#TirgearrTuesday

Trauma inspired A Fairy's Quest.

For those of you not familiar with this title... A Fairy's Quest is Book 3 in The Magicals Series. It continues from where we left off in Kurtis Warde's story (A Wizard's Choice, Book 2). Kurtis had realized that although he should like Alina—she was the safer and politically savvy choice—his heart had a different opinion.

I never felt right about leaving Alina the way I did. Standing on the sidewalk. Alone. Brokenhearted. She deserved a happily-ever-after too.

Unfortunately, the path to happily-ever-after is not paved with well-marked road signs. In Book 2, Alina was attacked (and nearly murdered) and this has left her with scars not visible to the naked eye.

A Fairy's Quest

New York had Broadway. LA had Hollywood. Chicago had magic.

During the Golden Age of Magic, descendants of The Anunnaki sought refuge in the City of Magic.

Five years ago, fairy princess Alina Lehrer played the role of dutiful daughter until, in a single act of rebellion, she broke her arranged marriage agreement with David Laurent and destroyed a powerful alliance between their families. She fears her mother will hold it against her until she fulfils her familial duty—to reclaim the fairy crown that had been stolen from them more than a century ago.

Now, the usurper to the throne is dead, thus ending the fairy-wizard feud. It is time to reclaim the throne, and ultimately the stolen crown. But happily-ever-after seems as far away as ever for Alina. She is still heartbroken after the rejection of her first love and is still healing from a near-death trauma. She must push aside her personal feelings and find a way to confront her demons in order for her to complete her quest.

Rylan Jackson, codename Orion, has an impeccable record as a trained assassin for The Royal Court of Fairies. As The Court's most trusted asset, he always gets the job done. Until his target is Alina, the one woman he can’t resist.

Fate has placed Alina and Rylan on opposing sides in a world of deception and betrayal. Where truth is ambiguous. Where loyalties war with affection. Where there are no coincidences.

But Alina has the power to change her destiny and soon learns Fate is not set in stone.

Buy Now

Zài jiàn to My Singapore Friends

Since last Monday, I've been watching my daily stats... To my "surprise," there was a drastic drop in views. From 150 views per hour...

This is a picture of the last 24 hours.

And viewers are coming from...

Israel? Another surprising development, but the number of views is more consistent with my previous engagement levels. Reason for the unusually high views since the end of August? Your guess is as good as mine. I've always considered quality over quantity. I'd like to think I am reaching readers who are genuinely interested in me and my work and not attracting the attention of bots mining for information. Only time, and book sales, will tell.

#TirgearrTuesday

Fall Back Into Books Promotion

Fall Back into Books runs from September 15 to October 1! Find some great authors offering free books in multiple genres -  General Fiction, Mystery & Suspense, and Romance!

I'm participating in this promotion with A Wizard's Choice (The Magicals Series Book 2), my paranormal romance novel starring Kurtis Warde. If you remember, Kurtis was introduced in A Vampire's Tale (The Magicals Series Book 1). He's a wizard apprentice to his grandfather, but he's torn between duty (to his family and other Magicals) and love (for Dee, a vampiress who may or may not feel the same way about him). A romance is not complete without some conflict. In A Wizard's Choice, Kurtis also must choose between two potential love interests. So many choices...

Sign Up

It's A Numbers Game

I started Maya's Musings in January 2014. I was a baby writer ticking the boxes on the "How To Be A Writer" guide. I don't actually think there's a definitive list, but maybe. At the time, and still to this day, "they" (whoever they are) say a writer needs a blog (and a website and a social media presence). Blogger offers a (free and) simple format. You can do all sorts of things here, but I only use it for my blog.

At the beginning of this year (in January, February, March, and one day in May), I had a human rights hearing. During the hearing, my blog (and the time I spent and compensation I received) was brought up. So, I made a chart. This data was correct as of February 7, 2023.

Managing a blog can be very time consuming so I learned to outsource the work (as much as possible) to guests and other author promotions. New content, minimal effort. I also (by 2019) started posting my Quote of the Week and #TirgearrTuesday pictures to my blog to maximize my potential audience. These were also cross-posted (via social media schedulers) to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

I don't make any money from my blog. Honestly, maybe I'm not technologically savvy enough to monetize it. And paying IT support seems like an unnecessary expense as my writing expenses already outweigh my book royalties.

Anyway, so aside from pointing out during the hearing that I have a blog and am losing so much money on my writing (thanks a lot, I feel so validated - not), my views have exploded! Maybe it's my employer and its team of industrious lawyers spying on me, but maybe it's new readers and fans. I like to believe the latter. And, seriously, if you are new to my work, I have six books out and I would love your support (aka please buy my book).

My posts see an average of 25 views. And this past month, like I said, my views have exploded!

Views - All-Time

Views - Last 30 days

And, surprisingly, the majority of these views are coming from Singapore!

Locations of Viewers - Last 30 days

So, welcome, my Singapore visitors! I am open to author interviews and visiting podcasts. Just email me. Or contact me via socials. I'm very interested to know why I am suddenly so popular in Southeast Asia. My last release, Designed by Destiny, was very popular in Australia. Anyway, it's super cool and I'm hyped about it.

I've loved reading and writing my whole life. And it's a privilege and an honor to share my interest with all you wonderful people out there!

#TirgearrTuesday

I stepped away from regular church attendance about four years ago. I still consider myself a Christian, but I have mixed feelings about organized religion (part of the reason I took a step away). Religion is one of the big three you don't talk about—politics and finances being the other two. But here I go anyway because attending a live rock concert is akin to a religious experience.

I love the moment when you hear the beginning notes of the right song... and your skin prickles with goosebumps. This is the experience. You cannot replicate it at home. You need to be amongst other fans, feeling the beat pulsing through your veins.

I love music, especially rock. My coming-of-age year was 1994 (oops I just dated myself!). It was the year of Dookie (Green Day); Throwing Copper (Live); Purple (Stone Temple Pilots); Vitalogy (Pearl Jam); Wildflowers (Tom Petty); Weezer (Weezer); Smash (The Offspring)... and so many more. It was a great year for music!

My female lead from A Fairy Godmother's Redemption is a pop singer not a rocker, but her career was definitely inspired by my love of music.

Buy Now

And the reverse Cinderella trope was inspired by my favorite Disney Princess—Cinderella.

Love music? Love Cinderella? This #TirgearrTuesday, give A Fairy Godmother's Redemption a try.

#TirgearrTuesday

It's Tuesday... which means Tirgearr Tuesday. As always, check out the hashtag #TirgearrTuesday on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to find your next read.

I haven't been posting my Tirgearr Tuesday posts to my blog since September, but you can check out my Instagram or Facebook groups (if you're not already following me) to see the latest.

The Magicals Series

Buy Now

My first series is complete with five books. You can also buy all five books in a gorgeous boxset!

I published Designed by Destiny, Book One in my latest series, last November. Has it really been that long? In this spin-off from The Magicals, you can tag along with my Fairy Godmothers and get up close and personal with their charges.

I think it's pretty great, but I may be a little biased. Thankfully, my reviewers agree!

Buy Now

Stay tuned for more #TirgearrTuesday posts and, seriously, check out some of the other Tirgearr titles!