Confronting my Demon (Princess)

I hate cliffhangers.

Actually, that’s not really true. I love cliffhangers when I can anticipate what’s going to happen next and get excited to  buy the next in the series when I know it’ll ultimately wrap up in a satisfying manner.

I ended book two of my Demon Princess series on a cliffhanger — or, to be more specific, on a note that set up lots of fun that I had planned for the books to follow. This was a mistake. Even though, based on the feedback I received, readers loved the books, the sales were just not enough for the publisher to maintain their enthusiasm past book two. I was emotionally invested in this series and devastated (yes, devastated!!) that I wouldn’t get the chance to continue on with it.

Even now, over a year since REIGN CHECK came out, I receive several emails every week and comments on my Facebook page asking what’s up with the status of the series and the noticeably missing book three — some confused, some sad, and some downright angry (!!!). It makes me cringe every single time since I feel so incredibly helpless to do anything about it except repeat that “these things happen” and “I’m sorry”…

…but then I suddenly remembered that I’m not that helpless!

I already know what’s going to happen next for Nikki and her friends. And I know that there are quite a few readers who are very interested, too.

SO I’M WRITING IT!!!

THANK YOU to all the readers who’ve contacted me to share their love of the first two books. Some have even told me they never liked to read until they picked up a Demon Princess book; that it sparked their love of books and reading — this is probably the biggest compliment a writer can get!! You’re the reason I’m going to keep going. I was ready to walk away totally and not write any more about Nikki, since I was so disappointed with what had happened. But you guys…you’re very stubborn and wouldn’t take no for an answer! You are all awesome!

I tried to figure out how to wrap everything up in one more book, making it a trilogy to keep things nice and easy (for me, that is). Alas, it’s impossible. I originally envisioned the series as six books so there’s a lot of ground left to cover.

Now I envision it as a quadrilogy — four books total. And I am hereby committing myself to writing the last two books and publishing them myself so I can get some closure for myself and for my amazing and loyal readers.

REIGN FALL (DP #3) and REIGN STORM (DP #4), both full-length novels, will be jam-packed full of awesomeness and answer all the questions left dangling after the first two books.

The books will be available as ebooks — through Kindle, Nook, Kobo, etc. And print versions will be available through CreateSpace, which you can easily order online or through many bookstores. The books won’t be available on bookstore shelves like my previous titles, but they will be available.

As far as release dates… I plan to release REIGN FALL in January 2012 — which isn’t very far off at all! I’m finished writing it, but it still needs to be edited, proofread, and formatted. REIGN STORM will follow sometime after that, but not too long after. I’m writing these books in my spare time, since my first priority is, and always will be, my contracted books. But keep an eye on my website and my Facebook page for updates on my progress….and I’ll post the back cover blurb for REIGN FALL as soon as I write it up.

Plus, if you want to, please “like” the brand new official Demon Princess Facebook Page I’ve set up. This is where I’ll be posting blurbs, book quotes, polls, fun facts, and exclusive news about everything to do with Nikki’s world and future adventures.

As you can see, I’ve already designed the covers (click on pics to see them bigger), which I think rock and really give the kind of vibe I always wanted for this series.

I hope you’re as excited about this decision as I am. I think Nikki deserves to have the rest of her story told. And I can’t wait for you to get the chance to read it!

Until then, happy reading!

Michelle xoxo

P.S. If you’re a YA book reviewer with an established blog and you’re interested in reviewing REIGN FALL when it’s available (it would be provided as an ebook ARC), please email me and let me know! Thank you!!!