All posts by Morgan L. Busse

Morgan L. Busse is a writer by day and a mother by night. She is the author of the epic fantasy Follower of the Word series and the award-winning steampunk series, The Soul Chronicles. Her debut novel, Daughter of Light, was a Christy and Carol Award finalist. During her spare time she enjoys playing games, taking long walks, and dreaming about her next novel.

The Cost of Saving the World

A lot of stories involve the hero saving the world. But is that realistic if you consider what the hero has been through? What if saving the world means saving the villain? Or that bully who made the hero’s life terrible back in high school? Or the person who lied and it cost the hero his or her job, home, or even their first love?

When I started writing Blood Secrets, it hit me (and therefore Cass as I was writing her story), that if she saved her world—all the people who were forced to live on mountaintops, airships, and sky islands because of the deadly Mist that covered everything else—she would be saving the people who saw her as lesser than. The people who forced everyone else off the mountains to die in the Mist, including her parents. The same people who would never think of saving someone like her.

As I wrote her story, I felt Cass’s resentment and anger towards the “echelons”—those at the top of society and literally the world. She was fine with saving others like her. But the thought of saving the people who ordered the purges that killed so many made her feel sick. In her mind, they didn’t deserve her sacrifice.

Honestly, I had never thought about it before. The hero saves the world. It’s what a hero does. But this was the first time I really thought about what that meant, and who it meant saving. It made me look at myself. Would I be willing to save everyone? Even those who have hurt me? Who have cost me so much in my life? Ugh. That’s a hard thought.

People love heroes, and sometimes even want to be one themselves. But the reality is being a hero is really hard. It’s not just saving the world; it’s saving those who live in the world. The good and the bad. Those deserving and those not so much. That’s what a real hero does.

I won’t share what decision Cass made because that is part of her journey. But I’m glad I was able to write her story because it made me think more about how I would react in her situation. And about God, who ultimately gave all to save a world that did not want Him.

How Writing Helped Me Overcome My Fear of Flying

I’m afraid to fly. At first, I tried to ignore it. Then the panic attacks came. And there was this one time I accidentally grabbed my neighbor’s arm during turbulence, which was really embarrassing. But it all came to a head when I was waiting for a flight at the airport and felt like I was going to burst into tears right there at the gate that I knew I needed help.

I didn’t want to stop flying. I love traveling! But the fear of plummeting to the ground scared me, so I talked to my doctor and was given medicine to help me calm down. The problem is it made me really groggy. But hey, at least I could fly again.

Then I started writing Secrets in the Mist. Half of this book is about flying and one third is hang gliding. You know, flying with just a kite on your back. To write realistically about hang gliding, I started studying the sport. I read all the articles I could find, watched a lot of YouTube videos, and in the end spent over 10 hours immersing myself in the sky.

As I first imagined, then wrote each scene in Secrets in the Mist, something started to happen. I started to lose my fear of flying. It wasn’t the first time I tried to read the science behind flight to help me lose my fear of flying, but this time, I was doing it in my head. I was feeling the air and wind, tilting my glider, catching the air drafts, and not just understanding how to fly in my mind, but also with my heart.

I realized a plane couldn’t fall out of the sky just like my character couldn’t fall out of the sky. That an experienced flyer understood what to do in storms and sudden gusts of wind. And should the plane actually lose its engines, the pilot would help it glide to the ground the same way my gliders eased their way to a landing.

Not only that, by creating the exhilarating feelings my character felt when she was gliding began to seep into my psyche. I felt her joy and freedom, her lack of fear, and even more, how she felt more connected to God when it was just her, the wind, and the sky. I saw the beauty of flying through my character’s eyes.

I can fly now. Without medication. I actually enjoy the takeoffs and the feeling of the plane gliding through the air. Will I try hang gliding someday? Probably not, I still hate heights. But I never dreamed that writing about flying would help me overcome my fear of it. This is the power of imagination, and the power of story.

Happy Release Day!

Today is the day! Secrets in the Mist is now available! Yeah!!! Do you have your copy yet? Staying up until 2am to read?

What’s lurking in the Mist is the least of their worries…

In a world where humanity lives in the sky to escape a deadly mist below, Cass’s only goal is survival. That is, until she finds a job on the airship Daedalus as a diver. Now she explores ruined cities, looking for treasure and people’s lost heirlooms until a young man hires her to find the impossible: a way to eradicate the Mist.

Theodore Winchester is a member of one of the Five Families that rule the skies. Following in his father’s footsteps, he searches for the source of the Mist and hopes to stop the purges used to control overpopulation. But what he finds are horrifying secrets and lethal ambition. If he continues his quest, it could mean his own death.

The Mist is rising and soon the world will be enveloped in its deadly embrace, turning what’s left of humanity into the undead.

~Buy Now~

The Power of Pretending and Writing

Let’s pretend. Those were my favorite words when I was a kid. I said them almost everyday.

“Let’s pretend we are unicorns living in the forest.” “Let’s pretend we are building a canoe to ride down the river to the ocean.” “Let’s pretend we live in the sky.”

After I would say those magical words, my siblings and I would embark on a day filled with imagination, storytelling, and character playing.

I never realized how I still pretend today. Instead of asking my brother and sisters if they want to pretend, I ask my readers:

—”Let’s pretend we have to live on the mountaintops because there is a mist that fills the valleys and turns you into zombies.” (the premise for Secrets in the Mist)

—”Let’s pretend we can visit dreams.” or “Let’s pretend we can control water.” (both premises for the Ravenwood Saga)

—”Let’s pretend that when I touch you, I can see every thought and memory you have.” (the premise for Daughter of Light).

See where I am going? I never gave up pretending. Instead, I turned it into stories. I hold out my hand to my readers and I say, “Let’s pretend today.”

Don’t forget to pretend for there is joy in creating. And the world needs our pretend. It gives people a reprieve from life, and hope and fortitude when they return. I’ll leave you with these words from J.R.R. Tolkien:

“Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisoned by the enemy, don’t we consider it his duty to escape?. . . If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we’re partisans of liberty, then it’s our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!”

Cover Reveal for Secrets in the Mist

I’m so excited to share with you the cover for Secrets in the Mist, the first book my new steampunk series. And, without further ado, here it is!!!


What’s lurking in the Mist is the least of their worries…

In a world where humanity lives in the sky to escape a deadly mist below, Cass’s only goal is survival. That is, until she finds a job on the airship Daedalus as a diver. Now she explores ruined cities, looking for treasure and people’s lost heirlooms until a young man hires her to find the impossible: a way to eradicate the Mist.

Theodore Winchester is a member of one of the Five Families that rule the skies. Following in his father’s footsteps, he searches for the source of the deadly Mist and hopes to stop the purges used to control overpopulation. But what he finds are horrifying secrets and lethal ambition. If he continues his quest, it could mean his own death.

The Mist is rising and soon the world will be enveloped in its deadly embrace, turning what’s left of humanity into the undead.

***

Isn’t it beautiful! It captures everything I wanted in this cover: the steampunk genre, a sense of adventure, and the world where this story takes place 🙂 Here are more facts about Secrets in the Mist:

—This will be my first Limited-Edition Hardcover. Yep! Notice Limited Edition. Which means if you want this lovely book in hardcover, order as soon as possible!

Secrets in the Mist releases AUGUST 2021, just in time for that vacation or beach read this summer 🙂

—This is the first book in the SKYWORLD series. It’s a dualogy, which means you only have to wait for one more book to find out the ending 🙂

—This book will look amazing on your bookshelf. Seriously. Because it’s beautiful!

~ORDER NOW~

New Book Contract!

I’m excited to announce that I’ve officially signed with Enclave Publishing for my new series, Skyworld. The first book, Secrets in the Mist, comes out August 2021. Yeah, I know that’s a long time to wait, but I can guarantee it will be worth it! In the meantime, here is what it’s about:

In a world covered in a deadly mist that forces humanity to live in the sky, Cass escapes the purges and survives by her wits until she stumbles onto the airship Daedalus and finds a job as a diver. As a diver, she explores the ruined cities within the mist, searching for treasure and family heirlooms for the rich. But everything changes when a young man hires her to find the very thing that will turn their world upside down: a way to eradicate the mist.

Theodore Winchester is a member of one of the five powerful families that rule the sky over the mist. Following in his father’s footsteps, he searches for the source of the deadly mist that turns people in the undead and hopes to stop the purges used to control over-population. But what he finds are secrets and ambition, and with each question comes horrifying answers. If he continues his search, not only will he encounter opposition, but perhaps even his own death.

But the mist is rising and if a remedy isn’t found soon, the entire world will be enveloped in its deadly embrace, turning all of humankind into monsters.

Just to give you a little background into writing this story, I started taking down notes for Skyworld back in 2015, spent over 10 hours watching videos and reading blogs about hang gliding (and almost went to an airfield to try it out myself!) so I could write the gliding scenes, and have become an expert on 19th century medicine (well, not really, but it feels like it :)). And by getting into my characters and flight, I actually started overcoming my fear of flying (talk about the power of story!).

So there you have it, a new steampunk series coming your way in 2021!

And speaking of steampunk…

Morgan audio BOTH

My other steampunk series, The Soul Chronicles, is now available in audiobook form and narrated by Jaimee Draper. I’ve been listening to these books during a couple long car rides over the last few weeks and let me just say Jaimee has nailed this story with her wonderful narration. Her voice fits Kat perfectly! So if you’ve been wanting to check out the steampunk genre or haven’t had a chance to read this series, consider picking up these audiobooks today 🙂

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Behind the Quote: Cry of the Raven

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Wife. Warrior. Lady of Two Worlds.

Lady Selene Ravenwood has come into her full power as a dreamwalker just as the war with the Dominia Empire begins. Working with the other Great Houses, Selene and Damien use their gifts to secure the borders and save those devastated by the war. But conflict, betrayal, and hatred begin to spread between the Great Houses, destroying their unity as the empire burns a path across their lands. At the same time, Damien Maris starts to lose his ability to raise the waters, leaving the lands vulnerable to the empire’s attacks.

The only one who can unite the houses and restore her husband’s power is Selene Ravenwood. But it will require that she open her heart to those who have hurt her and let go of her past, despite the one who hunts her and will do anything to stop her power.

Will Selene survive? Or is she destined to fall like the dreamwalkers before her?

I love the tagline above: Wife. Warrior. This series is a story about a married couple and how together they are stronger than they are alone.

Damien Quote

This is one of my favorite quotes from Cry of the Raven. A quick recap of the series, after choosing to spare Damien’s life, Selene is on the run for her own life. In order to save her and bring her into his kingdom, Damien offers her marriage. It is one of convenience (or more, salvation), but as the story progresses, both Damien and Selene learn what love is and how to love each other.

I always wanted to write a story with a marriage between the main characters. But I never thought that my own marriage would come into play in the books, or that some of the key scenes would reflect my own life. For an example, let me share with you the story behind the quote above.

I’m a pastor’s wife. Our journey and the various ministries God has taken us through have not been easy. Part of that journey has been multiple moves. At this point I’ve lived in eight different states and for the last ten years we’ve moved into a different house every year (sometimes due to moving to a new city, sometimes because our landlord decided to sell the house we were renting). We also have four kids, two dogs, and a cat, so continually uprooting has always been hard (not to mention packing, cleaning, moving, unpacking, finding a new grocery store, finding new doctors, and making new friends). But I’ve known this is the path God has laid out for my husband and our family, so I’ve always rolled up my sleeves and followed.

Until two years ago.

We had just bought a house (first one after losing our other house ten years ago), and I was so excited to settle down. I hung up pictures (I don’t know when’s the last time I did that), I planted flowers, and I started making long-term plans. After all, we just bought a house, we weren’t really going to move again, right?

Then while walking our dogs one day, my husband shared that it looked like we might be moving again.

I was in shock. For three days I couldn’t even think. Mind you, I had just finished unpacking and was in the current joy of feeling like we were finally going to stay in one place and raise our family.

Shock turned to anger, then grief, then denial. Every hurt I had ever experienced in ministry came bubbling to the surface, every fear, every tear I had ever cried. And I was tired. So tired. During those following days, the very thought of packing again, and now having to sell a house to boot, made me feel physically ill. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do it again. During those darker moments, I thought about just staying put and letting my husband move on without me. I was done. I couldn’t do it anymore. But I also knew that such thoughts would limit me. The more I prayed and thought about it, the more I knew God was moving us again.

Finally, after a day of sobbing, with everything inside of me spilling out, I apologized to my husband. I told him I couldn’t seem to stop all the hurt and fear from coming out. Instead of reprimanding me or just telling me it was okay, this is what he told me:

I’m a rock, and you can crash against me as much as you need to. I won’t move, I won’t leave you. I’ll be here for you because I love you.

I needed to hear that. Badly. I needed to know that no matter what, with all the crying and words coming out of me, they were not going to drive my husband away. I was hurricane, and instead of sending him running for cover, he stood and held me, and understood the storm would pass. He knew that at this moment I needed a rock that wouldn’t move, no matter what I said.

Slowly, as the weeks went by, and as I prayed on my knees every day, God prepared me for our next journey. I got up and I prepared to move our family again. I stayed back and sold our house. And I’m so glad that I didn’t give in to myself and stay behind because I love where we are at now. But I couldn’t have done it if my husband hadn’t told me those words. He was an example of God to me. He understood my pain and fear, and held steadfast to our love, giving me the space to work through what I was feeling.

In Cry of the Raven, Selene has her own crisis where she isn’t sure if she can keep on going. And it causes her to fight with Damien. But then he shares those same words with her, that he won’t leave her. Words that she needs to hear. And later on in the book, when he can’t keep on going, she is able to be his strength. Because that’s what marriage is about. Being there for each other. Helping each other. Being strong when the other is weak, and vice versa. That together you can face so much more than you could alone.

This is what I wanted to share through my story: a picture of marriage. I just never thought I’d quote my husband in my book 🙂

To find out more about The Ravenwood Saga or purchase the books, click here.

Release Day for Cry of the Raven

Happy Release Day!

Can you believe it? The final installment of the Ravenwood Saga is finally here! It’s been a long time coming (I started writing this series back in 2016). And while I was writing this particular book, I was trying to sell our house, raise 4 teens without my husband and best friend (he was working in another state while I stayed back to sell our house), homeschooling, then moving to another state. Let’s just say it was stressful! Sometimes I don’t remember what I wrote. But God watched over me and my family, I finished the series and love how it turned out, and now I get to share the final story with all of you. Enjoy, my friends!

ORDER NOW

 

Tainted Audio

More news! Yes, you read that right! I’m so excited to share that my award-winning steampunk series will be available in audio format this May! Perfect timing for those summer road trips or long work commutes! And it’s available for pre-order now 🙂

PRE-ORDER NOW

 

So what am I up to now? I’m currently working on a new steampunk series tentatively called The Plague Wars and I’m halfway through the first book. I hope to have more news about it soon, but in the meantime, here is the blurb:

In a world covered in a deadly mist that forces humanity to live in the sky, Cass escapes the purges and survives by her wits until she stumbles onto the airship Daedalus and finds a job as a diver. As a diver, she explores the ruined cities within the mist, searching for treasure and family heirlooms for the rich. But everything changes when a young man hires her to find the very thing that will turn their world upside down: a way to eradicate the mist.

Theodore Winchester is a member of one of the five powerful families that rule the sky over the mist. Following in his father’s footsteps, he searches for the source of the deadly mist that turns people in the undead and hopes to stop the purges used to control over-population. But what he finds are secrets and ambition, and with each question comes horrifying answers. If he continues his search, not only will he encounter opposition, but perhaps even his own death.

But the mist is rising and if a remedy isn’t found soon, the entire world will be enveloped in its deadly embrace, turning all of humankind into monsters.

Until then, thank you, readers!

Ebook Sale!

Ebook Boxset Sale! $3.99

Friends! My award-winning steampunk series is now available in an ebook box set and is currently on sale! I don’t know how long this sale will be, so don’t wait too long 😉

And if you’ve already read this series and enjoyed it, would you consider taking a moment to write a review for the box set? I would greatly appreciate that. Thank you!

Buy Now

 

How Mara Jade Could Have Saved Star Wars

So I’ve been a fan of Star Wars since I first saw New Hope (I wasn’t even born when it came out, but I was still a fan 😉). In seminary, as a poor student family with nothing but the nearby library for fun, my husband and I discovered these things called Star Wars books 🤩. We started with Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn and devoured every Star Wars book in that library. Then we started hunting for more (including comics).

We were the couple that when a new book was announced, we were the first to pre-order, then read each book together and discuss it in length. We journeyed with Luke, Leia, and Han through creating a New Republic, setting up a new Jedi Academy, navigating new and old villains, marriage, and children.

We found new characters to love (and hate): Mara Jade, Thrawn, Talon Karrde, and more.

I even wrote a blog post a couple years ago about how Luke and Mara were my favorite fictional married couple because they were awesome apart, but together they were unstoppable (and I wanted to write a couple like that which eventually lead to my Ravenwood series).

So yes, I was a Star Wars fan. Not a toxic one (please don’t lump me with that group), but one who dearly loved that world (I even read fanfiction and played all the video games).

So when the movies started coming out, I was soooo excited. I was going to get to see my favorite characters on the screen 🥰.

Except all my favorite books were labeled legend. Disney was going to go in a new direction.

Oh. Okay. But this is Star Wars! Still Awesome! 😎

And I (for the most part) enjoyed TFA, but was kinda sad that I didn’t get to see a reunion between the big 3, and wasn’t sure what to think of Han’s death.

As you can guess, I didn’t really like TLJ. It didn’t feel like Star Wars to me. Actually, I’ve been so disappointed that I’ve been on the fence about seeing the last one (only one other show made me feel like this that for years I couldn’t talk about it, Dan knows which one that is).

Then Dan and I started talking about what could have made the movies better and he said Mara Jade. And it all clicked together.

Mara Jade could have saved Star Wars. You could still have the story we have right now and Mara Jade would have redeemed it.

She’s a strong female character. She has a past with the Emperor (when Snokes is taken out, Mara could have said I sense something stronger here. Like my old master). She could have been with Luke, trying to pull her husband out of his depression and exile and worked with Rey to help him. She could have been Rey’s mentor and lamented over her nephew’s turn to the dark side because she was once that person. She could have been the mentor who ultimately dies to launch her student into her destiny.

As a storyteller, I began to see what an incredible story that could have been. There is so much Mara could have done with the current story line that would have tied all the loose plot strings together.

Mara Jade could have saved Star Wars.

There is a part of me that wishes that’s the movie out right now. The conclusion to an epic story. Thinking about that makes my heart beat faster. Instead, I’m not sure what I’m going to see or if I’m going to see it.

Please don’t mistake me, I’m not toxic. Just a fan who misses what might have been.