HoC 4 is OUT!!!

Yes! It's finally out and ready for reading!

Here's the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01NABUW69/ref=sr_1_6?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1480291627&sr=1-6&keywords=Michelle+Erickson


Enjoy! :D


-T.Erickson

HoC 4 Udate

Hello All,

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner. I update facebook, but I don't update here as often. Gotta fix that!

In any case 44/52 chapters are complete for the final go through for book 4! I have 5 more illustrations to do and the art will be complete.

So, hopefully, the book will come out Thanksgiving weekend! :D


-T. Erickson

Book 4 Update - 7th draft

Hello All,

We were handed back the copy from our first pre-reader. Yay! Mom's finished fixing all the small mistakes. Now we need to discuss cutting chapters and rearranging a few events to make it flow better.

More good news, I've completed all 52 RDs! Now I'm doing the Line Art (or LA). I'm on 18/52. Some of them are really detailed, others are simple. Some have more than 1 subject in them so it gives the readers more to look at.

Mom is also having her books uploaded to other places now: Kobo, Nook, iTunes, 24 Symbols, Page Foundry, Scribd, Toline. (HoC series will be added later.)


Keep happy,

-T. Erickson

HoC 4 Update-Sept or Oct?

Hello Wonderful Readers,

There's a lot we've been working on. So far, we've got 50 chapters in bk 4! This could change. We're currently having our first pre-reader read bk4. It's on draft 7 at the moment.

I've been working on the rough drafts for the chapter headings. They're the usual run of emotions (the rainbow spectrum!). This round, more of them are complicated due to what I found exciting in this book and because I have more time.

We have a lot more battle and emotions are riding high as we complete this book and head onto the final book in the series: Fourth Corner. Believe it or not, we have some of book 5 written (in its earliest form, but still it's exciting).

Questions you may have:

Q: Will there be deaths? 
A: Many.

Q: Are the lead characters some of those deaths? (Sarah, Ransom, Dee, etc.)
A: Perhaps. You'll have to read and find out. ;)

Q: Are Sarah and Ransom finally going to be bf/gf in this book?
A: They want to be and are constantly begging us to allow it to happen. Hmm...

Q: Is there going to be another Oblamay chapter?
A: No. We originally had 2 chapters of the next oblamay but it tended to bog the story down.We cut those chapters out.

Q: Will bk 4 come out at the end of August, like you said?
A: September, hopefully.

Q: Why do you keep switching the release dates for bk 4?
A: Would you give an important dinner guest a 1/2 made meal? No. And we won't either. We want your taste buds to dance and sing with all the wonderful savory storylines we've come up with, leaving you begging for more! "Bring on the dessert!"

Hopefully that answers some of your questions and will let you know about the progress.

-T. Erickson

HoC has a new label look!

God works in wonderful ways and at times through others.

Hannah Bischoff has become our typographer for House of Cards. She's done an amazing job at making the books look official. (We've now got a logo/trademark! How cool is that?)

For those who are wondering: "Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and appealing when displayed. The arrangement of type involves selecting typefaces, point size, line length, line-spacing (leading), letter-spacing (tracking), and adjusting the space within letters pairs (kerning)." -Wikipedia

Hannah's also been kind enough to start teaching me how to use social media (Facebook, Instagram, Pintrest, etc), something that I'm not as connected with as I need to be. 

I'm looking at this as a wonderful way to connect with others, who'll want to spread the word of an amazing book series that is ready to make its place in the hearts of readers forever.

Update:

HoC 4 will probably not be ready until August 2016. Sorry guys. But we did complete RD 3 yesterday. RD 4 is in the works. Hopefully, things will go a lot smoother now.

-T. Erickson

HoC Bk 4 Update!

Hello Everyone,

There's a lot going on. We're still working on the 3rd RD of book 4. We're working on setting everything up just right. 
Soooo...we're probably not going to get the book out in June. (Sorry! :( But you understand, you wouldn't want to give someone a half baked pie.) Hopefully we'll have it out by the end of July.

I've got a long list of illustrations to do, 41 so far. Could develop into more. (YIKES!)

Meanwhile, have a funny sketch I did with Sarah and Taps discussing Tippi (tight pants): 

Hope it tickled your funny bone. It made me smile. :D

-T.Erickson

Siren Call - Cover, Sneak Peek!

Well Ladies and Gents,

Here's HoC bk 4's cover!

That's Sarah on the front. She's looking back at Ransom, her date. She's wearing a special pair of gloves to make her dress more formal. You might recognize the roses in her hair from book two, they were a gift.
Does she look a little different? Her hair has gone from brown to blonde. Why? You'll find out inside the story.

The car behind her is a Rolls Royce limo. And yes, the driver knows exactly what they're doing! It's a SUITE car, and if you've read the series, then you know what this baby can do. BUT, it's not the limo that first chased her. This particular limo is grey.

Behind her is an ice cream parlor: Good E's Ice Cream Shoppe. It's special today is: Rocky Road. (I thought it was a fun gag.)


Hope that tickles your speculation until we can get the book out. We're hoping for June. But we'll see how fast I can get the inside illustrations done.

-T. Erickson

HoC Bk3 is Out! :D

Slap Jack: House of Cards Bk 3 is finally out (digitally) and ready for purchasing!

Go here to purchase: HoC Bk3

The blurb on the back:

Sarah survived the first two weeks at the Tapestry! 

Taps adopted her and she now has siblings that were also orphans. 
She's becoming more confident using her magic. 
Ransom is in love with her - she sees it in his eyes and feels it in his heart, even if she's too young to do anything about it. 

On the flip side: 

Her bodyguard was murdered and it remains unsolved. 
Taps is not only a cursed ghost, she and Sarah's brother are infected with a werewolf virus. 
Sarah still isn't sure what Dee is, but glad she's nearly finished knitting her brain back together. 

On the bright side of things, her friends are safe! 

She thinks. 
Maybe. 
Hmm...is anyone safe in the magical world? Ever?


I know it's late for me posting this (it was released April 14th of this year), but we've been busy with Books 4 &5! Our artist is already working on book 4's cover.

Once these books are finished, (we're thinking 5 or so for this series), I'm hoping to update this blog with more pictures and info on the main cast.

So, here's hoping for many accomplishments and that our books will be widespread and known in the next year!

-T. Erickson

HoC Bk2 is out!

Good News!

Shuffled: House of Cards Bk 2 is finally out (digitally) and ready for purchasing!

Go here to purchase: HoC Bk2

The blurb on the back:

Sarah and her friends reached the Tapestry alive! 
She’s not sure how long they’ll stay that way. 

Life at the Tapestry isn’t as easy as Magicks think. 
Sal wants to run away, 
Sarah suspects Dee’s a lost mermaid. 
School is life threatening. 
Worst of all, her guardian is a ghost! 
Oh, and the Lurker King is still on the hunt. 

It’s been a tough first week. 
But it has nothing on the second!

The Tapestry gang is back and better than ever! They've got a lot to learn as the danger increases, some questions are answered, and more begin.

Have a great new year and enjoy reading more about Sarah and her friends in their next adventure!


-T. Erickson

Merry Christmas Special: A Tapestry Christmas!

A Tapestry Christmas

By M & T Erickson

It was Sarah’s first Christmas at the Tapestry.  

She had no idea what to expect, especially after what they’d gone through to get the family Christmas tree yesterday.  Because her parents had tried living like humans, she’d only been to tree lots.  Getting a tree from the Beyond had been a lot more than she’d bargained for.

Taps, with Jeffrey at her side, stood before their group, seven teenagers, in the dining room and announced, “Now that you’ve secured our family tree, there is one more Christmas tradition that I must introduce.” 

She held out her hand and Jeffrey reached into his pocket and pulled out a small hand carved wood box and placed it on her palm.  On the front was:  Twiggle  and beneath that:  Handcrafted by Messrs. Persimmons and Cujels.

The beaming Taps carefully slid open the lid. 

Inside, was…a pickle.  It was six inches tall, there were bumps for facial features and a red scarf was tied where a neck would be.  On its hands were miniscule red and white mittens.  On its spindly legs were oversized white fur boots that reached to its knobby knees.  The odd boots had curled toes with a bell dangling from each.

“The bells are used for children under age eight, so you won’t need those.” 

They disappeared. 

“You are all up for the challenge.” 

The blonde Cam and dark haired Sal looked at each other, no doubt wondering how a pickle would be a challenge.

“What do pickles have to do with Christmas, mom?” asked T, Sarah’s adopted brother. 

Taps smiled.  “If you catch him, you get to find out.” 

T’s pupils enlarged and his shoulders twitched.  “I’m ready.” 

“First the rules, Tristan.” 

“Oh, right,” T said, eyes fixed on the pickle.  “It’s just that something in me wants to bite it…is that allowed?” 

“No.”  Jeffrey answered with one eyebrow rising.   “If you do, you’ll be disqualified, your mouth will be glued shut, your teeth will dissolve, and you’ll never play Twiggle again.”  

Taps gently cleared her throat.  “Twiggle was started by my father, finished by Jeffrey, and enchanted by my mother.” 

Cam looked at his idol.  “Cool…but, what’s the point of the tradition?  It’s a pickle, not a jinn trapped in a pickle – or is it?” 

All of them looked at her, knowing anything was possible with Taps. 

She smiled as Jeffrey answered, “The tradition was begun the year that Madam’s sister, Liddy, was born.  Master Persimmons and I made it to keep Madam from driving her mother to distraction.” 

 Taps’ cheeks pinkened.  “Back to Twiggle.”

The glass-looking pickle stood up in the box and the bumps he had for eyes opened, revealing his eyes were like tiny head lamps.

“Why is he called Twiggle?”  asked Dee, looking curiously at the pickle.

“Twas a combination of twitch and giggle,” Jeffrey said, looking fondly at Dee, who, with her coppery hair, looked a great deal like Taps.  “Madam will demonstrate before she releases him.”

Taps instructed, “For the following 24 days you will search for Twiggle.  He is limited to the house proper.  He cannot go into the kitchen, below stairs, or into any red-knobbed rooms.” 

Cam looked dumbfounded.  “Why would we want to chase a pickle?” 

“And what if Raffy or Rascal catch him?”  Dee bit her lip, worried about her pets.

“Then I guess they’ll get the present,” Taps answered in a tone that indicated it was unlikely. 

“What present?”  T asked.

“For each of the twenty-four bumps on Twiggle’s body, there are seven gifts – one for each of you.  If you catch him you get the presents the day represents.  If he remains uncaught, the days presents go beneath the tree, which Jeffrey and Prance warded to prevent peeking.”

Jeffrey stared at all of them with narrowed eyes, “They will be holograms of the real thing, so there’s no use in trying to shake, peel, or use magic to discover what’s inside.”

T looked disappointed.  “What about my sense of smell?”

“You’re welcome to try,” Jeffrey said.

“You can’t smell holograms,” Zack pointed out.

“How do you know?  Have you ever tried?” T asked, flopping down at the table.

“What kind of presents?” Cam asked.  “A candy cane or what?” 

“No candy.  It could be something as simple as an upgrade for your lunchbox or as complex as a one-time trip to the Hall of Mirrors.” 

“The what?” Zack asked, his attention drawn away from Sal for the first time. 

“A space where time and place mean nothing and everything,” Jeffrey smirked. 

“A puzzle?” T asked.

“I wish Ronnie were here,” Sal said softly.  “She’d love this.  She’s awesome at puzzles.”

“Well, she should be,” Dee said.  “She’s a three.”

Sarah felt Sal’s heart strings tighten.  Ronnie, Sal’s little sister, had been kidnapped months ago with no new leads.

“What does Twiggle do and how do we find it?” Ransom, the only human in their group, asked.

“Watch.” Taps softly said, “Tis the Season.” 

The pickle’s body glowed and glitter-like sparkles filled him, then faded 

“He’s so cute!”  Dee said, smiling widely.  “Can he stay in my room?” 

“No,” Jeffrey bluntly answered. 

“It’s time to show you his bag of tricks.”  Taps held Twiggle up to her face, stared at it, and said, “Blend.” 

He became invisible except for a faint outline. 

“Jump.” 

Now visible, he leaped from her hand up to the chandelier, giggling mischievously and twitching, making the chandelier sway a bit.      

“Sneak.” 

He walked off the edge of the chandelier and walked on air, doing a swan dive to the floor, tucking and rolling at the last moment.  He jumped to his booted feet and with a salute, disappeared. 

“Where’d he go?” asked T, his eyes scanning the ground. 

“The hunt has begun,” Jeffrey calmly announced.    

“Can we work together?” Dee asked.  “Raffy and Rascal will want to be part of this.” 

“Course,” Taps answered. 

“How long did it take you to catch it?” Sarah asked.

“Twenty-seven years, with Lacey’s help.” 

“That explains a lot,” Cam whispered to Zack.

Lacey was Taps’ cousin and very…unpredictable. 

“One more thing, children,” Taps said.  “Twiggle carries the true meaning of Christmas within.” 

Ransom gave her an odd look.  “A pickle carries the meaning of Christmas?” 

“Truly,” Taps confirmed.  “If no one has caught him beforehand, I will summon him on the eve of the 24th.  Good luck.”

*

The entire month of December, no one had any luck beyond seeing Twiggle’s footprints and too-brief appearances. 

He’d appeared in front of Cam, whacked him on the nose, and disappeared. 

Twice, he’d appeared on Sarah’s shoulder and she was bowled over by others in their efforts to get him. 

Ransom was smacked on the head with a bag of mistletoe as he looked at Sarah at dinner. Twiggle ran off, giggling madly, diving into Prance’s tiny mug.  The pink goblin, who was head of security, gave a grinchy grin, a wicked laugh and vanished, mug in hand. 

“Now we’ll never find it!”  T complained.

The next day, Dee nearly won the game by accidentally catching Twiggle in her crochet work, but he got away because she shook him free.  “You should see the knots he left behind!”

Sal and Sarah had their first serious argument when Twiggle appeared on Zack’s head and Sal used her bat to try and knock Twiggle out.  She missed.  It took Sarah an entire afternoon to heal Zack’s concussion. 

T was all over the place trying to catch the elusive pickle, only to find him sitting on his forehead whenever he woke – and disappearing on the spot, with a giggle and twitch. 

One night after dinner, Sarah excused herself.

“Where are you going?  Did you spot the pickle?” Cam and Sal both rose to their feet, their eyes scanning the room.

“No, I’m going to bed, I’m tired.”

“You give up way too easy,” Sal said with a frown.

“We’ll get a present anyway,” Dee calmly said, finally untying the last knot Twiggle had made.

“Tomorrow’s Christmas Eve,” Sarah pointed out.  “I don’t care about catching a pickle anymore. It took Taps twenty-seven years to find it!”

“It’s not about the gifts!”  Cam exclaimed.

“Then what is it about?” Ransom asked him.

“It’s about the right to gloat that I did it faster than Taps!”

 “Exactly,” Sal agreed.

“There it is!”  T yelled, howling like wolf and knocking over the table to capture Twiggle.

Zack rolled his eyes and waved good night to Sarah.

She walked up the stairs, feeling Ransom’s eyes on her. 

Honestly, they were no closer to capturing the pickle than they were on the first day.  In the future, she would not join the hunt.  She’d rather spend time walking around the beautifully decorated Tapestry grounds…with Ransom of course.

On Christmas Eve, they went to the parlor after dinner. Taps entered the room with Jeffrey, who moved to stand over by the gorgeous family tree.  It had the surprising habit of slapping your hands if you touched its ornaments.

Taps opened her hand and said, “Silent Night.”

Twiggle appeared at the top of the tree near the star and jumped down to her gloved palm.  Once there, he split in half like a broken peanut shell. 

A mem began, filling the entire room, enveloping them in a small manger with the Christ child in swaddling clothes, gazing up at the beautiful Mary and his foster-father, Joseph.  A brilliant star beamed overhead and a heavenly choir of angels was singing.  In silent awe they watched as shepherds came to worship the child destined to save them all.

There was a moment of silence as the image faded.

“Thank you,” Ransom said into the reverent quiet.  “My family used to read the story every Christmas Eve.  It’s been a long time since I’ve heard it and now I got to see it in a way I’d never dreamed possible as a boy.”

“Mom, did you burp baby Jesus while you were there?” Dee asked. 

Taps gave her a long look.  “That was a mem of a portrayal my father witnessed.”

“Wow, that is old,” T said, unselfconsciously.

Jeffrey nodded.  “Indeed, as he was born in the 14th century.”

“It’s all the more precious because of it,” Taps agreed with a happy smile.  She put the now-whole Twiggle back into the box.  As she slid on the lid, heaps of presents appeared beneath the tree and spilled out onto the floor.

“My father always said, The only way to Christmas at the Tapestry is through Christ,” she told them.  “Because all worthwhile gifts come from Him.”

“I can hardly wait for next year!” T said, his eyes fixed on the box with Twiggle inside.

“I’m glad,” Taps said with a twinkle in her eye.  “Because this year we went easy on you.  Next year, the rules change.”

Background story:  We have a family pickle.  I hid it every year in a different spot and our children searched always found it.  As they got older, I finally found the perfect spot and the pickle remains hidden to this day.  This set me to thinking what a magical pickle would be like – at the Tapestry.  (Michelle) 

Merry Christmas to one and all!

This was a cut scene from Book 3. We just couldn't fit it in. But we still wanted to share this special moment with all of you. Mom and I had a fun time writing it!

I hope you enjoy the Christmas season and hold the true meaning deep within your hearts.

-T. Erickson

HoC Bk2 is closer to its release!

Hi Everyone,

Good news!

Bk 2 is closer to completion! All the illustrations are finished (wipes sweat off brow) and we've placed them in the book.

We're waiting on the new cover. Things shouldn't be long now. I'm just praying that we can get it done before Christmas, so all of you will have a good story to read, come Christmas day. If not, it's because we're making sure everything is smoothed out.


-T. Erickson

Hey, Bk2 Update on Drawing Headings

Hey Everyone,

I know I haven't written anything for almost a month but family stuff does that to you. On to the news:

I'm nearly finished with all the Line Art (LA) for HoC bk2. I have a few more pictures left. But, I'm moving along and I'm pretty happy with the results so far.

There's a couple of fun or thrilling pictures in it that I hope will make you just think "Wow!" or "Cool!" or just make you smile/laugh.

Write ch-yah later.


-T. Erickson

Update on RD's for chapter headers on HoC2

Hi Everyone,

Finally completed all the Rough Drafts (art) for the chapter headings. Guess what? So far, you're gonna get 56 of them! Geez! (wipes sweat off the brow) Some were a lot of work, others were pretty simple.
Although the simple ones save on time, I find that I prefer more action shots or something that can evoke emotion.
I tend to listen to a variety of mood music to get just the right expression on a character's face. For example: Sarah has a more magical-innocent feel to her themes; Cameron (Cam) has quick battle music; Ari has a lot of violin and Lindsey Stirling; Ransom has more faith promoting lyrics, Taps has anything from calm-happy melodies to battle, The Lurker King...well, I hate him, he gets shifty themes. (Smirk)

Anyway, just thought I'd catch you up. Hope all's well and fun all of 'yah.

Have a great Halloween everyone!


-T. Erickson

Taps' Mansion Garden Picture

I commissioned our cover artist (Mates Laurentiu) to work on this picture. I think he did a very good job, especially since we have 2 very different styles. But he was kind enough to work with my constant corrections and now you have a wonderful piece of art to look at.

Description:

Taps: Realm Keeper (RK), Royal bodyguard, Highest ranked Club of her time; Teresa Accolade Persimmons is one of a kind. She delights in pleasant company and beautiful gardens when she has time off. Here she can be seen speaking with General Zizzor.

(She would normally be wearing her mother's lacy gloves, but, due to my excitement, I didn't have the artist do it.)

General Zizzor (Gold and white hummingbird): Watch out for his battle prowess! 

(There's a lot more to know about this cute little fellow in the books.)

Smitten Rose (in the vase): A creation of Jeffery, Taps' butler. (See HOC Bk1 for the deeper reason)

Books: Taps is all about expanding her knowledge and deepening her understanding. *They actually are: the Holy Bible (brown), Book of Mormon (blue), Children's Song Book (small green), and the open book is...hmm...I'll have to think about that one.

Bench Decor: The moon and stars represent Taps' office. As a RK, she's one rank below royalty.

Mer-man statue: King Tempest, whom was courting Taps at one time...

(This isn't the pose his statue has in the books. But I liked what Mr. Laurentiu did, so it stayed.)

Ghosty Butterflies: There are several varieties in Taps' gardens. These blue butterflies are there to help one relax.

Roses: Taps loves roses, especially enchanted ones.

Tava Tree: This special tree is literally "out of this world" and was a gift. 

(If you've ever read my mother's COS prequels and specifically books 3-5, you should know ALL about the Tava tree.)

Garden (In general): Everything in Taps' garden does something magical, from the plants to the decor.

(Several of the BG trees should actually be fruit trees, but I didn't think about it before Mates had done a lot of work and since there were other parts of the picture that I felt more important, the correct trees weren't put on. Should've added a distraction creature too, and fairies...oh well, thoughts for next time.)

So there you have it. :) One beautiful picture and an idea about what a small part of Taps' garden looks like.

-T. Erickson

Third Edit for Shuffled (HoC2) done!

Third edit complete! (YAY!)

Now for our fourth edit.

Generally, we do 6-7 edits, to make sure our book has the best adventure possible in its pages.

As for the illustration side, I'm working on the rough drafts for the chapter headings.


-T. Erickson

Good News - Shuffled update

Good news,

We've just completed our 3rd edit for HoC bk2!

A lot of the big events are running smoother.

Now for some of our pre-readers opinions...theeen, back to editing.


-T. Erickson

Reader's Favorite - Final Round

Well,

We didn't place in the final Reader's Favorite. That was a disappointment.
There were 1,000's of books and it is international.

But, as Taps would say: "Moving on."
We're still going to tell the story and enjoy our work.


-T. Erickson

Shuffled, Hoc bk2 update

We've finished the 2nd draft and are working on the 3rd.

So far, we have over 50 chapters! We're going to be doing a lot of editing. Mom usually likes to stick to thirty chapters or so. This way, the story is full but the readers won't have to feel like they're wading through fluff.

It's part of the challenge the book presents. This magical world is enormous! And even the small things tend to have a story behind them. I actually like all the learning that's done in the SKS classes, I find it fascinating. But, still, we might have to cut some of these classes because it's not important enough to the story.
It's possible we'll post them here. But we'll see.

-T. Erickson

Shuffled-Front Cover

Well,

Here's the front cover of book 2!

This is a scene that will be happening in the book. 

I'm very excited about the armor, like I told you. I've always been fascinated with armor and I've wanted a suit of it for as long as I can remember. :) In any case, I helped with the concept for the special armor that Sarah's wearing.

Our artist is very good at drawing armor, as you can see. I love the reflected light and all the fine detail that I had him put on it. 

The armor is important and necessary for the mask that's in that tank. It's something you'd rather not mess with.

We need to figure out the blurb on the back of the book. Once the book is closer to completion, then we'll have a better idea about what to say.

Enjoy!

-T.Erickson

HoC Bk2 - Shuffed Update

Hello Everyone!

Just to let you know, we're still in the editing process. We have several more rounds to go. So far, bk2 has 500+ pages but it is in the early stages. We have some exciting scenes coming up and a tad more action! ;)

I've hurt my wrist so, I can't do much drawing at the moment. I'll hopefully get that fixed soon. Can't wait to get back to the sketches.

Also, to alert you, we have some big stuff going on here at home. So, don't expect much during the month of September. Hopefully, you'll get more fun stuff to look at in October!

-T.Erickson