News in the YA book world

Sarah J. Maas – Maas spent an extended amount of time with her father in 2017 while he was experiencing some health issues. Her publisher let her rearrange her publication schedule because of the time spent away from her work. The new release schedule is as follows:

May 1, 2018 – A Court of Frost and Starlight novella (cover reveal!)
October 30, 2018 – Throne of Glass #7 (untitled)
2019 – A Court of Thorns and Roses #4 (untitled)

Cassandra Clare – Does anyone turn out as much work as Clare each year? In addition to the two newest Shadowhunters trilogies she’s been working on individually, she co-authors the Magisterium series with Holly Black and the upcoming The Eldest Curses series (focusing on Magnus once again) with Wesley Chu. Clare recently announced she’s also working on an adult duology entitled Sword Catcher.

Since Clare is so busy, it’s easy to see why her publication dates have been rearranged a bit. But the most recent shuffle is because of what she felt like she needed to write. Clare explained she had just lost someone important to her when she sat down to begin writing The Last Hours (TLH) book 1 and wasn’t in the right place to work on that particular book. So she started writing a book full of pain and heartache—Queen of Air and Darkness—instead. The new release schedule is as follows:

December 4, 2018 – Queen of Air and Darkness (The Dark Artifices #3)
2019 – Chain of Gold (TLH #1)
2020 – Chain of Iron (TLH #2)
2021 – Chain of Thorns (TLH #3)
After 2021 – The Wicked Powers (her final Shadowhunters series)

Additionally, I found a post saying Clare is working on TLH short stories to be released sometime before book 1. There are a few previous novellas that touch on TLH characters, and we’ll recap those and any new TLH short stories before Chain of Gold is released next year!

Are you thinking about writing a novel?

Do you have a story to tell but aren’t quite sure how to start?  I’ve read a few helpful books on novel structure lately that I thought I would share with you.

5 Secrets of Story Structure by K.M. Weiland
This book gives details and graphics explaining what percentages of your novel should be about what.

The 12 Key Pillars of Novel Construction by C.S. Lakin
This book is full valuable info and of questions to ask yourself about plot, characters, theme, conflict and more.