Holly Lisle: Writer

2275 words of new Cadence Drake

I got up this morning and for the first time in a long time started writing a new novel that dragged me out of bed.

Chapter one of that novel, “Can’t Kill A Dead Guy,” is now finished in first draft.

It was like coming home. Cady’s voice was there. Not the bitter, dark voice at the end of book one, but the voice I hear when I write her—the voice I heard when I wrote her the first time, right up to the moment everything went bad for her.

She has her feet under her, she’s alone but dealing with everything much better than I thought she would be when I outlined the story, and the biggest fear I had reopening her world—that all I’d get writing Cady was Cady-in-hell—is gone.

It was like sitting down and talking to the best friend I lost fifteen years ago, that I just got back, and finding out she’s still a person I want to spend time with.

Nine books is a lot of time. Today told me it’s going to be time well-spent.

I have to do the other stuff I have to do now—student support and starting on the HTTS walkthrough and everything else.

But today I came home.

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21 responses to “2275 words of new Cadence Drake”

  1. Lee Avatar
    Lee

    I have tears in my eyes too! I know what it’s like to have to leave stories and characters aside for years, though for different reasons than yours. And it hurts. I’ve recently been letting myself revisit those old places. Some folks say you can never go home, but you know what? Those folks are wrong!

    I’m totally psyched right now because I get to read Cady I and have Cady II to look forward to, too.

    Welcome home, Holly!

    A fan.

    Reply
  2. Elmi Avatar
    Elmi

    Wow! That’s amazing, so happy for you!!

    Reply
  3. Lee Birdine Avatar
    Lee Birdine

    At the moment I am writing this I am actually writting. But I have this compulsive habit of checking my email on my droid even if I’m at the PC.

    Seeing that post sent a tingle down my spine…

    Realizing the Cady series was well underway was one of the ‘WOW’ moments for me.

    Like moments of clarity I get when a particular scene gels…

    Or the passage of a favorite song that gives you goosebumps…

    But anyways, I am very happy for you and looking forward to the rest of the series as it comes out book by book 🙂

    Reply
  4. Glynis Smy Avatar
    Glynis Smy

    It is good to see you are able to get writing again!

    Reply
  5. Margaret Fisk Avatar
    Margaret Fisk

    Fantastic! That’s a great thing when a beloved voice comes back so clearly. Enjoy yourself :). Maybe you’ll start a resurgence of SF again :).

    Reply
  6. Prue Avatar
    Prue

    Wow Holly! I’m so pleased for you.
    To feel you’ve come home sounds a Big Thing! If you love your characters like I’ve come to do, it must be such a relief to be with them again.
    Good luck! Best wishes! And I’ll be with you all the way on HTTS Walkthrough.
    Prue

    Reply
  7. Ed Avatar
    Ed

    Congratulations on the start of a new adventure, Holly! I can empathise with you because I recently began the rewrite of the series that pulled me into writing back when I was 14 (I’m 20 now) after following HTTS.

    Even though I haven’t published anything yet, reading your post about starting your new novel practically brought tears to my eyes because I know that feeling of standing on a cliff overlooking the vast plain of your world and embarking on the quest to write it. I am very excited for you to reenter a world that is near and dear to you, and I am equally excited to be writing alongside you.

    Best wishes on your new start, and take heart in the knowledge that so many of us are cheering and writing along with you!

    Reply
  8. RebeccaG Avatar
    RebeccaG

    WOOHOO!! I am SOOOOO super-psyched! YAY!!

    Reply
    1. Holly Avatar
      Holly

      😀 Me, too.

      I got those word counts in SPITE of the headache.

      Reply
  9. Stephanie M Avatar
    Stephanie M

    Good for you Holly. I’m so glad the experience turned out better than you thought. I love when that happens.

    I can’t wait to read the sequel to Corrigan’s Blood. Speaking of which, is Corrigan’s Blood available to purchase?

    Reply
    1. Holly Avatar
      Holly

      Hi, Stephanie,

      It is. But if you’re willing to wait a couple months, you’ll be able to get the Kindle, Nook, or iBooks version instead of the pdf version. I’m going to be pricing most of my work at $2.99 through those markets, and I’ll be doing a new CreateSpace version, and pulling my Lulu.com version, because I’ll be able to offer a better price through CreateSpace.

      If you want it now, I have a print version at Lulu.com that’s 11.91, and a standard pdf e-book at Shop.HollyLisle.com for 2.99.

      Reply
  10. Craig Avatar
    Craig

    What a great feeling! Thanks for sharing this.

    Reply
  11. Aynslie Avatar
    Aynslie

    Wow. There’s healing in that experience. It gave me goosebumps just to read your experience of your reunion with Cady. Let the adventure begin!

    Reply
    1. Holly Avatar
      Holly

      It was strange. I’ve been thinking about the series for fifteen years, knowing I could never sell it—but it would never go away.

      My subconscious mind has been working on bits and pieces of this for years, apparently, because while I’ve had to refamiliarize myself with the vocabulary I built for the world, the characters, the situations, and the ambiance were simply there, as if I’d just walked away from them last week.

      Writing, I sit there and chuckle as things land on the page that are perfect for situations I just wrote out last week when I did the outline, but that are so twisty and sideways, it’s as if I’d been plotting them for years.

      They don’t just fit the story. They fit the world.

      Writing fiction hasn’t been this fun in a long time.

      Reply
      1. Aynslie Avatar
        Aynslie

        “There’s no place like home.”

        Reply
  12. Rob Avatar
    Rob

    Congrats, Holly. Very excited to reading your new Cadence Drake novel. Good luck on getting all your stuff to your readers more directly. Cutting out the Middle Man is a good thing.

    Reply
  13. Johanna Avatar
    Johanna

    This post kind of made me want to cry. It made me remember how much I loved Cady too, and how happy I am that I’ll get to read more about her.

    Reply
  14. Deb Salisbury Avatar
    Deb Salisbury

    Yay! I’m glad the mojo is back!

    The end of Corrigan’s Blood was dark enough I worried about Cady in the next one. I’m so happy she’s someone we can cheer for – and with.

    Reply
  15. Jessic@ Avatar
    Jessic@

    I’m so excited for you and I can’t wait to read the next Cadence Drake novel. To see how happy you are writing it, I can only imagine how good it’ll be.

    Happy writing,

    Jess

    Reply
  16. Krista Avatar
    Krista

    I’m so happy for you.

    Reply
  17. deb Avatar
    deb

    I haven’t finished Corrigan’s Blood, simply because I DO NOT WANT IT TO END!!! I love the world, I love the characters. I’m looking forward to more of Tangerine in #2.

    Reply

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