Today the Dragon Wins

"Today the Dragon Wins" offers information from Fantasy Author and Professional Editor Sandy Lender. You'll also find dragons, wizards, sorcerers, and other fantasy elements necessary for a fabulous story, if you know where to look...

My Photo
Name:
Location: Misbehaving in Candlelight

Sandy Lender is the editor of an international trade publication and the author of the fantasy novels Choices Meant for Gods and Choices Meant for Kings, available from ArcheBooks Publishing, and the series-supporting chapbook, What Choices We Made.

Add to Technorati Favorites

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Wednesday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"Only in growth, reform and change, paradoxically enough, is true security to be found."
—Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Something to Lighten the Mood
Or...The Dragon thought this was appropriate for someone in her life today...


How do crazy people go through the forest?

They take the psycho path.

He he he.

Labels:

Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Word of the Day
Lenity
(noun) — leniency; the state of being merciful or restrained; the quality of being forgiving

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, Chariss's lenity toward Nigel's wayward and roguish past endears her to the man's mother.

Your turn! Oh, man, another timely one like yesterday. There's a difference between lenity and stupidity, though, between compassion and self-preservation. When someone has taken advantage of your kindness once too often, it's time to practice some tough-love. In my novel, the characters teach me quite a lesson. Do you have any forgiving and merciful sentences you can whip out there for us with today's Word of the Day?

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , ,

Labels: , , , ,

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Tuesday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"Each player must accept the cards that life deals him or her. But once in hand one must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game."
—Voltaire

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for today's Word of the Day at The Dragon, and to find Nigel's latest post for the Valentine's Day contest to win a copy of Choices Meant for Gods (he posted on Friday).
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Word of the Day
Sagacious
(adjective) — discerning; having good judgment; wise

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, the old wizard Hrazon is a sagacious and sound advisor to his ward Chariss as she takes on important responsibilities in the realm of Onweald.

Your turn! You know, I prepare these words in blocks of about a month at a time, so when today's came up in the Word of the Day document in my dragon blog file, I was surprised by its timing. There are things that happen in a writer's life that make one wonder what decisions were wise, what decisions were made out of compassion, what decisions were made out of sheer stupidity versus compassion for a fellow human. It's time to put good judgment and self-preservation into practice in this writer's life. It's time to make a sagacious decision that will probably free up a lot of my time. Do you have any words of wisdom to share in your sentence today?

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , ,

Labels: , , ,

Monday, January 21, 2008

Monday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
Today's quote will look familiar to regular visitors. It's the same as yesterday's. Why? Why, when I have tons of these things stored up for posting during the next few months, would I "replay" one? Let's just say this one rings true, and I don't want anyone to miss it. For the folks stopping in just to find Nigel's posts for commenting and entering the Valentine's Day contest to win a copy of Choices Meant for Gods, I welcome you and encourage you to scroll on down to view his post from Friday morning, but I hope you pause to see this wonderful sentiment from Mr. Tagore, as well.

"Let me not pray to be sheltered from dangers, but to be fearless in facing them. Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain, but for the heart to conquer it."
—Rabindranath Tagore

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for today's Word of the Day at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Monday, January 21, 2008
Word of the Day
Fatalistic
(adjective) — submission to fate (bwuahahahaha)

Word in an excerpt from my fantasy novel (because this one needs context):
Henry laughed a full belly laugh then. "Well, when you put it that way, I suppose I better comply! Look, I'm sorry to be so brash, but, you have to admit, it's a little strange, what, sitting here like this. I was pretty convinced the only time I'd see you is at death when Dezurine would bring me before you and you'd shake your head and say something like, 'Henry, you've wasted your life on ale and women and stupid drunken brawls. Get your hind end to the underworld where your kind belongs.' Yet here I am in your presence in my friend's house, and you're asking me to risk my life spying on Ofersey'n Jamieson, a sorcerer, Drake."
"Let me explain what it is I need from you," Master Rothahn said, not giving the man any hint whether or not his fatalistic attitude about his afterlife was correct.
– page 175 of the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods

Your turn! I thought it ironic to use a foreboding little word like fatalistic as we skid through the first month of the New Year. Does it get your creative juices flowing? Well, then, hit the comment link here and share your dark and dreary nuggets o' comfort and joy with us! Bwuahahahaha…

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , ,

Labels: , ,

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Sunday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"Let me not pray to be sheltered from dangers, but to be fearless in facing them. Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain, but for the heart to conquer it."
—Rabindranath Tagore

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Today's Roundup
Or...The Dragon is busy this weekend

Looks like I missed blogging at Today the Dragon Wins yesterday. Rar. Sorry about that. But, you know, writers just get really busy on the weekends. (Nigel complains about it/mocks me at http://sandylender.blogspot.com/. ) For instance, I've already been to Wal-mart this morning in an attempt to get my shopping done before the crowds of crazy people clog the aisles. It's absolutely stunning how many people are in the checkout line at 7 a.m.

Anyway, we're back to blogging today and I welcome you to read on after today's Word of the Day to get to Nigel's post if you're visiting from Author Island and wish to enter the Valentine's Day contest to win your own copy of the epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Friday, January 18, 2008

Friday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"Always bear in mind, that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other thing."
—Abraham Lincoln

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts, including a guest post from Nigel, at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags:
, , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Nigel Taiman Posts a Deleted Scene From Choices Meant for Gods
Or...here's another opportunity to win a fantasy for Valentine's Day

My fantasy author, Sandy Lender, has given me the floor, as it were, again today. This is my second guest post here at Today the Dragon Wins where I'm offering visitors the opportunity to learn about the incredible fantasy heroine, Amanda Chariss. For today's post, though, I've gotten permission from Sandy to share with you a deleted scene from the novel. Now, she's assured me the trilogy is not going to digress into merely a romance between Chariss and myself, although I'll be doing my best to see that is exactly what happens, but the fact that it is an epic fantasy with a new world, a new society, new gods, new laws from a new government, new villains that form new alliances to threaten a new heroine with a new wizard...well...you get the idea. It's an epic fantasy novel that just so happens to have a new romantic twist on the side. And that twist is making this Valentine's Day contest special.

Enjoy the deleted scene with my potential bride, and I'll remind Sandy to police the comments for contest entries.
---------------------
A deleted scene from Choices Meant for Gods:
Nigel hadn’t expected to find anyone in the stables this early in the morning. But here Chariss was, grooming the grey mare that Kaylin had named Shadow. His heart stopped before his feet did in the doorway, and Chariss glanced over her shoulder with one of her disarming smiles.

“Good morning,” she called out. “You’re up early. How’s your chest feeling?”

A hundred responses shot through his brain, including something about how much his chest hurt when he heard that song in her voice. What came out of his mouth surprised him with its lucidity. “Much better, thank you. Between you and my grandfather, I think you got me healed quite well.”

He even surprised himself by walking upright.

She grinned up at him as he approached, but he could swear the horse gave him a more sanguine glance. He turned his back on the mare’s glare, more content to focus on the fair creature now before him.

“Good to hear,” Chariss said. “Kora was distraught, poor thing.”

“Yes, Mother tends to fret when she sees a son bleeding to death.”

He hadn’t intended to make her laugh, but her light giggle almost sent him to his knees. He actually reached out to grab the mare’s mane to steady himself. This was insane. As if she agreed, Shadow reared her head around and knocked him on the back side, effectively bumping him forward. Chariss put an arm out to catch him as he put an arm out to catch himself, and he experienced that momentary shock of lightning when he got to touch her, when he got to hold her.

She still had hold of him when she furrowed her brow and bopped the horse on the rump with the brush. “Shadow! Be nice.”

Do I have to let go? he wondered. “Sorry about that,” he said. “Seems someone wants me to move.”

By the gods, she smelled like lilac and lavender and all the flowers of his mother’s garden wrapped into one. And there was that smile again.

“Someone needs her breakfast, I think,” Chariss was saying. “She’s turned fussy. What? You’re looking at me strangely.”

“You’ve got…straw…”

Now, I’ve known her for the better part of a week, he thought. I should be able to get away with this. He lifted his hand from her arm to pluck a piece of straw from the auburn locks that shone like silk before him. He would have given his inheritance in the estate behind them to run his hands through her hair, but, pretending to merely brush it as he took this offending item away was enough for now. Surely he could do that without alarming her.

She laughed again—that light, cascading sound that threatened to do him in. “I guess now I have to admit that Shadow’s been acting up since before you arrived?”

He tossed the straw away and decided this was ideal. “So I should look for more before I let you go out into public?”

“You think I’m going to embarrass myself?” she teased.

“We can’t have one of the Taimans’ guests running around with straw sticking out of her head, now can we?” he asked. He hoped it sounded innocent and not rife with intent. “Hold still.”

He put both hands to her hair to either side of her face, literally running his fingers down the soft waves. “Okay, turn.”

“Turn?” she laughed. “Are you serious?”

“No disobedience. Turn.”

She rolled her eyes, those beautiful seductive lavender eyes, but turned around so he could put his hands to her hair again. “Now, see, it’s good that I did this,” he said, lying unabashedly. He stroked his fingers down her tresses, all the way through to the ends where the curves and waves ended in little rolls that mimicked the wavecaps rushing to Arcana’s shore. By the gods, he wanted to feel those ends tickling along his chest, like last night, when she’d leaned over him to heal the wound that should have killed him. He moved one hand back up to the top of her head, fully aware that she’d just shivered at this unfamiliar touch. Oh, that’s got to be a good sign, he thought.

And then someone interrupted his reverie.

“Child, are you coming in to breakfast or standing out here all morning?”

Nigel glanced over at her guardian in the doorway and wondered briefly if he was about to get a wizard’s sword pressed up against his neck. But, to his amazement, the old man seemed to dismiss the scene. Now isn’t that odd? Nigel thought.

“Good morning, Hrazon!” Chariss said, and, just like that, she was no longer standing before him. The auburn locks were no longer there. She rushed over to her wizard’s embrace, and Nigel had to witness a much different reception than the one he’d received—a reception he would have preferred—as she wrapped her arms around her guardian’s neck and placed a kiss on his cheek.

“Mister Taiman and I have had enough of Shadow’s naughty antics for one morning, I believe.”

“Is she acting up?” Hrazon asked as he led her away.

Nigel watched them go, realizing, with remorse, that she didn’t even cast a glance back his way. He turned to the mare and folded his arms up on the beast’s back, resting his forehead in the pillow they formed. “Oh, Shadow, what am I to do?” he groaned.

The mare merely swished her tail at him.
-----------------
If you're interested in ordering a copy of CMFG instead of taking your chances with the contest, you can go immediately to the publisher's site to get a discount at www.archebooks.com (Sandy's under "fantasy" authors) or go immediately to Amazon to get free shipping at www.amazon.com (you can find Choices Meant for Gods under "books"; it's the first one that comes up). Happy ordering and good luck in the contest if you're trying to win!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Labels: , , ,

Friday, January 18, 2008
Word of the Day
Enmity
(noun) — antagonism; hatred; deep resentment

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, the enmity between Nigel and Godric Taiman began with Nigel's conception and Godric's botched attempt to kill the child's mother.

Your turn! Give me something powerful and fabulous in a sentence today!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , ,

Labels: , ,

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Thursday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"What an immense power over life is the power of possessing distinct aims."
—Elizabeth Stuart Phelps

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Did You See Jamieson Wolf's Long and Short Lists?
Or...The Dragon is still catching up with what happened in December

Back in December, life was a little hectic for...oh...everyone. My new job involves launching a new magazine so these first few crucial months mean plenty of long hours getting everything in place. In fact, if you'd like to see what a fantasy author does for a day job, you can check out the construction industry blog I created, just for giggles. It's at www.theasphaltforum.blogspot.com. Very little of it will interest the average reader or writer because it's geared for vertically integrated asphalt production facility and quarry owners. That's a mouthful, eh? They're fabulous folks and I'm looking forward to meeting up with them (again, and that's a long story best told on Nigel's blog at http://sandylender.blogspot.com) at some industry events over the next few months. Yes, the travel schedule is about to pick up.

But as the work schedule got a little harried, an e-mail landed in the inbox from fellow speculative fiction author Jamieson Wolf. He's also a reviewer for Linear Reflections and The American Chronicle, and he has a memoir due out this year with The Friday Project called In My Steps. I haven't read any advance or proof copy yet, but I've visited his blog, www.jamiesonwolf.wordpress.com, which inspired and instigated the book, and I recommend checking out both the blog and the book. When the e-mail landed, I read through it and put it in a folder for deeper review later. You'll never guess what it was! That fabulous Jamieson Wolf had picked his favorite books of 2007 and my epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods is No. 2 on his short list and No. 1 on his long list! You can read the entries on his blog that discuss the lists at http://jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com/2007/12/best-books-of-2007-long-list.html and http://jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com/2007/12/best-books-of-2007-short-list.html. How cool is that? I'm so stoked! Jamieson, you rock.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Thursday, January 17, 2008
Word of the Day
Secede
(intransitive verb) — to leave an alliance; to remove oneself from membership in an association or organization; to withdraw officially from membership with a society

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, Kora Taiman tells a love story that ends in tragedy when half of a kingdom secedes its nation in a civil war that takes a king's life.

Your turn! Any history lessons for us today? You can use this word in a fabulous sentence, I'm sure!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Wednesday's Inspirational Quotes of the Day for Writers
"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."
—John Quincy Adams
"I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature."
—John D. Rockefeller

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous, successful day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

You Can Do It: Keep Your 2008 Resolutions on Track
Or…The Dragon researched methods to ensure you succeed with your writing, and other, goals

By Sandy Lender

Mid-January seemed an appropriate time to assess the progress of New Year's resolutions. Adhering to a new exercise regimen to attain a healthy lifestyle, maintaining a new budget to save up for a vacation, or sticking to a regular writing schedule to realize your publishing dreams, etc., can all be doomed if you give in to the rest of society's penchant for instant gratification. Like the three-toed box turtle in the smoking-cessation ads, slow and steady toward an achievable goal wins the day.

During the research for this article, I found a host of advice, but the item I felt was most salient for writers visiting this blog came from the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Their experts suggest a variety of exercises for staying the course with New Year's resolutions and personal goals, but the best was "make a plan and write it down."

For those of you familiar with The Secret, you can probably see an element of visualization in this method. By writing down your goal and the steps you need to take to realize that goal, you set yourself up for success. Getting derailed, which University of Maryland Medical Center researchers warn happens within the first few weeks of "good intentions," is more difficult if you can spell out your plan of action.

What I like to do is a tried and true practice from a job-hunting resource. I take a large sheet of paper and write my goal in the center with an action verb. For instance, about four months before I moved from Missouri to Florida, I wrote "move to Florida" in the center of a huge sheet of drawing paper. Then I began to randomly write down steps I needed to take to make that move a reality, without worrying about what order to write them in. At that stage in the planning, there's no point in limiting yourself with editing. I wrote down things such as "find new job," "give notice at work," "sell house," "replace carpet," etc. Once all the thoughts were down on paper, I could organize them into categories and a logical order. That same process can take place with any personal goal. Once you're finished, your goal is that much easier to visualize and attain.

Another aspect to planning the success of your resolution is making it realistic. When I wished to get my fantasy novel published, my only bylines were in trade publications and association newsletters. I had no hope. So my resolution back in 2004 couldn't be, "I'll get Choices Meant for Gods published with TOR this year." My goal had to be more realistic. A researcher at the University of Maryland Medical Center, Jill RachBeisel, M.D. and director of community psychiatry, advises that the trick to keeping resolutions is to keep everything "in perspective. Focus on realistic goals with measurable results. You need to break things down into small steps that you can manage."

When I finished writing Choices Meant for Gods, I'd taken the first step toward the goal. Contacting agents to represent me in the publishing industry was the logical second step. Setting an appointment to meet with a small- to mid-size publisher in Florida was the logical (and best) third step. Getting a contract with that publisher was the fourth step, and so on. I didn't limit myself to going after a large publishing house within a certain set number of months.

This exemplifies what researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center advise people do when setting their New Year's resolutions: "Don't make absolute resolutions. Keep them realistic."

That also means keeping them flexible. If your goal is to finish a research-based novel by the end of NaNo this Nov. 30, and you've performed the mapping and visualizing exercise above, you probably have to start looking up information prior to Nov. 1. Visits to sites associated with your text, Internet research, interviews with primary sources, etc., all take time that you want to build into your goal. If some aspect of your research isn't complete by a certain date, don't let that sabotage your entire project. Your resolution doesn't have to fail because one aspect has fallen through or because you miss a week of preparatory writing, etc.

APA lists "forgiving yourself" as one of the important aspects of success. A small setback is just that: small. With an achievable, realistic goal that you've taken the time to map out and visualize, it's just a matter of time before you're back on track. By maintaining a steady pace and watching yourself take each step toward your goal, your chances of meeting your resolution increase each day.

(Additional information for succeeding with your New Year's resolutions can be found at www.healthyminds.org/resolutions.cfm. The American Academy of Pediatrics offers suggestions for resolutions for preschoolers through teens at www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/jankidstips.cfm.)

Sidenote: During my research, I found that the top resolutions people make are to be healthy, lose weight or exercise more; to quit smoking and/or quit drinking; to save money, get a better job or make more money; to manage or reduce stress; or to spend more time with family. At http://www.lifehacker.com/, they broke it down by percentages. They surveyed 10,883 people and found their top resolution, at 32.6 percent, was to lose weight and get fit. I didn’t weigh in, but my category of "I didn't make a New Year's resolution" came in with 21.6 percent of the votes, which I thought was high. (Interestingly, 3.2 percent of their respondents want to write a book.)

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Labels:

Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Word of the Day
Panegyric
(noun) — a formal, elaborate, public compliment

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, Nigel is prevented from delivering a panegyric about the woman he considers more beautiful, more talented, more thoughtful, more compassionate, and more exquisite than any other woman in the world because she's hiding out from an evil sorcerer and his army.

Your turn! Do you have any praise-worthy sentences bottled up inside just waiting for public display today?

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win…in front of everyone."
Tags: , , ,

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Tuesday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal and then leap in the dark to our success."
—Henry David Thoreau

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Review Alert
Or...The Dragon encourages visitors to check out this coo-el review on Amazon

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender was encouraging folks to get a copy of the epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods as Christmas presents for the fantasy enthusiasts on their Christmas gift-buying lists back in November and December. Lo and behold, K. Repp bought it for herself, and liked it so much that she left a review at www.amazon.com. If you search for Choices Meant for Gods under "books" on Amazon, mine is the first that comes up. (And then a bunch of books about abortion come up, which is bizarre considering my book has NOTHING to do with the topic of abortion. Well, it has nothing to do with abortion until Book II when Chariss is confronted with performing midwife duties to an enemy - let me tell you how controversial that gets.)

So if you'd like to see another fabulous review of Choices Meant for Gods, please check out Kim's kind words over on Amazon. And thank you, Kim!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Word of the Day
Fervid
(adjective) — intensely impassioned; hot and burning (think Elvis Presley – Ima hunka hunka burnin' love)

Word in a Sentence: You will not find the word fervid in the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods because it's not a steam-fest novel, but Nigel's fervid desire for the fantasy heroine of the story is obvious, and no one who threatens Chariss is safe if Nigel hears of it.

Your turn! Let's see what you can do with today's word. Keep in mind that people under the age of 18 can (and do) access this site, and then share with us a cheesy sentence of intensely impassioned hot-&-burnin' desire.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , ,

Labels: , , ,

Monday, January 14, 2008

Monday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
“The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places.”
— author unknown

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Nigel Taiman Speaks about Chariss
Or…Nigel's first guest post in the Valentine's Day CMFG Contest

Welcome to those of you visiting The Dragon for the first time or checking in from Author Island. It's a pleasure to have this opportunity to tell you a bit about the leading lady in the epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods. Sandy (my fantasy author) assures me I can get away with all the "sappy nonsense" I wish because this is a Valentine's Day contest that I'm here to promote with my panegyric.

So let me start by saying that the lovely Amanda Chariss is a fantasy heroine beyond compare. I've never seen a young lady live through so much turmoil and adversity and turn out to be such a strong yet admirable warrior. And before any gentlemen who might be visiting The Dragon get any ideas, let me just state here and now that she's mine. That might not be entirely official just yet, but I'm sure it will be soon.

If you'd like to read an interview with Sandy and me in which we discuss Amanda, you can visit http://www.mindunbound.com/blog/2007/08/interview_with_sandy_lender_an.html. And there are some fantastic reviews that talk about Amanda Chariss at http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200155650&sr=1-1. In the meantime, thank you for visiting The Dragon and entering the contest to win your own hard-cover, first-edition, autographed copy of Choices Meant for Gods. You can enter daily until the 13th of February, and I'll be guest blogging again soon.

All my best,
Nigel Taiman

"Some days, you just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , ,

Labels: , , ,

Monday, January 14, 2008
Word of the Day
Possession
(noun) — wealth; property; something that is owned

Word in a Sentence: "By the time The Master had some servants gather up the man and all the possessions he'd brought to Arcana and had them sitting quietly in the parlor, Chariss was dressed and on her way to ask some questions." – page 176 of the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods

Your turn! I've selected this evil little word for the middle of credit-card-paying-month so someone can point out the obvious pitfall of focusing on possessions prior to the holidays. So! Let's see who can do the most justice to this topic. Hit the comment link and give it all you got.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , ,

Labels: , ,

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Sunday's Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers
"A difficult time can be more readily endured if we retain the conviction that our existence holds a purpose—a cause to pursue, a person to love, a goal to achieve."
—John Maxwell

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender wishes you a fabulous day! Keep reading for more of today's posts at The Dragon.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: , , , , ,

Labels: , ,

Update on Blog and Contests
Or...The Dragon's just checkin' in

It looks like I need to give a shout out to Jeni and Kim and Laura here at Today the Dragon Wins! Jeni, I hope your granddaughter got all the way through Choices Meant for Gods. As the other two ladies in that list will tell you, it's LOOOOOONG. (I like to tell folks that they get their money's worth when they buy it...bwuahahaha.) Hey, it's epic fantasy. I'm glad to hear she was liking it!! Kim liked it so much she left a fabulous review over on the Amazon page (which I discovered yesterday while trolling the internet for information). Thank you, Kim! And, Laura, girlfriend, you're one of the most inspiring people I know right now. I've found a TON of great quotes to keep the "Inspirational Quote of the Day for Writers" going for half the year already...

Thank you to all the folks who visited from Author Island to enter the Choices Meant for Gods contest during the month of December. It looks like at least one of you has difficulty with the numbers-versus-letters concept when it comes to spelling words confusing our children (or adults), but that's okay. I blame the gaming industry (and Merriam-Webster). It's wonderful to have new people stopping in to read the blog and participate in the contests. Another one is coming up starting tomorrow! The rules will be announced on www.authorisland.com, which is a great site for readers to find new authors, new books, and new genres to fall in love with.

Just past today's "Word of the Day," you can check out the announcement of last month's contest winner. WOO-HOO to Loretta Wilson!

Welcome to The Dragon!
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , ,

Labels:

Sunday, January 13, 2008
Word of the Day

Languish (intransitive verb) — editorial note: I LOVE this word, maybe because I'm a huge fan of Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde and that's about all Troilus does for half of the story – languish – but I love this word…fabulous…okay – so back to Word of the Day
Languish (intransitive verb) — to lose strength or vigor from suffering in a state of apathy or longing; to pine; to become wistful

Word in a Sentence: In the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, when Nigel must leave for Bellan, Chariss teases him that she'll languish while he's gone. When he returns to his home to discover she's away on her own adventure, he's the one languishing! Bwuahahahaha!

Your turn! Use the Word of the Day in a sentence of your fabulous creation. Do you have any great sentences of lovelorn melodrama to share with us today?

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , ,

Labels: , , , ,

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Contest Winner Announcement!
Or...The Dragon applauds Loretta Wilson

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender (me) wants to say congratulations to the latest contest winner:
Ms. Loretta Wilson!
Come on down! You are the winner of the contest drawing from New Year's Eve!

Loretta is a visitor to www.authorisland.com where a Choices Meant for Gods contest was announced way back in late November, telling folks to get their typing fingers over here to Today the Dragon Wins to check out any and all of the Word of the Day posts. When someone from the island posted a comment using his or her creative energy to incorporate one of the words of the day, he or she was automatically entered in a contest to win an autographed, hard-cover, first-edition copy of the epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods (and one of the fancy cloth bookbags I had made for the books, too).

So...Loretta! You're a winner and the goods are going out in the mail Monday morning! Woo-hoo!

Everybody, join me in congratulating her on a job well done. She visited the blog on more than one day so she actually had more than one "encounter" with the entry system. Fabulous job.

Nigel and I will have another contest up and running...ummm...tomorrow, I think. So be sure to check in at www.authorisland.com on a regular basis to see what's new and happenin'. And if you got all interested in the characters in my fantasy novel, you can check out some reviews and order your copy of Choices Meant for Gods right now at http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200155650&sr=1-1.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: , , , ,

Labels: ,