Kalayna Price

I don't usually link to lots of news, but some really exciting things have crossed my inbox and twitter feed over the last few days. For starters, many of you probably heard back in January that the amazing fantasy magazine, Realms of Fantasy, was closing . The announcement marked a sad day for many, myself included. I'm a long time reader of the magazine, and always intended to submit a short story (but I don't write a lot of short fiction, so never did.) Well, I found out today that Tir Na Nog Press purchased RoF earlier this month! They are not yet open to fiction submissions, but the magazine will return in July. Welcome back Realms of Fantasy ! In other, completely unrelated news, the Knight agency is currently running a cool contest for unagented writers called Book in a nutshell . The challenge it to write a compelling 'query/pitch' in only three sentences (150 words.) Twenty of the best queries will be requested by agents at the Knight agency, and feedback...

I've been trying to blog regularly, but I totally failed at that goal last week. I didn't post once on my personal blog, though I did post about why I keep a scrap file over at the Tri Mu blog. Speaking of the Tri Mu blog, we are in the process of revamping the site. We added two new members at the beginning of the year and created a new (and much improved) blogging schedule, so a new look was also in order. I designed the newest layout (see the image at the right) and worked out the coding over the course of the last week or so. We are still creating some of the content, but the site is now live and coming along nicely. So check it out and let us know what you think! (It's been a lot of fun, and we had a 'Tri Mu picture day' yesterday. You can see some of the images at the site, but I'll post more here in the coming days, so stop back by soon.) Other than my work with the Tri Mu, I haven't felt very accomplished recently. I spent several days extremely i...

This weekend wasn't as productive as I would have liked. I always hope weekends will be my chance to pull ahead, after all, they are theoretically less busy than the chaotic work week. But, alas, I fell behind instead of pulling ahead. It was my own fault. I should know by now that I am always busy. I seriously need to utilize my time better. But, hope is not lost. During my lunch hour I finished the last scene in chapter 2. The next chapter includes a scene I love and can't wait to write, and then the chapter after that (I think) introduces a new character to the series who is one of my favorite secondary characters in the book. So, hopefully the next couple chapters will fly off my fingers. That said, sometimes the scenes I look forward to most take the longest because ideas get lost between the picture in my head and the keyboard, and I struggle to get the scene right . Does that ever happen to anyone else? Well, wish me luck. I'm supposed to cross 10k tonight, but I...

Wow, it's already Thursday and the fifth day in March. There is so much going on right now that I feel like I'm behind on everything. But, I'm right on target with my word count. I haven't done my writing for the day yet (darn day job getting in the way) but I'm moving along in my gradual crawl, so I should cross the 5% mark. Okay, its not a grand mile marker, but it's progress! Word Count for HB2: 4,167 / 90,000 (4.6%)

This weekend I attended the SC Book Festival. I have been going to this particular festival regularly for the last three or four years, and I always enjoy it. This is a readers festival, not a writing conference, so I don't go expecting to learn much (though this time I did pick up some grisly details about decaying bodies from an author who co-writes with the man who started the body farm.) But, I do usually come home with a new writer (or, at least, new to me) to read. This year I went to a panel with the very interesting J. T. Ellison , and I will definitely be looking for her thrillers next time I stop by the bookstore. In other news, the the Tri Mu started a writing challenge this weekend. We had planned to have a writing challenge at some point later this year, but as I need HB2 written sooner rather than later, NLBerger recently discovered a shiny she couldn't wait to write, and Tori needed a push to finish her WIP, we moved up the date. My goal during this challenge i...

(X-posted from the Tri Mu blog .) Okay, so lets say you have a 100k word story full of snappy dialogue, compelling characters, and action scenes that keep the reader on the edge of her seat (or maybe you just worked out the idea and need to write a proposal.) Now, distill it into a two page synopsis. Oh, but while you are pulling out your hair trying to turn 100,000 words into a mere 500, remember to make sure your voice still comes through. Oh, and show the full progression of the plot. And make sure the reader gets a feel for your character. And your motivations should be clear. And watch out for leaps of logic. And... Wait! If you can't tell, I'm not a big fan of writing synopses. I bang my head on the keyboard, a lot, and once the delete key is permanently imprinted into my forehead, I still have more words/lines/ideas to tighten so that I can create a snapshot long version of my plot. Recently, I have been surrounded by synopses. I wrote one three weeks ago for my 'p...

If you watch my twitter feed or are a facebook/myspace friend, you probably noticed that yesterday was my birthday and that I have now marked the end (and new beginning) of another year. This past year was a busy one. A lot of new and exciting things happened in my writing career and in my personal life. One of the biggest highlights is, of course, the release of Once Bitten, but many other events have occurred which will likely affect the coming year. Not everything from the past year has been great, there are lots of aspects of myself and my life I hope to change, but overall, it was a good year. I took a vacation day yesterday, and spent most of the daylight hours contemplating the year, and relaxing and reading (I am notoriously grouchy on my birthday, so a maximum amount of alone time actually is best.) Then I celebrated with family, laughing and doing the singing/presents/cake thing. It was a good time. Somehow I managed to end up with three cakes in total. So, today I happily sp...

You might remember me mentioning the fact I was interviewed by my local small town paper last week. Well, the article came out yesterday and I made the front page! I know the images I'm posting are far too small to read, but I'm linking them to PDF files if you are interested in reading the full article. The paper's name got cut out of the scan (and yes, the first page is crooked--I fail at scanning) but the paper is The Country Chronicle which is part of Camden Media Co. LLC In other news, if you've been following my twitter feed, you know that I've been reading over the first draft of the second book in my Haven series, which I wrote at least two years ago. The good news: it is obvious that I have grown a lot as a writer over the last few years. The bad news: there is very little salvageable material in the draft, so I have a lot of work to do. I need to re-outline the book (to tighten up some aspects of the main plot as well as cut a subplot that was axed from t...

Today I went to a rather dull training session for a new program I'll be using on the job some day in the unknown future. Most of the other attendees appeared to be as enthused about the two hour session as I was, and after the third technical error, I realized this was a good time to do a little discreet people watching. So what do people do when they're bored? Here is what I observed: -twist jewelry -rub nose, lips, facial hair -twist in chair/roll shoulders -spin pen, tapping the eraser on the table at every rotation -chew/twist hair -pick teeth (ewww!) -tap fingers to thumb -pick at clothing seams Nothing too extraordinary or out of the ordinary in this bunch of bored mannerisms, but it is always a good idea to keep a running list of possible non-verbal communication cues. After all, characters are made of many small things. What body language have you observed recently? *updated to fix grammar.

I blogged on my shopping trip last Friday, but I wasn't very explicit on what I actually purchased. I picked up a couple books that were right up my alley on topics I love, such as The Secret Common Wealth of Elves, Fauns and Fairies (which I already own a copy of, but this one had sketches and a couple other 'perks' my copy doesn't include.) What I'm really excited about though, are the history books I purchased. Okay, first of all, I have to say that History was never my favorite subject in school. It's not that I abhorred history, it just didn't particularly interest me unless it was presented within the context of say, mythology, religion, or art. I'm not great at dates and names, so while I have a general understanding of the major events which occurred in the past, I'm rather clueless on the specifics. And, well, that has always been okay. This apathy, I realized the other day, might present an issue in the coming months as the second novel in...

Happy Friday the 13th (as one of the grad students just pointed out to me.) It would probably be more traditional to write about superstition or gloom and doom today, but I'm not going to. For one thing, as mentioned previously, thirteen is my favorite number. For another, I've had a fabulous day thus far. I took the morning off work because I had an interview with a small local paper about Once Bitten. I was really nervous, but the interview went great. I actually had a lot of fun talking about the book and about writing. The article will be out next Thursday, and I can hardly wait. After the interview, I was giddy and feeling rather fearless, so I did what I'd been meaning to do for weeks. I went to the local Barnes and Noble to arrange a signing. I was told the manager wasn't in yet but should be shortly, so I could wait for her. Now, waiting in a bookstore means I browse, and when browsing, I almost always find novels I 'need'. That said, I doubled my TBR pi...

Okay, I know I'm the last person on the internet to do this list, but people keep tagging me so here it is: 25 Random things about me. 1. My favorite foods are all breakfast foods--yet I scarf down non-breakfast food on my way to work everyday (mostly because I'm always running late.) 2. I can never settle on a favorite book, but if you ask me I'll probably give you a somewhat random list. (Yes, this list will change every time I'm asked.) 3. Ninety-eight percent of the time I don't like TV and consider it a waste. 4. I prefer to read books cover to cover in one sitting. 5. At least twenty plants have accumulated in my office and I have miraculously managed not to kill them despite my very un-green thumb. 6. I always wanted to play the part of Christine Deea on Broadway. Unfortunately, I can't sing. 7. I believe Tazo Passion tea is the nectar of gods. 8. Dragons are the best animal ever. 9. I started writing my first novel at age 12. It was totally a Tolkien kno...

I found out extremely exciting news today. Over at FictionWise, the ebook version of Once Bitten has hit a best seller list! OB is currently listed as #8 on the Dark Fantasy List and #3 on the entire sites top rated list. (Can you see the smile on my face from where you are?) To celebrate, my publisher released a new version of the Once Bitten book trailer detailing this information as well as including some quotes from reviews. Enjoy! Also, the second print run is now complete, and Once Bitten is listed as back in stock at both Amazon and Barnes and Noble Thanks everyone, and have a good night!

Reviews are starting to pop up on blogs, and because I like to live dangerously, I’ve been reading them when the alerts come in. (Dangerous because I know not everyone will like the story, and hearing someone rip Once Bitten apart won’t be fun.) Luckily, everything I’ve read thus far has been positive, and I am absolutely thrilled. Jackie at Literary Escapism said: “I found out about Once Bitten by Kalayna Price a few months ago and I just recently got my hands on a copy. I have to say, the intrigue I felt for this novel back then was definitely warranted. Price’s world is a lot different than a lot of societies I’ve been reading about lately. She gives a whole new twist to the shapeshifter culture and their reaction to the full moon.” Read more here . Hope at Hope's Bookshelf said: “I'm anxiously awaiting the second book in this series. I can't wait to see what kind of trouble Kita will end up in next....” (4 Hearts) Read more here . Harriet Klausner at Alte...

Several readers have asked about an electronic version of Once Bitten, and one has now been released on Fictionwise. You can view it here . Or, you can head over to ereader.com where Once Bitten is currently listed as a featured book! (Yes, that exclamation point does denote excitement. I don't know how ereader picks their featured books, but I'm thrilled to see mine up on the front page!) While I'm linking you to other pages, head over to the Bell Bridge Blog where I'm guest blogging about how I came up with the idea for my Haven Series. Please stop by and check it out. Also, I am happy to announce the book is back up on Barnes and Noble, so all my links work again. Thanks to those of you who emailed both to let me know about the link glitch, and that everything was working again. Have a good night everyone!

It was mentioned to me recently that I never linked my blog readers to the book video my publisher produced. This was totally an oversight on my part--probably because the concept of a book trailer is a little strange to me. Still, it's a cool clip, and when I watch it, I end up with a silly grin on my face thinking "hey, they are talking about my book." I hope you enjoy!

It's Monday morning, which means I have cued up the random number generator and drawn a winner for a signed copy of Once Bitten. Actually, I was so pleased with how many people stopped by to enter, I decided to up everyone's odds by drawing two winners. Without further ado, the winners are: Zhye and CGinCA Congratulations! Please email kalayna AT kalayna DOT com (replace AT and DOT with the appropriate symbols) with the name you would like your copy made out to and the address you would like me to ship the book. Thank you everyone who entered!

You still have time to enter your name in the drawing for a signed copy of Once Bitten! Click here for more information. On a google chat yesterday, fellow Tri Mu NL Berger was talking about Tag_clouds, which, for lack of a better description, are computer generated word art. Anyone can create one with Wordle by uploading a block of text. Wordle applies different sizes to words depending on the frequency the word is used in the document. The most common words are the largest. This, I'm sure can lead to cute and interesting images, but the reason Tag_clouds were being discussed yesterday was for their potential as a writer aid. Looking for overused words in a manuscript? Just find the largest words on the tag_cloud. With that in mind, I made a tag_cloud of the first two chapters of my current WIP. During critique this weekend, the Tri Mu's noted a couple words I was using far too often. Ironically, none of the largest words on my cloud were on the list. That said, the more u...

To celebrate the release of Once Bitten, I am hosting my very first contest here on the blog. The rules are simple, just leave a comment between now and 11:59 EST Sunday the 25th, and I'll put you in the drawing for a signed copy of the book. I'll announce the winner Monday the 26th. Easy, right? Good luck!

Hello Blog readers. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who ordered the book already. My sales rank hit 880 on B&N yesterday, which is better than I ever hoped for. (In sales rank, the closer to 1, the better. I started out at 223k.) Seriously, I fell out of my chair when I woke up to that number! So, THANK YOU! I hope you enjoy the read.