Happy 2025! Holidays in the rear view mirror

 

My latest release, Standalone, Find it at BWL
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For most, the holidays are a busy time, with parties, guests, food, shopping, drinks, presents, travels, family, friends, charities, and some work in between. I try to avoid most of that and only accept invitations from very good friends. This picture was taken the 20th, with JD Shipton, my BWL editor, and other BWL authors living in Arizona.

From left to right: Beverly Petrone, Vijaya Schartz, JD Shipton, Dean Hovey and his wife Julie

December 27th also happens to be my birthday. A rotten date for a kid expecting presents, but hey, that’s life. The picture was taken at Macayo’s with the traditional birthday hat and baked ice-cream. My Tai-Chi students surprised me with a birthday celebration in early December.

 

I do put up a Christmas tree… which Pasha (my feline companion) enjoys very much, especially at night when I’m not watching. On the picture (bottom right) he looks innocent enough, but believe me, he is not. Every morning, I find ornaments on the floor, all the way under the furniture. Maybe I spoiled him, holding and kissing him and telling him I love him even when he has been naughty. My philosophy is: cats will be cats.

The truth is, I’m a hermit at heart (typical Capricorn), and when I have a few days off, I like to lock myself in my cave and write… especially when I am starting a new series, like right now. Immersing myself in the story, without interruptions or obligations, is essential for my muse. My title coming next year will be about a group of Protectors, on another planet, after a cataclysm almost destroyed it. The philosophical background will be Tai-Chi.

I hope this holiday season finds you healthy, happy, loved, and surrounded by warmth (or snow if that’s what you like). Wishing you happiness, good health, and success for the year 2025.

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Happy New Year

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

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Happy New Year Everyone - Best wishes for 2025

 

WISHING YOU ALL A FANTASTIC NEW YEAR CELEBRATION, AND A HEALTHY, LOVING, FRUITFUL, HAPPY, AND PROSPEROUS YEAR IN 2025!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

 

Starting a new series involving Tai-Chi characters

 

Find more of my books on the BWL site HERE

I wrote many series, mainly science fiction and fantasy, and each time I say goodbye to one to start another, it’s a bittersweet experience. I am sad for leaving the angel ship Blue Phantom behind. It’s like letting go of grownup children so they can have their own life.

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I wrote three series in the Azura universe, populated with strong heroines, brave heroes, and galactic supervillains: Azura Chronicles, Byzantium, and Blue Phantom. In that universe, Avenging Angels with special powers fought sinister entities to maintain the balance of good and evil throughout their galaxy. I find it difficult to leave that special world behind. But in this vast universe, I can imagine many worlds and civilizations coexisting very far apart. The new worlds I create now might even collide with the old ones at some point.

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Write about what you know is one of the golden rules of writing. I was always a Martial Artist, and maybe you can tell from my female warriors and epic battle scenes. But for well over a decade, I’ve also immersed myself in the world of Tai-Chi, the way of the peaceful warrior, and the energy of Chi-Gong. I studied, I practiced daily, and now, although I remain a lifetime student, I have also become a teacher.

Celebrating Global Tai-Chi Day in the park, with a few of my students.

So, I came up with a premise for a three-book series called THE PROTECTORS. The setting will be a post-apocalyptic planet after a cataclysmic event that wiped out most of the population. As the planet recovers slowly, the feudal society is reorganizing around the populated hubs, and among the surviving nobles, the race for power is on. Soldiers are recruited to fight the barbarians unfurling on the plains. Their weapons of choice are the sword, the spear, the bow, and they ride horses.

The heart of the series is a Tai-Chi temple built like a fortress atop a steep outcrop in the desert. At the main courtyard entrance, between two giant stone pillars, is a Celestial Gate, constructed eons ago by space travelers from other parts of the universe.

The Protectors are a special corps of elite warriors trained at the temple and sworn to protect the gate.

There will be plenty of action and adventure, some scary characters, a little romance, intrigue, and drama. Things and people are not always what they seem. But even if you get scared for the main characters, good will prevail over evil forces at the very end.

I’m enjoying plotting and writing this new series. The first book will be released in November 2025. You still have time to read my other books.

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Happy reading!

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

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Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

I hope everyone is happy and warm and fed on this Thanksgiving. Don't forget there is a sale on Smashwords on all my books. Click on banner below. 

Wishing the best Thanksgiving ever.

Happy Reading.

Vijaya

Reading popular fiction is good for your mental health!

 

New Release: ANGEL REVENGE, Blue Phantom Book 3 (standalone) - by Vijaya Schartz

Find this and more of my books at amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

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An unruly Valkyrie on a flying tiger, a stern angel in love with the rules, and evil pounding at the gate… What could go wrong?

Riddled with survivor’s guilt after Ragnarök, Valka wanders the universe as a bounty hunter. But when hired by angels to recruit warriors for the final battle against evil, she welcomes a chance at redemption.

General Konrad Lagarde, First Mate of the angel ship Blue Phantom, strongly rejects Valka’s methods. A stickler for discipline, he also considers this fascinating woman hazardous to his sanity, as she could make him forget all the rules.

Evil from another universe has infiltrated a secret society of former dictators hungry for power. Having massacred all the angels in his former world, the evil one wants to do the same here. The angels of this universe face their greatest challenge yet… destroy the evil one and avenge their fallen brethren… or the bringer of darkness will enslave us all.

WHY DO I WRITE AND READ POPULAR FICTION?

I always resented the authors who killed the protagonists at the end, after you invest your emotions in liking them. I usually never read another book from such authors, and I stay away from tragic endings. To this day, I cannot watch Titanic to the end although it is a true story, or suffer through the last episode of Castle. And I’m glad Shogun found a happier alternate ending in the most recent series.

If I want to wallow in sadness, I only have to watch the news. Life is difficult enough, complicated enough, hard enough, sad enough.

I read popular fiction to get uplifted, to forget about my problems, be transported to another world, another time, a place where it is safe to be scared and challenged, where justice will prevail… because I trust the author that the heroes will triumph and all will be well at the end.

It’s a secret pact between the author and the reader. No matter how bad it gets for the protagonist, even if a few secondary characters don’t make it, the hero or heroine will find a happy conclusion.

So, if I challenge my characters, if I make them suffer, be assured that it will all be worth it at the end. They will have matured, widened their understanding of life, and overcome their barriers to experience the rewards they deserve.

You can safely read my book, knowing that even if you cry a little, all will be okay at the end. 

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amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 

Happy Reading

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author
Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats
http://www.vijayaschartz.com
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo - FB