Dragon chess board

The End in Sight

a look back over the last two years in the dream as I look forward

Dear Reader,

As 2023 draws to a close, I look back at the growth of the dream since it landed on Payhip. I know how the Draoithe Saga ends just as I knew two years ago. I didn't have all the scenes in between back then, and I still don't have them written now. But I know they will come. It's been a long crazy ride since then, and I still haven't written The End. Instead, I got wrapped up in a lot of other side projects like Book Promotion.

Smashwords End of Year Sale

The entire catalog is on sale Half Off! Visit Smashwords and get the best deal of the Season! Sorry, I just had to say that before I forgot. Where were we? Oh Yeah, looking back.

I still can't write full time, or I might have finished the main storyline in the Draoithe Saga. I doubt I could publish it all so fast, but I can dream. Since the Great Take Down in early 2023, things move incrementally forward. As of the end of this year, I will have edited, formatted, and republished 9 books in ebook, paperback, digital audiobook, and some hardcovers. And I put out my first ever boxed set on my site and on Kobo. I hope to have it published with Draft2Digital soon!

I'm still publishing, but because the day job intervenes, I'm still only a part-time author. I know some of you want the entire story all at once, but it's hard to edit that way. And re-publishing the entire backlist after posting the edited chapters to Read the Draoithe Saga takes time.

I'll try to keep up and re-publish the back list as fast as I can. I was hoping to have more of it back on the shelf by now, but it is what it is and takes what it takes. There are stories left to write and new formatting and editing tools help. AI audio, videos, and more are in the works. All the extras are slowly publishing in the different miniseries at OpheliaKee.com.

Haunted Echoes

The Mystic Dark Miniseries made an epic launch in early December 2023. Start with Haunted Echoes and read through Ruined Hearts and Shattered Souls for FREE! Then check out the original opener tale, Grim Dark. It dropped into the miniseries on Dec. 15. I hope to publish the books next year even as more of that story unfolds.

My professional career takes up a lot of my time, so I apologize in advance if you loved having my stories coming at you fast as books. You can still read the chapters weekly in the miniseries. But the books needed some serious love. The process to go wide and then the decision to rework the Draoithe Saga took its toll, but I think the stories will have a better life when they republish and surface far and wide.

OpheliaKee.com updates often. Ophelia Kee Speaks has become a weekly message. And I post story and research videos monthly. Have you visited lately? I'm always writing, posting episodes, and adding random bits of creative stuff. Come check it out. The more visitors, the better the dream.

Writing the story as the scenes come to me, I don't write to the market. I want to tell stories I want to read. I never use a plot guide (?) or a story arc. My background is in social science, so I don't know how to story outline and most of the terminology for writing fiction still eludes me. I've remained true to my chaotic pantser style. I still write all my stories myself. AI is a tool to improve my stories and make them more accessible to readers.

I'm picking up the lingo as I go, but I needed to write my stories more than I cared about all the terminology. I shared them by publishing, hoping others might enjoy them as I do. If you recently stumbled over Ophelia Kee's stories from the Draoithe Saga, allow me to extend your formal invitation. Welcome to the dream...

A Pack forms book stack

Publishing and Marketing?

Learning how to handle all the publishing has been more than a full-time job and has been fun, but takes time. I have a handle on publishing, and I think I know how to make it all a success, eventually. Sadly, I lack the funds to make it all happen overnight, so I'll do it as I do everything. One thing at a time, and I'll do it with no money because I have no other option.

Maybe when it's all done and the last page has published, I'll finally have the money and the time to devote to advertising it properly. To all of you who've followed me faithfully since you stumbled into the dream, a most heartfelt thank you. I promise not to quit until it's quitting time. Along with the back list, there are other stories in the works!

From the reader's perspective, the story is a long way from the end. It's longer now than it was two years ago. From my perspective, it's better than it ever was and is returning to the shelf in grand style. If I can, I'll have it all done and published by the end of time. It's going to be epic.

The Vampire King will help, but he's dark and twisted. Whether he's an ally remains to be seen. Peter Elliot, Meid Breach, and Bushyasta, along with a few other minor shadowy evil characters, are going to get theirs, though. I promise!

And I will finish the epilogue tales for my Newsletter Friends. I promise.

Kiss Dark Book Cover

Sneak Peek at Kiss Dark

Prologue

Excerpt from the Unlikely Kings Prophecy

Nearly a thousand years ago, a man fell in love with a woman. With her, he was a benevolent king. In his grief at her untimely demise, he refused his former role and wove a dark chaos spell and turned madness loose in the dream.

“I looked into the scrying pool.

Chaos showed me the path I needed to follow.

I wrote the spell in my blood.

I breathed Chaos onto the parchment

and granted life to my needs.

The last Lunar Magus, a kobold,

and a Thrall’s Son, a slave to the lunar dark, will aid my cause on my night.

The Vampire King’s Dream Inverter will

Claim Death in the Leaindeail

and I will return to Airlea!”

~Lucifer Leiriu, Excerpt from the Unlikely Kings Prophecy, an ancient chaos magic spell

Even if the dream should die, Airlea mattered more to the King of the Devils, and Lucifer would watch it all burn rather than live without her.

As the clock ticked down to the hour of destruction, the Lunar Magi had a mission to fulfill. But only one of their kind remained alive in the dream.

Approaching the final date to set the plans in motion to bring Lucifer back from the void, the last Lunar Magus desperately needed help. The Last Vampire King doesn’t know who he is and is short of one kingdom to provide the help she needs.

Ophelia Kee translated this text. Because of the chaos magic in the spell, serious students should study under the tutelage of a Moon Magus to ensure the accuracy of the runes.

Behind the Scenes

It's been a long haul since Christmas 2021, after I finally got everything working on Payhip. The Draoithe Saga now lives and thrives on Payhip, and the site has stood me in good stead for the last two years. It took a long while for me to learn the site and upload all the stories, videos, and blog posts, but it's rolling along smoothly now.

The Newsletter got a well-deserved overhaul during the summer of 2023. I hope everyone has joined and downloaded the free stories. Master of Destiny should publish soon! If you want to be sure you don't miss the good stuff, the newsletter is where you need to be.

I put off the dragon research video in favor of uploading audiobooks to Findaway Voices and BookFunnel. I am hoping to get it completed over the holidays, and I have some other videos in the works as well. If you enjoy the videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Leaving reviews

I hope you enjoyed this look back at the last couple of years. It's been one helluva ride. In some ways, the end in sight is further away than it was two years ago. In others, it's closer than it has ever been. Thank you all for being the best readers. Your support has meant the world to one crazy old tiger. I need to get busy writing some more stories. When you read, please be kind and leave your reviews. Until next time, please be welcome to the dream...

Happy Holidays!

Be Careful!

Happy Reading,

Ophelia Kee

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