Posts

The Queen shall arrive in June!

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 Say hello to our brand new sovereign! You may remember a little Kindle Vella story I posted last year by this name. Well, I'm very pleased to show you the brand new cover for the new and expanded version of The Gingerbread Queen! It's a fantasy inspired by the Grimm Brothers' Hansel and Gretel. The book releases June 11, 2024 from Oliver Heber Books.  The Kindle version is already up for pre-orders here: THE GINGERBREAD QUEEN Here's the blurb:   From the author of The Mermaid's Sister, an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Winner for Young Adult Fiction and winner of the Realm Award for Book of the Year! Once upon a time, Gretel defeated the witch of the gingerbread cottage and saved Hansel. Now, she must face what the witch left behind... Germany, 1825. Thirteen years have passed since Gretel and her brother Hansel started new lives in a small town. She’s changed her name, lived quietly, and tried to forget her terrible past—yet gossiping neighbors accuse her

Upcoming Event News!

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 Tidings of Comfort & Joy! Hello there, reader friends!  Just a quick note here to invite you to come and see me at Cupboard Maker Books on December 9. I'll be signing books from 12:30 to 2:30, along with several other authors--including fellow fantasy writer Laura L. Zimmerman. Cupboard Makers is a spacious independent bookstore, full of wonderful new and used books, and also cats (some up for adoption!). They're located in Enola, PA, not far from Harrisburg.  Here's how to get there! Books make fantastic Christmas gifts! Hope to see you soon--and if not, have a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Reading Recommendations & Spring Updates

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Greetings from my reading nook/writing lair! I’ve been reading lots during the cold weather, haven’t you? Such a pleasant way to pass the time. I'm grateful for the warmth of spring (not that it will stop me from reading!).   Confession : I’m a big Kindle reader. I know, it’s no replacement for the feeling of a book in your hands and the scent of ink and paper, but the thing lights up so I can read in bed, and it holds a LOT of books. Now that I’ve confessed, I’ll tell you that I recently read 13 books in a series. Michelle Vernal’s Guesthouse on the Green series is about a quirky Irish family who run an inn. I can’t remember ever laughing out loud so much while reading! I got the series from Kindle Unlimited—which is part of the reason I put up with punctuation and spelling errors that infested the first several books. The newer ones are better in that regard. BUT I totally recommend the series if you like family
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 Hello there, reader friends!  How's your January been so far? Last year was pretty rough for me. I'm hopeful that 2023 will be a better year, full of good surprises (because who needs any more of the bad ones?) This year, I want to: post all 39 episodes of The Gingerbread Queen on Kindle Vella by the end of February finish writing Trowbridge & Fye (the wrong number/bridge troll story) overhaul The Antler Girl novel finish editing a short story that's going to be included in an upcoming anthology  have fun at a couple of writers' conferences and book festivals  What do you hope to do this year? Share in the comments if you like!  According to Goodreads, I read over 50 books in 2022. Here are some of my favorite reads! Favorite fantasy: Keeper of Enchanted Rooms by Charlie N. Holmberg Favorite hisorical fiction: The Fire and the Ore by Olivia Hawker and Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell Favorite romance: Scrooge and the Girls Next Door by Melanie Jacobson Favori

The Gingerbread Queen is Coming!

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 A Brand New Queen 👑 Hello, reader friends! It's been a while. Life has been full of pitfalls and trials, but I am still here, poking away at the keyboard and making up stories. And I have some exciting news to share!  On November 15, 2022, I'll be launching a new novella for you on the Kindle Vella platform! If you're not familiar with Vella, it's a place where authors release stories in episode form (think of old Charles Dickens writing weekly episodes for the newspaper). The first couple chapters are free to read, and then there's a token system to get the next episodes (don't worry, it's easy!). I'll be posting 2 new chapters a week--just in time for winter's cozy reading season. Here's a bit about The Gingerbread Queen:  Hansel and Gretel's tale continues... Thirteen years after fleeing the witch’s gingerbread cottage, Gretel must return to hide from townsfolk who accuse her of being the evil crone’s successor. When the walls start to

Happy March, St. Patrick's Day & Spring!

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 Happy St. Patrick's Day ! ☘   Hello there!  Are you excited about springtime's imminent arrival? I certainly am.   My yard is all a-twitter with little birds and soon there will be cheery daffodils and blossoming forsythia to bring color to the winter-dulled garden.  As we're waiting for all that, here's a fun little video. Please share it with your leprechaun-loving friends.  And...if you haven't signed up for my newsletter, please click on over to that section of the blog and pop your name in the box. You'll get a free short story, and every month I'll have some kind of unique giveaway. Also, it's the best way to keep up with my newest projects and to find out where I'll be.  ☘ Saol fada agus breac-shláinte chugat! (Long life and fair health to you!) ~Carrie  P.S. If you haven't read The Gold-Son, the Kindle edition is on sale for $.99 through 3/31/22.  Click here!  

It's February!

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Hello there, reader friend! How's your February going? Well, if you're a neat freak, you might want to skip this paragraph. I've been slowly reorganizing my office, so my desk is a tornado of books and papers. There's also a packet of gummi bears, a glass of water, various hedgehogs, and a tiny Lego Millennium Falcon, Han Solo, Chewbacca, R2D2, a