Heiress: Birthstone Series Book Two (47 page)

End of Book Two

Sea Gem – Light Pink

Travel Gem – White

Fertility Gem – Deep Red

Warrior Gem – Dark Green

Sky Gem – Pale Yellow w/ Blue Veins

Wisdom Gem – Royal Blue

Destruction Gem – Inky Black

Earth Gem – Brown w/ Amber veins

Heat Gem – Cream w/ Orange Veins

Protection Gem – Vivid Orange

Concealment Gem – Red and Gold Swirled

Youth Gem – Lavender and White Swirled

Weather Gem – Gray w/ Yellow Center

Empathy Gem – Deep Purple

Passion Gem – Fuschia

Prosper Gem – Silver

Light Gem – Pale Orange

Healing Gem – Gold

Beauty Gem – Turquoise

Endurance Gem – Pale Green

First of all, I want to thank my wonderful readers who have
been so patient for the last two years while I worked on Book Two. During that
time, I've seen many positive, thoughtful reviews for Sea Dweller pop up online
and they've been so encouraging. I also want to send a very special thank you
to my Australian readers. The positive ratings, comments, and reviews for the
book from my Aussie readers have been such a thrill for me. I can't express how
much those reviews lifted my spirits, especially on difficult days when it just
seemed too daunting to keep writing. I don't know you personally, but I
consider you friends.

I also want to thank the incredible friends close by who
have kept me writing and continued to push me to finish this book. Selena Kato,
McKenna Thomas, Carrie Amdal, and Carrie's wonderful daughters, Kyrsten,
Karmen, and Kayann have been invaluable with their support, comments, and
advice. I owe many positive changes in the story to them. Ashlee Enz, and my
former writer's group friends, Scott Lazenby, Bill Leslie, Dan Bosserman, and
Madeleine Eno deserve so many thanks for their help, corrections, suggestions,
and critique. I've learned so much from them and their individual perspectives
and writing experience.

Whether they know it or not, the
Clean Indie Reads
online group
has been a huge support. What an amazing group of people filled with so much
talent and generosity! Thanks to Lia London for creating it and thanks to an
incredible bunch of writers.

Also, to my friends and family who loved and promoted the
first book, Liz McNamee, Betsy Grewe, Erin Baxter, Brad and Jenni Terry,
Lindsey Howser, Melissa Taylor, Marcia Woods, Sydney Passmore, Amanda Nelson,
Nina Stephenson, Suzie Kelly, Sydney Passmore, Chikako, Crystal, Sabrina, and
Morgan Hokanson, Chandra Atkinson, Amber Atkinson, Jessica Atkinson, Jessica
Adlard, Lindsey Heaton, Amanda Strong, Ana Glazier, Stacia Howes, Sandy
Lazenby, Carrie Conklin, Sheri Zaugg, and pretty much ALL of Tickle Creek Ward
(especially the AWESOME young women! I love you girls!!) and the amazing people
there who have supported my efforts and left reviews - Thank you so much! I
can't possibly list every single person who has helped me but I haven't
forgotten your efforts, support, enthusiasm, and encouragement!

Terry Nicholson and Sue Kilander, two very beautiful,
special women in my life deserve so many thanks for not only listening to me
talk incessantly about all my writing woes, but for always putting things back
into perspective.

Thank you to my amazing parents, Chuck and Julie, for always
encouraging me, reading whatever I write, and being honest enough to tell me
when changes need to be made. I'm so grateful to have been raised by two of the
most supportive parents I could have asked for.

Thank you to my biggest promoters, my wonderful mother and
father in law, Brent and Marcia, who have talked about the first book to more
people than I probably know! I'm so lucky to be a part of your family!

Finally, so many thanks belong to my incredible husband,
Seth, for his love and support. You've been a personal witness to those days
where discouragement takes over and writing just seems like an impossibility.
Thank you for not allowing me to quit and for ignoring me all those times I
claimed I'd never write another word again. You know me better than I know
myself.

In third grade, Melanie was given a school assignment to
write a paragraph describing what three things she'd bring with her on a desert
island. It turned into a twenty-five page story involving a monkey, a
parachute, and Tom Selleck (she'd never seen an episode of Magnum P.I., but
she'd heard Tom was good looking). From that point on, writing became one of her
greatest passions.

After years of fearing failure (or success), sitting on story
ideas only to see them show up years later in a movie or book, and remembering
the good ol' days of Tom Selleck fan fiction, she finally decided to finish a book
of her own. In summer of 2012, she chose to self-publish her first novel, Sea
Dweller, Book One in the Birthstone Series. She has several more books in the
works, including the last book in the Birthstone Series with Sai and Aylen, and
a few others about some of the side characters. Heiress is her second book made
available to purchase.

Sometimes, when she's not writing, Melanie is dreaming up
story ideas at random times, like on the drive to Costco or while carting her
four children from one activity to the next. She lives in Oregon with the
aforementioned kids and her geeky (but cute) husband who introduced her to the
fantasy genre and brought a couple real swords into the marriage. Visit her
blog
at http://www.cityofnethra.com or
find her on
Facebook
,
Amazon
,
and
Twitter
.