Those of you in my Facebook group know that I’m moving away from assetless pre-orders for 2024. This means that my pre-orders will be shorter, because they’ll only be loaded once each book is done. The reasons for this are that the portals have been lengthening the time required to process a book file, and also that they sometimes muck up and deliver the wrong file. If they only get the final one, that can’t happen. The other issue with long pre-orders is that life happens, as it has for me lately, and differnet portals have different rules about moving the delivery date on a pre-order.
Last week, I sorted out the rest of 2023.
The Scot & the Sorceress will now be published on August 29. This means that the existing pre-order at Amazon had to be cancelled (because it couldn’t be moved). If you had pre-ordered the book there, that pre-order has been cancelled. Right now, there’s no pre-order at Amazon. I’ll create a new one in August, once the book is done. As usual, there is no pre-order at GooglePlay. The book will be available there on the publication date. If yo upre-ordered at Nook or KOBO, you’ve probably received a message about the book’s new publication date.
Also, the pre-order link for Murdoch’s book at Apple has changed. I had set it up to deliver from Draft2Digital, but the first two books in the series are published directly to Apple and all books in the series have to reach the Apple store the same way for Apple to add them to a series page. I figured we’d just bite the bullet and change it over now.
One Knight’s Desire will now be published on October 24. For the same reason as with S&S, the existing pre-order at Amazon has been cancelled. and there will be a new one created closer to the publication date. If you had pre-ordered the book at Apple, Nook or KOBO, you’ve probably received a message about the changed date.
My medieval romance, The Runaway Bride, is now available in an Italian edition!
Aoife MacNeill è una bellezza, un trofeo da conquistare. Ora che non è più un’ereditiera, vorrebbe sposarsi per amore, ma suo padre ha organizzato il suo matrimonio con Nigel Armstrong, figlio maggiore ed erede del Falco di Inverfyre. Le basta uno sguardo per capire che Nigel non conquisterà mai il suo cuore, ma suo cugino, Ross di Kinfairlie, è tutta un’altra storia.
Aoife sa che non può sfuggire al suo destino, eppure desidera ardentemente tentare la sua ultima carta: fuggire da Inverfyre e sperare che Ross venga mandato al suo inseguimento. Sarà sufficiente un bacio…
Ross di Kinfairlie è un mercenario che mette la sua spada al servizio dei signori, un cavaliere privo dei beni necessari per poter reclamare una sposa. Quando la fidanzata del cugino scappa, corre al suo inseguimento perchè sa di dovere qualcosa al Falco che lo ha addestrato. Ross sospetta che Aoife non sia consapevole dei rischi che corre e infatti l’infido clan dei MacLaren, che cerca da sempre di danneggiare Inverfyre, la fa prigioniera.
Durante il salvataggio, Ross si ritrova affascinato dalla bella e selvaggia fanciulla. Quanto sarà disposto a cedere Ross per garantire la sicurezza di Aoife?
E quanto rischierà Aoife per proteggere l’uomo che ha catturato il suo cuore?
I’ve moved out the pubilcation date for Murdoch and Nyssa’s story, which will now be published on July 15. I apologize for the delay but I want the series finale to be just right. If you’ve pre-ordered the book at any of the portals, you probably got a notification of the delay.
Amazon would not allow the publication date to be moved, so I had to cancel the pre-oder there. The book will be available at Amazon on the publication date, but you’ll have to order it again then. It’ll have a different ASIN.
I had planned to switch to creating pre-orders at Amazon only after I have a completed book, beginning in 2024. This just makes the change occur a little sooner.
I have two pre-orders remaining without book files – One Knight’s Desire and The Stolen Bride – and it is quite likely that I’ll have to cancel OKD at Amazon for the same reason as S&S. Although I’m writing more than usual this year, I’ve still fallen behind. I apologize for the inconvenience.
Embittered by his losses and thwarted in his pursuit of vengeance, Murdoch is sworn to avenge his father. The sole means of striking a blow against his enemy, the Silver Wolf, is to seize that man’s beloved wife, Alys—but Murdoch cannot bring himself to injure a woman he has known all his life. When the wise woman of the woods offers herself in exchange for Alys’ freedom, Murdoch cannot resist temptation. The mysterious beauty lights a fire in his blood, a need for more than vengeance, and Murdoch finds himself enchanted. He never expects Nyssa, his apparent opposite, to burn with a similar desire for vengeance—but once she asks for his assistance, Murdoch swears gladly to do her will.
Nyssa is a healer and a wise woman, blessed with visions of the future to come. When her dreams fill with horrors for her kin in the distant north, she knows she must return to aid in their defense, no matter how long the odds against her. She strikes a bargain with Murdoch, a man with fearsome fighting skills, to aid in her quest, never guessing that her need to heal his hidden wounds will be so overwhelmingly powerful. Her visions warn that she has made an unholy alliance and that Murdoch’s anger will destroy her utterly—yet Nyssa cannot resist his fiery touch or the gift of watching him heal.
Bound together by passion and fury, Murdoch and Nyssa journey north, where they find her family snared in a battle that pits brother against brother. When Nyssa’s father surrenders her to his enemies for the sake of peace, Murdoch realizes that he must defend justice everywhere, beginning with the rescue of his beloved—no matter the cost to himself.
Monday, I talked about Kickstarter in general and why I like using it. Today, let’s talk a bit more about those perks for backers that will only be available through the campaign (running May 30 to June 10.)
First, there are the books.
This image shows all four editions of The Princess: from left, the original mass market paperback (out of print so included here for scale), the new MMPB, the current trade paperback and at the right, the new hardcover edition.
The hardcover has a case laminate, which means there’s a second image on the case of the book. It’s the new illustration, so with the hardcover, you get both images.
While you can order the new 25th anniversary editions of the books from your portal of choice (the pre-orders for The Princess are up now, for both the new hardcover edition and the new mass market edition), those books will be delivered in November.
By ordering them through the Kickstarter campaign, you’ll get them early.
You’ll also have the option of having your books personalized or signed, which is a great touch for your keeper shelf.
You can also save money on the hardcovers, if you buy entire trilogies through the Kickstarter campaign on the Early Bird specials. Sooner, signed or personalized, and cheaper too!
One of the interesting things about Kickstarter is that readers in different genres and subgenres find different perks appealing. I noticed in January that my readers really liked new content – the most popular tier was a new book in that world. So, for this campaign, every backer will get a copy of the ebook of the new bonus epilogue to the Bride Quest I, which is called Christmas at Tullymullagh. That story will be included in the new print editions of The Heiress.
There will be a stretch goal for a second bonus epilogue called Easter at Airdfinnan. If we reach the stretch goal, that ebook will be supplied to all backers and the story will be included in the new print editions of The Temptress. The first story at least (and the second if we achieve the goal) will be packaged in ebook and put up for sale by the end of the year —again, you’ll get them early if you back the campaign. These stories are an opportunity to catch up with the characters and check in with them. I’m working on the stories now and am having such a good time with them – it’s fun to revisit old friends! 🙂
I also thought it would be fun to incorporate the cover reveals for the other five new editions in the Kickstarter campaign. That gives me a good reason to post an update every day and switch out the graphics. Here’s the schedule for the campaign:
The little green clocks indicate Early Bird specials. Essentially, you save by committing to a trilogy (or both trilogies) before all of the new covers have been revealed.
For example, the hardcovers are priced at $39.99US at retailers. My campaign is priced in Canadian dollars because Kickstarter doesn’t give me a choice. $39.99 US is about $55 CA. That first Early Bird special is for the three hardcovers in the Bride Quest I trilogy, signed, for $135 CA. That’s about $100 US and it includes postage to US addresses, along with all physical and digital swag revealed during the campaign. That offer is only available for the first 24 hours of the campaign – it’s an Early Bird Special! – but I think it’s a great deal.
I’ve also gone through my books and have listed some of the original mass market paperbacks for sale as add-ons in this campaign. If you like the older editions, here’s your chance to get out-of-print copies.
There will, of course, be other surprises during the campaign, but here’s the one that I particularly like. I had a version of the dust jacket for The Princess printed on cotton (it has a lot less type) and am making fabric jackets to fit the hardcover books. If you order any of the signed hardcover editions, you’ll get a fabric book cover made by yours truly to protect your book while you read. You’ll have to wait for the reveal on June 8 to see exactly what they look like but I love them. I’ll only make enough of them to fulfil the rewards. (So, yes, if you back that $135 CA tier, you’ll get the fabric book cover, too.)
The final thing to remember is that you don’t have to buy print books during the Kickstarter campaign. You can back a campaign for digital rewards (like the ebooks of the short stories). You can shop for other medieval romances of mine – they’re ALL available in the add-ons – or save on my audiobooks during the campaign. You can even back a campaign for no reward at all, just to support the author.
The Kickstarter campaign for my Bride Quest 25th Anniversary commemorative editions launches on May 30 and runs through June 10. I hope to see you there!
It’s time for another BookFunnel promotion and this one features 99¢ historical romance reads. You’ll find both The Countess and Something Wicked This Way Comes in the offerings – for this promotion, you’ll click through to the retail portal of your choice to get the book for 99cents.
Claire Delacroix 