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amybraunauthor

Literary Braun

Sunday Snippet: "... the best they could hope for now."

— feeling cool

 

This has been one of those weeks where I realize that all my projects are about to pile on top of me in a ginormous heap. Yes, the dreaded editing phase is upon me. But more on that later. Right now, I'm happy to share the latest snippet from Crimson Sky for Weekend Writing Warriors, the weekly blog hop where authors share news on their work and 8-10 sentences of their current work in progress. This week's snippet is still in chapter one of Crimson Sky, but I decided to move a little deeper into the chapter and the world where my main character, Claire, lives under the rule of a tyrant named Garnet. Not that it's what I would call ideal... 

 

The colony resided at an intersection in the tunnels. Similar doors made of bolted iron blocked all four entrances, though air was able to filter through from the surface thanks to the vents constructed fifty feet above the floor. The air might have been fresh, but it tasted and smelled the same way everything down here did– thick, muggy, and a little sour, like old tar that coated the back of your throat. Whenever it rained or the heavy snows melted, some the colonists were selected to bolt the vents and doors shut so the water wouldn’t fill up the tunnels and drown us. They were opened gradually after the rains stopped, so other colonists could collect the water and boil it until it was drinkable or could be used for cleaning. To empty the worst of our sewage, we had to take the wastewater and chamber pots to a series of bolted dump-holes that had been drilled into the bottom of the tunnels outside the colony doors. It kept the colony relatively clean, though I couldn’t help but wonder what we would do when those dump-holes were filled.

 

Under the vents were lean-tos made of cloth and held up by metal posts. Garnet’s arrangement with the South Junkers gave us access to all the metal we needed, but building decent homes for the two hundred people that lived here never seemed to be on Garnet’s mind. Not once in the seven years since this colony’s creation had he thought about improving the lives of those he “protected.”

 

I didn’t know which was sadder– that he got away with it, or that the survivors simply assumed this was the best they could hope for now.

 

(P.S.: I added an extra sentence this week. I tried to find a place to cut it short, but couldn't find a good spot, and couldn't resist that last sentence. Sorry MODs!)

 

 

It's hard to believe that in just over two weeks, I'll have another brand new book in a brand new series out! I've been studiously signing up for book review sites and promotions, so I'm hoping it will be worth the time and effort. I'm of the belief that every little bit helps.

 

Which means I'm happy to announce that I have permission to write another short story for an anthology featuring characters from my Dark Sky series! I already have two prequel novellas planned for later in the year, and this one will be significantly shorter than those, but it will be a lot of fun to write a steampunk horror story for a publishing company I love working with. I've already had success with this in Avast, Ye Airships! so hopefully I can draw more interest to the whole Dark Sky series

 

But it won't all be fun and games. Oh, no. I recently got the latest round of edits for Damnation's Door, the third and final book in the Cursed series, as well as the Beta edits for Midnight Sky, the sequel to Crimson Sky (there are soooo many!!). Needless to say, I have my work cut out for me, especially since I'm expecting the edits for my upcoming standalone novel, Storm Born, to come back in the next few weeks. And believe me, that will be a nightmare. 

 

But there have been positives this week! Namely, I finished my rough, rough draft of Storm of the Gods, the third novel in my Areios Brothers series, which I'm thinking of beginning to release next year. Maybe, because man oh man, does that series need even more work as a whole. Why does hindsight have to be 20/20 about things you love? Seriously, it will be the third time I've revamped crucial elements of the series as a whole. But that means I'm making it better, right? Right?

 

Anyway, I'm not going to think about that now. I'm going to prepare for my latest release, then edit my eyeballs out. I would have done this while having the extra chocolate bar in my room... but I might have already eaten it. Whoops. Not really sorry

 

So that's what I've been up to lately! Remember to check out the other authors and blogs of Weekend Writing Warriors and leave them some well deserved love! If you're interested in reading Crimson Sky, it's still available for pre-order on Amazon, Kobo, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend! I'm ready to start mine! 

 

Amy