Mellie's Books

I made it! With 50,081 words on Defender of the Red Dragon. What am I talking about?

Camp NaNoWriMo, July 2014!  There are now two camps during the summer, in April and July, complete with virtual cabins and cabin mates. We had a lot of fun this month and several of those in our cabin crossed the finish line.

In my opinion, anyone who signed up and gave it their best–even if they didn’t finish their  word goal–is a winner. It takes effort and determination to sit and write everyday, whether your goal is 50,000 or 15,000.

Congratulations to all those in my cabin this month. Hope to see you in November for the main event. If not, look for me next April for the spring Camp. Maybe we can all sign in to the same cabin!

And would someone please remember the hot chocolate…

Excerpt from Defender of the Red Dragon

Ruth was almost too tired to shower before she fell into bed. But on her way past the painting, she gave it a smile, said goodnight to the warrior by the throne, and gave the dragon a goodnight stroke down the nose.

She had no idea what woke her at one o’clock in the morning, but she was instantly awake, her heart was pounding, and her eyes searched the shadows.

As her eyes brushed the painting, she had the briefest wish that the young warrior was there to watch out for her. Sliding her feet to the floor, she quietly put on her robe and started toward the door.

A choked cry and the sound of pounding feet reached her first, accompanied by the sound of steel against steel. As Ruth looked through her living room toward the door, she saw it was standing wide open.

But for a moment, before her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw the shadow of a man, well over six feet tall, replacing a wicked-looking blade in a sheath at his side. Behind her she heard a sound like sea shells on stone. Glancing at the painting in the dim light, the dragon blurred for a moment before it came into focus, encircling the throne.