Laura J. Underwood

FANTASTIC FICTION

Welcome to my worlds.

Welcome!

Time to do a little front page clean-up again.

A few new things have been added. A few things have been removed. As for the books and stories no longer listed on the this page, just check out my bibliography page because they will be there.

So read, Enjoy. And as my editor Selina Rosen at Yard Dog Press is fond of saying...

Hey, writers have to make a living somehow. :-)

As I mentioned below, I am taking names for my publisher of folks willing to pay $12.50 to preorder Wandering Lark. Well, I have come to understand that there are a few folks willing to do this but they have never read Dragon's Tongue. So I am going to make folks an offer. Between now and November 15th, I am selling copies of Dragon's Tongue for Only $10.00 plus $2.50 postage. Just send me an email at keltora (at) sff (dot) net and get your copy today! I take money orders, checks and Paypal. (P.S., if you are overseas or in Canada, email me. I can still sell you a copy at the reduced rate, but the postage will cost much more...)

As many of you know, Meisha Merlin closed its doors before WANDERING LARK, Book 2 of "The Demon-Bound" Duology could see print. This left many readers in a lurch. Since that time, I have been trying to find a publisher, but the New York Publishers are all saying that my "sales numbers" are not good enough to make it worth their time--in spite of my knowing from the royalty statements I received that nearly 75% of the print run of 4000 copies sold. Plus, they insist that publishing the second book in a duology is just not worth their time.

Nobody in the big houses wants to start an author's career with the second book of a duology.

I have considered long and hard how to solve this problem. I even thought of either serializing the novel on the web or setting it up through Lulu.com. The problem with the former is the fact that fiction on the web is easily pirated. With the later--well I would have to purchase a distribution package--something I am not in the position to pay for at the moment--pay for someone to copyedit the book, pay for cover art, and many other expenses I am just not in the position to do at the moment. Also, getting distribution with Lulu.com is no guarantee that one will actually get the book into stores, libraries, etc.

This weekend while at Archon, I had a long discussion with my editor at Yard Dog Press concerning the dilemma I have faced with finding a publisher for WANDERING LARK. The problem with the book is that it is much larger than any book Yard Dog Press has ever published, which means it is going to cost them a pretty penny for the upfront set up and print run. Also, with the printer they use, they would have to charge just under $25.00 for the trade edition alone just to cover costs and pay royalties, cover artists costs, etc.

Being a small press, this is not something they can easily afford.

However, the editor knows that I have had so many fans writing me asking about the books, and approaching me at various conventions, and has made me an offer. If I can get a list of 100 folks willing to Prepay half the cost of the coverprice of the book up front, and then promice to pay the other half when the book is published, they will print a run of copies of WANDERING LARK. This means probably approximately $12.50 up front per fan paid to Yard Dog Press. This would help them to defray the cost, and guarantee that anyone who truly wants to read WANDERING LARK will get a copy.

So I need a list that I can give my publisher. Your Name, Mailing Address and Email Address can be emailed to me at keltora (at) sff (dot) net or keltora (at) yahoo (dot) com. You will have to replace the brackets with the appropriate symbol (sorry, just too many spambots and phishingbots out there on the web). Your information will not be sold to anyone or shared with anyone beyond Yard Dog Press.

I will NOT be taking the money. The money will go directly to the publisher so they can print the books. Nor am I asking you to pay anything to my publisher at this time. I just need a list of people who are willing to front money so WANDERING LARK can see print.

Please let me know by November 15th if you are really interested in paying half the cost up front to get a copy of WANDERING LARK.

And Thank You All In Advance...

Laura J. Underwood

P.S. If you wish to share this letter with your friends and fellow readers, family members, librarians, anyone who might be interested, please do so. The more people willing to come into this up front, the better the chances this book will see print through a real publisher.

It is with sad heart that I must report that due to circumstances beyond control (otherwise known as a Stinking Economy), Five Star/Gale/Cengage has cut their Science Fiction line. And unfortunately, my novel is one of the ones that has been axed from the list. Not to despair. There is hope that another publisher will pick up the novel, so stay tuned.

I really need to know, folks. How many of you would pay for chapters of an online novel? What novel would you like to see? The Harper Mage's first adventure Songs of the Magister or something from the Ard-Taebh Chronicles (such as Wandering Lark, Shadow of the Faolan, or a totally new novel?)? PLEASE email me at keltora (at) sff (dot) net (you will have to change the email to include the proper marks, sorry--too many spammers out there) and let me know. If enough people say YES, then it will happen...

So Help Me Make It So!!!

Ever want to try an author, but unsure you want to spend the money. Well, this gathering of the first three chapters of the novels and novellas of fantasy author Laura J. Underwood is for you. It's a free download that will allow you to sample her work and decide if you want to go on and buy her books. Included in the sampler is publishing information and "where to buy." And if you are so inclined, you can help the author by purchasing a print copy of this sampler. For under ten bucks, this is a lot of great stories that will have you asking, "And Then What Happened."

AND THEN WHAT HAPPENED is a collection of the first three chapters of the novels and novellas of author Laura J. Underwood. Included in this collection are a sampling of DRAGON'S TONGUE, THE HOUNDS OF ARDAGH, ARD MAGISTER, THE BLACK HUNTER, WILLOWHERB, THE KING'S WIND, THE LUNARI MASK and THE GREEN WOMEN.

Remember, the downloaded version is free.

Just follow this link...

And while you are there, look at http://www.lulu.com/keltora for more stories and novellas by Laura J. Underwood.

SRM now has copies of DRAGON'S TONGUE, Book 1 of "The Demon-Bound" available for sale on their online catalog. Please buy from them or order copies through independent booksellers instead of using Amazon. You'll be helping to support Victims of MM if you do. And the folks at SRM have loads of other stuff for sale.

Go to My Lulu Storefront and you will find a copy of SHADOW HART has been released in a reduced sized paperback. This is one of the tales of the ARD MAGISTER, and first appeared in Keltora, Land of Myth from Embiid back in 2001. It has been revised and updated for this brand new edition.

Long Winter is coming to the mountains, and Rhoyd and his family get stuck in a small village where an ancient battle between good and evil is fought every few years. Now Rhoyd finds himself the reluctant Champion of Light who must battle the evil Shadow Hart in order stop Long Winter and let spring return.

Still not sure you want to buy SHADOW HART? You can download it for FREE!!! This is my way of saying "Give it a test try."

The February Issue is now live and online. My funny fantasy "Renalto" is in this issue. Please donate generously to show your appreciation for this fine piece of funny stuff.

The Best of the Bubbas of the Apocalypse, edited by Selina Rosen and published by Ben Bella Books is now availble for preorder on Amazon.com. If you have never experienced the Bubba's Universe--and you really should--this collection brings together twenty authors from the four book and showcases some truly awesome fiction...and gives you the opportunity to taste the strange and wonderful shared world, where Bubbas rule and Yumbies (Young Upwardly Mobile Zombies) keep trying to take a bite outta old Ned or Joe Bob or his pretty wife Nadine... Yes, my story Candylight and the Three Bubbas is included... So go forth. Order copies now at this outrageously low price (yes, Amazon is selling them for under $11.00 if you preorder now). Get extras and store them away for Christmas. Heck, if worse comes to worse, store them away for the next apocalypse. You'll be glad you did. ;-)

And in it, you will find my story "Drooling Wizards," along with Selina Rosen's "The Big Trash" and some fine poetry by the likes of Jane Yolen. Helix is supported by donations from the readers, so PLEASE go make a donation and keep this fine magazine in virtual print.

Sam's Dot Publishing has released The Green Women. You can purchase copies from The Genre Mall. This is a story set in the world of Conor, Eithne and Rhoyd, told from Eithne's Point of View.

THE WIZARD OF MUSHROOMS: Tales of a Darker Nature is now available both as a print book and a downloadable pdf file. You can find them at this link or visit Lulu.com and go to My Store where you will also find my novella Gather My Bones for sale.

Two Sales To Report. 1) Samsdotpublishing will be releasing my novella The Green Women some time in 2008 and 2) Five Star has purchased my modern fantasy novel ANGELS OF MERCY for their 2009 schedule. Number 1 is another Ard-Taebh adventure told through the eyes of Eithne Manahan. Number 2 is a novel where a Small Town Librarian Versus Dark Elves in the Backwoods of East Tennessee. Yeah, that was fun to write.

THE LUNARI MASK is out! Just hop over to Yard Dog Press, go to This Link and buy yourself a heaping helping of a fantastical Double Dog Treat! My novella "The Lunari Mask" is paired with Melanie Fletcher's rousting swordplay adventure tale "Sabre Dance." That's DoubleDog #4. Needless to say, both authors are a'bouncing with glee! We have wonderful covers too.

Song of Silver is now available from Dark Regions Press. Matt Taggart did the cover art, and it is a signed, limited edition collection for Only $16.95! If you are a fan of the Harper Mage Anwyn Baldomyre and his saucy harp Glynnanis, then you will enjoy this collection. Nearly ALL the stories are new, including a novelette titled "Song of Snow" (illustrated on the cover). So go forth! Buy Many Copies! and Enjoy!

Story Sale! I have just learned that my story "Drooling Wizards" has been accepted for publication by Helix, A Speculative Quarterly for a future issue. "Drooling Wizards" was originally slated to appear in Elysium Fiction but it folded before the story could be released. So now it will be on the web, free to read--oh, and please make a donation. Helix accepts donations and pays authors a share of that donation at the end of their story's run. So if you enjoy it, please donate to the cause and give a writer some "eating" money. :-)

BAD LANDS, a Holmes & Storm Mystery: the gonzo paranormal mystery novel by myself and Selina Rosen is available on Amazon.com now! It's already getting good reviews too, so don't miss out on this one. It's the funniest, wildest mystery novel you will ever read, and after all, who can resist a book that makes fun of reality shows?

BRAND NEW BOOK! Just released through Lulu.com is my oddball collection of East Tennessee horror, humor and dark Fantasy titled The Wizard of Mushrooms: Tales of a Darker Nature. This collection contains four reprint and nine brand new stories. You can purchase said titled directly from Lulu.com by going to the following link. Remember, the more books I sell, the more likely I am to keep writing all your favorites.

The public announcement has been made, so now I can speak out and stop holding my tongue in agony.

I am sorry to inform all of my fans that WANDERING LARK, Book 2 of "The Demon-Bound" will not be forthcoming in May 2007.

Meisha Merlin has made the official announcement on their website that they will be shutting down and closing their doors in May 2007.

I know it looks like I have left readers in a lurch, considering how the first book ended, but please do not dispair.

I am working at this time to find another publisher for both DRAGON'S TONGUE and WANDERING LARK.

And this does free me up to go on and get other projects which I have had on hold while waiting for the official announcement back into circulation and seek publication.

Again, I do apologize. I have a plan (a cunning plan that cannot fail), and a backup plan if it should.

I thank you all for your patience and your time. Let me assure you I will make every effort to get WANDERING LARK into print.

Laura J. Underwood

The Store Is Open. The Cafepress Store that is, where you can get a few things like shirts and mugs displaying the Keltoran Boar. Stop over at Keltora, Land of Myth and start shopping. More products will be added as I have time to upload more of my art.

AVAILABLE NOW!!! Gather My Bones, previously only available in ebook format, is now available in print format from Lulu.com. Go to my Lulu Storefront and click on my LOVELY cover (yes, I did that one myself, and am quite proud of it) and order your copy today! And please keep in mind that this is an experiment. With the marketing of novellas being difficult in todays shrinking fiction markets, I am seriously considering doing a series of these for my faithful readers.

HOUNDS OF ARDAGH is scheduled for release by Five Star Press/Thomson Gale on September 20th. The cover art is quite sharp, and you can see it here. Copies can be preordered through your favorite bookstore or online bookseller.

My novella "The King's Wind" is now available at Carnifex Press Or you can order a copy through Shocklines. And here is a nice review of the book.

Son of the Rock is now available from Carnifex Press in their anthology CLASH OF STEEL: DEMONS.

"Like the Night" is now available in the September 2005 print issue of Aoife'sKiss You can see the cover here, and you can order it here.

Looking for samples of my work. Try this link. There is a list of my stuff that is available on the web. Some of it requires payment to download, but other bits and pieces of books and at least one short story are out there for free. So is you're curious about my work, this is a good place to find out just what is available.

AVAILABLE NOW! "Marking the Signs and Other Tales of Mischief" is a chapbook collection of unusual stories. Meet the mother-in-law from hell, the ghost of a writer seeking a writer to be a ghost, a bunch of hillbilly vampires and a good 'ole boy who just loves his truck. Available now from Yard Dog Press.

Short Story Sale! "The Eyes Have It" a humorous tale of kitchen wenches, wizards and potatoes will appear in Farthing Magazine sometime later this year if not early next year.

"The Black Hammer" is a story set in the ages before the time of the Ard Magister and the Chronicles of Ard-Taebh. You can read "The Black Hammer" by going to the REVOLUTION SF webpage and clicking on the story archives.

TURN THE OTHER CHICK edited by Esther Friesner is now available at your favorite bookstore. For a peek at the cover, visit the Baen website. This is hardcover, and it is going to be one cool book!

A Free Story. Now and again, I want to put a story up on the webpage for readers. I will leave it for about a month, then remove it. Many of these stories were written at the beginning of my career. Some of them have sat around never being used. Others have been around the block and earned rejections.

So why am I putting them up? Because I can. ;-)

This month's story is Horseshoes.

For all you Conor, Eithne and Rhoyd lovers, this is really more of a vignette. Not a true story, but something of an event in the daily lives of the characters. I write little bits like this from time to time as character studies more than anything.

ENJOY!

A while back I was asked to assist in a "sting" operation. There a certain publisher that tells new writers they are being traditionally published by a real publisher. Well I am here to tell you that this publisher lies about everything they say. You will not become popular or even respected if you let them have your book. Our sting involved the creation of a book that was so excruciatingly terribly written, no publisher would want it. But guess what. This publisher snapped it up and even offered a contract. At that point, Jim MacDonald let the world know that we had stung this publisher. Oddly, the publisher withdrew their offer once the sting went public, and now they are even trying to deny that we proved their unscrupulous practices. The book we submitted was ATLANTA NIGHTS by Travis Tea (slur the name) and you can actually purchase it from Lulu.com now. The sales generated from this book goes to assist the SFWA Emergency Medical Fund. Interested in more information about the sting. Head for the Sff.net and visit the scams newsgroup starting at this link. There you can see information on the sting, the acceptance, the withdrawal letter...and you can even read the book. But be warned. This book may burn you eyeballs out. Oh, and Just Say No to Publish America. You'll be glad you did...

And as an update, if you are interested in seeing what a PublishAmerica employee says about what a scam PA actually is, try this link

STRANGE HORIZONS has an interview up on their webpage this week. Read all about the author's weird beginnings and off the wall opinions of her profession...

Three stories in one place? True. SMALL BITES has three stories by me. But even better, it has the value of helping to save a life. SMALL BITES was put together to earn money for writer Charles Grant. Mr. Grant has started the careers of a number of writers in the field, and we are doing this to pay him back. Just click on this link to get to the ordering page.

Copies of CHRONICLES OF THE LAST WAR are now available at Yard Dog Press. This is the book that tells how Conor and Eithne met, but it is also a tale of demon, darklings, Black Hunters and all sorts of baddies. There's fencing, there's fighting, and there's even a little true love. *g*

Oh, and if you want to sample David Deen's marvelous cover, click here

CONVENTIONS -- Where you Can See the Real Me

forthcoming

I have another website devoted to the Harper Mage, so check it out.  But here is where you are likely to find lists of my publications. (see below).

So look around. You'll find more stories listed on my biblio page and I am working on adding some other stuff as well.

This page is dedicated to the
Rowdy Lass
who left this world in November of 1998

GENERAL STUFF -- Statistics for the Curious

Who Am I? (My Biography in a Nutshell)

What Have I done? (My Bibliography)

How do I Do That? (My Philosophies on Writing)

FANTASTIC PLACES TO VISIT

Keltora, Land of Myth

Tales of the Harper Mage

Ard Magister

A FEW OF MY FAVORITE LINKS

I have promised I would do this, and I can't seem to get around to making a separate page so... The First Link is for Beliss. In case you are wondering who they are, they are my half sisters on the West Coast and boy are they wonderful (and beautiful) musicians. A warning, however, if you start drooling over their sultry pictures. Just remember. I'm their oldest sister, and I play with swords...

Debt is never fun, and I alway thought I could avoid it. Statistically a lot of Americans are in debt and are tired of being pestered by creditors and by collection agencies. I finally bit the bullet and sought help from the nice folk at American Liberty Financial. I know I sound like a commercial, but I am getting out of debt and on with my life, and these are the people who are helping me do it with dignity.

Selina Rosen and crew are a great bunch to work with. Selina is a great author as well as a kind and caring editor. So do me a favor, visit Yard Dog Press and Buy Our Books!

I don't know about you, but I am fascinated with this site. I think this and the NASA website are my two favorites. Mt. St. Helens is great to watch. And this is a good site for information about the volcano.

A brand new writer whose work you may wish to read is Madeline Howard. Her first novel, HIDDEN STARS is a wonderful fantasy set in a world of magic where forces of evil will keep you biting your nails wondering if they are going to win.

In recent years, I discovered Healing Touch. I have suffered for a long time from a damaged nerve in the back of my neck. The nerve was torn one day while picking up my little sister at the zoo so she could see the bears better. For years, I have sought assistance in dealing with the pain, and usually, heavy meds were needed when the nerve activated. But one day, a good friend told me that she practiced healing touch and asked me to let her try and see if she could stop my pain. It worked--so well that I now take regular sessions. So if you are curious about healing touch, visit the website of IN GOOD HANDS and see if Healing Touch can help you.

At long last, fellow writer Lisa Silverthorne has seen publication of her first book. This is a collection of Lisa's short fiction. The title is THE SOUND OF ANGELS and you can look at it by clicking on the link.

Lisa is a great writer, and I wish her well.

For now, if you have questions, you can e-mail me at "keltoraNOSTINKINGSPAMATsff.net." You will have to remove the middle message and add the the @ link yourself. Sorry, but I get too many crazy spams as it is.

You can also drop in at my newsgroup where I can be found from time to time, dispensing wisdom or just telling silly stories about the family cat Gato Bobo. (sff.people.keltora)

And be sure to visit my Harper Mage site at http://www.dm.net/~harpermage/

Enjoy.
Keep the torches burning... it makes the scarecrows REAL nervous!
 

MY STAND ON FANFIC

I know it's tempting to write in someone else's world, but it can cause copyright complications for an author as well. So please, no fanfic about Ard- Taebh or any of the characters I have created. Selfish as it may sound, I have to protect my copyright.

And remember, if you want to write fanfic about any author's work, you should ask permission FIRST. It's a matter of courtesy. And if the author turns you down, please be gracious enough to abide by the author's decision.

Besides, you should be writing your own stuff instead of writing other peoples stuff...

Thanks for listening.

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