Strands of Existence

 I haven't updated the blog in a while, so I thought I would do a small post. I've been working on the new story, but the writing goes a bit slower than in my previous stories. This is because I started studying for a degree in nursing sciences this Spring. I've had this urge to do something a little different for a few years now and as I've done a lot of medical translations during my career, this seemed like an interesting choise. In a month or so, we will get a summer break, so I my workload will decrease and I will hopefully get a bit more of the next story done, if not all of it!

 Quite a few months have gone by since the last post. I've been mostly ignoring writing and letting things to percolate in my head. Now, I'm getting quite a strong pull from certain ideas and directions for a new book. I don't yet know if it will be a series or not. Quite likely not as it more of an exploration of what happens long after the Strands of Existance story has finished. What I know for sure so far is that it will be told from the first person of several people, so we won't be stuck in just one persons head all the time. There are at least 3 different people who will have their thoughts and experiences shared. Two of them will be sisters who life has treated quite differently. I don't yet know when I will start writing properly, but if you liked SoE, you can get a review copy of this one once we are far enough if you send me your email address through the contact form.

 Today, is a very happy day as I just woke up to find out that someone had purchases all 4 books in one go. That is one brave individual there to jump straight into an indie series. Usually, most buy them one at a time. The bigger thing is that I got a new book blogger review from the wonderful The Reading Life Blog, link to full review: https://thereadinglifeblog.com/2024/06/17/book-review-island-girl-by-aino-lahteva/. It is such an amazingly positive review and the writer really got the major themes and the issues I wanted to address in the book. Here are some snippets:  "Even though the story is amusing in and of itself, it goes beyond simple entertainment by deftly incorporating into Istrae’s development and enhancing the larger thematic investigation of self-discovery and liberation from life’s limitations." "The plot and character development work together harmoniously to deepen the narrative and entice readers to look past the obvious and gain an insightful unders...

 Ever since I published the last book in the series, I've been just focusing on anything and everything else but writing in an effort to see if there might be more to explore in the SoE universe without forcing it. I don't want to write just because I want to be able to say I'm writing a book. I want to write if I actually have something to share and tell. The only thing I know I will never write is a prequel. I really really dislike prequels. I mean, what is the point of them? We already know where the world will end up. That, of course only leaves me with one particular direction. The future. What happens in the world after what we have already established. I have the very beginnings of a story brewing in my head. Obviously, the characters will be completely new. The time frame will be hundreds of years after the four books to explore what the world has become and how life has evolved. Whether or not I'll ever get to writing it, is still up in the air.  Any positive f...

 Phew, well, now the series is complete, and I feel very weird about it. On the one hand, I'm happy I managed it, on the other hand, I have no idea what comes next, if anything, and I'm feeling a little empty. I'm glad to see people visit my blog, and I'm glad to see people buying the books. Putting this story out there in the ether without a publisher was daunting, not to mention time consuming, and the editors didn't come cheap either. Still, it has been lovely seeing that there are people out there who have liked the story, and hopefully, it will keep reaching new readers still. My main goal with this project was just to see if I could write something that people actually liked but do it my way without considering what is popular and what would sell and be easy to market. I wanted to write the story as I wanted to tell it and in the setting I wanted to tell it in, whether it would ever sell one copy or not. There are so many writers, published or self-published, ...

 Hello once more, Just a small post to say that I just managed to finish SoE4: Cloudless Horizon, and it is now live on Amazon as an ebook. The paperback will take me a while longer to put together. Link to the ebook: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CN3ZRQ4D

A tiny peak at the last book's cover. I wanted to feature the main four and their dynamics on the cover where the Witch Queen is sort of hovering above them, enveloping the other three in this situation and also growing from the island's bedrock as she is the foundation of the events in the entire series. Rime stands between Isa and Riestel, but also on this shadowy part that looks like a ravine that grows toward the Witch Queen.