For those of you who are attending the con, my schedule is below. I’ll also be sharing a dealer’s room table with Tony Ruggerio (we were both published by Dragon Moon Press at one time) so come by and see us. We promise to be entertaining.

My MystiCon Schedule:

Friday, Feb 24

4:00 p.m. – Young Adult Readings (Several YA authors will be reading their works)

6:00 p.m. – Books for Children and Young Adults (Join our authors as they discuss their series for children and young adults.

8:00 p.m. – Alternities  (What makes good alternate histories work and bad ones fail? What points of departure do you change to build a good alternate history and how do you write for audience that isn’t familiar with the true history?)

9:00 p.m. - Adult Themes in Young Adult Novels (Is This Appropriate?)

Saturday, Feb. 25th

10:00 a.m. – Allen Wold’s Writing Workshop

4:00 p.m. – I’ll officially be autographing books (though you can catch me anytime during the con to do the deed)

9:00 p.m. – Small Press vs. Self-Publishing  (In this era of instant media, what are some of the advantages and disadvantages of small press publishing? Is self publishing a viable option?)

Sunday, Feb 26

10:00 a.m. – Writing Short SF/F Stories  (A SF or fantasy short story can be a sparkling jewel, making a long-lasting impact on the reader. The story may be serious or comic, a pleasure to read or a tale that won’t let you stop reading until it is done with you. How does the writer craft effective short fiction? What techniques help the writer achieve success? We go beyond the “good idea” and discuss the craft of writing.)

Time for snippet #3.

And now for the second snippet from FORGIVEN.  If you haven’t read the first two books, this will be a spoiler. You’ve been warned

Setting: The rooftop of a building

Situation: Riley and Peter are on stakeout in an attempt to bust the fake Holy Water scam.

###

Peter pushed off from the roof and stalked a few feet away, his back to her. “Please tell me this is all some kind of a sick joke.”

“It’s the truth. All of it. That’s why hunters are after me.”

“How did they find out?” Peter asked, swiveling toward her now.

“I think Beck ratted me out. I went to his house this morning and told him what had happened. He was furious, Peter. I’ve never seen anyone that angry.”

“Duh! Now there’s a surprise,” her friend replied sarcastically. “I saw the way he looked at you at your dad’s funeral. Of course he’d be mad. You’re about the only one on the planet who doesn’t realize how he feels about you.”

“He never said anything,” she retorted.

“Hey, we guys don’t blurt out that kind of stuff,” he replied. “It’s against the man code. Beck may never have said how he felt, but everything he did for you should have been a big clue. I mean, come on, how slow are you?”

She glowered at her friend. “I figured he was doing it because of my father.”

“Maybe, but the guy is really into you, Riley.”

“No way. If he’d liked me, he wouldn’t have blown me off and—”

“Ancient history, girl!” he countered. “You were, what, fifteen? Your dad would have torn him apart if he’d touched you. Beck had no other choice.”

“He didn’t have to be so mean.”

“God, will you listen to yourself?” Peter retorted.

“You have no idea how much he hurt me,” she shot back.

“Give it up, will you? You’re my best friend, but you can be a real self- centered asshat sometimes.”

###

(c) 2012 Jana Oliver

FORGIVEN

Macmillan Children’s Books (UK & Australia) March 1st

St. Martin’s Griffin (US ) March 27th

Setting: Westin Peachtree Plaza (downtown Atlanta hotel)

Situation: Beck has been arrested by the Vatican’s Demon Hunters

###

The prisoner had expected room service, but Beck got a redhead instead. He rose off the bed as Justine Armando was escorted into his hotel room by one of the hunters.

“Hello, Beck,” she said, tossing her expensive black leather coat on a nearby chair, followed by a folded newspaper on the nightstand. “I heard you were here in the hotel, so I thought I’d pay you a visit.”

The guards were locked in full- stare mode— apparently they’d never seen the reporter in action. Sporting a set of brilliant emerald green eyes, Justine was a stunningly petite woman with shocking red hair that tumbled over her shoulders in wide curls. Her accent was hard to pin down, but it fl owed like verbal honey no matter the subject.

Beck’s attention moved to the hunters. “Any way ya can give us some space?”

A conversation started between the men in Italian, and for a time it didn’t look like the answer was going to be positive. Justine weighed in, also in Italian, and abruptly they changed their minds.

She had that effect on men. When the door closed behind his guard dogs, she settled into the chair, positioned so that Beck had a fine view of her long legs.

He sank onto the bed, regretting he looked so scruff y.

“How’d ya know I was here?”

Justine pouted. “I am a reporter. When I hear that Denver Beck is in the hunters’ custody and that there is a search in progress for Master Blackthorne’s daughter, I had to determine if it was all true.” She leaned closer. “You wouldn’t know where she is, would you?”

So this visit wasn’t just to check up on his welfare. Beck should have expected that, but his guy ego developed a new bruise.

“No, I don’t know where she is, or my ass wouldn’t sittin’ in this room,” he growled. “Riley could be anywhere. She knows a lot of places to hide.”

“Why do they want her? Is it because of the Fallen or something else?”

He stiffened. “How do ya know Ori was a Fallen?”

“One of the hunters told me.” She straightened her skirt.

“Why did Riley call you this morning?”

A nervous twitch crawled across Beck’s back. Too many questions.

“That’s private,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest, signaling the end of the conversation.

###

(c) 2012 Jana Oliver

FORGIVEN

Macmillan Children’s Books (UK & Australia) March 1st

St. Martin’s Griffin (US ) March 27th

Which leads to a series of potential questions from y’all:

1) When will it be out?

Don’t know yet. Will let you know when I hear dates.

2) Are there more books in the series after this one?

Nope. This will wrap up Riley, Beck (etc)’s story.

3) Will there be kissing (snogging for you Brits)?

There might be kissing. Might be a lot more than that. ::grins evilly::

4) Will Riley and Beck get a clue?

Could happen. Providing Beck’s past, Ori and Hell don’t screw it up.

5) Is it true there’s a road trip in the first half of the book?

Looks like there might be.  South Georgia here we come.

6) Title?

We’re working on that.

Cue appropriate theme music.

Battery #1: I ordered the wrong one. Bad author, no cookie. So I think I’ll just pop it back for credit. No biggie. Ever try to send one of these back? The local UPS store couldn’t handle them — I must go to the main branch. So instead I try Federal Express. They won’t take it unless I fill out the hazardous materials paperwork. As in they needed to know *exactly* how many grams of lithium was in the thing. I told them I had NO clue. It’s a battery. It’s carefully wrapped in plastic so it doesn’t mate with any other batteries and cause fires. They handed me the phone to talk to their service department. I gave them all the info and finally, after a lengthy silence on the phone, I’m told there is nothing I need for documentation — just send it back. Huzzah.

Battery #2: This time I order what I believe to be the right one from another company. I verify all the info, have hubby double check it. Battery arrives, it charges, but the laptop battery meter doesn’t work on the thing. Which means it’ll shut off without warning. This one I’m keeping (see return issues battery #2).

Battery #3: Bought from Batteries Plus. Charges to 47% and stops. If I remove the AC cord, the computer shuts down. #epicfail

Cue ticking clock as laptop is going out of warranty at the end of December. If this is a computer issue I need to know that soonest.

Return #3 and be told that replacement battery could take two weeks. Or two days. (It’s now Dec 27th and ticking clock is growing louder.) Husband obtains refund and we go to another store to buy….

Battery #4: This battery starts the computer from the moment the dude installs it. It charges to 100%. It FREAKIN’ WORKS!

I’m currently doing the charge up, then discharge cycle to obtain the maximum benefit out of this piece of lithium goodness. Because I DO NOT want to go through this mess anytime soon.

Book Three in the Demon Trappers Series

(excerpt from Chapter Two)

Riley stood alone in a field of crisp, freshly fallen snow. There was nothing around her, no buildings, no people. High above a blood-red moon held court in the sky, thousands of stars paying homage.

A breeze tugged at her hair and it smelt of deepest midnight. She felt Ori’s presence even before his arms slid round her waist, drawing her back against him. She knew it was a dream, but she didn’t want to wake. Here it would be perfect. There would be no Heaven or Hell, no one to tell her what she was doing was wrong. It would just be Ori and her forever.

Turning in his arms, Riley gazed up at his black hair and those bottomless eyes. Eyes that had seen the beginning of the cosmos.

“I am sorry,” Ori murmured, his voice just as she remembered it. “I hurt you and that is not what I wanted.”

“It didn’t have to be that way,” she said. It could have been so different.

“Let me make it right between us. Let me show you what your future can hold.”

He gestured and a scene appeared in the air in front of them. It was Riley, older now. She had a grace and strength that she never thought possible. She was teaching two apprentices how to trap demons and they were riveted on her words. This Riley was strong and confident, no hint of the troubled girl that lay within.

“You’ll be a renowned master trapper, like your father,” Ori explained. “The trappers will be in awe of your skills. All the while, my protection will keep you safe from harm.”

She could trap and be successful and everyone would think she was the best there was. Just like my dad . . .

His kiss reignited her desire for him. Her need for love, for someone to care for her. She melted against his body, savouring the touch and scent of him.

“I am yours,” the angel said. “Give me your soul and we can be together forever, Riley Anora Blackthorne.”

“Do you love me?” she asked. That was what she wanted, what she craved. To be loved by someone as magnificent as an angel.

Ori did not reply, his face tormented. As if he wanted to lie, but could not. He tried to smile, but failed. “Come with me,” he said, offering a hand. “We will have eternity together. Is that not enough?”

Riley hesitated, her heart pounding hard. If he doesn’t love me . . . Was she so desperate that she’d settle for an empty life?

Caught in her doubts, she looked away and found that the field wasn’t empty any longer. Her family’s mausoleum now stood a short distance away, cloaked in snow and moonlight.

Solid red stones, stained-glass windows, all testimony to the Blackthorne legacy. The lion-winged gargoyles on the roof glared down at her, brilliant yellow flames pouring from their mouths. as if she was a threat to the dead within. The double brass doors swung open and, instead of the stone interior lit by dancing candlelight, there was semidarkness. Figures moved around inside, all talons and teeth and glittering ruby eyes. The emissaries of Hell awaiting her decision.

It was so tempting. She’d spend forever with her father. The demons couldn’t hurt her and –

A voice cried out her name. She searched across the field and found Beck running towards her at top speed. He cried out again, his voice ragged as if he’d been shouting for hours and she’d not heard him.

“Do not listen to the trapper,” Ori warned. “He is jealous of us. Of what we have.”

She hesitated, confused.

“Riley!” Ori called, more forceful now. “Pledge me your soul. I promise you will never suffer another moment of your life.”

“What will we have?” she demanded. “Some promises? None of which you will keep.” She shook her head. “You never loved me. You only loved my soul and what it will buy you in Hell.”

“You are wrong,” the angel retorted. “This was always about you.”

“Lies!” she shouted.

A searing cramp dug deep into her belly and she doubled over in agony. Riley forced herself to straighten up, holding her stomach. The area around her had become a minefield of skulls, each inhabited by a demon. They taunted her, threatened her, spoke of the endless tortures that awaited her soul in Hell.

Ori was no longer near her but at the edge of the skull field now, pacing in agitation. “You have to give your soul. It is the only way, Riley! Please, I beg of you!”

The snow around her turned crimson and began to boil.

“No,” she said. “I have lost too much already.”

As the skulls massed for an assault, Beck charged into the minefield, bent on her rescue. He only made it a few steps before he cried out her name once more, then died in tormented agony as the demons tore him apart.

“NO!!!!”

Riley lurched upright in the bed, sweat pouring off her in streams. Her chest felt heavy and each breath only brought in a tiny stream of air. She bent over, clutching her stomach. Swallowing repeatedly to keep from vomiting, she struggled to regain her senses and break free of the nightmare.

With a groan, she wiped sweat off her brow. A vicious headache pounded in the very centre of her forehead. The room around her was quiet. There were no demons, no angel, no dying Beck. As the nightmare receded, the horror of it still clung to her.

Was this a sign of what her future held? Would Ori continue to push at her mind until she screamed for release? Would Beck throw away his life to save her soul?

With another groan, Riley rooted in her messenger bag and excavated two Advil and a bottle of water. She washed the tablets down, hoping they’d stay put, then leaned back against the headboard.

“This seriously sucks.” The verbal acknowledgement only made her head thump harder.

Once she’d shaken off the worst of the dream, she headed for the bathroom and made a totally useless attempt to do something about her hair. When she pulled on her clothes, she was relieved they smelt less like the lying angel now. It was a pity that the memory of his touch wouldn’t fade as easily.

Out of habit she retrieved her cellphone, but a second before powering it on she hesitated: did she dare check her messages? Would the hunters be able to track her here?

“Better not,” she said, leaving the phone off. It felt weird to be so out of touch. How would she let her friends know what was happening? Her best buddy Peter freaked if he didn’t hear from her regularly. Simi, her barista friend at the local coffee shop, would wonder what happened to her, especially since she insisted on updates every couple of days.

Staying with Mort was too dangerous for all of them. Eventually the hunters would come here. The only choice was for her and her dad to make a run for it, hide out until the Vatican’s boys got bored and returned to Rome. We’ll have to start over. Find a place to live. I’ll have to get a different job.

If they survived all that, eventually she’d have to convince Lucifer to put her dad back in the ground.

All because I wanted someone to love me.

Except from FORGIVEN – Book 3 in the Demon Trappers Series

© 2012 Jana Oliver

Macmillan Children’s Books (March 1, 2012)

St. Martin’s Griffin (March 27, 2012)

Happy Holidays to one and All!

My fall has been interesting. From Dragon*Con  (Labor Day) forward I’ve been living on a rollercoaster with occasional breaks for changes of clothes, food and sleep. But now I have reached the end of the ride and things will settle down.

Since Labor Day I have:

Been to England for 21 days, talked to approximately 1K students (seriously), covered countless train miles, caught one cold and didn’t drink my weight in single malt Scotch (bah!). I communed with statues on a beach (see picture), met my UK editor, attended a Jack the Ripper Conference, visited Scotland for the first time, chatted with a number of my readers and spent time with the blazingly talented Elizabeth May and her sweetie, Mr. May.

Once I was back in the States I attended the Dahlonega Literary Festival and hung with the likes of :  J. F. Lewis, Jackson Pearce, Janice Hardy, James R. Tuck and Jenna Maclaine. We dubbed it the “J” panel (check the first names). It was Veteran’s Day weekend so there was a parade and I had the most excellent food at the Corkscrew Cafe. The spouse tagged along and it was great fun despite the fact I contracted some weird virusy thing that left my head spinning like I’d downed a bottle of tequila.

Then I completed the final revision for FORGIVEN and turned it in, guest taught two classes at a local university and went on a cruise with the spouse. The vacation was sorely needed, though I did continue to work during that time. However, sitting on a table on one’s verandah as the ship sails along really doesn’t constitute work IMHO. Besides all the pampering and the gorgeous tropical scenery, you get TOWEL ANIMALS on your bed each evening, courtesy of Justin our room steward.  Like this lovely koala.

In the last nine days I’ve proofed FORGIVEN twice (US and UK galleys), flown to Des Moines, talked to three classes, did a signing, met with friends and then flew home again. And I submitted a proposal for the fourth (and final) book in the Demon Trappers Series along with a proposal for a new young adult series. I’ll keep you posted on the status of the latter. Well, actually, I’ll just shout a lot if it finds at home at St. Martin’s Press.

FORGIVEN is now out of my life until I see it in printed form, both in the US and the UK. I LOVE this book. Totally love it. It took a lot out of me to write, but it is really cool. But now it’s up to my readers to tell me if I’m right.

My next task is to catch up on all those things I promised other people (blurbing books, interviews, etc) and clean my house. And of course, I’ll be working on Book #4 as it really needs to go to the editor really soon. Really, really soon and I’m only halfway through the first draft. It has to be as cool as FORGIVEN so the series ends properly. That will take some work.

In my world it’s been an amazingly busy, fulfilling, grand year. I’ve met zillions of new (and nice) people, visited places I’ve never been before and been thrilled with all the folks who enjoy my little stories. I hope 2011 turned out good for you, as well.

I wish you a very Happy Holidays be that a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kawanzaa or Yule. Let’s all spend time with friends and family, donate to charities for those who’ve not had a good year, and start 2012 full of good will.

hugs

Jana

Hope you see you there!!!!