My young adult series, Worldweavers, about Thea Winthrop, a teen who can do no magic in a magical world, was first published by HarperCollins in the heady days when every publisher was hoping to find their own Harry Potter.
My trilogy was no ripoff. Thea is as American as Harry is British and the world of my series is totally my own, invoking both modern computers and Native American gods. But, of course, Harry Potter is the elephant in the living room and I was delighted when the series got excellent reviews, some of them invoking that magic comparison
(see below).
Originally published as a trilogy by HarperCollins, all three books appeared in hardcover editions and then two (#1 and #2) in paperback – but due to a slew of circumstances the books did not get the push or the attention that might have assured a bigger slate of sales. In the end, when the rights of the three original Worldweavers rights reverted to me, I took them to Sky Warrior Publishing and they are now being repackaged and reissued as brand-new editions, initially in ebook format to be followed at a later stage by a paperback edition. The first book in the series, Gift of the Unmage, has just been released in its e-book format, available for an assortment of reading platfoms. The new cover is gorgeous.
The second book, Spellspam, and the third, Cybermage, will follow soon.
And here is the scoop.
There is a final and concluding installment to Thea Winthrop’s story which is coming out exclusively from Sky Warrior when the whole original series has been re-released. “Dawn of Magic” will follow the story arc from the original series, bringing Thea’s story to a thoroughly exciting finale. So, if you know and love these stories, or are just finding them for the first time now, there is that to look forward to. Watch this space.
Oh, a few of those magical reviews:
“Although it will appeal to those who love Harry, there is much more in store for readers who discover, along with Thea, the ordinary magic in the world around them.” Teri S. Lesesne said in a starred Voya review for the first in the series.
“For readers suffering withdrawal (from) Harry Potter, this new series might just suffice,” said a Voya review for the second book.
“…it’s too simplistic to compare this book to (Harry). There’s much more here, including elements of Native American culture and ancient mythology. Thea might be time-traveling and struggling with magic to face nefarious forces, but her situation rings universal for teens struggling to come to terms with their identity.” – Seven Impossible Things before Breakfast.
“This book does remind me of Harry Potter….a highly imaginative story and I really loved it,” said Susan Rappaport of the Rutherford Public Library
As much as I love the idea of a sequel to these wonderful books, I’m one of those people: the kind who won’t be able to put the new one on my shelf because it doesn’t match the covers of the original print of the series. Still, I’m very excited to read it when it finally comes out.
Well, AT THE MOMENT, the new book (the finale, the “Sequel” – if you like – to the trilogy) is going to be matching the new edition covers – so there will be THAT set 🙂 But right now the re-release editions and the new one are initially coming out as ebooks so the shelf question won’t arise until later anyway. I think this final book is going to be fabulous and it really leaves Thea in her Element, so to speak – and I am looking forward to having readers like you reading it and giving me your responses to all that…