would have been greatly weakened. That the hoped-for weakening had not occurred remained a sore point with the great Maak.

“Well,” Summer continued, “in payment for Calberna’s aid in his time of need, the king agreed that Calberna’s prince, Sealord Dilys Merimydion, should be allowed to visit Konumarr Palace this summer to court Spring, Autumn and me.  He made the agreement before he knew of Maak Korin’s intent to offer for Autumn.  Surely you can see that King Wynter must honor his agreement with Calberna?” She glanced down modestly and blushed again, and the last of Galil’s fury faded away.

She wasn’t as small in stature as Vermese females, this mocha-skinned Summerlea princess, but she was so slender, her bones so delicate, that she seemed tiny and fragile beside him.  Galil wasn’t a particularly muscular man, and most Wintermen stood head and shoulders above him, but next to Summer Coruscate’s delicate femininity, Galil felt very large and strong and powerful, and intensely masculine.

“I suppose so,” Galil replied grudgingly.  Summer Coruscate’s voice was too pure, too honest, her soft blue eyes too deep and guileless.  It was difficult to stay righteously offended in the face of her gentleness.

Of course, Wintercraig’s agreement with Dilys Merimydion had come to the Maak’s attention months ago.  That was precisely what had prompted the hurried compilation of the Maak’s current, extravagant offer for Autumn Coruscate, and the very favorable terms of the alliance that would came with it.  He’d sent Galil to pluck the choicest plum from the tree before the Calbernan did.

“The Maak, however, will not be pleased when the Calbernan claims the princess the Maak wants for his own.”

The Calbernan would, of course, consider the invitation to court the three sisters as a guarantee that he would wed whichever Season he desired.  Unlike Vermese men, who decided upon the woman they wanted, then negotiated with the man who governed her for marriage rights, the Calbernans took extraordinary pride in claiming their chosen females through charm and seduction.  They were so smugly sure of themselves.  So confident in their ability to win any woman who caught their eye.

Unfortunately, their confidence was well-founded, which was why Vermese men kept their women under tight lock and key when Calbernans were near.

“I regret the king’s answer wasn’t to your liking,” Summer said, “but please, Your Excellency, don’t leave with anger in your heart.  May I offer you some refreshment? My sister and I were just heading out to the terrace for tea.”

She gestured to the wide open wooden doors behind her that led to a terrace overlooking the castle gardens and Llaskroner Fjord.

For one enticing moment, he almost acquiesced.  To sit on that open, sun-drenched terrace enjoying refreshing comforts in the company of a beautiful, well-mannered woman…such a temptation.  Such a very, very strong temptation.

Only the thought of Maak Korin’s fury kept him from it.

Korin beda Kahn had already warned Galil of the fate that awaited him should he fail, as his predecessors had, to bring home the auburn-haired prize his Maak coveted so dearly.  And Galil had no intention of becoming the next in a long string of unfortunate men served up as a live meal to the Maak’s favorite fighting dogs.

“Thank you, Princheska, but no.  As your king has refused the Great Maak, there is no further reason for me to remain here.  I must ready my departure.”  Remembering the manners of this foreign court, he bent his spine in a quick bow and took his leave.

He had plans to put in motion.  Quickly, before his time ran out.

I had several books get a little banged up in shipping to/from Readers ‘N ‘Ritas last year, so I’m decided to do a giveaway to five winners. Thanks to everyone who participated.

And the winners are:

Receiving a signed copy of THE SEA KING:

Vi Truong
Leannie Ly

Receiving a signed copy of KING OF SWORD AND SKY:

Nichole Baumgartner

Receiving a signed copy of QUEEN OF SONG AND SOULS:

Gladys Schuerg

 

And receiving a signed copy of CROWN OF CRYSTAL FLAME:

Lisa Ayers

 

I also promised to pick five names at random from my mailing list to receive a signed copy of THE SEA KING.  Those winners are:

Paula Howard
Melisa Hollingsworth
Rose Mwayungu
Jennifer lirai22@…
Marlene Frazier

Congrats to all winners.  I’ll be contacting you shortly for your mailing address.

I had several books get a little banged up in shipping to/from Readers ‘N ‘Ritas last year, so I’m going to do a giveaway to five winners. Up for grabs: 2 copies of SEA KING, and one each of KING OF SWORD AND SKY, QUEEN OF SONG AND SOULS, and CROWN OF CRYSTAL FLAME. They aren’t horribly damaged, just a little too bent around the edges for me to sell at the Tairen’s Lair.

For a chance to win one of these books (which I will sign for you), just (a) join my mailling list (signup is on the homepage of clwilson.com) and (b) comment ON THIS BLOG (located at clwilson.com/blog, not on of the syndicated postings on Facebook, or Amazon, or Goodreads) one of your favorite scenes from one of your favorite books and why you love it.  Doesn’t have to be one of my books  Flattery will get you everywhere with me, LOL, but I’m going to be doing a random.org drawing to choose the winners.



PLEASE BE AWARE: if you get selected by random.org, but I can’t find your email on my mailing list, I will pick someone else in your place. 

And just because I still have a lot of books to give away, I’ll also give away five (5) signed copies of THE SEA KING to members of my mailing list, who will be drawn at random.

Got it?  Great…so share the deets about one of your favorite scenes from one of your favorite books, and tell me why you love it so.

I’ll pick winners next Monday.

Thanks for celebrating with me!

I want to thank everyone for coming out to help me celebrate the release of THE SEA KING.

Every book is a unique journey for me, and I never know where it will take me or what it will bring. That not knowing—that element of surprise and anticipation—is what keeps me writing. I sincerely hope you enjoy the adventure of Summer and Dilys as much as I do. And I hope you will be with me for many adventures yet to come! Because the other part that keeps me writing, besides the adventure itself, is meeting fellow readers and sharing our mutual love of books and writing a book that makes you happy to have read it.

So thank YOU, each of you, for making this book release such a splendid, happy celebration for me! Thank you for sharing my excitement, my anticipation, and the thrill of sending a new story out into the world.

I’ll be announcing my Release Day Celebration Event winners on my author page on Facebook later today (like and follow me, please, if you haven’t already!). And if you aren’t already aware, there’s a 3rd grand prize in the offing…see below for details!

Happy reading, my friends!

And now…on to announcing those remaining SEA KING Release Countdown winners for October 30th and the two Grand Prize Winners…

Congratulations to October 30th Winners (T-1)

The winners for the October 30th (T -1) Drawing are…

Autographed copy of THE SEA KING (one winner selected) ~ Jennifer grosse
Autographed copy of THE WINTER KING (one winner selected) ~ bn100
THE WINTER KING & THE SEA KING autographed Collector Cards and bookmarks (3 winners selected) ~ Kimberly (kcraig…), Melissa Esser, and Jennifer Hubbard
A $5 Tairen Bucks coupon, which can be used to purchase any item from The Tairen’s Lair, the online store for official C.L. Wilson merchandise (1 winner selected) ~ Arianna Allred
A complete set of signed Tairen Soul series Collector Cards (3 winners selected) ~ Julie (sailorrose), Bethany, and Zoe Miles
A C.L. Wilson tote bag (one winner selected) ~ Molly Shahly


Grand Prize Winners

The two lucky winners chosen from all the daily participant tickets accrued throughout the countdown will receive a basket containing the following:

Autographed copy of THE SEA KING
Autographed copy of THE WINTER KING
Autographed copy of ONE ENCHANTED SEASON, the holiday anthology featuring C.L. Wilson’s novella, Upon a Midnight
One complete set of autographed C.L. Wilson Collector Cards and bookmarks
A $20 Tairen Bucks coupon, which can be used to purchase any item from The Tairen’s Lair, the online store for official C.L. Wilson merchandise
Ellysetta Azreisa and Rainier Eras tairen plushies
Custom made scented lotion bars, lip balms, and bath salts inspired by the worlds of C.L. Wilson
Other trinkets, treats, and goodies that caught my eye

There were 1742 entries for the grand prize.   And of those 1742 entries, as selected by Random.Org, the two winners are….

 

drumroll please….

 

ah, the anticipation…

 

ahem…

 

wait for it…

Shelby Williams and Kat T.

Whoo hoo!! Congrats you two! And thank you everyone else for joining my countdown fun!

Special Release Week giveaway:

As a special thanks to everyone who helps me celebrate SEA KING’s release week, I’m offering a third Grand Prize.  For your chance to win, just tweet or post a picture of yourself to FB or instagram holding THE SEA KING or holding an e-reader with the SEA KING cover displayed between now and next  Tuesday, Nov 7th at 10am (UTC-5).

If tweeting your picture, be sure to include @clwilsonbooks #CelebratingTheSeaKing.
If posting to Facebook, be sure to tag my author page @Author C.L. Wilson and include the hashtag #CelebratingTheSeaKing.
If posting to Instagram, be sure to tag my instagram @cl_wilson_books #authorclwilson #CelebratingTheSeaKing

The winning picture will be posted next Tuesday, November 7th on this blog.

This third grand prize will include:

Autographed copy of the C.L. Wilson Book of your choice
A complete set of autographed C.L. Wilson Collector Cards and bookmarks
A $20 Tairen Bucks coupon, which can be used to purchase any item from The Tairen’s Lair, the online store for official C.L. Wilson merchandise
A C.L. Wilson tote bag

Good luck everyone!  And thanks so much for helping me countdown the days to THE SEA KING’s release!  I am so grateful for your continued support and enthusiasm!

C.L. Wilson

It’s official!  SEA KING is now available for purchase.

Come Join My Release Day Party on FB!

The release countdown is over, but join me on my SEA KING Release Day Celebrationon my CL Wilson Author page on facebook (not my C.L. Wilson profile, but the page, and go to events) for a release day party with fun, games, and more prizes.

I’ll be announcing yesterdays drawing winners later today, as well as the Grand Prize winners.

Special Release Week giveaway:

As a special thanks to everyone who helps me celebrate SEA KING’s release week, I’m offering a third Grand Prize.  For your chance to win, just tweet or post a picture of yourself to FB or instagram holding THE SEA KING or holding an e-reader with the SEA KING cover displayed between now and next  Tuesday, Nov 7th at 10am (UTC-5).

If tweeting your picture, be sure to include @clwilsonbooks #CelebratingTheSeaKing.
If posting to Facebook, be sure to tag my author page @Author C.L. Wilson and include the hashtag #CelebratingTheSeaKing.
If posting to Instagram, be sure to tag my instagram @cl_wilson_books #authorclwilson #CelebratingTheSeaKing

The winning picture will be posted next Tuesday, November 7th on this blog.

This third grand prize will include:

Autographed copy of the C.L. Wilson Book of your choice
A complete set of autographed C.L. Wilson Collector Cards and bookmarks
A $20 Tairen Bucks coupon, which can be used to purchase any item from The Tairen’s Lair, the online store for official C.L. Wilson merchandise
A C.L. Wilson tote bag

Good luck everyone!  And thanks so much for helping me countdown the days to THE SEA KING’s release!