I recently mentioned in an interview how precious readers are.
I’m an avid reader, art lover, and writer who writes because of what I read that readers love. Hmmm. I’m not sure what that means, but maybe you get the idea. Art through storytelling is a powerful thing. So, I can relate to how writers feel about this from all these perspectives.
Feedback from readers is honestly what the reward side of things is all about. Most of us write because we want people to enjoy our stories as much as we enjoy telling them.
I truly wish more readers would leave feedback. Reviews inform authors and readers alike and are invaluable in helping authors deliver better stories. I’ve recently experienced 1-star ratings with no words to back up that interesting viewpoint. I welcome all critical opinions. Tell me why the book deserves the lowest rating. Believe it or not, it helps me grow.
I’ve watched many Kindle Unlimited readers speed through all three of my books in as many days, so to me, that’s got to mean they enjoyed them. However, few leave ratings.
As for taking the time to write a review, those are rare precious gems. I’m sharing one of those Goodreads treasures here.
This is the week for romance, and The Starlight Chronicles is a great place to get some. Tigris Vetus is one year old at the end of the month, and I’ll be posting an Instagram Bookaversary giveaway next week!
Everyone at the Starlight thanks all their amazing visitors, too.
As do those from places a little more exotic…
Want to solve the anti-hero enigma of the swoony, ancient alien prince known as Aviel Enair, his three moons, and his planet, Anurash? Tigris Vetus delivers… while keeping you down to Earth with the roll-up-her-sleeves, no-nonsense Selena Aires as she concludes her journey.
So many fun sales this week. Keep scrolling for ways to shop. 😀
Happy New Year and thanks for your support!
Bears are supposed to live in the woods. Just not one who sends you to the moon.
Selena Aires
I promised my friend on his deathbed that I would find the place I was destined for. Neither of us had a clue what that meant, but searching for it after he’s gone helps me cope with my grief, and I pack up my art supplies and hit the highway. When I stop for gas in Quincy, Thomas is waiting for me—in spirit. So, I stay—and find my dream cottage with a studio and hiking trails out the back door, and a quaint old tavern called the Starlight with a cozy booth in the corner. I set out my sketchbook and pencils and get busy drawing faces—my way of getting to know people while I enjoy a beer.
It works. I’m making friends and filling my journal with the kind of diverse characters typical of a crossroads pub. But diversity doesn’t explain why the people coming to life on my pages are the stuff of fairytales. The most fascinating is Andras Johns, and I’m wondering more often whether the towering man who sets me on fire with one look is the prince in the story or the beast lurking in the woods.
Andras Johns
I’ve been the alpha of the North Star Pack for a long time. My policy? Never mix it up with a human. I can’t stand the idea of exposing a vulnerable species to the hazards of my job, and the hazards recently ramped up. But there’s a new face in town. A beautiful, human face. The first time Selena Aires gives me her smile, I smile back. It’s a mistake—and I know I’m done for, which is a problem because an alpha can’t break his own rules.
Meet a giant, smoking-hot cinnamon roll hero and a diminutive lovable kickass heroine in this paranormal romance with heart, medium spice, and a little bit of danger. *This is not a standalone.* The hazards and thrills ramp up in Book Two, Drago Incendium.
And there’s more. All five books by D. L. Lewellyn are $1.99 on Google Audio.Listen to this amazing example of Les Romances Des Trois.
Ursus Borealis and Les Romances des Trois are part of the #RomanceBookBlast on January 28!
Browse a 1000 romance books now and have a blast stuffing your eReaders.
For Apple Book Lovers, Click below for your free copy of Les Romances des Trois.
Three Novellas… Three enchanting settings and adventures… Three unlikely lovers finding each other along the way…
Experience sailing the Caribbean Ocean with a pirate captain and his mythical lovers in The Salty Pearl’s Reluctant Commander. How will Bastien Verdon deal with his superstitious crew and a vengeful god who wants what’s his? Next is Captured By the Hunted, a vampire hunter story that asks who is the hunted? Gedeon Kadar, a Scythian warrior turned vampire or a pair of mated dhampirs hunting vampires for the Oltalom Order?
Fate Sent Her Two immerses you in a contemporary farmhouse setting in coastal California. Maggie McConklin, a widow and well-known figurative painter, launches an ad for housemates to save her home. Adam and Greg answer the ad. Sparks fly the moment the gorgeous men step out of their classic Charger to find Maggie and her Blue Heeler, Sorcha, waiting on the porch.
As a bonus to this diverse collection of sweeping, deeply romantic ménage à trois fantasy stories, enjoy Pinpricks: An Adult Fairy Tale. In its anthology appearance in Magick & Mystery by Dragon Soul Press, one reviewer said: “Superfast start. Very interesting premise. An unexpected joy.” Find out where a prince and three witches end up in a tale about choices, discovery, and questionable happy-ever-afters.
Meet Selena Aires, a petite artist with a sweet smile. Don’t let her size and disposition fool you into thinking she can’t take care of herself. Meet Andras Johns, a towering, tattooed biker… at first glance… Just don’t get lost in those honey jar eyes when you look closer.
Enjoy the two teaming up in a small California mountain town against ancient odds. Ursus Borealis is the sexy calm before the storm in an exciting three-part fantasy adventure. Won’t you give it a read and review?
I like to tell people when I’m being dramatic that I was born under the shadow of Mount Shasta. It’s fitting that my writing passion was fueled by a visit to McCloud, California, which sits at the base of this mythical 14,139-foot-high stratovolcano.
I’ve been chatting with Introverted Indies dark fantasy author Lucy A. McLaren who was a guest on my Spotlight in 2023. Our conversation got me remembering the start of my writing journey in 2020 when I met my folks in McCloud, a small mill town on Highway 89 near Interstate 5, one of many historical mill and mining towns in Siskiyou and Shasta counties. A few miles down the highway, you’ll find Burney Falls. another scenic wonder President Theodore Roosevelt called “the Eight Wonder of the World.”
That first story I was typing away on (in photo below) never got past the first few chapters, but what a perfect setting for a paranormal romance! I’m only just now appreciating how much I was affected by the atmosphere, which I believe was the glue that cemented my writing passion.
An article in Big Think aptly describes Mount Shasta as “[a] mountain [is] associated with so many otherworldly, paranormal, and mythical beings—in addition to long-established Native American traditions—that it’s almost like a who’s who of metaphysics.”
I was super glad I booked a bed and breakfast room at the charming McCloud Hotel. I highly recommend a stay.
Check out Where I Live for more beautiful areas and photographs.
I hope you enjoy these tidbits shared in this month’s email newsletter.
As you might imagine, magic systems are an important literary device in fantasy writing. Choosing the right level on the High to Low Magic spectrum is crucial to shaping the plot and driving the characters whether the system features big in the plot, or is merely a gossamer thread. Check out 7 Ways to Create a Spectacular Magic System For Your Novel at Writers Write.
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Hard and Soft Magic is another way to look at it as my go-to fantasy writing guru, Richie Billing, brings out. He explains how Hard Magic requires detailing the system’s complexity and all its nuanced rules, whereas soft magic lacks clarity and leaves more to the imagination.
The Starlight Chronicles falls on the lower end of this spectrum, which is typical for writers with romance as their overarching genre. But even we must be serious about our magic system as we develop the plot, flesh out the logical details, and strive to make our fantasy elements vibrant no matter that the bulk of the magic is left unsaid. It still comes through. Readers must have enough believable substance to become immersed as much as they need captivating settings and compelling characters.
I want to nudge my current work in progress (my spinoff story for dragon shifter Michael Elliott) higher up the scale. Elliott’s dragon will be a major character and Onyx needs a backstory. To that end, after creating my antagonist and giving Spero his opening scene, I’ve taken a break from writing and turned to research.
Spero hails from a long line of Nordic witches who use rune magic. The runes are etched into his skin as a means to access and control their power. That’s both a painful handicap and a super strength, which will come out in interesting ways in the story. Suddenly, my mage’s backstory became paramount and needed much more work.
This epiphany led me down fascinating historical paths involving runes, the sagas written in them, their use in incantations, their songs. So, I pulled out long-neglected knitting and crocheting projects and stitched away while watching YouTube videos on Norse Mythology, Viking history, and the Dark Ages, including nuggets like the real meaning of the word barbarian. I also learned the surprising origins of the Celts and how they spread through Europe and competed with the Roman Empire in art, culture, and wow, even chariot racing!
I’m so happy I don’t have to abandon my cherished Starlight Chronicles Pod People! The pack is returning in dragon shifter Michael Elliott’s spinoff story. Yes! 👊
My working title may include any combination of the words Pursuit, For, Of, Love, Magic, and Dragons. Follow my novel writing journey here or in my newsletter and help me with the title for a chance to win a signed paperback copy of Michael Elliott’s upcoming story. Yes, again! 👊😄
My goal is for publication in 2026, or earlier if miracles happen. You will also get early cover reveals and requests for input as it’s developed. Let me know if you’re interested in beta reading.
This is National Novel Writing Month and Elliott, as Selena likes to call the alpha who joined her quest in Book Two, Drago Incendium, is getting full-on dedicated page time, including gorgeous scenes at his lofty Scottish castle in the Highlands. The story will also take you back to Ketchikan and Dylan Aires’ fishing lodge. You remember Selena’s brother? The vampire who can walk in daylight and cook like Julia Child? And finally, we’ll be exploring the fae realms, including a wondrous place not even the supernatural races know exists.
Not only did Elliott promise Selena he would share dragon lore and show her his castle but a seer envisioned the same. Stick with me on this journey and learn what happens when Elliott brings Andras and Selena to his castle on Ben Shiel to fulfill his promise.
Princess Priss Starwillow and wolf shifter Sam Harrison will come to stay as well. Michael Elliott hires Callie, once captive to Prince Aviel Enair, to help run his castle. Selena is expecting twins. Michael and Callie have prepared his laird’s chamber for her precious arrivals and Selena is thrilled to have Callie and Priss there to help. There may even be other surprise visits.
The setting is perfect for a pack gathering and happy reunions until a powerful mage comes for Onyx. Worse, Spero uses, the sassy, outspoken shapeshifter, Halil Enair, to dupe Michael a second time, threatening to sever his symbiotic bond with Onyx. Will Spero succeed? And what does the mage want with a dragon and his soul?
Onyx appears in a few fabulous scenes in books two and three of The Starlight Chronicles. Now, he gets his full-on dedicated page time too.
These lovely characters, whom I’ve said from the beginning were seeded in my brain by aliens where they grew and clamored to be heard, deserve to continue their existence. This is just one of a handful of Starlight Chronicle stories I’ve got planned.
I couldn’t do it with you. Thanks for your support!
Click on Onyx’s portrait or the form below to subscribe to D. L. Lewellyn’s Newsletter and join the team!
Join The Starlight Chronicles Community to follow Onyx’s story.Onyx’s portrait created using ChatGPT
Pod People Unite! Yesterday, I blogged about my Work In Progress (WIP) and invited followers to tag along. This is blog 2 to point you to my new page where I’ll keep all my updates organized and share fun stuff like what follows… ❤️
A Peek Into Starlight Chronicles Dragon History
Fact One – The dragon species was wiped out eons ago in the Great Purge
Fact Two – In the time before the last dragon vanished, an underground sect formed to continue the noncorporeal species through a symbiotic bond with a human who could withstand the harrowing transformation to a dragon. Many made the ultimate sacrifice to perfect the ability.
Fact Three – These humans became the first animal shifters.
Fact Four – When dragons disappeared, so did their kingdom in the fae realms. Great magic still exists there if anyone knows where to look.
Fact Five – Our sexy main character, Michael Elliott, is a dragon shifter and the alpha of the Fire Star Pack. His territory covers the State of Oregon in the U.S. Michael is bonded with an ancient dragon called Onyx.
Fact Six – When Michael shifts into a dragon, Onyx gets his corporeal body back though he occupies it with Michael. When Michael is human, Onyx is with him in body and soul. It’s truly a symbiotic relationship, and the bond is never meant to be broken.
Fact Seven– The two share a castle in the Scottish Highlands passed down by Michael’s dragon host predecessors. (In The Starlight Chronicles, Elliott, as Selena came to call him, teamed up with bear shifter and alpha of the North Star Pack, Andras Johns, to support Selena Aires in her prophetic quest. The three reunite in this story, and Michael will finally share dragon lore with Selena. It will be more than she bargained for.)
Fact Eight – Onyx has scales like obsidian and the same deep midnight blue eyes as his host.
The Starlight Chronicles series is a great place to rev up for Michael’s spinoff story from Book Two, Drago Incendium, which starts where Book One, Ursus Borealis, leaves off. The saga concludes in Book Three, Tigris Vetus.
This new novel is for Michael. 🥰
Let me know if you’re enjoying the journey! Comment with ideas and feedback.
My latest YouTube video is up! Enjoy a video teaser on my new release with an audio clip from Les Romances des Trois on Google Play Audio. Enjoy! And please like and subscribe. You never know what tidbits I might come up with next.
You are getting the first official announcement of my new wraparound covers for The Starlight Chronicles, paranormal romance adventure!! Scroll to see how beautiful they will be on a bookshelf! Thank you for celebrating with me.
I am super excited to bring these pretty babies into the world. To celebrate all my eBOOKS and AUDIO books will be FREE or ON SALE this week, including Google Play Audio.
By D. L. Lewellyn 