Just Us Chickens Launched!

[Just Us Chickens!]

I've been preparing for the Logan Holiday Gift Show and haven't had time to blog. The most important news is Just Us Chickens is available in digital and paperback.  This epic adventure of super chickens saving Wyoming from movie monsters. Read the exciting and hilarious tale of Impeckable, a Super-man like chicken who doesn't own an IQ but can rock the world with his grab bag of powers, Shadowchicken, a Batman-like chicken with balloons that can become anything he can imagine, and Wingmaster, a superspy duck and former villain who is now the leader of a group of superhero chickens! See how they create their own villain and then save the world from his monstrous army! Imagine Looney Tunes meets Star Animorphs. You can also buy it in black and white paperback. It will very soon be in large print as well. 

[Cookie and Her Sisters Series]

If you would like a fully illustrated book about the Three Little Kittens making a mess for the holidays. They are a lot like the kittens in the fairy tale. Come read Cookie and Her Sisters Love the Holidays. Today, this book was ranked 4th in children's digital cat books on Amazon and 5th in Thanksgiving books. It was still fairly high in Christmas book rankings, in the early 20s. This book is also available until Friday for free in digital format. In the first book, Cookie and Her Sisters Make a Holiday Dinner, the three little kittens make then destroy a dinner for the holidays. Can they learn to get along? In Cookie and Her Sisters Go Trick-or-treating, they also had to learn to get along for Halloween. This one made 4th in Halloween kids' books, even several days after the holiday. More books are forthcoming, including one in which they play in the snow. I'm shooting to publish this one in the next couple of weeks. 

[Pets Just Wanna Have Fun Series]

I've also been putting together photographic paperback books. Kitties Play for the Holidays is about a cat who just wants to get comfy but can't stand kittens or puppies, a kitten she can't stand, and those crazy Pomeranian puppies. This one ranked 3rd in kids' cat books and 4th in holiday books. Doggies Love the Holidays features pomeranian puppies growing up for the holidays, a Pomchi who is all about staying home for the holidays, and a silly Frenchie who enjoys playing holiday dress up. Cali the Silly Frenchie is about a French bulldog in three separate stories. This one ranked 12th today. One of those in a separate book and premium print is Cali the Silly Frenchie Goes for a Walk.  This one ranked 18th in kids' dog books. These books, too, are available for free until the end of tomorrow. I plan to release another holiday-related cat book soon. 

[Cockadoodle-DOOM!]

Finally, once again, Doomimals is also free in digital format. It's the one attached to the large print edition. Today, it ranked 38 today in fantasy adventure fiction in children's books. I'm still working on the Spanish translation. Ax the Narrator and I are working on book 2 for Just Us Chickens, wherein the heroes face the Quesadilla of Doom, and book 2 for Doomimals wherein the three little kittens lost the mittens of Cataclysm, and the kids have to retrieve them. Even before those books release, we're working on a book 1.5 for both series, a crossover novella between Chickens and Doomimals in which they face of with a mysterious Christmas threat. That should be released by the end of the week. 

I ask you to please drop me a review if you get a moment. I appreciate your attention. Very soon, you'll need to get updates on my website, through my newsletter. But until then, I will be back here to update you. 

Large Print and Steps Toward Chickens

[Doomimals, 1st illustration]

It has been a busy few weeks. As you know, Doomimals Book 1: Cockadoodle-DOOM is available and ready for you. I uploaded a refined copy to improve the reading experience of paperback and hardback editions. You can now get a large print edition. As I may have mentioned, I'm also working on a Spanish translation and an audiobook. I want this book available for everyone interested in reading it. 

[Upcoming short story]

I now have the associated freebie short stories I've mentioned revised and illustrated. One occurs in the Middle Ages and is an adaptation of "Puss in Boots." It's called "If You Give a Cat the Boot" 2nd Edition. You may have read the earlier edition, but this new one is both more refined for younger audiences and includes pictures, including a new cover. 

[Cinderella; source]

The above short story opens up a lot of new avenues for future stories, including fairy tale adaptions that occur in the same world for older audiences, youth and adults. These will be somewhat darker and include romances, which the main Doomimals tales avoid. Even planned "Cinderella, "Snow White," and similar adaptations will focus on the kids' adventures. We're working on making a newsletter available. When you sign up for that by going directly to the webpage, you'll get "If You Give a Cat the Boot." The link to the newsletter will appear on our website, sleepyhollowpress.com. This is where new books will be posted as they're done. 

[Doomimals Short 2]

The plan is that when you follow a link given in the book, you'll get a special story, one about the kids' dad when he was their age. It's called "Shadow Man Comes" and is a bit darker but still intended for the same readers. It's about how Davis and Kitt's dad first ran into the same kinds of struggles featured in the main Doomimals books. 

[Just Us Chickens Tentative Cover (working toward a new one)]

Right now, our big push is to get the first of the spinoff series published within the next couple of weeks. The first book is The Misadventures of the Just Us Chickens and is all but finished. The author, Ax the Narrator, is currently working on the dramatic finale. Most of the book is now illustrated and is going through several rounds of editing. 

[Cookie and Her Sisters Picture books.]

I'm also working quickly on three holiday picture books based on the model of "Three Little Kittens." They occur within the world and rules of Doomimals but are for a much younger audience. Cookie the black cat, a main character in Doomimals, has three little sisters to be introduced in Doomimals Book 2: Cat-a-clysm, about how the three little kittens lost the Mittens of Cataclysm. The picture books will be titled Cookie and Her Sisters Go Trick-or-Treating, Cookie and Her Sisters Make Thanksgiving Dinner, and Cookie and Her Sisters Go Christmas Shopping. Since we plan to sell books at a table in the Cache Holiday Gift Show in a month, we'll need to make those books available even earlier than planned. I have the stories written. I'm just working on the illustrations. 

[Doomimals/Chickens Crossover.]

I'm hoping to also make a Christmas-related novella, a crossover between Doomimals and Just Us Chickens, available at that time, but it's likely to be too much on top of everything else. As you see, things are moving fast at Sleepy Hollow Press. For now, I'll keep you posted here. However, the day is not long in coming that all updates will come from the newsletter. I hope to see you there soon. 

 

[My teenage child's illustration for book 1.]

I'm ready to launch Doomimals. I'm just waiting for my husband to build our new website, so we can have something to which we can direct the reader. We are working on a landing page that will give you links to our KDP Select chapter book series, the Doomimals books, very soon to the first Just Us Chickens book (I'm wrapping up editing on the first one), and Imperfections, a Christian romance series that will go up on Vella. All of them, plus my published academic theses (one on the Pimpernel and one on fairy tale adaptations into fantasy and the healing power of fiction) will be linked to from the landing page and will become central pieces on individual pages. Our webpage will give you access to this blog as well as our pieces. 

[Upcoming fanfiction, source.]

I'll also shortly be working on highlighting my writer's blog, my mourning blog, and my cat blog in individual books.  I have a small readership but hope to broaden that. Meanwhile, Ax the Narrator will be working on a Doomimals universe Wiki. He's also doing a fanfiction crossover between Just Us Chickens, "My Little Pony," "Ben 10, " "Milo Murphy," "Phineas and Ferb," "Total Drama," as well as other popular pieces. It will be free, and I'll be linking to it here and on my website.  I also have various younger children's books that have already been written and just need to be prepped for publication. We will have a lot of material on our new publication website, Sleepy Hollow Press. I will keep you posted here as we make progress. It could even be later this week. 

Progress at Last

 

[A new drawing I added to one of the books.]

I'm truly actively working on reworking my chapter book series, Doomimals, with an eye to getting it to you, the reader, as soon as possible.  I finally have a plan to proceed, including all the feedback I've received from fellow writers, the three-act structure for individual books and first 9 books, notes on story structure from a writers' conference, editor feedback I've now boiled down to a template I can use for each book, and some other adjustments I've decided to make for consistency's sake, including things like foreshadowing, consistency of character names and disabilities (one is hard-of-hearing, and another is ADD).  I've also had to tweak art and add more illustrations if a chapter has grown so big it has needed to be divided.  Now I'm making progress, these books should be ready for you soon.  

[Editing]

Up until now, I've been trying to figure out a plan of how to proceed.  I knew I wanted to rework the books in a way that would be most appealing to you as a reader.  I also knew I wanted to build up story arcs and consistency across the nine books, to the point where all books build together to work as one book as well.  I now have realized I was missing a most critical item, among other things, across all books, which is building up the question that drives the story and the heart that drives each book.  I know the kids all want their families to be reunited, and the way to do that is to save the world.  That kind of thing will help the books stay compelling throughout the read.  

Due to life getting busier with kids in school and an increased workload, I can't promise it will be ready this month, but I'm hoping very soon to be able to get it submitted to the editor.  I'll let you know here as soon as I have specific dates in mind.  Stay tuned, and I'll keep you posted.  

Lightbulb

[Key Lime Python]

As you know, I've been working toward preparing my chapter book series, Doomimals, and my son's two chapter book series, Just Us Chickens (about zany super chickens) and Key Lime Python (about a swashbuckling snake who regularly takes down cosmic entities to protect the universe), for publication, so you can read them.  Just this week, in one of many conversations on the books, we came up with a brainstorm on how to unify not just the first book into one coherent whole but also the whole first set of 9 books (plus a bonus, backstory book), which is what we'll release first.   

[Little Dread Hen's Phoenix Form]

Heretofore, I've emphasized the coming of the Dog of War that the kids will need to fight.  That will still be the case, but I will foreground the Little Dread Hen, aka Nugget, an evil phoenix and a bad guy who is and has always been there from the beginning, but who hasn't been properly built up to and foreshadowed.  I am a pantser, so I tend to have a vague idea of where I'm going and pin it down with a rough outline as I go along.  Now that I have these first several books, I can use the literary techniques I have learned through my experience earning a bachelor's and master's degree in English (see my other writing blog) to turn these books into a unified set, building up to a finale, akin to the first season in a series.  My boy's afterwords are even called "post-credit scenes" as in Marvel and other such movies.  

I'm still shooting to get these books ready by early fall since I have most of the next two weeks earmarked for that purpose.  I'll keep those who stay tuned here posted on all the developments as I move that way.  

Sneak Peeks: Updates Toward My Series

[A sneak peak at my niece, Gostelle's, beautiful art for Doomimals]

 As I've said before, I have a hybrid publisher standing by, waiting to help me get my chapter books and my boy's chapter books published.  The plan is to include the first nine books from the Doomimals series, about three kids and their animal companions protecting the human race from the evil Dog of War and her animal armies.  I will then include several bonus books. 

[My illustration from book 1 of Just Us Chickens]

One will be a backstory to a critical character, which I will write soon.  Another three will be the first three books from my boy's spinoff series, Just Us Chickens about a zany group of super chickens, as written by my 14-year-old.  Another will be his backstory for one of those chickens.  The last will be the first in his other spinoff series, Keylime Python about a swashbuckling, world-traveling hero snake.  We'll also include games and such to get readers immersed in the world. 

[My concept design for Cat-a-clysm.]

We've been working hard on these series.  I just finished book 5 and am starting book 6 of Doomimals.  My niece is almost done illustrating book 1.  I have drafted CockadoodleDOOM, Cat-a-clysm, Goatyphoon, Hisstruction, and Kangaruin and have four more to do.  I will then revise and edit them all. 

[Another illustration from Just Us Chickens]

My boy, meanwhile, has the first three books drafted from Just Us Chickens, and I'm halfway done illustrating through book 3.  He's also drafted a shorter backstory for one of his main characters and is close to the halfway mark in drafting Keylime Python book 1.  We're closing in on our goal to be done with at least drafting the books by the end of the summer. We've had beta readers of various ages reading them (kids in the target age range up to adults with families) and have gotten fairly positive responses.  We look forward to sharing them with you.