Monday, September 20, 2021

Defining success as a writer

 Success means different things to different people. Even among writers, opinions vary. And your opinion of yourself as a writer will depend upon your personal definition of success.


For some, it's about making lots of money, a common beginner's mistake. For nonfiction authors, it can be about sharing your experiences, reporting the news, or proving your worth to your colleagues or your family.

For novelists, it can be about finding a publisher, or getting their stories published and read some other way. It can also be about recognition. Winning awards is important for a fiction writer, since we work in isolation for months on end to write a novel.

We all have different goals. I always liked the saying "If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life." Writing to me is a passion, It fills my days with wonder.

The same way I loved studying so much as a kid, that I wanted to be in school for the rest of my life, I love writing. And I'm so happy that I can write every day.

The fact that I found a publisher who loves my books is the cherry on top. And when my readers tell me they love my stories, that's the sweetest reward. That's when I know I succeeded. Angel Fierce, Azura Chronicles Book 2, won the 2019 Arizona Literary Contest. Angel Brave, Book 3, is a brand new release this month.

amazon B&N - Smashwords - Kobo 


 

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


Wednesday, September 1, 2021

Read an excerpt of ANGEL BRAVE, new sci-fi romance release - by Vijaya Schartz

Find it at your favorite online store HERE


Blurb:

Keoke Mahoe slips through the forbidden planet’s impenetrable defenses to deliver a perilous message. But Lady Valoria fiercely protects Azura. Any intruder, especially one who kills for food, is promptly terminated.

While Valoria admires Keoke’s uncanny ability to cheat death, she cannot trust a spy. What he suggests is unthinkable... and could throw the galaxy into chaos. Yet, could he be telling the truth? She appreciates his audacity, his noble heart, and his smile… to the chagrin of Eris the Amazon, her best friend, bodyguard, and would-be lover.

But in the farthest confines of the galaxy, an old enemy is rising again. People are sacrificed by blood and fire on unholy altars. Malevolent armies are assembling, and this time, even Azura's Avenging Angels may not be able to stop the onslaught of darkness upon all civilized life.

Excerpt:

Keoke awoke to a raspy tongue licking his hair and face with annoying insistence. Fire-breathing Volcano Goddess! He wiped his cheek and batted at the pestering whatever. The licking stopped. Keoke pulled the sheet over his head and returned to sleep, enjoying the soft mattress, but the nagging feeling of being watched made him open his eyes.

He tossed away the sheet, sat up on the bed and froze.

At the foot of the bed, three sets of round blue eyes stared at him from three white and silver-gray furry faces, and one pink tongue still hanging between unusually long fangs. Keoke’s heartbeat accelerated to the tempo of a wahine’s hips in a Tahitian circle. He glanced around for an escape. He was inside a dome made of blue glass, with no windows or doors. Daylight filtered in through the translucent material.

He reminded himself to breathe.

“Tibeta is a Smilodon.” The lovely woman, with diaphanous robes flowing down to her ankles, appeared from nowhere at the edge of the dome, as if she’d walked through the wall.

Keoke did a double take. She was breathtaking, with flowing, coppery hair, bare shoulders, and wonderful curves in all the right places. A blue sword hung from her hip. And she spoke Galactic standard. Good. That would facilitate communications.

The apparition smiled as she glided toward him on sandaled feet. “This large cat species is extinct on most planets.”

Keoke patted his belt for a blade or a gun and only touched skin. He scanned the space for a weapon. Not even a boot to throw, or a bed-lamp to wield as a stick. And he was naked on the bed. No clothes… an old trick to humiliate a prisoner or prevent an escape. But Keoke never felt shy about his body. His ancestors lived naked. And he didn’t need weapons to defend himself.

Still, he pulled the sheet up to his waist to hide his reaction to the gorgeous woman. “Where am I?”

“I am Lady Valoria, and you are in my home.” The apparition strode with the easy grace of a feline, or a trained warrior. “What’s your name?”

“Keoke.” No harm in giving his first name, it might humanize him as a prisoner, but that’s all she would get.

“Well, Keoke,” her bright blue eyes narrowed upon him. “How are you feeling this morning?”

 

Happy reading

Vijaya Schartz, author
Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats