Announcing…My Newest Book! (and its street team)

I’ve been waiting to announce my upcoming book for a while, in part not to jinx anything, but also because things can change so quickly in the publishing world. But now (knock on wood), all seems to be progressing as planned. Which means that I can finally share a little about my third book.

First, the title and publishing date: Secret of the Shadow Beasts, due out on June 14, 2022. It’s not a Drest book but an alt-reality fantasy taking place in a world much like ours with a major difference: Environmental degradation has spawned shadowy monsters that come out at the gloaming (twilight) to decimate humankind. Only kids can stop them (this is a middle grade book, after all!), and my story follows a team of such kids from the perspective of its newest member, a rural girl named Nora, who most certainly doesn’t fit in. Expect to read some vivid battle scenes, interpersonal conflict, and a tangled mystery about where these shadow beasts come from. This book is warm, tense, a little creepy, with bit of a steampunk vibe, and loads of adventure.

I don’t have final cover art yet, which would give you a very good feel of this book, but that should be finished in a month or so. And the formal publisher-provided description will be ready then too.

Right now, I’m doing final edits and preparing my marketing plan for the months leading up to the book’s pub date. And one part of that is my Secret of the Shadow Beasts Street Team.

If you follow me on Twitter, you’ve probably seen me mention this. I’m assembling a group to help me spread the word—and to celebrate. I’m hoping my team will share my cover art on Twitter for my formal reveal, promote preorders, and other things as well (according to members’ time and inclination). Most of all, though, I’m looking forward to having this group with whom I can share all the exciting things that happen leading up to a book’s publication.

If you’d like to join my street team, please fill out the sign-up form that I’ve linked in this post. I’m putting together their first newsletter now. And let me know (in a comment here or on Twitter) if you’d like more information.

There will be more! Stay tuned…