Guest Post From Nigel Taiman

Sandy Asked Me to Discuss the Romantic vs. Fantasy Elements of Choices Meant for Gods

My fantasy author, Sandy Lender, would like me to talk about my bride's story today. And that pleases me just fine!

Amanda Chariss is the heroine of the epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods, which I encourage everyone to read. If you don't already have a copy, you can pick one up at or order one from any local book store. If you don't feel like dealing with unruly book store employees, you can get it at www.amazon.com or the publisher's site at http://www.archebooks.com/BookIDX/Indexes/Fantasy/CMG/CMGDesc.htm. If you don't feel like paying full price, you can download the electronic version for less than $4 at the publisher's site, as well.

While you're thinking on those options, let me tell you a little about Sandy Lender's first fantasy novel. You see, you can read the synopsis at the publisher's site at the link above, or at any number of the sites that you find her on when you put her name in a Google search, but I can give you the real synopsis.

All the marketing materials will tell you that Choices Meant for Gods is an epic fantasy novel available in either hard cover or eBook format. All the propaganda and promotional pieces will tell you that Chariss is an orphan who's been on the run from an evil sorcerer all her life and she's finally found the will to stand and fight; and with that will has come the truth about her destiny, purpose and place in prophecy's evil plan to put her in charge of protecting a god who isn't worthy of her notice.

But I can tell you that Amanda Chariss isn't just the protector of the gods of Onweald. She is the stunning and amazing woman who will change the course of my life. Now, Sandy has warned me not to make more of the romance between Mandy and me than the book portrays because we don't want people coming to the book expecting a romance novel; you won't get only that.

It's a fantasy novel. High fantasy with a new world that Sandy has created. High fantasy with new creatures and monsters that no other fantasy author has dreamt up before. High fantasy with gods and goddesses who walk among the mortals, influencing and affecting our lives (though not always for the better). High fantasy with prophecy and history and legends and family lineages that all interweave with current events to create an atmosphere that spells danger and intrigue for my bride.

It sets my nerves on edge, believe me. I'd rather it was strictly a romance novel. For a variety of reasons. For those who prefer a heavy hand at romance, you can pick out that thread under the rest of the plots in Choices Meant for Gods and be delighted with it…as I am.

For a spate of five-star reviews of Choices Meant for Gods, visit Sandy's page on Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/1595071652/ref=s9_asin_image_1-1966_g1/105-8001163-2859664?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-3&pf_rd_r=10TVDGS539SGZYCWCBRW&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=288448601&pf_rd_i=507846.

And now that we have this blog back (Sandy is rejoicing), she'll be back to posting Word of the Day, grammar and writing tips, and inspirational quotes starting tomorrow. This sudden "release" of the blog came as a surprise because there was no message from Blogger. We just discovered it because Sandy checks several times a day...obsessive compulsive, you might call her.

All my best to you,
Nigel Taiman
Tags: fantasy novel, Choices Meant for Gods, romance, fantasy, epic fantasy, high fantasy, fantasy author, Sandy Lender, eBook, electronic, five-star review, today the dragon wins, archebooks publishing, amazon, Amanda Chariss, Onweald

Valentine's Day Contest Ends This Week
Post from Nigel Taiman

I can't believe how my fantasy author is letting everything else in life get in the way of regular posting on her blog, but there you have it. Sandy Lender is letting everything else in life get in the way of proper marketing. I guess it's up to me to remind everyone that the Valentine's Day contest will end at midnight Wednesday, the 13th, so she can pull a name on Valentine's Day. All you folks visiting from Author Island need to get your comments posted before that deadline so you have a shot at getting your personalized copy of Choices Meant for Gods. I happen to think it's a fabulous story, you know. And that's because it's a story about the most incredible woman to walk the earth. I'm talking about the heroine, Amanda Chariss, and, because Sandy's too busy with everything else in life to pay attention to what I'm posting, I believe I'll just go on a bit about Chariss while I have the chance.

First of all, if you were at the Author Island chat today, you could read the excerpt from Choices Meant for Gods in which Chariss and I have our little fencing exercise in the training arena. I nearly died, you know. But that Chariss...she's amazing...

And now the fantasy author shows up. It appears I need to just state facts and give the computer back to her. There's an excerpt from the fantasy novel posted at the Author Island all-day chat today, three chapters available for download at www.archebooks.com, and a deleted scene that I posted here a couple weeks ago that you can read to tease you into wanting your own copy of Choices Meant for Gods. You can order it and get free shipping at www.amazon.com if you don't like your odds with the contest...But I wish you all good luck in the Valentine's Day contest. You can enter every day...

All my best to you.
Nigel
Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy author, Sandy Lender, Valentine's Day

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: word of the day, Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel

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.
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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.
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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: Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, fantasy author, Sandy Lender, deleted scene, Valentine's Day, contest, Today the Dragon Wins, Nigel Taiman, fantasy heroine, Amanda Chariss

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: word of the day, Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, dragon

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: word of the day, Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, dragon

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: word of the day, Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, fantasy heroine

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: Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, fantasy heroine, dragon, Valentine's Day

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: word of the day, Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel