Return Of The Wolf (Eye Of The Storm #4) - The Waning Moon and Introspection

57% into writing Return of The Wolf and I have to say that it's probably the hardest book I've ever written, and I'm not overly sure why. It could be because there's just been such a lot going on in my personal life that, three quarters of the way through the year, I feel kinda scattered. It could be because this book touches on some dark subject matter - all my books do, I guess - but with this one, the darkness needs to be spelled out a little more, so that readers can understand how and why the characters evolve the way that they do. I'm being very picky about how things are portrayed - everything needs to make sense and have a reason, but still be readable, without giving too much away straight away. The pattern has been, that I write a couple of chapters and then decide I don't like something and have to go back through the whole manuscript to change things, and this has happened a few times with this story.

Return Of The Wolf begins straight after the events of Heart Of The Wolf. The moon is now waning, and just as - metaphysically - that represent a phase of inner-reflection and settling, so shall it be with this book. The big climax happened at the end of Heart Of The Wolf  (and I mean that in every sense), and now everyone needs to process that, and deal with the consequences of their actions - new realisations also come to light now that everything is a little calmer.

This book contains just a little bit less action than the other three, and the focus is mostly on some deep healing for our favourite characters, before things take off again in book five (there will be six books altogether).

So, that's where I'm at. I think part of the reason this book is harder to write, is because part of me wants to put some huge plot twist in this one like my others (I might still do that), but this book isn't actually about twists and turns - it's about what happens after, and how you handle a straight long road after life has taken you on a bender, so to speak.

I'm intrigued to see how the next 43% pans out. I'm interested in seeing how readers will take to this one. Time will tell. But remember, there are still two more books to go ;)

Dianna xx

A little bit about Releasing The Wolf (and an excerpt)

I didn't post last week, and to be honest, it's been a hell of a week! Apologies for that.

So I'm keeping this post fairly short and I'm going to talk up my upcoming novella, Releasing The Wolf (Eye Of The Storm #1).

It will hopefully be published on 18th December in eBook format.

Now, if you're expecting your soulmate-type, true love kind of werewolf story, forget it. Yes, there are elements of that in this new series of mine, but that's not the focus of the series and it's not completely where I'm going with my werewolves.

The Eye Of The Storm series has a strong romantic undertone, but it's not about romance. It's about a werewolf mythology, friendships, humanity, biology and the struggle between the heart and body. And yes, there's a lot of growling in it, and a lot of sex in it... we're talking werewolves here ;)

Also, this is the first book (novella length at just over 30,000 words) of a series, so obviously all questions are not going to be answered. This first book will set the scene for all to come. As per my writing style, this is a fast-paced book.

Here's a little taster (probably the last one I'll post before publication) to whet your appetites - enjoy :)


Excerpt, copyright Dianna Hardy, 2012, all rights reserved. This excerpt may be subject to editing or deletion before publication.

Bad things always happen when you let your guard down – she’d learnt that early on in life. It was very rare for her to let her guard slip, but tonight – as she began to enjoy the hustle and bustle of her job – she had.

So the scent completely took her by surprise.

She stiffened, pen in hand, mid-order, as that smell raced through her mind as well as her body, awaking some primal desire. That smell of ‘green’.

Taylor.

She turned towards it, eyes scanning for him, but it wasn't Taylor they landed on.

All at once she could tell that his smell was a little different, although no less intoxicating. The man that sat where Taylor should be was tall, well-built – even through his jacket she could see that – with flaxen blond hair that fell to his shoulders and the palest blue eyes she’d ever seen.

And he was staring at her, his expression nothing short of icy.

Her legs sort of trembled. No, her entire body trembled, and she just about managed to ignore the nonsensical urge she had to drop to her knees. But she couldn't ignore the heat that rose up from within her. It seemed to centre on her neck, and she suddenly felt like she was being strangled by her own hot flush. Without thinking, she undid the top button of her blouse and tilted her head up to expose her neck to the cooling air, and she did it all without dropping her gaze from his.

His eyebrows rose a fraction, and his eyes softened for a millisecond before resuming their iciness. That millisecond was enough – she’d done something right. She didn't know what it was, but for the first time in a long time, she had done something right.

Add the book to your shelf on Goodreads!