Hello! I've recently joined this site about four months ago, and thought I should finally show my face to the 'Introduce Yourself' forums. Anyway, here goes:

I like reading fantasies--especially if there's some romance intertwined within them--and enjoy the works of J.R. Ward, Anne Bishop, Karen Chance, Christine Feehan, and Stella Cameron. My favorite books include the Cassie Palmer novels, the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, and the Black Jewels Trilogy. Seriously, the Black Jewels Trilogy is my all-time favorite Dark Fantasy so far. It's considered one of the best fantasies of all time, and I agree completely. Those three books are ones I'm not likely to forget, and I recommend them as must-reads for any avid Fantasy readers and writers.

I'm an amateur Fantasy Writer--unpublished, of course--hoping to one day be published traditionally. And on that note, I'll mention that I've recently uploaded another draft of my WIP Destiny's Bond. It's an Epic Fantasy, and so far it's been up for about a week now with no reviews. I'm willing to offer reviews in exchange for reviews, because I'd really like some feedback on my WIP. So far I've reviewed about six fantasy books on this site, and about everyone whose work I've reviewed has said my feedback's helpful and practical. Of course, I'll continue to review WIPs even if mine doesn't get reviews. Just thought I'd go out on a limb and mention it here.

Here's a description of my WIP:

Born into a time when war ravages the land and captured at a young age for her previously-unheard-of magick abilities, Destiny has exhausted fourteen years of her life training and serving as a remorseless assassin for the ruthless Four Nations. Now twenty years old, she seeks to escape and mete revenge on those who have wronged her and many of her fellow nythpaths. By utilizing her magickal and physical strengths, she manages the first of these tasks. But before she can even begin working on the second, unforeseen circumstances alter her fate forever, placing her in a situation where the balance of the world rests on her shoulders. With the help of a surly stigmaton and a cast of other characters she meets on her journey to restore peace, will she be able to save Drugara from ruin? Or will a hidden evil consume her and destroy everything she comes to hold dear?

And this is the link: http://www.bookcountry.com/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=7289

Any feedback will be deeply appreciated, even if it's only the first chapter of my WIP. And I'll be glad to reciprocate. Just post the link to your WIP on this thread and I'll review your work. (Even if mine's not reviewed by you.)

Good luck in all your writing endeavors! And thanks to those who answer my plea!

Hi again Amber--just wanted to let you know that I started reading your book--I am about 3 chapters in and it's really good--very polished and well put together. I don't know a lot about fantasy but I am enjoying the story you've crafted. The characters are really great. I'm saving my review so that I can finish reading the rest of the manuscript so that I can give you a complete review.

Tell us more about your writing process--is this your first book? How long have you been working on it? Has anyone else seen the book?

That's cool that you are such a JR Ward fan. I haven't yet read any of her books but I like that her fans call her "the Warden." What makes the books so appealing to you?

First, thank you for the kind words, Lucy. And yes, this is my first book. I started writing it about six years ago when I turned twelve, inspired by an anime show, of all things. I became intrigued by adventures and hardship as I watched the episodes, and decided I wanted to write adventures of my own, with characters I could really care about.

 As for those who've seen my book so far? There's my father, who reads my chapters once I've finished them. And Jay Greenstein, on this site--He made some really good point on my writing, and I went through and changed what he suggested, taking my WIP down so others didn't get their hands on it before I fixed it.

Would you believe it took me five of those six years to create my main heroine, Destiny? Well, it did. She started out as a sixteen year old school girl from the future who represented all things girly. Then she transformed into a seventeen year old 'super spy' with a hard mouth from--you guessed it, the future. But neither of those personalities I liked. They were too cliche. I wanted a heroine I cared for and empathized with--though I haven't gone through any of the things I engineered to happen to her.

As I was about to give up on my perfect heroine, I dreamed one night of a woman who'd been so horribly abused that her emotions had hardened into a frozen pit, leaving her stoic and uncaring of the evils done to her and to others. But what really got to me about this woman was that her conscience lived, that her sense of right and wrong remained within that remorseless mind. Her eyes were dead and lifeless, but her soul was pure and subconsciously inclined to protect others, even when she doesn't recognize it.

She was perfect. The heroine I'd been waiting to write a story around.

The next day, I began rewriting my book, excited to work my heroine into it.

And that's when I realized the book didn't work anymore. My story so far had been written to accommodate the 'super spy', not this scarred woman. Which meant I had to completely scrap that version and begin again. And again. And again.

Yet none of what I wrote seemed to fit my new heroine. Just when I'd been about ready to rip my hair out, I had an epiphany. I could start off with her being used as an assassin. I could give her powers to warrant the abuse she went through, to give the abuse reason, because she hadn't wanted to serve in the Black-Blood War.

After that, the writing became easy. Though there are rough spots I go through and have to rewrite from time to time. And though my WIP is still in drafting stage, I hope one day I'll be reading through it and decide it's as good as it's going to get and it's time to start looking for publishers.

Wow, I rambled for a while there, didn't I? Oh, well. That's what happens when I get to talking about my WIP.

 I guess I'll answer your second question now about J.R. Ward.

I discovered her because my local librarian recommended her to me--I'd been going through a 'OMG, is my book really ever going to be good enough to publish/Will anyone even like my book' stage--and wanted to read a variety of different fantasy books to get a better feel of the genre. J.R Ward's the Black Dagger Brotherhood series is what I found.

From the moment I began reading, I was intrigued by her writing style, so unlike any I've read before. It was so fresh and urban and unique, before I knew it, I was reading books One through Eight in a manner of months. Moreover, I liked the twist she gave on the vampire world. She gives characters that are memorable and you can really feel for.

That's all I can really say on that.

Okay, that's where I'll stop. Don't want to bore anyone who's reading this anymore than they probably already are. Happy writing!

--edited by Amber Wolfe on 11/3/2014, 9:21 PM--