In addition to being a newly published indie author, Tera Lyn Cortez is a wife, mother to five and a voracious reader. She is also a lover of coffee, the ocean and all things chocolate. Her home is in the lovely Pacific Northwest with her family, although she does admit to being consumed with Wanderlust. Life as a writer allows her to indulge in traveling both our world and those that live only in our imagination when she can’t leave her office.
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Genre: New Adult Fantasy
What if you woke up one day and discovered all the things about yourself that you thought made you a walking disaster, actually made you very special?
Growing up on Earth left Everleigh totally in the dark about the magic that exists in the world. In fact, she was unaware that the realms beyond her own even existed. She spent her life struggling to hide her peculiarities from the world, believing she was an anomaly, a freak of nature.
Then a stranger showed up on her doorstep one day, leaving cryptic instructions that would lead her to discover just how much she didn’t know. If she follows them, she will learn that not only do the other realms exist, but that she is an integral part of their survival.
The abilities she spent years trying to bury inside are just the tip of the iceberg. She must not only embrace them, but nurture them, and master them as quickly as she can.
The world is counting on her, whether they know it or not. By the time she’s capable of making a difference, will it already be too late to save the ones she loves?
Genre: New Adult Fantasy
Everleigh’s life has gone from Isolation and loneliness to being bombarded with magical beings from all sides.
When she is forced to flee the safety of the cabin and travel to the other realms, her world is turned upside down yet again. As she struggles to meet the needs of those relying on her, will she be able to balance the demands of learning her magic and preparing for war?
If she wants to survive in a magical world, she’ll have to.
Genre: New Adult Fantasy
What steps would you take to ensure that you came out the victor in a war that had been brewing since before you were born?
Everleigh must answer that question correctly to ensure that magic as they know it will not cease to exist. To protect the realms, and those she has come to love, she must make life-altering choices guided only by her intuition.
She has gathered warriors from every magical race available, seeking out those who are willing to help her put an end to the dark mage’s reign of terror. As they march on to the final battle between good and evil, will their forces prevail? Will everything they have done be enough? Even if it is, will the cost of victory prove to be too much for them to pay?
At the end of the battle they can only hope that what is left of their world will be worth living in.
What is some advice you would give new authors?
Any advice I give is solely based on the mistakes I am already aware I made. I’m sure there are plenty that I don’t even know about yet.
First, find a professional cover designer who is proficient in the genre you are writing in. The designer I originally hired made fantastic art, but did not tell me that the covers I asked for would not sell well in the genre. An expensive mistake when you have to turn around and hire someone else to do them over again!
Second, get yourself a good developmental editor. Yes it can be expensive, but it is worth the money. My editor told me originally to cut approximately 30,000 words out of a 60k novel. Ouch! I wound up throwing the whole thing out and starting over, then copying and pasting the portions of the original manuscript that I really loved. It stung, but she was right and the story is so much better for it.
Maybe the most important thing? Keep writing. Get the words down on the page. I have a post it note above my desk that says “You can edit bad writing, but you cannot edit a blank page.” It’s not my quote, I saw it on Facebook and the author was unknown, but it serves as a daily reminder that getting the words down means I am making progress and I can always revise and edit later.
Last, but certainly not least, find your tribe. Gather people around you who believe in you and truly want you to succeed. They are priceless.
Nina Soden 