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Hey there! Got a lot of updates for you! An Ember Defiant Updates! These last three weeks have been the busiest of my life! I ran a giveaway, got far more involved with social media, and I spent every other waking moment revising An Ember Defiant further. My mom read the ARC version and came back with a bunch of ideas for improvement, specifically the scene where Kala exposes her scars to Soren at the end. She interpreted the part where Soren threatens to withhold affection if Kala doesn't see things her way as manipulative, and that's not who Soren is. I found it interesting that she read that scene and thought manipulation; that was not my intent. I ended up revising that scene heavily. Then, my author buddy Danny Knestaut read the book and sent me a HUGE list of things to change/improve. Pointed out some scenes where I was "telling" when I should have been "showing" instead. The critique and advice he gave me was incredible; he really went all-out and spent a ton of time showing me what scenes needed more work. So I ended up spending these last three weeks doing everything I can to make this book as good as I can get it. With my audiobook contract with Podium, I couldn't live with myself if I gave them something that was just good, I needed to give them something perfect. I submitted the book to them late Saturday night, and they are getting everything ready for production. And now, all my readers have a far better version of the book! (If you'd like this updated copy, you can click on the same BookFunnel link that was sent to you. Title page will say something like "ARC Copy V2") New Bonus Content! Now that Book 2 is done, I am going to practice dictation creating three separate pieces of bonus content as I work on outlining Book 3. I'm going to take that prologue chapter I have as a reward for signing up for my newsletter and rewrite it to align with the events of Book 2. This is going to be expanded from 3.5k words to 10k-20k words, and then it'll be given away for free on BookFunnel group promos to help boost sales and newsletter subs. (Yes, you'll get it for free!) Then, I'm going to create an alternate POV chapter from Soren's POV when he rescues Kala at the end of Book 1, and finally, a Trilla POV chapter for the end of Book 2. An Ember Defiant Preorders + Release Date! If you're an ARC reader, I would LOVE it if you could post your review on Amazon and Goodreads on Friday, August 28th! Reviews/ratings on the first day and week give the book a huge boost in the algorithm, and you play a major role in making that happen. So far, Book 2 has 11 preorders. Definitely not a bad start! While the price is set at $3.99 USD right now, I do plan on increasing that to $5.99 to match Book 1's price two to four weeks after release, so if you'd like to get Book 2 while it has a lower price, now would be the time. Also! Amazon has been really cracking down on reviews from "Unverified Purchasers" lately. Since launch-day reviews and ratings are so crucial for Amazon's algorithm, preordering a copy of the ebook would give you that "Verified Purchaser" badge and ensure that your review stays on the book. Authors live and die by their book reviews. The more reviews/ratings there are, the more sales they make. This makes Amazon's algorithm push their books out to far more customers organically. If you'd like to help support me and boost this series, I'd really appreciate it if you could preorder Book 2! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0H67JZ8R7 Signed Copies for Sale! I launched a shop on TikTok a while ago for signed copies, though I haven't made a sale there yet. I must admit that I haven't spent that much time working on promoting that as I have been so focused on finishing Book 2. I also plan on buying a retail license from my state so that I can start selling from my own website (which is still a work in progress; it's not where I want it to be yet.) I am planning on learning everything I need to know to make more sales on TikTok; I have over 100 copies of Book 1 to sell! If you're in the US and want me to ship you a signed copy, TikTok always has some sort of coupon you can apply; they're really good for first-time customers. You can snag a signed copy at https://shop.tiktok.com/us/pdp/an-ember-rekindled-signed-paperback-dragon-rider-romantasy/1732459557840327000 Once my proof copy of Book 2 arrives today, I'll order a bunch of copies of Book 2 for me to sign and ship; should be available for sale on TikTok and my website in about a month. There will be a discount for buying both Books 1 and 2, and I'll offer a lot of private coupon codes for you here for both my website store (coming soon) and for my TikTok shop, too! So yeah! Super excited for Book 2 to release this Friday! |
Luke McNamara is the author of The Second Bond series, a slow-burn dragon rider romantasy featuring defiant heroines and forbidden love. He resides in the upstate of South Carolina, where the Blue Ridge Mountains inspire much of his storytelling. When he’s not writing, he can be found getting lost on mountain trails or promising himself he’ll read just one more chapter.
Hey there! For all the newcomers, I wanted to reach out and say thank you for joining my newsletter. I send out emails 3 to 4 times a month sharing writing updates, access to chapters from the next book, and all kinds of other author-related stuff. As for a little about me... I quit my job as a pharmacy tech a couple months ago and went full time as an author. With my Bookbub Featured Deal back in January, my Podium audiobook contract, and a bunch of other things that I have going for me, I...
Hey there! Since my Gleam.io subscription was $60 for just one month, I decided to launch another giveaway to get the most out of it before my sub expires! I am giving away FIVE signed copies of An Ember Rekindled. Giveaway ends on Thursday night, August 13th at 11:59pm Pacific Time. US only (shipping to foreign countries is way outside my budget at the moment) https://gleam.io/MfTdT/an-ember-rekindled-signed-paperback-giveaway By the way, if you use the "Viral Share" function, you can gain a...
Hey there! The first draft of An Ember Defiant is finished! There's still a lot to do, and I wanted to share my timeline and updates with you so you know what's coming. It's currently at 112.5k words (Book 1 is 111k words) and I expect it to finish around 115k to 120k words. As for my timeline from first draft to polished product, I’m thinking 4 to 8 weeks. I’m going to add some extra scenes and smaller details, then edit it from top to bottom, then I’ll run it through ProWritingAid. Once...