My readers are amazing. I’ve had so many of you asking after Dragon Strike and sending me wonderful messages about Riders of Fire. It’s been a blast writing my books, knowing you’re waiting out there to gobble them up!
Recently I issued a challenge to my readers via my newsletter, and asked them to suggest names for characters in my short story, Ruby Dragon (to be published in 2020) and in Dragon Strike!
I also had a wonderful response to my request for character names. I was blown away by receiving over two hundred names, most of them well-suited to Dragons’ Realm. Choosing was really tricky!
Here is the roll call of honor for my fabulous readers who named characters in Dragon Strike!
Thank you to:
Amy Condra for naming Willow, a young widow in Lush Valley
Susanne Galley for naming Tylishia, a young mage
Monica Lewallen for naming Arturo, another young mage
Riley Gentsch for naming Warlin, Roberto’s beekeeper friend
John Rambish for naming Warlin’s wife Anastia, the best seamstress in Naobia.
My readers and reviewers deserve 5 gold stars!! Thank you.
I’ve been so lucky to have enthusiastic readers draw wonderful Riders of Fire Fan Art. I’ve been very slow to post these cute dragon pictures, but wanted to take a moment before the year ends to showcase some of the wonderful talent out there.
These lovely creations have been made by readers of all ages and walks of life. I hope you enjoy them.
I’d like to acknowledge the Indie Fantasy Fanatics, who hosted my fun game which encouraged budding artists to show us their work!
Here goes…
This cute dragonet is by Ana Cordoba!A young NZ girl drew this gorgeous picture of Zaarusha defending a unicorn! Now, there’s an idea for a story! Her picture hangs in my office so I can see it every day.Christine Marie took this photo of her pets who are in disguise as dragons! Luna RIP. We hope Fawkes keeps going for many more years! Aren’t they cute?
Melissa Jean created a cute rendition of Shorty from my story Wingspan.Ana Codoba has captured Erob, Roberto’s dragon flying at twilight, which made his midnight blue scales take on a violet hue. Doesn’t he look fabulous? Beware, his fire looks hot!
Last but not least, not fan art, but a fan of some art…
After over twenty hours of travel, at nearly midnight the day before I left (time zones do that!), I met a wee friend in Las Vegas airport! This baby still had his wings furled and was just as tired as I was, so I couldn’t hug him long… his mama dragon roared, calling him to bed!
They’re reading Riders of Fire here! And here! And there!
I recently ran a contest for my Riders of Fire readers. Here are the results. Meet my readers from around the world.
Our Riders of Fire readers grand prize winners are Zach and Cherish
Cherish Kasner in Ledges State Park in Iowa
Cherish is from Madrid, Iowa USA, and loves Ezaara. She says, “The Riders of Fire books are original and they pull you in!” She sent some lovely photos of her having fun with dragons, a trainee dragon rider, swords and magic! Scroll down to see more of Cherish!
Cherish’s A2 poster of Dragons’ Realm is being flown by dragon post to her doorstep!
Zachary Spencer in Alberta Canada
Zach has many aliases, including Zach the Shark, because he gobbles up so many books and is always prowling the waters of Amazon looking for more! (If you didn’t realize Amazon was a sea, it is now! I claim poetic license). He helps run a Discord Server for readers in his spare time, loves gaming and is a valiant Rider of Fire, leading the troops against Commander Zens!
When asked what he likes about Riders of Fire, Zachary tells us, “I love the dragons, fast paced feel. You do not fear having loss or darkness, and of course your overall creativity.”
Wow, that’s cool and totally unexpected. Thanks, Zach.
I’m hoping the dragons don’t freeze their wings off flying up to Canada to drop Zach’s Dragons’ Realm poster to him. (I’m also hoping the sharks don’t eat them, but don’t tell Zach that!)
Lanyard winners
The following readers have won lanyards which are in dragons’ saddlebags, winging their way to their doors.
Christine Steffens in Minnesota
Christine Steffens in Minnesota loves all things dragons and even has some pets that like to steal her e-reader and read about their fellow dragons. Look at this cutie!
Christine’s wee dragonet even matches the color scheme for Bronze Dragon, which is quite a feat! I wonder if the dragon is a chameleon, changing color depending on what book its holding.
When asked what she loves about Riders of Fire, Christine says, “Dragons, of course!”
Yeah, I get that!
Andrew Agnew in Findlay, Ohio, USA
Andrew loves dragons too (surprise!) and owns a super-sized copy of Dragon Hero which he’s proudly cradling above. He’s a Dragon Hero himself, out crusading against tharuks and battling evil.
Originally from Australia, he’s now at home in Ohio where it’s rumored that dragons are plentiful and there are many tharuks to fight. He loves audio books and e-books!
Andrew says, “I love the connection between dragons and their riders, and not just in your books, but others as well. Especially when the dragons are good and not evil. Can’t wait for the next in the series.”
The words of a true dragon hero! Go Andrew!
A young Kasner dragon rider!
Cherish’s daughter is also a fan of dragons and got into the spirit of things. I don’t usually publish kids’ names on my blog. But here she is, armed with her sword, a trusty dragon at her side, and a great book to read!
Way to go!
Ina Fowler in Spring Hill, Florida
Ina was in a playful colorful mood and tried out Zaarusha’s rainbow colors while riding dragons!
I love this attitude of experimentation and the bright upbeat colors that every dragon rider should wear as a warning that we will triumph over evil tharuks and the darkness of Commander Zens’ Death Valley!
Ina says Riders of Fire is “Intense and mystifying.”
Well, in this photo, I think Ina is too!
Richard Goodrum in Carrollton
When asked what he likes about Riders of Fire, Richard Goodrum sent me this photo, with the simple statement, “Dragons!”
I asked him if he had any further comments, and he said, “Dragons!”
I think that says it all! He’s obviously fiercely loyal to a species that has a special place in our hearts!
Deb, USA
Deb lives in the USA and loves Riders of Fire. She’s an e-book, print book and Audible fan and has the books in all three mediums! That’s pretty awesome.
Rumor has it that she’s writing books of her own, but not about dragons. Hey, it doesn’t always have to be about dragons! Good luck, Deb.
Cherish deep in story!Cherish fighting tharuks with a dragon at her side!
More Riders of Fire readers
Alisha and Elena Hewett of Crockett Texas, USA visiting New Zealand earlier this year
In January this year, I had a surprise when someone called me out of the blue and wanted to visit! Elena and Alisha devour all the books in their local library and often make recommendations to the librarians, who are happy to order titles they like.
It’s cool to know that Riders of Fire even has a home in Crockett!
If you live in Crockett, Texas, feel free to take my books out of the local library. Also feel free to recommend them to your own library!
And yes, we three do actually have eyes. It was just a bright sunny Wellington day!
More Riders of Fire readers’ comments
Some readers didn’t have photos, or experienced technical glitches when uploading, but wanted to let me know what they thought of the series. Here are their comments.
Sherryl Taylor of Eugene, USA, says, “I LOVE LOVE LOVE DRAGONS. Have loved them since I was a kid. Now I’m a 66 year old kid!”
I know young adult fiction appeals to readers of all ages. I’ve had a kid of 9 years old write to me about my books and also pensioners in their late eighties who enjoy a dragonback adventure as much as teens do!
Stuart McClements of Bellshill says, “I like all things fantasy and horror!”
Although I don’t write stirct horror, I do have a couple of dark short stories about dragons that haven’t been widely published (in magazines or out-of-print anthologies). They may hit the light of day as soon as I have a good cover. So hang in there, Stuart, and you may get fantasy dragons with a tinge of horror!
Gene Mallard of Lilburn, Georgia, loves the covers of Riders of Fire.
A special thank you to Christian Bentulan, my amazing cover designer! He really has helped this series come to life.
Thank you to everyone who has participated in sharing their love of Riders of Fire.
