Want to know what I’m up to? Here’s a short list of what I’m currently knee-deep (okay, maybe eyeball-deep…) in writing, revising, or querying.
SLIP – Contemporary YA Rom-Com w/magical realism
Complete at 73k words
Current WIP stage: Querying
9 minutes and 53 seconds isn’t enough time to change the world. It’s not even enough time to change gym clothes.
But 16-year-old junior, PJ “Slip” Ellis, is cursed. Her panic attacks send her 9 minutes and 53 seconds into the past, which means she’ll do what she can to avoid whatever triggered her anxiety. And she’s learned to deal with it…mostly.
At least, until Ethan Morrow appears in her life. Now, PJ’s falling for Ethan, and her anxiety—once under control—is quickly spiraling out of hand. So, she does the only thing she can—attempts to avoid Ethan with every slip.
If only the solution were so easy. Ethan appears in PJ’s life no matter what path she takes, no matter how many times she slips. Is it fate? Kismet? Organized chaos? How can PJ erase Ethan from her life when she doesn’t even know if she wants to?
LOVE, DEATH, & PENPALS – Contemporary YA w/magical realism
Status: 68k words
Current WIP stage: Querying
Think THE LAKEHOUSE meets THE STARLESS SEA. It’s somewhere in that realm.
College sophomore Raelyn Argenti meets the boy of her dreams. There’s just one problem. Elliot lives two years in the past and Rae can only communicate with him through notes passed via a shared library book. The two devise multiple plans to meet in Raelyn’s time, but something always goes wrong and Elliot doesn’t show.
And yet, even if he can’t be seen, Elliot and Raelyn have formed an undeniable connection that’s changing lives, and not just their own. In order to save a friend with a precarious medical condition, the two forge headfirst into changing the nature of healthcare and the politics that surround it, proving that sometimes love is enough to change the world.
WINTER SONGBIRD (working title) – Young Adult Fantasy
Status: 8k words
Current WIP status: Drafting
I don’t have a description for you yet. I will. Someday. 😛
TEMPER THE DARK – Dual POV Young Adult Fantasy
Complete at 93k words
Current WIP stage: COMING SOON 2023
Servant girl Alaris Kahlanik finds out about her family’s gift the hard way when she discovers her ability to dreamwalk after being thrown in the Cells. She uses her newfound ability to spy on the emperor who appears to be searching for something of importance. Nothing the emperor wants could possibly be good for the people he rules, and so whatever the emperor is looking for, Alaris must find first.
Throlani Guardsman Kagan Liis has served the Empire since Emperor Pa’tuk’s reign began eight years ago. He can also communicate with a vicious oracle referred to only as the Darkness. When the Darkness tasks Kagan with finding out more about the Servant girl in the Cells, Kagan takes on a special mission that will require more than his usual interrogation methods of brute strength and intimidation.
From vastly different echelons of the same tribal society, Alaris and Kagan are surprised to learn they share one important goal—ensuring the best for the people of their island nation. Alaris discovers what the emperor is looking for — a dragon, but warning a senile dragon against impending danger isn’t an easy task! Together, Alaris and Kagan must save a forgetful dragon and a divided nation…which may mean giving up any hope of saving themselves.
MARIT, UNSANCTIONED – Multiple POV Young Adult Fantasy
Complete at 97k words
Current WIP stage: Querying
Marit Tempi-Himche lives an Unsanctioned existence on her mothers’ farm. By day, the 16-year-old hides from the eyes of farmhands. By night, she farms the land. When the Guard discovers Marit’s existence, she’s hauled to the auction cells to be sold to the highest bidder. She ends up in the hands of a councilman’s daughter who’s soon to be wed to Greyson Kencharo, an 18-year-old in line to nab the keystone seat on a powerful council that rules Aktaria and keeps the rebellious colonies with their Mysticborn citizens in line.
Before the union can be approved, Greyson and his bride must pick blindly from a variety of vials containing phenomenal powers, and the vials they choose must consist of complementary gifts. In a freak accident, Marit—not the councilman’s daughter—ends up with complementary powers to Greyson’s gift.
Now someone on the council wants them dead. Thrust into the middle of an ongoing war between the council and the Mysticborn who want to use them to reclaim independence, Marit, Greyson, and a misfit crew of friends are on the run in a race to discover the truth behind council’s long, bloody history and the power behind their gifts. The unlikely pair must make a choice. What they learn could reshape the future for the better…if they can stay alive long enough to tell their story.
Oh, and it all happens in a world that looks something like this:
ORACLE – Adult Fantasy/Magical Realism
Status: 24k words
Current WIP stage: Drafting
Think Daughter of Smoke and Bone meets Doctor Who
RAVENS DON’T MIGRATE – Picture Book
Complete at 500 words
Current WIP stage: Querying
Rosie Raven comes home from bird school one day and reveals her plans to fly south for the winter, but Rosie has lots to learn about being a raven because ravens don’t migrate. She’s intent on convincing her family to vacation with the hummingbirds, the bluebirds, or even the waxwings, but Mama and Papa Raven must repeat “Ravens don’t migrate!” Rosie learns about raven winter traditions and discovers that being a raven is just as much fun as being a hummingbird, a bluebird, or a waxwing…even if ravens don’t migrate.
Excited to announce that RAVENS DON’T MIGRATE won *honorable mention* in 2021 #PBParty!
L. Ryan Storms 