Are you ready to meet Riley?

June 30, 2014 / A.J. Colby / 3 Comments

I can’t believe I’m finally here… after 3 months of writing, and another 3 months of editing (that really felt like 3 years) Hunted is finally live. It’s been an incredible journey, and I’ve had some amazing support along the way. I’ve dreamed of being an author since I was a little girl, and to have that dream finally come true is the most amazing feeling I’ve ever experienced. However, this dream could not have come true without the help of some amazing people.

I have to give a HUGE thank you to my kickass beta readers Bryan, Greg, Leslie and Neil, and to my fantastic editor, Lisa. You guys are amazing and I am so grateful for your help in making Hunted the best it could possibly be.

My biggest thanks of course, have to go to Mr. Awesome Sauce. You are my best friend, confidant, manager/pimp, Idea Monkey, stars, moon and sky, the love of my life, and my most precious treasure. I could never have accomplished this feat without your support and guidance, and there aren’t enough words within the English language to express how grateful I am for everything you do.

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And now, that the sappiness is over, the real work begins. As an indie author I need as much help as I can get spreading the word, so even if it isn’t your cup of tea I’d be incredibly grateful if anyone out there in blogland who happens to read this post would share Hunted with anyone you know who might be interested.

Hunted can be found at the following fine online retailers. If you buy a copy and enjoy it, please, please, please leave a review and help spread the word!

Tick Tock Tick Tock

May 27, 2014 / A.J. Colby / Leave a comment

Since handing off my copies of my manuscript for Hunted to my beta readers yesterday I feel as though every passing minute has pounded a beat on the back of my skull in a maddening, never ending tattoo. The following is a recount of some of the thoughts that have meandered their way through my head. Some may or may not be 100% accurate.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

It’s only been 20 minutes since I hit send. How is that even possible? It feels like a lifetime has passed.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Okay, it’s been over 12 hours now, why hasn’t anyone written back? Why haven’t I’ve been flooded with congratulations for penning the next bestseller?

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

I think I’m starting to develop a twitch in my right eye. I’m sure it’s nothing, but my cubicle neighbor keeps looking at me weird.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Maybe their email isn’t working. I’ll send them the manuscript again, just to be sure. And copy myself on it to make sure email is working.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Hmm. Email seems to be working fine, so why no reply?

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Okay, it’s been 13 hours since I sent them finished masterpiece. WTF?! Are they just doing this to spite me? They must be jealous of my genius. I didn’t think about how reading some an amazing piece of work might make them feel insignificant. Hope none of them feel suicidal. That must be it. They must all be too busy crying over their own failures to write back. Should send them all some tissues.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

15 hours! That should be ample time for them to come to terms with their own shortcomings and get to work on reading my novel. Why is no one responding? Why aren’t they all flocking around me, cheering my name? They should be lining up begging for my autograph and some small nugget of wisdom. How dare they besmirch me, their queen, their goddess of awesome?! Puny humans, I shall smite them. I shall strike them down and make them rue the day they ever sought to undermine my awesomeness. BEHOLD PUNY HUMANS, GAZE UPON THE FACE OF AWESOME AND QUIVER IN FEAR FOR I AM YOUR GOD!!

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Hello shiny happy people. A.J. here… hope I didn’t worry any of you with my little outburst. I feel much better now. Mr. Awesome Sauce found me some little blue pills and I feel so much better. A little sleepy. I think I’m just going to go lie down for a bit…

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

Tick tock, tick, tock…

Tick tock…

Tick…

Tock…

I Won The Lottery!

May 5, 2014 / A.J. Colby / 4 Comments

Okay, well not really, but it does kinda feel that way right now.

Yesterday afternoon I penned the last few words of Hunted, the first novel in the Riley Cray series. It felt both liberating and terrifying to sit back and look at the words on the screen and realize that I was finally done. Even more exhilarating was the knowledge that I had accomplished it in just over 90 days; 97 days to be exact, with at least 2 full weeks of no writing during that time.

As I mentioned in this post, when I first set out on the journey to write Hunted I never thought that I would reach my goal of 70k-80k words, and was astounded when I blew right past 80k and kept on going. And never in a million years did I think I would be able to write a novel in just over 3 months. It’s required a lot of long days and cramped hands, but it has all been so worth it to finally be able know that the story that had been rattling around in my head will soon be able to be enjoyed by others.

Now comes the arduous task of editing, beta reading and sending the manuscript off to a professional editor, which means that Hunted likely won’t be available to purchase until June/July, but I’m so excited and can’t wait to be able to hit ‘Publish.’

Stay tuned for more details about Hunted and the other Riley Cray releases coming soon!