When I first posted this story on the Internet, I called it Shaken, and I was terrified about how it would be received. I’d written a thesis, a dissertation, scholarly articles and hundreds of research reports – but never fiction. My story wasn’t like the really good ones I’d read, those filled with elaborate imagery, or clever metaphor. Would people make fun of my simple prose? Would they criticize my dialogue or story? Would they take me to task over details that slipped through the cracks? I clicked on that first e-mail with trepidation: “Fantastic!” Okay, that one liked me. The e-mails trickled at first, and then flooded my inbox. Shaken was a hit. The very best part was hearing from other writers, the ones whose work I loved. My head couldn’t get through a double door.

When I finished the story, I immediately began thinking about what happened next to Anna & Lily. Unable to stop myself, I wrote the sequel, Stirred, and the follow-up, Strained. Not surprisingly, it became known as The Martini Series. <insert rolling eyes> The series was honored by the Xenaverse with a Swollen Bud Award (!), and inducted into the Royal Academy of Bards Hall of Fame.

With encouragement from another writer who was publishing her über tale, I cleaned up the grammar a bit in Shaken and submitted it to a Xenaverse press. Their rejection was disappointing, of course, but I held out hope for the story and tried again. The eventual publisher wanted the trilogy combined, and that meant shedding about half of its length. I’m thrilled with the chance from Bella to bring the story back in its original series form, and to write it anew as an experienced author.

I hope those reading this tale for the first time will enjoy it, and that those picking it up again will appreciate the revisions and additional scenes. If you like it, tip your hat to the Warrior Princess.