The Twin Moons Saga is the fantasy romance series that keeps on giving. One story sparks an idea for the next … and I’m now five books into the series. Will there be a sixth? Probably.

The beauty of the Twin Moons Saga or any of the series I write is that each book can be read as a standalone novel complete unto itself. I detest cliffhangers and won’t inflict them upon my readers.

Champion of the Twin Moons departs somewhat from my usual style. It focuses more intently upon the hero’s journey, his trials and tribulations and spiraling descent into villainry. Characters from other books in the series pop into Chastian’s story: Master Enders, the enigmatic Archivist; Uberon, the formidable Unseelie King; Ishjarta, former assassin and the new king of Fyrgia; and, of course, the dawn and midnight swifts, the powerful unicorns who serve as the fae realm’s highest powers.

However, the story doesn’t begin with Chastian; it begins with Rosalia, the former princess of Fyrgia, whose father was deposed (and decapitated). Now, at 12 years old and living with her mother (the former queen of Fyrgia) and her siblings as subjects of the Erlking, she receives an offer to study under the Archist’s tutelage—an unprecedented opportunity. No dummy, she accepts.

But she doesn’t know why the Archivist offered her that opportunity, especially since the fae haven’t a particularly good opinion of humans anyway. What Rosalia doesn’t know is that the Chastian, the Champion of the Seelie Court, recognizes her as his mate.

But she’s a child and Chastian is honorable.

The story doesn’t end there. The course of true love never did run smoothly, and fate has other plans for Chastian, including rejection. So, how does a fae male deal with rejection? Not well.

Embark on the rollercoaster ride of fate with Chastian and purchase your copy of Champion of the Twin Moons.

ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence (AI) filled headlines this year. 2024 is the year of the AI revolution! Graphic designers and artists gasped in horror and dismay. Then writers join in the collective groaning as they saw clients depart for cheap content. Authors and artists organizations grappled with issues of copyright violation in addition to the ready availability of cheap artwork and content.

Strangely enough, I read on LinkedIn that the use of AI actually declined in June.

Despite that, publishers like EA Publishing are “are hiring for both 1) People who will use AI tools to create content as well as 2) People who will work with AI produced content to mold it into a final product.” It’s the drizzle before the deluge of computer-generated content saturates every publishing platform.

Many writers and artists are hearing the bell toll a death knell. I don’t, but I also recognize that various iterations of ChatGPT and its competitors are hear to stay and their ubiquitous use will have far-reaching consequences:

• Payment for content will plunge, especially for entry level and generalist writers. To make money as a writer, you’ll need to be an expert in a specific niche.
• Entry level content writers will be forced to use AI to generate content in sufficient quantities to earn a living. This will lead to burnout.
• Except for those companies and publishers prizing original, well-researched, well-written content and willing to pay for it, the general quality of content will sink to a uniformly low standard.
• The new low standard for quality will train people to expect lesser quality and value content even less.

It’s a pretty dismal prediction for writers. 

Editors may have a somewhat better expectation, as companies will hire them to massage AI-written content into shape and infuse it with enough character and originality to satisfy readers. Editors who don’t normally do this kind of work (which is more properly called book doctoring) may find themselves in higher demand than those who specialize in developmental editing, line editing, or copy editing. Of course, they’ll need to conduct research to ensure that any citations and sources referenced by AI actually exist and are correct.

It was big news not all that long ago that ChatGPT makes stuff up. It lies. It’s up to humans to verify claims made in AI-generated content.

As always, however, there will be readers who prize original content. These are the people who comprehend the value of craftsmanship and hard-earned skill. For these people, there will always be writers like me, writers who do things the old-fashioned way, the hard way. I don’t use AI in writing my stories. What readers get is the product of my imagination, not a machine-generated output of keywords and suggested themes and plot points devoid of all humanity.

When it comes to computers, the old saying “garbage in, garbage out” still holds true. But AI is capable of learning and adapting and improving itself.

​Woe betide the day when it replaces a good storyteller.

I have one more event before taking a break in July: Art on the Hill & Wine Tasting, Too! in Mantua, Ohio. This event is a first for me (and my bestie, Cindra) and will take place on Saturday, July 8, on East Prospect Street. In 2014, this event was named the “Best Arts and Cultural Event in Portage County.”

Who knows what lovely wines I’ll find and buy?

The break in my event schedule was set months ago when my husband planned on traveling to Alaska to visit with our son, Brian. The original plan was for my husband, our son, and our son’s girlfriend to drive back to the lower 48. The plan changed, but I still kept my calendar free.

My son and his girlfriend will be driving back to Ohio—with their two cats. My husband will fly up to Alaska to visit with them for a few days and help them with the final preparations for leaving the nation’s northernmost state. He will fly back home.

Those who don’t know me might inquire as to why I don’t go go Alaska, too. Simply put: logistics. We live on a farm. We have livestock. Someone’s got to stay home to take care of the animals. My husband is usually the one who stays home; this time, he gets to travel and I will stay home.

What will I do with my weekends free of events? I’ll go trail riding, of course! And I’ll work on the next book which will be the third in the Triune Alliance Brides series.

If you’ve been wondering why I haven’t published anything since Double Cut came out in March, that’s because I’ve been working on the fifth book in the Twin Moons Saga: Champion of the Twin Moons. 

Have you read the series? Some of my favorite characters pop into the new book: Unseelie King Uberon and Master Enders the Archivist. Champion of the Twin Moons focuses on the oldest son of Enders and Daniellisande, the daughter of Captain Thelan of the Seelie Court’s Royal Guard and his mate, the moon-born Catriona. This book departs from the pattern of previous books, but it all makes wraps up and makes sense in the end.

Like all books in each of my series, Champion of the Twin Moons may be read as a standalone novel. There is no cliffhanger.

The official release for Champion of the Twin Moons is July 19. Pre-order your copy now.