Centernia: Building a Castle

On Friday afternoon I dropped my kids off at my parents’ house, loaded up the car, and traveled I-90 with Octostar Creations for Genericon 2019.  We came back late last night in a blustery and rainy wind storm and I am still in awe of this weekend. I’ve been to Genericon in 2015, and 2017, it’s one of my favorite college cons.  This time was a very different experience. Very. Very. Different. It was my first returning con with Mark of the Castle.  The response was insane, to put it mildly.  I was approached by dozens of fans with stories I never expected to hear, from a mom who secretly purchased the book for her daughter and photographed her reaction to someone who had used the morality of Centernia as a topic for a college assignment.  I was approached by artists, aspiring audiobook narrators, and clusters of friend groups who had been passing around a copy of Centernia for years.  There were people who had bought it at other cons, including...

Two new releases of my artwork to hit store shelves within the past several weeks!  I have a collection of four unicorns available through Pacific Trading Co and the Dragon Valley Puzzle from Ravensburger. https://www.fairyglen.com/rosekhan.html

A huge weight was lifted from my shoulders at the completion of Mark of the Castle . So what's next? The Agent Search  My illustration work is represented by an amazing agent who has brought unreal opportunities.  Unfortunately, he doesn't handle the literary side.  I've decided it's time to seek out literary agents to bring Centernia to the next level.  I know it's a long shot and I will continue to build the universe regardless if the series ever sees big-time publication.  Much of my time this past month was centered on sending out query letters. Illustration A few months ago I listened to a Pete Mohrbacher video on the value of getting up early, (  You Tube- One Fantastic Week  ).  Mohrbacher is a fantasy illustrator who champions the idea of creating your own IP and taking control of your projects. I took Mohrbacher's advice and started getting up before my kids a little over a month ago.  5-10 hours of work time were hi...

What a crazy whirlwind it's been!  There are so many exclamation marks in this post!!!! 1. The Book Centernia: Mark of the Castle is complete!!!  Scheduled release is this late October/early November!!!!!!!!!  Mark is 530 pages of magic, mayhem and drama edited by the amazing Keith R.A.DeCandido  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_DeCandido http://decandido.net/ 2. Appearance Schedule Wizarding Weekend Ithaca, October 26, 27 & 28th will be my big fall show.  I'll be giving a panel talk on worldbuilding and selling in the Artist Atrium.  WE WILL ALSO HAVE A LIMITED NUMBER OF SIGNED COPIES OF MARK OF THE CASTLE.  Come early to snag your copy!!!! http://wizardingweekend.com/ The same weekend as Wizarding, my artist friend Cat Razim will have copies at Flower City Minicon.  An even smaller number of signed copies will be available, though I will not be there. http://www.fc3roc.com/ 3. Fantasy Art Projects This is the sour...

Hello!  A lot of behind-the-scenes action going on. First and foremost, on October 2nd we welcomed our little 9lb pumpkin Enzo.  He's our little zen baby, and he brings this peaceful aura wherever he goes....though of course, that simply may be the contrast of newborn baby vs. our tornado of a toddler. Before Enzo was born, I was able to get the Centernia sequel into the hands of the beta readers.  I've received some of the feedback already, and overall I'm really pleased with what people have to say. There are minor adjustments to be made, but overall it sounds like the story had its intended impact and readers were happy. While waiting for feedback, I've taken on other overdue projects.  Most notably, I wrapped up a new redesign for my art portfolio site, www.RoseCatherine.com Now that the book is approaching release, I can switch my focus from writing back to art, including Centernia art. Kaity Cosette 2014 vs 2017

Misa fanart from Ling Tang https://www.facebook.com/illusionsartwork/ The second book in the Centernia series is finally in the hands of beta readers!  The book was sent out to fourteen readers earlier afternoon.  They have until October 31st to provide their feedback. I went blog silent for a few months because I knew I had to put all focus the book. If I didn't finish it before my son's arrival, I was looking at another year delay, and I refused to accept that! After I receive all the feedback, I'll tweak parts of the story then send the book to my editor.  There's a strong possibility that we will be having a pre-order, if not launch, for the holiday season. My hours have been scarce between working part time and chasing my daughter. Almost every single toddler nap for the past year has been dedicated writing time. As of this moment, I'm still awaiting my son and my tumor treatment, but with a lot less stress!!! Hah hah....it's just giving birth f...

My Tumor This is a very odd post that seems more like the stuff of fiction than fact.  I have a tumor growing out of my 8th cranial nerve, pressing on my brainstem.  Also, because that isn't exciting enough, I'm pregnant with my second child. The Path to Diagnosis I think it's important to share this story.  A vestibular schwannoma is a tumor that is apparently growing in popularity, despite Google classifying it as "very rare".  Symptoms can be confused for other things, such as anxiety and migraines. My first clue something was amiss was in July of 2016.  The right corner of my mouth felt wet and cold, even though it wasn't.  The odd wet feeling came and went over the course of a week, then vanished.  I didn't see a doctor since it went away on its own. A month later, I was vacationing and enjoying some amazing coastal shellfish.  The right side of my tongue started going numb and I was convinced I developed a shellfi...

I'm spending the weekend out at Another Anime Con in Manchester, New Hampshire.  I've met some really nice people and sold half a case of Centernia  (with still one more day of con to go!). I also just read another very kind Amazon review from an anonymous reader who purchased a copy in Fan World Niagara. That review made me really, really, really happy and I'm reminded of how far we've come. Centernia went on sale October two years ago.  I appreciate every single reader in a way I can barely communicate. To put this in perspective.... I have spent over half my life with Nico, Jessica, Teren and the rest of the castlefolk arguing in my brain.  When you, the reader, chose to spend hours invested inside the pages of the book, you see, hear, and feel everything I do.  I don't take this shared experience for granted.  It is true magic that ink on a piece of paper can bring you into the abandoned halls of Castle Aurumice. I can't believe this journey ha...

The current file for The Crimson Mage is labelled "Crimson Mage June 2015." Yes, I've been working on this current draft for a year.  Actually, it's been one year and six months.  I had naively assumed that it would only take me ten months to write the sequel, just as I wrote Return to the Castle.  A wrench was thrown into my plans.  It wasn't a single wrench, but more akin an earthquake in Home Depot. On December 7th I wrote about how I was recovering from post-partum depression, totally back on track with The Crimson Mage.  I was so happy and energetic. A few days after that post my grandfather had a stroke, because the universe has a crappy sense of irony.  The following month was miserable. My daughter's first Christmas was the worst Christmas of my life, only to contend with Christmas 1994 when my mother couldn't walk after a car accident and I figured out Santa Claus was a lie because all of our presents were given to us in stapled grocery store ba...

Saving old drafts is an important part of the writing process, as is accepting the fact that sometimes life can take you down the wrong editing path.  I had to learn this hard lesson in the past few months when I hit a few unexpected challenges. My daughter was born in September.  The Centernia sequel, The Crimson Mage was completed in the weeks prior to her arrival.  I was pleased that I was on track to release the book by the end of the year.  I figured I had plenty of time finish editing it, run it by my trusted circle of proofreaders, and then send it to the copyeditor.  It seemed that the book would be out by December. People had cautioned that the baby would send a wrench into my plans, but I generally try to ignore naysayers and steam (or stumble) through life.  In my mind I had a perfect plan to keep working once my girl arrived:  While she napped, I would edit and write.  If sleep deprivation became awful, I would switch to formula an...

I generally don't share personal issues with readers, but my online hiatus has been so long it's been noticeable.  The good news is, as of this posting, I am back to my usual online schedule of one blog post a week, and more Centernia art. As some of you know from meeting me at conventions, I'm expecting a baby in September. :-)  In order to avoid a studio/nursery combo room, we bought a house.  We packed and moved in late June. The month of July, I direct Kids on Campus, the largest and oldest art tech summer camp program hosted at RIT.  This is a hugely time intensive camp that took almost all of my energy. Normally, I de-stress by writing and drawing, but the universe has a terrible sense of humor.  Since April I've been plagued by an unusual pregnancy symptom.  The nerves in my spine were compressed and gave me crippling pain when sitting.  Yes, sitting.  I could lie down, walk a mile, pull weeds on my hands and knees.....but I couldn't s...

A revised edition of Return to the Castle was released in February 2015. This edition catches many of the editing errors that snuck through in the first release.   The most notable difference is the chapter numbers. Though the books have the same content and the same scenes, they were split differently so that the new edition has one less chapter. You can figure out which version of the book you have by looking at the back cover. A little bird has been added on the newer edition for easy identification. :-)

I'm really excited to have a  short story ready for a Christmas release! 2014 has been crazy and amazing.  I say this over and over again, but I am so grateful to everyone who purchased a copy of Centernia, and completely humbled by the people who took the time to reach out, say hi, post a like, or follow Centernia on a social network.  I have been living with this tiny universe for almost two decades, and it was terrifying to share it with the world.  The fact that there are people who enjoyed the story enough to want to know more is so motivating. I wanted to start releasing short stories because there will be nearly a year between each full novel.   To go so long without sharing a tale seems a terrible waste of the internet.  Short stories are also fun because I can reveal more about each character.  The story belongs to Jessi and Nico, but there are too many interesting people around them to not take the time to explore. In high school I enjo...