Kimberly Loth's Blog

Multi-Author Shifter Sale!July 28th, 2021 FREE Night of the Wolf Moon, by Nina Walker and Kimberly Loth.

I’m not supposed to be sacrificed to the wolves, that fate belongs to my  sister. 

Heat Level: PG-13

99¢ Shadow Mate by Jen L. Grey

One little party turned my world upside down.

Heat level: Adult

FREE Dirty Blood, by Heather Hildenbrand

After tonight, Tara Godfrey knows two things are for sure. 1. Mean girls who turn into werewolves are not normal. 2. Hot guys who aren’t bothered by a little murder are probably bad news.

Heat Level: PG-13

99¢ Werewolves 101 by Marisa Claire

Your Life Begins or Ends at the Academy

Heat Level: PG-13

FREE The Quarterback Shifter by Emma Wolfe

Welcome to Smoky Hills Academy: #1 in Football #1 in Wolf Shifters. 

Heat Level: PG-13

FREE Shadow Sentinels: Beginnings by Karen Tomlinson

A journey starts with a single step…or sometimes a betrayal.

Heat level: Adult (for series).

FREE Wolf Hollow by Nikki Jefford

Breed or die off.

Heat Level: Adult

FREE Fierce Impact by Julie Trettel

The mission always comes first, until she waltzes into his life.

Heat level: Adult

99¢ Marked by Jennifer Snyder

A mysterious stranger she can’t ignore. A birthmark with hidden meaning. A bite that changes her destiny.

Heat Level: PG-13

**Spoiler alert**  These newspaper articles are for the sequel series to The Dragon Kings.  If you have not read The Dragon Kings books 1-5, there are spoilers.I had so much fun writing these newspaper articles and imagining for awhile that The Dragon Kings world was real.  I hope you enjoy these special promos I created for the sequel stories about Liam, Isa, Ruby, Damon and Grace.

Sid grabbed the two cups of coffee from Damon, Ella’s son. She owned the Purple Dragon, but she’d basically retired a few years ago. Her husband, Freddie, loved to travel and she wanted to go with him. She also didn’t need the money anymore since Freddie’s software on dragon tracking had made them multi-millionaires. But she still made Damon work, something he complained about frequently.

“You going to watch Liam fight tonight?” Damon asked.

Sid flinched. He hated the way they talked about it. It wasn’t really fighting, but his son had taken up with the dragon warriors and was often found fighting in the training fields.

“I don’t know. Maybe. You?”

Damon gave a smile that reminded Sid of Ella. “I never miss one.”

“Well, make sure he doesn’t get hurt.” He knew Liam wouldn’t really get hurt. He never did. Well, not seriously anyway.

Damon chuckled. “You know I can’t do that. It’s a good thing you and Aspen can heal him.”

Damon wasn’t kidding. After every fight, Liam came home with cuts and bruises, but he loved it so Sid didn’t stop him. He was seventeen, and Sid wasn’t sure he could stop his son even if he wanted to.

Well, he was king, so he could, but he’d never been a dictator.

Liam was something they never thought was possible. A king had never had offspring. He wasn’t sure what was different with him and Aspen, but they had a child. He’d expected it to just be human, but at two, they’d walked into his room and discovered a small dragon instead of a screaming toddler. Some of Skye and Val’s kids were the same. As dragons they would have matured slowly, not coming to age until about fifty, but their children matured as humans. So even though to him, it felt like Liam was still a little boy, he was nearly a man.

Sid joined Aspen at a small table. The Purple Dragon was crowded, but she’d still managed to find a table.

Two tables over, a wide-eyed ten-year-old boy stared at him. Sid winked, and the kid ducked his head. He was used to being watched and had learned to ignore it.

Aspen took her coffee and inhaled. She was still gorgeous all these years later. He couldn’t believe twenty-two years had passed. She’d cut her hair short, had laugh lines around her eyes, and moved slower than she once had. But she was still a daredevil and went to all of Liam’s fights, cheering him on.

“Why didn’t you tell me about Liam’s fight tonight?” Sid asked, taking a sip of his own latte.

She shrugged. “You don’t like to go.”

“True.” He didn’t like watching them even though the fights were necessary. They had to keep up their skills in the event of another war. The last war had wiped out several dragon races and they couldn’t risk anything like that again. But he hated the spectacle of the matches. Everything with his kingdom was a spectacle these days.

“Besides, I thought you had a council meeting tonight to discuss the search for hidden dragons.”

Sid sighed. There had been stories of dragons hiding out in various places. The most worrisome rumor was about a few surviving arctic dragons, but so far nothing had come of it. He worried that there was a few of them planning revenge. But he and the council had sent a few scouts all over the world.

In general the dragons longed for the day when the sky would be graced with a rainbow of colors again, but they’d only managed to find the fire eggs along with the green and purple ones. Green and Purple were the colors that when combined made up the woodland dragons. They knew very little about them other than they had originally came over from Europe. Of course they had the eggs of the surviving races—royal, river, and underground. But they had yet to find Arctic and Canyon eggs.

All the scouts had reported to him already except the one who’d gone to Europe. No one found anything. This council meeting would be useless.

He hated meetings. Even the useful ones.

The kid was staring at him again.

“Whatcha looking at?” Aspen asked and swiveled around.

The kid ducked again, but this time, his parents noticed. They grinned.

“We should go say hi,” Aspen said.

Sid nodded. He loved kids, but he and Aspen had only had one. Val and Hazel had three, and Skye and Rowan had ten, with another one on the way. Rowan said he wanted to make it an even dozen. It was a madhouse at their home.

Sid and Aspen got up and stopped at the kid’s table.

Sid crouched down next to him. “What’s your name?”

“Eli.”

“Do you like dragons?” Sid asked.

Eli nodded vigorously.

“Well, if it’s okay with your parents, how would you like a ride?”

Eli’s mouth fell open and he bounced in his seat.

“Sure, you can go,” his dad said.

Sid followed Eli and his family outside and grinned. This was one of Sid’s favorite things to do.

Life was good.

Also, Have you wondered why I’m finally writing a sequel series to The Dragon Kings?

Without further delay, here is the dashing Obsidian and his dragon. 

Obsidian, artist rendering by Dominique Wesson

And as for the 2nd question: it’s simple really, because you asked for it. Okay maybe it’s not that simple.  A handful of you have been begging me to finish the Michigan Millionaires series for years and I still don’t have that done, so there are two more reasons

My assistant asked me to write a blog on being positive. Which if I had written two days ago when she asked me to, would have been easy. But I’m not gonna lie. Today, I’m feeling blue.

Why?

I dunno. Maybe it’s the weather. It’s cloudy and a cold front has come through so I can’t go work outside. Maybe it’s that my business income is falling and I can’t figure out how to fix it (I bet a lot of you feel the same way). Maybe it’s that I haven’t really taken a day off since the pandemic began—this comes from a philosophy I’ve always had even when I worked a real job why waste a sick day being sick. I rarely took a sick day off when I was really sick. I always saved them for mental health days. Those days were glorious. I would write (this was before I was published), read, watch TV, and just enjoy my solitude.

I’ve looked at the pandemic the same way. Why waste these hours vegging when I can use them and take super fun hours later. And I’m planning on it. I figured if the world opens up by the middle of June, we can take a month-long trip and I don’t have to work a day. But that’s a whole month left without a day off.

So I’m a little burned out.

I was wallowing in my self pity when my hubby got out of the shower this morning. I got up to whine at him and before I had a chance, he pulled me close, kissed me and said, “Let’s have waffles.”

It seemed so simple. But my attitude changed almost immediately.

And so, we made waffles and bacon.

Instead of whining at hubby, I told him I needed a day off next week. We chatted about how to make that happen (I gotta write a little extra today) and talked about the things we could do on the day off. I wanna watch Netflix and read…he wants to go exploring. We’ll probably do some of both.

While we ate, we did our gratitudes. It’s something we do every morning at breakfast, but today I appreciated it a little more. We write down five things we are grateful for and then share them with each other.

I realized I have so much to be grateful for.

My books are still selling.

My creativity is going strong.

I have an amazing support system.

My fans (They are the best. Seriously.)

We have a great house to hole up in for this quarantine.

I have a dog that I adore.

Waffles and Bacon.

A husband that loves me and treats me like gold.

Friends…seriously amazing friends.

An incredible family (both immediate and extended)

A church family that I love.

The weather…it’s been so nice this spring.

Yoga.

My health.

The internet.

That I live in the age of electricity and not 200 years ago.

Good books (I just finished The Viking’s Chosen by Quinn Loftis. So good!!!)

Good TV shows (Devouring Elementary right now….)

A connection with God

I could go on and on and on…Funny how gratitudes are like that. Once you start, you can’t stop.

So, if you’re feeling blue. Can I recommend two things?

1)    Waffles and Bacon

2)    Write down all the things you have to be grateful for.

 

It’s actually not that much different than real life ;-). Except less going to the store. Hubby and I are used to being on the road so that has been challenging. My Father-in-law has a cabin the woods and we’ve holed up there.

 

 

My typical day looks like this:

Early Morning: Write

Mid Morning: Answer emails/marketing/play with my dog/do yoga/try not to be distracted by hubby (who is very distracting lol)

Afternoon: Finish up anything I didn’t get done in the morning/do something outside/eat dinner

Evening: Watch Netflix/Read We just finished all four seasons of Hart of Dixie and LOVED it. Now I don’t know what to watch.

We’re trying really hard not to go too stir crazy, but we really, really want to get back on the road. Some afternoons we go for a drive. One day we visited my son’s grave and planted flowers. It was peaceful and quiet.

I hope all of you are doing well (mentally and physically) and staying busy right now with things you enjoy!

 

Wow, it’s been such a wild ride. In May, I hit my 4 year publishing anniversary. I now have 24 books out and I have so much gratitude in my heart, that I feel like I might burst.

I’m grateful for my rock awesome assistant, my editors, my cover designers, my beta readers, my family, God and most importantly, I’m so grateful for my amazing FANS.

You guys.

Sometimes, I’m still baffled that I have fans. I mean, that’s a privilege reserved for Hollywood stars, right?

Everyday, I get emails and messages from y’all and I love them so much. They make me laugh, cry, and smile.

Love you guys. Never stop being awesome.

Thank you for your continued support. I couldn’t do this without you.

Read on for this exclusive first chapter of God of the Sun!

 

The Baby

High Prince Leo of Stella sat down at the large circular table. It was rare for them to eat breakfast in the dining hall of the castle, but the rest of his twelve siblings arrived last night at the behest of his sister, Candace, who had an announcement. Of course, he knew what the announcement would be, they all did, but he played dumb anyway. This would be the first grandchild for his father, and so it warranted a special breakfast.

Bright yellow lights hung from the ceiling, and the floor glowed white. Light flowed from nearly every surface, as the darkness could be suffocating. Thank the stars for magic. Leo looked around the noisy table. Over the last few years, the number of people around the table had grown. When they were children, there were only twelve of them, plus his father and his father’s wife. Now, couples were starting to emerge. Three of his older siblings were married, and others had steady relationships. At seventeen, Leo had had a relationship or two, but at the moment he was free. Which was a lonely place to be when his favorite sister was about to announce that she was pregnant. Where in the depths were Ari and Sage? They would keep him entertained. But they were always late.

Candace caught his eye, and he smiled at her. She practically glowed. She wore her deep black hair swept up in a twist. He hadn’t seen her wear it down since she got married.

He missed having her around. They were the only two siblings who shared the same mother, and that created a special bond between them. But now Candace was a lower queen and had too many responsibilities to come home often.

A hand thumped him on the shoulder, and his eldest brother, Ari, collapsed into the armchair to Leo’s right. He sat with his leg flung over the armrest, his blue hair hanging in his eyes. To Leo’s left, his sister Sage sat down, flicking her rainbow-colored hair over her shoulder. She had deep purple bloodshot eyes. She yawned and put her head on the table.

“Late night?” Leo asked.

Sage nodded into her arms. “Has she announced that she’s been knocked up yet?”

Ari straightened in his chair and poured himself a glass of juice. “She can’t be knocked up if she’s married.”

“She’s only been married for a month. My guess is she’s a few months along. That’s knocked up,” Sage said, sitting up and rubbing her forehead. “Remind me to never drink again.”

Ari laughed. “You say that every time we go out. The last time I reminded you, you punched me.” He turned his attention to Leo. “How come you didn’t come out with us last night? I sent you a few messages.”

“I turned off my disc. I wanted to spend some time with Candace. She won’t be here long.”

“Right,” said Sage. “You just don’t like to party. Maybe you should go live in Sol.”

Leo snorted into his glass of orange juice. “If I have to live in Sol, you two are coming with me.”

“They’d kick us out so fast. Ugh, what did I do to my hair?” Sage asked, examining the multi-colored locks. She squeezed her eyes shut, and it returned to the brilliant violet she usually rocked. She dug into her pocket, took out a small bottle, and downed it.

Before Leo could ask what it was, Candace stood, and the whole table fell silent, except for Sage, who was giggling. Candace glared at Sage, and Leo squeezed her knee. She covered her mouth and tried to stifle the giggles. The small bottle clinked next to her plate, and he picked it up. The label said “Giggle.”

“That’s not nice,” Leo hissed at her. “Taking this potion right now. You’re going to ruin the announcement.” As the tenth child, Sage got away with more than the rest of them, but sometimes she took things too far. This wasn’t fair to Candace.

“Sorry.” She giggled. “I thought it was Sober. My head is killing me. For what it’s worth, the giggling isn’t helping.”

Candace cleared her throat as the door creaked opened. Every head in the room turned.

An old woman hobbled in. She was large with a pale weather-beaten face, and she wore a bulging tattered coat. An earthy odor emanated from her. She crept slowly to the table and then plucked an apple from a bowl. She took a bite and spit it out, revealing gray teeth.

“Blech, those taste much better in Sol. I need to remember to eat before I come next time.” She looked around the table. Her blue eyes pierced Leo’s, and he shivered.

The entire table sat in shocked silence. No one moved. Leo had heard the stories about the Old Mother who gave horrible prophecies that required someone to make a great sacrifice. He didn’t know anyone who had actually met her. He assumed the rumors were simply scary stories kids told each other.

The old woman cackled and pointed to Candace. Leo’s stomach clenched. Not now. Not her. He pushed his chair back, ready to help Candace if she needed it. He crept around the table and made his way toward her.

“A prophecy I have for you. The vipers grow restless. They long for the blood you deny, and they are changing. If the kingdoms of Stella and Sol are not joined by that child’s first birthday, then he will die,” said the Old Mother.

She stared at each of them in turn, making eye contact. “And he will not be the last. The union must be strong. You must prove to the earth that Stella and Sol will be forever joined, or the vipers will eat you all.”

With a poof and a cloud of dust, she disappeared from their midst. Not a sound was heard in the room except Sage’s giggling.

Zwaantie is the main character for God of the Sun. Her name is dutch and it means little swan. She’s a princess who doesn’t particularly want to be a princess. She’s incredibly independent and so she fights against her oppressive country quite a bit, breaking rules whenever she can.

A few pictures of how I pictured her:

Stats:
Long hair, blonde, very straight. Usually worn in braids
Blue Eyes
5’5
Slender
Quick to smile
Zwaantie’s Favorites:
Food: Fresh Strawberries
Animal: Cows. She’s a bit obsessed.
Color: Blue
Flower: Tulip
Place: The woods
Person: Her maid, Luna
Zwaantie lives in a world where they have no real music unless it is live. But if she lived in our world, this would be her theme song. (It’s seriously perfect, I liked it because it was about stars but when I read the lyrics, I was like WOW.)

 

Anytime I release a new series, I’m often asked where the ideas came from. Stella and Sol was such a fun series to create that I thought I would share a little bit about how it all started.

The entire series started with an idea of a world where half was dark all the time and half was light with no crossover. I think it began as a conversation in the car on a road trip. What would it be like if the sun never set? What would a world without a sun look like?

Stella and Sol was born.

After I had the idea, I had to think about what those worlds would look like, what characteristics would they have. What made each unique?

Sol

Sol came first.  Daylight all the time. Since there was a lot of sunlight, agriculture made a lot of sense. They could grow just about anything. I modeled the whole world off a medieval European farm kingdom. Nothing modern. The capital city, Zonnes, where my main character lives, is based on the Netherlands. I also made the kingdom monotheistic. They had only Sun and so they worshiped it. I love the exploring ideas of moral right and wrong and good and evil. Sol is incredibly conservative.

 

I do a ton of genealogy. I love exploring my ancestry and where my family came from. My mom’s whole ancestry is Dutch and so when I chose names for characters in Zonnes, they are all from my own family tree. My main character Zwaantie is the same name as my great-great grandmother. It means little swan.

 

All the town names in Sol come from various European languages and mean some version of sun, sunshine, or sunray.

Stella

If I’m being completely honest, if Stella and Sol were real, I’d pick Stella to live in. No question. When I first dreamed up Stella, I pictured it a little like Vegas. Much more modern, relaxed, and fun. Since it is a fantasy world and completely dark all the time except the stars and moon, they needed to have some way to gain light. Magic made the most sense. The entire kingdom runs on their ability to magically create. The only thing they cannot create is food, so they do a lot of trading with Sol. Morally loose, just about anything goes in Stella. It’s a party all the time.

They polytheistic, worshipping the stars as gods. All the names in Stella come from various constellations or other space related names. Except two. My children wanted their names used in the books. King Ajax is named after my son A.J. and the potions maker Xandria is named after my daughter.

History and Setup

I have a whole history written out, but it’s a bit spoilery, so I’m not going to share it here. Suffice it to say, the kingdoms are separated by a wall of mist that is incredibly dangerous to cross. The wall was created when daylight and night separated. There is very little interaction between the kingdoms. In fact, when our story begins, the only people who ever set foot in the other kingdom are traders and they only cross once a year or so. We have a princess from Sol who wants nothing more than freedom to make her own choices and a prince from Stella who needs to save his own kingdom, even if that means giving up his own happiness.