Finally, I have the finalized cover for Strands of Existence 2: Sea of Shadows. I still need to format a version of it for the paperback but after that, we are all set for the sequel launch.
Why do I write? Because in a world where most people feel comfortable speaking and expressing themselves with speech, I feel alienated and alone at times. I love words. I love stories. But I can only relay them through written form. I’ve always been quiet on the outside, hiding what I really think and feel. I dread making phone calls, I hate giving speeches and presentations (though I’m actually quite good at such things). It just goes against the very fiber of my being and drains me. Writing energizes me. It makes me feel alive in my own little nook. I get to traverse very different worlds and see so many wonderful sights. I get to explore. It’s a strange thing to want to experience life. I want to travel and have all sorts of foods, drinks and soak up different influences… but while I love all of it, I can travel to far more rare places within. As a child, I had no trouble imagining a dragon landing in our yard. And in my eyes, it was as real as anything there. If you could hav...
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...
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, ...
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